Welcome to Gaia! ::

Meanwhile, back in the cave...

Jasper felt intimidated slightly by these colorful newcomers- not just because of their outlandishly colored countenances, but the sense of austerity, of majesty, that each one of them exuded. Jasper muscled past his intimdation, and bowed deeply, respectfully.

"Jasper Davidsen, at your service, Majesty." Did I say that right? Majesties? Majesti? Majestium? Majest...

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you all." Thaum said gently. The others echoed similar phrases. "I'm sure you didn't come here for formalities." she continued, "You came here because you were promised answers."

"We can't answer all of your questions..." Adam cut in.

"But we can tell you what happened to Empyrea." Chloe finished.

"It is no short story, but we will do our best to condense it." Thaum was speaking again.

"We will begin with when the first signs of the infection began. If you want the history of Empyrea prior to that moment, it will be a story for another time."

From that point onwards, the seven spoke in turns.

"As you may have already been told, the reality in our world has been unstable for as long as we remember. Because of this, unusual happenings and visitors from other realms were never uncommon. Sometimes the visitors were friendly and we welcomed them. Should they wish to return home and could not on their own, we assisted them were we able.

"Other times they were hostile. And should they not leave upon our warnings, we removed them ourselves, were they too large a threat, one way or another.

"While this curious feature of Empyrea has proved most interesting, it has also been the source of many of our problems. The most recent of which is the MADHATTER. Never before has an enemy such as he come into our world. Anything from violent creatures to small bandit parties hoping to exploit our weak realty have come to our world, but never one such as the MADHATTER, nor the army he brought with him.

"A little more than four years ago, there were reports of a fluctuating area of reality in Empyrea, not far from where the MADHATTER’s castle now lies. Though reality has always been weak here, in some places more than others, it has always been regular, only giving way once every several years.

“It was as if someone, or something, was forcing the disturbance, trying to force its way into our world. This went on for two years. At first, strange plant life began to grow around the fluctuating area, followed shortly by wildlife. Though not unusual for Empyrea to host plants and small animals from neighboring worlds, it has never happened in such quantity and with such speed. Before the end of the first year, it no longer looked a part of our world.

“Following the first year, Empyreans around the fluctuations began to fall ill, and the new plant life and animals around the area reflected this. For a short while, the illness was contained within the area of the fluctuations, but it wasn’t long before it began to spread and quarantine was placed in the area, cutting it off from the rest of Empyrea.
“This held for the remainder of the second year. On the coming of the third year, the fluctuations worsened, as did the illness, which we now know is the infection that now plagues or land.

“Before long, unspeakable creatures began to make their way into our world, held back only by the quarantine. But it proved to be far too little.

“Soon after the coming of the creatures, a rift opened and several individuals, the MADmen, made their way into Empyrea. They were led by the MADHATTER and followed by an army of misshapen men.

“They came asking for help, but their actions belied their words. They brought the infection with them and they broke through the quarantine, allowing it to spill into the rest of Empyrea.

“We sent our army out to fight against this new enemy, but the more of us that fell, the larger their army became.

“With time, the fight spread to the other lands of Empyrea, leaving few areas untouched. For two years we have managed to keep them from spreading much further, but the MADHATTER and his army grows stronger as we grow weaker.

“We are slowly losing this fight. The Workmen may be a match for the MADmen, but with the MADHATTER on their side and the Infected Army plaguing our land, they have the upper hand. This standstill won’t last much longer.

“However, we suspect the MADmen to be losing power. Perhaps they are losing control of their army and the Infection, or perhaps an unknown third party threatens them. In any case, they were inclined enough to send out those letters and drag you into this.

“Luckily, the Workmen have been able to intercept their plans and meet up with several of their “guests”, including you, first and sway them to our side. However, this tactic was not perfect. Several of the guests were snagged by the MADmen first, or simply chose to take their side. As such, it has turned into a constant competition to convince any newcomers to join our side.”

“That brings us to right now.” Thaum said softly, “We are sorry to have given you the condensed version, but there is simply too much history to go through at this time. We must attend to the present. Are there any questions before we continue?”

***

Before Hunter had responded, Max glanced at his pocket watch and turned to Maria.

“Oh my. Maria, we must get going. We’re running late. Let the poor girl down, apologize, and let’s be on our way.”

He turned back around and gave a bow to the trees, “It’s been a pleasure, Hunter. A true shame we couldn’t speak. Perhaps another time, I’ll come alone and the poor girl needn’t be involved. My sincerest apologies for the disturbance, but I must bid you adieu.”

Maria knelt down and hesitantly put Dawn down and gently fixed her hair, “I’m sorry deary, I really am. I’m not quite sure what I was thinking, I’m not…”

Maria stood, glanced up toward the trees, and sneered.

“Come, sister, let’s get going.”

The rest echoed Arthur, reflecting a lack of questions and a willingness to continue.

"Excellent." Thaum began, "Then we wish for your assistance immediately. We have reason to believe that the MADmen are after Santa. Whether they're after his remains or if he still lives, we are uncertain, but their effort cannot be ignored. We need you to find Santa and dispose of him entirely. The remaining Elfs should assist you if you need it. The Yetis of the area are not always so cooperative, be cautious if you seek their assistance."

With that, the group was sent back to the tower room and through to the Snow Realm.

Having her own work to do, however, Cindy returned to the Wasteland, bidding the Guests farewell.

The Guests made their way to the forest behind door number four and, with time and collaboration, managed to find their way back to Dawn's tree house. Inside they found the Workman Hunter. After a brief introduction, Hunter agreed to guide the Guests to the Majesty of Colours. Before long, the Guests were standing in the massive underground garden waiting patiently as Hunter hailed the Majesty of Colours. Before long, the Majesty of Colours emerged from the treedoor and assembled before the Guests.

They listened patiently as the Guests explained what had happened when they crossed over to the Snow Realm. They were particularly interested in hearing Andreas' story.

"You have done well to keep the sample from the MADmen." Thaum began, then they started speaking in turns.

"We are particularly grateful that you burned the corpse. That will further prevent them from achieving their goal for some time. I can only imagine what they wanted with such a sample"

"This success was only possible because of the choices you made, Andreas. We are glad you saw the true face of the MADHATTER and made the right choice."

"You have all earned the right to rest. We know this must be a difficult adjustment for you and would have allowed you to rest earlier, but the matter in the Snow Realm could not be ignored."

"It is not within our power to return you to your rightful homes, but perhaps you could find your own way through exploration. Empyrea is a place of many wonders."

"If we have need of you again we will summon you. Your help will not go unrewarded."

"In the meantime, we ask that you make yourselves at home. I know that Empyrea seems like a hostile place, but that's only because of the influence of the MADmen. Doors three to seven should still be safe."

"We will answer what questions we can before you go on your way." Thaum offered. "Otherwise, we wish you well on your journey."

Arthur thought over this. Very carefully. A time to rest, to get to know this place. What that meant was that there was to be more. If they needed the time to rest, this matter would not be resolved quickly. The longer it took to resolve the matter, the less of a chance they'd actually make it home. Plain and simple, just like that.

"I'm not ready for a rest," Arthur announced. "Surely there's something else you can have us do. I want to end this, and any rest is too long." He folded his arms. This was the way it had to be.

Juliet remained silent. Follow her father, or breath? He hadn't been back there, fighting... she definitely needed some time to let her head clear. And she'd probably follow her partner's lead, anyway; didn't make much sense to split that up.

"Beyond the third door is the Iron Nation, which borders the Wasteland. They're quite similar and share the same technology, but the air is breathable and the infection hasn't breached its borders. When you pass through, you should find yourself near a city."

"Door seven will take you to one of Empyrea's most technologically-advanced realms. If technology exists that can bring you home, it will be there."

"Doors five and six lead to the Black and Red Kingdoms, respectively. They are always at odds with each other, but are not usually hostile towards strangers, especially during these trying times. You should be safe with either."

"As more the MADmen presence, very little activity from the MADmen has been reported from those realms and measures have been taken to help prevent the infection from entering their borders. Although there is no guarantee that the MADmen won't try to establish a presence, the inhabitants of all the Realms are capable of defending themselves. You should be safe for the short term."

"Unless you think you can kill the MADHATTER and his MADmen, I'm afraid we have nothing that you can do for us at this time. As we said, we have no objections to you going home if you can find your own way, but it is beyond our current power to send you home." Thaum calmly explained to Arthur.

"An' regardless, Art," Alastair continued. "Ya might be adjustin' just fine ta wha's happening, but do ya really think it's righ' ta keep these lads going withou' givin' them a chance ta wrap their heads aroun' all this? Some of us were gettin' shot at, ya know? Rushin' forward won't solve anythin'. Especially when they already sai' they can't take us home. We should take this chance ta rest an' figure thin's out from there."

Ro nodded in agreement. "Yeah, we haven't really rested since we got here. It'd be nice to clear my thoughts. Besides, how often do you get to explore another world?" He flashed a cheesy smile. There was nothing he would love more than to go home, but that wasn't going to happen. Ro figured that he might as well make the best of things while he's stuck here, and exploring the safe areas of a unique world seemed to him a good way to do that.

"I'm not obligating any of you to go with me," Arthur noted. "I won't be able to relax until what needs to be done is done, and it's clearly not. There has to be some interest that they're threatening right now. I mean, this is a war, right? Where's the fighting taking place? I can help your people there, heal your wounded. I don't begruge anyone a rest, I just can't have one right now."

Juliet sighed. Yes, this was normal. "Alastair, don't push him on this," she whispered to her partner. "He won't give it up. He'll keep at it until he gets something to do that he can quantify as moving towards an end objective, in this case defeating the MADmen and going home. That said, I think it'd be nice to uh. Get a change of pace, y'know?"