Into the Dark
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Into the Dark
- Quest giver
- Urianger
- Location
- Lakeland (X:35.4, Y:19.5)
- Quest line
- Shadowbringers Main Scenario Quests
- Level
- 74
- Experience
221,760- Gil
1,348- Previous quest
A Little Faith- Next quest
- A Day in the Neighborhood
- Patch
- 5.0
Main Scenario Progress: 587 / 960 (61.1%)
Shadowbringers Progress: 46 / 157 (29.3%)
“Urianger is ready to leave, but not before first offering a piece of advice.
— In-game description
Rewards
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- Unlocks
Walkthrough
The player is advised to seek every opportunity to question Emet-Selch due to the presence of lore relevant dialogue.
Steps
Journal
- Urianger is ready to leave, but not before first offering a piece of advice.
- Before you set forth to meet with Y'shtola, Urianger treats you to a brief lesson on the Night's Blessed in which he reveals that it is their custom to adopt the names of their forebears. They do this, he explains, in the belief that it will protect their true selves from the blighted touch of the Light. In accordance with this practice, Y'shtola has adopted the name of her mentor, Master Matoya─a fact which you must keep in mind if you are to avoid causing offense. Thus forewarned, you make at last for the border of the Rak'tika Greatwood.
- You but mention the Crystal Exarch and the guard standing watch at the gate readily grants you passage into the forest.
- As Urianger guides you through the woods, Emet-Selch makes yet another unsolicited appearance, this time waxing lyrical about days long past. As Thancred fumes at the intrusion, Minfilia challenges the Ascian to make himself useful, only for him to flatly refuse, resolved to remain a mere observer.
- With Emet-Selch's stroll down memory lane ended, Urianger apprises you of the struggles of the Night's Blessed to survive in Rak'tika, citing a deadly assault on their home─Fort Gohn─two years past. Since Y'shtola's arrival, she has assumed a commanding role among their people, and has helped them begin to rebuild. Assuming the restoration work is ongoing, he believes that is where you are most likely to find her.
- Urianger is surprised to see the fort deserted, with little progress having been made in the rebuilding effort. He is in the process of suggesting that you look elsewhere when you are suddenly surrounded by what you can only assume to be the Night's Blessed. Inexplicably, they accuse you of being sin eaters, and prepare to attack. It is not until Y'shtola arrives that you discern the source of the misunderstanding. The abundance of Light that suffuses your being has made you a stranger to her. Undaunted, Urianger steps in to vouch for your identity, and she immediately commands the Night's Blessed to lower their arms. Acknowledging you at last, she apologizes for the hostile reception, promising to give you a proper introduction to the people of Rak'tika.
- Y'shtola bids you travel northeast, through what remains of the gate to Fort Gohn, and follow the path to the settlement of the Night's Blessed.
- At your approach, you see Y'shtola's expression soften, and she invites you into what at first glance appears to be a cave, but is, in actuality, the entrance to Slitherbough, home of the Night's Blessed.
- After a cursory examination of the stone tablet you recovered from the church, Y'shtola admits that the relic may prove useful. It will, however, take time to decipher. While she and Urianger attend to the task, she bids you explore Slitherbough, that you may become acquainted with your hosts, and perhaps learn something of the Warrior of Darkness.
Dialogue
Quest Acceptance
Urianger: Ere we depart, there is a custom of the Night's Blessed which I feel compelled to elucidate. As one might expect, they deem Light to be abhorrent, and everything it touches befouled. Thus do they take the utmost pains to protect all they can from its taint─including their very names. To speak plain, it is the belief of the Blessed that one's own name must ne'er be uttered in the light of the everlasting day. Yet this commandment precludeth not the use of another's. Thus do parents protect their children, and, in rare cases, masters their disciples. So it is that Y'shtola hath taken the name of Master Matoya. Lest we offend them, I bid you speak not her true name in the Blessed's presence. With that in mind, let us speak with the guard who keepeth vigil at the Greatwood's border.
Minfilia: I know I have no reason to, but I can't help feeling nervous about meeting Y'shtola. Thancred: It will be good to see Y'shtola again. Urianger: I pray thee heed mine explanation of the Blessed's customs. 'Twould be ill-advised to provoke their ire.
Speak with Myrcant
Myrcant: Well met, traveler. What business brings you here?
Myrcant: Yes, of course! Right this way.
Narrator: No matter how far he goes, man cannot resist looking back on the path he walked. The untold stories and secrets of the past can be more alluring than the promise of tomorrow. And so he braves the forests of Rak'tika in search of mystery and wonder... Of Ronka, to which all seekers of hidden truths are inevitably drawn...
Urianger: We have arrived. Vast though these woods may be, they are, by and large, uninhabitable. Not so the swamps of Citia, however, whose sparse foliage permitted man a foothold. Emet-Selch: (Emet is walking, hands held high) "No lands must remain beyond our grasp. Go forth. Conquer. Rule.“ (Emet chuckles) Forgive me. A sudden pang of nostalgia for those halcyon days. Exploring virgin territories, subjugating primitive peoples. All for the glory of Garlemald! Thancred: (Emet sneers briefly before turning to face Thancred) If you've brought your ivory standard, I'll be happy to tell you where to stick it. Emet-Selch: Can we not simply take a moment to enjoy the view together? Or would you rather I spied on you from the shadows? Much more of this, and I may very well begin to regret my show of good faith. (Thancred crosses his arms and shakes his head) Minfilia: If...if you really want to stay, then help us fight. (Emet-Selch rolls his eyes) Emet-Selch: Mmm... No, I think not. I am an observer─nothing more. Even shielded by the shadows of these boughs, I feel the Light's presence most keenly. To accompany you is taxing enough. To fight is out of the question. Thancred: I will suffer your company if I must, but not your commentary. (Emet-Selch bows)
Minfilia: Thancred has told me of the Ascians and what they have done. If he isn't willing to help, is it wise to let him stay with us? Thancred: <sigh> If he never opened his mouth again, it would be too soon. Emet-Selch: What is it now? Do you expect me to regale you with friendly banter? Emet-Selch: ...Oh, very well. I will humor you this once. You may consider it my latest act of good faith. Come on, then. What do you wish to know? What will you say? Why choose this form here in the First? / Actually...never mind. -> Why choose this form here in the First?
Emet-Selch: Well, well, what a curious question. Mortal flesh is but the vessel into which we Ascians pour the elixir of our souls, molding it as fits the occasion. Or not, if we so choose. Be it for a year or a millennium, I prefer to retain the same form until my duty is done. So, after arriving here in the First, I fashioned some hapless body into the man you see before you. Though as your friend over there can attest, there are those of us who forgo such alterations. He was ever the rash one, Lahabrea. Jumping from vessel to vessel. Never heeding the toll it took on him.
Speak with Urianger
Urianger: 'Tis plain our Ascian counterpart meaneth to follow wheresoever we lead. Were it otherwise, he would not suffer the overabundance of light in these woods. Verily, it pervadeth every corner... And so long as the Lightwarden remaineth, the sin eaters shall be free to prey upon these lands without surcease. If naught is done, 'tis but a matter of time before the Blessed succumb. Two years past, a swarm of sin eaters did lay waste unto their largest settlement, killing a great many of their priests in so doing. Though some few did survive, they knew not how to go on. Wayward souls in want of a guiding hand. For a mercy, Y'shtola hath provided that which they sorely needed. They have since endeavored to restore their home, and thither shall we bend our steps─to Fort Gohn.
Thancred: We both know how Urianger enjoys painting pictures with his words, but he did not exaggerate about this place. Minfilia: Urianger said they were rebuilding, but...there's no one here. Emet-Selch: Well? Where is this friend of yours we've come to meet? Urianger: Hmmm...
Search for Y'shtola
Urianger: I see little sign of recent activity, nor hath any meaningful progress been made with the reconstruction... Urianger: Mayhap Y'shtola sought shelter elsewhere. Come, let us quit this place. (People run) Blessed Leader: Now! Surround them! (Everyone points their weapons at Urianger and the group, everyone raises their hands to the air) Blessed Leader: These sin eaters─they are not like the others! Thancred: There's a reason for that. Lower your weapons, please. We mean you no harm. Blessed Man: How is it they can speak!? Blessed Woman: It's a sin eater trick! They mean to kill us all! What will you say? Please! We're not sin eaters! / Uh...Kupo? / ... Uh...Kupo? Thancred: ...That will seem a lot less amusing when we are forced to kill them.
Emet-Selch: Oh, for the love of... Emet-Selch: I had hoped that by accompanying you, we might come to understand one another, but all I have come to understand is that you have a knack for inflaming the natives. You've committed the cardinal sin of boring me. And so I retire to the shade. (Emet-Selch grins) Good luck. (Emet-Selch disappears) Blessed Man: There! Did you see that one disappear!? Thancred: <ugh> I think I preferred Lahabrea. ???: Enough. Runar, report. (Y'shtola arrives)
Runar: Master Matoya! We apprehended them as you ordered, but...are you certain these are sin eaters? Y'shtola: The intense light of the aether I saw was unmistakable. If not sin eaters, then what? Urianger: 'Tis passing queer that Y'shtola should mistake us for the enemy, is it not? Mayhap it hath been too long since last she beheld the radiance of thine aether... Y'shtola: Nay. I recognize you, Urianger, Thancred. And this is Minfilia of the First, of whom you spoke before. Urianger: Just so. And knowing as thou must that we come in peace, might I prevail upon thee to have thy comrades lower their arms? Y'shtola: First explain this other presence in your company. The one I know not. There is but one manner of creature in this world whose aether is suffused with such an abundance of light.
Urianger: Mine apologies, Master Matoya, but thou art mistaken. Before thee standeth our dearest comrade. The truest hero among us. Though [he/she] is but recently arrived here in the First, not one but two Lightwardens have already perished by [his/her] most puissant hand. (Y'shtola looks shocked)
What will you say? It's been too long...clearly. / Nice to see you too... "Master Matoya." / You truly thought me a sin eater? -> Nice to see you too... "Master Matoya."
Runar: Master Matoya? Y'shtola: Lower your weapons. Forgive us this hostile welcome. Come, I would give you a proper introduction to Rak'tika and its people. Thancred: That ended a lot better than it might have. No thanks to Emet-Selch... Minfilia: I didn't expect her to be so...imposing in person. Urianger: That she should imagine [him/her] a stranger...
Speak with Y'shtola
Y'shtola: You have been busy since arriving in the First, I gather. But I would hear the tale of your travails in more suitable surroundings. With Fort Gohn yet to be rebuilt, the Night's Blessed have made their home in a settlement to the northeast. I will await you at its entrance. Follow the path through yonder gate and you will find me soon enough.
Speak with Y'shtola
Y'shtola: There you are. I was beginning to worry. Much like the Twelveswood, this forest has a way of dealing with those who stray too far from the beaten path. But I digress. Let me show you the home of the Night's Blessed.
Minfilia: Have you ever seen such a tree? To think these are only the roots! Thancred: Finally, a place to rest. Urianger: To make their home here, and so swiftly, would surely have required no small amount of ingenuity. A most impressive feat, wouldst thou not agree?
Speak with Y'shtola
Y'shtola: Slitherbough is the largest of the Blessed's settlements. They worship no gods, instead revering Darkness itself. It is a curious kind of faith, but one which has granted them the strength to persevere in the wake of the Flood. I hope you weren't expecting a grand feast by way of welcome. They are a simple people. Now, I would hear of your travels away from prying ears. Come.
Y'shtola: I see. And now you seek the Lightwarden of Rak'tika. In the days after I arrived in the First, I too relied upon the Crystal Exarch for guidance. But his penchant for secrecy and the telling of half-truths soon lost him my trust. And thus did I strike out on my own. My work eventually led me here to the forest, which I have come to know like the back of my hand. I cannot say with certainty where your quarry is hiding, but I am confident I can narrow the search. Thancred: Well...go on, then.
Y'shtola: Some few thousand years ago, this forest stood at the heart of the empire of Ronka. Y'shtola: A great many relics of that civilization can still be found to the east in Yx'Maja. Or rather, could be found─were the area not fiercely guarded. Yx'Maja, you see, is home to a tribe of warriors whose lineage is said to date back to the time of the empire. Any attempt to enter their territory is met with lethal force. They offer no warnings, and suffer no trespasser to escape. Needless to say, my every attempt to survey the area has been thwarted. Urianger: Mayhap the Warden hideth there full knowing none may approach it for fear of these protectors.
Y'shtola: As for the tablet... Y'shtola: I find the timing of its discovery suspiciously convenient. If I did not know better, I would think someone was trying to curry favor with me. Regardless, it will take time to decipher these writings. Yet I would not be at all surprised if they somehow held the key to entering Yx'Maja unmolested. The Exarch has a nose for serendipity. Urianger: If there is aught I can do to assist thee in unraveling their secrets, thou need'st only ask. Y'shtola: Thank you, Urianger. I may well take you up on that offer. While we set to work, might I suggest you take a tour of the city? Should you be in any doubt as to the importance of your role as the “Warrior of Darkness,” the people here will surely cure you of it.
Thancred: I must say, Y'shtola...while most of us have struggled to come to terms with our altered circumstances, you seem to have adapted rather well. Y'shtola: Lest you forget, Master Matoya and I dedicated our lives to uncovering the truth which hides at the heart of our world. Though separate, the fate of this reflection is nevertheless bound to that of our home. That I would be daunted by such an invaluable opportunity is absurd. But what of you, Thancred? Could it be that you are still struggling to “come to terms” with the nature of your young companion? Thancred: My “struggles” are none of your concern. Quite why you would speak thus─and in this company─I do not know. Perhaps you left more of yourself back in the Source than I assumed. If you'll excuse me. Minfilia: He understands that I'm not the same. That I'm not her. Y'shtola: Understands, perhaps, but does not accept. The question being whether he ever will. And whether you will, more importantly. As difficult as your circumstances may be, they are yours, not his. 'Tis you and you alone who bears ultimate responsibility for your life. (Minfilia looks down, and Y'shtola shakes her head) But you need not make any hard choices now. Why not go and get some fresh air─clear your head?