In the Throes of Adventure | Into Stickweave Forest!

The sun peeked just over the horizon and its dull orange glow illuminated the dirt paths of Stickweave Village. At the end of a particular dirt path off the main road — and lined with small, lightless stone lanterns — stood a lonely wooden shack, held together by vines and force of will.

Oggin the Fire Sage, with his flaming ears, ornately designed red and gold cape, and shining ring suspended parallel with his back, yawned as he flipped the Questing Board over and pinned the latest Adventure Briefs to it with tiny stone nails.

As the sun drifted higher and higher into the sky, the small shack at the end of the path was crowded with Gooeys eager to nab a quest — it was Questing Day after all!

Oggin, for one, hated Questing Day.

Every overzealous Gooey with the slightest bit of magical training felt like they could take on the world. His own pupil, Meden, hadn’t even undertaken his first quest until he’d achieved the second tier of Fire magic mastery. His peers in the sagely arts rarely agreed with his harsh stances…

Which is how poor Oggin had ended up running the Questing Shack. Bets were made. Pride was lost. As it turned out, some Gooeys really did have what it took to achieve greatness with little-to-no-training.

However, the mass of wiggling Gooeys before him certainly seemed ill-prepared at best. For the next hour-and-a-half, Oggin initiated the lottery system that governed Questing Day.

Every participant would draw a small colored stone from a veiled jar, and four of each color were available for picking. Each color corresponded to a particular region: pink for Stickweave Forest, blue for Coral Cove, brown for the Tar Pits, red for the Burning Skies, green for the Dreadful Copse, black for the Owlkin Massif.

There were other quests available, but only for the strongest Gooeys. Some questing locales were hidden, while others were strange landmarks that required specialized knowledge to navigate.

While Oggin explained these things to the eager questers, he noticed Mushroomhead’s student at the back of the group — her pink arms folded, golden ears drooped, and her matching eyes full of disappointment at the stone she’d pulled… Pink.

Sage was quite skilled thanks to her master, who had worked with her quite a while to circumvent her magical handicaps. The little Gooey produced far too much aura to control, which led Mushroomhead to devise a devious solution so she could functionally use magic:

Sage learned to imbue Glass Pearls from Coral Cove with her aura.

Sage’s aura seemed to resonate with the minerals inside the pearls which created spell capsules for her to use in combat as needed — each pearl’s hue determined the elemental magic it would produce upon its use.

She was at her best when Basil, her fellow student, was around. However, he opted to pursue the study of their magical land with the Goostorians instead. Together they were able to cast impossibly powerful magic, but now, Sage required a bit more care to ensure she avoided aura explosions.

In addition to her capsules, Sage wore a strange contraption that was dug into the goo on her right side. A siphon for her aura, it enabled her to collect the excess her body produced, diffuse the energy, and empty it onto the ground without risk of explosion.

And after overcoming all of these hurdles, Sage had pulled a stone for the easiest quest available — gathering fruit in the Stickweave Forest. Oggin brushed his sympathy for her aside, and wrapped up his over-practiced Questing Day speech.

“And with that!” He paused dramatically. “Find your Questing Crews and be on your way. For those traveling to the Burning Skies, Dreadful Copse, and the Owlkin Massif, you will be chaperoned by a Sage.”

Oggin ended his speech with a heavy sigh.

He had yet to chaperone any Gooeys since he was burdened with the shack — while Questing Day was special, older Gooeys often stopped by the shack daily to embark on quests, which left Oggin tied to his duty far more often than he’d like.

Looking over the organizing mass of goo, he saw three eccentric Gooeys moving toward Sage. Perhaps he could spare a little time to chaperone a group; the older Gooeys knew the drill by now with questing.

He turned back to the shack and spied an Adventure Brief with Amelie’s seal on it — a special assignment set aside for Sages Brandt and Steeple. They were quite proficient practitioners of Water and Light magics, and were seasoned questers.

As he grabbed the sealed note, the wind gusted and scattered some papers accompanying it onto the cabin floor.

“Master Oggin! I get to be a chaperone today, and you’ll never guess where I’m headed,” Meden, Oggin’s student, shouted over the crowd.

Oggin grinned wide, forgetting the papers. He quickly pinned the brief to the board and moved to greet his student.

Sage looked up at the three Gooeys that stood before her. Each had an air of unease about them, and it already irritated her.

“Listen up you three! This may be the easiest quest out there, but I will not tolerate failure. Got it?” Sage huffed and looked toward the tree line.

The Gooey to her left with the pearlescent body covered in heart-shaped markings and a mask with swirling magical runes spoke first.

“My, uh, name miss, is, uh, Kiyoshi. I, well, maybe it’s better I show you.”

Kiyoshi held out his hand and rubbed his fingers together. After a short moment, sparks erupted into the air. Sage’s eyes widened. She had never seen a Gooey perform lightning magic before!

“Oh lightning — ”

“No, actually. We’re, uh, not really sure what it is,” Kiyoshi sighed. “I, uh, have found I’m good at getting people to, well, tell me things. Master Brandt thinks it may be a sort of, hm, enchantment magic.”

“Well, you’re a bit like me then there, Kiyoshi. Weird magical abilities and all,” Sage’s irritation returned as she cut her sentence short. “You, with the stick thing on your head. Who are you?”

A blue Gooey with peach eyes and tree horns carried a small mass of goo on his head, with tiny stones for eyes, twigs for arms, and a tiny fruit peel cape. The absurdity of it all made Sage’s eye twitch.

“Bentbranch and Curled Twig at your service miss…”

“Sage. Just call me Sage.”

“Ah okay, miss Sage!”

Sage rolled her eyes, and Bentbranch smiled… oblivious. His blue-tinged tree horns glowed faintly and the air around him shimmered slightly.

“Hey… Weren’t you one of Gumbo’s students?” Sage asked as she looked him up and down again.

Gumbo may have been exiled with the rest of the Droplet Society, but his genius could not be ignored. Maybe this one would be useful after all?

“Always formerly, miss Sage!”

Perhaps not.

A ghostly looking Gooey with blue eyes and ears drifted forward and reached out his hand to shake Sage’s. She took it and felt the strength behind it — this Gooey had experience.

“Casper,” he said.

“Sage! This seems to be everyone, yes?”

The quartet turned around — almost in unison — to see Oggin towering above them.

“I would like to show you something! Please follow me.”

Sage and Casper shrugged at each other and the newly formed Questing Crew fell in line behind the Fire Sage.

They moved swiftly through the trees of Stickweave Forest, tinged purple and blue with magical light. As they ventured deeper into the forest — and far from the usual fruit harvesting areas — every few meters, there seemed to be large, luminescent crystals protruding from the ground.

“Where are we, Master Oggin?” Sage muttered, awe slipping into her voice.

“Sage! Good question. Stickweave has many more mysteries to uncover than you young Gooeys are led to believe.” Oggin stopped for a moment, perhaps pondering what to say next. “For example… If you travel eastward from here, you would arrive at the Droplet Society archives — but don’t you dare venture that way!”

Oggin directed his words at the oblivious Bentbranch, who with wide eyes, had rushed in the direction Oggin had suggested. The small Gooey stopped short and tumbled over himself a few times; grumbling and muttering as he got up.

“Now! I’m going to show you something only the most experienced Questers know about,” Oggin said, his voice dripping with wondrous allure.

The group ventured onward for a bit and through a particularly thick patch of trees and undergrowth until they came across a barely perceivable path marked by two glowing lanterns. Luminant flames danced within them, pulsing with a rainbow of saturated colors.

“That’s, uh, hm, Fae Fire, uh, Master Oggin!” Kiyoshi broke from the group and pushed up close to the lanterns to study the phenomenon.

“Good eye, Kiyoshi! Whenever you are out in the lands, keep your eyes out for Fae Fire. You may stumble across something incredible,” Oggin’s eyes sparkled as he spoke.

“Well then! Let’s cross into the Shrine of the Elder Goo.”

They pushed through the trees to reveal an august statue that glowed and vibrated with magical power. The young Gooeys had only ever heard stories of the Elder Goo — they had never seen his likeness portrayed before.

The icon sparkled with pearlescent stone, the Elder Goo’s grand mask with harsh eyes and a long beak was tilted toward the tree tops. Three of his four arms held out different objects — one full of fruit, another depicting the four elemental magics, and the third gripping a staff.

The fourth was extended downward where the Gooeys could reach if they climbed onto the small pedestal in front of the statue.

Sage, Kiyoshi, Casper, and Bentbranch couldn’t help but stare for a few minutes before Oggin finally spoke again.

“Young Gooeys! Each of you shall place your hand in the hand of the Elder Goo. Doing so will bestow you a blessing,” Oggin was struggling to contain his enthusiasm. “Sage, you first!”

Taking a deep breath, she shuffled forward and pulled herself onto the stone slab adjacent to the hand. She reached out, hesitantly at first, but suddenly felt compelled to touch the shining stone hand. As she did, Sage felt something rush into her.

The hand closed around hers. She felt as if she was being hoisted into an embrace, the deep and booming voice of the Elder Goo reverberated in her mind — the two of them sailing amongst the stars.

May the Fortunes smile upon you, Young One.

She blinked, and her senses returned. An illusion.

“Master Oggin… what was that?” Sage couldn’t help but feel like she’d seen beyond the fabric of their world.

“A memento! Some say the Elder Goo left a bit of his spirit behind before he split into the First Sages.”

Sage rubbed her hand, contemplating the thought that the Elder Goo may still exist in the statue before them. After a few moments, Casper climbed up and did the same. They each had a similar but slightly different experience — but after they had all touched the statue, Oggin brought them back out onto the forest path.

“You have been blessed! Go reap your rewards.”

The Questing Crew grinned at each other and marched forth into Stickweave Forest. That night, they returned with an unprecedented amount of fruit and other rare finds.

Chapter 1.5 — A Glimpse into the Void

“My Princess. Sages Brandt and Steeple — they never rendezvoused with Nenona and Mushroomhead at the base of the Tower of Harpsilis. They believe something has happened to them.”

A shrill-voiced messenger Gooey had poked its head through the doorway of Princess Amelie’s study.

Amelie sat back in her chair. Her table was covered in notes and maps — everything she poured over belonged to Asheron, the Fae who betrayed his own kind. She was dressed in her evening robes; a dark purple with tinges of gold arcing down the back and into the tails that trailed onto the floor. Her silvery hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and small reading lenses hung from her neck.

The news was… unfortunate.

Amelie had sent the sages on a scouting mission — Harpsilis was the one place she knew for sure that the Droplet Society would retreat to in the event they were deposed.

Brandt and Steeple were known for their skill in subterfuge, and she had left extremely specific directions on how to infiltrate the tower without being found out. What had happened to them?

She motioned for the messenger to be on their way, and stood, whirling around to a set of books she had yet to touch. They were organized numerically by volume, however one was missing.

Her study was illuminated by moody lamplight that would occasionally highlight the shelves surrounding the room — and the dust that drifted in the air. She thought for a moment, then touched the first volume in the stack.

Lamplight was replaced by dim Fae Fire lanterns and a grand chapel at the heart of the Tower of Harpsilis. Columns of Fae Steel rose so high she could hardly see the roof they propped up. The marble floors were dulled since she’d last seen them, but they were otherwise meticulously kept.

Except for the two puddles of goo that she spotted just ahead, past the first set of pews.

Steeple and Brandt were suspended in the air, staked on vicious black spikes — each shifting with tinges of Void magic. Her dear friends were still recognizable, yet much of their bodies had oozed and drained onto the floor.

Horrified, Amelie looked away. Her gaze fell upon the shadows crowding the corners of the rooms; they too were shifting and moving. And that’s when she realized the shadows weren’t shadows at all.

There were Fae eyes shining out of Void corrupted bodies.

H-h-help us… P-prince-e-ss…

She was suddenly expelled from the chapel, where she collapsed onto the dusty floor of her study. Amelie fell unconscious.