Souvenir: Pure flame
It all began with a team of Portal Corporation scientists who had set
up an observation post in the Hydra dimension. Their contact with Portal
Corporation had mysteriously ceased, so you were sent to retrieve them.
On the Hydra world, you found no scientists, only their notes and a
large dimensional rupture.
It seemed clear that the scientists were lost somewhere in the
multiverse. You went to Tina Macintyre, who gave you a dimensional
triangulator. After visiting three dimensions, you collected enough data
to locate the missing scientists. You also encountered a large number of
dimensional ruptures.
Portal Corporation technicians analyzed your data, and you set off to
retrieve the scientists. They were in good health physically, but
something seemed to be terribly wrong with their minds. They spoke only
gibberish.
You questioned Dr. Steven 'Science' Sheridan, who had a most
surprising theory. He believed that the dimensional rupture on the Hydra
world had fractured the scientists, breaking each person into two
halves. You had saved only the first halves; the others remained
somewhere within the multiverse.
Portal Corp's technicians examined your dimensional data again, and
pinpointed the location of the scientists' other halves. They were on a
world ruled by Nemesis soldiers. You battled Nemesis' forces and
recovered the scientists' other halves.
The scientists' halves still needed to be fused into one. For help,
you turned to the mages of Pacifist Oranbega. When you got to their
dimension, you found the mages under the attack of the Banished
Pantheon. You rescued them, and learned of a ritual that would reunite
the scientists with their severed halves.
In order to complete the ritual, you needed the Tome of Persephone, a
volume long ago destroyed. Fortunately, an identical tome existed on a
dimensions ruled by Oranbegans who were not remotely peace-loving. You
battled the evil Oranbegans, retrieved the tome, and still found time to
contemplate the infinite variety of the multiverse.
You took the tome to Azuria, who had agreed to perform the ritual.
Then you found yourself facing a disaster: a rupture had opened at
the Pullman Processing Plant in Paragon City! Dozens of powerful psychic
Clockwork had spilled from the rupture onto the streets of your
hometown! You battled back the Clockwork and closed the rupture, but
your job wasn't over.
A rupture at the Jamison Office Park brought a bevy of malevolent
ghosts to your city. Once again, you skunked the villains and put an end
to the dimensional rupture.
While Azuria reunited the scientists' disparate halves, you went to
speak to Tina Macintyre. She theorized that the force that ripped apart
the scientists' dimensional fabric could do the same thing to an entire
world. If you couldn't stop the dimensional ruptures, Paragon City might
soon be strewn across the multiverse.
Reunited with their other halves, the scientists found they could
speak normally once more. They told you that, before they were lost,
they had learned that someone might be deliberately causing the
ruptures. You set out into the multiverse to take readings from
dimensional ruptures so Portal Corporation could evaluate this new
theory.
The technicians analyzed your data and came to the conclusion that
the ruptures had originated from dimension Lamda Rho 57-20, better known
as Werewolf World. You went to seek out the master of Werewolf World,
Requiem, but he eluded you. He did, however, briefly touch your mind.
You were more convinced than ever that he was responsible for the
ruptures.
You needed a way to force Requiem to show himself. You consulted
Peter Stemitz, who had a bright idea. If you could find a sample of pure
flame, you might be able to draw Requiem into the light. Azuria gave you
a candle, and Maria Jenkins drew forth the pure flame.
You took the flame to Werewolf World and, as predicted, Requiem was
drawn to it. You defeated him, and escaped from Werewolf World just
before the entire dimension was torn from the fabric of the multiverse.
It seemed that Requiem's dimensional tampering had caught up with him.
And yet you had to wonder: how had Requiem caused all this chaos?
Perhaps he had powers you had never imagined. Or perhaps there was
someone else in the shadows, who had not yet been brought into light.
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