White fire floods the bone-pit, bleaching amber into silver. Above the treasure throne, a translucent woman takes shape, her bronze torc shining through her ghostly throat like a memory made weapon.
Merrin drops to both knees in the dust, head bowed hard enough to tremble. The devotional sheen around him brightens, as if the relics themselves are listening.
The Woman of the Torc
...Luna? No. Too much time has passed for that name to be the whole of it.
The spirit lifts one hand toward Luna, not attacking, only searching. Her ember-bright eyes hold confusion, then a sudden, aching recognition of worship and distance.
Merrin
I did not know. I only kept what was given. If you are here, tell me how to honor her, or tell me if I have failed.
The question lands like a bridge over a deep and fragile chasm. Luna stands between a living witness and a mortal kneeling beneath old divinity, forced to answer what kind of goddess can be gentle enough to remain.
✓ Quest Accepted
Learn the history of the Woman of the Torc
✓ Quest Accepted
Protect Merrin from the spirit's revelation
“I reach out to touch the spirit's hand, grounding her fading memory in my warmth.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Magic, rolled +1)
Luna closes her fingers around the spirit’s waiting hand, and the white flare softens at once. The ghost steadies, as if her outline remembers how to breathe.
The Woman of the Torc
Warm. Real. I know this touch... or the echo of it.
The bronze torc dims from a blaze to a steady, living gleam. Dust drifts around Luna’s small cut, catching on the bead of blood like a red star in the pale light.
The Woman of the Torc
I was not a queen, though they sang it later. I wore this torc for a village that had nothing left but names.
Merrin
A village namekeeper... not a relic, a person.
Her free hand lifts, and the bones below the throne answer with a warm hush, approving like an old choir. Memory gathers around her shoulders in clear, fragile pieces.
The Woman of the Torc
Tell him I stayed until the last child was fed. Tell him the torc was not a prize, but a promise I refused to break.
Merrin looks up through tears, no longer trembling, while the spirit’s gaze settles on Luna with fierce, pleading gratitude.
Quest Complete
Protect Merrin from the spirit's revelation
Quest Complete
Learn the history of the Woman of the Torc
“I have already told him your story, noble spirit, and he has agreed to protect your relic and the relic of every other spirit here”
SUCCESS (Legendary Diplomacy, rolled +0)
Luna’s words land in the hush like a seal pressed into wax. The spirit’s face changes first, then her whole outline follows, easing from pleading strain into a reverent kind of relief.
The Woman of the Torc
Then my promise still stands. Good. I carried it so long I feared it would die with me.
Merrin
It will not die. I will speak your name before the others, and I will keep the torc where no greed can reach it.
The spirit turns toward Merrin, studying him as if measuring the weight of his vow. The warm light in the pit deepens, settling over the bones like a blessing laid by careful hands.
The Woman of the Torc
Listen well, then. I was not alone when I wore this. Three women and a boy shared the last crust, and none of them lived because one of us was greater.
Merrin bows his head again, but this time it is not from fear. Luna’s nicked hand catches the light as the blood bead still glimmers, small and bright against the silver glow around her fingers.
The Woman of the Torc
Will you let him keep guarding us, Luna, or shall I give him one more name to carry?
✓ Quest Accepted
Learn the final name the Woman of the Torc wants Merrin to carry
“He has swirn to protect and remember all the names my horde holds. If you are to add one more than tell him aswell”
SUCCESS (Legendary Diplomacy, rolled -2)
Luna the Dragon Goddess
He has sworn to guard every name this hoard holds. If there is one more, tell him as well.
Luna’s request settles through the warm gold like a second blessing. The spirit’s gaze lingers on her nicked hand, where a bright bead of blood still marks the price of gentleness.
The Woman of the Torc
Then hear it, Merrin. Carry this too, and do not bend it to pride. I was called Elowen, and I kept the names when hunger made us forget ourselves.
Merrin
Elowen... I hear you. I will keep it with the others, and I will say it cleanly.
The torc flares once in soft approval, and the pit answers with a hush of settled dust. Luna’s cut stings as the light brushes it, a small cost for a name restored.
The Woman of the Torc
Good. Then my last secret is no burden. It is yours to hold with him.
Merrin lowers his head over the new name, reverent and shaken, while the spirit’s outline steadies above the treasure throne, waiting to see what Luna asks next.
Quest Complete
Learn the final name the Woman of the Torc wants Merrin to carry