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Destruction of the Bases Analysis (Part 2 - Phoenix Base)

OcelotGuardian

Magician
Minecraft IGN: OcelotGuardian
Honeybadger Dark Follower Werewolf
#1
On May 29th, the Dark Follower base and the Phoenix base were attacked by the Aurorlocks.

Items left behind after the attack can be recovered from the bases and turned in for rewards.

This is a list of the items gathered at the Phoenix base, their descriptions and my analysis of the items/situation.



Phoenix Base Items:

A crumpled piece of parchment from a notebook. Mostly illegible, but the words “Homunculus” and “Azoth” can be read.

A dusty, cheap trophy etched with crossed wands. It seems to be slightly dented.

A heavy book about the early kings of Britain. One section about a legendary king is heavily annotated.

A chunk of a rugged cardboard poster. Hardened sweat and grime is seen across the poster along with worn lettering, “Just-ce -or th- unhea-d dra-on.”

A piece of a device designed for alchemy. It seems stained and very well-used.

A faded red scarf, lovingly knit by hand. It seems to smell vaguely of nutmeg.

A cut out section of a newspaper article, including a photo of five people. One of them is circled in red ink.

A glittering, ruby red scale that shines like fire in the sunlight. A rune that looks like a sideways hourglass is etched into its surface.

A section of a crooked staff, used as a hoe for years of back-breaking labor. The how was craftily molded into a staff as the magical world caught up to the small plantation, later being snapped in battle. A faded, small fist is seen etched across the shaft.

A tear-stained envelope sealed with wax. The seal has the image of a raven, and resists being opened.



Dialogue in the Phoenix Base:

A tiny candle can be seen burning out slowly. The reflections of the souls of Phoenix troops and the chaos of battle shimmer in the light of the messily-kept flame.

A sun-bleached photo lays on the ground. At a glance, it looks like a group of Phoenix members standing happily beside one another at the newly finished Phoenix Base. However, there is an air of familiarity. Upon closer inspection of the members, one Phoenix has chestnut curls, and the other has bright ginger waves. The photo is a bit too damaged to see who they are.

A stray feather floats along the ground while a mournful song eerily tickles the wind. A faint call of a songbird can almost be heard. A hidden Phoenix Member, once rumoured to be gone forever, has said to be comforting those who lost in battle, giving them hope. Could the flame-scarred feather be a sign of her return?

The writing on the ashy letter seems too small to be written by any human, almost illegible without any proper gear. Though, at the top of the letter sits a ‘NEED HELP’ in big, bold writing.

A famous wizard card depicting Merlin lies next to a scribbled note. The messy handwriting reads: “He could not have been a Serpent, he lived 400 years before Hogsworth! Why are the history books teaching us lies?”. A map of the British Isles lies spread out, with a number of locations circled and crossed out. A note in the margin mentions “the final secret of the Once and Future King.”

A set of blueprints hang loosely from the wall, showing strange diagrams and designs. The phrase “Magnum Opus” is displayed prominently at the top.

A half-burnt page lies on the ground beside Joshua’s throne. ‘We swore we would not repeat the past. We strengthened our bond, and we believed we had stopped all future battles. How wrong we were…”



Information from the Reward Book (Spoilers ahead for those who have not found all the items and turned them in):

Joshua left behind a letter detailing his life in case something happened to him. He spoke about his family, failed dueling career, and passion for alchemy. He has a dragon named Uther that he believes will help him later in his life. He wrote about destiny, and how it obscures history such as his family name. Merlin is connected to this by currently unknown means. He was worried about the Dark Lord’s rise to power and agenda, as well as the Ministry’s current scheme. He believed that the people need a symbol of hope, and that the Phoenixes are in need of a leader. This was on the last page: “...-x--ri--nt... in-on-usive... homunculus pro--am r-qu--es mo-e t--ting... g---wa- op--... ob--in... Azoth”.

Andreu first encounters other wizards when the Aurorlocks capture two men (whom he later identifies as Phoenix members) on his farm. He saw Phoenixes fend off Dark Followers before the Aurorlocks arrived. The Dark Followers escaped, and the Phoenixes were arrested for causing damage while fending them off. Andreu created a staff to show his support for the Phoenixes. Dark Followers terrorized innocents again, but only one was captured. The victims were left alone after the incident, which prompted Andreu to create a poster “Justice for the Unheard Dragon” to speak out against the Ministry’s way of handling the law and in support of the Phoenixes. He wants to learn more about the Ministry and fight for justice.



Analysis:

The relevant items and dialogue that relate to Joshua are the Notes Scrap, Historia Regum Britanniae, Crucible Fragment, Newspaper Clipping, Dragon Scale, Sealed Envelope, Letter, Scattered Notes, Loose Blueprints, Burnt Paper, and Joshua’s Writing. The Notes Scrap and Letter both describe Scout, Joshua’s homunculus. Scout is an important character, and earlier helped Joshua escape the Aurorlock base. The Notes Scrap mentions Azoth: the supreme secret of transformation that contains all things within itself; the essential agent of transformation in alchemy. Azoth is also another name for Mercury. The Letter was written by Scout. Scout wrote this to try and alert others to the attack, but was unable to send it. The Crucible Fragment is relevant – it is a melting-pot for metals involved in the purification process. Mercury, a metal, was one of the materials used to create Scout. It would make sense for it to be well used, even if it was used before the creation of Scout. The Dragon Scale is from Uther, Joshua’s dragon. The scale has the rune Dagaz etched on it. Dagaz is a symbol of infinity, the moebius strip (non-euclidian geometry – think of MC Escher’s “The Penrose Stairs”), timelessness, fulfillment, achievement and illimitable potential. It is also the rune of awakening and bold change. The inclusion of fulfillment, achievement, illimitable potential, awakening, and bold change are the most important. The Sealed Envelope is very interesting. I did some research, and found that ravens represent the beginning of the "Great Work of the Soul”, as well as the initial stages of the alchemist's encounter with their inner self. In assuming that the player, not Joshua, is trying to open the letter, it would make sense as to why the seal will not break. It represents Joshua’s self-discovery (possibly that he will discover his great potential as a leader or alchemist) and will only be able to be opened by him. This brings us back to the Dragon Scale. The rune Dagaz being included in the description is foreshadowing Joshua’s future self-discovery and achievement. In Joshua’s Writings, he describes Uther, his dragon. The dragon’s name refers to Uther Pendragon. He was a legendary king of sub-Roman Britain and the father of King Arthur and is described as a strong king and a defender of the people. Joshua’s connection to Uther is another way of foreshadowing his future achievement, as well as his success as the Lord of the Phoenixes. The Holy Grail is also mentioned multiple times. The Holy Grail is a cup, dish or stone with miraculous powers that provide happiness, eternal youth or sustenance in infinite abundance. It is very similar to the Philosopher’s Stone. References to the Holy Grail are the name of Joshua’s Dragon (Uther is the father of King Arthur, who went on a quest to find the grail), Scattered Notes (“the final secret of the Once and Future King” references the location of the Holy Grail), Historia Regum Britanniae (the annotations are about King Arthur, which also correlate with the map in Scattered Notes), and the Newspaper Clipping (the circled person is possibly connected to the Holy Grail or King Arthur). There are items that do not refer to the Holy Grail. The loose blueprints describe a “Magnum Opus”, which is the process of working with the prima materia (the starting material) to create the philosopher's stone. The diagrams are plans on how to make the Philosopher’s Stone. It has also been used to describe personal and spiritual transmutation. This could also be more foreshadowing to Joshua’s future success. The note that was written about Merlin seemed random at first, but has a solid connection to Joshua. Joshua’s family history was obscured, just as Merlin’s was (as shown on the Choco Hop Card). Merlin also has a connection to alchemy – he helped us understand modern Alchemy. This was found on the last page of Joshua’s Writings. I have attempted to fill in the missing letters as best as I could: “…experiment inconclusive…homunculus program requires more testing…gateway open…obtain…Azoth”. From this, it can be assumed that Joshua is planning on making Scout stronger through the use of Azoth (Mercury). The Burnt Paper may have also seemed random to some people. However, this should be an obvious reference to people who are part of the Phoenixes or the Dark Followers. This paper references the failed alliance the Phoenixes attempted to make with the Dark Followers.

Andreu’s story is easy to follow. He was a farmer who joined the Phoenixes after witnessing the injustice and corruption of the Ministry. Some things I feel that are important to point out are his use of “wiped out of existence” and “the unheard dragon”. When the two wizards were “wiped out of existence”, they were not killed. Rather, they were apparated away. Andreu may not have known what apparation was (as he was just a farmer who didn’t seem to use magic much, or even at all), and thought they had been erased (for lack of a better word). The “unheard dragon” is a metaphor for the people who see and oppose injustice and corruption of the Aurorlocks and the Ministry.

I know that the Lost Photos were not randomly included. They are Phoenix members from the past, and are standing in front of their new base. An old Phoenix base can be found in the Riddle District in Hogsend. This could be the base they are in front of, before it was destroyed long into the future. However, this could also be referencing the Phoenix base that was just destroyed by the Aurorlocks. There were two Phoenixes described in the photograph: one Phoenix has chestnut curls, and the other has bright ginger waves. The Phoenix member with ginger waves is Sara’s sister. I explained Sara’s sister’s connection with the Phoenixes in Part 1. The brown-haired Phoenix could be Noah. The photo captured a moment from the past. Noah was previously a Phoenix, but defected to the Dark Followers. Although Noah's skin has black hair, his discord profile picture is of his skin with brown (chestnut-colored, if you will) hair.

Joshua’s Writings mentioned a mysterious man who seemed to be a normal clerk. Joshua swore he recognized the man from somewhere. Although this man’s name was never revealed, the man could be the person circled in the Newspaper Clipping. It seems like Joshua was trying to find the person circled and find information about them.
 
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