Pondathon: New Side Quest Available – It’s Time to Party

New to the Pondathon’s story?
Read this prologue first or read the previous chapter.

You are in the battlefield, casting your spells and swinging your swords and shooting your magic arrows, when, in the corner of your eye, you see Party.

Party, the little otter plush that Cuddle always carries around with her wherever she goes, lies in the middle of the battlefield. You look around – is Cuddle nearby? – but with the sweet otter nowhere in sight, you skid over to Party and hold her close to your chest.

“Where’s Cuddle?” you mutter to yourself. You look around, but it’s difficult to see anyone or anything in the flurry of battle. You decide to return Party to Cuddle, otherwise Cuddle will be scared without her favourite cuddling companion.

You retreat towards the heart of the Pond, towards the place where you found Cuddle last time.

But when you look down at Party to check on her, you stifle a yelp.

Pondathon: New Side Quest Available – Aunty Buaya is Here!

New to the Pondathon’s story?
Read this prologue first or read the previous chapter.

If there is anything that Aunty Buaya deserves after many years of service to the ancient order of the Knights of Strongjaw, it is the undisturbed quiet.

Having served decades as a Paladile for the ancient order called the Knights of Strongjaw, defending small critters from all walks of life from cruel and wicked beings, she can now appreciate the peace of simply being. For her, ‘simply being’ means sitting by the river-bed with her wife, tending to her garden (though she is absolutely horrendous at it), and finding cheap fresh produce at the local market with her trusty rolling bag.

Today, Aunty Buaya has decided to harvest her carrots – which took too long to grow and she simply cannot bear to wait for them to grow any longer. Unbeknownst to her though, the Pond friends continue defending the Pond against the darkness’s relentless attacks.

Pondathon: New Side Quest Available – Varian’s Guilt

New to the Pondathon’s story?
Read this prologue first or read the previous chapter.

As the battle of the Pond continues, the Pond friends are now separated.

Half of the friends now face the rising sun, the light of dawn casting long shadows across the Pond and the Pond friends have to work twice as hard to ward off the darkness’s reach. The other half face the setting sun and the dread of the coming night when the darkness’s power grows.

Varian sits at the centre of the Pond, surrounded by friends well-versed in the arcane arts of shield- and protection-magic. Day in and day out, Varian casts shield-magic, reaching with their mind to repair the damage to the Pond’s magical boundary.

When the darkness began to retreat, Varian was at the center of the celebration. They were among friends who congratulated and cheered with each other, who fell to their knees from joy and exhaustion. When people started shouting ‘We won! We won!’, Varian’s first instinct was to not believe it, to refuse to believe it. For all their knowledge on the art of war and battle, Varian knew that victory did not come so easily.

Pondathon: Breach! The Pond Has Been Breached! [Our Progress + Earn Badges You’ve Missed + Sign-Up For Readathon Prizes!]

New to the Pondathon’s story?
Read this prologue first or read the previous chapter.

Sounds of the battle echo across the Pond.

You have fought and protected and defended valiantly.

When the darkness slowly begins to retreat further away from the Pond, you feel like victory is finally within your grasp. Cheers go all around you as the darkness retreats further, slinking away from the light of the Pond.

You’ve won.

You’ve finally won.

You can finally rest.

Pondathon: New Side Quest Available – Sing, Amina and Bao! Sing!

New to the Pondathon’s story?
Read this prologue first or read the previous chapter.

As Amina nears the Pond, the quills on her back begin to tingle – she’s acutely attuned to the Pond’s magic, and yet, it doesn’t feel like it always does.

Rather, the Pond’s magic feels discordant, tumultuous, cacophonic. After Bao found her leagues away from the Pond, the pair have spent the last week journeying back. Bao has been a steadfast companion – patient with Amina (fast travel was never her strong suit) but also an infallible compass through the ruins of the now-unfamiliar forest. The forest is now bare, ruined from wicked and mean-spirited magic, and Amina’s heart aches at the sight.