The time of the Winter Convergence is near. Where the sky lights up in brilliant colors, mysterious rocks fall to the ground, and people spread presents and cheer across the island. But alas, this is also when dark creatures and wicked spirits of the season look to bring an Eternal Winter upon all of Aeternum, encasing everything in ice and snow.
Would you like to know more about Winter Convergence? Sit for a while, and let me tell you about it!
Our story starts, of course, in the land of Aeternum. A mysterious island where travelers from many different times and places find themselves having to make a new life. These people often wash up on shore with nothing but the clothes on their backs, and thus the only thing many of them keep close are the memories and traditions from wherever they called home.
And there are few traditions across the world that are more important than the winter festivals. These go by many names throughout the world, but they share many things in common. They are a time for celebration and gathering. A time for feasting and decorations. And most of all, a time to put aside grudges and to spread gifts of merriment to all of your neighbors. And while every celebration is a bit different, the people of Aeternum have come to call this time of cheer the Winter Convergence.
Let’s take a trip down to Aeternum and watch the people prepare for the festivities.
Here we are in Corinth, at the beginning of the season. The people of the village prepare for the winter, getting their food packed and their supplies put away for the coming cold. But they also know that the Winter Convergence is soon, and so too are they readying their decorations, their recipes, and their gifts for the celebration. They’ll start lighting the hearths and keeping watch on the hills, doing all they must to keep the spirits of the Eternal Winter from reaching their doorstep. They’ll begin putting up streamers in the streets, wreaths and twinkling candles on their homes, and make way into the town square for the centerpiece of the festival, the Tree of Light.
And each night, they’ll look into the sky, waiting for the brilliant ribbons of light that are the hallmark of the Winter Convergence. They’ll wait eagerly for the glowing streams to wink into existence, for they know that with the ribbons comes the Gleamite.
And what is Gleamite, you might ask?
Well, no one really knows. But the people of Aeternum do know that it falls with the winter lights, coming down in small showers across the island. The spectacle of a Gleamite shower is one of the highlights of the Winter Convergence, with some sitting high on the cliffs scanning the landscape to see the twinkling of the Gleamite as they fall to the ground. The Gleamite doesn’t last long, and like the snows of the season, it seems to melt away when the season is done. But the ephemeral nature of this glistening rock makes it a true spectacle of the season.
But it isn’t all cheer and glee now, is it?
No, for out there, lurking in the wilds of the island is the Winter Warrior, looking for wayward travelers and adventurers. The Warrior is a terrible sight to behold, a dark shadow in an otherwise festive season of lights. Underneath the merriment and feasts is a steady unease, as the Eternal Winter threatens to overtake the island and turn it into a land of perpetual frost.
Throughout the Winter Convergence celebrations, groups of adventurers will journey out to hunt and challenge the Winter Warrior, both as a way to prevent the Eternal Winter, but also to prove their might in battle. While defeating the Winter Warrior is no easy task, it is a good omen for the festivities, and the adventurers are given an opportunity to acquire gifts and trophies to show off their accomplishments. That is if they are lucky enough to survive.
I guess what I really wanted to share with you – the reason for the story – is because of the end. I’ll just cut to the chase. During Winter Convergence, nothing makes me happier than to see you, your friends, strangers all over the world running around Aeternum. I guess that’s what the convergence is, isn’t it?
It’s many things to many people. It is a coming together of people and traditions, all joining hand-in-hand to create something unique and memorable to the people of a lost island. For a brief time, at least, people can find hope and joy, and maybe come together to celebrate the past year while looking forward to the one on the horizon.
I hope you take time to not only celebrate with us, but with your family and friends. And I look forward to seeing you all at the Winter Convergence!
