Ekreture

Dark Matters (Open)

@Sierra Given that wormholes cannot be found, and that their use in travel requires two man-made entry points, it limits travel entirely to the Milky Way. It also means that historical expansion was pretty slow, given that exploring new lands required the use of warp drives, which for a very long time were not at the standard they are now.

Dark Matters (Open)

Chapter I: Era Imperium

Mars, Year 5000

The Emperor walked down the sanguine halls of the Imperial Palace, treading on a path taken by hundreds before him. On either flank were his guards, the Praetorians, who stood resolute with rifles in hand while their liege stopped and gazed out a wide palatial window at the city of Olympia. Gathered in front of the palace was a consortium of citizens and subjects, eager eyes of many species gazing up in wait of their emperor, the Son of Orion, the Lord of the Stars and the Bringer of Milk. He looked to them with a smile, a knowing-yet-unknowing smile, a confident smile which yielded weakness, the smile of the learned fool on the face of the most powerful being in the Galaxy. And the Man-God went from the window to greet the eager-gathered pilgrims, so that the ants may nibble at the sap of his virtue.

The sirenian mob cried out when Catus gifted his presence, and those of the gathered who were closest to the Emperor did not notice the dark figures whose rifles were aimed at their cerebrum, who would assuredly end them without remorse upon the slightest movement towards Spiritus's chosen leader. The Emperor checked his amplification, and he spoke.

"Citizens of Orion!" As he addressed the porifera, a shrill cacophony came in response. The edges of his mouth curled up, but his palm was raised to bring them to silence. "As you may have heard, the Northern Exiles have been forced back to their expulsion, and our borders are secure. Peace has been restored, and Milk may flow again!"

"This victory, this triumph of our military, was no small feat. For our security, for our children, for our Empire, we sacrificed. Lives were lost, homes were burned, but still, we are victorious! We have built for ourselves a beacon of civilization in the Vast Empty, a great power that will stand the test of time."

"Five millennia ago, our human predecessors, those who laid down the path on which we trod, declared the Common Era. An era in which all Men were of equal stature, an era when all mortality stood beneath what they called 'God'. But we, children of Orion, we have proven them wrong! Now is not the era of commonality, and the Age of God has since expired with our terrestrial-bound existence. We have surpassed the brotherhood of men, as we sit at a table with countless peoples, countless races, in a limitless universe." The Emperor, blind in his farsightedness, stared out into those gathered below him. "No, now is the Era Imperium!"

The living corpses below cheered as buzzards gathered overhead which they could not see. For a will had been decreed, and their inheritance was a dead Earth.

Today

The transport descended slowly above a long-dead Imperial Dreadnought, specks of spacedusts and ash covering the warship. Inside, Ghanzi was rattling off from within his helmet.

"And to think that the Commander General would let these fucking bugs-" The Xuha sniper was red with both frustration and the natural color of his skin.

"Scorpines have every right to be a citizen as you do, soldier," replied Lt. Animo. She was getting tired of his self-loathing alien conservativisms, leaning tiredly against the wall of the ship with her rifle in hand. The rest of the squad, aside from Major Astari, were behind them, too inexperienced to be rid of their anxiety going into a mission.

"Pft, of course you think that, human. Your family was never kicked from their land by Resser-"

"I am your superior and you will speak to me as such!" Animo shot back as she straighted her back, standing threatingly against the sniper. Suddenly, their commander interjected.

"Both of you, calm down," Astari said. "I'm both your superiors, and my head hurts too much to deal with your politics." The two soldiers slowly calmed before Astari nodded to the wreckage below. "We're here."

---

The First Cavalry descended slowly with their jetbacks as Animo cut a whole in the top of the ship with her wrist laser. Their lights were all turned on, and one by one they fell into the abyssal darkness of a Dead Empire's grave. The Major led the group, finding themselves in what must've been the quarterdeck, although not much was left to prove it. The squad slowly walked through the ruinous ship, until finally the newest recruit, a Janari, Private Koaga, shouted out, "Major, think I found something!" Quickly, Astari walked over to him, and looked at the wall he was pointing to. Happy Birthday, Captain! Astari glared at the private. "Might be a clue..." the young man timidly said, but the Major shook his head and walked away.

The Cavalry split into teams of two, and Astari was with Animo searching through the old arsenal. The Lieutenant was thumbing through Orionic rifles, when she said, "You know, you shouldn't undermine my authority like that, Commander." It took him a second to respond, as he was reading through some quarermaster's journal.

"What authority?" He replied, reading over a line about a malfunction in the escape pods. Animo shot up and looked at him.

"I am your second in command! Couldn't you at try and respect as such?" Astari grumbled, gently placing the journal in a front pocket of his armor.

"You shouldn't care about my respect." He crossed his arms. "I'm not who you're commanding. Care about your men, and maybe they'd respect you a little more, because right now, they do NOT." Animo inhaled deeply, then, exhaling, said,

"Permission to speak informally?"

"Permission granted."

"You're a dick."

Josephus was about to reply, when he received a signal from his transmitter. Allowing it through, he saw Koaga, who seemed...out of sorts. "Major," he said, "There's something you should see."

"Private, if this is another-"

"Just...come here."

In the hold, near the escape pods, an array of skeletons were floating against the ship's roof. The entire squad was gathered before them, looking at the perfectly maintained Imperial Navy uniforms adorning the corpses. They watched silently, some of them noticing the claw marks covering the escape hatch. Finally, Major Astari spoke up.

"Alright, let's get out of here, there's nothing to see."

Dark Matters (Open)

Nation Sheet

Name: (Be creative! There's an infinite number of things you can name your country, why pick one that's boring?)

Flag: (While not entirely mandatory, it kinda is. Everyone else is gonna do it and we love peer pressure.)

Brief Description: (Emphasis on brief. There's a whole rest of the NS for a reason, this is just for quick reminders.)

Claim: (As stated in the OOC, keep it smaller than usual; the empires have fallen.)

Government: (Same as with name; be creative. Successor states should at least be somewhat based on the Orionic government systems.)

History: (Go brief, go long. Do what you think is necessary for us to have a proper feel of what you're trying to present. Make sure to talk to other players and your friendly GMs to make sure your properly aligned with the lore and worldbuilding so far.)

Military: (This being a Nation RP, go at least somewhat in depth. Don't just say you have a really good military, explain the various vacets of it, and the military's place in society.)

Religion/Culture: (The two largest religions as of now are Kineticism and Anchorism. Both of these have sects and subsets, plus there's many religions beside this. Culturally, again, be creative, and give details. Details help make a nation and an NRP great.)

Demographics (Species): (Make sure to check out the Species Database)

Characters: (You don't need to go that in depth in the NS, but once we get to IC, definitely have them fleshed out, at least mentally.)

Relations: (Talk to people! This section in NRPs often goes neglected, but it's important for other characters making their own NSs.)

Habitation: (How and where people live; preferred modes of transportation, stuff like that)

Species Database

IMPERIAL SPECIES

Humans

Originally from the planet Earth in the Sol System, Humans are the most populous species in the Galaxy, having been the masters of the Orionic Empire. Now, they are again disunified, for the first time since the rise of the legendary first emperor, Orion.

Qiormu/Parasitians

From some planet of unknown origin, the Qiormu (often referred to as 'Parasitians') are a hyper-intelligent parasitic worm which embeds itself in a victim's brain and takes control. Many centuries ago, in the time of the Orionic Empire, the Qiormu plagued the minds of imperial citizens, and as a compromise, the government struck a deal where the Qiormu would leave the host bodies, and in exchange, the government would manufacture new bodies for them, made up of a combination of synthetic organic matter and computing hardware. The Qiormu exist around the galaxy, now rmanufacturing their own host bodies and living in Parasitian Districts, mainly in former imperial space. Often subjected to harsh discrimination, they largely work in numerically-minded fields, such as engineering and banking.

Qiormu come off as cold, emotionless, and monotone, though will insist they are not. They are asexual, and often assign genders to their host body following the human sexual binary. Parasitian brothels are something commonplace, especially in poorer Qiormu communities. They are also sometimes used in warhosts; militarily manufactured host bodies designed specifically for combat. Their host bodies will often seem unsettling and creepy, though according to most Qiormu they are legitimate attempts at assimilation into mainstream society.

Aldzir

The Aldzir are a semi-marine mammalian species native to Nasj, an Earth-like Moon that orbits a Gas Giant. The Aldzir are covered from head to toe in thick fur. Their Fur comes in several shades of color depending on the region of their homeworld, the most common colors being Brown, Gray, White and or stripped colors. The Aldzir have two sets of eyes, an adaptation of their semi-aquatic existence, their vision more sharper then the average human. The upper, smaller pair of eyes are made use to traverse underwater when scavenging for food, the bottom larger eyes are their primary ones for sight in the surface.

Aldzir eat and communicate via a trunk, although unimposing at first, inside a Aldzir trunk are tiny sharp teeth to aide them in consuming blood and meat. Aldzir speak with high-pitched chirps, buzzes, and grunts, it is physically impossible for Aldzir to speak any other languages and often are in need of special translation collars or other such devices, or that an alien speak in their tongue.

Ulala

Originally of the wealthy and powerful Ula kingdom, the Ulala were conquered by the Orionic Empire in one of their early conquests. To prevent rebellion and keep the population in check, the Ulala nobles were allowed to retain their titles and privileges, in return for their loyalty. When it was discovered that the Ula homestar was set to supernova, a massive Ulala diaspora took place, and the Ula were spread across the empire. Even the other Ula planets became depopulated and mixed as time went on. Today, Ula nobles still retain a good deal of power, privilege, and wealth across the galaxy, and influence the goings-on in whatever countries they live in, both economically and governmentally, and Ula commoners are a common sight everywhere.

Cultors

When Orionic xenologists came upon Aquinas-4, they found that the sentient beings there, despite wearing no clothing, having no civilization, and bearing no forms of higher government aside from their village elders, had developed advanced agricultural techniques, and seemed to take intricate and tender care of their crops and gardens, living idyllic agrarian lifestyles. The planet was quickly depopulated, and these native slug-like people, named 'Cultors', were spread across the empire to work on various agricultural planets, as well as to work on the various Imperial Gardens and Botanical Gardens scattered around the empire. Today, Cultors understand other languages, but cannot speak them, often relying on foreign devices, and still tend to work almost entirely in agricultural fields across the former empire.

Scorpine

Once the masters and rulers of the Ancient Scorpine Empire, an attempted conquest of the Human Planets at their hand caused the legendary Orionic Unification, and the subsequent formation of the Orionic Empire. Upon their conquest by the Empire, the Scorpine planets were heavily colonized, and Scorpines themselves were either exiled or enslaved, their enslavement lasting until the rule of Emperor Petrus II. During the Orionic Collapse, the many Scorpine Exiles pounded themselves back into what was Imperial territory.

The powered armor traditionally used by the Scorpine army greatly influenced Orionic warfare, and the Scorpines also introduced the use of lasers in war to the Humans. Despite what many Imperial Historians would say, conditions under the Scorpines would not have been that bad; species were granted great autonomy, slavery was illegal, and the purpose of the empire was largely economic, the mercantile Scorpines being known for a lack of corruption. That said, private land ownership was illegal for all non-Scorpines.

Scorpines live a bit longer than humans do, although not substantially longer, and have been historically mistreated under human rule even since their emancipation. They require a greater oxygen intake than humans, and like other species, often require devices to live in many planets. The venom in their tails is meant for paralysis, although can be fatal with children, the elderly, and small creatures.

Janari

The Amphibious Janari were one of many developing civilizations were swiftly absorbed by the Orionic Empire. Integration however, was a mostly painless affair, the Janari, despite a few stark differences, are quite similar to humans in both stature and mentality, they quickly adapted and found their place within the Empire, fulfilling a more utilitarian role within society compared to other species, their humanoid build permitting them to take on various tasks and occupations.

Xuhajann

Hailing from the desert planet Jex, the Xuhajann were a proud warrior people who had been conquered by the Scorpine Empire. During the Orionic Conquest of the Scorpines, the Xuhajann rebelled against their overlords, and afterward swore loyalty to the Orionic Empire, and from that point on were loyal Imperial Citizens, most every male proudly serving in the Imperial Army.

Before their conquest, the Xuhajann were traditionally archers and knife fighters, but now are skilled in many other weapons, as well as having more technologically advanced bows, and are famous for their skills as scouts and snipers. They were allowed a good deal of cultural autonomy under Imperial rule, and because of that have retained many of their traditional ceremonies and still perform many of their markings and piercings.

CARTEL SPECIES

Buthar

The Buthar are a race of fairly long lived beings with about twice the lifespan of human. They are incredibly strong, with powerful coiled muscles, they are about eight feet tall on average, and usually weigh five to six hundred pounds. With a natural inclination towards manipulation, and violence the species tends to drift more towards the world of crime and other seedy ventures. Their population is small now and only those that had travelled across the Galaxy from their home planet remain after their planet was struck by gamma ray burst.

Laadaruua

With a soft appearance, and an ageless appearance the Laadaruus are found in many public spaces where attractiveness is a requirement. They live to be around six years of age maturing to adulthood at about fourteen earth years. They release pheremones to entice others and bring them into their fold. Laadaruua are frequently sold into slave trafficking, working in brothels as prositutes and other such endeavors. As such they are not the cheapest of commodities, but they aren't that expensive either.

Kalixurans

Hailing from Kalixus the Kalixurans are a formidable species, with strong bodies, enduring scales, and a love for violence they've truly become a go to for Soldiers, Mercenaries, bounty hunters, and thugs. Not many can look a Kalixuran in the face without feeling some iota of apprehension. As such they've spread across the galaxy becoming pirates, and troops on front lines. They however have short lifespans thirty years being the maximum, and usually maturing by the age of five.

SOVEREIGN SPECIES

Urgzehu

Standing about the same height or a little shorter than the average human the Urgzehu are built tougher and broader than their human counterparts. Initially living on a world with slightly higher gravity in addition to a greater evolutionary advantage from strength the Urgzehu are built naturally much stronger than humans. The Urgzehu while initially a very primitive species technologically and limited culturally have in recent times advanced vastly in their technical abilities. Unfortunately their cultural situation has not greatly changed from when before they came into contact with galactic civilization. Originally a species that had discovered agriculture but was lacking in civilizations they were subjugated as they presented several valuable prospects for their subjugators and particularly various projects in the greater galactic civilization. Not only was their home world rich in resources but it was startling close to perfect conditions for human habitation, in addition the Urgzehu to serve as workers to start up such colonies.

Not only on their own homeworld however, the Urgzehu were spread to many worlds to aid in Human colonization, particularly ones that may have some resentful locals. They were primarily kept in line through AIs imitating their various spirits, ancestors, and gods to lead them in desired fashions. Although with the collapse of the Orionic Empire this policy has presented some drawbacks.

Those Below

One half of the Sinnsyk Star Network,Those Below spend their lives in subterranean tunnels and caverns. Those Below detest the sunlight and prefer to spend their lives in dark, cramped tunnels, working on the ancient technology left behind by Those Who Came Before. Because of the time they spend in the dark, their bodies are pale, almost white, and slim to the point of emaciation. Their dark eyes see well in the pitch black, but are sensitive to all kinds of light. They are hairless in most cases, and have long, sharp claws for tunneling and hunting prey.

Those Below are key for controlling the land under the crusts of planets. They live deep under the ground, and run the Star Network's "Planetscape" technology. This tech allows Those Below to shape and form the planet above them, growing forests and flooding valleys overnight. This technology only works if one is sufficient distance underground, as it involves controlling the movement of tectonic plates, taping into underground reservoirs and running them through replicators in order to work

Zsresriir

An anatomically unusual case of invertebrate bipeds, the Zsresriir, as their appearance suggests, have no internal skeletal structure, and need to rely on their chitinous carapace for structural integrity. Due to the accumulated strain of their considerable weight (the average Zsresriir is slightly taller than a human if standing) and posture, this shell is exceedingly resilient in comparison to that of other geni, and supplemented by several layers of muscle. Despite this, maintaining a straight position for an extended time is often tiring for members of the species, and they often alternate between walking upright and crawling on all sixes. Evolutionarily, Zsresriir branched off from a genus of eusocial animals, deriving the ability for individual thought from a mutation and gradually developing a sapient intellect. Their genetic relatives are to this day seen with respect, but deemed inferior, a sentiment lying at the foundation of the Zsresriir's usual suspicion towards collectivistic mindstyles. The species's predatory past left its members with combative, often violent atavistic tendencies, which, however, do not culminate in lethal struggles more often than in other sentients. Socially, the idea of one's "nest" (a polygamous family unit) is held in high importance, being considered as a microcosm where every component's personality and skills can be best realised to everyone's benefit, and is the main building block of most Zsresriir communities.

Ulthari

The Ulthari are a roughly humanoid species, appearing as robustly built, slightly hunched figures with thick grey-brown skin and heads tapering to many-eyed worm-like appendages, a large extension of which is effectively a four-jawed mouth with a toothed interior. Despite their anthropoid shape, they do not possess a spinal endoskeleton to support their frame, but a web-like structure of cartilaginous filaments which likewise functions as a lymphatic system. Their organisms, though naturally rather strong by human standards, are unfit for life in warm, dry environments, leading to many adopting nocturnal lifestyles. The Ulthari civilisation was the origin of the cult of Yre-Keltha, which, though eventually widely adopted by the surviving Zsresriir and other inhabitants of the Free Nests, earned them the enmity of Orionic religious authorities, and later of the Zuukid crusaders. As such, only small numbers of the species are known to be alive in the present day.

Sarmakth

Sarmakth are large roughly cephaloid creatures with their main body diameter around 2.3-3.2 meters wide, making them often larger than even a bear. They have a pair of huge eyes and large beaks which are surrounded by numerous tentacles. The evolution and deliberate gene alterations of the Sarmakth focused on intellect which means roughly 90% of their body mass is brain matter with all other functions being reduced considerably. Their tentacles are too weak to raise their bodies under Earth-like gravity albeit they can walk just fine in lower gravity. Their overgrown brain includes a biological quantum communication device which allows the species to communicate with each other through thoughts akin to telepathy. Devices can be interacted the same way if they contain a similar quantum receiver. Sarmakth have an underdeveloped and simple digestive system which can only process liquids and specially made food. The small tentacles near to their beaks act as suckers to leech blood from living beings for sustenance, a horrible sight which made the British folk describe them as vampires. The rest of the tentacles are thicker and used to either support the body or work as versatile manipulators to operate complex machines with ease. Sarmakth are asexual creatures with no male/female dimorphism who reproduce through periodically laying down "flesh buds" of their young which they submerge in the blood of other species until those eventually grow to sufficient size. Worth noting that when they refer to themselves the Sarmakth use male pronouns to outsiders.

Sarmakth have no vocal language aside from making various basic noises to express emotions. They communicate exclusively through their "telepathy". In case they require to talk through words they rely on human slaves who are explicitly wired to understand their telepathic waves and speak in their stead. Similarly they don't understand concepts like love, compassion or many of the complex emotions. Instead they have a deeply logical mindset and capacity for limitless cruelty. Sarmakth in general have a superiority complex and view all other races as inferior if not just consider them as soulless animals to exploit. Due to their history they especially hate humans and call them as Pekh'makth which literally translates as "the race of shit".

Fosskemians

The Fosskemians are tall creatures, around 7-8 feet in height on Average. However, they aren't strong creatures due to their biomechanics not being apt for strength. Their prehensile limbs are weak compared to ours, and this has affected how they interact with the environment around them by making them prone to using smaller tools or working in aquatic environments; they tend to craft underwater.

The Fosskemians have adapted to using their 'wings' as a versatile type of "leg" which allows them to skid, slide and gallop around their environment which has a denser atmosphere than our own. The Fosskemians breathe through their skin for the most part, with the blow holes in their backs being more for their wing systems more than actual respiration. The Fosskemians have a small, sharp beak at the front of their long heads. They hear vibrations from the ground better than we do, but have difficulty hearing high pitched sounds.


The Fosskemians are amphibious beings, which is how they colonized so much of their world so fast as they literally drifted to other land masses. Their long history of civilization, stretching over 12000 years is something often neglected by their own kind- especially since a lot of this history is revised on a regular, persistent basis with lots of lost knowledge about ancient times for them. The Fosskemian have 15-20 year generations instead of 30 year generations even today, and can have children as early as 7 years of age. The Fosskemians in general are shorter lived than us and this may factor into their mentality of resonance on a fundamental level; they live short existences after all.

The Fosskemian are L-handed beings like us, and so there is some compatible food products. Their nutrition is similar to ours except in certain areas, primarily in fibers. They seem to eat proteins just like we do, although terran plant matter is not really nutritious for them (and likewise, Vopallian balloon matter lack nutritional value for us).

Fosskemian sub-species are rare; most have already converged. Communities of non-common Fosskemian such as the spotties or the pink Fosskemian tend to isolate themselves in distance around the galaxy, usually being literally thousands of light years from the common Fosskemian. The common Fosskemian, being comprised of multiple sub-species actually have quite a bit of genetic variation.

The Fosskemians are a species who lays eggs, with males being the caretakers of said eggs. The Fosskemian tend to live in large groups, in multiple mass nests and sets of complexes. These colonies tend to contain internally functional markets which trade with other nests in global networks somewhat like nation-states, but much more tightly knit and with less centralized authority. These complexes can be highly dangerous for the surrounding environment, as they tend to leak waste into the surrounding area. There is no real single male-female mate; it is more a series of mates’ females have, males tend to communally take care of eggs and raise children along with expand the nest.

Females tend to leave the nests far more frequently than males, although females taking males where they go is all too frequent (since having a consistent system of places in society is too hard for them, even if there is blatant gender roles in their species. The Fosskemian don't seem to recognize they even exist, despite how painfully obvious it is to human observers. Males that question this have highly varied consequences, sometimes ignored, sometimes oscratized, other times socially humiliated in public). There isn't really much consistency in authority or law; there is very little concept of law to begin with, just guidelines that change depending on what the local auditor, princess or plutocrat says is the rules now. Their science is rife in a range of psuedoscientific madness that is only tempered by obsessive experimentation by scientifically minded Fosskemian that tends to find new technologies to play with. Science in the Fosskemian sense is really a range of experiments made not to solve problems, but to have new things to possess.

Harakt

The Harakt are a large, grey skinned primate species, very similar to humans in build except larger and bulkier. They are one of the two native species of Bahara along with the Yagda, and prefer to inhabit alpine biomes, although temperate plains and forests are equally welcome. Harakt are very strong, able to perform strenuous physical acts with ease, and much of the focus on combat that exists in Baharan culture stems from the original Harakt tribes, tens of thousands of years ago.

Yagda

The Yagda are a humanoid species evolved from desert dwelling crusteceans. They are a short species, barely coming up to a humans waist, and don’t even come close to the levels of strength exhibited by the other two races of Bahara. However, what they lack in physical strength is made up for with numbers, with Yagda giving birth to anywhere between fifty and two hundred children a year. They are also very intelligent, and capable of using just about any kind of material in construction. Even many of their older buildings utilize materials from the large desert predators of their home continent.

Mitternachter

Originally a faction of human mercenaries named the Midnight Drifters, the Mitternachters first arrived on Bahara after their ship, the Mitternacht, crashed on the planet due to unknown causes. Centuries of living on the planet, along with a focus on genetic modification, have led to the Mitternachters practically becoming a different species. They are far stronger than average humans, as well as generally growing about a foot or two taller, which has led them to becoming fierce warriors capable of taking on large numbers of enemy soldiers on their own.

However, side effects of their rampant genetic modification has led to their skin becoming extremely pale, leaving them with a weakness to heat, and although not as bad, excessive sunlight can cause them trouble as well. Due to this, they mostly prefer to stick to temperate, or even arctic locations, although some do still live underground in cities built by the Yagda.

Adamari

Once upon a time, the Adamari were under the cruel yoke of a foreign empire. This empire infected their slaves with a deadly disease that would gradually eat away at the flesh and deform the bone of the Adamari. This was suppressed by an antidote, however only loyal Adamari would be allowed access to this. This was supposed to ensure that rebellion was all but impossible. It failed.
The Adamari may have killed those who had once oppressed them, but they were left with the disease. The remaining antidote reserves are long since used up and the secret to creating more destroyed by the defeated before the Adamari had a chance to get their hands on it. Nowadays, the Network claims dominion over Adamar and its people, but attempts to recreate the mythical antidote to the disease are still in their infancy

ZUUKIND

Rodorphins

Bulky 8 limbed creatures that are the founders of the Zuukid empire and its faith. They somewhat resemble the mythical centaurs, with a humanoid torso mounted at the front of a hexapod body, but they have claw like feet and their skin is covered in soft scales that comes in various shades of dull reds, browns and oranges. They are carnivores that are about two and a half meters tall and can outpace horses on most tarain. They are used to a higher oxygen concentration than that expected by humans, and as such often need to supplement the air of other worlds with additional O2 using a filter/enricher mask lest they be left permanently breathless.

Sethhanide

Sethhanide: An alien race with a colony of serpents growing on their skulls. These serpents are a form of parasite on the Sethhanides planets, which have developed a symbiotic relationship with several species there. The serpents help protect their host from the dangerous ambush and pack hunter predators that live on the planet by providing 360 vision, acting in shifts as a night watch and fending of foes with their venomouse spit. In return the host warms the cold blooded serpents and shares food with them. While the Sethhanide have long since surpassed the need for their companions they retain a cultural and biological fondness for the creatures, and as such most of them retain them as pets.

The Sethhanide known well known for their work in cloning and genetic engineering, the most notable of their achievements having been the race of Vuans, human Sethhanide hybrid supersoldiers that they provided to bolster the Zuukid crusade forces. Sethhanide vehicles, robots and space vessels are generally serpentine in nature, this leaves them rather fragile but highly maneuverable.

Vuans

Developed by the Sethhanide to serve as shock troops. There were 2 primary goals in their development. First, to have troops optimized for operating effectively in human friendly environments and second, to let them easily put captured/seized human technology to work. A third added benefit is that their production required only human cadavers, something that was in plentiful supply after most military engagements. They possess increased strength, endurance and limited regenerative capabilities that have greatly extended their lifespans at the cost of increased risks of brain disease like alzheimer's. Their usage has fallen off in most parts of the former Zuukid empire due to a lack of raw materials, but they persist in use among the Faithful Hairs and with/as independent marauder groups all over the galaxy.

Vauns, after being assembled from raw materials, are subjected to intense indoctrination and brainwashing to remove any prior loyalties or personality, making them perfect zealots of the Zuukind cause. Despite this some memories will remain in fragments, and the older variants particular can be plagued by flashes of their past lives. When this occurs most submit themselves for re-indoctrination but rarely they desert instead, something that became considerably more common during and after the empires collapse.

Rekshai

Rekshai come from the Sethhanide homeworld, where they were one of the predators that causes their symbiotic relationship with their distinctive serpentine hair. Unlike most of their competition the Rekshai where not driven to extinction by the rise of Sethhanide civilisation as the worryingly intelligent monsters managed to follow their most successful prey species as they expanded across the globe, avoiding all subsequent attempts at extermination through cunning, stealth and adaptation. By the time technology had advanced enough that true eradication would be possible conservation moments had arisen that preserved the predators existence, though limiting their domains to certain national parks, zoos, preserves etc. and initiating an ever advancing method of prevent attacks on Sethhanides using radar tagging, smart shock collars, etc. They subsequently fell into quiet irrelevance, a lingering reminder of what progress had overcome, until the someone in the biotech industry had the idea of using them as a basis for a new biomechanical construct.

Subesequent study revealed just how advanced the brains the beasts had actually been, exhibiting intelligence that, if given a slight boost, allowed them to achieve limited scentience. While some might argue against the wisdom of granting cognitive abilities to one of your own predators the effectiveness of the results were undeniable. Coated in biometalic armor, improved with synthetic muscles, injected with performance enhancing drugs and installed with limited cybernetics they became deadly weapons of war capable of understanding complex orders with little alteration to their cerebral cortex. The Zuukind subsequently use them as incredibly deadly attack dogs: unleashing them on enemy formations and ships via specialised attack craft, releasing them into cities and compounds to sow terror or having them accompany inquisitors hunting down heretics.

Inevitably some subjects have escaped and evaded re-capture, the collapse contributing significantly to the number of such escapes. While these subjects have sometimes started infestations via breeding their offspring are non-augmented and thus lack their parents intelligence boosting implants. Unfortunately they display more intelligence than their wiled betherned ever did, presumably due to being trained/lead by their progenitors.

Lonoxi

Insectile creatures that evolved a social structure similar to that of ants or bees, where a small number of fertile females have access to a small number of males for breeding purposes while the majority of the species are infertile drones made to serve the fertile females bidding. This social structure was retained even when the race achieved sentience, with fertile Queens and their male lords acting as regents and aristocracy while the drones where their willing servants. This persisted right up until the invention of chemical warfare, as the subsequent reactions introduction of gas masks unintentionally gave the drones a way to free themselves from the pheromones the queens secreted, pheromones that none of their kind had recognized as existing. Here the species split into two distinct, opposing, styles, the old monarchistic one which used this knowledge of pheromones to cement their rule and one where the drones overthrew their progenitors and formed collectivist councils of drones to govern, with the breeders being subservient to the will of their offspring. These two patterns never managed to overcome one another, the ability completely stop the creation of pheromone filters as difficult as preventing breaches in filter protocols.

In the end it was the Zuukind that forged the two together in an unhappy union, Sethhanide manufactured drugs making drones immune to the pheromones while the Zuukid theocracy relentlessly preferred the breeders as officials or governors due to their longer life spans and more individualistic intelligence. Still, while there where those who longed for both the old ways faith and inquisitors kept the Lonoxi firmly focused on serving the empire as a whole. With the empire gone however the old divisions have re-arisen, now joined by the third who still desire what the Zuukid brought them.

Drones are rather squat, bulky and well armored, featuring a pair of large blades pointing backwards from their forearms. Males are tall, thin and supermodel esque in appearance, traits grown to improve their odds of been chosen by a queen. Queens themselves are somewhat similar in appearance to the males but have a large abdomen extending out behind their hips that is used to grow and lay eggs.

Forensakai

Unlike the Rodorphin, Forensakai exhibit extreme sexual dimorphism that make their two genders aprea to be almost different species: the females are tough four armed, four eyed bipeds with shriveled wings while the males are 4 legged creatures of an almost bestial appearance that are capable of flight. Despite their structural differences and the makes animistic appearance both genders exhibit near identical levels of intelligence. The reason for these differences can be found by studying their old mating habits. The females need a living host within which to parasitically insert their larvae(much like certain parasitic wasps of earth), a host that they actively defend from other predators while their young mature inside it. The males then need to both retrieve this host in the first place and need to keep the woman fed while she guards the host. To do so they travel great distances to find the perfect host as well as to forage food for their mate, but do not need to be able to tussle with hostile predators. Thus the females became tough flightless fighters and the males agile aerial hunters with excellent endurance. The Forensakai eventually adopted a herding method of protecting their hosts and upon this cooperation their civilization was build.

While their life cycle involves presenting a host they do not require once capable of sentiences like the Parasitians. Infact scentiens generally make for very poor hosts due to their diets, general lack of extensive fat reserves and ability to recognise they are infested. Instead they use livestock, preferably large caterpillar like creatures from homeworld, but creatures like cows will serve the task as well, though the infant will often need assistance from their parents or a doctor to deal with the creatures skeleton.

Draskavians and Atholabes

Draskavian evolved on an ocean world where they had to deal with the limited availability of nesting space available on the small island that dotted globe spanning sea. Draskavian juveniles are seabirds, who travel in great flocks across the waves, never touching land from the moment they leave the roost till the moment they seek to make one of their own. The adults are bipedal bear like creatures that have given up flight in return for increase strength and hands that they use to protect their island nesting grounds and food supplies from hostiles. Other than predators the main hostiles the adults faced were flocks of juveniles seeking to claim land before puberty fully overtook them and they lost their wings, resulting in periodic battles between the small agile young and the large lumbering adults. Initially these battles would result in the gradual grinding down of the aging adult population until a suitably strong flock took over, but as technology slowly advanced the balance of power shifted towards the adults thanks in part to a partnership with the planets other sentient race: the Atholabes.

An Atholabe is a eel like creature about the size of a great white shark that has 3 ruby read eyes on the front of its head surrounded by eight manipulator tentacles, four being thick and strong limbs while the other four are whisker like appendages used for fine manipulation. An incredibly ancient race, the Atholabe myths speak of a time before the great sea when part of an incredibly advanced civilisation that was brought to an end by the calamity that caused the ocean to form which they only survived thanks to a miracle that gave them bodies suited to the new world. While archaeological has failed to find any evidence of this study of their biology by Zuukid bioengineers has discovered signs of what they believe to be the vestiges of ancient genetic engineering.

Their aquatic environment had made technological advancement incredibly difficult, their race trapped forever in the stone age despite their best efforts until the Draskavians evolved. Some were fraught with jealousy of the upstarts who eventually discovered metalsmithing upon their tiny islands, but others saw opportunity, forming, after a great deal of strife, a working relationship with some Draskavian populations, trading raw ore for manufactured goods. The adult population grew stronger and more advanced on the back of this trade, though it was hampered significantly by the intergenerational battles for control of the islands. Frustrated, and somewhat horrified by this state of affairs the Atholabes attempted to introduce the Draskavian to the concepts of a. Population control via abstinence and b. Raising their young. They only really took to the second suggestion, capturing juveniles on the cups of losing the capability of flight during attacks and using them to replace their losses. This solidified the adult hold over the islands and allowed the preservation of knowledge between generations, causing Draskavian civilisation to start reflecting standard development trends, interspersed with occasional bird attacks. Islands where artificial expanded with the help of Atholabe builders and Draskavian populations grew with them. Ships and navigational techniques were created allowing island communities to meet for the first time, with the inevitable trading of goods, culture and blows following after. All the while the Atholabes civilisation flourished once again, fueled by their avian trade partners’ technological strides.

Eventually the Draskavians, who now lived in vast floating cities, used contraceptives to implement the long insisted upon population control and had replaced the flackguns used to swat down juveniles attacks with dedicated capture drones that plucked pubescent Draskavian from their flocks to be raised on land, took to the stars along with their Atholabe allies, making the ancient eels one of the few aquatic races to know what it was like to swim in space.

Dark Matters (Open)

Earth was doomed to die, but Humanity was not, for they set upon the stars. For a thousand years, the Humans colonized the system of Sol, as wall as many of the near by Solar Systems, and the region of the Galaxy inhabited by these humans become known as Humania. But the humans were not unified, for their leaders were greedy, and the peoples were disunified, founding independent Planetary States. Disparate and corrupt, they remained at odds with each other until the Ancient Scorpine Empire sought to conquer Humania. In the face of subjugation, they were united by the hunter Orion, who founded a great empire in the midst of the human stars, which became known as Orion's belt. Emperor Orion then united the various human religions under one religion, Kineticism, where energy was worshipped as a divine being known as Spiritus. Soon, this empire began to expand, shooting out across the galaxy, conquering the entirety of not only the Scorpine Empire, but much, much more, forming the great Orionic Empire from their capital on Mars.

Orionic Empire

For centuries, the empire experienced the great Pax Orionus; the great Orionic Peace, which brought stability and prosperity to much of the galaxy, only fighting wars to expand into much smaller powers. The people were content, and the various alien species were made citizens and integrated into the empire, while humans expanded and colonized every corner. Kineticism turned to two sects; Universal and Divine. Universal Kineticism, the smaller sect, teaches that Spiritus, often referred to as Ein-Sof, is vast and complex far beyond mortal comprehension, and much of their practice is through mysticism and meditation. Divine Kineticism, the larger sect, and the state sect of the Empire, teaches that Spiritus has a divine will, greatly cares about the affairs of mortals, and uses prophets to teach his will. The Orionic Empire began to build up, and the arts and sciences flourished under a code of laws and ethics. Though there were mass voices of dissent from among the populace, these dissenters were exiled past the reaches of the Empire, creating a great buffer between them and the foreign menaces.

But as the leadership of the Empire grew contented, so too did they grow corrupt, ineffectual, and the military lazy. The conditions of the empire began to fall, and the people knew it. Meanwhile, in the southeast reaches of the empire, beyond even the lonely stars to which the exiles had been pushed, a force was rising that would eventually bring the great empire to its knees. Formed by the prophet Avostin Zuuk, the Zuukid empire gradually spread its central faith of Anchorism to its neighbors, absorbing them through faith and firepower as they slowly pushed their territory towards the holy galactic core. The first blows dealt against the Orionic empire as a result of this new power were not dealt by the encroaching Zuukind themselves, but by those fleeing religious persecution, populations of exiles and aliens deciding that they’d take their chances breaking into Orionic space instead of trying to hold their ground, in addition to exiles pushing down from the northern borders. These migrants disrupted local economies and clashed with Orionic forces, leaving the empire unprepared for what was to come. It was a pattern that was repeated throughout the Zuukid expansion, a wave of refugees and migrants driven ahead of their forces in a sweeping wave of anarchy.

When the Zuukid forces finally hit the Orionic Empire proper, humanity was totally unprepared for them. Fighting with unyielding zeal and willing to utilise what might be considered unethical technology and tactics, the Zuukind cleaved through the human empire with frightful speed and ruthlessness. The Orionic forces were unable to concentrate themselves to offer proper resistance without leaving other areas vulnerable to the spreading uprisings and migrations that were occurring in response to the empire's weakness. Yet the Zuukind’s rapid success was their own undoing, as their emperors destructive conquest took her far from her core worlds in the outer rim. There conspirators seized the reins of power for themselves as chunks of the outer edges of the empire declared their own independence. The Zuukind crusade fleet halted its advance and returned home, only to be consumed in civil war, but it was too late for the Orionic empire. Its authority and power utterly undermined by the incursion its former territories disintegrated into a vast number of minor kingdoms, each ruled by those who claimed they had the power and will to protect them from the chaos that had engulfed half the galaxy.

Orionic Collapse Key

Turquoise=Orionic Empire
Red=Zuukid Empire
Blue=Exiles/Migrants/Marauders
Purple=Zuukid Rebels

Finally, in the year 5500 CE, or 500 Era Imperium, an invading fleet of marauding Scorpine Exiles sacked the capital city of Olympia on Mars, and the final Emperor, Ego I, was executed, and the empire died with him, his children being sold into slavery. The next three centuries were a chaotic mess of war, migration, and resettlement, but now, things have changed. The Migration Period had ended, and national borders have become definite. The question now is what happens next.

---

Premise

In case you couldn't tell, Dark Matters is an Advanced NRP set in a future where a great Galactic Empire has fallen, and now, the galaxy is at a stage where they are rebuilding from the ashes in a Sci-Fi Dark Age. It is the year 800 Era Imperium (EI), or 5800 Common Era. For now, we're going to be relatively sandbox, without a centralized plot unless the need for one arises. We're still accepting applications and will be until the map is full, so if you're interested make sure to ask any questions you may need to! Right now, it seems like there's a few basic classifications for nations, though this doesn't necessarily have to do with political alignment.

Imperial Successors: Imperial Successors are successor states to the Orionic Empire, who have largely copied their military and governmental systems. Successor states are largely dominated by humans, although tend to enjoy a large degree of species diversity. Some successor states, or factions within them, seek a reformation of the Empire, and many, if not most, will align themselves with the Martian Coalition, a military and economic alliance headed by the Martian State. Kineticism tends to be the most-followed religion in successor states.

Human Realms: Human Realms, though will sometimes speak well of the Orionic Empire, are most focused on Human Supremacy and a hatred of Alien diversity. Any alien presence whatsoever exist in complete subservience to the human population. Though relations with Imperial Successors may be cordial, and the Realms may even join the Martian Coalition, a degree of separation will always exist both due to a differing view of Imperial history and a difference in tolerance of Alien life.

Alien Revivalists: Revivalists are alien-dominated states from formerly Imperial Space who either seek to reclaim their heritage and destiny and distance themselves from their imperial past, or to forge empires of their own. Revivalists may be friendly to Imperial Successors, or may place themselves in opposition to them, depending on their view and experience as part of the Orionic Empire.

Alien States: Areas that were never conquered by either the Orionic Empire or Zuukind, the Alien States are the hardest classification to make generalizations of, due to a lack of coherent goals, beliefs or alignment. Some may be isolationist, others expansionist, but in the wake of the massive chaos experienced by much of the Galaxy, these countries were left largely in tact.

Zuukind: In the areas of the former Zuukid empire, the Zuukind are the species who were friendly and aligned themselves with the encroaching Zuukid empire, initially (and largely still) dominated by the Centaur-like Rodorphins. There's a mixture of opinions in the Anchorist Zuuk space, opinions and goals which are largely a mystery to the rest of the Galaxy.

Rules/Guidelines

Planetary destruction without permission from both a GM or Co-Gm and the person who's planet is being destroyed is not allowed; please don't just say you're blowing up someone's capital. That's not cool. But weapons capable of planetary destruction are allowed as a plot device, but again, please ask for permission.

When it comes to other weapons, pretty much anything's okay. Y'all should get creative! I'm excited to see what you come up with. The same goes with species; there's going to be a constantly-updated database of species, so when deciding on demographics, always take a peek over there to check ideas for other species which can get added to your nation. Remember that much of the map was once united under a single empire, and that demographics were greatly effected by this. When creating species, keep in mind that even if your species was artificially engineered, there has to be a trade off; no 'perfect' species. Disease exists. Physical weakness exists. Low intellects exist. Common imperfections have to be existent in every species.

Faster than Light (FTL) travel is covered by two methods; Warp Drives and Warp Gates (Wormholes). Warp Drives are much, much slower than the latter, and to cross the entirety of the galaxy using the best quality warp drive possible would probably take a year, but, Drives can be used freely and in every direction. Warp Gates are costly and take time to build, but once two warp gates on opposite sides of the galaxy are built and connected, one could reach the other side in less than a month. Near-light travel is also possible in ships, but I want to make clear that all other methods of FTL are forbidden. Most ships at this point can enter wormholes, and there's some tiny ships with very low-level drives. But it does take a somewhat bulkier ship to get a decent one on. Stealth and cloaking technology exists, but only up to fighter-sized ships. Megastructures are approved on a case by case basis.

I'm open to a wide range of species life spans. While immortality itself is not forbidden, unless a species is super small in its population, all species have to be mortal. That said, no individual is allowed to have been born before the year 3500. All species also have to have their origins in the Milky Way. No outside galaxies allowed, sorry Andromeda. Try to keep claims relatively small (this is a space dark age after all), but there'll be some relatively large nations in the mix I'm guessing. This should go without saying, but don't harass people, don't bully, don't do all of the obvious dick moves that people seem to forget are dick moves. Either PM me or post your NS applications to the OOC. Finally Psionics and other Space Magics (telekinesis and most forms of telepathy) are banned. Also no nanomachines.

Also, if you don't want to join as a nation, you don't have to. Whether you just want to be a faction or a single character, I'm down to let a wide variety of player types join.

Map

The Dark Ages...but in Space! (Space NRP, name pending)

@connor22 Great! Any ideas so far?

The Dark Ages...but in Space! (Space NRP, name pending)

Hello Potential Emperor!

I HAVE GOOD NEWS AND BAD NEWS:
The bad news is that around three hundred years ago, in the year 4500, the Orionic Empire, which united the Southern Milky Way under one peaceful, prosperous, corrupt and somewhat democratic state was destroyed in a massive collapse caused by an invasion of aliens and exiled human groups from her northern borders, who in turn were pushed there by the invasive Zuukid empire, which has since collapsed. This resulted in centuries of war, resettling of the various peoples displaced by the warring empires, famines, planetary apocalypses, and all that good stuff.

The good news is that the worst of it is over, the peoples of the galaxy have settled, and now YOU can forge your very own galactic empire! Will you try and rule the galaxy with an iron fist, or shall you bring the Milky Way to a new height of enlightenment? The choice is yours!

STATE OF AFFAIRS:
In the wake of the Imperial Collapse and subsequent Migration Period, warlords and dictators found new powers and strength, being able to protect their citizens in ways more scrupulous leaders could not. That said, many of the post-Orion states modeled themselves after the former empire, both politically and militarily. In the time of the Orionic Empire, who made humans and subhumans the most populous species in the galaxy from their capital on Mars, those who could not properly align themselves with Imperial values were exiled, either forcibly or voluntarily, to the outer reaches of the empire, where there own cultures began to form. Additionally, many of the alien non-imperial entities had formed their own cultures, as well as cultures and systems existing alongside the imperial ones. During the migration period, the non-imperial groups were forced into cohabitation with the imperial ones. The Zuuks, the peoples of the former empire, are now splintered in their leadership, but have also greatly influenced formal Imperial space.

RP RULES/IDEAS:
If you hadn't guessed by now, this is an idea for an Advanced NRP set in space. I want to leave this as sandbox as possible while also maintaining consistent lore and world building, so if you are at all interested, have any questions, or want to give any ideas, please let me know. I'm open to pretty much anything, and this includes the lore of the Orionic and Zuukid empires (including the name of the latter), and causes of the collapse and migration period.

Concept Art

Legend of the Silver Legion Redux (Open)

West of Olira

It was a misty day on the westernmost Askorian seas, but the Liba cut through this mist like a sharp knife through cheese, for Freishannese mages conjured winds into the sails of the ship, allowing not only the ship to press on, but giving the crew limited visibility in the dense fog.They had begun passing the islands marked by the maps of the Seobaghs, and while the crew of the ship grew relieved to return to familiar waters, Bahar had grown anxious about his return to Olira.

The living corpse, Sir Robert, had been held in the moist enclosure of the below deck, and while he had been properly attended to by the crew of the ship, the captain has yet to speak to him. Today, however, Robert was informed that the Olirian would see him.

Robert had been mostly quiet during the journey, save for adamant doomsaying whenever approached about heading west or the meaning of his amulet. He often spent his time leaned against the wall, legs splayed out, unmoving and his eyes staring at the pulsing gemstone. He didn't eat, drink or sleep, he only sat.

In the wreckage of the ship, the crew found his Lynnfairish longsword hidden in the pile of strange gritty dust, and with hesitation returned the weapon to him. He kept the blade across his lap, the edges dull from overuse, and the tip rounded with time. He paid little attention to it after the initial reunion and continued to obsess over his pulsating prize.

A stream of light beamed down onto the corpse's forhead, and the ragged privateer descended into the bowels of the ship. Bahar approached the knight, slowly but confidently, and crouched down to greet the cadavre eye to eye. "How goes it, Robert?" he began.

"Every moment closer to Askor, the better," Robert answered, his voice gritty like dried dirt but saturated with a well settled Lynnfairish accent.

Bahar grunted in response, rubbing his nose and waiting a moment, articulating his reponse. "So, I think you owe me some answers, sir." There was a tinge of sarcasm in the last word, but little mockery. The privateer was still unsure of the true nature of this...creature, but rudeness would yield him no answers.

"I suppose I do," Robert nodded his head, unseen bones in his neck creaking, "but my story starts out with asking of you one last favor."

"And what you that be?" The captain asked, a bit impatiently but still with sincerity.

"Upon return to Askor, you see me to my final destination," Robert looked down at his broken hip, "as you can see, I am in no condition to do the walking myself. If everything is correct, you won't need to go far from wherever we land."

"We head to Olira." Bahar's voice was stern. "I am unsure of where your...final destination...may be, but I am telling you that as of now, we head to Rilik. What occurs after that is yet to be seen."

"It should be close, then, wherever that may be," Robert seemed to agree to the schedule, "but now I suppose I do owe you an explaination."

"I suppose you do," the privateer responded, awaiting Robert to continue.

"I am a knight of the Silver Legion," Robert paused, "do you know of us?"

The captain chuckled. "All of Askor knows of the Silver Legion." He paused, his voice growing more questioning in its tone. "But I also know that the Silver Legion was killed to a man, centuries ago."

"So you all might think," Robert answered, "those who returned to Askor with Celia may have been killed, as well as those who fell in the far East, but I can assure you not all are dead, or well, completely dead. Those remaining under Grand Master Verran have a similar complexion as myself." Bahar knit his eyebrows, perplexed, but said nothing, waiting for Robert to continue.

"I suppose I should start at a better place," Robert tapped his chin, "three hundred years ago, The Prophetess Celia rounded up a legion of soldiers and fighters. Her powers had been well known before this but on instinct she suddenly felt the need for a fighting force, and so we all volunteered ourselves to her, the first being Bloodlord Verran of Lynn-Naraksh. Since that moment those two were always close, it is rumored that Verran knows secrets not even the rest of us know, but that isn't important right now."

Robert shifted in his spot, "we headed East, prepared to face what Celia described as the most dangerous being to all existance as we have ever known it. She seemed unsure herself about the true nature of whatever it was we were expecting, but we were all sure she was right. The further East we went, the more we all began to feel it. It is hard to describe, but I imagine it is the same feeling an ant gets when the foot about to stomp it shades the sun above it.

Our march continued in this fashion until one night. Celia came roaring from her tent, Verran was panicking trying to calm her, but we all heard her. It was the first time any of us saw her uncomposed or that expressive. She screamed about what she had seen in her sleep, what had looked back at her peering eyes. If it wasn't her who had seen what she saw, I'm certain whoever in her place would have died, their bodies not able to take the truth."

Robert held the amulet close, "she saw the Lord Emperor, but worse still, the Lord Emperor saw her. She described his many eyes peering down at her, and suddenly we all knew the name of the enemy we were marching towards."

Robert paused, staring at the captain, "we found him. At first we couldn't see him, our minds refused to believe his existance and so censored reality for us, but slowly he came into focus. When the entire horizon shifted, we realized that there wasn't a sky, just his form. Looking past him was difficult to begin with, but when we did our eyes met a paradox I can't rightfully describe. Many of our soldiers committed suicide on the spot, others simply died, but if I had to put it to words, there was no existance past the Lord Emperor, he had taken it for himself."

Robert bit his rotting lip, "it is hard to describe what happened next, but let me try."

He sighed, "we gave fight to it, I don't know why, but we did. It made enemy soldiers grow from the ground in groves, some forming in thin air, all a bizarre crystal. We stood no chance, strange polyhedrons stole our very existance as we fought, and when the Lord Emperor himself struck, well."

Robert blinked, his eyes wide in thought, "I don't even remember what happened. It wasn't anything my mind can process. The only reason the surviving members of the legion didn't die was due to Celia. Somehow she called upon some divine powers, wounding the Lord Emperor, freezing him in time. Me, Verran and half the Legion remained, fending off the crystal enemy while she escaped with the other half. She didn't want to leave, but Verran spoke some words to her, and she seemed convinced that she had to go back to Askor. So she left us there, under Verran."

"With the Lord Emperor stuck in time," Robert continued, "it was a matter of fending off the crystal horde, and quite frankly we suffered some terrible casualties, enough so that we had to retreat. But we kept at it, every day we would return, their perimeter having grown, and we would give fight to stem them as much as we could, perhaps in vain. It continued like this until one particular day."

"Verran was sad, I think, he was acting different," Robert looked off into the distance, despite being in a small cabin, "and slowly we felt something changing. Verran called upon me, Krag of Tarkima, Nestor of Osetina, Otis of Vlaanburg, and several others. While our bulk hit the crystal bastards hard, Verran and the rest of us snuck through the battlelines, and carved a way to the Lord Emperor. When we got there I felt that divine power the same as the day Celia struck the Lord Emperor, except tinged with dread. Verran was pulling something from the Emperor and as it reached us, all went black. When we came to we were already fighting the crystals, but we were different. We were no longer human, no longer just mere mortals, we were Einherjar, that's what the locals called us. In my viens I felt fire, and in my heart I knew a great divine power now dwelled within me. With new magics, we began to contain the crystals, and in a few weeks, their growing perimeter was halted by us. There we stayed since, studying our new powers, studying the events, the crystals, everything, defending the world by stemming the inevitable tide. We had no idea how long the Lord Emperor would remain in that strange stasis, so we stayed, ever learning and ever vigilant."

"Of course," Robert thought, "I always suspected Verran knew something more, which brings me to why I'm here. Our bodies slowly rotted with time, only our magic keeping us together and in time the stasis ended, and the Lord Emperor finihed his blow that he started long ago, but we were already away, having expected it the day prior. I cannot tell you what such an attack looked like but that country no longer exists. The crystals were given new brethren, and soon their army began to devour the people. We slowly realized how they were doing it, what was resistant to their all devouring blasts, and what was the best way to fight them, and in such Verran sent me to gather this."

He lifted the amulet with the pulsating gem, "before they did. But before I could get back to the main army, I ws cut off by the ever growing enemy forces and was forced to escape by going east, hoping to find the westward of Askor. With this necklace, Askor has a fighting chance where the other regions fell, and I think they knew that too. They followed me, but I killed every last one, but not before one damn crystal gave me one in the hip and a crack across the gem."

"So now you see, I have a delivery to attend to," Robert folded his hands over the gem, "any questions?"

Bahar sat pondering, thinking over the story just relayed to him. All those stories the Serenists had taught him as a child...they were true, or at least partially. "But the Lord Emperor...he was killed by Halwende, wasn't he?"

"Trust me, as a Lynndfairish Knight and former Serenist, I was just as confused as you are," Robert offered, "Verran was quick to tell me that 'clearly not."

"I'd have slapped him if Celia hadn't explained to me, or well, in a way," Robert nodded his head in a self acceptance, "Halwende never managed to kill the Lord Emperor, but he did wound him. Something about the whole thing being incomplete, and various babbles on the existance of magic and how everything works. She spoke a little too round about for me to truly understand it. It didn't help she never had the full story all at once, always waiting for the next dream, the next vision. How he got in the middle of nowhere though, 'fraid Verran is the one to ask, he as I said, seemed to know what was going on."

Robert held the amulet tightly, "but I do know this," he looked up at Bahar, "what actually happened thousands of years ago, what truly caused the disappearance of the primordials, the fall of Lynnde, the creation of mortal freedom, magic even -- all of that -- over back in Askor, we never had the slightest clue, never even touching the truth that much I know."

The captain chuckling cynically. "Hah. I always knew those preachers were a crock of nothing." He sat down across from the knight.

"Doesn't really matter much now does it," Robert answered, "I have a task to do, we have a war to fight."

"Yeah, well..." Bahar looked to the floor. "It's not a war that's mine to fight, Sir Knight." He sighed, and rose to his feet, kicking up the dust of the cabin floor. He stood, turned away from Robert, the sounds of the creaking wooding on the ocean softly ringing in his ears.

"You're not wrong," Robert said, his voice grim, "you'd do best to stay away, and take everyone you can with you."

"Why's that?" The captain turned to face the corpse. "Utyre is strong. They can take what's thrown at them." He paused, crossing his arms. "And Olira is far away from the madness in the East. We'll be safe there."

"Utyre won't be taking anything, I'm afraid if the Crystals get to them before Verran they will be doing a lot more giving," Robert shook his head, "stay in Olira, but be prepared to leave."

The Olirian stood for a moment, digesting the information. "What of your ship? What caused it to sink?" He chuckled. "When we found you, you were stranded with a hole in your ship that seemed almost to be punched in."

"Wood doesn't really do the trick when up against those polyhedrons, their blasts just eat right through it. Took a bit out of the the side too, lopsided the entire ship. Lucky there was only one or you'd find me swimming, or maybe crawling along the ocean floor. Not going to lie, I laid in that boat for so long that I did consider it," Robert answered, "surprised they never sent more crystals after me to be honest. They probably didn't expect me to channel my magic into keeping the gem from dissolving instead of healing myself."

Bahar smirked, and looked to the floor before looking back up at Robert. "I will get you to Olira, Knight. But beyond that, I offer no guarantees."

"That's all I ask," Robert returned the smirk, "and trust me, you won't regret that."

Legend of the Silver Legion Redux (Open)

(By Ekommogold)

As the expedition entered its seventh day since the last island was spotted, a dense fog had overtaken the ocean waves. The sea was aggressive for hours, rocking the boat, turning new blooded face's green, and doing a number on the Admiral Griobhaéch. But when the turbulent waves left, the fog stayed, and the wind slowed. The fleet found itself slowly cruising through the thick fog, lanters lit on every bow, mirrors in place to illuminate the immediate area.

Quick blinks of the lanterns were used to communicate to the other ships, and soon the fleet was nearly side by side as they made way through the fog. Hour eight in the fog, and a helmsman on the front most vessel, The Bowhead, sent out the signal to the rest of the fleet: ship spotted.

There looming slowly in the fog was a dark vessel, the deck at a strange angle, the bow pointing high in the sky, and the stern and mast missing. It didn't take too long once the crews got close enough to realize it was a floating shipwreck, the front half of an immense boat somehow staying afloat due to a lucky interior design, while the bottom half sagged below the waves, saturated or potentially even missing.

The Freishannese Royal Marines went to the ready as soon as the ship was spotted, although the tension decreased after state of the ship was revealed. Aboard the Admiral Griobhaéch the Honorable Magus Laoithr Ghúmard prepared for his duties. The announcement of the sighting of the mysterious vessel had not changed the necessity to keep the wind up for the voyage.

Meanwhile aboard the Bowhead the Magus Sáedir and the group of Marines stationed on the Seobagh ship came up from below deck.

"Oi! Cote they mine sal!" shouted Captain Siorc, who had come to the bow of the Bowhead to look upon the wreckage. He turned to Saedir with a half-toothed grin. "Lokes lake soam one's bate ose tow et!" Murce had come up with the Freishannese with her Grogarian eyes widened at the ship, and her father sighed. "A dite! Less prepar toe bard!"

Aboard the Liba, Has came down from the mast, approaching the eagerly-awaiting Bahar. "A shipwreck, captain." The captain nodded at the information, before Has continued. "Siorc's cut the main sail, headed for the wreckage."

"Catch up to them, and then do the same," Bahar ordered, squinting through the fog while his sailors behind him awaited further orders.

As the ships approached the vessel, they noticed the wood's darkness was due to intense saturation, mostly likely from being in the water for far too long, any laquer long stripped, but not long enough to sink the strange ship. Any aesthetic value left was completely alien, and no markings assigned it to any known nation.

The deck was completely clear, a massive jagged hole blown into the top. Water smoothed scratches zigzagged across the wood, and many signs of aggression marked the entire ship. The boat was otherwise quiet, leaving the mind to wonder among the soft lapping of the ocean and hazy fog.

“Captain we should stay back!” came the hurried shout of the Honorable Magus as he managed to get up to the sterncastle. Fixing his collar he continued perhaps a bit more tactly, “It would be prudent to wait, as I must be permitted to see what I can of any magical danger before we put all our Marines aboard such a damaged vessel.”

“This ship wasn’t built to easily maneuver everywhere, especially with three vessels already, you’ll have your time.” Captain Solbhan replied before shouting, “Raise the sails and keep the watch!”

Sáedir stepped back as the Marines prepared to board with the Seobagh sailors, planks and steadying ropes at the ready to maintain contact.

"Eh...go a aid ten," Siorc shouted back to the Magus. He looked ot the marines and sailors. "Stan' back, let 'em doe 'es wark." The Liba, being the small size it was, hung back behind the Bowhead.

"We'll support them if anything goes awry," Bahar announced to his men. With the ropes secured and the planks placed the few Freishannese aboard the Liba boarded the apparently abandoned vessel. They proceeded to move out in small groups securing the various locations that could be reached. Cabins and areas not under water in addition to searching the deck and the reachable castle of anything of import.

The found the ship eerily empty. The cabins only holding discarded metal armor and a few heavily used weapons scattered about, but as they passed by the hole in the deck, they couldn't help but notice a light. A soft red glow faded out from the hole in gentle intervals, similar to a resting heartbeat. The last place to look was down.

The marines surrounded the hole, many of their hands rested on their blades. "The hell is down there?" One of them asked. "Oi," he shouted, "Is someone there?"

No sound returned from the hole, just the beating of the softly glowing light. The marines looked to each other skeptically, murmering anxiously as they gazed down at the abyss. One of them picked up stone and tossed it down the hole, testing the depth of it. It didn't take long for it to make a soft clunk as it bounced off wood and into some water. One of the marines, holding a lit lantern, then announced, "Get me a rope." After tying the lantern to a rope, it was lowered deep into the hole, hoping to illuminate the darkness.

The light revealed the bottom of the second deck. It was at a slant like the rest of the ship, with one end disappearing under the water, and the other end slanting out of the water. Craning his neck, the marine could make out a hollow doorway at the end of the slant, the pulsing light illuminating from there. He thought for a moment, then took a deep breath. "Hoist me down."

After the marine was hoisted down to the second deck, he grab the lantern, which had been placed on the floor. "Be careful!" One of his comrades called after him, and he crept slowly towards the pulsing light.

"H-hello? Anybody there?" He called, squinting towards the doorway the light was emenating from.

The light's pulse quickened ever so slighty, and as the man got closer, the warmer he felt. He hadn't noticed it before, but the outside fog had been chilly, and his bones only just now began to thaw, safe from the ocean winds. Despite this respite, the ship remained quiet, the light his only companion. There was only one direction he could go. He swallowed hard, and pressed on, closer to the source of the light, a bead a sweat dripping down his neck. "I'm not here to hurt you...what happened?"

The man now stood at the doorway, his foot pushing soaked dust, and the gentle light ever pulsing, beckoning him in. He breathed in deeply, and stepped in. As he did, a hand jumped out from his side, grabbing his belt and thrusting him to the wet floor.

He lay prone on top of a body whose back was propped against the wall of the cabin, its hand now grabbing his collar. The marine stared with wide eyes as two pale blue eyes stared back from a rotting face, framed by dark wavy hair worn in a Lynnfairish style. Around the being's neck was a simple steel amulent, a pulsing ruby on the pendant. Everything else on the undead man was covered in endless white steel armor, complete with silver bands, and a gruesome wound shredding the armor away from its right hip, rotten flesh and chipped bone strewn everywhere. The two sat on a pile of dust, and the corpses jaw began to move, a ragged stone grinding cough for a voice.

"Freishannese?" The corpse asked.

"A-aye, sir," The marine responded, breathing heavily and nervously as he stared into the corpse's eyes.

A great sigh erupted from the corpse, be it relief or something else, "bring me to Askor." The hand let go of the collar and the undead knight let its head fall back onto the wall. The Freishannese man began to formulate a response.

"Who...what are you?"

"I am... Robert... of the Silver Legion..." Thin lids stretched over Robert's eyes as he closed them, "and... I am a knight of Lynnfaire."

“Prophetess protect me, you’d be d- I mean you’d have to talk to the Captains.” The man somewhat regained his wits as he edged away from the Knight to a more comfortable distance.

"Just bring me to Askor," Robert groaned, "our very existances depend on it." He held up the amulet from his neck, the room pulsing with its red glow, a large crack going down its center, "I must make it."

“Let me go get the Captains then.” The Marine moved to go back the away he came, back to the whole group. After returning he explained through panting, “...prophetess...living-corpse...silver legion…”

And then more coherently to the now assembled Marines, two went back down to confirm the story as the others waved get the assorted leadership informed.

When Bahar first was told the story of what they found, he was concerned for the marines' sanity; he knew they weren't quite used to being out at sea for so long. When he saw the undead corpse with his own eyes, he was a bit less skeptical. "Alright, the hell are you?" He said. Siorc smacked the privateer lightly on the shoulder.

"Thes es a noit off thar Silvar Laysion, showe soam raspact boy!"

"Respect to what? A rotting corpse? Bah." He snorted. "You can fall for whatever you'd like, but we should not forget that whatever this...thing has wrecked this ship, or something else wrecked it because of it." Siorc grimaced at Bahar's remarks, but still looked to...'Robert' expectantly.

"By the grace of light," Robert scoffed, "I'm right here." The knight leaned off the wall, one of his arms propping him up slightly, "I am Sir Robert of Kamwell, Former Knight of Lynnfaire under King Richard III and current knight of the Silver Legion, under command of Lord Grand Marshal Veran."

Robert seemed out of breath as he finished his small speech, letting his body fall back on the wall, his hand probing his gaping wound, "now if you don't mind, please bring me back to Askor."

Bahar's eyebrows were knit, and he bit his lip as he looked at the 'knight'. "What happened to the ship, Robert of Kamwell?" He looked around him. "'Cause by the look of it, you sunk it." Siorc interjected.

"Ya done know thote, Bahar."

"What I do know is that the Silver Legion was slaughtered three hundred years ago, and even if someone survived, last I checked, men don't live that long." The privateer looked to the other captain. "I say we leave him."

Robert's rotted face twisted, "Do I look like an ordinary man? You want to know what happened, you get me out of here, or the world itself be damned."

With what strength the wounded corpse had it ripped the amulet from its neck, the clasp snapping as he held the brightly pulsating ruby up to the onlookers, "take a good look, its your only salvation."

Quickly, as Bahar tried to snatch the amulet from the corpse, the jewel immediately burned his hand with an intense heat, forcing him to drop it. "Damn!" He snapped. The corpse scooped it up and shook his head.

"I said look, not take," Robert scolded, "I can see listening isn't the strong suit of this crew." Bahar rubbed his hand, continuing to inspect the knight.

"What manner of witchcraft have you endowed in that gem?" the captain snarled. Siorc rolled his eyes, looking back to the corpse.

"Fargef me frand, 'ey sames tow farget 'istry."

"No witchcraft," Robert corrected, "it's broken, and when you took it from me, it started to break. Only the magic endowed in me is keeping it together."

He paused, "a shame too, for I would much rather use such magic to render my hip together. Now you see why I must deliver it for my own personal reasons, on top of, of course, the damnation of all existence I keep blabbering about that you seem to keep ignoring."

The broken knight brought the necklace up to his neck, the clasp turning a white hot as it melded itself back together. He slipped it back on, letting the cracked gem rest on his chest, pulsing its soft glow.

Bahar's eyes widened at the sight of the self-repairing necklace, but he said nothing. "Yeah? Keep blabbering, corpse. I'm not going to be-"

"Nar, Bahar," the whaler said, speaking up. He defiantly stepped in front of the younger man. "Ye cahn bay skepical if ya loik, bat oif gote a dyuti." He turned to Robert. "Coam, wafe-"

"Siorc, this is rediculous," the privateer said loudly. "You can't possibly believe this...thing." The whaler puffed up his chest and locked eyes with the taller man in response.

"I belafe en thar [i]Selfar Lasion[i]." The two kept eyes locked for a while, before Bahar finally broke. He sighed loudly, placing his face in his palm, and waited a bit longer before speaking up again.

"I-I'll take him." Siorc raised his eyebrows at this. "If you won't budge, Siorc...you're more needed on this expedition than I am. I'll put the corpse on the Liba." The whaler start chuckling.

"Thas me mahn, Bahar!" The younger man grunted, then looked to Robert.

"But if I find out you're lying, corpse...you'll be deader than you already are."

"If you're to truly take me to Askor, I owe you one warning," Robert's groan turned grave, "if you're planning on going any further than this shipwreck, you'll find nothing. It would be wise if all returned to Askor with me, and the gem."

Bahar crossed his arms. "Really?" He laughed mockingly. "How do you know this, 'Sir Robert'?"

"Where do you think I came from?" Robert looked at Bahar, "I left the continent of Yzaille, heading East to reach Askor, but I'm afraid you won't find much of Yzaille is left, and certainly nothing to sustain life."

"Wote 'apent?" Siorc asked, a fearful look in his eyes.

Robert looked at Siorc, "The Lord Emperor happened."

"What do you mean?" Bahar asked as he stepped forward towards the corpse.

"Now that's a story for the ride home, eh?" Robert looked up at the pair.

The Golden City (Open Superhero RP)

@baraquiel Sounds good

The Golden City (Open Superhero RP)

@baraquiel We are still accepting! I've got a few questions power-wise, if you'd like to either pm me or click on the discord link. Otherwise, sheet's pretty good.