With the new forum, I decided I’d post all 5 of the lore submissions in the same post. Had a bit of an adventure trying to find out some background based on NPC dialogue so hope you all enjoy!
Name: Captain Hector Draken, EEF
Entry: #71
Data:
Other than the Haruspex I saw at Orpheus’ cave, I have never actually seen any other members of the Haruspex faction. Loyalist scouts have reported strange readings in the northwest of the planet with mysterious floating orbs being a contributing factor towards the unusual environmental activities. However, I am certain this is the work of the Haruspex, as it is rumored that the Woodland Haruspex dabble in magic.
With a new lead on my investigations into how the portal to Ancient Greece works, I now pack my things and adventure beyond the desert territories of the Stel and Resa. We have slightly more scouts in the northern parts of the planet, however, it is relatively undocumented topography and we are not sure what the Haruspex are up to. Scouts on skyrippers have located the make-shift home base of the Haruspex in the north, so perhaps I might find someone to talk to there.
“You’re chasing ghosts again Hector?” said the guard captain at Paradise Landing.
“Yes, with the knowledge of the Haruspex and our own technological capability, we can win the arms race with the New Elysian Order and dominate the other factions” I replied.
“Your reports repeatedly talked about portals and magic, I fear for your sanity if you keep going down this route. There is a reason why we try to keep our distance from the Haruspex. Their dark magic is not safe to poke your head into” he argued.
At this point, the whole entirety of the Loyalist faction must find me insane, but I know what I am looking for. I recently even ordered a new strider to traverse the forest areas in the north as I know the Haruspex try to build their settlements in the most out-of-the-way locations possible.
Based on my charts, I will be passing through territory contested by the Resa and Loyalists. There is no outright fighting but only tense standoffs if both sides encounter each other. There shouldn’t be any other factions I should look out for, and I’ve learned from the last time that the Stel have skyrippers too so I need to remember to pack anti-air weapons as well.
Name: Captain Hector Draken, EEF
Entry: #72
Data:
My journey so far towards the reported Haruspex ritual grounds and capital has started off quiet. I started off at Riverside View, the closest teleport I have to it that’s in Loyalist-controlled territory. A slight problem with starting off my journey at the break of dawn was that I wasn’t awake enough to remember calibrating my nav computer and for the past 4 hours, have been walking north-east instead of northwest.
My clumsiness is going to be the death of me someday I swear, but not today. I will try to make the best of the situation and see if I can chart out the resources and survey the area. The area I’m currently walking through is quite mountainous and has been putting my new strider to the test. I applaud the engineers that designed this, I have yet to find a mountain I cannot climb with it, though some proper seat belts might be needed as I do feel nervous going up the side of a mountain at nearly a 90-degree angle with the sensation of almost falling off.
After trekking the contested area for about 2 more hours, I decided to set up camp for the night. I found a nice ridge area to make camp and it is high enough to know my bearings. Once the camp was set up, I started a fire and heated up a ration kit. The stars in the sky shined just bright enough that I could see into the distance and to my surprise, there was a dim light on a mountain several kilometers from me. Alarmed, I pulled out my binoculars, looked towards the dim light, and had to squint a little to see some kind of structure in the distance. Could this be a fellow Loyalist expedition? What if they were hostile enemies on the hunt for an unsuspecting victim? I had to find out before my head ended up being displayed as a hunting trophy.
I left behind most of my stuff at my campsite and sneaked my way towards the dim light while hidden by the trees. I didn’t even bother wearing armor since I only wanted to scout around and not get weighed down by equipment, just a rifle in hand and some binoculars.
Every sound of tree leaves rustling kept me on edge, at any point while I sneaked my way towards the dim light, a creature or something could jump out and ambush me, but with the moonlight watching over me, I was ready for anything. Once I reached a position that I could look down from, I saw a red tent, which could only mean one thing: Resa.
Name: Captain Hector Draken, EEF
Entry: #73
Data:
Entry #72 was cut short due to an unexpected skirmish with the Resa. For the past day, I have been chased by Resa and I think I lost them finally so I can note down the situation. I am not sure how long I lost them for but these Resa are much more skilled at tracking and hunting than your average Resa, but a short log entry will have to do for today.
As I was perched on the ledge looking over the small Resa camp, one of them walked out and looked towards the moon, then turned towards me, as if they spotted me with eyes at the back of his head. That shook me, he was looking right in my direction and I heard some shuffling near me. If I had rolled over 2 seconds later, there would have been a blade in my back. When I rolled over, I saw an armored figure pulling back their blade for another strike at me, but blocked their death blow with my rifle.
Without any time to process what was going on, I saw another armored figure running towards me at the corner of my eye. “This is it”, I thought to myself, finally, a warrior’s death as they call it, but just before the second figure reached me, I kicked away the first Resa and rolled again to dodge the second.
This was the most action I’ve seen in months and the adrenaline rush was the only thing keeping me alive and moving. These guys had armor and I didn’t, but I did have a much lighter gear setup. I had to think fast, to run back towards the camp or run deeper into the contested territory. Just as the two Resa were recovering from their failed ambush, I chose the latter and sprinted towards the fields. A stupid idea, but I hoped to lead them away from my camp, have them lose track of me, and then return to my camp to recover my gear.
The surroundings around here were just clear fields and mountains with little to no cover, but I kept running and running. I plotted out on my Nav that I could do a big circle to get back to my campsite and so far I’m about 79% of the way into my route. Occasionally the hunters would catch up and fire some shots at me, but I was quick enough to dodge most of them and only suffered minimum damage. I’m getting tired of running and soon will have to fight them, I just need a better position. These hunters are relentless and won’t give up, I will have to muster the rest of my strength to take them on. It’s hard to type and run at the same time so I will stop this entry here.
Name: Captain Hector Draken, EEF
Entry: #74
Data:
Currently, I am still alive and successfully killed off the pursuing Resa. When I stopped to find a suitable place to make a stand and fight the two hunters, I noticed a great vantage point on top of a hill and scared a mountain boar to run towards them to distract them. To be honest, I was surprised the mountain boar distraction actually worked, as I managed to get into position and snipe out one of them with just one critical hit.
The poor mountain boar met an untimely end however at the hands of the second pursuer, but a small sacrifice was necessary. Before I could even aim and fire, the surviving hunter fired several shots at me and I could hear them going into the rocks near me. In what I could only describe as fight or flight reflex rather than actual skill, I tossed myself off of the ledge I was taking position at and rushed him.
Within seconds, we both were jumping around, blades in hand, seeing which one of us was going to die to the other’s blade. I was fast, but he was much faster than me, but I managed to defeat him before lying on the ground lifeless.
Two hunters and two kills. With all this adventuring lately, I might actually rack up a few more confirmed kills onto my personal record. Well, now that no more Resa are chasing after me, I can get back to my camp knowing full well that I can continue my journey, after a long nap. The running and fighting for the past day and a half has been extremely tiring and the long circle route I took back to my camp was not any help at all.
At last, after around 6 more hours of slowly walking around and taking some breaks, I reached my camp and saw no indication of anyone tampering or stealing anything. A good sign? Yes. I honestly was expecting the entire campsite to be raided by the Resa or other scavengers while I was away. I hope I don’t get in contact with the Resa again anytime soon, and if I do, I plan to be prepared with combat gear and a team to bring havoc and destruction to them.
According to my Nav, I need to continue west but I find it unsettling to go through NEO territory considering the rumors of their superior technology that could utterly destroy me with ease. I guess I’ll have to pack up and do a detour back east and circle back towards the Resa camp I encountered. For now, I rest, and tomorrow we will start our new route.
Name: Captain Hector Draken, EEF
Entry: #75
Data:
I came across a Haruspex settlement today that wasn’t on my Nav. Of course, it was in the weirdest of places, high on a ridge on the eastern side of the planet. This settlement was different though, it wasn’t just a bunch of wagons in a circle, there were towers as well with orbs and Haruspex roaming about.
The Haruspex seemed to not be alarmed by my presence and did not even raise any weapons towards me when I approached them. As I walked toward the middle of the settlement, I noticed a Loyalist scout present and asked them why they were here and why the location was not on my Nav. Norma Bates was her name, and she seemed to be scouting out and studying the Haruspex in the area. Soon after, a few Haruspex came up to us and said something strange to me:
“Hello stranger, welcome to Tanzanite View, we are the Woodland Haruspex and we know why you’re here” one said.
“The Elder told us about your arrival. Go towards the rock and you shall find your answer” chimed another.
I felt a bit uneasy considering I just discovered this place and felt like I was walking into a trap. I didn’t exactly know what I wanted to know at the time, but to speak with a leader of the Haruspex is a great opportunity to learn more so I went towards the rock.
When I got to the rock, an apparition appeared, an orb that radiated a blueish mist and I felt as if it was calling out to me. I stood in fear as I was not sure what the orb was and drew my pistol. Walking towards it with my pistol aimed at it, it suddenly told me everything about how the portal to Ancient Greece came into existence and whether it was truly time travel or not.
The “Elder” explained to me that the strange readings and phenomena we encountered near Orpheus’ cave were caused by the Haruspex and their portal to a land they modeled after Ancient Greek civilization. Any action someone does in Ancient Greece would not affect Ancient Greece in the current and actual timeline and though I was a bit disappointed that the Haruspex do not truly have time travel spells and rituals, their elders, these floating orbs, have the power to create artificial realms.
Shocked and amazed, I put away my weapon and walked back towards the settlement. The idea of me talking to a floating orb is going to get me thrown out of the Expeditionary Force, but I should really put it in my report and into the database. The Haruspex Elders are not living physical beings but some kind of spiritual entity in the form of a floating orb. Of course, the Expeditionary Force might not consider my findings as far-fetched as I would think they would since these are the Haruspex we are talking about and it is well known by all factions that woodland magic is one of the foundations of their society. I better wrap things up at this settlement and will continue the journey northwest after documenting as much as I can with the help of Norma.