Red Wizard

Rerun: Blackguards!

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In the Belly of the Beast

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The Warden remains in the center of the room, motionless. A few of you speak to her, but if she notices, she gives no sign. once you've all awakened, she stars to speak. Her voice cannot be properly described. It sounds like the ice cracking beneath your feet, like the blade rasping against your ribs, like your home burning in the night. Most of all, it sounds like something not of this world. You can understand the words, somehow, but you know deep down that they aren't uttered in any tongue you speak. Other than fear, perhaps.

To the near east lies the land of Sulfrey, the Warden says, a rich and powerful land, ruled by the God-King Ael-Gol who is a loved as he is feared. Sulfrey has long acted as the bulwark of the east, putting a stop to the raids and invasions of the barbarian hordes from beyond the edges of civilization. They have been very successful in this, and have because of it enjoyed a long and lasting peace with the Westerlands.

Images flash before your eyes; armies of knights with horned helmets, vast cities centered around pyramidesque temples, throngs of people cheering and raising their hands to the sky as a procession passes through the streets, a horned knight riding on a great winged lizard routing a horde of primitive barbarian warriors, and the lastly, an image of a tall and slender man in a beautiful golden mask. The man is both wonderful and terrible to behold; the sort of entity that would and could make you die for it. The face of the mask is locked in an eternal half-smile, and there are no slits for the eyes, but the hairs on your neck starts to stand up as you realize that he is looking at you, that he knows and waits, and that he smiles with anticipation.

The problem is, however, the Warden continues, that they have become too successful. Too powerful. The easterling hordes are all but spent at this point, humbled by the forces of Sulfrey. Many barbarians have taken up worship of this false god and are spreading the faith further still. It will not be long until its influence finds its way westward, and with it, armies of horned knights. The King has decreed that this cannot be allowed to continue. I have been tasked with solving the situation, and so, I am tasking you.

Suddenly, the Warden turns to face you. The very motion is unpleasant, as if she suddenly snaps from one position to the next with a strange resistance to the fluidity of the turn as if reality tries but fails to hold her in place. She doesn't approach you, but somehow it seems like she is getting closer. Her eyes - those bottomless pits of horrid darkness - stare right at you, into you, through you. When she contiues speaking, you notice that her lips aren't moving. The sound of her voice comes from within. She's in your mind!

Your mission is threefold, the Wardens voice whispers in your mind, There are advance agents already in place in Sulfrey. We have however not heard from them for over a month. Their last known place of residence is the Golden Chalice, a tavern in the city of Malasta. Your first mission is to make rendezvouz with the agents. They are three in total; Tristana, Yorleif and Nashur. Your second mission is to learn of their findings and plans, and enact them. If you suspect that any or all of them have been in any way compromized, you are to kill them. Your third and final mission is to infiltrate the court of the false God-King and slay Ael-Gol.

The visions flood your mind once more; three shadowy figures, one female and two male, her hair a telltale red, his face carrying a telltale scar; upset and uprisings in the streets, confusion and mass panic, a burning pyramid or temple; a splendorous hall devoid of life, except... He is there and the hairs on your neck starts to stand up as you realize that he is looking at you, that he knows and waits, and that he smiles with anticipation.

You are all enemies of the Kingdom, the Warden concludes, Monsters, villains, traitors... Blackguards, all. You have been chosen, because noone will believe you work for the King. You have been chosen, because noone will care if you die. Do your best, or do your worst - it matters not. Know only that you will do what I have said. That is all.

An eerie silence settles in the room, the moments stretching into seconds, or minutes, or hours. It is hard to tell. Then a rumbling begins - quiet at first, but deafening within moments. It is as if a mountain topples over, as if a river of rocks flows through the room. You can't think for the noise, can't speak. Then suddenly, something impossible occurs. The walls starts to move, folding and slithering and breaking apart. The room collapses in on itself, and it is all you can not to scream as your doom comes crashing down on you. The Warden remains motionless in the center of the room, but you could have sworn she was smiling.

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Out of the Ashes...

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Darkness.

You are awake.

You are alive.

You must break free.

Open your eyes.

Your eyelids snap open. The light blinds you, but your eyes soon adjust themselves. You are no longer in the Maw. You can feel the soft caress of the wind on your skin, feel the warmth of the sun on your face. You are in a field of tall grass. In the distance is a great forest, and beyond, high mountains. There is a river somewhere nearby; you can hear the water running. It is in the evening, just before dusk. The sun has not yet set, but is about to. Free. You are finally free. You do not understand why or how, or where, but there you are. You take a deep breath, savoring the scent of the grass and the clean crispness of the air.

Then you see them.

The Warden is nowhere to be found, but the others are. Monsters, creatures and other entities. Unknown factors. Certainly threats. Memory comes back to you; you are not free at all. Something impossible is demanded of you. Something that most likely will get you killed. And the only help you'll get are these villains, these... Blackguards. And you don't even know who, or what, they are.

Seems like you're going on an adventure. What a joy.

Rerun: Blackguards!

@Vertigo Cool beans, I can with that! I'll get on it right away.

Rerun: Blackguards!

@Vertigo Excellent, accepted! Now, if you could find the time to toss up an intro in the game thread, I'd be grateful. I'd like to get the story moving :)

Rerun: Blackguards!

@Vertigo I'm going to want to move the story along within a day or so. Do you think you'll be able to squeeze an intro in until then?

Ye Olde Laboratory

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Out of the Ashes...

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Thuk Meuch-Tok sat atop his steed and looked out into the distance. They were still quite a ways ahead, but he could see them now; a band of easterling raiders, stealing across the plain like a plague. Or at least what was left of them. He and his warriors had been pursuing them for over a week since they had intercepted them near the border. Hoping to sneak across for some fun and games, no doubt. Well, fun and games it had been all right. But not for the raiders. They had put up a good fight at first, but their primitive weapons and uncivilized ways of warfare had been no match for the Sulfreyan knights. Before long they had broken and ran off, presumably thinking they could outrun the heavy riders. Thuk had entertained the thought of sparing some of them for interrogation, or to take some of them as slaves to be sacrificed in the glory of Ael-Gol atop the pyramids of Galgat, but had decided against it. It was heads on spears for the lot of them. Damned savages.

True, it had taken him some time to find them. Say one thing for the barbarians, they know the lay of the land. They had been smart, keeping to thickets and hidden caves, covering their tracks impressively. It had been chance that brought them out into the light at last. Chance and their poor morale. He had simply passed overhead, and the mere sight of the wyvern had made some of them lose it and take off in a panic, no doubt gunning for what they hoped was beter ground. Or they were just running wild. They weren't much better than animals anyway, these barbarians.

Ordering his men to start persuing and eventually charge, Thuk gave his wyvern a sharp smack with the butt of the spear and took flight. The great winged reptile hissed menacingly, but did as it was instructed. He had trained it well. Once airborne, it stretched its long neck, a full ten feet of serpentine scales and spikes, its wings beating like war drums on the wind. The tail, along with its lethal barbed stinger, flowed elegantly behind, subtly steering its path through the sky. They were marvellous creatures, wyverns, but ugly. Or terrifying.

Having gained some ground on the fleeing raiders, his two dozen horned knights following behind, he spotted something peculiar further ahead. The barbarians were about to scale a ridge, and beyond it - not yet visible to the landlocked - was a strange gathering of... individuals. Some small, some big, and was that an actual Frost Giant? Thuk was surprised, to put it mildly, but soon shook the sensation. Whatever they were, they were too strange. A group like that belonged in a funny tavern yarn, not on his border. He didn't know who they were and what they were doing there, but it didn't matter. It would have to be heads on spears for the lot of them too.

Having seen all he had to, Thuk circled back to his knights. He would lead the charge coming in low, as was the custom. Let the barbarians and the strangers fight it out first. He and his knights could handle the leftovers.

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...And into the Fire

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You hear them before you see them. There's a rumble on the wind, and then the distant warcries of bloodthirsty raiders. They spill over a ridge to the east, still some distance away, but closing fast. Easterlings. Barbarians. Two score perhaps, maybe less, maybe more. Some mounted, others on foot. All armed, that you are certain of, and possibly dangerous. They're coming your way, too. Just your luck.

A quick scan of the landscape leaves few options. There's a hill a bit further north, and a small thicket a ways south. The west offers nothing but rolling grasslands for miles upon miles, a poor deal for anyone looking for an escape or an advantage. A fight seems inevitable. Death, a possibility. But... are those really war cries? There's something off about the way the barbarians move, the way they sound. The band moves in your direction, yes... But are they coming for you? Then again, do you have the luxury of doubt, with potentially fifty or so murderous savages seemingly bearing down on you.

Time to think fast, or maybe not think at all. Sometimes, instinct is the voice of reason. Then again... Sometimes it definitively isn't.

Rerun: Blackguards!

@Chrys I'm neither for or against it, as long as it fits within the story and adheres to the Hierarchy.

Rerun: Blackguards!

@Vertigo@Lurking Shadow@Thunder999999@Drifting Pollen Hey there friends, how's it going for you? :)

Rerun: Blackguards!

@Eviledd1984 Cool! I would however like to suggest a little edit. If you read the OP, you can deduce that your character is not in it's cell and that it can't move because of some unidentified sorcery. If possible, I'd like you to change that in your post.

Tales From the Realm of Laelilon

@Ti No, I never read that far. I quit the forums alltogether for a while.

Tales From the Realm of Laelilon

@WhiteAngel25 Oh my, you're running this again! But you're full. Hmm... Well, if you have ay dropouts, and you feel like you want (need?) a little more Simbel back in your life, I'd be happy to join. Just let me know if and/or when!