We begin this story with four figures converging on a forest trail, the dark clouds offering up the only greeting they can as heavy rain starts to fall, obscuring the travelers from one another just as they take notice to sudden company. Chance meetings were nothing out of the ordinary on this particular road, even (or perhaps especially) between adventurers such as these. It was, after all, the famous path leading to the world’s most renowned artifact, a fabled item known as the Philosopher’s Stone. Countless treasure seekers from all walks of life had struck out in an attempt to find this prize, only to go missing or return with nothing but anguish to show for their efforts. For while the location of the ruined city of Ramshala was easily identified on any modern map, the journey to this place always led the traveler elsewhere. Once situated on a high mesa, the technologically-advanced community of scholars and artificers was wiped out half a century before in a mysterious explosion of fire and lightning, leaving behind little other than rumors and a promise. It is this promise, the opportunity to seize the ultimate power, that has brought these four together on this day.
Each of them hail from a different background, but their exploits are similarly well known throughout the kingdom. Yet regardless of their reputations as celebrated inventor or reviled pariah, disenchanted whore or optimistic saint, these four stand now before a bridge in the forest, and the rain does well to break the silence. Short introductions are made, though one line of communication goes unheard; Cojaxx, a female kalashtar with a born talent for telepathy, keeps up her mental conversation with the man she had been traveling with, a deva whose only given name is Claw. Divac, a genasi with an imposing sword, picks up on this hidden channel as does Aerevan, an established inventor in the region. The four carry on their conversations two-fold as Aerevan checks his map, noting that this bridge is nowhere to be found. They are audible in their wonder of this location, even as they secretly know the truth: the search for the Stone has brought them farther than any before, and now only the wild unknown stands before them and their collective goal.
Before any partnership can be made, or perhaps a less cooperative reaction, a distant thumping is felt and the group strains to see through the heavy rain. In the distance, just beyond the bridge, a hanging lantern swings idly from a black tower, its dark stone just barely standing out against the dusk sky in this extreme weather. The thumping continues, until it manifests on all sides: slowly trotting along the thick mud are a handful of giant beasts, reptilian in nature but resembling something more of a blue rhinoceros. Divac’s knowledge of the natural world was unsurpassed in the group and he identifies them immediately as Bluespawn Stormlizards. They had come with the storm, crossing the river and bringing with them a desperate hunger as suggested by their withered frames. Though the beasts were starved, their powers were nevertheless potent” an arc of lighting touched down from the now-angry sky above, to be absorbed by a massive horn. Launching into the fray with a melancholic bellow, the alpha male sought to trample the group as they stood together. In the ensuing battle, the four exercise their abilities: Aerevan’s skill in the arcane forces of frost came in handily as he immobilized the beasts on the muddy trail; Divac shifted his form to be one with the thunder, an immunity he displayed in the face of a direct-hit from the creatures’ lightning attacks; Claw’s affinity for stealthy allows him to become one with the cover of the rain, positioning himself for dizzying displays of martial prowess; Cojaxx soothed the beasts with her telepathy, but could not control their muddled rage. As the battle progresses, an elderly woman appears from the balcony of the tower and shouts, holding aloft the lantern, “Travelers, come to me! My tower will shelter you from those creatures!” The four are skeptical at first, and seem to be holding their own with the beasts, but then something strange occurs: botching a psychic attack, Cojaxx feels a cold chill down her back; the earth churns, and two words appear in the minds of the adventurers, “The Avalanche”.
Moments pass, and to the west a great wall of collapsing earth, stone, and tree surges forward as would a tidal wave or, perhaps, an avalanche. The four scramble to cross the bridge, dodging the remaining beasts as well as forward flying boulders flung low and fast, each reaching the tower in short enough order. Claw in particular arrives first, having scaled the side of the building and entering through the balcony where the elderly woman stood a minute before. Finding no sign of her, he takes the lantern and navigates through the tower foyer: a grand dining table is beset on either side by a massive staircase that seems to scale to the top of the tower. Along with this table, a roaring fireplace and the tall entrance doors make up the base of the building. As the last of them scramble in, the tower shakes and heaves as if struck by the avalanche — yet such is not true. The magical structure instead lifts off into the sky, flying quickly to reach an altitude far higher than any had flown before, the many windows giving view to the surrounding countryside below before all becomes dark and only stars remain. Peering about this strange place, Divac realizes the table is set with their most favored foods and drink, and the genasi wastes no time in seating himself to partake. Aerevan and Cojaxx soon join, while Claw slinks about the stairs, eying the top where another large door stands. Before he can make it to the top, however, a figure emerges from behind the doors and slowly begins to descend; it is an elderly man, dressed in fine robes, and he calls out a welcome to the seated guests. At the head of the table, the previously seen woman appears from nothing and welcomes them as well. They are Kirin and Telana, respectively, and they have been watching the four for a very long time. They are the guardians of the lost city of Ramshala and they are in desperate need.
Both Divac and Aerevan knew of these figures, for they were rumored to be two of the greatest minds in all of the world. Assuming their claims were true, and judging from the tower’s interior there was little doubt to be had, the elderly couple were none other than the creators of the Philosopher’s Stone. Telana raised her glass and nodded to Divac, who was making himself out to be the vocal one of the four, stating that they were indeed the creators of the stone, along with many other wondrous items throughout the years. One such artifact, the Deck of Whimsical Luck, was made while researching the stone and they had taken the liberty of attuning it to the group as they approached the tower in hopes of providing a boon; whenever the four performed any action heroically or dismally, the Deck would come into play and help tip the scales depending on one’s luck. They did this because they have a proposition to make: assist them in finding and destroying the stone, so that it does not fall into the wrong hands, and in return they would be rewarded with everything the couple had to offer, including their vast knowledge and powerful artifacts. Why the two had sought out these such four was unknown, for the promise of unimaginable power from the Stone was ignored by few, much less these seekers.
While they spoke, Claw continued to make his way up to the top of the staircase. Coming to the door, he slowly creeps in to find a strange laboratory containing many items of personal note. As soon as he shuts the door behind him, Kirin looks up from the table and claps his hands, suddenly shifting the table’s location from a cozy locale to that of the laboratory. No sooner had Claw turned from the closed door did he see his companions and two hosts sitting before him at the table, now positioned at the middle of the strange lab. The seated three were baffled by the teleportation for only a moment, before setting their eyes on the surrounding chamber; numerous charts and scales depicting the four were pinned up in observation as well as mathematical formulas filling chalk boards that were beset on all sides. Hung near the walls were weapon and armor stands, containing every discarded piece of magical equipment the individuals had used in their travels throughout the nearby kingdoms. It would seem that the elderly couple had not been lying, and had indeed been keeping an eye on the four for a very long time. Slightly creeped out but convinced of their determination, Claw seats himself and agrees with his would-be team mates that this is a journey worthy of their time. With this sentiment of cooperation, a map of the city is laid out, and the couple begin to describe the situation. The tower, now floating through astral space, speeds towards the shrouded domain where Ramshala now rests.
