POI Name: The Midnight Chapel
Credits: Image 1 / Image 2 / Image 3
Type: Chapel / Temple
Position: The Midnight Chapel appears in various provinces across Erova, emerging unpredictably on deserted roads, at forest edges, or even along bustling trade routes, often when travelers least expect it. The chapel is never seen in the same place twice for long, vanishing at dawn only to reappear elsewhere at dusk.
Consolidation Thread: N/A
Architect: Unknown
Description: From the outside, the Midnight Chapel appears deceptively modest: a small, weathered stone building with moss clinging to its walls and a single iron bell swaying silently atop a crooked spire. A thin, unnatural mist pools around the chapel, creating a spectral glow, while muted, almost inaudible whispers seem to drift from the cracked, arched doors. The chapel is not imposing, but it exerts an inexplicable pull on those who come near, an almost magnetic allure that tempts the curious to step inside.
The interior, however, reveals an entirely different reality. Upon entering, visitors find themselves in a vast, eerie cathedral that seems impossibly larger than the chapel’s modest exterior would suggest. Towering gothic arches stretch into a vaulted ceiling so high it fades into darkness. Rows of pews, cloaked in shadows, line the stone floor, and dark-stained glass windows depict unsettling, cryptic scenes that seem to shift when viewed from different angles. At the front of the chapel, an altar draped in deep, crimson cloth holds twisted, unholy relics that seem to pulse with an unnatural energy.
Silent, faceless priests draped in black robes stand motionless in shadowed corners, mouths moving in silent chants. Their faces blank like un molded clay, and although they make no sound, an oppressive, rhythmic chanting echoes faintly through the air, filling the vast space with a chilling ambiance. These priests rarely interact with visitors, their presence more ominous than welcoming, and those who linger too long often report feelings of being watched or followed by unseen eyes.
The chapel itself feels alive, with the atmosphere shifting between cold and suffocatingly warm. Occasionally, distant sounds like soft weeping or faint laughter seem to echo through the air, although no source can be found within the corridors that extend into dark infinity. For those who stay inside too long, however, the Shifting Chapel exerts a far more disturbing influence. Visitors slowly begin to lose touch with reality, experiencing hallucinations and sensations that drive them to the edge of madness. Dark magic users, often feel a seductive surge of power in the chapel, as though the very walls are feeding them arcane energy in exchange for something deeper, their sanity. The chapel empowers them, amplifying their magic and recharging their strength, but the longer they remain, the greater the toll on their minds.
Rumors persist of an even darker fate for those who die within the chapel. It is said that any soul lost within these walls becomes trapped forever, absorbed into the sinister structure itself. Bodies of the dead vanish without a trace, while their souls are rumored to be subjected to eternal torment, their essence slowly drained and abused as fuel for the chapel’s unholy energy. The trapped souls are believed to linger within the chapel’s haunted corridors, feeding its dark magic and adding to the whispers that echo through the void.
ATTRIBUTES
- Defence: Low
- Defensive Elements: The faceless priests will occasionally attack intruders if provoked
- Offence: Low
- Offensive Elements: The inhabiting priests emit an unsettling aura that may deter some from approaching, but they wield no weapons and rarely confront intruders directly
- Durability: Extreme
- Scarcity: Unique
- TvM Requirement: Xv3
STRENGTHS
Empowering: Dark magic users are drawn to the chapel’s aura, as it enhances their powers and restores their arcane energy. This power boost can make the chapel a strategic location for those looking to recharge or amplify their abilities
Transportation: The chapel is transported across Erova by the Silent Colossus, a titan, shadowy demon bound to its structure. The titan's movements are swift and silent, allowing the chapel to appear in unexpected locations and evade pursuers with ease, often slipping into heavily guarded territories undetected.
WEAKNESSES
Madness: The longer people stay in the chapel, the more they suffer from hallucinations and madness. This is a double-edged sword, as it deters allies as much as intruders, limiting the amount of time even dark magic users can remain safely within its walls
Needs Fuel: The building runs on the souls it has consumed both for its amplification attributes and for its demon that carries the chapel across Erova, without a source to feed on the building loses its essence and goes into a deep slumber until it is fed and satiated once more
HISTORICAL INFORMATION
The Shifting Chapel’s origins are shrouded in mystery, but legends trace it back to an ancient cult, a secretive order of dark sorcerers who thrived on the borders of Erova’s most secluded forests. The cult's members sought a sanctuary that could sustain and amplify their magic, allowing them to experiment with forbidden arcane arts without fear of discovery. Thus, the chapel was born, a dark temple constructed through a rare and unstable fusion of black magic and twisted enchantments, designed to be carried by a titan, shadowy demon across the lands.
A demon was bound to the chapel by the cult in a harrowing ritual. Towering and ethereal, the black titan could pass across the world’s landscapes so rapidly it was almosts invisible to mortal eyes, carrying the chapel on its back. As the demon moved, the chapel would appear in isolated, unexpected places, drawn to areas where life force was abundant but unwary. The cult relied on the shadowy creature to relocate their dark sanctuary, allowing them to evade the prying eyes of those who might seek to destroy them.
As the cult’s rituals intensified, rumors spread of a place that called to passersby with a siren-like allure, a small chapel whose interior defied the laws of nature. Many came seeking its power, yet only a few left unscathed. The sorcerers used the chapel to siphon the energies of unsuspecting visitors, whose souls were forever trapped within its walls, their essence devoured to feed the cult’s ambitions.
Over time, however, the chapel's own power began to grow, as though it had developed an insatiable hunger of its own. The cult members found themselves experiencing strange symptoms, visions, paranoia, and hallucinations as if the chapel itself was feeding on them. The demon, too, seemed increasingly restless, as if the bond binding it to the chapel was as much a curse as a duty. Realizing they had created something beyond their control, the remaining members of the cult attempted to destroy their creation. But the chapel, with its titan carrier, eluded them, disappearing into the mists, moving between the provinces, always one step ahead.
In the centuries that followed, the Shifting Chapel became a ghost story, a fable told by travelers who claimed to have seen its eerie glow in the distance or heard strange, shuffling footsteps too large to belong to any human. Some claimed it was a haunted relic of a doomed cult, while others believed it was a cursed temple meant to punish the curious. Each sighting added to its reputation, and the legend of the Shifting Chapel spread.
Then, recently, a figure named Dagon Erh found the chapel and claimed it as his own. An enigmatic figure with his own dark needs, Dagon is a being who survives by consuming the life force of others. Discovering the Shifting Chapel was like finding a kindred spirit; he felt the same hunger pulsing from its walls, a hunger that aligned perfectly with his own.
Since making the chapel his home, Dagon has lured countless souls into its depths. He welcomes the chapel’s visitors, often appearing as a humble monk or a fellow lost traveler, guiding them deeper into the shadowy interior. There, in the chapel's vast and haunted halls, Dagon feeds upon them, allowing the chapel to absorb their souls even as he drains their life. The demon continues to carry the chapel wherever it is needed, its silent, shadowed form moving across the land of Erova under the cover of darkness, an eternal vessel for Dagon’s twisted hunger and the chapel’s unholy thirst for souls. Together, Dagon, the chapel, and the silent titan have become a unified predator, each nourishing the other in an endless, nightmarish cycle.
