Liam and his friends appeared on a certain teleporter. It was time to kill a world boss! However, the party didn't return to Tority in the south, hurrying towards the Southern Mountain Range, joining the fight against Haola. There was no need to contest against thousands of other players. Quite the opposite, they travelled all the way into the Northern Desert towards Dual Sun City, the capital of Aviar.
As soon as they stepped out of the teleporter, Crunaboul's two searing suns burned down on them, heating up their armours. Many people who had never visited the Dual Sun City thought the two suns were the reason for the city's name, but its origin laid elsewhere.
Dual Sun City was located at the longest river in all of Crunaboul, Heaven's Gift, revered by the desert's inhabitants for bearing the gift of life. This river meandered through the western half of the Northern Desert, eventually flowing into the Western Ocean. It also formed many branches which separated and fused multiple times.
At one point Heaven's gift splits into two branches, which fuse again some distance down the river, creating a large island in between the two strands of the river. A long time ago two tribes settled on this island, living from the river. However, they discovered that there were times when only one of the two branches would carry water.
At the begging the tribes were thus forced to wander from west to east and east to west, always chasing the water. But one year, as Heaven's Gift blessed them with more water than usual, they decided on a cooperation. Mighty mages and powerful warriors created broad channels between the two tribes which were filled with river water, enough for both tribes to enjoy. Thus, the tribes could finally settle. They grew and prospered until they eventually joined into a single city, Dual Sun City.
The original broad channel had been expanded countless times, and an intricate system of smaller channels had been formed. More water was introduced from other spots in the river. Today, the channel system was the landmark of the city, bringing life to countless beings. The city didn't exactly boast a forest, but stubborn desert flowers and humble palm trees decorated the dusty streets. Within the city one could almost forget that this place was within a vast desert.
Dual Sun City was also a place greatly favoured by players. Even as a big war was ongoing in the south, the city was still bustling. But at least the attention of most guilds was elsewhere. This was everything the friends needed.
"Friends! Here!"
A shout attracted the attention of the party. They looked over and found Radiant Shield and Bloody Edge waving at them from below a cloth roof spending some shadows.
"Wow, you were faster than us. Have you already completed your quest?", asked Balm as the friends walked over.
"Yes. We had the honour of assisting the mighty warriors of the Holy Judgement Division in eradicating a stronghold of Infernals. I hope our contribution has made the world more secure even if only a tiny bit."
"These infernals were no weaklings but they still couldn't escape my blade!"
"Mhm. Mhm."
The others nodded, having long become accustomed to this way of speaking. The friends conversed some more as they left the city to the east, crossing a stone bridge sturdy enough to survive the onslaught of hundreds of monsters. Afterwards the party took out their mounts and crossed the desert. There were no powerful enemies close to the city and the party didn't have to go far. Five minutes later they arrived at a large tribe north of Dual Sun City.
The tribe was quite prosperous as it was located at the foot of one of the famous landmarks of the Northern Desert.
One could even see it from within Dual Sun City. A massive building piercing the heavens. It had a square foundation with a pyramid on top. This was the Burial Site of Tuechou, one of the first human mages to lead his followers into the Northern Desert, even predating the establishment of Dual Sun City by a long time.
Players entering the tribe for the first time couldn't avert their eyes from the majestic marvel and the friends were no exception. Golden pillars lined the path towards a large gate, shining like miniature stars. Statues surrounded the majestic pyramid. Even some of the river water was channelled towards it, disappearing somewhere below.
The burial site was a favourite place of exploration by the players but even after months they hadn't discovered all the secrets of the pyramid yet. The reason for this was simple. The interior of the pyramid was way bigger than the exterior and it even changed from day to day.
For this reason, there were even some rumours which could be heard in the tribe, reaching the friends as they travelled through. People thought that the burial site has been built by the gods to honour the exceptionally talented Tuechou. Others said Tuechou himself was so powerful, not less than a god. These rumours have led to the emergence of a cult worshipping Tuechou, which settled here at the foot of the burial site, creating Tuechou's Tribe.
Silver Blade was fascinated, soaking up all this information like a sponge. But most players were like Silent Acacia, not caring for the background information, only eager to explore the pyramid.
And Silent Acacia didn't have to wait that long. The friends approached the northern edge of the tribe. A plethora of voices reached their ears. Here, where there was a lot of free space used by the cult to hold rituals in honour of Tuechou, a huge crowd of players were gathered. Suddenly someone noticed the arrival of Hotpot. The information spread through the crowd and a second later it parted, granting the friends a direct path towards two familiar individuals.
"Finally you are here! I was already considering whether I should lead everyone in!"
"Don't mind him. We haven't been waiting for that long."
A burly orc and a human mage in an azure robe addressed the friends. Who else could it be but Earthquake and Cherry Blossom? The friends hastened their pace, greeting the friendly guild leaders and a few of the surrounding guild members. Each of the three guilds had provided 400 players for this battle against a world boss. And Earthquake was by far not the only one growing impatient.
Thus, the friends didn't dawdle. They had already informed Earthquake and Cherry Blossom of their plans beforehand. The two guild leaders were waiting next to a temporary camp set up by a group of explorers. They protected a human woman in their midst. She had long black hair and a deep tan. Looking at her face one could tell that she had spent many years in the brutal sun of the Northern Desert. Her top revealed a sixpack and her eyes sparkled with intelligence.
The friends checked out the woman's name. Zara Ebn. Perhaps this name didn't carry a big reputation among the players but NPCs, especially inhabitants of the Northern Desert, would surely recognize the famous explorer, who was known for her expertise in deciphering ancient languages.
As the friends approached her, Zara was mulling over a circular stone tablet placed on a table in front of her, studying the engraved characters. Papers with all kinds of sketches were scattered around her.
"Zara Ebn?", asked Liam.
The NPC looked up from her work. Her eyes fell on Liam and her thoughts moved swiftly.
"Nephilim? Are you the reinforcements I asked for? Great, finally! It seems Lewriova has stopped ignoring me. Well then, take a look at this..."
Zara began to talk, barely allowing Liam to get a word in. She explained how the Nephilim hired her to figure out a way to enter the deepest part of the pyramid where they suspected that Tuechou buried his most precious artifact. Although the mage himself wasn't strong enough to be called a god, he possessed an artifact blessed by the gods. The Broken Council coveted this artifact to use it in the upcoming war against the void.
However, getting into the burial site was not easy. The might of the artifact protected it and even the powerful nephilim couldn't enter. Thankfully Zara was indeed quite remarkable. She was able to find this stone tablet in an ancient tower belonging to Tuechou and figured out that it could be used as both a map and a key to control the pyramid. But she herself didn't dare to enter. Thus, she handed the job over to the adventurers.
[Do you wish to accept the quest 'A god's rest'?]
The quest was generated for the party's original nephilim. They, of course, accepted readily. This was another major quest which was part of the event. As they aimed for the world boss anyways, why not snatch a few free points in the process?
After the friends ended the conversation with Zara it was finally time. The excitement among the players became palpable as they finally set off. They ran up a short set of stairs and finally entered the towering pyramid.