Limbo

## Introduction

In the strangest corners of the Known World, odd places exist. Swirling with life yet de-void of it, these places exist. Yet at the same time, they do not. What these places are; where they may be located, none can recollect.

When a living being enters these odd places at certain intervals in their life whilst doing certain odd actions, the individual may find themselves in the dark, lifeless, and void dimension of **Limbo**.

## Description

**Limbo**, as described by the very, very few survivors who have successfully escaped the horrific dimension, is a dark and soulless place. No life at all can be found in this nightmare realm. An unknown type of sand, pitch black in nature, stretches out as far as the human eye can see. Black tendrils of unknown origin can often be spotted in the far distance of the landscape, hungrily stretching upwards into the crimson colored sky. Try as one might, one will never reach one of these tendrils. They seem to be infinitely close yet infinitely far; always finitely visible to the human eye. Where they are truly located is unknown.

Sound is seldom heard in **Limbo**, which is why any noise made is echoed throughout the vast dimensional chambers of this reality-bending place. The sound of footsteps may often multiply into reverberating sound-storms that can stretch for miles and last for hours. The cause of why this dimension is so silent is unknown.

## Survivor's Account

"*He wandered endlessly amongst the charred plain stretched out before him -- an innumerable amount of miles he has wandered. There is no food or water in that wretched place, for only the non-existent grow and flourish there. Before him lay a vast canyon of black rock and sand, eroded and yet... not. Preserved perfectly in the anti-time of **Limbo** the canyon sits. He was tired and could not count the many steps he had taken in this day. Had a day even passed? As he sat down on the sand and reached into his pack he realized that the only things of nourishment had left were his two canteens, one completely empty and the other with barely enough water to sustain him for a day.*

*He took the canteen with shaky hands and popped the cap. He put the canteen to his lips and just as he was about to drink, a foul smell emanated from the container. Withdrawing with disgust, he looked inside the canteen and noticed that the crystal-clear water he had just days before had turned into a crimson red and smelt of... something. He couldn't make out what the smell was, but he knew that it was horrific. Without thinking, he impulsively emptied the canteen onto the charred and black sand near him. He put the canteen back into his bag, disappointed. As he did so, he realized that the foul smell had dissipated and he finally smelled the sulfuric air again. As he looked back onto the sand he poured the crimson water out on, the realized that the water had turned back into its original, natural color.*

*Disappointment and panic mounted his chest as he became swiftly demoralized at the sight of the lost water.*

*Disappointed and bag in tow, he began to slowly get up from the spot he sat upon when he heard a low vibrating sound from close behind him.*

*As he looked back, the hair on his arms stood at end and fear gripped his heart. Before the man stood a gigantic creature, unbelieve in length and width. The monolithic entity stared down at him as he stared back up at it in the seconds before he ran. His eyes began to burn... from within. It felt as if someone was pushing his eyes into his head -- from within his head. Although it was only for a split second, his eyes already began to bleed, yet he did not need this warning to know that it was time to run. Before he could properly gain his footing, he was already tumbling down the ashen hill he was on.*

*Running for his life, the man did not dare look back. He wanted to get out of this wretched place as soon as possible and it seems his legs agreed with him, for they would not stop running even if he wanted to. He could feel the tears rolling down his cheeks, yet did not feel the sensation of having just cried. He did not need to touch his face to know that his eyes were bleeding.*

*As he ran, more and more crimson eyes began to appear before him as a reverberating storm of sound began manifesting itself around him from the running and heavy breathing. The once-silent dimension of **Limbo** now bore a resemblance to that of a furious crimson hurricane as he spiraled further and further down the gigantic hill he was on. The more he ran, the more the hill behind him sounded as if it was exploding. His footsteps now sounded like gigantic waves crashing into a cliffside or perhaps a meteor levelling a small country. His ears, too, began to bleed.*

*As the crimson eyes spawned around him, he felt sadness, malice, dread, and fear grip his heart. The emotions were filled with power, yet they did not feel like his. So powerful were they that he felt compelled to stop running and stay there for all eternity. He could feel ancient words in a language he did not understand, yet he knew what it meant. They were in his head.*

*'Stop..... Stay here. With... us.'*

*Closer and closer was the man to salvation. Closer and closer was his time to flourish into an ascendant. All he had to do... was stop...*

*'Join us...'*

*He knew where the tendrils came from. Suddenly, he saw **Limbo** for what it really was. A paradise. The tendrils. They came from him. They were always there.*

*'BREATHE.'*

*A new voice, grim in tone and monolithic in nature. It gripped him by his heart. His head. His eyes.... Oh his eyes... The man was gone. He was so close to salvation. All he needed to do was **stop**.*

*Before he even remotely came to realize what was going on inside his fragile head, he was barreling down into a bottomless pit. His screams were stolen from him by the intense pressure building on his chest, yet it was not from the fall. It was from something else. The tendrils reached down to grab him. To save him! His kindred wanted to save him. But it was too late.*

*The man hit the water below -- hard. The crimson lake enveloped his battered body completely.*"

Accounts such as these are usually taken from individuals otherwise perceived as madmen to the rest of society, yet the Enîan Sages know a survivor when they see one. Whilst an oral account cannot be taken down from the survivors, master wizards who are interested in further understanding the concept of this ghastly dimension can use spells to reach into their broken minds and traverse their fractured memories. They must be careful though, for if they tread in the wrong direction they may be swiftly overtaken as well.

"*The man gasped. His lungs were full of air. Air! Air? He lay in a large lake of clear water. He looked up and was met with a bright blue sky and the intense glare of sunlight. Green trees and grass were before him. He was in a strange realm. He had no memory of such a place. Where was he?*

*The man lay in a pool of his own blood. He felt trapped. He would never return. Panic gripped his heart. The eyes...*

*Oh, his eyes...*"