The Wandering Isles: Session 60
In a moment that bent time and identity, Slate reached out to take a familiar hand—his own, though from another life entirely. As the two selves merged, memory and presence became one.
He found himself standing in a park before a tree, faced with a choice: a flawless apple or a worn pear. He chose the pear. The world shifted, and he was suddenly seated at the dinner table from his youth. A girl entered—Lyra, his daughter—and moments later, a man who was also himself walked in. Slate struck, but his counterpart bled black and warned that this path only led to ruin.
Refusing to fight or submit, Slate drew upon lessons learned from his allies—especially Hatsu—and took control of the vision as though it were a lucid dream. The world reshaped into a blend of a laboratory and the city of Palperroth. Flashes of memory came to him: a tiny hand grasping his own, burning parchment, a bloodied CRU badge, and a scream—his wife’s. Marianna. He remembered her strength, her love, and the birth of Lyra. He also remembered the fear when Lyra’s powers emerged, and the tragedy that followed when CRU came for them.
In his grief and desperation, Slate made a bargain with Dr. Emilia Harrow to protect his family, leading him down a dark road of experiments, betrayals, and infiltration. At some point, his memories were stolen from him—until now.
The vision faded, and his companions grounded him with their words. Amaedrianna reminded him that who he was mattered less than what he would choose to do next. Hatsu urged him to move forward.
They regrouped with Stella Maleficum, who revealed the danger of Vathros—an entity growing stronger by stealing memories from every Seal it touched. Her voice broke as she admitted, “Remembering is what made him strong.” Before they could react, the Seal began to tear open.
What followed was not just one life, but many. Eldrin experienced a series of alternate paths—different gods, roles, and fates—each ending in loss or corruption. He saw himself as a scholar, a guard, a librarian, a conqueror, even a servant of the Unnamed One. Each vision tested his convictions, forcing him to confront the dangers of power and the fragility of choice.
The group’s journey carried them into the Archive, a broken hall of crystal domes showing each of them a “false ending” to their lives. They were given a cruel choice: surrender a treasured memory or live forever in their best moment. One by one, they gave something dear—Hatsu the scent and taste of his mother’s bread, Eos the moment she first felt her goddess’s presence, Amaedrianna her first flight of freedom, Eldrin his first moment of trust with the group, Weslyn the faces and voices of his family. Slate, having just regained his past, sacrificed the words to Weslyn’s Song of Summer—a piece of himself that could never be replaced. Even Chicken the Fox gave something before the door ahead opened.
The corridor led them out of the book—straight into chaos. Dash Heidmann stood over a volcano’s edge, the Molten Crown, and dropped the book into the lava. Amaedrianna escaped last, and Slate dove after the falling tome. Eldrin and Amaedrianna tried to stop him, but Slate claimed it and vanished from sight.
What followed was a desperate chase—Hatsu trying to reason with him, Eldrin searching from the skies, and Slate shield-surfing down the mountainside to escape. Weslyn attempted to draw upon the volcano’s immense power to forge a weapon against Virethorn, but the creature itself stopped him, erasing his magic. Eos, her staff transformed into a scythe, opened a portal to trap Slate.
His escape blocked, a new confrontation was inevitable.
