Crumbling Menhir

* Victory: *You expect something spectacular to happen, but there's silence. Overwhelming silence. Then, after what feels like an eternity, a familiar voice.* [Death]*"No. We can't have that." Death snaps it's bony fingers. The monster you slew returns to life. It growls angrily but suddenly disappears before it can attack.*"WHAT?"*It's hard to tell, but you get the sense that Death is disappointed. "I told you that slaying the four Guardians would lead you to your destination..." The Goat materializes out of nowhere and hovers in the air above you, clearly unable to move. He looks absolutely terrified. "But instead of telling me that you've achieved your goal, my servant decided to act on his own initiative and push you in this direction. This violates every single rule we have. Not to mention that it also negates the plan we crafted for this world."*"I DON'T... UNDERSTAND."*"I already told you before. This reality is governed by a simple story. It's good versus evil. And in every story, beyond every evil deed, there is a cause. You humans never speak about these causes. They're not important in the stories you tell yourselves. Defeating a monster, check. Killing a god, check. Leaving home, check. And yet, these are eay solutions which never address the root cause of the issue. But you're not interested in causes. You're interested in simple relief, and that relief lies in the knowledge that good will prevail. Eventually. Simple stories have simple causes. In this one, the root of corruption was in the monster you slew. Instead of fighting the symptoms, as stories demand - and as I've instructed you - you went ahead and addressed the real cause. You solved the problem. If I didn't intervene, this world would have come to an end. And we can't have that... not yet."*
* **"SO... WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?"***"I'm going to change a couple of things in your story." Death looks up to the sky. Perhaps it's thinking about something? After some time, it speaks: "From now on, every hero trying to save their reality - just like you - will be able to face this monster. You can keep training with the Avalonian or decide to fight this creature. I'll make sure that you see how you compare with other warriors. But from now on, your main goal ill be to free every soul you meet in this reality from corruption. When you've done that, we can talk."* [Completed Quest: Excercises In Futility] [New Quest: The Rite of Spring]**--ENCOUNTER END--**
* **"WHAT HAPPENS WITH THE GOAT?"***"You've grown quite fond of it, haven't you? I guess we'll see... after I come back to see how you've fared with your new task."*"MY NEW TASK?"*"I'm going to change a couple of things in your story." Death looks up to the sky. Perhaps it's thinking about something? After some time, it speaks: "From now on, every hero trying to save their reality - just like you - will be able to face this monster. You can keep training with the Avalonian or decide to fight this creature. I'll make sure that you see how you compare with other warriors. But from now on, your main goal will be to free every soul you meet in this reality from corruption. When you've done that, we can talk."* [Completed Quest: Excercises In Futility] [New Quest: The Rite of Spring]**--ENCOUNTER END--**