Aftermath

In the aftermath of the Sandstriders' victory over Cyric and the Primordials, the group had life- and reality-altering decisions to make.

#### Quen Sandstrider - The One

After the battle, Quen confronted The One. "What the hell is going on here?" she asked. At this point, time became frozen for all except the two of them. It was then that The One explained.

Its power was dwindling. The last vessel that took the mantle of The One was not perfectly suited for it. It could not use the mantle to its full capability, and indeed, the mantle's power was waning under it. It takes all of the power The One could muster to merely keep the threads of reality from unraveling, which is why it could not help in the battle with Cyric, and why it had been sending The Defender out to different realities in an attempt to lead a new vessel to the Chamber. Due to its dwindling power, it could not send the Defender out easily; instead, he had to send reincarnations, only with deep-rooted instincts to get the possible new candidate where they needed to go.

"Many have come," The One said. "Many have tried. But you are different. You have succeeded where all others have failed. The energy of the mantle is already attuning to you."

The One made it clear that Quen would need to choose to take the mantle on of her own free will. She would be physically tied to this place, never to leave again; she would never have children, a family, a normal life, et cetera. "But through this," he said, pointing at the giant orrery in the center of the room, "You will experience life itself, in all of its beautiful and terrible forms."

With tears in her eyes, and realizing what she had to do, Quen accepted the mantle of The One. But she had yet another choice to make...

#### Teleragus "Pointy" Diragrion/Sinjal-Lu - The Champion

When Laz was destroyed by Cyric at the entrance to the Chamber of the One, the position of The Defender was rendered unfilled. The Defender functions as the arm of The One, to be an interdimensional instrument of The One's will, and to defend The One from anyone (such as Cyric) trying to cause damage to the Chamber. Quen had to decide who to take - and chose Pointy.

With a snap of her fingers, Pointy became unfrozen in time. He was uncertain but trusted Quen.

"What's going on?" he asked.

Quen, surrounded in a halo of golden light, said, "I made a choice."

"What kind of choice?" Pointy asked.

"I am now The One," she replied. "It's not a choice I took lightly. It means I'm stuck here, forever. But I didn't bring you here just to tell you that. Every One needs - needs a Champion. Someone to defend them, to act as an instrument of their will. I thought about it, and I would like you to be my Champion."

Pointy was surprised. "I never expected you would pick me," he said, thinking. "But I accept."

Quen smiled and nodded. "I'm sure we'll both have questions. I'll try to answer them. I'm going to unfreeze the other two; don't give anything away."

Pointy nodded.

"Oh, and...one more thing..." Quen said, biting her lip. "My reasons for picking you weren't completely impersonal."

And she kissed him.

He kissed her back.

And then yelled, "WHAT?"

#### McCreedy - The Elemental God

McCreedy's Blade of Chaos had absorbed the energies of the Four Primordials. For all intents and purposes, McCreedy was the new Elemental God, and held arguably the most powerful weapon of any reality. Sobered by the responsibility of this power, McCreedy took on the duties of making sure normalcy reigned across the planes of the group's original reality. He rallied the Genasi and helped them reclaim their home in the **Elemental Chaos**; ensured the Greater Fae kept the changing of seasons; and helped Darnyr establish a new order in Vitaurum, where he had once served the corrupt Grey Council.

#### Tolsmir - The Avatar of Shadow

Tolsmir, being inextricably joined with Jenova, decided to continue doing what he had been trying to do before getting caught up in Cyric's wake - act as a champion of the common folk, defending them against threats and helping their communities grow and flourish. Tolsmir became Jenova's roaming avatar, traveling the countryside as a normal, mortal being - except when great threats would arise, in which case, Jenova would fill Tolsmir with his full power and more. He lived out his long days as a nomad, though he was never truly alone.

#### Cyric - The Void

Cyric, once freed of the Four Primordials, broke down into a mess of tears and self-loathing. He begged the Sandstriders to kill him, to end it once and for all. Jenova pleaded with the party to allow him to live, under her supervision. She made it clear she would not allow them to kill him without a fight - a fight that no one wanted to have, least of all Tolsmir.

Cyric admitted that most of his terrible actions were a result of the Primordials in his head - but also confessed that for a great many of them, he could not honestly say whether he wanted to do it or not. He had done terrible things, and he knew it.

After some debate, it was agreed that he would stay imprisoned in the Shadowfell under the care of Jenova.

#### The Final Goodbye - For Now

After a heartfelt farewell, Quen sent McCreedy and Tolsmir back to the group's original reality. She then set to work; she created a plan to eliminate Vuul'kira once McCreedy had taken the Genasi out. Then, she redistributed the power that Cyric had absorbed from the Gods; the mantle of Bahamut went to Rakeesh, the mantle of the Raven Queen went to Jenova, and the mantle of Erathis went to Pointy. Patrick Koshek was unmade from existence.

#### Other Happenings

* **Jenova** becomes the new deity over the realms of Fate, Life, and Death. Now that Vuul’kira is gone, the Shadowfell becomes the new destination for all souls not claimed by the Gods. It is much less terrible than Vuul’kira.
* With the help of Melora’s forces, the Coalition defeated the Consortium at the War Camp Assault, thus dealing the turning blow in the Astral Civil War. Though pockets of resistance remained, the Coalition’s winning position in the war was never challenged past that point.

* As a result of the war, of the Council of Three’s stripped divinity, and of Quen’s redistribution of said divinity, a new Pantheon of Gods arose in the few years following the war. This Pantheon was made up of Kord, Melora, Asmodeus, and Jenova. After some time of proving his strength and intentions, and with a good word from Erathis, eventually Rakeesh is placed on the Pantheon as well.

* While not as tight-knit and “of one mind” as the Council of Three, the Pantheon nevertheless kept order effectively for a long while, excepting some small disagreements or skirmishes here or there.

* The Council of Three retreated into seclusion in the Temple of the One. No one has seen them since.
* With the help of McCreedy, the Grey Council is removed from power, as are the nastier crime lords of Vitaurum. Darnyr Firebeard becomes the de facto leader of the country for a while, but eventually cedes his power to another. Vitaurum opens up to the world stage.
* Queen Vyra marries the half-orc leader of Woestijn after Ulrak. Though they did not marry for love, the two nevertheless live a generally happy life and ensure strong ties between the two kingdoms, a reunification that’s been in the works since the inception of Stin Cepel.

* Eldak recovers. He does not recover enough to ever fight again; but then, he no longer has a God for whom to fight. He moves to the Feywild to live with Elanwen and their daughter. Being a Dragonborn, he dies long before they do; but his memory lives on.
* Elanwen tells Telara stories about her uncle Teleragus, the origin of her names, focused around his zest for life, his disregard for Eladrin culture, and the lessons he taught Elanwen.
* Aelis of the Moonleaf returns to her home in Dryadis, continuing to serve the lady Melora. She joins up with Elendeil’s ranger network and interacts with Tolsmir on occasion.

* Brak Stormbringer, Son of Oog, completes his duty as head of Kord’s forces in the Astral Sea. Encouraged by his peers, he challenges **Nallia Stormwatcher** in single combat for the right to become Kord’s Chosen (leader of the Goliaths) and wins. He acts as Chosen for a few decades, keeping the clans in line. He one of the few Chosen to die of natural causes.
* Asana continues to serve at the pleasure of the royal family of Stin Cepel for a time. After a few generations, she feels she is no longer needed. Then she goes to seek answers about Vuul’kira and her creation, making it her lifelong mission to understand everything she can about the plane.

* William Maynots keeps up The Mixer’s criminal organization activites for a while, until McCreedy essentially dismantles crime in Vitaurum. He then takes the long, slow steps of turning the organization into a legitimate business, which he does…pretty much. After all, there are always good deals to be had so long as you don’t get caught…