After leaving his master once more, Kryse decided to first level up his skills some more before taking on the most dangerous area of Incarnam - the dungeon Dunge Onmast'her. The best way to gain some understanding of the world and of his capabilities was to visit each of the Relics of the gods. By visiting the leftover Relics, the young Masqueraider would be able to acquire some sliver of spiritual power from each of the gods...a blessing of experience one could say. The Relics of Setsun involved the relics left by the gods and goddesses - Xelor, Iop, Sadida, Eniripsa, Osamodas, Cra, and Sacrier. The Relics of Ryzsun involved the relics left by the gods and goddesses - Enutrof, Ecaflip, Pandawa, Feca, and Sram.
And so, the young Masqueraider headed southwest to the first Relic. As he approached the Relic, he could make out its structure. It looked like a couple of thorny vines emerging from the ground. Kryse approached the glowing stone marker next to the Relic and placed his hand on it. Immediately, the glow on the stone marker intensified and a vision invaded his mind. This stone structure was the Relic of Sadida - Sadida's Brambles. Legends have it that the petrified brambles that grow in the area were once guilty of terrible savagery - they had torn Incarnam's only living puppet to shreds.
Now how did such a being like a living puppet ever see the light of day? Most stories had agreed on one particular point...and that it was the god Sadida, who had spent a particularly alcohol-fuelled evening in the company of Pandawa and Ecaflip before going to foolishly and drunkenly dance under the full moon with one of the training scarecrows at the Kerub tower known as Militia. One dance with the Doll Master had led to some unexpected effects - they said that after this taste of the joys of moving, the training scarecrow left its job as at target so it could go on long, peaceful walks through Incarnam's fields.
However, no matter how fluid its movements were, the puppet lacked one thing: a soul. As the years passed by, the training scarecrow became dry, hard, and breakable. Its lovable character gave way to a sorrowful and jealous bitterness. It hated anything that had a soul. And through its hate, it started hitting out at anyone and everyone, seemingly taking great delight in doing to others as they had done to it in the past.
One night, word of the puppet's evil doings had reached Sadida's ears. The god Sadida did not like how he was being associated with the puppet's evil actions and decided to intervene. He had forgone one of his daily naps just to show up and surprise the puppet as it was preparing to conduct yet another misdeed. Sadida's punishment was brutal - the Leafy God summoned the brambles, which tore the scarecrow to shreds. The clumps of hay and scraps of material were scattered by the wind to the four corners of Incarnam. As for the wooden mask, no one knows what became of it....
This was Sadida's Relic! As expected of a Masqueraider...to choose Sadida's Relic first. Kryse reached over to the relic after reading about its history and touched the Relic. A surge of power rushed into his body, purifying him and increasing his power. Kryse felt very compatible with Sadida's power flowing through him. He was after all a worshiper of the god Sadida. Suddenly, all of his masks save the Coward mask, the Classic mask, and the Psychopath mask shattered as their individual essences flowed out and rushed into the young Masqueraider. The skills that each mask gave wasn't lost but instead, retained in the essences that had fused with Kryse's body. This allowed him to use his skills without physically switching his masks. The young Masqueraider clenched his fists and felt the internal power flowing within him. Kryse shivered as he thought about the power boost he would be able to obtain from the rest of the Relics.
Next, the young Masqueraider looked at his map and noted that the next Relic was further southwest from his position. After crossing the bridge to a small island, Kryse stopped in front of a corked flask-like structure. Like the last Relic, next to the stone structure was a glowing stone marker. Kryse approached the stone maker and placed his hand on it. With a flash, more visions pervaded his mind. This stone structure was the Relic - Eniripsa's Flask. According to the visions provided by the marker, a long time ago, when Incarnam was still considered a young dimension, Enutrof spent his days lounging on a pile of gold at the edge of the celestial archipelago. Light from the solar star above glinted off his scales and off the precious metals all around him, filling him with a sort of lazy happiness.
On one sunny day, however, the Miser's nap was interrupted...there was an insistent clamor sailing across the Krosmoz...prayers to be exact. However, these prayers were not directed towards Enutrof...they were calling out fervently for Eniripsa, the Divine Practitioner. Young souls in distress were begging the goddess for help. Flying to her disciples' aid, the Miracle Fairy appeared with grace and light. At her side hung a flask filled with an elixier which shone like a thousand iridescent fireflies. The Miser's eyes were captivated by the glow of the flask, which caused an irrepressible desire to surge within him...he must add this valuable crystalline flask to his collection of treasures!
Enutrof began to offer a handful of gold pieces minted with his special mark in exchange for the flask, but the goddess Eniripsa refused. Enutrof offered the power to talk to stones and to understand their grainy replies, but Eniripsa still refused. Not giving up, Enutrof offered the goddess a procession of souls which would pay homage to Eniripsa until the end of time...but still no luck. Finally, Enutrof offered the goddess a river of diamonds, a mine of silver, and a mountain of rubies...but she still refused.
Lingering on the flask that he could not obtain, the Miser lost all appetite as he pined away with longing. The Miser stopped sleeping and couldn't think straight. He was consumed with greed, his scales grew dull, and soon he was but a shadow of his former self. But all that changed when the benevolent goddess placed the flask in the clawed hands of Enutrof. By drinking the contents of the flask, he would be able to restore himself to his former appearance and glory.
"So that's how it was. The gift was not the flask itself but what was in the flask. Soothing the pain that Enutrof had done onto himself was the goddess Eniripsa's greatest gift...and there's no price to put on such a precious treasure." Kryse muttered as he understood the meaning of the vision.
The young Masqueraider put his hand on the stone flask and felt a healing power surge with him. This! His strength increased overall and he was even able to learn a new skill - Retention! This skill allowed him to heal himself from attacks. What a wondrous ability to gain! With a smile, Kryse headed south to the next Relic - Sacrier's Spikes. After a few minutes of traveling, he saw three large spikes protruding from the ground. The young Masqueraider touched the glowing stone marker and peered in the memories of the Relic.
A long, long time ago, the celestial archipelago of Incarnam was ruled by what was known as a perfect harmony. Such bliss, however, greatly annoyed the devilish creatures that haunted the infernal dimension - Shustuft Crust. The jealous and annoyed demons prepared for an invasion, hoping to create a bit of disorder in the peaceful dimension. On one quiet night, they unleashed themselves on Incarnam and started to wreak chaos everywhere. They gobbled up all of the Gobballs, pulled the girls' hair, and stole the candy from babies' mouths. They let off a multitude of putrid gases also known as "farts" and laughed at the hilarity of the situation. They urinated on the tavern walls and in the customers' pints. Thousands of people suffered at the hands of the demons.
The young souls' cries reached the ears of the goddess Sacrier. The Scarlet Lady's blood began to boil in anger...she ran all the way to Incarnam to allow her vengeful anger flow free against the demons. At the goddess's will, the earth covered itself with jagged spikes and razor-sharp stones. It was as if the spine of the stone dragon who supports the archipeloago was standing on end to chase off the intruders. Soon, there was nowhere for the demons to put their feet, paws, or hooves down without feeling a thousand shots of pain. Incarnam had become just as inhospitable as the Shustuft Crust! With that acknowledgement, they decided to head home. Thanks to the goddess Sacrier's intervention, the archipelago was once again a calm and peaceful place...but its original harmony had been lost forever. Today, some of these rocky spikes still stick up from the ground like pale thorns...silent witnesses to the great disaster that once shook the grounds in Incarnam.
Kryse reached over and touched the tallest spike. Power surged in him and he felt the essence of Tortoruga within him increase...thus resulting in a boost in the attack power of his Tortoruga skill. Kryse grinned at his luck. He had not used his Tortoruga skill as often as he want in order to increase the power of the skill. That's why this direct increase of his Tortoruga skill was considered as a major boon for him. He hoped that the other Relics would also increase his skill power. With high hopes, the young Masqueraider headed southeast to the next Relic. Upon arriving, he saw three stone structures in the shape of the tails of an Osamodas...could this be a relic left behind by the god Osamodas?! Kryse hurriedly place his hand on the glowing stone marker next to the stone structure and...brightness.
These three stone structures were the Relic - Osamodas's Forked Tails. Legends has it that there was a time when an Iop dragon hunter travelled throughout Incarnam. Armed with a seven foot long sword and wearing a helmet that blocked both his view and his common sense, he claimed that he was a descendant of the late Rykke Errel even though everyone assured him that the legendary paladin died without continuing his line. The Iop dragon hunter set upon himself to eradicate anything scaly that happened to cross his path...even the Gudgeons weren't safe from his irrational persecution.
That being said...on one foggy night, the hunter ran into a dragon. Was it a real dragon or was it just some overgrown reptile? No one knows. The Iop stumbled across the creature when it was asleep. Following the advice from only his relative courage and illogical thought process, the Iop dragon hunter decided to slay it. But the beast woke up from its slumber and dodged the attack. Nevertheless, though the beast dodged a fatal move, the attack cut clean through its multiple forked tails. Since bad things always come in pairs, it turned out that the monster was actually a favorite pet of the god Osamodas. The angered Chief Conspirator didn't waste any time showing up to the scene of the attack. He immediately punished the attacker, turning the Iop dragon hunter into an unfortunate and trembling larva. Then, Osamodas picked up the larva and swallowed him whole.
Kryse shuddered at the thought and made a mental note to himself to not arrogantly and ignorantly attack dragons for fear of incurring the wrath of the god Osamodas like the Iop dragon hunter had done. After Kryse placed his hand on the stone structures, he felt a sensation to the Classic mask in his possession. The sensation helped boost the power capabilities and skills of his Classic mask. After receiving the power boost, the young Masqueraider headed northeast to the next Relic.
After an hour of running across the celestial archipelago, Kryse arrived at the next Relic - three stone skull-like totems. He placed his hand next to the stone marker and peered into the leftover memories. This stone structure was the Relic known as Sram's Skulls. An old tale tells the story of three brothers who were incarnated on the sacred lands of the celestial archipelago. Their souls were as black as coal, and their intentions blacker still - more like that of a Bwork's underpants. They pilfered the young, innocent souls and filled their pockets with plunder, paying no heed to authority. The Kerubs tried to arrest them, but the three highwaymen were experts in dishonesty and disguise.
One day, when they were prowling around in the south of Incarnam, they spotted two easy targets - an old man who was taking a rest at the edge of the Canals and a frail being who seemed to be all skin and bones and was clothed in a dark cloak. Between the two of them, there sat a chest with its lid open just enough to show that there was something golden sparkling inside. The three brothers along with their group of bandits attacked all at once, greedy and anxious to get their hands on whatever was in the chest. Unfortunately for them, their targets were none other than Sram and Enutrof, who had stopped off in Incarnam to recruit new disciples.
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Needless to say, the three never-do-gooders were killed almost instantly. All of their accomplices were transformed into Chafers, as a warning to other lost souls. Sram himself placed three ghoulish stones to remind passerbys of the three highwaymen's fate..
Kryse placed his hand on the stone structures and felt the power of his Psychopath mask increase significantly. Then, he ran northwest to the next Relic which turned out to be Pandawa's Tankard! Placing his hand on the stone marker next to the Relic, the young Masqueraider peered into the story of the goddess Pandawa's tankard.
At the Incarnam tavern, people may know that the landlord would offer a drink to any passing souls. Some clients were surprised when they discovered that the landlord doesn't serve beer. The reason for this was simple - his barrels have been condemned to emptiness since the Bamboo Lady visited his establishment!
On one hot summer's day, Pandawa herself entered the pub, much to the owner's surprise. The goddess approached the bar with an unsteady gait and ordered "beer until my thirst is quenched" while holding out an enormous tankard. Once she'd gulped down all the beer in the barrel in just a few chugs, Pandawa ordered the landlord to serve her everything he had in his cellar. Astounded by the turn of events, the owner reluctantly agreed. Once the stocks had been emptied, the goddess decided to drain the future reserves as well. She drank all the beer that was supposed to be served to his clients for the next thousand years. However, her thirst was only temporarily quenched. Pandawa burped loudly and thanked the dumbfounded inkeeper. Then, the goddess left just as she had come - zigzagging through the entrance. She left her tankard behind her...and since that day, the only drinks served in the Incarnam tavern were lemonade and Mimilk.
So that's why Fattumy only had lemonade.... Kryse thought. The young Masqueraider walked to the stone tankard and placed his hand on the it. He felt the power of his Coward mask increase significantly. Then, he ran to the east to visit the Relic - Enutrof's Pick - that looked like a large and half-buried stone pick. Kryse touched the stone marker next to the Relic and watched the vision that unfolded in his mind.
Enutrof's Pick was a spot in Incarnam where all Enutrofs like to pray and it was sometimes dubbed the Rock of Fortune. It was here that the god with the golden scales was thought to have buried a small part of his fortune with his pick, as suggested by the presence of the divine tool. Everyone knew that the great Miser had managed to accumulate limitless wealth throughout his lifetime and a small part of that wealth would be more than enough to make any mortal rich for the rest of his or her days. The pilgrims and their talent with a pick were proof of these high hopes.
It was said that the particularly tenacious Enutrof dug so deep into the ground, he went from one side of Incarnam to the other. Once he'd arrived at the tail of the stone dragon that held the celestial archipelago, he fell through the Krosmoz and finally landed in the World of Twelve. Once down there, he shook the dust from his beard and continued on digging. Some miners claimed that this odd character was behind all the galleries that link the mines of the world. At certain times of the year, when the ground stops cracking, one can even hear the metallic sounds of the god Enutrof's shovel and pick rising up from the depths.
After the vision, Kryse walked up to the stone pick and placed his hand on the Relic. He could feel the power of his Reinforcement skill increase significantly. After receiving the power, the young Masqueraider ran to the north to visit the Relic - Feca's Staff and Shield - that looked like a large and half-buried stone staff and shield. Kryse touched the stone marker next to the Relic and watched the vision that unfolded in his mind.
Once upon a time, there was an artist who lived in Incarnam. One day, as he was sketching the clouds around the celestial archipelago, the goddess Feca passed by. Curious, she looked over the painter's shoulder and complimented on his work.
"I really like your work. Could you draw me a Gobball, please? I'll frame it and hang it above the door of my divine sheep barn." Feca asked the painter.
Now painting animals wasn't really the artist's speciality since he preferred still lives and pastoral landscapes, but since he didn't want to upset Feca, he did as she requested. The goddess studied the resulting painting carefully and told the painter that his Gobball looked very ill and that it won't possibly survive the winter. Thus, she asked the painter to draw her another one. When the artist drew another painting of a Gobball, the fickle goddess complimented about how the picture was not of a Gobball but of a Mastogob as indicated by the huge tusks.
Once again, the artist redrew his drawing and showed it to the goddess. But just like the others, the goddess didn't approve of the drawing. "That one's even older than an Enutrof. I want a Gobball with a long life ahead of him."
Finally, the artist was nearing his patience. He scribbled one last drawing and handed it to the goddess. "That's a box...the Gobball that you want is hiding inside it."
Naturally, the rude artist was soon beaten up by the goddess. There were no details of what had become of the painter after the beatings but it was known that Feca was so angry that when she stormed back to Ingloriom, she had forgotten to take back the staff and shield she had placed on the ground. However, some claimed that she had set her staff and shield there intentionally as a warning to the others on the consequences of impoliteness and impatience.
Kryse shuddered at the thought of the times he was impolite. Hopefully, he will take this vision as a lesson to not be so impolite and impatient in the future. After the vision, the young Masqueraider walked up to the Relic and placed his hand on the stone Relic feeling the power of his basic attack and blocking ability increase significantly. After the increase in power finished surging through his body, the young Masqueraider ran to the northwest to visit the Relic - Ecaflip's Die - that looked like a large stone dice. When he approached the Relic, Kryse touched the stone marker next to the Relic and watched the vision that unfolded in his mind.
Chance, luck, karma, or destiny - Ecaflip ruled over all these mysteries. Inside his chambers in Ingloriom, the King of Fortune spent his time on strange games, placing completely reckless bets and challenging the other gods to tournaments with lengthy, complicated rules. Legends said that one evening, when the divine nectar had been flowing freely, Ecaflip started a long game of cards with the Big Foamy Bear - the goddess Pandawa. There wasn't just any old thing at stake...the loser would have to complete a task of the winner's choosing. For beings with godly powers, a favor was an invaluable thing, worth far more than mere jewels or precious items. The game was nearing its end and the two adversaries were neck and neck. The last leg would decide everything.
Once the cards had been dealt out, Ecaflip and Pandawa examined their hands, their faces remaining expressionless. Then, the goddess laid her cards out on the table, revealing three identical cards - queens. Ecaflip smoothed his whiskers, appearing to hesitate. He rolled a die, murmuring "evens I lose, odds she wins." The die rolled off the table and disappeared in the thick curls of smoke shrouding the room. Ecaflip's face was impassive for a moment and then he announced that he had lost. He threw his cards up in the air. A five of clubs and a two of spades landed face up on the table, but the other three cards vanished. However, no one knows for sure. Did the Big Tease really lose the game that night? The only people who can answer that question were those who had found the missing cards....
"Evens I lose...odds she wins...doesn't that mean whether or not it's even or odd, Pandawa still wins?" Kryse muttered as he peered at the stone Relic. "But it seemed the dice had landed on an edge so that neither even or odd was showing. This meant Ecaflip won...but why did he gave up his victory? Could it be...Ecaflip had a crush on Pandawa huhu."
A loud thunderclap caused the grinning young Masqueraider to wipe the smile on his face off. Kryse prayed and apologized as he placed his hand on the stone dice and felt the an significant increase in his Chance and Luck. He felt that he could find himself in more favorable situations from now on. With a satisfied smile, he ran to the northwest to visit the Relic - Cra's Api - that looked like a large and half-buried stone Api fruit with a large stone arrow protruded in it and three large stone arrows sticking out from the ground around it. Kryse neared the stone Relic and touched the stone marker next to the Relic. An intense light flashed before his eyes as a vision unfolded in his mind.
One day, as she walked through the forest of Incarnam with a young soul, the Great Huntress heard a thunderous voice calling her name. The god Iop rose up from nowhere amidst the trees. He was on his way back from battle and seemed in a belligerent mood...as usual. He proposed a friendly fight, the winner of which would earn the unconditional devotion of the soul who was walking with the goddess. Cra had no desire at all to test her strength against this brute, whose stench of blood and sweat was unnerving to say the very least. All the same, she wasn't one to turn down a challenge. She picked up an Api fruit which had fallen from a tree and asked Iop to put it anywhere he liked. If the goddess managed to hit the Api with an arrow, she would win the young soul's devotion.
However, Iop knew how accurately Cra could handle her bow. So, he decided to complicate matters a bit by placing the Api on the young soul's head, thus testing her courage. If the arrow missed its target, the young soul would be reborn as a disciple of Iop. The bearded god took up position on a little island right at the north of Incarnam, which was where he placed the Api on the young soul's head. When Iop notified Cra that he was ready, the eagle-eyed goddess then shot four arrows all at once, one for each of Incarnam's winds. Naturally the goddess won as shown by the stone Relic.
Finishing watching the vision, the young Masqueraider walked up to the Relic and placed his hand on the stone Api. He felt the surge of power and speed as his Picada skill increased significantly. Then, he ran to the east to visit the Relic - Iop's Sword - that looked like a large and half-buried stone sword. Upon arrival, Kryse touched the stone marker next to the Relic and watched the vision that unfolded in his mind.
Legends has it that on one dark night, as the winds of the Krosmoz blew ferociously, a horde of demons escaped from the infernal dimension to invade the celestial archipelago of Incarnam. The god Iop, who had never miss an opportunity to smash some skulls together, left his fortress in Ingloriom to put a stop to this unacceptable intrusion.
The Lord of the Brave stood alone against the demon army. He whipped, sliced, crushed, and skewered the diabolical creatures into tiny little pieces and then smashed and bashed them into pulp, all with a disconcerting ease. The battle wasn't fair at all! Wanting to get rid of his boredom and give his enemies at least a bit of chance, Iop threw his sword to the ground. But this action didn't produce the desired effect - faced with such a demonstration of force, the demons fled without pausing to pick up their wounded. Iop was so disappointed that he returned to Ingloriom without even bothering to pick his sword up. The weapon remained wedged in the earth of Incarnam and has become a symbol of courage to all the wandering young souls that pass by it.
Kryse placed his hand on the stone sword and felt the power of his Martelo skill increase significantly. Then, he ran to the southwest to visit the last Relic - Xelor's Sandglass - that looked like a large and half-buried stone sandglass. Kryse touched the stone marker next to the Relic and watched the vision that unfolded in his mind.
Xelor may well be the Master of Time, but that doesn't mean he can take as much of it as he liked. That's why he hated to waste it. So, imagine his surprise when, as a mortal, he noticed that one of his precious sandglasses was missing! One might have thought it had been borrowed, or worse...stolen by some dishonest scamp. A passing guest, perhaps? Unless it was another dodgy trick by Sram...but the truth was something else altogether. Xelor knew the real truth...he was a god after all. You see, time wasn't just a greedy player like Enutrof, who wins all his hands the same way Ecaflip does. No, time also had a bad habit of running away from you if you don't keep your eye on it. The Great Timekeeper searched the Krosmoz far and wide until he finally found his missing sandglass in Incarnam. He was just getting ready to go and get it when he changed his mind. He decided it might not be a bad idea to remind the young souls in Incarnam that time stopped for no man.
After the vision, the young Masqueraider placed his hand on the stone sandglass and felt the power of his Bling skill increase significantly. Finished with all twelve relics left by the twelve gods and goddesses, Kryse headed back to talk with Master Yakasi. Upon arrival, the young Masqueraider waved towards Master Yakasi and told him that he had completed his request and looked through all twelve of the Relics.
"Good, now you're more acquainted with all of the divinities who rule the World of Twelve. The stories spred by the disciples of the gods and goddesses might only be fables designed to please the devout worshipers, but the legends of the World of Twelve can be considered as your best guides in your search for the Dofus. Knowing how to read between the lines will enable you to see events in a more unbiased light...and will, therefore, help you make the right choices for your own destiny." Master Yakasi replied after he found out Kryse had finished viewing the twelve Relics of Incarnam.
"Thank you Master Yakasi for your teachings." Kryse bowed. After he had bid farewell to the eagle beastman, the young Masqueraider decided that with his new experience and boost in power, it was now time for him to take on the dungeon - Dunge Onmast'her.