Cadavat Safe House
Crater City
15thJuly 2010!
That was the date we opened the gateway. And it’s a date that’s burned into my head like a deep, mental tattoo. 15th July 2010. The day I almost lost my wife.
Shortly after we first opened the gateway, an entity called the Basilod entered our world. Maya was attacked and spent over a year lying in a coma in the no man’s land between our world and the Parawerthan. Because the beast had sucked the life force from her, I was forced to spend the next twelve months fighting my way through this world to get it back. Somehow, with a lot of help, I tracked the beast down, killed it, and released Maya’s life force back to her.
She’s okay now and back at home. But I’m still trapped here. Well, technically I’m not trapped. I just can’t leave. I went down with a bout of ‘living’ fever called Drague Fever a while back. Part of it is still inside me and I can’t risk returning home without bringing this thing with me. Tough luck, I know. But what can I do?
So what was my journey here like? Well, passing through the gateway was the easy part. Getting through the jungle beyond it was a nightmare. It was called an Envelop Plantagen, and it was a natural security system designed to protect the gateway. The whole thing, all eight square miles of it, was fashioned from tangled undergrowth and the most remarkable and dangerous trees and plants I’ve ever seen. In fact, nothing comes close. Trees spat darts. Plants released toxic gas. Roots came alive. Beautiful fruits split open and rained torrents of acid. Even the very ground couldn’t be trusted and was liable to try and suck you under at any moment.
This Envelop was the genius creation of the Nescan, a guild of magicians who specialise in mutating natural growths to provide these Envelop security systems throughout the Known Parawerthan. It was the most dangerous place I’ve ever been. It was also the place where I met my companion, Armbranch, the creature assigned by the Nescan to maintain the Envelop. He guided me safely through it and agreed to help me find the Basilod. To be honest, without him I’d have been a walking ghost before I even realised I was dead.
To acknowledge this I’ve put a token image of him on this home page. (Temporarily replaced by Christmas Tree). That’s him, top right hand side. Cute, isn’t he? Deadly too. He’s an expert tracker, expert fighter, and has the ability to regenerate any limbs lost in a fight. I’ve seen this skill. Twice. Though I’m ashamed to admit it, the first time I encountered him I blew his arm off. It grew back again within a few weeks.
Anyway, once we cleared the Envelop, we spent months cutting through jungles, passing under mountain ranges, and sailing over a vast ocean called the Empty Sea before finally reaching the civilised lands of the Tinotte People. It was here, in a metropolis called Crater City, that we came into contact with a shadowy group of magician, adventurers, warriors, and politicians, called the Cadavat, and engaged their help in tracking down the Basilod.
I’m working as an investigator for this group now. Or, should I say, I will be soon, once I get my initial period of training over. As to my job description, well, my new boss, Sara, told us that any murders or assassinations we’d be assigned to would quickly become mundane. The real fun would come when we were investigating illegal use of the magic called Lavun, tracking rogue magicians, searching for underground markets, smugglers, and investigating the innumerate ‘mystical’ elements of the Parawerthan.
Spirit storms were mentioned as well. But I’d rather not go into those right now. I encountered one of those a few months back, and I’m still trembling from the experience.
In return for my help, the Cadavat have agreed to work on a serum to flush the remnants of Drague fever from my body.
There are problems back home, too. A few people suspect we’ve discovered something beneath Singleton Cottage. One’s a vet and the other’s a reporter. They’ve come close to discovering our secret a few times. But, over time, I’ve gathered up a backup team at home (mostly family) and we’re determined to stop them discovering the gateway. If they do, and the authorities look like interfering, my team will seal up the gateway. Permanently—even if it means me staying in here.
Yet it’s not all doom and gloom. My backup team are extremely loyal, I’ve made some fantastic friends in here, and Armbranch never leaves my side.
I’ve logged my adventures here from day one. The blog is long. But if you wish to take up the story from here, it’s simple. I’m now a Cadavat investigator, and I’ll be blogging all about it here.
If you’re interested in learning about my day-to-day adventures in here, please click on the Blog link on the sidebar. Also included in the sidebar is a FAQ page, an extensive glossary of Parawerthan terms, and a facility to ask me questions. And if anyone has the time and patience to read from the beginning, there’s a ‘Sort By’ facility to read the full blog starting at the first post. Just click on Read Posts ASC and it’ll take you there.
There’ll be a map, too, just as soon as I find the time to get around to it.
Hope you enjoy!
Raymond
Last modified on February 25, 2012
