The Blight
Artwork by IcarusDragons
The Blight
Written by Stasanie
Strange rumours have been circulating about this forest… and you have to admit that the silence is quite unnerving. The lack of bird song gives you a lingering feeling that something about this place isn't right. Just as you are about to resume your journey through this unfamiliar wilderness, a lurching groan echoes through the woods - stopping you in your tracks. You hear the distinct sound of wood splintering as a tree bends and snaps under the weight of some unseen presence. A primal feeling blooms in your gut, urging you to flee. You back away slowly, back towards the entrance of this grove… and as you turn to leave, a terrible roar rattles through the forest, shaking the needles from pine trees and clattering the small stones at your feet.
You run.
Fowldyr are unique inhabitants of Tyrth who are long lived due to their lives being tethered to their vessels. The destruction of a fowldyr’s vessel is a devastating event. The moment a vessel is destroyed, the tether snaps and the connection to the vessel is lost. All of the energy stored in the vessel is released, and the fowldyr is rendered mortal.
The destruction of a vessel is rarely done with ill intent. A sacred tree burned by a wildfire is an unfortunate act of nature. A vase knocked off its pedestal and shattered on the floor is a tragic accident. Fowldyr treasure their vessels and go to great lengths to protect them from these mishaps.
But what happens when a fowldyr’s vessel is destroyed intentionally?
It is said that when a fowldyr’s vessel is destroyed as an act of malice, the pent up energy inside the vessel becomes corrupted, congealing into a horrific physical form as it leaves the broken vessel. This entity is known as the blight, a creature of pure malevolence and hostility that cannot be reasoned with. The blight feeds on the life force of living creatures - absorbing them into its writhing mass to slowly consume them. The beast always hungers and never tires. It drags its distorted body across the realm of Tyrth seeking out prey, growing larger with every creature it adds to its amalgamation of limbs and putrid mana.
The blight can only be weakened by arcana. Physical attacks against the creature without the enhancement of arcana will have little effect on it. For this reason, fowldyr are especially adept at warding off blight and cleansing the evil this creature radiates. It is thought that fowldyr feel a sense of responsibility when it comes to protecting Tyrth from the blight. The blight only exists because fowldyr exist, and while not all broken vessels cause blight to spawn, it is nonetheless a plague that fowldyr have unleashed onto the realm.
If a fowldyr's vessel is broken and blight is spawned as a result, they say that the fowldyr will intrinsically sense that this blight is theirs. Even if their vessel breaks many miles away... if the fowldyr crosses paths with the blight that came from it they will experience a strange and uneasy feeling, like a sickening sense of connection to the abomination that formed from their own magic.
The First Calamity
The first historical record of the blight occurred on the same day that a strange event occurred; a large, visible crack appeared on the surface of the second moon. Ever since this day, the second moon began to be referred to as the Carved Moon. Tyrthians would not make the connection between the crack appearing in the moon and the arrival of the blight... after all, it's just a coincidence right?
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