You are at home. The river that once fed   your farm is dark and sour. Something   stale and toxic flows down from its   source high above your land. Your   crops are dying, and without them   you’ll never survive the winter.   There’s no time to wa
 The forest is deep and dark, and the trees are   choked with vines. No birds sing, and no   insects buzz. The only sound is the river   winding through the bare rocks. You notice   briefly that no plants seem to grow in the   water, nor directly on
 As the forest thins, you find yourself in an   abandoned fishing village. The air is thick   with the scent of rotting fish and damp   wood, yet the water even seems plagued   as it emerges from the shadow of the   high wall beyond.   The water flow
 Dawn arrives as you come to a great drain   in the city’s shattered wall, through which   the river lethargically trickles. What force   could have turned the thick, cold stone to   gravel? There isn’t time to ponder the   answer, merely thank the h
 The river bisects the city like a wound stitched   shut with bridges. A part of you swears that   there are eyes watching you from the   darkened windows. But that is surely wishful   thinking. You are alone, and a heavy silence   hangs over the emp
 The largest bridge is home to an open air   market. Beneath the canvas roof,   wondrous objects are laid out - tokens of   another world - yours for the taking. The   vendors are absent, but the goods and   even the money have been left in their   p
 Cracked foundation and rusted drains lead   into the basin of the city’s public bath.   Though old perfume and incense still cling   to the air, refusing to die, the stale scent of   diseased water sits just below,   stinging your lungs.   The water
 Long ramps form a zigzagging path up   the waterfall, separating the old district   above from the new district below.   Through the sun hangs in the sky, the   cliff face casts a deep shadow along the   path. You are grateful for the dim light   st
 The old city is dense and winding, yet you   walk its paths swiftly. The river leads you   onward as it pours into and out of buildings   made of mirror-like stone, which plays   tricks on the eye and makes navigation   a maddening ordeal. High abov
 Water floods rooms and pours off of balconies   in a way that seems neither wholly planned   nor wholly accidental, and it changes elevation   in ways that hardly seem possible. The   obscene architecture of the manor makes it   difficult to tell if
 Above the ceiling the entire river flows   through a massive pipe. Offshoots and   leaks deliver putrid water to plants that   seem to fare far better than your own.   They glisten and drip with sickly smelling   sap, the river concentrated. Any hun
 You follow the pipe to a derelict junction.   Once, water would’ve been pumped   through dozens of pipes, shuttling it off   through miles and miles of rusted, leaking   pathways. Shuttling it to who knows where.   Now, the mechanisms that drove the
 When you finally find the end of the pipe   maze, you emerge above ground and   above the clouds. How long have you   been climbing? And how high are you   now? You didn’t think this journey would   take so long, but the water which pours   down the
 The elevator stops at a platform extending   out of a clifftop fortress. Cannonballs and   powder kegs lie scattered around the planks,   absent of anyone to use them. Strangely, the   cannons are pointed straight down. Back at   the city. Actually,
 The river flows beneath the abandoned fort,   lending its aged funk to the scent of dust and   old lumber. A drawbridge spans the river on   the far side, which appears to have been   redirected into a trench to form a crude   moat. Beyond the water
 Hand over hand, you climb the cliffs until you   come to a longer, flatter stretch through   which the river wends after leaving the gaping   mouth of a cave. The light dies at its mouth,   and the stale fetid stench of the river   is heavy within.
 Lanterns which cast a strange light are hung   amongst the glistening stone spires. Details   are too sharp and too clean within their glow,   and the world beyond it may as well not exist   at all, having been swallowed up by a thick   and ravenous
 At the tunnel’s end you see light that isn’t   cast by the lanterns. Beams of warm grey   light stream from the ceiling of the   chamber beyond. As you stumble towards   it, splashing through the polluted waters,   you notice the scenery changing. T
 A thin gutter flows through a work site. The   ancient bones of great sea beasts seem to   have been carved out of the wall, smashed   to shards, and driven away into the   cavernous dark for a purpose that is   unfathomable to you. You alternate be
 Deep within the mine, vile water spills out of   a massive stone statue of a desiccated   human head. At least you think it’s a statue.   You hope it’s a statue. You say a silent prayer,   gods let it be a statue. Somehow that payer   echoes around
 It takes you longer than you expected to   work up the nerve to walk through the   mouth. The mouth of the first human face   you’ve seen since you started climbing.   Within, you find a pile of stone organs.   They don’t look human, but you aren’t
 A cold wind blows through a darkened field   of chimneys which radiate outward until your   eyes fail you. The wind is strong, but it does   not disturb the dozens of falling streams of   water, pouring from the chimneys above to   the chimneys belo
 You slowly pull yourself up the chimney, the   rocks slick with falling water. The knotted   rope cuts into your hands as you go, but it   gives you a chance to rest your legs. You   wonder why there is a rope attached here   at all. Who put it here
 At long last, you lift yourself out of the   stone shaft and for the first time in what   seems like ages, the sky hangs above   you instead of stone. Familiar stars   shine down, but the reflections that   bounce out of the thin pool of fetid   wat
 Jammed in between the rocks where the river   enters the floodplain is the broken corpse of a   tall ship. How did it get to the top of this   mountain? The though tis pushed from your   head by a forlorn concertina on the deck.   For some reason th
 Behind the boat, there is a ravine, cut by   years and years of the river’s current.   How are there still cliffs above you? How   can there be anything above you? You’ve   climbed so far. But there is no sign of the   river’s contagion here. Press
 The ravine is far behind you and you find   yourself in a bog where the river cuts   thin, winding pathways through dark,   hungry-looking mud. Dozens if not   hundreds of bootprints have been   pressed into the muck. Are there other   people follow
 You find yourself on a long and gently sloping   expanse, which allows you to see far into the   distance. Unfortunately there is not a soul in   sight. Only a roughly constructed wall built   out of stacked hovels down which the river   falls. Ligh
 You walk through the streets of the village   above the falls and feel an unusual calm.   The shops and houses remind you of your   own home, far far below. You miss it. But if   you can’t find the source of the river’s   blight, there won’t be much
 The skin of rotting gourds bubbles and   pops next to rows and rows of dried and   splintering stalks. The bleached and   dusty soil is suffering from a blight you   know all too well. A grim realization   begins to dawn on you. You know this   blig
 You are at home. The river that once fed   your farm is dark and sour. Something   stale and toxic flows down from its   source high above your land. Your   crops are dying, and without them   you’ll never survive the winter.   There’s no time to wa
You are at home. The river that once fed your farm is dark and sour. Something stale and toxic flows down from its source high above your land. Your crops are dying, and without them you’ll never survive the winter. There’s no time to wait for the dawn. You’ve lost enough time already. In the dark of night you leave your home and head into the woods. The water flows down and you must climb.
 The forest is deep and dark, and the trees are   choked with vines. No birds sing, and no   insects buzz. The only sound is the river   winding through the bare rocks. You notice   briefly that no plants seem to grow in the   water, nor directly on
The forest is deep and dark, and the trees are choked with vines. No birds sing, and no insects buzz. The only sound is the river winding through the bare rocks. You notice briefly that no plants seem to grow in the water, nor directly on its banks. But this is hardly a surprise. The water flows down and you must climb.
 As the forest thins, you find yourself in an   abandoned fishing village. The air is thick   with the scent of rotting fish and damp   wood, yet the water even seems plagued   as it emerges from the shadow of the   high wall beyond.   The water flow
As the forest thins, you find yourself in an abandoned fishing village. The air is thick with the scent of rotting fish and damp wood, yet the water even seems plagued as it emerges from the shadow of the high wall beyond. The water flows down and you must climb.
 Dawn arrives as you come to a great drain   in the city’s shattered wall, through which   the river lethargically trickles. What force   could have turned the thick, cold stone to   gravel? There isn’t time to ponder the   answer, merely thank the h
Dawn arrives as you come to a great drain in the city’s shattered wall, through which the river lethargically trickles. What force could have turned the thick, cold stone to gravel? There isn’t time to ponder the answer, merely thank the hand of chance that you have found a way through. A wayto follow the river further. The water flows down and you must climb.
 The river bisects the city like a wound stitched   shut with bridges. A part of you swears that   there are eyes watching you from the   darkened windows. But that is surely wishful   thinking. You are alone, and a heavy silence   hangs over the emp
The river bisects the city like a wound stitched shut with bridges. A part of you swears that there are eyes watching you from the darkened windows. But that is surely wishful thinking. You are alone, and a heavy silence hangs over the empty streets and causeways, broken only by the splash of water and the flap of a canvas tent far above. The water flows down and you must climb.
 The largest bridge is home to an open air   market. Beneath the canvas roof,   wondrous objects are laid out - tokens of   another world - yours for the taking. The   vendors are absent, but the goods and   even the money have been left in their   p
The largest bridge is home to an open air market. Beneath the canvas roof, wondrous objects are laid out - tokens of another world - yours for the taking. The vendors are absent, but the goods and even the money have been left in their places. You do not peruse the wares. You have more important things on your mind. The water flows down and you must climb.
 Cracked foundation and rusted drains lead   into the basin of the city’s public bath.   Though old perfume and incense still cling   to the air, refusing to die, the stale scent of   diseased water sits just below,   stinging your lungs.   The water
Cracked foundation and rusted drains lead into the basin of the city’s public bath. Though old perfume and incense still cling to the air, refusing to die, the stale scent of diseased water sits just below, stinging your lungs. The water flows down and you must climb.
 Long ramps form a zigzagging path up   the waterfall, separating the old district   above from the new district below.   Through the sun hangs in the sky, the   cliff face casts a deep shadow along the   path. You are grateful for the dim light   st
Long ramps form a zigzagging path up the waterfall, separating the old district above from the new district below. Through the sun hangs in the sky, the cliff face casts a deep shadow along the path. You are grateful for the dim light still cast by the lamps, despite their age and state of disrepair. The architecture grows less and less familiar as you make your back and forth, higher and higher. The water flows down and you must climb.
 The old city is dense and winding, yet you   walk its paths swiftly. The river leads you   onward as it pours into and out of buildings   made of mirror-like stone, which plays   tricks on the eye and makes navigation   a maddening ordeal. High abov
The old city is dense and winding, yet you walk its paths swiftly. The river leads you onward as it pours into and out of buildings made of mirror-like stone, which plays tricks on the eye and makes navigation a maddening ordeal. High above, thewater spills out through the open door of a great manor. The water flows down and you must climb.
 Water floods rooms and pours off of balconies   in a way that seems neither wholly planned   nor wholly accidental, and it changes elevation   in ways that hardly seem possible. The   obscene architecture of the manor makes it   difficult to tell if
Water floods rooms and pours off of balconies in a way that seems neither wholly planned nor wholly accidental, and it changes elevation in ways that hardly seem possible. The obscene architecture of the manor makes it difficult to tell if you are inside or out, or if such a concept even mattered to the architects. Either way, it isn’t important. The water flows down and you must climb.
 Above the ceiling the entire river flows   through a massive pipe. Offshoots and   leaks deliver putrid water to plants that   seem to fare far better than your own.   They glisten and drip with sickly smelling   sap, the river concentrated. Any hun
Above the ceiling the entire river flows through a massive pipe. Offshoots and leaks deliver putrid water to plants that seem to fare far better than your own. They glisten and drip with sickly smelling sap, the river concentrated. Any hunger you felt - and your journey has been long - fades in this diseased greenhouse. The water flows down and you must climb.
 You follow the pipe to a derelict junction.   Once, water would’ve been pumped   through dozens of pipes, shuttling it off   through miles and miles of rusted, leaking   pathways. Shuttling it to who knows where.   Now, the mechanisms that drove the
You follow the pipe to a derelict junction. Once, water would’ve been pumped through dozens of pipes, shuttling it off through miles and miles of rusted, leaking pathways. Shuttling it to who knows where. Now, the mechanisms that drove the siphons are all silent and cold. The sound of running water comes from only one pipe, up above. The water flows down and you must climb.
 When you finally find the end of the pipe   maze, you emerge above ground and   above the clouds. How long have you   been climbing? And how high are you   now? You didn’t think this journey would   take so long, but the water which pours   down the
When you finally find the end of the pipe maze, you emerge above ground and above the clouds. How long have you been climbing? And how high are you now? You didn’t think this journey would take so long, but the water which pours down the facade is just as foul and unwholesome as ever. A groaning wooden elevator with a hand-crank waits for a passenger as it sways in the wind. The water flows down and you must climb.
 The elevator stops at a platform extending   out of a clifftop fortress. Cannonballs and   powder kegs lie scattered around the planks,   absent of anyone to use them. Strangely, the   cannons are pointed straight down. Back at   the city. Actually,
The elevator stops at a platform extending out of a clifftop fortress. Cannonballs and powder kegs lie scattered around the planks, absent of anyone to use them. Strangely, the cannons are pointed straight down. Back at the city. Actually, maybe that’s not so strange after all. The water flows down and you must climb.
 The river flows beneath the abandoned fort,   lending its aged funk to the scent of dust and   old lumber. A drawbridge spans the river on   the far side, which appears to have been   redirected into a trench to form a crude   moat. Beyond the water
The river flows beneath the abandoned fort, lending its aged funk to the scent of dust and old lumber. A drawbridge spans the river on the far side, which appears to have been redirected into a trench to form a crude moat. Beyond the water pours sluggishly down a staggered cliff. The water flows down and you must climb.
 Hand over hand, you climb the cliffs until you   come to a longer, flatter stretch through   which the river wends after leaving the gaping   mouth of a cave. The light dies at its mouth,   and the stale fetid stench of the river   is heavy within.
Hand over hand, you climb the cliffs until you come to a longer, flatter stretch through which the river wends after leaving the gaping mouth of a cave. The light dies at its mouth, and the stale fetid stench of the river is heavy within. The water flows down and you must climb.
 Lanterns which cast a strange light are hung   amongst the glistening stone spires. Details   are too sharp and too clean within their glow,   and the world beyond it may as well not exist   at all, having been swallowed up by a thick   and ravenous
Lanterns which cast a strange light are hung amongst the glistening stone spires. Details are too sharp and too clean within their glow, and the world beyond it may as well not exist at all, having been swallowed up by a thick and ravenous dark. A voice inside you tells you that it would be a very bad idea to wander beyond the lanterns’ light. Another tells you not to attempt to carry one with you. Simply follow their path upwards. The water flows down and you must climb.
 At the tunnel’s end you see light that isn’t   cast by the lanterns. Beams of warm grey   light stream from the ceiling of the   chamber beyond. As you stumble towards   it, splashing through the polluted waters,   you notice the scenery changing. T
At the tunnel’s end you see light that isn’t cast by the lanterns. Beams of warm grey light stream from the ceiling of the chamber beyond. As you stumble towards it, splashing through the polluted waters, you notice the scenery changing. The stalactites look wrong, and their color is almost that of old bone. The water flows down and you must climb.
 A thin gutter flows through a work site. The   ancient bones of great sea beasts seem to   have been carved out of the wall, smashed   to shards, and driven away into the   cavernous dark for a purpose that is   unfathomable to you. You alternate be
A thin gutter flows through a work site. The ancient bones of great sea beasts seem to have been carved out of the wall, smashed to shards, and driven away into the cavernous dark for a purpose that is unfathomable to you. You alternate between pondering that, and whether or not these ancient leviathans once swam in the same river that you now follow. The water flows down and you must climb.
 Deep within the mine, vile water spills out of   a massive stone statue of a desiccated   human head. At least you think it’s a statue.   You hope it’s a statue. You say a silent prayer,   gods let it be a statue. Somehow that payer   echoes around
Deep within the mine, vile water spills out of a massive stone statue of a desiccated human head. At least you think it’s a statue. You hope it’s a statue. You say a silent prayer, gods let it be a statue. Somehow that payer echoes around the chamber as if you shouted it. The water flows down and you must climb.
 It takes you longer than you expected to   work up the nerve to walk through the   mouth. The mouth of the first human face   you’ve seen since you started climbing.   Within, you find a pile of stone organs.   They don’t look human, but you aren’t
It takes you longer than you expected to work up the nerve to walk through the mouth. The mouth of the first human face you’ve seen since you started climbing. Within, you find a pile of stone organs. They don’t look human, but you aren’t adoctor. If you can’t find the source of the river’s blight you may not even be a farmer anymore. The water flows down and you must climb.
 A cold wind blows through a darkened field   of chimneys which radiate outward until your   eyes fail you. The wind is strong, but it does   not disturb the dozens of falling streams of   water, pouring from the chimneys above to   the chimneys belo
A cold wind blows through a darkened field of chimneys which radiate outward until your eyes fail you. The wind is strong, but it does not disturb the dozens of falling streams of water, pouring from the chimneys above to the chimneys below. At this distance you can’t tell if the others are as polluted as your own. But it hardly matters. They aren’t your river. The water flows down and you must climb.
 You slowly pull yourself up the chimney, the   rocks slick with falling water. The knotted   rope cuts into your hands as you go, but it   gives you a chance to rest your legs. You   wonder why there is a rope attached here   at all. Who put it here
You slowly pull yourself up the chimney, the rocks slick with falling water. The knotted rope cuts into your hands as you go, but it gives you a chance to rest your legs. You wonder why there is a rope attached here at all. Who put it here? And where is here? Foul water splashes into your mouth and eyes, refocusing your mind. The water flows downand you must climb.
 At long last, you lift yourself out of the   stone shaft and for the first time in what   seems like ages, the sky hangs above   you instead of stone. Familiar stars   shine down, but the reflections that   bounce out of the thin pool of fetid   wat
At long last, you lift yourself out of the stone shaft and for the first time in what seems like ages, the sky hangs above you instead of stone. Familiar stars shine down, but the reflections that bounce out of the thin pool of fetid water that fills the floodplain are strange, and seem to trace bizarre sigils and arcane marks rather than the forms of ancient heroes. You try your best not to look down as you walk on. The water flows down and you must climb.
 Jammed in between the rocks where the river   enters the floodplain is the broken corpse of a   tall ship. How did it get to the top of this   mountain? The though tis pushed from your   head by a forlorn concertina on the deck.   For some reason th
Jammed in between the rocks where the river enters the floodplain is the broken corpse of a tall ship. How did it get to the top of this mountain? The though tis pushed from your head by a forlorn concertina on the deck. For some reason the sight of this abandoned instrument makes the loneliness of your journey sink in. You’ve walked so far, and for so long. Completely alone. But you must keep going. The water flows down and you must climb.
 Behind the boat, there is a ravine, cut by   years and years of the river’s current.   How are there still cliffs above you? How   can there be anything above you? You’ve   climbed so far. But there is no sign of the   river’s contagion here. Press
Behind the boat, there is a ravine, cut by years and years of the river’s current. How are there still cliffs above you? How can there be anything above you? You’ve climbed so far. But there is no sign of the river’s contagion here. Press on. The water flows down and you must climb.
 The ravine is far behind you and you find   yourself in a bog where the river cuts   thin, winding pathways through dark,   hungry-looking mud. Dozens if not   hundreds of bootprints have been   pressed into the muck. Are there other   people follow
The ravine is far behind you and you find yourself in a bog where the river cuts thin, winding pathways through dark, hungry-looking mud. Dozens if not hundreds of bootprints have been pressed into the muck. Are there other people following this river? They could be just ahead of you, just out of sight. You want to run ahead, to catch up, but the burning exhaustion in your limbs and the sucking mud keep your pace slow. The water flows down and you must climb.
 You find yourself on a long and gently sloping   expanse, which allows you to see far into the   distance. Unfortunately there is not a soul in   sight. Only a roughly constructed wall built   out of stacked hovels down which the river   falls. Ligh
You find yourself on a long and gently sloping expanse, which allows you to see far into the distance. Unfortunately there is not a soul in sight. Only a roughly constructed wall built out of stacked hovels down which the river falls. Lights twinkle in a few of the windows, but you feel certain that there will be no people sitting in their warm glow. You are alone. You’ve been alone for so long. The water flows down and you must climb.
 You walk through the streets of the village   above the falls and feel an unusual calm.   The shops and houses remind you of your   own home, far far below. You miss it. But if   you can’t find the source of the river’s   blight, there won’t be much
You walk through the streets of the village above the falls and feel an unusual calm. The shops and houses remind you of your own home, far far below. You miss it. But if you can’t find the source of the river’s blight, there won’t be much sense in ever going back. There is no going back. Only forward. Only up. The water flows down and you must climb.
 The skin of rotting gourds bubbles and   pops next to rows and rows of dried and   splintering stalks. The bleached and   dusty soil is suffering from a blight you   know all too well. A grim realization   begins to dawn on you. You know this   blig
The skin of rotting gourds bubbles and pops next to rows and rows of dried and splintering stalks. The bleached and dusty soil is suffering from a blight you know all too well. A grim realization begins to dawn on you. You know this blight. You know these fields. And you are tired. So deeply, deeply tired. But there is no rest in sight. Not for you. The water is plagued. You’ll starve if you can’t find its source. You must find its source. The water flows down and you must climb.
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