Exploring The Vampiers Oven
Last updated
Last updated
A terrible event happened on March 22, 2022. All the Ovens of Pieland turned off. And without working Ovens, the maintenance and health of the Octopies were in jeopardy. Each of the nine Slices sent a representative to the Piesons homeland, where they formed the Fellowship of the Octopies (FOTO) to reclaim their Ovens. The Fellowship visited six Ovens, in order - Piesons, Pieborgs, Doughbots, Pielanders, Pierates, and Piesces.
After exploring the remaining three Slices along the coasts and under the ocean, the Fellowship returned to the mainland and headed straight for their next stop - the Vampiers Oven. Three Slices - the Vampiers, Zompies, and Expieriments - reside in the gritty, vice-ridden area known as the Undercooked Lands. Unsettling stories about crustannibalism kept most Octopies away from ever stepping their tentacles in the Undercooked Lands.
This was the first time to these forsaken lands for most in the Fellowship. A cold dense valley fog sent a shiver among the group as they walked in silence behind the Vampiers representative. The fog obscured deep, jagged lines that revealed the undercrust. The Fellowship walked along the edge of one of these massive chasms when they reached a narrow, steep path that headed down. A small colony of a few hundred bats suddenly emerged from the dark crevices, freaking out a Pielander.
The Vampiers member ignored the Pielander’s outburst and turned to the rest of the group. “Don’t look the hellhounds in the eyes,” the Vampier said cryptically. The Vampier then headed down the steps into the cavern below. The Zompies and Expieriments followed right after. The rest of the group stood frozen and confused as they were unsure what a hellhound was. A Piesons representative said there was nothing to fear about the furry doglike hellhound and that the Fellowship must persevere. The Pieson calmly headed down the steps as the rest followed begrudgingly.
The steep, winding stairs were poorly lit with torches spaced every five tentacles along a damp wall. Some torches were burned out by water that trickled off the stalactites hanging from the ceilings of the cavern. The group paused for a moment when a distant rumbling echoed through the large cave. As they neared the bottom, the stairs wrapped around a corner which revealed a large temple with three spires and a cauldron of bats circling above to protect the building. This was the Vampiers Oven.
The Vampiers member stopped the group from getting too close to the Oven. This was a sacred structure to all Vampiers, and only those who were part of the living dead were allowed to enter. This meant only the Zompie and Expieriment could go. Still annoyed about the bats, the Pielanders member pointed out that surely the Doughbot could join since Doughbots were more machine than Pie, and machines are not living.
The Pieborgs and Doughbots representatives were offended. They argued that AI qualities made Doughbots more alive and superior to other Slices. The Vampier, who was distrustful of the Doughbots’ machinery, sided with the cyborg Octopies. With that, the Vampiers member led the other two living dead Octopies through the doors of the Oven.
There was a sudden drop in temperature as the rest of the group waited outside. They huddled together and stamped their tentacles to stay warm and attempted to count the number of stalactites on the massive cavern to pass the time. A shadowy figure suddenly emerged. This Vampier was known as The Ancient One.
“You! What do you seek?” the Ancient One said, pointing at the dorsal fins of the Piesces. The Piesces member bravely stepped forward and recapped what the Fellowship had seen thus far - from visiting The Mayor of the Piesons, to discovering that the Pieous wanted the Pieborgs to build them machine-based Octopies, to swimming to the ocean floor to investigate the Piesces Oven. The grim situation that was happening in the Undercooked Lands was happening all across Pieland, the Piesces explained. The investigation had turned up more questions than clues. The Pieous appeared to be involved with the cold Ovens, but it was unclear. Some Slices were on good terms with the Pieous, while others were not.
The Ancient One sighed. “Yes. The Pieous. We went to them. We said we needed more Vampiers. They agreed. A special Flame they gave us. But they asked - no - demanded we experiment to resurrect more Octopies,” The Ancient One said. “I agreed. But said two Flames was the price. One for us, one for our research. They agreed. That was our deal. We share notes now and again from our work. The relationship is strong.”
The Octopies gasped in horror and shock at this revelation. No other Slice had been given two Flames. The Ancient One suddenly disappeared, as did the dip in temperature. But wait. If the Vampiers had an extra flame, was it used for the Zompies or Expieriments? Was the Vampiers’ research successful? When the exploration team returned, the Fellowship discussed what happened. Like the other Ovens, the Vampiers Oven gave no new information, but the revelations of the Ancient One cut deep. The group was going to press forward through the chasms to visit either the Zompies or Expieriments next to learn which Slice used the second Flame.
