The Sundown

X Worldbuilders:

GM James R

The Sundown of Kragnux the Fang-Fisted (Or just The Sundown) was a series of events taking place over the course of two months in 795 PR that ultimately led to the return of Bahamut and the banishment of Kragnux.

Background

The Friends of Kragnux, the realm's biggest religion of Kragnux (Deity) worshipers, was undergoing a war on two fronts during 795 PR. The realm was now aware that Tiamat had been making appearances over the last two years, and one of her heralds, known as Ith, was terrorizing Levinkan, posing a danger to the church's headquarters. As the church made deal after deal, bringing in 3rd parties such as The Gathering Shadow and The Best Around, they were still stretching their resources thin.

Without an army large enough to fight Ith, the Church devised a plan to destroy Ith without having to face him in lethal combat.

The Plan Against Ith

Devised by Scholar Merkal Fackler, the church determined they could entrap Ith in a Draconic Soul Cell much like the one he was released from. But instead of temporarily encasing him in a prison, the plan followed on the violent ways of Kragnux and would destroy the very soul of Ith himself. The steps of the plan required 5 magical artifacts, 4 of which were not in the Church's possession and would need to be taken from other powerful forces. The plan was summarized as follows in the church's briefing:

Use an Arcanic Amplifier on the Soul Star to capture the soul of Ith and place it into the Spirit Staff of Naven, using the spirit staff with the Staff of Noesis, we can implant Ith's soul into a Draconic Soul Cell. Once the soul cell contains the essence of Ith, a Wand of Orebliteration removes any presence or echo of the stonework from this plane and all others, erasing Ith from existence.

In detail, the steps to execute this plan were as follows:

Step 1: Enhance the Soul Star

• The Soul Star alone could now house a soul as massive and powerful as a dragon's, as such, the Arcanic Amplifiers needed to be expertly attached to the Soul Star by one of the church's artificers.

Step 2: Trap Ith's Spirit

• As the church learned the hard way, anyone who physically touches the Soul Star will be pulled into its demi-plane interior. This teleportation will capture the body and soul of Ith in another plane.

Step 3: Transfer the Soul to the Staff

• The Spirit Staff of Naven, now having long lost it's original soul, was now an empty vessel, looking for a soul to fill it. The church had figured that the staff could fill itself with a new soul if given the right artifact to pull from. Using the staff to pull Ith's soul out of the Soul Star was no cakewalk, and only a truly powerful mage could do it. Upon success, Ith's body would be trapped in the Soul Star and his soul bound to the Staff.

Step 4: Reimbue the Soul Cell

• By holding the Spirit Staff of Naven in one hand and the Staff of Noesis in the other, a spellcaster's body could become a channel, allowing the Staff of Noesis (which typically pulls souls from the Astral Plane) to instead pull and place a soul from the Spirit Staff of Naven. In this case, placing the soul into the Draconic Soul Cell. However, only someone with an amazing constitution and strong will could let the legendary magic flow through them without killing them.

Step 5: Obliterate the Cell and Soul

• Using the Wand of Orebliteration, the Draconic Soul Cell (made of stone) could be shattered, and due to the magical obliteration (functioning similar to an orb of similar name), the soul inside would also be decimated, shredded into nonexistence.

The Battle of Three Fists

With their artifacts finally gathered, the Friends were ready to finally destroy Ith once and for all. Thanks to the alliances formed while gathering the Arcane Amplifiers, the church members were joined by paladins and clerics of Bahamut, fighting to protect Kragnux and keep him from suffering Bahamut's fate. A handful of The Levinkan's greatest warriors also joined the church for the oncoming battle, including Diegar, who had joined the team the year before during The Infernal Emergence.

The Friends' Fistfight

Pope Zarachiel suddenly fell sick after Kragnux's banishment. As he was an angel of Kragnux, he was quickly feeling his entire holy essence fading away. This worried the church, who was caught off guard by the development, and had now lost their leader. Believing this to be a sign that the worst was to come, they swiftly gathered their forces and handed out the artifacts to enact the plan.

The Artifacts were distributed as follows:

• The Crusaders would protect the Soul Cell at all costs

• Mahogany would be given the Soul Star, now boosted with Arcanic Amplifiers
• Bastienne, a powerful druid, would be given the Spirit Staff of Naven
• Diegar would be given the Staff of Noesis
• Reesec would be given the Wand of Orebliteration

The fighters prepared themselves on the roof of the church, where they presumed Ith would land. However, upon Ith's arrival, he immediately fell through the ceiling, crashing into the main altar, where The Battle of Chad had been held 2 years prior.

During the ensuing chaos, several members of the church and The Best Around were killed while trying to trap Ith's soul, including Galefast and Bird Person.

Diegar would try to fight and protect the Staff of Noesis while Ith's soul was still trying to be contained, but he would fail and be caught by Ith. It was at that point that Caligna would appear to the church, having traveled in time to this battle from The Battle of the Clockwork Dragon, where Chronepsis needed him to assist his friends. He would pick up the staff from his unconscious body and join the fight, becoming the channel needed to pull Ith's soul from the Staff into the Soul Cell.

Finally, Reesec ultimately wielded the wand of orebliteration, and upon using it on the soul cell, an explosive finale marked the end of the battle, shattering Ith's presence from this plane and all others.

Aftermath

Minutes after the bargain was completed and the battle had ended, the surviving combatants were shocked to see an aspect of Bahamut himself descend upon the ruins of the church. Heartfelt and gracious, Bahamut explained the bargain the had just occurred, redeeming Kragnux and declaring that he would not let his story die, even if Kragnux could no longer serve the realm as a deity. Bahamut admits that Kragnux's platform of blind hatred was foolish, but Kragnux's spirit put aside all fame and religious glory for the sake of the realm, a sacrifice that no one should forget any time soon.

For his first holy action, Bahamut banished the undead known as Bastienne, allowing him to still live, but in the form of The Book of Kragnux, a sentient book that would forever praise Kragnux's deeds.