Season 3: Demonium

## Background

This season launched on 2 April 2021 with Cardwaithe's very first completely custom map, *Demonium*, designed by Rob and created by Arlo.

## Main Story Arc

The characters wake up to a realm created as per Faro's desires. They soon discover the Sky Church was broken in half and in its stead now sits a menacing castle, guarded by scientists. Unsure what to make of it all, each of them are approached by Faro in order to resolve their bargains. Meanwhile, Sydney & Ludi remain cautious and skeptical about the entire situation.

As time progresses, discoveries continue. Most notably, on nearly every smaller island, a grave site for an elemental god is discovered. Faro claimed he was honoring them, as their essences now reside inside him, allowing him to soon become a god of all elements. Confusion abounds, so local reporter Jake Bezos requested an interview with the great Faro, and was granted it.

FaroInterviewJake Bezos interviews Faro, future god.In addition to this, to fulfill his bargain with Zeez, Faro provided this incomplete document reproduced from Faro's fractured memories to help explain the situation at hand and the history of the gods.

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This is when some new major characters appeared as well. First was Stella, later revealed to be Estelle Vacone, of relation to both Don Vacone & King Wexley. Wexley was actually Wexley Vacone, first husband of Estelle, and father to the next new character, Anthony (Tony) Vacone. Estelle also revealed that she ended up marrying Don Francis Vacone after Wexley disappeared years ago. Her son, Tony, continued searching for his father and eventually found a path to Cardwaithe, but was suddenly swept away along with his mother until now. We also met Poppy & Billies (though Billies first appeared on Hot Mountain), two majorly influential characters that had no idea of their purpose. Poppy was always interested in adventuring and giving quests, while Billies was always interested in rocks & friendship.

Several of the islanders were busily investigating Demonium as a whole, including re-elected Mayor Sydney, Ludi, and Priest Zeez. They began hearing musings from the essences of the "dead" gods of the elements, most notably the Sky God himself. They found out there was a method to resurrect the elemental gods through the use of the skulls of the elemental gods. Luckily, they learned through Faro's interview where the skulls were: within the cave containing Faro's life tree.

It was then that island newcomer, Tony, revealed much of his storied past. He shared that his father, Wexley, had become obsessed with "becoming a king" and discovered a way to travel to the Realms Beyond. He claimed that he was able to replicate what his father did, and found him in a realm studying with a wizard and a god. He was able to learn a bit about Cardwaithe when his mother & stepfather suddenly appeared. Wexley looked terrified, and suddenly went through a portal with the wizard & god. Tony's stepfather managed to chase them into the portal, but it closed before Tony could do the same. Tony was suddenly stranded on a deserted island, until one day he suddenly appeared on the shoreline of Hot Mountain. When Faro changed Hot Mountain into Demonium, something started to feel familiar. He realized he was in fact in some distorted version of Cardwaithe, which meant that his father, stepfather, the god, and the wizard could all be here. He was updated on the events of the seasons thus far, and then revealed something groundbreaking to Zeez. He pointed out that Zeez is the only one claiming to have been born in Cardwaithe of any of the islanders. Thanks to his travels, he learned that Zeez is merely the vessel for another modified essence, and that he is part of some prophecy regarding the gods.

With everything discovered about the resurrection of the elemental gods, there was only one missing piece: the sacrifice of the person purest of heart on the island. Through some more investigation, that person was discovered to be none other than Billies. Meanwhile, Sydney & Ludi discovered a puzzle house near Faro's Lair. It was revealed that completing the puzzle would grant them some godlike abilities. With much effort, and nearly out of time, they successfully solved the puzzles and gained power. Little did they know, this would lead to their downfall.

Led by Zeez & Sydney, the islanders concocted a plan to end Faro's reign and resurrect the elemental gods. Billies was convinced that his purpose was the sacrifice with the skulls, so he was ready to proceed. They lured Faro into his cave, where he was mortal, then performed the ritual, ending with killing Faro. Billies sacrificed himself and the earth began to shift. It was then that a chilling laugh came from within the tree inside the cave, and an unknown being emerged. They sounded like the Sky God and wore something representing each elemental god. They revealed themselves to be Heirax, and that the islanders helped him to finally usurp a god. It turned out that the "Sky God" was Heirax, the Ungiving, all along.

The islanders realized they made a grave error in not trusting Faro. Heirax was the ultimate evil, hellbent on absorbing the power of all the gods of Cardwaithe. He had actually failed his initial attempt, but the islanders fell for all his tricks while he was the Sky God, thus undoing his own failure. Additionally, this course correction impacted many islanders in different ways. Since Faro was granting the god power to Ludi & Sydney, it was suddenly removed when they killed him. This caused the two of them to contract the "God Disease," an illness that is fatal in mortals who have had god power granted and removed through such methods. The event also caused Billies to spiral into a depression of failed purpose, compromising his personal values. He felt he failed everyone, including himself, and began to isolate.

With all this in mind, the islanders put all their thoughts and strength into defeating Heirax, hopefully releasing Faro and restoring the lands. There was a young lady named Poppy who sought to give the people some fun quests to complete at a cost. This turned into so much more when it was revealed to her that she was to be the guide for Billies to release Heirax's Delight from the stone inside of Faro's Lair. Through the solving of several riddles and quests, Poppy helped Billies to discover a method for removing the pickaxe, but it would come at a great cost. Once removed, the pickaxe would cause and island-wide wipe of all buildings and items. However, if Billies wields the axe and strikes a killing blow on Heirax, the great evil would be defeated.

Meanwhile, the others were slowly learning their roles in the potential defeat of Heirax. Zeez was soon to learn that he played a crucial role in weakening Heirax to the point where his own pickaxe could be used to slay him. With some assistance from Estelle, Poppy, and a few others, Zeez was able to figure out that he must completely and totally rebuke his zealous loyalty, and instead fully embrace loyalty in his fellow mortals. This would remove the magical protective barrier that prevented Heirax from being struck by his own Delight. Unfortunately, it was the single most difficult thing for Zeez to ever accomplish. It took much encouragement from mortals and powered beings alike, but in the end, Zeez was successful.

In yet another tangent storyline, Ludi & Sydney were working their best to discover a cure for the God Disease. They knew without it that they would not make it past the end of the current season. They tried many different ideas and options, medicinal and magical alike, but to no avail. This is when the two were offered instead a merciful death by Heirax.