Thaa had been thinking of trying a different kind of tactic with all that had occurred. Truly the achievement of his most noble goal was one not to be delayed but it did seem that so many had such different ideas. In truth Thaa also grew disattached to the western highlands that he had so recently been involved in. After all did he not wish to spread good tidings to all of mortal kind? Of course to seek to aid all of mortal kind was a large task even for a deity so rightly guided. Perhaps now he could simply turn his attention to the eastern highlands, simply split the attention as it were for now.
In truth there was another facet to his attention that truly did give him pause. Under the guise of what those westerners who so self-deluded themselves and called ‘Sigeran’ they acclaimed him god of undying warriors. It was useful that was of no doubt and it was something that mortal kind seemed to value beyond what services he provided in the afterlife, ungrateful as that seemed to Thaa after all. Regardless to truly become a god in charge of those who cannot die, or rather perhaps those influenced by his deific power to go beyond death and continue in action on Galbar? That did seem to work much better, perhaps not the best situation but it could also serve to aid those who had died, to give them a chance to achieve peace as Thaa most certainly knew many still felt drawn and tied to things left unfinished on Galbar.
But yes, to focus on the east first and through that acquire a more thorough claim to that power of the undead as it may come to be, that would have to be his focus for now. Thaa drew souls close to him, peering into one of the many towers of Aquibeophates as the realm shifted to accommodate the god. The souls of the east, or more precisely formerly of that region in the highlands. Humans were likely the best bet, although others had such interesting qualities to pursue at later dates it seemed that some of the other deities were most preoccupied with these most widely spread bunch.
It was easy enough to copy the form of a helm that they find familiar, but golden in color and crested with vibrant red threads, better than what they make so that it might enthrall them. It would have to be tough of course, a measure helpful for those wearing the helm as human heads always seemed so fragile, a perspective enhanced by the numbers of dead as a result of a head wound. Additionally of course the initial worry of the death of said individual who so wore the helm and to further secure a broadness of power over undeath and all that is so concerned there to make the wearer undying in the heat of combat.
Speaking of combat, Thaa conducted death energies to flow into the Helm, its wearer could command such things to make Bale Flame like that breath of the dragons yet to be released to Galbar. A powerful tool in many circumstances he had no doubt they would find it. Additionally a few things of utility, a soul capturing mechanism and one of soul sight, both things he had done or commanded done before of course but in this singular artifact it may prove additionally useful.
Now that such a golden and crested helm was so complete and empowered it just left sending it to Galbar, and making sure it was noticed of course.
Thaa grabbed the helm and drew back a massive arm that comprised many bodies. Death energies swirled around his fist as he prepared his throw, a portal to the North Eastern highlands, a forest of some kind. It mattered not which kind, just that it was something living to make a fuss. He threw.
In a forest far in the Eastern highlands, where even Acadia was a western land, but yet were humans still lived, often murderously against other races. In that forest came a massive explosion of green flame, spiraling into the air and out in the forest, trees died roots intact. Bushes and grasses withered, animals of all kinds ran if could, died where they stood, or sickened slowly after such an exposure if they escaped the initial blast although the effects faded quickly. One could trace it back into the forest, where the corpses of animals and plants alike, centering on a simple rock which a golden helm sat ajar after landing.
Thaa drew his attention away as the portal fully closed, he drew upon his own powers to claim dominion over the undead, he had much more work to do if he was to make the world a better place. Hopefully his little gift might do some good in any case.
Thaa is thinking and decides to do something in the eastern highlands and also to get going on that whole undead and undying stuff. He makes a cool helmet and throws in a forest with a bunch of death energies from Aquibeophates, this is not so agreeable to the whole living things in the forest but it is likely to draw attention. Thaa then claims the undead port and plans to make the world a better place as he always does.
Start MP 5 DP 5 -1 MP, 4 DP Golden Crest Helm Artifact -1 MP Portal to Galbar from Aquibephates -1 DP Making big bale flame explosion in a forest in the eastern highlands -3 MP Claim Undead Portfolio End MP 0 DP 0
alt. The Panhuman Empire, The Second Terran Empire, The Venusian Empire
The reformed Terran Empire is directly descended from a multitude of sources, but most notably the Imperial claimants of Novia Belletor and Aulus Gordian to form the new Imperial house of Belletor-Gordian. Generally the Empire views itself as a pure continuation of the old Terran Empire, even if mostly relegated to Venus and small enclaves elsewhere as per what they call the ‘ongoing crisis’.
Effectively a limited Autocratic Monarchy with aristocratic elements.
Technically, the Emperor or currently the Empress has complete and absolute power over the entirety of the Empire and its citizens. In practice they are limited and supported by the Imperial Bureaucracy, Imperial Senate and the Imperial High Command. The Bureaucracy carries out most actual governance, the High Command is in charge of military matters and the Senate advises, carries out oversight, and formulates new laws and budgets. The Bureaucracy and High Command generally run on Meritocratic appointments while the Senate is limited to the new Imperial Nobility, although the electorate is somewhat more expansive than that, it is still restricted.
In the territory dominated by the Imperial government there are several locations that make a degree of particular interest as they illuminate aspects of the modern Empire.
The Venusian Defense Grid is in part a modern construction and in another part a renovation of old technology. In particular the energy shielding system originally developed in the terraforming of Venus and later kept for posterity, after the general collapse of Imperial order there began a project to repurpose it into a kind of planetary defense measure. This was largely successful as maintenance had been kept up and some upgrades kept to keep the satellites in full working order. This energy shield in addition to the numerous Humanity Star Fortresses in Orbit around Venus forms the basis of the Venusian Defense grid, as well as any nearby ships of the Imperial Navy of course. This is no impenetrable defense, nor is it nothing either, the existence of the energy shielding system was one of the primary deterrents that allowed Venus to largely escape the chaos of direct assault that befell Earth and numerous other locales during the collapse.
While the Agricol Complex and similar structures on the Venusian surface may in general not compete with the sheer efficiency per produce found in some orbital farms, the Complex can compete instead on the ease in and on scale. It is far larger, and far more easily made and expanded Agricultural production. These Complexes form the basis of not just supplying Imperial populations with food, but also the vast amounts that the Empire exports to other portions and parts of the Solar System. It is for this reason that the areas most closely tied to the Empire need not worry for food or other similar basic necessities as the Imperial government makes clear their willingness to use the full resources of the terraformed Venusian biosphere.
With the fall of Earth and its infrastructure, the chaos that enveloped the Solar System quickly threw away the idea of Imperial dominance in all aspects of life in the Solar System. Most importantly to the creation of the Array, no longer could Imperial citizens count on the government for aid in many of their needs. The Array was the solution reached towards that end as much as the current government could afford to spend on that. While the Empire couldn’t ensure the safety of belters from pirates, from gas giant stations from radicals, or the citizens of Earth from the horrors of war, it could at the very least provide a measure of the common humanity of the Empire and connection to the great history of all mankind. To this end the Imperial System Wide Broadcasting Array was constructed and broadcasts a wide variety of media on open channels that are easily accessible for any with appropriate equipment throughout the Solar System. From entertainment and education for children, classic programs or documentaries or histories, news and coverage of recent events, and a multitude of other things that would otherwise be accessible to any Imperial citizen. The Imperial System Wide Broadcasting Array and its managers who report to the Imperial Bureaucracy, hope to remind all of the continued shared Humanity and benevolence of the Empire. However it should also be said that throughout the Array’s existence local leaders who have not wanted their populations to have access to the Array’s programs have blocked out said signal with local broadcasts along the same frequencies. A shame of the division of the modern chaotic era to be sure.
Generally the Empire is quite welcoming towards most of any peoples, although widespread discriminiation may exist in quite a number of societal aspects towards non-humaniform peoples, generally there has been a disbandment of the old rigorous slave systems used to dominate some peoples.
The new Imperial Order operates under a philosophy of the ‘Human Spirit’, meaning basically how much one has been modified or one's original genetic stock matters less than the general loyalty to the Empire and its Ideals.
Just humans that look mostly human, whether they are of base human stock, have minor modifications to remove and improve some genetic markers such as reducing cancer chances or the like, or even some that are cosmetically altered.
Humans who have extensive modifications, whether these are visible or not, the difference between these and Humaniform varies by group, under modern Imperial law there is no difference in rights or duties.
Widely known types are as follows:
Such as various uplifted groups or modified groups, such as uplifted apes or other animals, or animals extensively modified with cybernetics that provide labor or service in some fields.
Widely known types are as follows:
Venus
Notable Groups
Humaniform Humans: Describing the various human groups that remain relatively similar to the original human stock. Roughly make up 56-65% of the population depending on how rigorously one defines the group and by what metrics. Most of the nobility as well as the Imperial family are Humaniform Humans.
Non-humaniform Humans: Describing the various human groups that are extensively modified in comparison to original human stock. Makes up 8-17% of the population depending on definition per Humaniform Humans.
Non-Human Sapients: Describing various uplifted and modified groups and populations that remained loyal or otherwise stayed under the new Imperial sway. Roughly make up 21% of the population on Venus. Commonly the majority in some ridgeway arcologies.
Other: Roughly 6% of the population on Venus is either not easily applied into one of these categories or is otherwise avoidant of general census efforts to categorize them.
Earth
The exact numbers of many of the demographics of areas under Imperial control on Earth are not precisely known due to the overreliance on local administrations which typically are greatly taxed by the general levels of conflict on the planet and are more focused towards preparing there rather than generating precise and accurate measures of local population.
Many colorful and unique characters populate the Imperium in many places and on many levels. More will be added as time goes on. For now see Leadership.
Although legally the Empress has supreme power over the entire Empire effectively power in the Empire is devolved to several other levels and figures, this is partially intentional given the historic abuses by the last Emperor of the previous dynasty.
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To tell the tale of the modern Terran Empire on Venus one could start in many places and tell some very different stories by it. The terraforming and colonization of Venus, the tragic end to the previous dynasty and the brief interregnum before the new dynasty asserted control. There are many places and positions one could start with, each their own tale.
I told ya it ain’t done, what did ya expect?
After the tragic accidental death of the last Emperor of the Old Dynasty, Jarus Augustus IV, there was a power vacuum without a clear line of succession. Sure there were claimants, mostly among the nobility, but such ties were forged decades or centuries ago, who exactly had the most clear line of succession had never been decided before in so indirect a measure. The clearest and most direct form of action taken was partially as a result of pressure from the Imperial Bureaucracies and the Imperial Navy in face of increased unrest across the Empire, to form a regency council to decide the best chosen heir. This was significantly unsuccessful. Those nobles on the council mostly tried to leverage the position to put forward their own claims, military staff tried to use the power of the council to fight increasing rebellions rather than actually trying to find a new Emperor.
The Ambilene coup that deposed the Regency Council while good intentioned in theory mostly ended to result in a Junta of high officers of the Empire fighting to maintain control against the forces of rebellion and various claimants to the Imperial Throne that all began to converge in the Sol System.
The two claimants that would form the basis of the new dynasty, Novia Belletor of New Terra and Aulus Gordian of Ishtar Terra on Venus, played very different roles during this time. Novia Belletor was one of the invading claimants, having subverted the local garrison, committing personal forces as well as partially acquiring a fleet intended to help quell insurrection at the edge of the Empire, turning its attention back to the core systems and Sol itself. Aulus Gordian meanwhile had been a member of the Regency Council although a very minor one, after the Ambilene Coup he returned to Venus to build up a base of support for his own claim, gaining the support of the Garrisons of Ishtar Terra and Aphrodite Terra, although the sea and ridgeway arcology garrisons refused to be mobilized.
Needless to say, neither was the most successful in pressing their own claim to the Throneworld, especially with the Sol gate destroyed Novia Belletor was cut off from her base of support on New Terra while still having a sizable fleet in the Sol System itself. Meanwhile Aulus Gordian had managed to further secure himself on Venus, gaining for the further support of the remnants of the Venus defense grid. The match was eventually proposed as a solution to Gordian’s lack of a fleet, Belletor’s lack of a base and to strengthen both their claims. In particular, in the face of so many local powers asserting independence rather than any attempt to claim the old Empire for themselves.
Most of the focus of their military forces following the collapse of Imperial Power and the Gate System was working with remaining Imperial Forces on Earth to evacuate key materials and industries as well as generally assisting refugees from various Earthside conflict zones to escape the chaos on the Throneworld by evacuating them to Venus. Generally this pattern of aiding civilians worked to help build the new Imperial State on Venus.
Generally the new Empire is pretty well suited in most fields commonly needed. As Venus has been extensively terraformed, water and even the acquisition of base materials is not too great an issue as Venus can generally use resources found on the planet itself. Unfortunately the major issue that Venus faces is not a lack of base resources like food or water but rather the high industry. Venus was never meant to be the center of an Empire and so its industry had been limited during Old Imperial Times. Although new industries have been built, it has not been altogether the easiest situation for the new Empire.
Generally the Empire is intensely interested in importing advanced technologies, industrial materials, and of course defense equipment given Venus’s high need for defensive power against the many hostile threats that face the Empire and its citizenry.
As for exports the Empire gleefully provides grown foods or raised animal meats to most who require them in the solar system, as well as base water or general consumer products. As well the Empire does subsidize a large scale broadcasting rig to send out civilian media throughout the solar system as a separate affair from their own localized broadcasting which uses much more efficient tight band transmissions. These broadcasts range all across a spectrum of media so that even the most isolated of belter settlements or far flung habitats might still have access to good media and culture from the Imperial government.
Relations with the Empire are a complex subject for many in system. Few of the breakaway states truly care much for the Imperial Government on Venus, yet Venus remains as an important player in the Solar System, especially for colony worlds which lack terraformed environments. Venus for many of them is a source of many of the earthly pleasures of fresh, grown food in excess, or even meat more easily made with the excess biomass in a fully terraformed nearly Earth-sized planet. Especially as the unified Imperial Government keeps good order on Venus, it is a good destination for those growing sick of spacer habitats and long for the open skies, without the dangers of traveling to Earth in these times.
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The Imperial Defense Forces are made up of multiple branches generally carrying forward from modified Imperial Doctrine. All commanded by the Imperial High Command which reports directly to the Empress. Due to the early evacuations of some regions from the old Throneworld of Earth, the Empire has a solid grasp on the technical specifications of most Old Imperial designs and continues use and production of many old Designs that still work. Although most have received extensive modification, either to update technology or better prepare for modern threats, or otherwise to lessen the resource costs of building vessels or certain mainline units compared to the threats faced.
Centered on evolving Imperial Doctrine, rather than attempt to mimic either the style or design of Old the new Imperial Navy has focused on updating or otherwise modifying designs so as to better be able to combat modern realities. This in general has had a result of greatly causing a divergence in design of the Imperial Fleet as opposed to factions which merely reproduce or utilize old Imperial design and combat philosophy.
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An updated and mostly stripped down version of the old Ishtar Terra I, the II principally is made to attempt at the same capabilities of the old corvette while requiring less resources to make. Primarily this has come through the stripping of its long-range transport capacity and focusing the corvette purely on Orbital pickets and defense.
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The Imperial Planetary Forces are in charge of both managing the defense of Imperial territories on Planets as well as combat operations into celestial bodies that have similar ground conditions to Planets. As such the Imperial planetary Forces are split into three core Branches, the Imperial Army, the Imperial Air Forces and the Imperial Marine Flee. The Last is more commonly referred to as the ‘Wet Navy’ outside of official correspondence.
The Imperial Army encompasses two different forces, the Standard Units and the Militia. The Standard Units are a professional volunteer army using standard Imperial combat doctrine. They receive the best equipment of the ground forces, tanks, guns, artillery, all that is appropriate according to Imperial Doctrine and supply. The Militia on the other hand are a mixture of conscripts from termed ‘non-essential’ work forces around the age of 16-30, and volunteers and veterans, who receive or have received military training and often substandard equipment to provide supplemental and quick reaction forces to invasion, or as supplemental forces for any other major concern on the local level. In some areas these forces are very similar in ability and equipment to Standard Units, in others they are significantly more lax.
The Professional Standing Army of the Empire, the Standard Forces typically train under Earth gravity, even if most centers and recruits are on or from Venus. Typically Standard Forces receive a cocktail of chemicals, steroids and other such things, to boost their effectiveness even if most are relatively unaugmented Humans. The Best in the Standard Forces are optionally allowed to receive and train for various augments for combat duties. Anyone can apply for the Standard Forces, although typically augmented persons are put into segregated units, in part because of still extant attitudes in the Empire but also primarily focused on supply. Finding a gas mask that fits is much easier if you are only sent ones made to fit humans or other close humaniforms.
The Militia is extant throughout the Empire, although its membership can vary quite a lot. In some areas on Venus it is used as a kind of mixed supplemental work for Veterans, as well as a training means for future possible recruits. Others are a frontline unit such as the Militias in Italy and the Alpine Command Region. In general the Militias are less picky than the Standard Forces, sometimes the equipment is outdated or in general is much cheaper than what the Imperial government allows for the Standard Forces to be equipped with.
The Imperial Air Forces are primarily focused to provide support for the Imperial Army and the maintenance of Imperial Air Superiority especially when orbital supremacy cannot be maintained.
While technically rated for space, the mainstay of their operations are conducted in Atmosphere and generally are commissioned in the Planetary Air Forces rather than the Navy. Shown below are the Yaelius Class vessels.
While their atmospherics are space rated, they lack sufficient maneuvering surfaces to be effective in that field. Instead their primary job is fast deployment of missiles from range. The New Bornheim Class explicitly is not meant for dogfighting and their pilots are heavily discouraged from attempting such things despite what they may see in Imperial Sponsored War Media.
The Empire maintains and trains the Imperial Marine Fleet, or ‘Imperial Wet Navy’ as is more commonly referred to. Essentially maintaining naval traditions of old as well as taking up new traditions. Commonly required to rescue or intervene at any sea-borne sites of space vessel crashes or police the waters on claimed Imperial worlds to maintain control over water borne shipping. There are also a select number of units equipped with anti-orbital weaponry so as to create a mobile defense battery. Although more commonly the Marine Fleet maintains and transports Imperial Marines and manages various augmented aquatic life.
As one of the few powers in the solar system with planetary seas as well as an intense interest in maintaining a presence on Earth the Empire maintains a specialized force for aquatic and amphibious operations. Armored and Heavily Trained for operations on Venus, Earth, and potentially other environs that they may be required to be deployed.
Additionally, the Empire uses a variety of modified and augmented aquatic life for their operations. Some are more explicitly modified and are typically used for direct operations to assist in assaults or reconnaissance. Others however are meant to blend in with the unaugmented wildlife to catch opposing forces unaware or to ambush hostile naval forces.
Truly Guul was most disturbed. Of course they had been shown the countless horrors inflicted upon mortal life since time immemorial, but none could compare to what seemed to be the height of wrongness. Kiim and Jaav were actually agreeing with one another. They were being almost pleasant and accommodating. If anything truly upset the natural order of things it had to be this.
Currently they were discussing something about the isles they had left behind, in truth the three of them had been lazing out in the ocean for a while and quite honestly Guul was quite happy to have a task again, it was something to do at least but to say everything was perfectly fine was another. It was the same deal as before really, not that they got much update on how the whole previous situation had gone, Thaa had the annoying habit of being generous with stuff you didn’t want to hear about.
Flying high above what the ‘day elves’ called ‘the highlands’ not a very creative name especially given the Anchor mountains were very much not that far south from them. Thaa had gone back to calling humans ‘day elves’ again which Guul was sure what kind of sign that was, it didn’t seem easy to be quite sure what track he would take as of late, something seemed to be distracting him from his usual lines.
The artifact that was supposed to be delivered was finished in any case. It was rather simple this time around, little ornamentation and an easy enough design. As always though the abilities of the object were quite a bit more difficult to work appropriately. It was a focus, a kind of magical object that mortals used in their sorceries, golden of course as anything designed in the mind of Thaa seemed to be, simply it was shaped in the design of Thaa himself, or rather that disk and eye that seemed so central to him.
This focus seemed more a protector than purely a magical object in any case, it would protect a mortal’s soul, their body to what extent it could as well. Durable beyond mortal means of course as well as the aforementioned magical effects, capable of storing that diffuse element of mana and attracting it in the first place.
It wasn’t really the artifact or Kiim and Jaav that bothered Guul right now though. She just needed to get away from all of everything. Guul always was the one who ended up making whichever thing and Kiim and Jaav seemed more content to bicker or some such. After this current time it would be good to go somewhere nice, maybe Kubrazjar maybe the Hreelcii Isles, find some nice place and relax somewhat. Just needed to find a certain mage in the highlands.
It was easier when they were monarchs, tended to be more obvious from the air when one was close to their particular patch, at least this mage was attached to a notable monarch.
Guul is thinking to herself as they fly over the highlands, far above what most would be able to note them. She is of course horrified at such an affront to natural order as Kiim and Jaav getting along well and otherwise considered such things as where to vacation and the current mission of giving the Aquibephatian Focus to a certain mage in the Highlands.
The smoke of burning wood and smouldering thatch stung at the eyes of the Dûnan warband pillaging the small village whose name now would be lost to history. The simple skin and hide boots left prints in the bloody soot, and the whimpers of captured prisoners followed the warriors in a long chain of hemp rope. It seemed that the Dûnans almost had gotten a taste for blood over the last year - with every conquest, the hunger for more land to call their own only grew more and more. It seemed almost difficult not to continue, too, for resistance was often meek and short-lived, none able to stand against the mountainborne tide. With spear, axe and torch, they seized the grain and livestock of their neighbours to fuel the machine of Dûnan growth back home.
At least, that was the case until their campaign reached the town of Grimholt, less of a village and more of a holdout. The Dûnans had heard stories of the unbreachable palisades of Grimholt - so built to ward off the bandit hordes of the north. However, the Dûnans were confident that their warband was better organised, better armed, had better numbers and, most importantly, had the support of the druids. Their pride had fueled them so far with nothing more than success to reap - Grimholt would fall all the same.
However, the first assault was devastating - the battle had been fought uphill, and while the Dûnans were no strangers to mountain climbing, they had never before done so under barrages after barrages of arrows. The hillside was barren when it came to cover - the defenders had cleared it completely of trees so that their archers could see every inch of the way. The druids didn’t even manage to break the gate - the poles were solidly planted in the stone of the hill, and landslides before they reached the top, too, proved only ineffective or, at worst, thundered down over their own warriors. Before evening, half of the Dûnan forces, the campaign which had sacked and captured over six other villages by now, laid bleeding out or dead on the hills leading up to Grimholt. The army commander, the druid Gene, had no choice but to sound a retreat.
They fell back to a forest at the foot of the hill, hiding deep among the trees and shrubs, separated into squadrons to hide their presence. The commanders shared a talk over a warming sphere of sunwarm, conjured forth by druidic spells to bypass the need to light a fire and attract the enemy with smoke. Besides Gene, there were two other commanders still alive: Vegard, a bushy-bearded gaardskarl whose muscle to fat ratio seemed about half-in-half, and Clement, a brasfortsian stone-faced hunter with an almost god-blessed aim with the bow. Right now, though, he was not alone in wearing his cold expression.
“... We have to pull further back - send word to Ha-Dûna and tell them that our charge was broken and that we need reinforcements. We can fortify ourselves back in Shallawick or whatever that village was called. We--”
“Oh, give it a rest, Kaer Gene. You know that place is not fit for a siege - not now. We just came from there and now, well, only the spirits of the dead roam that place with any luck of surviving longer than a week.” Clement’s harsh reply forced Gene to lower her head.
“So… That’s it? Have we, have we lost?”
Clement held up a hand. “No, we haven’t lost - not yet. If we can lure them out, we might still have a chance, and--”
“A chance? Clement, we do not know how many lurk behind that wall of theirs!” Vegard pointed out and gnawed into a loaf of stale bread. He chewed, swallowed and continued, “Even if they in their victorious stupor were arrogant enough to attack us in the open field - an arena which we have adjusted to so well over the course of the last year - they wouldn’t dare to do so unless they outnumbered us. By how much, though - that is the question.”
Gene brought a quivering hand to her face. “You mean I… I will never see my daughters again? My sweet, little Jaclyn? My Keely? My--” She was silenced with a squeeze of her shoulder from each of the other commanders.
“Don’t worry, Kaer Gene - as Clement said, this isn’t over yet. We just… Need to recover a bit and reorganise ourselves.” He looked at her tree branch staff and then up at the heavens through the treetops. “... And pray for a miracle.”
* * *
Truly the events around Grimholt were less than ideal. The druidic army had been quite the measure of interest, they had been doing such good work in improving the region, the evident defeat, and so costly one, was a grave measure of concern.
Thaa had cast his gaze upon the various clumps of hiding warriors at that forest so near to their intended prize, he always kept a look out for particular changes among the incoming souls, the Dûnans were a surprising and unwelcome addition. Although now reviewing the location it did become quite clear how such an unfortunate result occurred, and it now seemed even less likely that the situation would improve by itself.
By whatever amounts the minds of men were so enthralled by valor and courage, the arrows and axes and spears of Grimholt would care little for such things. Even if courage still remained in the hearts of the warriors now cowering from view of their foes, it was no shield against their weapons with piercing tips and slicing heads.
Luckily for this little expedition’s chances it did not have to stand alone against such things that those of Grimholt’s walls would wield against them, for Thaa had made up his mind to this matter.
* * *
To whatever conversation or looks of understanding that were shared in the shade of the trees or the soft shadows of the bushes, something came echoing out to each of those in that forest. A million voices spoke out in unison to their minds, each seemed only to whisper, some that seemed human and many others that were not. They came forth as a cascade, forming a voice in quality completely new and different from their parts.
“Warriors of Ha-Dûna, you had my attention, and now you have my blessing. Until Grimholt, the holdout against this holy force is taken and consecrated by the blood of those who stand against this mission, no arrow nor spear nor axe nor any other weapon of man made shall slay you noble warriors of Ha-Dûna. So is my divine will.”
With these words came a shock to all those that had heard them, the wounds they had nursed or tiredness they suffered seemed to drop away in pain or limitation. Their flesh did not mend but still they felt as though they were without harm. More than that a power seemed to remain in each of them, an energy that refused to go away. They were not stronger than they had ever been, nor faster or of quicker draw. Each and everyone could tell the indomitable effect that had come over them was present.
The warriors looked at one another with wordless bewilderment. The commanders rose up and looked to the sky, then at Vegard, who looked equally shocked. “... A miracle,” Kaer Gene whispered.
“A bloody miracle,” Clement echoed. Their warriors closed in around them, and in the distance, they heard the snapping twigs and rumble of boots that signalled the approach of the other squadrons.
“Who’s, who’s blessing was that, though?” mumbled Kaer Gene uncertainly. “Was it Caden?”
“Maybe, or maybe we’ve attracted the attention of a new patron god!”
Kaer Gene frowned bepuzzled. All throughout her training, she had heard the whispers of many of the gods - but these million voices were unknown to her. Completely unfamiliar. She stabbed the butt of her stick into the ground and looked up.
“Whoever it is, they have given us the miracle we pleaded for! They shall be revered alongside the Eight and the Three as the god who saved the Dûnans in their darkest hours! Now, let us see if their divine blessing holds true! CHARGE!” The druid stormed towards the edge of the woods, followed by the Dûnan horde brandishing their weapons and screaming their fury.
Up on the battlements of Grimholt, the defenders were sharing victoriously in a feast of meat, porridge, bread and fermented milk. They sat counting their arrows as they ate, exchanging jokes and records of how many Dûnans they had shot down, laughter booming with every outrageous claim.
“I shot down twenty one a’ them, I did!” came a claim.
“Carl, you couldn’t hit the broadside of a longhouse even if you stood right in front of it!” came a counter-claim. “You might’ve hit one of their fat warrior broads if you got lucky!” A nova of laughter exploded throughout the gathered warriors. By the edge of the battlements, a sentry watched valiantly over the hillside, his bow the only strung one. Colours of white, pale pink, dark greens, dark reds and browns caught his eye coming out of the forest and he frowned in disbelief.
“Uuuuhm, chieftain?” he called and the chieftain of the village, a mighty warrior by the name of Barth, approached the battlements with a curious brow. The brow lowered even further once they identified the assailants and saw them charge up the hill with unreal vigour, as though they had licked their wounds completely clean in the span of an afternoon.
“What in the… Pwah, they must’ve eaten the wrong kind of mushrooms, I reckon. Men! Line up, string bows and knock arrows! Let’s just get this over with.” The archers almost groaned and did as they were told. The Dûnans were almost within range of their arrows. Chief Barth followed the charge with a mixture of anticipation and outright disbelief. “Wow, when the messengers said they were fanatics, I took their words for it, but this is beyond anything I could’ve imagined. Well, lads, you can all rest easy tonight knowing that you’ve made the highlands a safer place. The Dûnans will no longer consume the country with wanton murder and pillaging. Ready? Loose!”
A cloud of arrows soared forth and blanketed the attackers. A good deal of them hit their marks. The chieftain sighed, shook his head and turned around. “What a waste…”
“Chieftain!” came a sudden yell. Barth spun back around and stormed over to the battlements. The charge hadn’t been broken - in fact, it only seemed to have been spurred on by the arrows. The chieftain squinted at the Dûnans, but couldn’t make out any details about them yet.
“Give them another volley!” The arrows soared again, once more hitting their marks. However, the charge was undeterred. Barth and the archers exchanged looks of wild confusion. “L-loose at will!” The archers lost all sense of unity as they sent out arrow after arrow, hammering down at the hill like the heaviest rain in history.
However, it became clear to them that their efforts were for naught once they could make out the first of the attackers in full detail. It was a woman, blonde hair blowing in the wind of her charge, her only armour being her plaid, a thin linen overshirt, a combat kilt and leather boots. Her chest, belly, face, arms, legs and back - all had at least one arrow stabbed deep into it. By all accounts, she should be dead. But there she was - tireless feet drumming against the grass until she reached the main gate, ramming her axe into the wood with beastly fury. Her peers weren’t far behind her, and almost all of them were equally mutilated, yet seemingly completely fine.
The archers froze in fear. A few of them caught sight of a young girl, barely even an adult, who grinned up at them with arrows in both her eyes, one in her forehead and three in her chest. They felt their hands weaken, dropping their bows in panic and scurrying for safety with squeals and screams. Chieftain Barth tried to keep everyone in place, but he nearly vomited when he tossed a stone down at one of the warriors, saw his skull crack open in half and was only met with a half-faced glare.
“Ch-chieftain! What do we DO?!” came a terrorised squeak. Chief Barth darted around for a solution. They all heard the whine and groan of the molested wooden gate breaking apart under the fury and rage of Dûnan axes and clubs.
“W-we--” he began, but then the gate broke apart, falling forward off the copper hinges moreso than actually opening up. The horde of warriors flooded into the village like a wave of death, and the village squealed with terror. Barth didn’t understand. He looked down into the village and very clearly saw spears and axes lodge themselves into the Dûnans’ flesh, but they did nothing - absolutely nothing. The Dûnans fought on all the same. He looked up to the heavens and fell to his knees. Was this the favour of the gods? It had to be - why, why did the gods support these, these bloodthirsty barbarians, why?! They were demons, demons sent to lay their lands low for, for some obscure reason. The gods were unfair like that. The chieftain’s vision was blocked. He blinked and his eyes readjusted to look into the bleeding face of Vegard, his torso impaled by at least ten arrows and his right thigh nearly chopped to pieces with what looked like axe marks. The chieftain looked to his left and right, where there stood one warrior on each side with spears at the ready. Barth drew a quivering breath and spoke, “h-how?”
He whimpered as Vegard grabbed him by the hair and wrested his face towards his own, grinning through broken teeth. “The gods favour the mighty, the strong, the pious.”
Barth didn’t understand, but nodded all the same. “You will be stopped. Grimholt has powerful allies to the north. They will not take kindly to this treachery.”
Vegard looked at the two other warriors and then all three burst into a cackle. The gaardskarl knelt down so his head was level with Barth’s. He unsheathed a copper dagger and placed it against the chieftain’s throat, slicing at it slowly. “Let them come,” he threatened as the blade carved gradually through skin, sinew and flesh. The chieftain twisted and screamed, but the two guards held him down. “Ha-Dûna is the capital of the gods - the holiest of cities in all of khatrfral.” The chieftain’s blood spilled all over his knife, hand and clothes, as well as their boots and the flooring of the battlements. “We will persist through any attack - any attempt at so-called ‘revenge’ against our righteous campaign. Your allies will fall as you have fallen today - this is the will of the gods!” With that, he sawed the dagger one last time and severed the chieftain’s head from his shoulders, rocketing to his feet and holding it up for all to see. “THE CHIEFTAIN IS DEAD! GRIMHOLT IS OURS!” The wave of cheers from below came almost as a physical shockwave. Vegard lifted the head to the sky with both hands. “We prevailed under the blessing of our newest god - our ally in our darkest hours! They brought us victory today, and they shall be remembered for this for all eternity!”
He passed the head to Kaer Gene, who had come up to join him. She held to high to the heavens, too, and shouted: “The new god shall become our patron of conquest and victory! Kneel!” The Dûnan warriors all fell to their knees and hands - those with arrows in their legs and arms pulled these out as though they were simple splinters. Kaer Gene spoke, “We offer your our allegiance and our loyalty for the gift you have given us today, great god, and pray that you will be with us forever more as we claim more land for our prospering city! Everyone, submit yourselves to our god of victory, SIGERAN!”
“We offer ourselves to Sigeran!” the warriors roared as one. Cheers and celebrations followed, during which the chieftain’s head, along with the heads of other senior staff in the village, were mounted on spears and displayed as a tributary altar to Sigeran. The druids in the warband quickly got to helping the wounded, but as the blessing of Sigeran wore off, they began to notice that the empowerment given to them had indeed only been temporary. They managed to save some, but the entire warband should effectively have died during the assault. Those who could not be aided in time ended up bleeding out, dying from organ failure or simply being crushed under the shocking pain they had to endure. In the end, the Dûnans suffered a loss so great that they realised Grimholt would be the last bastion they’d take during this campaign. Vegard was among those who didn’t make it, and the bodies of the dead were burned on a great pyre before the altar to Sigeran. Kaer Gene, who had acquired a limp, stepped up before the pyre and turned to the remaining warriors. They were fewer than fifty now - barely a ragtag band of brigands. Many of them were gravely wounded, and had just barely been saved. Kaer Gene and the other druids had completely spent their favour with Reiya to do so and would need weeks, maybe even months, to recharge to the same level. Still, they had their unbreakable spirit and their expertise from battle. They would live another day.
“Weep not for the dead, my brothers and sisters,” she began. “When I lost my dear husband and his brothers, I wept for a long, long time. I was without hope, without purpose, until Kaer Teagan gave me both. This is but a pause to rest on our journey to make Ha-Dûna the mightiest power in mondan. We will send word of our victory back to Kaer Teagan and the archdruids, and our people will spread here, too, and bring Dûnan prosperity and faith even to these distant hills. The Circle of the Long Stride will spread its faith long and far - this, I swear!” She took a breath. “We have done it, my brothers and sisters - we have brought glory to our home and to the gods!”
The warriors cheered and sang:
The enemy has fallen low - Their weakest people, in our tow. We’ve taken huts and taken land To work them with our Dûnan hands!
We arrive at the site of battle between the warriors of Ha-Dûna and a fortified settlement of Grimholt, the Dûnans lose badly, nearly half their band lies dead due to the well prepared defenses of Grimholt. Kaer Gene orders retreat and confers with two other commanders Vegard and Clement, they realize that they can’t assault again, nor can they afford to retreat. Their hope remains in a miracle or overconfidence on the fault of their enemy.
Luckily- to an extent - for them, Thaa has been watching this expedition and grants them a blessing, till they take Grimholt they won’t need to fear mortal arms as their flesh shall be undying.
The Dûnans lead a second assault somewhat to the surprise of the Grimholters, even more to their surprise is how they seem to care not that they’ve been shot by arrows or stabbed by spears. The Chief Barth, and several other leaders, end up beheaded after he promises retribution from northern allies of Grimholt. Having taken the settlement many of the Dûnans fall to their wounds and they must stop at Grimholt. Giving thanks for the blessing Kaer Gene names their new great god of victory, Sigeran. The druids on campaign tired, the troops exhausted or dead, and the settlement finally seized, they sent word back to the archdruids.
A dark red dragon rested along the floor of Aquibeophates among the mists. Nearby was one of the great towers of the realm. She, as one who was familiar with dragons might be able to tell, was looking up the tower and occasionally around peering through the mists to see if any others may be nearby.
Aen’drannan was her name, she had spent quite a bit of time in the company of her fellow dragons and she quite found them to be somewhat boring most of the time. The majority seemed content to wait for a divine plan to unfold, and to rest and enjoy themselves, rather than actually doing much of anything at all.
She was not so complacent. It was in part what had drawn her to the towers, one could always see them in the distance, it was quite difficult to reach them as many had found out. Simply flying or walking towards them never seemed to truly shorten the distance as it should. Aen’drannan had figured out a secret of sorts, one needed not to journey towards the towers, but intend to arrive at the towers. It had something to do with the mind she could, something about this place had rules to it, rules one could learn to use.
And so she had arrived. It didn’t seem like there were any others about, dragons or otherwise. She had talked quite a lot with a number of dragons, most had spoken of mysterious beings in the mists with odd manners and even stranger purposes, some had even claimed to have spoken to one of the four rightly guided deities. She didn’t quite know about how truthful all the stories were, but one thing was clear. This was the great realm Aquibeophates, ruled by Thaa of the Great Eye, he was supposed to be a giant of sorts, although none were ever extremely clear on what he looked like, at least none that Aen’drannan had spoken with. The other three rightly guided deities were a little less clear although there were some stories of them too, she didn’t really know what to believe about all that.
She was here, she knew that, and it seemed like she was here alone. She had already circled the base of the tower, no entrance or anything of particular interest there. She tensed her muscles, prepared her wings and from rest threw herself into the air. Her legs acted to spring herself off the ground as her wings flapped to start giving lift.
Aen’drannan flew around the great tower in the mists of Aquibeophates, there didn’t seem to be much of great interest around the outside of the tower at all really, although she hadn’t seen what if anything there was far up above. She looked up.
“Aren’t you the curious one?”
A great eye looked back at her, the Great Eye it dawned on her. Suddenly thousands of things, too fast and too small for her to see properly, shot out from above and grabbed her. Instinctually she tried to swerve away or to escape his grasp, to no avail against the god’s strength.
“You should do well enough.”
“Well enough for what!? I’m sorry if I went somewhere I was n-not welcome- please don’t...”
This wasn’t how this was supposed to go at all, and she was rather terrified. The things shifted and grabbed her body but she was unable to look away as the eye before her seemed to bore into her. Suddenly she felt an intense pressure on her head before subsiding, and then a slightly sickening glow inside of her before that too subsided.
“You will know when you are done there.”
With that rather unsatisfactory answer the monumental god rather unceremoniously threw her at the tower. Rather surprisingly, or unsurprisingly if one really had time to think about the situation, she didn’t just have her body smash against stone. Instead she found time to gather herself back together and achieve flight once more with her wings, and then almost immediately land.
Aen’drannan had no idea what sun-damned place she was in. There were no mists, no towers, and of course Thaa of the Great Eye was gone as well, real helpful there. She could tell that she was in some manner of room. It was circular and there was a ramp that circled up the walls far into the distance. She couldn’t see if it ended somewhere and well that's another thing.
The lighting was off, in Aquibeophates normally one could see generally pretty decently, the light shifted never truly coming to darkness but never truly being all that bright either. Here where there were no mists, no hidden angles, there was light almost everywhere. Not a blinding light, it was a calmer level than that, but it didn’t seem to have a source, there were no shadows, no shades, it was a little unsettling. To her it seemed as though almost everything was just off enough to not be normal, in most of Aquibeophates things were sometimes odd, but there seemed to be rules that at least pretended to accord with what things should be, what it felt like in her mind was natural. Here was different.
We open on Aen’drannan who is just chilling by a tower, she figured out how to get to one over the rather confusing nature of Aquibephates, thinks a bit about other dragons and what they know, talks about the ‘four rightly guided deities’ wonder who they are ey? Anyways goes flying around the tower to explore a bit and gets jumped by Thaa who grabs her rather creepily with well all his little corpses and then blesses her, gives her a cool hat and throws her into a tower while avoiding any questions or comfort. Aen’drannan has no idea what just happened and is shook. More next time on Thaa is really bad in communicating with mortals.
Form Changing I: The Aquibephatian Helm changes form and size to better match that of its owner and user, in absence of a head shape the helm will not change to accommodate its owner and user.
Durability I: The Helm is supernaturally durable and can survive environments and impacts that would destroy mortal helms.
Supernatural Protection II: The Helm protects the owner and user from harm, attempting to deflect, stop, or lessen the impact of harmful objects and things approaching the owner and user. If it cannot deflect or stop a blow it will attempt to shift the impact to a less dangerous area for its owner and user. All such actions are done by an otherwise intangible force emitted by the Helm.
DP
Soul Sight I: The Helm allows the owner and user to see souls if they so wish, generally because of the suffusion of souls in almost everything, it is less than useful except as a sense of where things are at distance. In close proximity the owner and user may be able to make out things more specifically, and thusly tell for example where rats are in a barn, or if someone is hiding around the corner.
Undying II: The Owner and User of the Helm can continue to function even after they've sustained injury that should have put them out of the fight. This does not heal the injury, nor does it prevent further damage. It instead keeps the soul of the wearer tied to their body and their body fighting, they may already be dead in effect, but as long as they wear the helm they may finish the fight. This is a longer term effect, and may sustain the owner and wielder till they can gain assistance to more permanently survive, although it is likely to be unable to keep the wearer alive through more severe injuries.
Mp 1
Learner of Languages I: This heroine has a vastly improved ability to learn languages, although they still have to put in effort to learn said languages, they are supernaturally good at it
Free titles afterlife
Communion with the Dead II: This heroine is able to communion with the dead if in presence, or otherwise directly connected to their soul. This allows them to see and know the life of said person. It does not work on the living, nor does it have a great range, making it of limited utility in environments without close connection to the souls of the dead.
Like many other times, Yamat found himself strolling through the great meeting place of gods, Antiquity, a pep in his step, ideas forming within his mind. His gaze darted from portal to portal, perhaps he could meet another god to spark some more ideas? So far he had met only agreeable gods, so he only hoped he could find another one he could agree with.
Finally, one of the portals caught his eye, inside he could see a strange misty and endless stone, a rather bleak realm that was for certain, similar to both his and Neiya’s, perhaps he should give this god a visit?
He pressed forward, entering into a vast stone plain, where thick mist covered the land and tall imposing towers dotted the horizon. Certainly interesting. He ventured further deeper, hoping his divine presence would attract the attention of whoever’s realm this was.
In any case, to his divine senses the entire place stank of death, it seemed to surround all aspects of everything there, not that it lent itself well to showing them. So overwhelming that it was the great fog present blocking almost all sense and ability to tell in any detail what was far away. Another thing was off, it would have taken another being some time to figure it out but the rules that governed reality here were not the same as those on Galbar or the facsimile that existed in Antiquity.
A mere few seconds after entering through the portal the ground shifted, the portal vanishing into the mist, the towers seemed to fade further into the horizon. What seemed to be stone shifted around Yamat although he felt like he was not moving at all. Soon vague figures at the edge of what he could perceive in the mists surrounded him and the stone came to stop. Several voices came from above, speaking as one in a demanding tone.
“Who are you and why have you entered Aquibeophates?”
”I am Yamat,” He spoke, offering a bow towards the figures. ”I merely wished to meet the company of the god of this realm and make their acquaintance.”
“Oh, Yamat?” The voices spoke much more pleasantly, almost cheerful. “I am Thaa, and I have to say I am a big fan of one of your creations. The Iskrill are quite a spectacular piece of work, at least I assume they are yours as they seem to be solely interested in the worship of yourself.”
From above descended a great eye, behind it fading into the mists were what appeared to be the corpses of numerous species on Galbar, sapients were overrepresented among their numbers. It twisted to be more in-front and above rather than directly overhead. The figures in the mist faded back into it.
“I have to say I don’t believe I ever did catch, from the souls of the dead you see, what exactly was the domain of your power? As you might suppose, I am Lord of Death, Guardian of Souls and all of the Afterlife. I am quite pleased to make your acquaintance, and would love to talk more if you have the time.”
Yamat’s eye and halo brightened to see another fan of his work ”Why yes! The Iskrill are one of my works, I’m glad to see there is another fan of my works, as for my domain,” Yamat bowed once more, his form doubling over and his left arm outstretched ”I am the god of Tragedy and Misfortune, I am pleased to make your acquaintance Lord of Death, and I am more than free to talk.” He returned to a standing position.
Thaa’s eye remained locked onto Yamat as he replied, “I am glad to hear that Yamat. In truth I have spoken little with the other deities so making your own acquaintance is quite welcome. Before your arrival I had just been ruminating on some plans of my own. Plans which I have to say were in part taken inspiration from your example with the Iskrill. Although very different in form and ultimately have a different purpose. Would you like to see a draft I have made of it?”
”I would love to see them.”
“This is just a facsimile of course, still too early in planning to truly create a form that would be suitable for Galbar.” As Thaa spoke a large figure that towered above came into form from the mists, it came closer thundering with each step. “In form it is quite dissimilar to the Iskrill, but in function and intent you might be able to take up a few notables that they may share.”
The great thing finally came into greater detail and view. Upon initial viewing it could be compared to that of a giant carnivorous lizard although on closer inspection it was apparent it was quite different from such a creature. For one it did not share the same gait as beset most lizards, that of the legs which came out supporting their body from the side. This creature was supported from legs fully below it, and it moved with an alertness and steady speed that spoke to a creature that kept its own body to a high temperature.
Four powerful legs supported the massive form, scales shimmered all across its body, evidently armored to extensive extent. A long tail circled back into the mist. Another dissimilarity with most lizards was the long neck that eventually reached out into a head, a mouth of sharp teeth, two forward facing predatory eyes and nostrils. Ears if it had them were a bit harder to see, ear-holes mostly likely partially obscured by the continuing scales. Thaa continued.
“This is a draft you understand, just a puppet, there's not a soul there but I plan for them to be sapient like many of the mortals Galbar, thinking, speaking and worshipping while they approach their own purposes. Oh and I should say I have a name for them, although it's just a work in progress like much here. ‘Dragon’ is what I've taken to calling it, not entirely original but it works.”
Yamat’s gaze was drawn to the mighty beast, taking in every bit of the “Dragon”, he found himself somewhat entranced with its being ”My my isn’t that a beauty, a mighty fine draft if i do say so myself Lord of the Dead,” He turned towards the large eye, finally drawing his focus away from the creature ”And what function do you wish for them to serve amongst the Great Play?
When Thaa answered, his tone was thoughtful, but not quite masking his own cheeriness. “Oh that’s the true beauty of them, their ability and strength, combined with their intelligence allow for a great flexibility of purposes to which they may be put. I of course do not wish to flood Galbar with them, nor even intend that they live lives down on the surface of that world. No I think they shall remain here and will be deployed as necessary, a single one could change a great deal in its region, they’d serve a great place in shaping Galbar in my thoughts. Although sending them all in great numbers does have some attractive results, ultimately it is too rash and unthoughtful to be in any measure a good idea with the current state of affairs as they are.”
”I see” Yamat replied, his own tone thoughtful as well, he stared once more at the draft, while its current form was indeed impressive and a beauty to Yamat’s eyes, it felt like it needed more. ”Their form is rather impressive, but, I do feel like they need a bit more, perhaps I can be of assistance?” He thought for a few seconds after ”I believe I could also get another god to lend a hand.”
“I would enjoy your assistance very much, to have the mastermind behind the Iskrill on this project is a sure thing to lead to even greater success.” Thaa paused, clearly thinking for a moment as gentle sounds of shifting could be heard through the mists. “I do suppose as per your latter statement that if you think they would be good for this project that I will trust your assessment of that. I do have to ask, which god?”
One could only remain languidly on a throne for so long before the simple act of doing nothing became exhausting in itself. Neiya leant back in her pavilion, staring out with bitter expression over her desolate realm. In her mind’s eye, she held herself apprised of Aveira’s progression on Galbar, and intermittently cut in to direct her avatar to take additional actions in her training of the Neiyari. Aveira was her own being, but was still so entirely in tune with Neiya’s desires that there was not much to do but watch her divine servant carry out the plan as it had been established. Like answering the prayers of the indulgent and insolent, it had begun to lose its novelty.
Suddenly, a familiar voice entered into her mind ”Hey Neiya? You there?”
Neiya drew a sharp breath, straightening herself out in her throne even though no one was looking. ”Yamat? Did something happen? Is it her?”
The voice paused for a few seconds ”I'm going to be honest, I have no idea who her is but everything is fine, I’ve come to ask your assistance with a design I'm assisting in.”
Neiya went through a range of expressions; bemusement, irritation, and finally resignation. ”I suppose such is to be expected,” she replied through the connection and glanced at her white talons as though they were nails, and Yamat was somehow watching. ”Shall I come to your realm?”
”No as I am currently not there, come to the realm portal with the strange mist flowing out of it, you can come meet me and Thaa there.”
”Somehow, Yamat, I feel as though that describes more than one of these portals. But very well.” Neiya responded, and lifted from her throne, hovering up over the ground in the pavilion. With a dismissive lift of her chin she preempted Yamat’s response and broke the connection. His tomfoolery was more pleasant in person, after all. Flexing her talons briefly, she drifted up into the sky of her realm, and towards the portal to Antiquity.
For the first time in eons, Fe’ris felt excited about something. He had just created shapeshifters, mortals that could be as fluid in their appearance as the gods, if not more so! If some other god had already created such a thing, he didn’t care. It was new to him, and that was what mattered. He couldn’t wait to see how it played out.
The bat god turned his gaze toward the ever-present orange moon suspended above his cavern, beckoning him forth with its autumnal glow. It reminded him of Galbar, perched above Antiquity. He stretched his wings and yawned. It had been a while since he’d last been. It might be good to catch up with whatever riffraff paraded around the stone coliseum.
Pumping his wings powerfully, he launched his massive form into the air, sending clouds of dust flurrying around the dark chasm. A few more impressive beats, and he climbed toward the moon, a portal to Antiquity appearing moments before he could crash into the hollow, floating rock.
Having learned about the importance of portal size last time he appeared in the nexus of realms, Fe’ris landed in his base form, tucking into a roll and popping out of the portal with a flourish. The moderate sunlight stung his eyes, and he blinked ferociously as he scanned the archaic landscape.
His eyes halted on a collection of three gods, none of which he had ever seen before. The fluffy, socially-awkward god approached, possessing just the wrong blend of self-importance and anxiety as he sauntered toward the other beings.
The three beings hovered just around the edge of another portal. Literally in the case of one, a thin woman with skin like snow. White bone and metallic edges jutted from her form in an asymmetrical distortion of an otherwise sleek silhouette. Her fingers were as talons, which she seemed preoccupied with as she fidgeted despite not standing on the ground.
One was a large eye that kept switching between the other two figures, it was emplaced onto a spiked disk which sat upon an enormous pile of corpses that shifted and stretched. Among the corpses were what appeared to be formerly members of life on Galbar, most were sapients that could be recognized as from one species or another, a few that seemed to be collating near the disk were not recognizably any particular mortal race, perhaps an amalgam.
The last of the gods was tall and lanky, they had black skin with golden symbols and runes seemingly carved into their skin and they wore a long bright golden skirt that flowed down to the ground. Their face was covered by a faceless golden mask that possessed a singular eye that seemed to be just a bright orb of light, and behind their head was a softly glowing halo of golden light.
Fe’ris arrived just in time to catch the tail-end of what seemed to be a longer conversation.
”This is all very pleasant,” the pale goddess intoned with resigned tone, barely taking her eyes off of her nails. ”but I hope you’re not going to call on me every time you make a friend, Yamat.”
”This isn’t just to introduce you to Thaa, my new associate has a design he wishes to make, and I thought you and I could be of some help to him, especially given your new area of expertise.” The tall god spoke, looking the pale goddess up and down with their single eye.
She lifted her chin with a regal confidence, the frown mellowing out to a more candid narcissism. ”Well, I suppose there’s no harm in hearing you out, now that I am here anyway.”
“Ahem.” The bat god did not seem to know where to start, as he had only ever seen one god at a time before, much less three. “To whom am I making myself acquainted? You aren’t the most sunny gods I’ve seen, to be sure.”
The tall god turned to face the newcomer, well, their torso did, their legs seemed to stay in place facing forward, their torso now entirely facing the new god. They leaned forward, observing them ”My my you’re an interesting figure, don’t believe I’ve met you before.” they extended their hand out ”Yamat, pleasure to meet you, and you are?”
”I am Fe’ris, and I am pleased to meet someone so unsettling such as yourself. A far cry from Cadien, if you don’t mind me saying.” He sniffed the air, pointy nose twitching as his attention shifted past Yamat, to the two equally sinister and beautiful beings behind them. ”Who might you be?”
The pale goddess scoffed quietly, watching the new arrival with a mixture of contempt and skepticism. ”Neiya. Goddess of Love, among other things,” Her red and black eyes matched her venomous tone as they studied Fe’ris. ”I’m surprised Cadien’s never mentioned you. Another name I did not know.” Yamat chuckled at the comment.
“I am Thaa.” His eye had shifted to watch the newcomer, otherwise he held off sharing further of himself. “And what might your area of expertise be Fe’ris?”
Fe’ris spread his gnarled, scaly hands, his skin shifting and cracking as he did so. Black keratin snaked up his arms as flexible spikes sprouted from the chinks exposing his bare skin. “Ambition. And change, as of late. I entail the good and the bad of yearning; the internal and external turmoil that goes towards changing oneself… and others.” As he spoke, patterns appeared on the scales, which were now covered in stripes and spots of all kinds. His voice deepened to a scratchy rumble. “Not every god is so… accepting, of the good and the bad. I hope that isn’t the case here.”
Yamat drew closer, their one eye investigating the god further, before they suddenly shot straight up and turned towards the others ”I like him, perhaps he could assist us in our little endeavor? More gods could make it easier.”
“I have had enough of these antics, if you wish to be apart of something truly important then come along.” Thaa promptly turned upon his little annoucement’s end, and entered the portal, returning to his realm once more among the mists.
Yamat quickly followed the god of death, motioning for the other two to follow as well, ”Come now Thaa, don’t be so dire.” they spoke as the mists returned around them. Neiya gave the fourth addition a last glance and frown before following along, hovering in behind Yamat.
As each entered the ground underneath them shifted till they were all gathered in the mists, away from the towers in the distance or the portal back to Antiquity which had so disappeared behind them.
The dragon came back into view, with all its armored scales, its four great legs and the long neck and nail. It came from the mists as if remerging from some long forgotten place. A giant beast with teeth like daggers and claws like mighty blades. Its eyes gazed forward as it walked into view with each thunderous step, the eyes seemed empty devoid of any sign of intelligence, for now at least.
"Now this Neiya is what I called you to help with." Yamat gestured at the dragon "Thaa wishes them to have a bit more pizazz to them, something I think we could provide.. They turned towards Thaa rapidly "I was thinking of adding an aura of decay, plants and the like wither away in a radius around them, would be a beautiful sight don't you agree?"
Neiya hummed a soft agreement, black and red eyes swirling intently as they fixated on the large beast with growing fascination. Rarely had so many gears visibly turned in the pale goddess’ head all at once. ”I’m pleased you called on me, Yamat. This is unlike anything I’ve seen. It’s-... majestic. Though perhaps a little too feral. True fighting spirit requires-... strategy.”
Thaa cut in, “Yes, yes, it will have greater intelligence but as of the moment it lacks a soul, something I will remedy. For now this is a mere simulacrum of the true end product. The plates on its body should turn aside most mundane weapons as would its notable natural weapons and large size provide it with great power on its own, combined with an intelligent mind as Yamat’s kind suggestion we might be starting to get somewhere with this.”
”Well,” Neiya retorted swiftly, ”Now that I am here, we can certainly get started.”
”It’s so… bulky. Does a beast of this stature not deserve more grace? More finesse?” He gestured at the long, winding, sinewy figure, full of sharp edges and smooth curves, yet stout and staunchly connected to the ground it prowled upon. “Should we add color, then we should also add wings, for brilliant displays of power and fury through the skies, as well as the earth.”
The pale goddess lit up with a sudden epiphany, as though her interest was relit after the initial novelty had worn off. ”Yes. Wings are an excellent idea. I’ve worked with them before for a project of… battle-testing… and I agree with-...” she peered at Fe’ris for a few moments. ”...our friend here.”
Not waiting for any other agreement, Fe’ris twirled a finger, the scales on it flipping and clicking back down like a set of dominos. On the dragon, scales shifted similarly, sliding out of the way to make room for the fleshy spines forcing their way out of its shoulder blades, expanding and warping to form a pair of branching, webbed wings, their exterior covered in strong, flexible scales molded to the shape of the wings. Patterns swirled and bubbled across the unfurled surface, almost like an avian mating display as they swirled and changed, from spots to stripes to glowing freckles, back to plain scales. Fe’ris grinned. “My, I think we’ve something spectacular on our hands.”
“Indeed we do.” Thaa paused in his speech as he shifted around the dragon, his great eye looking over it as the bodies that made his form coiled around at a distance from the form of the great beast. “Come aid me in making this beast we call a ‘dragon’ a reality, that it or its kith and kin may one day come to Galbar.”
The assembled deities each lended their power to bring the dragon forth, beyond just a replica of the ideas it became real. The Dragon became more full with contributions from each of the gods. Grown anew, massive wings stretched out from its back, long joints connected and controlled the wings, each connected by membranes that made the whole structure look like that of a bat’s writ large. The Dragon stretched out to its massive wingspan’s full reach before collapsing them onto its back to rest gently.
It’s body glimmered in the mists of Aquibeophates, coated with armored plates along the entirety of its form. No mundane weapon would pierce, crush or slash through such a defense. Plate sat half over plate, each reinforcing the next from head to tail, back to foot. Its massive form shifted as the mists still coiled around it, larger than most of any mortal species on or away from Galbar. It bespoke of things powerful and full, able to exist and grow to such a size far beyond what most were capable of.
Intelligence shined through its eyes as it gazed upon the figures before it, power radiated from the great beast in the eyes of divine beings that created it. Decay radiated from its form, its soul shining a brilliant gold resilient to all that would attempt to bend its will, its thoughts pounded with focus and desire for prey. Dragon lifted its head spew forth green fire, flames not of mundane means but rather a magical bane-fire, concentrated energies of death.
Soon the flame was joined by faint glimmers throughout the mists, fell flame burning, showing the faint outlines of similar forms throughout the realm of death.
Yamat wanders into Aquibeophates, ends up chatting with Thaa, gets shown a project of his, calls a buddy o friend o pal of his (Neiya) and runs into another odd character (Fe’ris) and they all go back and happily skip into creating Death Dragons. Yay!
Thaa 5 Mp 5 Dp -2 Mp Half of Sapient Species -2 Dp Extraordinary Ability- Bale-fire breath attack -2 Dp Extraordinary Ability- Golden-Souled, resistance to magically changed minds and such influences -2 Mp Extraordinary Ability- Large/Growth, big bois 1 Mp 1 Dp
There were few times that Kiim and Jaav agreed upon something, and now was not one of them. Guul had to admit that their continued ability to find something to argue with each other about was quite a skill, impressive in its own way even if quite tiring. The golden barge that they all rode upon was not big enough to escape it, especially considering they were all joined to the same body. Still Guul had found some pleasure in fully exploring the craft, even though it was her own effort that created it she was only going by Thaa’s designs. As it turned out he had quite the eye for detail, even if in rather odd places.
Of course there were the generalities as they approached the island that some of the mortals had taken to naming ‘Pakohu’, an odd name in Guul’s opinion but she supposed they would find ‘Guul’ to be an odd name. But yes, the generalities of the craft, it was perhaps a little larger than most mortal’s river barges, even if it was still well in their capacity and ability, they seemed to have little need for such larger craft. Ornate as it was, discounting how the entire structure shimmered in golden coloration and texture, it was in of itself well designed to show mimicry not so much of how the mortals actually did build on Galbar but something that they could understand, an expansion upon what was already shown perhaps.
Guul did not know how creative Thaa was really, but so far she could come to appreciate the delicate detailing of the sides of the craft. Where they could have been simply smooth instead there were inlays hard to see unless one looked closely. She seemed to find that the more she looked there seemed to be more details to find.
Guul found herself increasingly looking beyond the craft, to Pakohu and the waters below, it wouldn’t be too long before they would need to be presenting everything to the Night Elves. Thaa had been rather quiet of late, a blessing if there ever was one with how Guul had ended up taking the long way to their collective destination, but he had mentioned that they were skittish with death in his experience. Although, Thaa seemed abrasive at the best of times to Guul at least, easier to go along then try to resist for her experience at least.
The sun’s light seemed almost completely gone at this point, though they were not quite there yet, it would seem that they would arrive in good time to speak with Night Elves in any case. Their boat rolled slowly into the mouth of the river Tal, and divine eyes could even in the darkness see the fields and checker-pattern of irrigation channels. There was a frightening lack of Night Elves, however - at least until harder eyes affixed on various shapes all around. The shapes held javelins, and had taken positions in the darkness where the light was at its dimmest. From one corner of the shadows came a whisper, “Who are you and why have you come?”
In whispers came a reply, “We are the divine servant, Kiim’Jaav’Guul. We have brought a gift for King Safron, we assume you are our honor guard as none would commit such folly as seeking to threaten a divine servant.”
There came no response, and in the darkness, milk-white glares paid close attention to the divine servants. Eventually, one shape exited the shadows, clad from top to toe in fur clothes and with a herbal wreath on his head. He clicked his tongue in greeting and knelt. “I am Safron, son of Turmerick I, king of Fragrance lands. Our people are all pious and godfearing servants of the gods, so we pray from the bottom of our hearts that we will be spared their ire. Now… What honour have we been granted?”
Kiim and Jaav watched the Night Elves that remained in the shadows, all three moved their body closer to the edge of the barge closest to Safron. Guul spoke in a whisper that carried only to his ears. “An honor for you Safron, son of Tumerick. My Master hopes it will help your people and guide them on the right path forward, but that it left up to how you use this gift. Rise and board this vessel if you are willing.”
Silently, a path of stones from the river bed rose up, forming a connection through the air up to the barge and back to near where Safron knelt. The king swallowed nervously. Behind him, his wife, daughter and son approached and the king turned to see them.
“It’ll be alright. I will be back before you know it.”
“Father, why--?”
“We do not refuse the will of the gods,” replied the king sternly. Queen Clove nodded somberly.
“Come back to me.” The king leaned in and kissed her forehead.
“I will.” He did the same to his daughter and placed his hand on Turmerick’s head. With that, he turned to the barge and stepped aboard. The river stones drifted to the shore, forming a small pile. And the barge lifted, coming up above the river, above the trees and a far range above all the land below. Guul whispered to the King.
“I apologize for the necessity, but some of the instructions are very clear in how you are to receive this gift from my Master. This will not take long.”
The king took a deep breath. “... I understand. I will follow the wishes of the gods as they have planned for me.” He closed his eyes and stood ready.
Kiim broke in, a whisper but a harsher tone, “Open your eyes dear Safron, you will need them for the fullness of the gift.”
Jaav whispered, “Look out at the landscape, you have an opportunity to see the lands that you rule from a perspective most mortals won’t. There must first be some explanation of the full qualities of what will be given to you, and this is for your ears alone. Once you have accepted it and returned, speak as you wish of this whole encounter, it matters not who you tell, but we must only tell you.”
The king frowned, and moved over to the edge to observe the world below - he didn’t see much on account of the darkness, but the shapes known to him stood out. “... We irrigate smaller fields than I thought,” he remarked and went to the other side. “... There’s Scenta, Xiang, Lukt…” He drew a breath. “The world seems small from up here - as though conquest and domination were merely days away… How do the birds handle seeing everything this way?”
“Not our concern, but it is our hope that you take these sights to heart.”
“The gift has power innately, but it pales in comparison to the power one could achieve through properly applying it’s abilities.”
“It is time that you know of it.” A Sword floated towards Safron from out behind the three headed form of Kiim’Jaav’Guul, it stood in the air, hilt to the ground and pointed to the sky. It was almost entirely golden in color, shade varying between the blade and the handguard. The handle was dark in coloration, almost a complete black although hints of blue appeared under close inspection. Some small amount of decoration was evident along the hilt, although nothing that might impede function. “A sword, beyond that of mortal means. It is as sharp as any mortal blade, more durable than any weapon of mortal make as well. It will not lose that sharpness.”
“Most Importantly however are the abilities that this sword possesses. You need to know three. Firstly as Owner and User you could choose to upon your death embed your soul in the sword, you would then be able to speak with the next Owner of the blade.”
“Secondly, when the bright Moon of Gibbou is absent from the night skies you can wield the blade and speak questions to the souls of the dead at rest in Aquibeophates, the Afterlife. It does not translate for you, so be aware of your limitations.”
“Thirdly, this blade is far more dangerous to your enemies than a mere cutting instrument. To mortals, if you so wish it, the sword will rend their soul from their body upon the slightest hit from the blade.”
“Our Master has instructed us that you have the opportunity to refuse the Sword, but it will not be offered to you again. This is an opportunity for your people, for you, for your family, to take your fates into your own hands and to understand your world and fate better. Consider carefully Safron, son of Tumerick I, King of Fragrance.”
The king looked upon the sword and the three heads of the messenger. Was there truly anything here not to want? A sword like this could give him and his dynasty a reputation that could cull the morale of their foes. Sharper than any pi-xxois javelin, perhaps even the obsidian type, and durable for all eternity. He could stay as his son’s mentor even after death, and his son could be his son’s mentor, and this could continue for eternity, ensuring stability in his kingdom. The offer was good… Almost too good. He offered the servants another kneel and whispered, “The gift is beyond what we deserve… It would be foolish not to accept. However, before I do, I must ask - does your master demand anything in return for his weapon?”
Kiim was quick to whisper a reply, “It is indeed beyond what you deserve, but it is not our choice or decision.”
And Guul followed up, more helpfully, “There is one thing you, and all your descendants must do if you wish to keep the favor of our Master for this gift; use it. No worship is demanded nor how it is used, as long as you are bold and serve yourself and your people to your best ability.”
Jaav had one last thing to whisper, “Will you accept?”
Use it? A simple demand. The king clicked. “Yes.”
“Then rise and take your sword King Safron of Fragrance, we will return you now.”
When the king grabbed the hilt of the sword nothing immediately happened, a bit of a let down given the whole build up for this, well his new sword. Suddenly upon that very hint of a thought of ownership, he felt a wave of… ...something pass through him. The king hissed at the sensation. “What is this?” he whispered and wiggled his body somewhat.
Kiim and Jaav seemed disinterested in the king after he had accepted it, the barge began to move back towards the spot on the river. Guul replied with some measure of amusement, “You are now its owner. I trust you will learn to use it well, you may be unused to swords as I do not believe your people use them much yet. It is pointed like a spear but also the edges of the blade are sharp like that of an axe, practice and you may very well become a true adept. It is your fate to make now, learn to use it well and it will serve you well, that goes for all its aspects.”
“I…” The king pursed his lips. “Of course. It is what we agreed, after all.” The boat touched back down on the river, and the king disembarked back ashore. He reunited with his family and turned to the barge and its three-headed passenger. “The people of Fragrance thanks you and your master for this gift. We will be certain to use it within the moon.”
The golden barge already began to depart, taking to the air and away. A last call came out, Kiim was the last to turn away, “We will be watching.”
The king turned to his people, his sword in hand. It glistened a pale bronze in the moon which had begun to peek out between the clouds. He raised it into the sky and spoke, “Tomorrow, we will travel to Monsax and relieve it of its tyrannical vampire lord! This new weapon will see us through it! Fragrance shall grow stronger!” His words were met with low, celebratory claps.
We open on Kiim’Jaav’Guul finally arriving near Fragrance, whereupon they descend to the river in the Golden barge to arrive upon the Night Elves there. Heading into the river they are met by a party of Night Elves which after some questions of who is who, leads to the Divine Servants Kiim’Jaav’Guul meeting King Safron, who they then invite to receive a gift and come aboard the barge briefly. Safron comes leaving behind his family and people.
He gets shown around from above the lands which inspire ideas of conquest, the serpentine three then explain the sword, and its abilities and what is expected of him to accept the gift. Basically just use it and we won’t be havin’ any issues. They then bring him back and depart. Safron then announces to his people that they will go ‘liberate’ Monsax from its vampire lord with the new weapon.
Although in the morning the crowds were silent when the troops had first marched into the city, by the noon parade they were cheering.
It hadn’t been a bloody entrance, he had made sure of that. As the captain of the guards he had betrayed the upper class of the city and made a deal with those that besieged them. Everything had been taken already before the sun rose. The army marched in carrying supplies, they had been distributed all day to gain the weakened populations trust, seizing control of the grain stores helped on that matter as well.
Next on the list was dealing with the former rulers and their wealth, he could tell some of it was being distributed to the poorer portions of the population. Bronze medallions and gilded gifts tossed to the thronging crowds, it was a good plan. If you didn’t have enough food you could trade a merchant, if you had enough, well you earned a pretty prize.
Hralin had to admit, with the siege and the battles before that, he did not expect the populace to be so welcoming to a foreign army. Then again, he wouldn’t have expected to see the king and the nobles parades around the city bound either and that was something to cheer about.
It was a rather large procession in true form to that of a conqueror. From the gates of the outer walls in the south, marching onwards to the inner city. Men with wooden shields and good spears guarded the procession from the crowds, led first by the disgraced nobles and the king, followed by the elite troops of the invader. The Elk-riding Conqueror himself and then a number of more troops behind him.
Hralin smiled and waved, to the crowds and the column marching now towards the inner city, he hoped he had made the right choice.
Khres of Solaria, or at least formerly of Solaria, even out here in the west the news of Solaria’s fall had brought concern, even if it reached Mal Bagora a while afterwards. Still the most surprising thing to Hralin about this Khres was not that he refused to be acclaimed King of Mal Bagora, but how young he was. Couldn’t have been much more than a kid when Solaria fell, although he supposed that might be why he was out here rather than as some refugee in the east. In any case, some manner of titles had to be upheld, if even just for the pride of the priests who were still free. Not much point in risking angering the gods even if half the priests were almost as bad as the King and his like.
After the parade and welcoming the new power into the heart of Mal Bagora, he had been brought along to the former Royal Palace where the Solarian met the Priests, dismissing most of the ones that he could soon afterwards from his presence. And then promptly seemed to ignore any real attempt at making merry in truth. He seemed, preoccupied.
Hralin approached the former dining table that Khres and his Captains stood around, looking at maps and occasionally talking. One of the guards moved to stop him but was waved away by one of the Captains, he looked more like a mountain-man than a soldier, but then he supposed it didn’t really matter given the situation.
“Conqueror Khres,” Hralin began, the title had been a compromise with the High Priest of Heresh. Continuing, “I do not mean to sound impertinent but you have just taken the city and you do not celebrate, you seem to be quite busy and I must ask what place you would have for me?”
Khres was young, perhaps only in his twenties really. Dark hair and eyes, hair cut short, his face was tanend according to one who wore a riding helmet, not surprising given the recent campaign. Khres spoke in an accent that was clear he was from the Great River, or at least kept up at that.
“Ah the Guard Captain! Yes, Hralin was it? You will be left in charge of the city, with a few of my men for now and your own of course. I would recommend you start making more permanent arrangements for rule, work out something with what of those priests you can trust. I may send a need for supplies or laborers in the future but for now your job is as we discussed before the city was taken, rule it for me. I trust you can get to that now.”
Hralin bowed low, Khres had gotten annoyed at the kneeling of some of the priests before, in Mal Bagora it was normally reserved for royalty. He noticed a small sun pendant around his neck, which made sense for a Solarian.
“Yes I didn’t want to go against any of your wishes O Conqueror.”
Khres waved him away, that went far better than he might have hoped. There was something about Khres which unnerved him, it seemed more like his eyes looked through you rather than stop, some kind of assessment there. Hralin was happy to get to starting to turn the city around from the old King’s mess.
Hralin was not upset to see them go, not that they interfered much with his control over the city. There was a ceremony for officially putting himself in charge of the city but beyond that Khres seemed much more focused on his next campaign, and was still early enough in the year to do that given his own help in speeding taking Mal Bagora.
In any case, most of his army moved out, towards Mal Pocora to the east, it was along the river directly unlike Mal Bagora. Three days was all he stayed after taking Mal Bagora, rest to his troops and supplies in good order. It didn’t seem like Conqueror Khres planned to stop there either, might be a while before he saw him again and that Hralin thought would be a good thing.
We are introduced to a Hralin, Captain of the Guard of Mal Bagora who just betrayed the King to let in the besieging forces of a Solarian, Khres. There are some details of various things about Khres and his soldiers but mostly Khres moves on putting a light yoke on Mal Bagora as he plans to conquer more. Hralin is as promised left in charge of Mal Bagora and is glad that Khres might not be back for a good while.
“Be calm, you are safe now,” In a thousand voices Thaa cooed the words to the newly arrived souls of the dead. Now that they were in his realm he brought them to restful peace, contained into bliss as he spoke individually to them to start working through the trauma that was life.
In truth, Thaa had been ruminating greatly on the matter of souls. True he was the supreme deity of Death, as was his moral obligation, but he worried that his focus purely on his realm of Death might allow others to inflict suffering upon the souls to which he claimed to guard. For truly he did not have much influence on them in the mortal realm of Galbar, he knew that the evil deities of life truly would like nothing more than inflict suffering, for what other reason would they be deities of life?
Thaa could of course extend his control over souls in their entirety, both as a measure of acquiring greater ability to defend souls from the terrible grip of life and its evil-hearted guardians, and to strike out against life itself through the core measure of souls. Yes that could work. If he could work to separate souls from the mortal coils that so entrapped them on Galbar, it was possible he might start making good progress to bringing moral order to evil that was enveloped Galbar.
“First he wants us to go to the Vescii Temple and set things up, well that's just fine. Then he was us go down to this stinking cesspit of life he calls a planet, fine! But making a Sword for the damn mortal things? Do you even realize how many souls could be saved from all this mess with the effort that’ll go into this overcomplicated gilded shit-storm?! It's a terrible plan!”
Without a moment's pause, “As I was saying this is core to developing trust and connections with the mortals and without drawing the extended ire of any of their immoral guardians! Simply killing a load of the mortals is not only certain to draw out the ire and response from other deities- something I might remind you despite your lack of interest in Thaa’s perfect plans that we are likely to be on the receiving end of their ill intentions- but also utterly inefficient given the rates of reproduction that these mortals so enjoy!”
Guul supposed she should not be surprised that the two heads that she shared her body with hadn’t developed a new favorite pastime with what they had been doing. Which was to say they hadn’t been doing much of anything at all, keeping an eye on this or exploring that, mostly all from the safety of the relatively small golden craft they were on now. Kiim complained a lot if they even had to touch most living creatures, which of course meant Jaav took great pleasure in eating the occasional thing he could reach.
And again Guul was left to do the work of Thaa as Kiim and Jaav bickered about it, not that they got in the way of course. The current bout of ‘discussion’ had been set off by Thaa informing them of the plan they needed to enact, that he had claimed domain over souls and such, and an update on numerous newly acquired souls he had taken an interest to, followed by the occasional rant on the evils of life and its guardian deities. Guul sometimes wondered how often Thaa actually got out anywhere, or even talked to anyone else really.
“Perhaps we attack their rates of reproduction then!”
“...that is not a bad idea actually. Sterility would be quite the effective measure and in appropriate usage could help limit the evils of life. Good job Jaav, you have quite the ideas sometimes I must say!”
“Why thank you! You are not so bad a thinker yourself you know.”
Even as she worked Guul took a moment to scratch a third mark into a relatively flat rock she had picked up, she had started keeping track of when Kiim and Jaav actually agreed on something or had a positive and pleasant interaction.
“Why don’t we celebrate some for coming up with such an idea? We could fly back south of those mountains a while back and pick up a few of those Rainbow birds huh?”
“Absolutely not! I won’t debase myself by such a thing as eating one of these mismade caricatures of good creation! What are you trying to pull?”
“I was just trying to be friendly you misbegotten lackey of Thaa! You haven’t even thought to try it and you wouldn’t unless Thaa suggested it anyhow!”
As usual they were back at it soon enough anyhow. Guul set down her rock and continued to work. Now, she had already gotten the sharpness and durability down, and made it golden in color as Thaa had specified in any case. The extra abilities while a bit more complicated at least were not so incessantly physical, that was always a trouble trying to work with her claws, hard to be delicate in construction sometimes.
And of course there was the specifics of soul management that had come with the Sword in the final case. Bit of channeling the specific interests and specificities Thaa had uncovered after putting the effort in to be master of Souls more than just his Afterlife.
A Golden Sword that would not be broken, could cut most things as swords did without losing its edge, allowed its users to speak to the dead, and keep their soul in the Sword, as well as be resistant to death energies, and finally the ability to rip souls from the mortal coil and set them free to go onto the Afterlife. Great, mission accomplished, one Aquibeophatian Sword done. Now she just needed to send them the right way to drop it off where Thaa wanted it and she could get back the blissful activity of doing nothing.
Guul looked up at the rising sun and thought? Did it rise in the east or west? Well Galbar was a sphere so could just start heading that way and figure out later. Figuring things out later did sound appetizing, Guul turned the craft to the rising sun and set it out flying above the waters away from Toraan, hopefully they would get to Mydia before Thaa changed his mind on where the Sword should go.
We open on Thaa welcoming some souls to Aquibeophates as he ruminates on souls and in general about fighting against that oh so evil creation of life. He goes into the Soul Portfolio and we switch over to Kiim’Jaav’Guul where Kiim and Jaav are at their usual activities briefly interrupted by a most egregious agreement between the two, Guul goes on to do the actual work Thaa has for them making a cool sword. Guul then sets off the craft on their route to Mydia, although perhaps a bit too confident that Galbar is a sphere and thusly they’ll get there eventually anyway.
A soul is the remainder of life, and something beyond it. Souls are what remains when life dies. It surely contains the memories and experience of the life that came before, but it is also not dependent on life, it exists onto itself. It surely is a real extant thing like all that may be found in the physical world in carbon, hydrogen or a myriad of others. However a soul does not interact in the same way, it is bound to something, whether a body, or a song, or another such thing.
Thaa as God of Souls has the ability to work with these bindings, and on the nature of a soul itself.
Durability I: The Sword is supernaturally durable and can survive environments and impacts that would destroy mortal blades. Sharpness I: The Sword is supernaturally sharp and keeps its edge despite how much it is used. It is not much more effective that a high quality blade made of mortal means, but it does not loose its efficiency.
DP
Call to Aquibeophates II: The Owner and User of the Sword can speak to the souls of the dead in Aquibeophates every time the Gibbonite Moon is New in Phase and thusly not visible to the unaided eyes of mortals on Galbar. Soul Keeper I: The Owner and User of the Sword can decide to trap their soul in the Sword upon their death, should it still be in their possession, thusly allowing themselves to speak to the next Owner and User of the Sword. Should a Owner and User of the Sword decide to trap their soul while there is another soul in the Sword, the trapped soul will be released and the current Owner and User will succeed in trapping their soul. Attunement with Death I: The Owner and User of the Sword has greater resistance to death energies than most mortals, making survival with minimal lingering issues in places bound heavily with them possible should exposure be not to great.
Free Titles
Soul Ripper II: The Owner and User of the Sword can choose to attempt to rip the soul of the target of the Sword's cutting from their body. Ordinary mortals are almost sure to be unable to fully resist the effects of the Sword, however divinely influenced beings have much greater resistance while being which are in essence themselves Divine are practically immune.
Helios
Lord Zee
DX3214
Vec
