An Ode To The End

The biggest, longest D&D campaign I’ve ever run reached its end last night, and I’ve kind of been shaken ever since it happened. It was a beautiful ending, with the players’ collective destinies capped off by the wedding of one of the PCs to the love of his life. I’ve commissioned art to commemorate it, and spoken for a good while with the players about how much fun we all had, but to me I don’t think it’ll really be over for me until I create something myself. So I’m gonna write a little something.

All of them have come so far, miles away from the cold cell of blue stone that brought them all together. On the other side of destiny, of prophecy, they’ve all learned something they needed to learn or become someone they’ve needed to be.

A downtrodden little inventor, crushed down into the mud and scarred by his abuse, broke free of the chains tying him to organised crime and the worship of forbidden things. He rose above prejudice against his people, the kind that had twisted and affected his life and his family for so long, and pushed to make the world a better place even though it had never shown an ounce of kindness to him.

A bright young wizard, bursting out of the other side of tragedy and betrayal and possessing a thirst for knowledge rivalled by none, rose up from a simple little student to a professor, to a headmaster, all within the span of years, soon becoming one of the brightest minds of his generation. He made mistakes, he hurt people, his follies ever-present, but conflict and victory within himself birthed a truly good man, determined to turn his obsession with knowledge into a force for good as he prepares the next generation for greatness.

Finding faith in her darkest moments, an orphan confronted what family truly means, and learned what to do once the time comes to excise evil from one’s own bloodline. She changed, as all do, her eyes drifting from the worship of burden to the worship of fate upon realising that holding onto the pain of her loss was not the right path. With the Raven Queen at her back, she ensured that no children would suffer as she had, and one day, when the time came, she became a mother herself, swearing that the evil possessing the twin brothers responsible for her parents’ death would never again stain her family.

Even in his autumn years, a soldier found ways to grow. From an outcasted warrior, to a famous hero, to a great general of his own army, he fought against injustice and the corruption that power brings with every speck of strength that could be summoned from his core. He even found space to learn of new family, discovering things about himself that had stayed tucked away through his greater years. When the time comes to lay down in the ground and rest at last, he will be happy that his effort, his countless battles, made a few more steps toward freeing those downtrodden from their oppressors.

From the deepest pits of the underdark, pain ruled a slave’s life. Twisted and broken by her guardians and left in the dark to be abused and sold, passed from master to master, she never gave up her search for love. Although her definitions were of-kilter, and her imprinted masochism attracted the worst kinds of torturous masters, her drive and enthusiasm brought on the attention of divinity itself. Freedom brought new worship, that of the pain that made her so strong and pure, but time would tell her that wasn’t the path she needed. Lady Firehair welcomed her with open arms, and even though things never worked out in the end, the heart of a nonchalant old mercenary opened her eyes to what she could truly know. Leaving chains and whips behind, she stepped forward to search for the one to share her heart with.

They were given a destiny, and they fulflilled it. They started in the darkest pits of their lives, and climbed out tooth and nail to become champions.

They deserve their happy ending.

Submitted June 23, 2019 at 09:56PM by ballisticInflection http://bit.ly/2Kxd8wr