beyond the distant dappled lights

“1st year under the Silver Branch. They say that you’re gone for good, but I cannot bring myself to believe it. How could I? You have already pulled off so many impossible feats during these turbulent years; what is yet another? If anyone could escape this fate, it would be you.
If you see this while I am away, please wait for me here. I shall be back by summer’s end.”

You are a traveller making a journey in the aftermath of a calamity.

With a standard deck of cards and a d4, you journey to find the lingering traces of your lover in a world without them.

As the years pass, would your beloved still recognize the world they left behind?

“6th year under the Silver Branch. Another war is on the horizon. It hasn’t even been a decade, and they have already forgotten the price we paid.
If you see this while I am away, please stay safe. I shall be back as soon as I’m able.”

“5th year under the Tenuous Rapids. Do you know you’re an urban legend to the village children now? You’ll be pleased with all the tall tales; I just wish I’m with you. I miss you, but all I have are memories.
Please, just — wait for me. I’ll be back by the Spring equinox and no later. Please.”

At the end of your journey, are you reunited with your lost love? Or have you given up?

“3rd year under the Golden Sun. Oh my beloved, the long night has fallen, and fallen again — but still yet have you not returned?”