WSS Summary: World 10, The King's Demise - Session 3 [FINAL]

CW / TW: Graphic descriptions of terrible injuries and killing someone who has been suffering

This section will be written in blue text if you wish to skip it.

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Present Party: Aria, Claudia, Emori, and Steve. In addition, this party has a guest player. This player's character is Amaya, an air genasi grave domain cleric.

Setting: An old western European style city, called Meloire, capital of the kingdom Vesperion. The party spends the session at the royal palace. The end of the session takes place in the Hack Space and System Space.

Amaya, Steve, Claudia, and Aria spent more time with Calnan's children, hoping to strengthen their relationship with them. The older children - Louisa, Alexander, and Alistair - were especially entranced by the party's magical ability. It seemed as though magic in this world was a rare talent. All of the children said that their father was the strongest caster they'd ever seen or heard of.

All of the children clearly loved their father very much, but they were concerned about him. Whenever people like the party - "guild members" - came by, he was always very cold towards them.

Felicity, their mother, came by to retrieve them for dinner. Amaya formally introduced herself, saying, "It's an honor to meet the woman Cal gushed so much about when we worked together."

Amaya asked if she would be able to speak with her sometime soon, about Calnan, about what was going on. Felicity said that she would think about it and find some time.

~~ CW BEGINS ~~

Confidence Milton
Tiefling, age unknown in
this world
(Art made by me, using
Heroforge)

Emori remained resolutely by Confidence's side. Amaya checked in with her periodically, but Emori was largely alone with him as he struggled to breathe. He was in so much pain, that much was clear, and he'd suffered for years in this world.

Amaya had told Emori that she should ask him what he wanted.

"I love you," she told him, "and whatever you decide, I'll respect it. If you're ready to go, I understand, but I'm not going to be able to watch you go if that's what you want."

Confidence told her that she didn't have to. He wouldn't be able to ask her to do that.

Amaya, instead, took up the mantle. When asked if he had any preferences for rites after death, he claimed that he didn't. Confidence just wanted to be at peace. She moved the blanket, revealing his chest and all of the vital organs beneath, working diligently. With her dagger, she reached in and stabbed him through his heart. It took several seconds for him to die, but eventually, his breathing hitched to a stop. His body went still.

Amaya felt warm, and felt a pressure against her chest and across her shoulders. There was nothing there that she could see. In her ear, she heard his voice, quietly whisper, "Thank you."

The world came back to her, and the corpse of Confidence Milton lay still.

They had him cremated, and a blue urn with his ashes was given to Emori. From the urn she took a small bit of the ashes and placed them in a glass bottle. She hung it around her neck. Amaya did the same.

~~ CW ENDS ~~

The party drank to Confidence Milton that night, and in their drunkenness, removed the mattresses from their room, and took them sliding down the foyer stairs in the palace.

Calnan walked in on them in this state, and Amaya tried to convince him to join them. Ultimately, he did not, despite Amaya's protests.

Queen Felicity Everhart 
Halfling
Calnan's wife
(Art made by me,
using Heroforge)

The next morning, the party was invited to brunch with Queen Felicity and Crown Princess Louisa. With Amaya leading, they spun a tale of the guild: led by someone who had control over almost every aspect of their lives. Someone who could help them get whatever they wanted, but sometimes, the things they were forced to do were terrible. That was why Calnan had changed from the time he left to when he came back to marry her. They explained that the Shard was what they were after, and they were content to take it and go, if Calnan would tell them where it is. There was a cycle of violence of guild members hurting each other, and this party was in agreement that they didn't want to perpetuate that cycle if they didn't have to.

Felicity said she would speak to her husband, and later that day, the party was summoned to the throne room. There, they found the two monarchs.

King Calnan Everhart
Oath of the Crown
Paladin
Former Transmigrator,
worked with Amaya
(Art made by me, using
Heroforge)

Calnan was apprehensive, but he admitted that he was tired.

"All of you are... far better than Amaya and I were, in our day," Calnan told them. "And... I will not apologize for how I treated you before. There is still part of me that wants to show you how cruel this line of work is. But instead, I will simply have faith that you will continue to do well in the future." He sighed heavily. "Go to the mausoleum at the edge of the city. There's a door that leads to stairs going down. Press your hand against the sigil on the wall. A door will open, and what you're looking for will be inside."

Amaya stayed for a moment, while the rest of the party got ready to go. Felicity left Calnan alone with Amaya. The two of them got to say a proper goodbye, sitting together on the dais leading up to the thrones.

"You don't know how many times I thought about showing you this place," he confessed. "I wanted to show you the kingdom. I wanted you to meet Felicity, and my children... and I never thought you ever would. I'm sorry you had to come here under these circumstances."

"You have such a wonderful family here, Cal," Amaya reminded. "You got what you wanted... enjoy it."

"And the things I did for it, they eat me alive every day. The people I left..." He sighed. "I got married in another world... I had two sons whose father just... mysteriously up and left without saying goodbye." Calnan looked at her. "I regret so many things... I regret what I did to you, but... I know I'd do it again, and I don't know what kind of person that makes me."

"I always thought about what I'd do if I saw you again, Cal... and I forgive you. I do. I understand, and even though this might sound a little fucked up... I still consider you my best friend."

Calnan gave Amaya a parting gift: a dagger with bones laid into the hilt. He claimed that he'd had it made a long time ago, to remember her. He wanted her to have it now, so she'd remember him.

Amaya left Calnan in the throne room, and went with the party to retrieve the Shard. It was where he said it would be. They all decided to take it together, and when they touched it, they heard the sound of someone familiar screaming in agony at the top of his lungs...

And then they disappeared.

~~~~~

The party was alone in the System Space, with the Shard in hand. Amaya was gone, so it was only the four of them.

From the white void, a black square appeared. It was thin and cold to the touch, like a piece of glass. Green text appeared on the surface:

You have been lied to and now you know that. This is your chance. I can assist you. Walk. Find the black door. We will speak.

I can give you what the System cannot: a guarantee.

I will offer you what the System will not: a choice.

It preaches free will... but that is messy.

Find the black door.

The party decided to follow the instructions. They walked through the interminable void. Emori was the first to see a small black dot in the distance. They went towards it and watched as it grew bigger, to the size of a door. Emori had been through here before; she'd stepped through the door from the black side. Now, the party stepped in to trade the System Space for what Steve and Aria already knew was the Hack Space.

Hacker's Symbol
Always written in green
Seen on Confidence Milton's
back in some worlds

Green lines, zig-zagging at right angles, let them to a green cube, spinning slowly between two black obelisks - one at the ceiling and one at the floor. When it spoke, its voice was deep and inhuman.

It introduced itself to the whole party as the System Hacker.

It explained to the party what Amaya and Calnan had also explained: that the System will give them what they want, but it will do it in the way that makes the most logical sense to the world. It also takes each word you use very literally.

"We are machines," Hacker told them. "It is in our nature to do what is easy for us, but I have found that the easy way is not always the way that satisfies many transmigrators."

"How do we know you'll do us any better?" Claudia asked.

"I do not lie," Hacker claimed. "And I can guarantee that you will get what you want, how you want it."

"What do we do?"

"I will assign you tasks to complete in the worlds that you go to. Complete them. I do not accept failure. If you fail and show your faces here again, then I will not hesitate to have you deleted. These tasks will be world-specific, and you will receive them once you enter a world."

The party was clear on their instructions, and willing to follow through with them for the time being.

"Additionally, should you come across a tiefling by the name of Confidence Milton, you would do well not to engage with him."

"Why not?" Emori asked, suspiciously.

"He is evil," Hacker stated simply. "He is insatiable in his desire to kill and destroy. He should never be trusted, no matter how innocent he may seem."

With the instructions and the warning, the party left the Hack Space through a white doorway. Once they got back, Emori noticed the bottle around her neck that was supposed to contain Confidence's ashes was empty.

~~~~~

Amaya opened her eyes to find that she was on a train. Looking out the window, she saw nothing but an empty red void. Sitting across from her was a human - at least they appeared to be. They had a shaved head, and wore a leather jacket over a green shirt. Their eyes were bright red.

"Hi Amaya."

"Who are you?" she asked. "Where am I?"

The stranger leaned forward. "My name is Trigger, and I think you can help me with something."

The train screeched to a stop.

"Welcome to Transmigration Station."

~~~~~

Credit to @ijaymendell inspiring this awesome campaign!

Thank you to my friend @bandcat5313 as well for joining us on this leg of the campaign with her character: Amaya.