The tale of Ashtai and his fateful encounter with The Sunsations within the Veil of Valkur is a story of redemption, purpose, and self-sacrifice. After joining the Sunsations on their voyage to the Y’azi Peninsula, Ashtai quickly left the group as they made landfall in the City of Hojo. Unbeknownst to his former compatriots, Ashtai sought to wander the Veil, a realm of endless torment, seeking to guide his Unknown ancestors to the afterlife they were denied. His journey took on new significance when he crossed paths with the Sunsations, whom he guided through the cursed expanse and ultimately discovered his own purpose.
A Wanderer in the Mist
The Veil of Valkur is a place of unrelenting sorrow, a crimson fog that holds the restless spirits of the damned in eternal battle. It is a realm untouched by time, where the dead clash endlessly, their rage and despair feeding the mist that binds them. Ashtai, an exile of Fyrashan, had returned to the Veil, carrying his ghastly lantern, which glowed with the faint light of souls seeking release. Neither dead nor alive, Ashtai existed as a living tether to the forgotten and the lost, his heart burdened by the weight of his people’s unending suffering.
Saving the Sunsations
The Sunsations, battered and disoriented after their crash into the Veil aboard the wounded Zaigetsu, found themselves surrounded by the tormented spirits of warriors and giants locked in eternal strife. As they prepared to defend themselves against the encroaching wraiths, the dim light of Ashtai’s lantern pierced the mist. He appeared to them as an eerie yet strangely calming figure, his ash-streaked robes billowing in the spectral winds and his molten golden eyes glowing with unearthly wisdom.
"You do not belong here, yet the Veil does not let go so easily," Ashtai told them, his voice soft but resonant. "You walk among the memories of wrath and despair. If you wish to leave, you must tread carefully, for the Veil hungers for the warmth of your lives."
Though cryptic, his guidance was invaluable. With the Sunsations following his lantern’s ghostly light, Ashtai led them through the Ethereal Plane, where the spirits of Unknown berserkers, Y'azi Dragonborn samurai, Frost Giant, and Fyrashan Spirit Seers waged an endless, spectral war (see: Fist of the First Warrior-King). As they moved through the battlefield, Ashtai’s presence shielded them from the wrath of the damned, his lantern flaring brightly to ward off vengeful wraiths and corrupted giants.
The Dreadful Damned
The journey through the Veil revealed the full extent of its horrors. The Sunsations witnessed countless spirits clashing in ghostly combat, their forms translucent yet imposing, their weapons striking with echoes that reverberated through the mist. They passed Norskan warriors, their spectral axes raised high in eternal rage, and Y’azi dragonborn, locked in disciplined formations as they resisted the tide of chaos. Above, corrupted dragons fought in endless aerial battles, their roars shaking the very fabric of the Veil.
At one point, the party paused before a towering frost giant spirit, its massive form swinging a spectral club that shattered the ground beneath it. Ashtai raised his lantern high, its green-blue flame blazing brightly. The giant halted mid-strike, turning its hollow, glowing eyes away from the party and retreating into the mist.
"The spirits of the Veil are not truly your enemies," Ashtai said, his tone somber. "They are echoes of what they once were, caught in the currents of their own despair. But they will not hesitate to pull you into their torment if you linger. Come—your journey does not end here."
Ashtai’s Destiny
As the Sunsations neared the northern edge of the Veil, where the cursed mist gave way to the icy blizzards of Norska, Ashtai’s pace slowed. His lantern flickered, and his expression grew thoughtful. He turned to the Sunsations, his molten eyes reflecting the faint light of the auroras flickering above the frozen taiga beyond.
"This is where I leave you, travelers," he said, his voice calm but heavy with finality. "Your path lies beyond the Veil, where the living still shape their fates. Mine... remains here."
The Sunsations protested, urging him to continue with them, but Ashtai raised a hand, silencing them. "For years, I wandered The Sands of Serrakhan, seeking a reason for my existence. I believed I was meant to escape, to return to the living. But now I see—my purpose is not to leave, but to stay. To guide. My ancestors, the spirits of Fyrashan, are trapped here, their flames long extinguished. They deserve the peace they were denied in life. If I can grant them passage to the afterlife, then my wandering will not have been in vain."
The Parting
Ashtai stepped back into the mist, the glow of his lantern growing dimmer with each step. Before disappearing entirely, he turned one last time to the Sunsations.
"You carry the warmth of life, a fleeting gift but a powerful one. Do not waste it. Go forth, and remember that the storm you face is but another veil—one that, like this, must be pierced by resolve. May your blades carve a path where even the mist cannot follow."
With that, Ashtai vanished into the crimson fog, his lantern’s light fading into the shadows. The Sunsations stood in silence for a moment, the howling winds of the Veil giving way to the biting cold of the northern blizzard. Though the spirit seer was gone, his guidance lingered in their hearts, a reminder of the resilience and sacrifice needed to endure the trials ahead.
Aegis of Ashtai
Ashtai’s decision to remain in the Veil marked the beginning of his new role as its guardian and guide. He became a figure of legend, the wandering light that granted passage to the tormented spirits of the Veil, helping them find peace after centuries of unrest. His story is one of redemption and purpose, a testament to the power of selflessness even in the darkest of places.
For the Sunsations, Ashtai’s wisdom and sacrifice served as a guiding flame, lighting their path forward as they braved the frozen north and the chaos that awaited them in Norska.