The Search

It was nearing twilight when I wandered over the last rise, and glimpsed the small array of lights on the side of the ridge.

Torchlight.

A name that in most worlds, in most times, would be rather innocuous. A name that would probably be known to only the stubborn residents of such a small and otherwise insignificant place. A name that would be shrugged off if mentioned. "Never heard of it." would be the response.

In most times.

In this time, however, it was a name that struck fear into the hearts of the common man. To others, it was a promise of a life. The work in the mines below the place could keep a man's family in food and clothes for a lifetime. So many struck out for the place even despite the whispered rumors of fear and danger. Many set out, and for awhile, many prospered. The Ember vein that existed there was like no other on this world. It was a thing of legend.

It soon grew to become a thing of terror.

And so it was that people like my father were the last to hear the call of Torchlight. People with wanderlust and a desire to become famous... or infamous. So it was that heroes and would be heroes of all walks of life came flocking to this little hole-in-the-wall on the side of a gigantic mountain. However, it wasn't the size of the mountain that was the true wonder and horror, but the depths of its roots, and the hole-in-the-wall was no mere hole but a pit that seemed to have no end. Yes, people came here seeking their fortunes for certain, but few ever saw the light of day again.

My father was one of the very many to perish within that vast darkness. Which was the reason I found myself standing upon this road, gazing on those lights that had just begun to glitter in the waning glow of the sunset. I had come here to seek what had been lost when my father entered that place. To try and find a future of my own. To try and see if I could locate his remains and recover a journal that would help me continue my research into all things arcane.

... oh, and to find peace, and lay my father to rest for eternity. There was that, as well.

I shrugged my pack up on my shoulders, and began the last steps to my destiny.

- Journal Entry of Bastion Jr.

It was talked about for many days, the arrival of the stranger that talked about journeying into the mines to find out what had happened to his father. There was something different about this one, they said. He had a grim, determined look and was a man of few words. They remembered his father well, for the son was a mirror image in look (if not in speech), and few could forget the brash, confident man of endless stories with a pint in hand. This man, not much more than a boy despite being almost in the third decade of life, was much different. Gloomy. Quiet. Brooding.

So it was when he disappeared into the dark, few even cared. Fewer even thought of him. Most dismissed him as just another would-be hero and considered him another sacrifice to the deeps.

Not long after, the first portal opened in town, and there he was. His eyes now more filled with life. A mangy animal by his side (they could not remember the animal being there when he arrived). His pack brimmed with loot and offings. His staff gleamed with elemental magic. His step more quick and meaningful. Yet still without a word, he sold off what he could, purchased a few more provisions and disappeared into that gleaming blue maelstrom that was his link back into the caverns.

That was the first time. It wouldn't be the last.

For the next couple of weeks he popped back into town many times. Sometimes he looked fresh and excited. Other times he was on the verge of death, and had to be nursed to health by the locals. Yet he always had gold to spare, and a kind word (yet still only whispered and seldom) for anyone that would help.

Then, the portals stopped. For 3 weeks, there was nothing. The strange woman named Syl (self-proclaimed protector of Torchlight now) also disappeared into the waygate and was gone. What had happened? The rumblings of some deep violence shook the buildings from time to time, and everyone feared the worst. Was this the end? Had those two set something horrible and terrifying in motion?

Just when all seemed lost, the sight of the glowing blue phase-gate shone again, and out he stepped. Blood soaked, but grinning from ear to ear. He took two steps forward and then collapsed. To the amazement of all that came running, he spoke. "It is mine. It is mine." he croaked. "Yet there is so much more!" He then fell into darkness.

Syl the Sage appeared shortly after, and quickly shouted for all to clear. He was alive, she confirmed, but barely. There had been a great battle. An Overseer deep below had been defeated, and now they had some answers to the true terror that lay so far beneath them. This man had saved Torchlight from a fate worse than death and destruction, for a time... He was a hero. Perhaps that hadn't been his plan, but it had been thrust upon him. Now, he needed healing and recovery. Now he had to be prepared for what lay ahead.

He had been through much. So much. Yet it was only just begun.