Story Arc 4: The Nexus Spire

“The ritual that broke the world was performed there. Find it, and perhaps we can undo what was done. Or break it again.”

Arc Summary

Attribute	Details
Status	Rumors and expeditions (Year 287 S.)
Location	The Periphery, Beacon Islands, Unknown
Duration	Years (if ever found)
Key NPCs	Guild-Master Elara Song (secret), Archivists, Returners
Factions	Returners vs. Void-Born vs. Archivists (neutral)
Moral Question	Should the past be undone, even if it erases the present?
Player Role	Expedition member, investigator, or ethical arbiter

Overview

The Nexus Spire was the tallest structure in pre-Shattering Terrum Solidus—a 500-meter crystalline tower built by the Luminar Council at the geographic center of the continent. It was there, at the Spire’s apex, that the Apogee Working was performed: the ritual that shattered reality.

What Happened (Year 0 S.): - Day 1: Ritual begins (seven Luminar philosophers) - Day 7: Reality fractures - Day 8: The Shattering (continent breaks into sky-islands) - Day 8, Hour 6: Nexus Spire vanishes (witnesses saw it “fold inward”)

Current Status (287 S.): - Location: Unknown (theories: destroyed, Periphery, alternate dimension, temporal loop) - Expeditions: 12 major searches (all failed) - Evidence: Pre-Shattering texts reference it, some claim sightings - Importance: Finding it might reverse the Shattering (or trigger second catastrophe)

The Factions:

Returners: Extremist group seeking to undo the Shattering - Believe: Nexus Spire contains ritual reversal - Goal: Restore pre-Shattering world - Problem: Would erase 287 years of history, everyone born after

Void-Born: Anyone born post-Shattering (majority of population) - Threatened: Reversal would erase their existence - Opposition: Actively sabotage Returner expeditions - Moral stance: The past is dead, let it stay that way

Archivists: Scholar faction (neutral) - Seek: Knowledge, not reversal - Study: Pre-Shattering texts, interview survivors’ descendants - Position: Find Spire for understanding, not use

Key Characters

Guild-Master Elara Song (Secret Patron)

Role: Hidden expedition funder
Age: 41
Public Position: Sky-Guild leader (Arc 2)
Secret: Funding Nexus Spire expeditions

Motivations: - Personal: Mother died in the Shattering (never knew her) - Philosophical: Believes current world is broken, needs restoration - Practical: Nexus Spire may contain lost technology (economic advantage) - Hidden trauma: Resents being “born into catastrophe”

Methods: - Anonymous funding through shell corporations - Recruits via third parties - Denies involvement publicly - Uses Guild resources covertly

Conflict: - Public: Building economic empire (Arc 2) - Private: Funding expedition that might erase her - Doesn’t believe reversal will erase (rationalizes: “time doesn’t work that way”)

If Discovered: Scandal, faction betrayal, personal crisis

Full Character Profile →

Archivists

Faction Role: Knowledge seekers

Key Members: - High Archivist Solon (elderly, pre-Shattering descendant) - Researcher Maelis (young, academic)

Resources: - Pre-Shattering texts - Luminar Council journals (partial) - Apogee Working theory papers - Expedition reports (12 failures)

Position: - Search is valid scholarly pursuit - Reversal is ethically impossible (Void-Born genocide) - Study only, never activate

Returners (Extremist Faction)

Leader: Commander Valen (age 65, transition generation)

Ideology: - Pre-Shattering world was paradise (romanticized) - Current world is broken, doomed (Rot proves it) - Reversal is moral obligation (restore true reality) - Void-Born sacrifice is tragic but necessary

Methods: - Organized expeditions (paramilitary) - Archival theft - Coercion of experts - Willing to kill to find Spire

Membership: ~200 across all islands (small but dedicated)

Void-Born Opposition

Not organized faction, but shared interest: - Majority of population (everyone under 287 years old) - Includes: Most Elders, Clergy, Guild, Clans - Position: Finding Spire is dangerous (should stay lost)

Active Resistance: - Sabotage Returner expeditions - Hide or destroy evidence - Social stigma against Returners - Some advocate preemptive violence

Arc Structure

Stage 1: Rumors and Legends

Player Introduction:

Entry Points:

A: Tavern Tales

Old sailors claim Spire sightings (Periphery)
Dismissed as Aether-madness
But: Multiple consistent testimonies

B: Archivist Research

Access pre-Shattering texts
Luminar journals reference Spire’s “dimensional anchoring”
Theory: Didn’t destroy, displaced

C: Returner Contact

Approached by Commander Valen
Recruitment pitch: “Help restore the world”
Payment offered

D: Guild Connection

High Sky-Guild reputation
Factor mentions “special expedition”
Elara’s interest (veiled)

Information Gathered: - Spire vanished, not destroyed (witnesses) - Temporal anomalies at Periphery (time behaves strangely) - Beacon Islands: Pre-Shattering structures intact (suspended animation?) - Expeditions fail due to: Rot-Storms, Void-Kin predators, reality distortion

Stage 2: The Expedition

Quest: “The Periphery Expedition”

Preparation: - Recruit crew (specialists needed) - Acquire supplies (expensive: 200+ Aether-Coin) - Ship charter (Jorah Ironwind or Guild vessel) - Research (Archivist cooperation)

Journey: - 20+ days travel (dangerous) - Encounters: Void-Storms, pirates, Rot-Beasts - Resource management (Stamina, supplies, crew morale)

The Periphery: - Edge of known Aetherium - Physics unstable (Aether currents unpredictable) - Islands drift faster here - Time dilation (hours outside = days inside)

The Beacon Islands: - Pre-Shattering settlements frozen in time - Buildings intact, people gone (mid-sentence) - Clocks stopped: Day 8, Hour 6 (moment of vanishing) - Clue: All pointing “inward” (toward former continent center)

Discovery: - Temporal echo detected (instruments or PIE sense) - Spire location triangulated (not in space—in time) - Revelation: Spire exists “between moments”

Stage 3: The Decision

Crisis: Can access Spire, but should we?

The Mechanism: - Luminar device found (Beacon Islands) - Can “step sideways” through time (one-way) - Reach Spire’s temporal location - From there: Unknown (ritual control? Reversal? Nothing?)

Factions React:

Returners: “Do it! Restore the world!” Void-Born: “Destroy device! We have right to exist!” Archivists: “Study first, decide later!” Elara Song (if discovered): Personal plea to player

Ethical Dilemma:

Position	Argument	Consequence
Activate	Undo catastrophe, restore paradise	Erase 180,000 living people
Destroy	Protect living over dead	Doom world to Rot (maybe)
Study	Knowledge before action	Returners may steal device
Seal	Lock it away, no one decides	Problem persists

Stage 4: Resolution Paths

Outcome A: Reversal Attempted

Requirements: - Side with Returners OR personal choice - High skill checks ((Piety)+, (Cunning)+) - Moral conviction (or corruption 70+: nihilistic “why not?”)

Process: - Activate device → enter temporal fold - Reach Nexus Spire (frozen in ritual moment) - Seven Luminar philosophers still there (time-locked) - Ritual controls accessible

Choice at Spire: 1. Complete Reversal: Reset to Day 0 (erase everything post) 2. Partial Reversal: Merge timelines (unstable, might break worse) 3. Abort: Leave it frozen 4. Destruction: Destroy controls (permanent)

If Complete Reversal: - Game ending: Time resets - Player perspective: Fade to white - Final scene: Pre-Shattering world (peaceful) - Achievement: “The Returner” - Philosophical: Is this victory? Everyone player knew is gone

Outcome B: Device Destroyed

Requirements: - Side with Void-Born OR ethical conviction - Resist Returner pressure (possibly combat)

Process: - Destroy Luminar device - OR: Destroy access to Spire (seal dimensional fold) - Returner reaction: Violence (Commander Valen attacks)

Consequences: - Spire permanently inaccessible - Returners: Defeated, leadership killed/scattered - Void-Born: Relieved, grateful - History: Path forward, not backward

Personal: - +30 all Void-Born majority factions - -40 Returners (if any survive) - Achievement: “Defender of the Present” - Weight: Denied reversal to Shattering survivors

Outcome C: Sealed for Future

Requirements: - High reputation multiple factions - Diplomatic solution - Convince all parties

Process: - Device sealed (vault, guard, ritual ward) - Archivist custody - Agreement: Study continues, activation forbidden - Multi-faction oversight

Consequences: - Temporary peace (fragile) - Returners accept (most, not all) - Void-Born relieved but suspicious - Knowledge preserved, choice delayed

Personal: - +10 Archivists, +5 all others - Achievement: “The Scholar” - Responsibility: Maintain seal

Outcome D: Personal Use (Secret)

Requirements: - Solo discovery (betray expedition) - High corruption OR extreme motivation - Willing to sacrifice others

Process: - Activate device alone - Enter Spire - Discover: Ritual grants power, not reversal - Choice: Take power OR resist

If Take Power: - Become Luminar-like (reality manipulation) - Extreme abilities (god-mode) - Corruption +50 (immediate) - Transformation inevitable (power corrupts literally)

Consequences: - Expedition dead (temporal collapse) - You return changed - All factions hostile (monster) - Unique ending path: “Ascended”

The Nexus Spire Truth (GM Choice)

Option 1: Reversal Possible

Ritual can be reversed
Timeline would reset
Everyone post-Shattering erased (tragic but real)
Returners are right (ethically debatable)

Option 2: Reversal Impossible

Ritual is one-way (entropy)
Spire exists but controls destroyed
Returners chase false hope
Arc is about accepting loss

Option 3: Worse Than Nothing

Attempting reversal triggers second Shattering
World breaks again (worse)
Spire is trap/warning
Returners are dangerous fools

Option 4: Transcendence Not Reversal

Spire grants power, not reset
Luminar philosophers became something else
Ascension vs. restoration
Cosmic horror option

Design Note: GM chooses based on campaign tone. All options valid.

Interconnections

Arc 2: The Guild’s Gambit

Elara’s secret funding exposes hypocrisy
Guild resources diverted to expedition
Political scandal if revealed

Arc 3: The Voice Beneath

If Voice is ancient, maybe pre-Shattering?
Spire’s ritual might have awakened it
Shared cosmic origin?

Arc 5: The Storm’s Secret

Temporal anomalies in Black Tempest too
Connection to Spire’s dimensional folding?
Kiera saw Spire location?

Quest Hooks

Main Quests

“The Periphery Expedition” (major journey)
“The Luminar Device” (find mechanism)
“The Temporal Fold” (enter time between)
“At the Nexus Spire” (ultimate decision)

Side Quests

“The Archivist’s Theory”: Help research
“Returner Recruitment”: Infiltrate or join
“Sabotage Mission”: Void-Born hire you
“Elara’s Secret”: Discover Guild funding
“Survivor’s Testimony”: Interview Shattering witnesses

Thematic Elements

Past vs. Present

Nostalgia vs. reality
“Paradise lost” romanticism
Present has value (even if broken)

Utilitarian Genocide

180,000 living vs. billions dead
Is erasure murder?
Greater good calculations

Knowledge and Responsibility

Should some things stay unknown?
Discovery doesn’t obligate use
Archivist neutrality questioned

Time and Identity

Are you “you” across timelines?
Reset vs. continuation
Memory and existence

Design Notes

Epic Scope

Highest-stakes arc
Existential choice
Affects entire world

Optional Engagement

Can ignore entirely
Game doesn’t require resolution
Mystery can stay mystery

Multiple Endings

Each outcome valid
Philosophical, not mechanical
Player defines meaning

Arc Status: Rumors (distant)
Urgency: Low immediate, High philosophical
Player Impact: Maximum (existential)

“At the Nexus Spire, time stands still. One choice, and every clock starts—or stops—forever.”