Four pages worth of notes, found in the cove.

Page 1:
In recent times, we have of course become aware of the strange results of our divinations. It is as though the thin fabric that we call time has begun to be warped. Though our best efforts fail to produce results, we are at least eliminating causes. The Queen grows worried, and I too know not what could cause this. Our kingdom remains prosperous through our divinations, but we know not how long our predictions will remain accurate…

Page 2:
We have made a startling discovery. The formulae of our divination, which has long served us well, is… simply incorrect. Yet it served us perfectly before, never failing. I do not understand.
Seven days have passed since my last entry. Our revised models work, but soon fall out of alignment again. We have been forced to draw a startling conclusion: The fabric of time is changing. That which should exist no longer does- more accurate to say it never has. We know not the reason nor the method, yet this bizarre occurrence is- must be the truth.

Page 3:
Having brought my research to the Queen, we have been forced to face an unfortunate truth- there is a force erasing entire worlds. It is intelligent and malevolent. The Queen has dubbed this force ‘Reapers’, specters of the harvest… It is a name in poor taste, yet none more appropriate arise.
However, knowing this force exists does not tell us how we may yet protect ourselves. I must do more…

Page 4:
I have come across a plan that may yet provide our salvation. If this forc▓ is intelligent, perhaps it may be reason█d with. There yet may be ho▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▒▒█▒▒▒▒▓▓▓▓▓░▓▓█████████
█████▓▓▓▓▓██████████▒▒▒▒▒███████████████▓▓█████
████▒▒▒▒▒▓▓▓▒▒▒██████████████▓▓▓▓▒█████████████ █████
My plan is ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒███████▓▓░▓▓▓▓▓▓██████████████████████████████████░░░░░░░░███████████████████▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒████████████████████████▓▓▓██████████████▒▒▒▒█████░░░░░░░█████████████████▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓██████████████░░░░▒▒▒ appease them and we s▓all be sa▓ed.
However, wh▓n I told Her Highness the prince▒s of my plan, she simply █sed su▒h words as I may not re█eat here. Truly, the royal▒y no longer p▒ssesses the wisdom to rule…

NOTES: Piecing together the ruined sections on page 4 gives us:

• "If this force is intelligent, perhaps it may be reasoned with. There yet may be hope--"
  
• "appease them and we shall be saved. However, when I told Her Highness the princess of my plan, she simply used such words as I may not repeat here. Truly, the royalty no longer possesses the wisdom to rule."
  
  I wasn't there for the discovery of these pages, so anything about circumstances leading to it are unknown. Ask if anything is to note about this, just in case.

After strange growths (splinters) appeared in some peoples' mirrors, we had to enter their hearts, their souls, to drive the the infection/effects the splinters were causing on those people out. Said effects were a growing distrust toward the Queen and the Cats, to the point of violence just prior to our trying to fix them.

A gryphon, forced its way into the castle after we did that, collecting what was left of the infected shards. Potentially controlled/forced into doing it, as its target was specific, and it escaped just as fast as it entered once it got what it wanted. By the time it reached the cove, the shards were affecting it; parts of its body started to turn into stained glass.

During the fight with the gryphon, this metallic disc was found in the waters of the cove. [ THIS IS A PRETTY LEGIT DRAWING OF THE DISC ]

NOTES: N/A

Following the infected mirrors and the incident with the gryphon, it led us into the caves to a wooden door before the shards overtook and destroyed it. It was a room-- a bedroom of sorts, with books and parchments. None of the books were in any language any of us understood, though. The parchment, however, had a note addressed directly to us, as if our arrival was expected.

"Greetings, men and women of the castle.

Having foreseen that events that woman conspired would bring you here, I thought to leave this letter to prepare you. I have not much time here, however, so I must be brief.

The corruption in your mirrors was spread by one whose actions were regrettable, yet in this occasion, of good intent. The Queen, as you know her, is but a false monarch who was never meant to rule. She has lied to you about the nature of her game, and any restored worlds will once more be at the mercy of the Reapers. I know not why she hides this from you, nor the fact that they may yet find us here as well.

Do not fear, however, as not all is lost. In the vicinity of this lake, the Queen’s vision is shrouded by some magic, and she may not see what happens here. In this cove, you are safe from her machinations, and you may be left in peace.

I will do what I may to ensure such an effect upon your souls as led you here will not happen again. I know you will likely not trust me so easily, but I assure you, I am your ally.

I wish you all the best of fortunes.
Ulrich, former Court Wizard and Diviner of Her Castle."

NOTES: Some of the books and papers with the strange symbols were taken, but as of now nothing seems to have come of inspecting or trying to decipher them.

All of the patrons (just the patrons, not all of the Echoes) suddenly had a sharp loss of power. All of the teams then took on quests that they worked together to complete, to give their respective patrons as much power back as possible so they wouldn't disappear.

When their power was restored, the entirely of Kyriakos seemed to shake-- the prominent wave of energy coming from the cove. Somehow, every team regained shards in the aftermath of these quests, and stranger yet, every patron regained a single memory of the world they came from. This is the first time an Echo has remembered anything like that.

NOTES: Teams getting shards, even patrons regaining memories, it's like the quests we all did were one big game...

The Queen used a great deal of her power to block the Echoes from forcing us to play bad games. But it wasn't only her power that drained; all of the Echoes, all of us suddenly lost all of our energy as well.

NOTES: Stopping bad games takes a lot more than anybody thought, if it affected Kyriakos as a whole. Now the question is will it last, and for how long if not...

Copied from Gloss on Day 111, who decided to previously explore the cove by herself on day 107.

Entered the caves in the morning. Only a few meters from the entrance, using a flashlight proved necessary in order to see. Everything was damp and wet, the path widening as I went further inside.

There was nothing unusual on the floor, walls or ceiling. I proceeded with care, testing the ground with each step, although there was nothing to suggest a need for it.

The path crumbled beneath me a short distance from the entrance, too quickly for caution and reflexes to allow for a jump back to safety. If it was a trap, the triggers were invisible. I personally think that the floor was simply weak, perhaps because of age, and only ever gave the illusion of being structurally sound.

Landed in a pool of water deep enough to cushion the fall but shallow enough that swimming, or even treading water, wasn't needed. Dry ground was close by, and was used to exit the water.

The surrounding rock was still damp, yet now there was glowing moss to partially illuminate the caves. I had fallen into a large cavern.

Scattered around was evidence of what might have been prior residence; toys, books, clothes, cooking utensils, and so on. Everything was broken or in a state of decay, with one exception. (I collected a broken toy as a sample of this discovery.)

A single book was in good condition. It seems to be a children's book. (I collected it as well.) The following was written in it:

"If you meet a strange-clothed traveler, you must remember to ask where they are from.

If they say they are from another town, or perhaps a far-off country, offer them hospitality. Feed them and shelter them, for kindness to a weary traveler is true happiness.

But if they say they are from another world, return home quickly. Lock the doors, shutter the windows, offer them nothing. Pray that they may leave soon.

Remember not their words, for their words are naught but tricks. They will make you promises of great things, but you must not follow them, lest they kidnap you to their own world.

Remember not their faces, for this will invite them back. They may often appear beautiful, but their true faces are devils’.

Most important, remember them not. As long as you remember them, they will return again and again. Think not of these travelers, and they will have no hold over you. To remember them, to think of them, grants them power, but to forget them will banish them once more."

The above passage was accompanied by childish drawings. I tried to copy some of them here: [drawings of children wearing period clothes, the attire old-fashioned yet less fancy than what the Queen and Princess may wear. There's also a drawing of a man, one who is much more modern looking, down to his suit.]

There was nothing else in the book. When I proceeded forward, there was a large opening in a cave wall, along with a few others of smaller size that I couldn't fit through. When nothing of interest could be seen or felt by hand inside the small crevices, I carefully entered the large one.

In this way, I eventually returned to the outside world.

NOTES: N/A

For a game, Nyssa pulled a random number of Cats into her realm without any warning or request, and used them as tools for part of her game. The game itself was harmless-- the Cats were turned into the Pokemon creatures from Sparrow's world, and used by each team to battle one another. The Cats weren't hurt from fighting, but the teams were not informed that the Pokemon they were given to fight were Cats, rather than pawns created with the magic of her realm.

NOTES: Cats should be requested to aid an Echo with a game, and have every right to deny them. Yet, Nyssa forced Cats into her realm and forced them into their roles without consent. Nyssa could be exploiting some loophole in the Echo/Cat rules, or something could have changed when the Queen used all of that power to ban Echoes from running bad games.

Nightshade awakened as part of Epona's team, with only a few scattered memories of Kyriakos, her former team Dawon, and her home intact. She remembers "somebody attempting to use her for something" at the cove, and collapsing there before waking up.

The same morning, our team, as well as a few others, gained a seventh new teammate and mirror. Formerly, the only way to have a seventh team member was if one had already been in Kyriakos before. It wasn't the case, this time around.

NOTES: Both of these incidents could be connected. The question would be how.

A group of us went to the cove to potentially look for answers as to what could have happened to Nightshade. There was a large, rumbling sound when we arrived, and the inside of the caves themselves were changed, giving us one singular tunnel rather than the many twists and turns they normally have. We were led to a single door, which brought us to Ulrich himself, who had previously only shown himself to us via the letter we found on day 70. The room was much like the one(s) found before, only in active use. There were countless books; most likely notes of his, along with loose papers with similar things on them. Ulrich was expecting us. What we learned or heard from him, truth of anything still in the air:

- He rearranges the caves and their tunnels from time to time. His reason for this is because he doesn't want unwanted visitors sent by the Queen (who he referred to, sharply, as "her")

- According to Ulrich, Estelle took the throne through treachery. She had an older sister who would have inherited the throne. There's no confirmation as to Estelle's true feelings about this fact aside from what Ulrich said, which was that what her alleged actions were were done out of malice for her ambition to rule. She was scholarly and book-smart, studying often, and decided on a path for her family (father, mother, sister) to take to discuss trade with a foreign nation. The route was unstable, and a landslide claimed their lives - something Ulrich said someone as bright as Estelle would have known, what with getting reports of the weather of the lands. That, and the fact that Estelle did not ask for the advice of the divinators who would have predicted the tragedy. She took the throne days after their deaths, and disbanded the guild of divinators, only keeping a few of them on to help her and avoid disasters the kingdom could come across to keep it flourishing.

- Divinators, using movements of earth and time itself similarly to how mathematics use the stars, can see into the future. The scope appears to be large, such as predicting disasters and making the right movements to avoid them.

- Concerning Gloss' account of visiting the caves, Ulrich simply said that he let her explore, and the ground beneath her breaking was due to his not paying attention, because he was busy with his research. He claimed that he's not very good at maintaining the cave system, despite leading us to him just fine.

- Aside from his documented research on the Reapers, other claimed research he's done includes figuring where where the glow from the moss comes from, what sort of wood lasts the longest burning, and growth rates of the bears. His Echo powers sometimes influence the results of his research, so he's occupied by repeating things to ensure solid results. He does this as a longing for life, as he put it, to attempt to get enjoyment out of the half-existence he was left with.

- Regarding the Reapers and the four-pages of notes found on day 41, Ulrich gave Estelle numerous suggestions to secure their own world. It was ignored, along with his suggestion to potentially make peace with the Reapers, being told by Estelle that he was speaking out of his place. But, Ulrich himself also admitted that he isn't even entirely sure that the Reapers are intelligent/sentient. His assumption that they are is based on his observations of their patterns of destruction.

- The cove is his "section" of this place, and much like he told us in his letters, that area is "safe" from the Queen's detection and power. He didn't explain how he sustains his power, but claims he uses very little of it on his own necessities for his research. More power is used to rearrange the caves, but he only does that on occasion. Our thinking and speaking of him also provides him some power. [ And then there's an arrow from this, down the page to his notes about Gloss specifically. ]

- Ulrich knew Nightshade was in the cove, his area of observation, but said he was not aware of what happened to her, nor did he mention knowing of another presence there aside from her at the time.

- He also stated that the Queen's method to stop the Reaper situation will work. Despite everything else he said, looking into the fact that even he said this is important.

- When Ulrich mentioned the Reapers being stopped would happen, he warned of worlds being able to be destroyed by "more irreversible methods." That the Queen knows of this and kept the fact that we were dooming our own worlds all over again from us this entire time. His explanation to this was based on a children's story, quoted below. But he said that in restoring our worlds, they become connected to each other once again, when they were formerly cut off from each other, and that once they collide and interact, they would inevitably war with each other. Though at the same time, he also said that if one world was ever destroyed, its connection to another world would simply bring it right back into existence because of the memories of and from said other world, similar to our mirrors. Essentially, he implied that death from the Reapers being instant and painless was better than that of being at a war with other worlds, war that his only assurance of ever even happening was "mankind is ever warring." When I asked him if he really thought some struggle meant we should just give up on our own existences, he said no, but Estelle had to know her solution was doomed, or else why would she hide ... something. I don't know if he meant something else specific, or just everything he had just told me.

- The story Ulrich told when he talked about the above is: "Once upon a time, the worlds were all connected, until war broke out between them, and to protect themselves, the worlds all isolated themselves and forgot each other."

- The language in the books in the library are the same as Ulrich's writing.

- Before he forced us out of his room, he stopped answering all questions and became suddenly alarmed. He started going on about "that fool," "of course it would be him." Naturally, he didn't seem keen on answering our questions about that.

NOTES: The story Ulrich told about the worlds isolating themselves and forgetting each other line up with the book Gloss found about people from other worlds, and instantly distrusting them. Not just that, but Ulrich's mentioning a lot of his power was coming in from people speaking of and thinking about him. "To remember them, to think of them, grants them power, but to forget them will banish them once more."

He knew of Nightshade's presence before she woke up on Epona, but didn't mention somebody else being there. Was there a force there even he couldn't detect? Or is he just lying about having something to do with it? It's strange that he wouldn't even lie about sensing somebody he couldn't identify there to throw suspicion off of himself, because that only keeps it on him. Not as though him even saying something like that would make us trust him either... But as it stands, his story about that is more suspicious than not.

Ulrich's power is still a mystery even outside of the "thinking or speaking about him" thing. The fact that he resides in the cove and many instances where something's happened seems to end in that area in some way could be connected. The patrons losing power that time, for example. Echoes gain power through games, and our aiding our patrons rewarded us as well as them with memories as though we had played in one... just after a rush of something coming from the direction of the cove.