Lords of Creation - What Shall Be (IC)

[Draken]

Ichmod, Inovation

In the time following the creation of the sun ring, Ichmod had returned to his domain of Inovation. That was because he had had an inspiration, and now he toiled at his grand design.

It took a sections of Inovation that dwarfed even the vast halls he used to build the Focusing Iris, but this was integrated into that space, and not simply built within it. It was not part of inovation either, but existed within and apart of it, having its own link to the furnace of the molten depths of the plane.

It was a vast room and a vast array of wire and tubes, and pannels and devices whose purpose only the artifice god could unhearth, because arcane gave way to mundane at a whim, divine and mortal began were one suddenly stopped, and the magical connected to the technological in ways that often should not work, with many a device serving no purpose but to power something that did nothing of any relevance.

All of this behind walls of iron and adamantine and crystal, with a vast gulf within itself, and sealed shut of the rest of plane by a vast hatch that opened into a room that did dwarf it in turn, like an open space within the absolute enclosure of Inovation, with walls and ceiling so distant they did fade into the horizon.

To complete his work, Ichmod made a tangle of long wires, and he encased them in an iron skeleton, which he encased in a segmented iron frame, which he topped with half of a hollow orb, within which he embedded the largest sapphire ever mined and cut, and within the sapphire he infused the energy of divinity, in a manner such that it spred through the entirety of the device, at which point the stalk contracted, setting the gem in the center of the hatch, like an eye in the middle of many titanic, flat iron teeth.

And with that, Ichmod walked over to the door, and stared into the eye, which blinked, and at that, Ichmod gave his command. "Make!"

A hum echoed through the titanic room, like a dynamo. Energy flashed through its frame, like a lightning coil. Arms within the unseen gulf took materials they were provided and began to assemble. Tubes pulled the worldblood from the depths to heat itself. Vents took the cold moisture from the unreachable beyond to cool itself.

In the end, the hatch opened, and to Ichmod walked beings of metal with many blades and powerful fists, and with devices with unknown purposes. But towards him also rolled off vast amounts of the magma, seething with fury, and to him howled mighty winds, from veritable glaciers that formed at the edges of the device. And the metal beings and the magma and the glaciers flared to life with power that almost reached that of the gods.

"Hohohoho. I think we might need to make a few adjustments."

The great thing's 'eye' blinked and nodded, before starting to examine what it had made. It looked at one of the metal beings, and it turned to it, and Ichmod looked to another, and it walked to him and looked at the creator with its gray eyes, speaking with a metallic voice.

"Maxinus I, online, Ironmaster Ichmod."

Then the one that turned to the device too, turned to Ichmod, looking at him with blue eyes.

"The first task has been concluded, Ironmaster Ichmod. The Creator Engine must waits new instructions."

Meanwhile, the magma and the glaciers took off to walk the iron world.

Spoiler

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Ichmod
AP gained: 4
AP spent: 3 - Beget Frikkin' Build Demigod: Creator Engine.
0 AP: Create Herald: Maxinus I. Anaxim.

1 AP left.

Creator Engine:
AP gained: 2.
2 AP spent: Create Populace: Anaxim, Phaeton, Xixecal.
0 AP: Create Herald. Voice of the Engine.

0 AP left.

[planswalker]

Solaron - The Shining Council

At Klashanna's suggestion, Solaron would have hit his own forehead in consternation, had he a hand and a head. As it was, his light flashed a deep shade of pink for a moment as he realized that he had just taken the sun for granted for the first time. Of course! If it was hidden there, then any god who would seek to use it would first have to find it. That would not be easy to do. It had been warded from detections in such a way that even another god could not find it without going through extreme effort and once they did, they would face the Ring itself, which was not without defenses. Though these could not stop a god on their own, they would most definitely slow one down long enough for the Conclave to rally to action. Solaron made a note to himself to visit his newborn brother god of shadows to discuss this cloaking spell he used.

Realizing that he had fallen into introspection again, he speaks up to the assembled council, "Of course the Solar ring is the best place to hide it. I think I shall also take Celis' idea and craft a decoy stronghold of my own here on the Shining Lands to attempt to distract any pursuers.

As to this angel here, I agree that we cannot imprison her based on what she might do, but neither am I willing to simply awaken her here in the middle of the Shining Council. We should probably take her to a place that is neutral territory to heal her, and see from there what her intentions are. I dearly hope that Aevum's spark within her is enough to undo whatever ensnarement Asharra has placed on her, but I will not take that chance and risk the lives of everyone in the Shining Lands on it. Too many lives could be lost if doing so brought a destroyer here. Would the continent of Hope serve as a good enough neutral ground to do this? I feel it important that we try to heal her if we can, but we must not risk innocent lives to do so. There are several forgotten forests in that land which could serve as a place to awaken her where there would be few if any lives at risk should she prove to be Asharra's puppet. "

----------------------

The Shining Council - various heralds

"We will have to agree to disagree on whether or not the gods are our betters." Dark Orchid says sullenly.

"A game? Of course! I love games. So does Dark Orchid when she's not being so fussy. I am not so sure about your views on gods and men, but it is of little practical value to argue it. We agree that our respective bosses are great, so what does it really matter how you parse it out. Just be aware that you'll set my purple sister off every time with that attitude. She has taken to personally protecting Solaron's reputation ever since he saved her from the Dead God. Now then, how do you play this game aga-"

he is interrupted as another shimmerling herald bursts in and shouts, "A game!? Ooh, teach me first! I wanna play!" this rather overeager enthusiasm belongs to Blue, a blue shimmerling with an abundance of energy that she never seems quite able to burn off.

"be careful with this one. She picks up games wickedly fast. She isn't as dumb as she acts. " says blue's twin sister Green. in a tone obviously meant to gently tease her overeager twin.

"Red and Orange seem to be too busy listening in on the council meeting to notice the herald party forming over here. Those two had always been more about work than play, as the oldest two of the prisma. Not that they didn't frolic when they had time off, but they seem to think that they need to have one or both of them on hand to serve at Solaron's call in these meetings, just in case he should need them." Yellow says.

"C'mon, stop jabbering and let's play already!" Blue exclaims.

"Yes, let's learn this new game. It should be quite fun. I do have one question, though. Why are there multicolored kobolds for those front line people? I've never seen any kobolds that looked like that before. Wouldn't shimmerlings be a better fit there, since there are so many of us? and why are the Shining One's pillars on here and not his golems? Sorry, I don't mean to nitpick and if it's because of how this game works, then please forgive my question and teach me why as I learn to play."
Green responds

"Would it be possible for all three of us to play at once? Would you other two Kleshanna heralds mind helping us out?" Yellow asks politely.

--------------------

The Prismatic Kobold Airship - Somewhere Over Hope.

They had been following the shimmering rainbows at night and the Sun by day. needless to say, they made slow progress that way, yet even so, their course was in a generally southern direction. As they made large circles by day and a relatively straight line at night, they rebuilt their populations from the deaths they had suddenly experienced at the sound of an evil black word. It took them some time, but their naturally fast birthrate helped them recover quickly. Slowly but surely, they inched toward the Shining Lands.

[Shmee]

The Moon

The god of Death made himself comfortable on his favourite chair. His mansion, located on the base of Moon's Tooth had a magnificent view of the plains of the Moon, devoid of all life. Chuckling to himself, he realizes that soon, the Moon would become a very crowded place indeed.

Raising his right hand triumphantly, the ghost watches as the five differently spheres of powers reveal themselves, each sphere the essence and power of a creator, long gone due to one reason or another. Yet even in death, they could not escape the hand of Death. They too would serve him.

In his left hand, the god of Death had written on a sheet of steel, what might have seemed as some form of a contract. On it were written these dark words

"Each one of us succumbed to the call of the grave, and thus we are cursed.
Bound no longer by our true names, our shackles have been broken.
Once known as Creators, now turned perversion of Creation itself.
May none lament our fate, for we brought this upon ourselves.
Thus we are held, bound for eternity, as fiends shall we serve."

On the bottom of the pact, are five dotted lines, awaiting the signatures to complete the pact. Giving a grin, the god of Death raises his right hand, and looking at the five essences of the deceased gods, begins to sign the contract on their behalf.

"Yours is the flames which shall engulf this world!"

With the essence on his small finger, he signs for the deceased god of Civilization.

"Yours is the earth, from which shall emerge unspeakable horrors!"

With the essence on his ring finger, he signs for the deceased god of Nature.

"Yours is the airs which shall devastate all in its wake!"

With the essence on his middle finger, he signs for the deceased god of Airships.

"Yours is the ice, the deep chill which shall freeze all!"

With the essence on his index finger, he signs for the deceased god of Winter.

"Yours is the power which the grave cannot hold. By Death you found them, by Death you bound them, by Death you shall rise once more!"

With the essence on his thumb, he signs on the final line.

"Thus the Pact signed!"

Checking that everything is in order, the god of Death nods, satisfied that everything was complete. Taking the paper, he simply throws it in front of the chair where he was sitting.

Upon touching the ground, the Pact erupts, momentarily emitting a bright flash of light, until it recedes, revealing four figures kneeling in submission before the god of Death.

Smiling towards the figures, the god of Death gives a tip of his hat and introduced himself

"Greetings... I have no name to introduce myself as, so you may call me what ever you wish, as for what I am, I am the very incarnation of Death. How do you do? You may introduce yourselves now... oh yes... ladies first..."

One of the kneeling figures raises and does a curtsy towards the god of Death. She was a beautiful figure, slender and smooth, her skin of the deepest ice blue hue, and with snow white hair which went down to her waist. Wrapped tightly around her body a cloak which produced snow where ever she tread.

"Greetings my Freiherr, I am Kryokoli, Elemental fiend and arch-Mistress of Ice."

Nodding in approval, the god of Death beckons to Kryokoli to take a seat next to his. He then motions to the next kneeling figure to introduce himself. The second one to raise was a head taller than the rest, quite slender for a man of his size, he had a set of comically diminutive bat-like wings on his back which struggle to keep the tall figure afloat. His face is completley covered with bandages, only revealing his dull-looking eyes.

"Please... introduce yourself..." motions the god of Death. The tall figure begins to introduce himself.

"Rhello mmuh MmFreihrrr. Mmmmuh nrhaime miz Meelioff, Melmntl Meind nd mstr mf mair." Comes his introduction, this voice muffled from the bandages firmly wrapped around his face. The god of Death looks at the figure in confusion and asks

"I beg your pardon?"

"Mmmai sed, mmmuh nrhaime miz Meelioff!" Insists the figure.
"I said, my name is Helioff!"
"Abyss take you fool! Stop mumbling! Why do you even bother wrapping your face anyway? Its not as if you are wounded!"

"Mhhh, mai meally mmlike miz sztyle... mit mmmakz mme ffeem feecritive."
"Meh, I really like the style, it makes me seem secretive."
"If I may my Freiherr?" Interjects Kryokoli, eager to show off her superiority "I can understand his mumbling. He says that his name is Helioff, Elemental Fiend and Master of Air."

Giving a sigh, the god of Death beckons for Helioff to take his seat. Motioning to the third figure to introduce himself, he hopes that at least this one will be able to speak properly.

The third figure rises, almost bent in double, the hunchbacked creature begins to cough violently, clouds of dust coming out of its mouth with every cough. The creature was visibly looked old, using a bark of dried up wood to help him stand up. Covered in a dull brown cloak , his face was stony and cracked like the dried up earth. From his chin grew a tangle of vines which reached to the ground and gave an impression of a beard. Still coughing, the creature begins to cackle as he introduces himself

"Ghneh heh heh... my Freiherr, I am Snailgosh, Elemental Fiend and Master of Earth."

Once again, nodding in approval, the god of Death motions to Snailgosh to take his seat. As Snailgosh hobbles to his place, there is one figure left kneeling. Knowing that he was the last of the group, he gets up and proceeds to introduce himself.

The last one was donned in a flashy golden armour, the armour itself made with intrinsic details of battles and glory of the one who wears the armour; most scenes not having really happened. The man's face was pure and beautiful without any blemish. His red hair styled in a way that would wave in the wind like an unquenchable flame. Pounding his gloved hand on his armour, he introduces himself.

"My Freiherr, I am Corchin, Elemental Fiend and Master of Fire... oh and handsomely beautiful if I may say so!"

By that time Corchin was running his hands all over his armour as if wanting to prove that his beauty was beyond compare. Noticing that the god of Death was waving him over in frustration, Corchin regains his composure, and takes his seat.

Seeing that they had all finished introducing themselves, the god of Death addresses his newly created minions.

"Very well, thus we have assembled. I have given you all a second chance, make full use of this rare opportunity given to you. I shall unleash you upon the unsuspecting world with but a single command; do what you will. That is all. Ladies and gentlemen, you have my orders, now go forth!"

With that the Lords of the Elements rise from their seat and begin to prepare to make their grand entrance in the Material Plane.

Spoiler

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AP 1= 4-3, Beget god, the Lords of the Elements


Name:Lords of the Elements
Rank: DR1
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Domains: Elemental, Chaos
Portfolio: Authority
Holy Symbol: Four Triangles interlocked in the centre
Favourite Weapon: Varies

More will be added later in the OOC

[Selinia]

Blood In the Water, Part 2

Staunen Harbor, The Past (Two Days since the New Dawn)

"Dragon-ship sighted! Aaaaannnnd... yup. Its that big Erik chap again... get this topside, NOW courier!"

Iean snapped something that could have been construed as a salute before scrambling up out of the observation room towards the surface.

It was his first day on the job, and he was determined not to disappoint these funny bug-folk who'd freed him. He wasn't quite sure what he was going to do with his wages, but the saerites had made it clear that charity only went so far - the freed slaves were expected to earn their keep, once they had had a chance to rest and recover. There were several jobs offered to little Iean - he was quick, and strong for his age, and good with his hands. And, best of all, it turned out he and his sister both were a natural hand at languages.

But to him, the choice was obvious. He'd asked about it - being a military courier was tough, he was told. He'd be run ragged with all the messages sent to and fro. The pay was decent though... money seemed like an odd idea to him - a Dark Faeli simply took what they he wanted. But he rather liked the idea of being able to simply hand over some shiny coins and get something in return without having to fight for it. Much safer.

Yeah... but the pay wasn't why he'd taken the job. He'd taken it for one reason... to be near the Cannons.

They'd started to roll them out shortly after the slavers had left - from what Iean gathered, they'd tricked the slavers (even the festivities of the Sunrise interrupted for only a day - a proper festival would apparently come later), and were worried that they might come back to get revenge. And when he saw them, Iean found himself sincerely hoping that they'd try it.

These were nothing like the rusty iron contraptions they'd shown the pirates. They were massive, cast in polished steel. Their barrals were long, and their insides covered with strange engravings he'd heard a saerite priest (no... engineer, he corrected himself - these saerites didn't seem to have priests) call "rifling". Supposedly, it made then cannons better somehow... but he couldn't see it.

Lost in thought, he almost slammed into the uniform-clad officer he'd been making for. Screeching to a halt, he snapped (well... to be honest, flopped) another quasi-salute and relayed his message.

"Uh, the watch-room sends me to tell that Erik's Dragon-Ship has been sighted, making straight to the mouth of the harbor!...
...Sir!" he added, having almost forgotten.

The officer nods curtly before waving his hand in a "dismissed" signal. Turning to the battery arrayed behind him, he gave his orders.

"Right then girls! 'Ere we go! Hostiles have been sighted making straight for the harbor mouth... right where we want them. We've got a minute or two at most - get those guns on target this instant! Go! Go! Go!"

With a scramble of activity, the saerites checked and double-checked their firing charts and made small adjustments to the facing and degree of their guns. Hatches in the back of each one were opened up (Iean later learned that this was another major improvement, by all accounts - something called breech loading) and a heavy metal shell was placed inside.

Staunen harbor was a natural fortress against naval attack. There was only one safe way through the rocky waters that separated it from the sea, and the U-Shaped harbor was surrounded by hills. Much of the city was built on those hills... but they also made for excellent vantage points over the harbor itself. And on two of them, flanking the harbor, firing platforms had been built.

And on one of them, Iean now stood, watching with growing anticipation as the final preparations were made...

****************

"AAAAGGGH! We're almost there boys! Weapons at the ready, we're gonna burn this place to the ground and walk away rich men!"

There was a chorus of approval from the crew - even the wretched little goblins. They knew that if there was enough treasure, they might be tossed overboard to clear up some space. It didn't occur to most of them that their heavy iron chains would likely go as well.

Erik bared his teeth as they rounded a great rock and the harbor proper came into view.

"Double-time boys! Show these filthy gobs how real seamen row into battle! Row! Row! Row... wait... what was that?"

There was thunder atop the hills...

Erik's last thought was that he had perhaps made a very serious error in judgment - if they had had cannons to give to him... they must have kept some to fire as well.

****************

Iean couldn't suppress a whoop of glee as those who had captured and tormented him vanished in a volley of cannon fire. Recognizing the freed slave, the saerite officer chuckled somewhat and addressed him.

"Heh. It feels good, doesn't it? I never thought I'd see the day I'd want to see one of these lads fired... but those scum deserved every shell." He paused a moment before making up his mind to continue, "You know, they say that Isabella is sending a delegation to Hoffnung... gonna request that a fleet be formed. Maybe hunt down other like those out there... but for today, we won. Heh, run home, kid. Here - to celebrate your first victory!"

With that, the officer flipped a heavy gold coin to Iean - it was a good chunk of money... and suddenly, he knew just what to spend it on.

Communal Shelter, Staunen

The freed slaves - forty or so total - had been given this building to eat and sleep until better accommodations could be arranged. The building was a little small for the number of people sleeping there, but they had plumbing (Dreah had come to love plumbing - why didn't every place have plumbing?) and heat, and a kitchen to prepare the basic foods that the saerites had learned to thrive on in the time of darkness. At the moment, little Dreah (having run out of immediately available thing to eat) was attempting to find someone to pass the time with. Iean had gone off to do some job or other, and she was bored out of her mind.

Dreah shuffled her feet - still bare (the saerites had done their best to feed and clothe the refugees, but... they simply didn't have any shoes. They'd never even heard of them before. But Dreah didn't mind - she was more comfortable this way anyway) and poked the gnome again, hoping to gain his attention.

"Mr. Gnome! Mr. Gnome! My brother said that a shiny gnome helped me get over my fever when I was very sick on the boat, and that he probably saved my life. Are you that gnome? You are certainly very shiny, and if you are I want to thank you for helping me get over my fever when I was very sick on the boat."

"...Also, do you have any rice cakes? I ate all mine. And then I ate my brother's... and then I went to the kitchen to... uh... borrow some so that I could replace my brother's, but I wound up eating those too. And I think they'd probably catch me if I went in to the kitchen again, and my brother is probably going to want some rice cakes when he gets back."

She spoke in Human - or at least, something closely resembling it. Her stomach is noticeably distended beneath her slightly too-small tunic, and as she finishes her short speech it grumbles loudly, making the girl blush furiously. (Well, as much as someone with jet-black skin CAN blush, anyway. It's more in the posture.)

[Draken]

Staunen, Communal Shelter

The gnome turned to Dreah, handing over one of the rice things and pointing out to Mardhin.

The iron gnomes did eat very little, considering how much they worked, in turn, but only a few did so for the saerites, a golden one who had began to teach a few interested saerites the principles of magic, two more silvery types, a darker one and another between with coloration brown and orange who had gone around doing no small amount of engineer work, picking up the saerite techniques surprisingly fast, even stopping to use their magic for most of the work.

But the majority remained in a circle in the shelter, gathering metal scraps from the work of the five would-be engineers, and all sorts of rocks and dirt from the countryside, and many kinds of... Well, trash, ragged fabric, broken glass, even oil from stains and puddles on the ground.

And thy were assembling it all into a rather large device. One very much different from the saerite technology, in fact, it did not appear to be capable of doing anything, it had no wires connecting to anything, no gears, no pistons, and they had sough no power source, it was just a bunch of symbols and runes and oddly arranged bits in a tiered structure.

Nor the other ex-slaves nor the Saerites knew what that was supposed to be, one of them had told Dreah and a curious saerite it was a "<sky fleet beacon>" once, speaking in his own language, something "to call attention" he had roughtly translated in broken human language, leaving Dreah with the impression that it was an altar to the gods and the saerite with the impression it was some sort of art.

Most odd, then was when they finished it, and asked the others to help take it outside, and at the same time Mardhin requested an audience with queen Isabella.

[dr.cello]

Rodica, The Endless Court

"Very good! Perhaps we'll keep you around." Rodica gestured and any trace of the performance circle disappeared, replaced with fresh growth of trees. "Come, sit at my side, Puppetmaster. I shall tell you of the Trickster and the great lights he hung in the sky, and whatever else you wished to learn."

Celis, The Shining Council

"Come to me when you have finished your fortress, and the Trickster shall wrap it with illusions and enchantments! With the addition of my infinite cleverness it shall be impenetrable! And, merely because it is a decoy is a poor reason not to use it to defend other things."

He paused for a moment, as if lost in thought. "And I have an idea for this angel that so worries you! When it comes time to awaken her you must let me know."

Spoiler

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AP:
Celis: 0 + 2 (rollover) = 2
Rodica: 2 + 2 (rollover) = 4

[planswalker]

Solaron - The Shining Council

"I thank you for your assistance. Be assured that I will call upon when that happens. Would you care to share your plan before the conclave?"

[dr.cello]

Celis, The Shining Council

"If I must." Celis sighed with a hint of annoyance here, but the permanent cheerfulness returned mere moments later. "It is a simple plan! You do not want to risk that she will harm anyone, but you cannot see if she will attack anyone when she awakens if you do not harm anyone, yes?"

He laughed and created an image of creatures of darkness lashing out at creatures of the light. "So she awakens, surrounded by creatures she finds abhorrent! Glowing shiny brightness, milling about in a forest under the glaring bright sun! She strikes at them, and--" the creatures of light vanish, leaving the creatures of darkness confused, "--they vanish into mists and starlight!"

He turned in place and assumed the form of an archon. "Under the careful guidance of the Laughing God, a perfect facsimile! A perfect target! And perfectly safe! You can't hurt an illusion, you know."

[Noedig]

Callix, the Endless Court

Callix stands and moves to the queen's side, laughing as he walks.

"Ha Ha! The looks on their faces! It's nice to see the Trickster's people can take a joke, although as of yet you are the only people I have met. We'll have to say how other mortals react. Hmm, maybe they'll have similar sense of humor. Maybe not. Who cares! It's fun for me regardless."

He takes a seat next to the queen and ceases his laughing, taking on a slightly more serious tone.

"But I meander down a path I'm not interested in wandering today. You said you would tell me of Celis, and more. Please, disabuse me of my ignorance."

[planswalker]

Solaron - The Shining Council

If it were possible, you would think that the lantern was laughing at the clever simplicity of it. "Truly your perspective at these meetings are invaluable. You are definitely quite the clever one. I cannot say whether or not everything you say is true as you claim, but it certainly is clever."

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please note that Solaron doesn't think in subtle ways but that doesn't mean he doesn't appreciate them or that he's stupid. his thought process just isn't really all that conducive to this. To his mentality, any problem should first be solved straightforwardly, then if that fails try the next most direct. I hope I haven't had him come off as an idiot recently. he's just not likely to be the one to propose the cloak and dagger solution. Once someone else has, though, he is all for going with the best solution.

[dr.cello]

Rodica, The Endless Court

"You fill find the people of the Trickster in every corner of this world. But, for those who do not wish to wander, there is the Endless Court of the Laughing God, and in the world of mortals, the Trickster's Vale." Rodica poured a glass of wine for her guest, but took none for herself. "The Trickster was born to a nymph who took a mortal lover. It was through his great cleverness and the divine blood that coursed through his veins that he ascended to godhood, driven by the worship of those clever humans that he gathered to himself. He set them to wandering, to spread the merriment of the Laughing God to all corners of the world and to find new and brilliant things. But before the birth of the sun and the stars the world was cold and dark, and even the Vagabonds, the faithful of the Trickster, despaired--so he forged for them the Trickster's Vale, and guarded it with a river of poison and endless winding paths, and created as its guardians pixies and satyrs and dryads. At its heart he opened a door to the Endless Court."

She smiled wistfully. "As we speak Celis is attending to the works of the creators of the sun, whose celebrations were disrupted by a great blight on the lands. Before that, I can tell you no more--you can perhaps try gods older than me."

Celis, The Shining Council
"Haha! It is a poor trickster who tells lies!" Celis offered no more on that front, and returned to his normal shape. "And perhaps we can learn something this way! She will let her guard down if she does not see anyone she recognizes."

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You're doing fine at the straightforward-not-stupid thing, don't worry.

[planswalker]

Solaron - The Shining Council

"Shall we start immediately then?" the lantern's gaze can be visibly felt in Klashanna's direction, even if it doesn't visibly have a face to gaze with.


--------------------------------------------------

Milronas - Celestial Legions in the Shining Lands

He went ahead and gave the order to prepare for war. Whatever his lord was doing, he would not interrupt him but he needed to start preparing for war. The undead menace was growing once more, and his troops needed to be prepared. As soon as his lord got out of the Council meeting, he had to bring this threat up.
His troops were eager to prepare. They had been humiliated by their defeat in Aevum's court, and have been puxhed aeround by evil on all sides. The respite in the Shining Lands was necessary, but not always loved. They were beings of action, and there was evil growing in the world. They needed to go forth and defeat it.

[BloodyAngel]

Asharra: A Dark Place

For the first time in ages, the young woman finally felt free. Away from the stern and overbearing grip of her family... surrounded by other students and teachers of the arcane arts. Living away from home was a god-send. Nervous though she was to be out of her family's keep for the first time in her life, she could not help but be excited.

She had had to beg her father to send her, informing him that all the major players of politics in the kingdom had a court magus... and that having a mage within the family was far more valuable than the alliance he hoped to gain by marrying her off to the Baron's second son. Both times she had met the man, the lustful look in his eye had frightened her. If the rumors of his "appetites" were true, she feared to even be in the same room with him.

Now however, she was free. Living at the college granted her freedom from that lecherous man and from her father's stern gaze. Never before had she been around so many young men and women of around her own age. Her heart was soaring as she took her first steps from the her carriage into the stone-paved courtyard and looked up at the magnificent towers above her. Now, all she needed to do was perform well in her studies to show her father that he did not waste his money in sending her here.

~~~~~~~~~

Two years at the arcane college seemed to fly by. She had thrown herself into her studies, fascinated by the freedom and power magic promised her. With a few words and a wave of her hands, she could make light, or sounds... she could summon beings of other planes, send people hundreds of miles in the blink of an eye, or summon and control the elements themselves. It seemed there was nothing magic could not do.

While she was by no means an expert, she was learning at a rate that astounded her teachers. She spent her free time studying lessons she had not yet reached in her classes, and experimented with spells in the privacy of her room at night. Magic made anything possible. She dreamed that it could even get her from under her father's thumb. She was tired of him ruling her life and seeing her as a commodity. In two years the shy, quiet girl she was had become more confident and self-assured. As long as he was paying for her tutoring however, she had to remain on his leash... and she was beginning to resent it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Time had changed the skinny little girl into a budding young woman... and she had noticed the attention this brought from those around her. The young men of the school went out of their way to treat her well, and even several of her professors were kinder to her than they were to their other students. Of course, there were several who seemed to think that the arcane was a man's field... and working to impress those men was a seemingly unending task.

One of said professors was adamant about his belief, and nothing she could do was taken well in his eyes. He was as stern and demanding as her father had ever been, and callously dismissive of her progress no matter how she hard she tried. She feared his negative reports would reach home, and given how her father shared the same beliefs, he would withdraw her from the college. It was enough to show her that she could not make her way on talent and hard work alone.

That year, she put to use the skills she had been taught to entice and secure a husband on Jagrun, one of the teachers who seemed to favor her. One evening was all it took, and she had access to the tomes that were kept from the normal students. Spells far above what she was being taught currently were at her fingertips now... as well as access to the darker lores that the academy did not teach. Deep down, she took a spiteful pleasuring in knowing that her father would be disgusted with her for what she had done. To her, giving herself to her teacher was no worse than marriage to the lecherous pig he had hoped to shackle her to. Giving her virtue for power and freedom seemed a fair trade.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For months her affair continued, and she shot easily to the head of her class. Her lover gave her excellent marks, as well he should for the things she did for him... but her access to the school's advanced resources put her a full head above the other students even in classes she had struggled in before. Soon, others were struggling to keep up with her, and she had to purposely hold herself back to avoid showing how far beyond her classes she truly was. She experimented on her own, learning spells that were forbidden to teach. Gone was the innocent girl who had arrived at the school three years past. In fact, now she pitied that girl.

Debasing herself for what she wanted no longer bothered her. In fact, knowing how it would offend her family if they knew made her enjoy it. She had gotten far, far farther this way than she ever had through hard work alone. She was far from stupid... having learned spells that even some of her teachers did not know. She had come to the realization that success came to those who were willing to do anything to achieve it. It was not the smartest people who succeeded... but the ones who had no limits to what they would do to succeed. Morals, pride and dignity would all lead to failure eventually.

She was hardly shocked when eventually, the affair came to light. The scandal was incredible, but it did not bother her. Jagrun was disbarred, and she was expelled from the school and forbidden to return. She was shipped home immediately, to find her father fuming in rage and shame. Her actions would stain his name and his precious political status for years to come. When she stepped from the carriage with a smile upon her face, he was outraged. He ordered her to her chambers amidst a tirade about her uselessness and loose morals. The foulest words he could think to call her could not erase her smile... and when he told her she would be joining the church and spending the rest of her days paying penance for being a sinful whore, she did something she has always dreamed of doing.

She told him no.

The look on his face was priceless... and she thought he might collapse of the shock. As he screamed at her, she could not help but wonder why she had ever been afraid of him and his disapproval. She could snuff him out like a candle if she chose. She cut off his tirade with a single spell... watching with a smile as her father's body seized up in magical paralysis.

I am done with you father. I am done with everything about this family. She told him coldly, I owe everything I am now to you... so I will leave you be, but do not ever come for me. I will never come back here, and I will never be under your thumb again. I would much rather be a whore, than be your daughter.

With that, she left her father's home... and true to her word, she would never return.

---------------------

Godly Actions: AP: 0 + 4 (Rollover) = 4
Pantheon AP: 0 + 1 (Rollover) = 1

Since Asharra's background might come out soon via the god of knowledge, I figured I'd put some of it down. Hopefully it wasn't too distracting, and you all enjoyed reading it. Also, there's not much else to do with her while she's in her little coma.

[Croverus]

Meta-verse

The strings had finally woven together. All signals were aligned correctly and calibrations had been made to prevent another universe ending explosion. What a waste of a perfectly good universe's potential that was. At least the documentation of Universe Pie MXXVVII had been delicious. This new universe though had amazing potential and a vast history to catalogue. And the divine beings! They were so interesting, all those secrets. A few refugees from past realms even had found there way here.

In a small pocket dimension between the world and various realms next to it, a slight screeching, like a cart skidding along a path, echoed several times in the empty realm as what resembled a small hut simply phased into existance. Inside the hut was larger - much larger - than it was on the outside. It was filled with shelves that reached high up towards the ceiling, which itself was obscured by shadows. The shelves were packed with dusty tomes and scroll cases of various sizes and styles. The doorway outside opens in one wall, witha single path leading between the stacks to what might be the center of this... structure. A large wooden table piled with books, and more books and reems of paper littering the floor. Teh edges of the table were lined with symbols, carvings, knobs and wheels, and various buttons that looked out of place. A secodn glance showed flat screens that could maybe be made of crystal with lights playing across them. Several materials, possibly metal, also made up panels on the table.

Standing on one side of the table and tapping away at a crystals creen was an ancient looking being. His skin wrinkled so much his skin had texture similar to wood. His face seemed burried by a bushy moustache and a wispy beard, while a large pair of thick spectacles covered his eyes. His cloak was a dull gray and seemed bleached of any color by time. His skin appeared pale with age, though his fingers were inky black and his fingernails resembled pen-tips. Beside him rested an ancient, gnarled staff covered in runes. The old man watched the screens, nodding to himself. His name was Sordend, also known as the Uncaring Watcher, and this was his Library. The histories of entire universes that had been born and died filled his shelves. Already he was gathering information on the history of this universe and it's inhabitants. He gathered a reem of parchments and an ink bottle. dipping several fingers into the ink his skin absorbed it like any ink-brush would. He began working on the compilation of this universe, his fingers moving rapidly and neatly as he wrote in his special language of glyphs and symbols.

His presence would not go unnoticed. A small ripple of power from the Library arriving on the pocket dimension would alert any deities to the presence of the new being.

(Edit: So I start with 20 AP, how much will I have to spend for my Library to have existed? I'm willign to spend as much AP as I possibly can on it. It pretty much does what the TARDIS from Doctor Who can do, except the Library isn't as sentient, was in fact created by Sordend's hands, and it can travel from universe to universe. However it will be a millenia or so before it can voluntarily move on to a new universe. For now it's pretty stationary.

Also it acts as its namesake, it holds information on anything and everything that exists/has existed. But it does not hole information on thigns that haven't existed yet, so no spoilers. Secrets of other gods are known to him but he does not share them freely.)

[planswalker]

Solaron - the Shining Council

As Solaron stood here debating with the other gods on the best way to handle the current situation, he came to realize something: he had not gone to mortal lands in a long time, and neither did he think that he could. His power had simply grown too vast for the mortal world at large to handle. He had reached that threshold where now he could no longer directly be with his mortals. However with this, he also gained a greater capacity to help those under his care. He turns back from his introspection to deal with the current debate once more.

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going out of town so decided to go ahead and finish up this week's actions. he'll go along with whatever the council decides and send Red and Orange to keep up with the goings on in the world.

divine actions: raise DR to 6

ap: 0=3-3(raise dr)

[Shmee]

Fall of the Empire Part II

None knew where the Orcs came from. None knew whether they were the twisted fascination of a mad Creator, or whether they were an unfortunate side affect of the events which were rocking the world. One thing was for sure, the Orcs had arrived on Despair by a twist of fate, and it wasn't long before their presence was made known.

The Goblins were the first to witness it. The massive green horde moving in and systematically destroying the Goblin cities. The Goblins were no match physically for the big brutes, and so resorted into their usual tactics of blowing everything up, and relocated. Except that there was a massive problem with the Goblin plan this time... the Orcs reproduced just as fast as the Goblins.

In fact, no one knows for sure how Orcs reproduce, as no female Orc has ever been seen. It would forever be, one of the world's greatest mysteries. Thus the Orcs continued to press upon the Goblins, who fought as valiantly as a Goblin would, blowing up their cities and retreating further into their mountains.

To make things even worse, with the Orcish invasion of Despair came another form of creature with them. These vicious creatures, smaller than even the Goblins, had a voracious appetite and would consume just about everything in their path. A single Gremlin would pose no threat to an adventurer, but on occasions, the Gremlins would inexplicably swarm, and then they would spread death and destruction in their wake. Even the Orcs themselves were not safe from the Gremlins.

Yet no matter how much the Goblins retreated, the Orcs kept pressing on with even more force, looting and destroying for the sake of destruction alone, until the Orcs had smashed the final Goblin opposition with the conquest of the Big City, capital of the Goblin Empire.

The Orcs began a great feast of looting and pillaging, and many Goblins were massacred in the process as the destruction of the Senate signified the fall of the Goblin Empire. And the slaughter of the Goblins would have continued, had not a single Goblin managed to gain an audience with the big boss of the Orcs.

The Goblin, wearing his ceremonial armour and missing his eye managed to save the entire Goblin race by making a deal with them. General Screechy, now the leader of the Goblins, what with all the Senators slaughtered, after talking with the Orcs managed to safeguard the existence of the Goblins by agreeing to be their slaves in return for their lives.

The deal was harsh on the Goblins, who were now incorporated into the Orcish tribes, but at least they would live to plot for another day on how to destroy their oppressors and restore the once "mighty" Goblin Empire.

Yet Screechy had also thrown another offer to the Orcs to sweeten the deal. Screechy argued that on Despair were creatures much more powerful than any Goblins the Orcs have ever encountered... perhaps even stronger than the Orcs.

Naturally the Orcs would have none of it! The Orcs were the biggest and the best! And anyone saying so would have their heads smashed in. Smiling, the crafty Screechy pointed to the East, away from the Mountains of Despair, at the Gnomish capital of Grindforge, which was still being besieged by the Liches of Symaxia.

Hearing from the battle hardened General Screechy, the big boss gave a command to all the Orcs. They were to prepare for a big and good fight over in Grindforge. Soon the whole of Despair would learn to fear the Orcs.

As the Orcs prepare themselves for a great slaughter, no one notices Screechy standing in a corner, rubbing his hands. The Goblins would have their revenge... one way or another.

[Selinia]

The Shining Council

"Then we are in agreement. I will take this Spark to the Ring at once... the sooner it is properly hidden, the better. I will leave the angel here, in your care Solaron - contact me if her condition changes, or if you have need of my aid in mending her. But... I do not believe we should deceive her. If she is not an enemy, such duplicity could well make her one - Aevum was not a deity known for his fondness of trickery, no matter how clever. It would make sense that his successor would share this distaste."

Before she takes her leave, Klashanna moves to speak with Uplink - while the others had already begun forming teams and organizing matches with the heralds of the shining god, Uplink had hung back, her head buried in her hands.

"Hey... Uplink? You sure you're okay? I've never seen you this tired before..."

"Neesamaaaa... I'm fine, really. Just worn out... can I come back to the ring with you? I need to patch and recharge." At least, Uplink hoped a patch would fix her up...

But thoughts like that were no good. She had more important things to do. Whatever was wrong with her, she could tough it out. She had to.

"Very well then." Klashanna raised a hand in the air, as if manipulating some unseen switch.

"Connection established. Hex, bring us up... and be gentle, Uplink is feeling poorly."

"Request received..."

Control Chamber, The Solar Ring

"...welcome home you two. Uplink dear, I've readied a repair pod for you, you should be ship-shape in no time. Should I expect her sisters any time soon, Lady Klashanna?"

"I'm not sure... they ought to let you know before they head back though. And Hex... thanks."

"Nothing to it, Lady Klashanna. I exist to serve. Incidentally, there was a minor anomaly in the void - there appears to be a new subspace there - as these tend to be occupied by Creators, I've marked it for future reference."

The three-dimensional map of Planet lit up to designate a region of space over the oceans between Progress and Despair. Klashanna analyzed it intently for a few moments before responding.

"Interesting... as soon as I properly secure this Spark, I'll have to investigate. Relay this to the Shining Council chamber as well - I've set up the projector there to be compatible with you."

"Certainly. Just a moment..."

As the goddess left the room, Hex quickly returned to his project - a few more strokes and... done. As soon as the message was relayed, he sat back to admire the results of his work... just a handful of words, lovingly chisled with a high-power laser from outer space.

Dear Kobolds,

If you just follow me around, you will go in circles. The place you are going is this way...

<<<

...and if you go that way you will reach it.

Love, The Sun

Communal Shelter, Staunen, The Past

Unphased by her previous mistake, Dreah happily trotted over to the indicated gnome, munching on her newly acquired rice cake (having already forgotten that it was supposed to be for Iean. And hey, she was hungry - who can blame her?) and humming a tuneless ditty.

"Hello Mr. Gnome! The shiny gnome over there says that you were the gnome who helped me when I was sick on the boat. Iean says that a shiny gnome helped me when I was sick on the boat, and that... hey, that's Iean now! Hello!"

The dark faeli girl lost her train of thought entirely as she turned to hug her brother. Iean merely looked slightly apologetically towards the gnome leader and dragged his sister off before she could bother him further.

"Sis... you ate all the rice cakes again, didn't you?"

"I'm hungry!" Dreah's stomach gurgled - although Iean personally thought that it was far more likely that it was protesting being crammed with enough food to feed a grown man for a week. Its prominent rounded shape supported this theory. Of course, it only cost a couple of coppers for a stack of the things, but... he certainly wasn't letting his ever-ravenous sister know that.

"Ugh... well, come on. You said you were bored? I found someplace where you can help. And hopefully make yourself useful. Come on sis... this way..."

Staunen Hospital, Staunen

He led her to a clean, white building. It, like so many other things, had fallen into disrepair during the Darkness, but it seemed to be getting priority when it came to rebuilding - only days, and it seemed almost as good as new.

This, Iean had learned, was a place where the Saerites treated their sick and wounded - they called it a Hospital, and many people of great learning gathered and studied there. What had caught his eye was a small sign posted up in the window...

"Looking for apprentices - young age preferred, no prior knowledge required. Curriculum includes basic first aid and biology. Expected duties include minor physical labor and some assistance in minor operations."

In this place, for whatever reason, saerites seemed to give apprenticeships out for free. He'd quickly realized that anybody who was anybody here had an "education"... best that he get Dreah started off early. As soon as he gathered up enough coin, he planned to enroll as a journeyman gunsmith himself. Unlike apprentices, journeymen were expected to pay for their classes (he later learned that this was often waived for those who showed natural talent, or those in a profession where their services could pay for themselves.

After conferring for a short time with the receptionist, he turned and knelt down beside his sister.

"Okay, look here. These people have nicely agreed to teach you how do medicine, which is a big deal here, and..."

"Whats medicine?"

"Its... ummm... its how people are put together. They make people better. Anyway, they'll explain more. But you have to do what they say, okay? You'll be sleeping here, and they will give you stuff to eat, and I'm going to be stopping by every day to check on you. Do you understand me?"

Dreah grinned from ear to ear, practically bouncing with excitement.

"I'm gonna make people be Better! Just like the priestesses in the stories! I love you brother!"

Hugging his sister tightly, Iean didn't really stop to consider what she'd meant by that... but it probably didn't matter.

Communal Shelter, Staunen

After much confusion (and scolding for the first messenger not having a translator with him) the saerite herald finally relayed the following message to the gnome spokesperson.

"Lady Isabella would be happy to meet with you and your delegation shortly after sunset of this day. She also sends her best regards, and hopes you are settling in well."

[Croverus]

The Library

Sordend finished another volume. He closed the tome, the title on it reading "Asharra" on the front. He waves a hand and the volume rises and floats toa new shelf that needs to be filled. He looks abotu as the only door slides out. He watches it and shakes his head. He speaks, his voice sounds like crackling paper.

"No... I cannot leave here. Too many tomes to right. Perhaps... I will make another."

He takes up his staff which pulses with ancient power as he raises his other hand. Several tomes floated from their shelves and circled him, opening and flipping through the pages. He stopped on the image of a large eye with leathery wings and a small mouth. It could go looking for beings to come to him. His staff reverberates with power as he instills it with some of his knowledge. He feels some of his energy fill it. He grins, then taps the picture, pulling it out of the book. The images seems to pulse in midair as it gains substance. It starts chittering before it speaks in intelligent words finally. It's voice has an almost curious purr to it.

"Master Sordend. I am Mokugekisha! I will observe the universe to assist in studying the other deities."

Sordend nodded and felt something odd. Expending a deal of energy he feels himself get stronger. Mokugekisha floated about, basking in his creators increase in power. Sordend seemed to find the ordeal a simple necessity. He waved Mokugekisha off and then gathered at the strings in the universe. He opened a door that would now connect to the Material plane. The door would move.

"Mokugekisha, go now and start recording the Material Plane. If you come across a being that may have secrets I haven't learned yet, send them to a portal to come here."

Mokugekisha passed throught he portal to explore the Material Plane. Sordend sat back at the table, gathering another tome and beginning on it. He watched several of his crystal screens, watching important events unfold. He now had two doors that moved about the shelves as they shifted. One attached to the Material Plane, and the first connected to a random transient plane.

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20 AP - 8 AP for creating the Library last post, -3 AP turning the staff into a Utility artifact named Story Teller which can bring images in books to life, -3 AP creating Mokugekisha the DR1 Demigod, -3 AP to increase DR to 7, -2 AP creating a portal conecting the Library to a random moving point in the Material Plane = 1 AP left over.

[Draken]

Staunen

Mardhin finds the events surrounding the dark faeli siblings to be severely amusing.

Aaaanyway. Let us move to the sunset. On their audience with queen Isabella, Mardhin went with only two other gnomes, both with the darker skin of the adamantine clan.

"Hello there your grace! First of all, I would like to reiterate our thanks for releasing us from those savage barbarians of the sea, those humans, and we would also like to thank you for your hospitality, it has been a blast! But... Obviously we miss our home, the grand plains of Hope -"

"I'm from Despair, actually, I was on vacation."

"- The grand plains of Hope and the rocky mountains of despair."

"Much obliged."

"So we have taken these past days to work on a device to communicate with Steelamach, and provide transport that doesn't involve the sea, and I would be happy to say that we are done!"

Mardhin strikes a pose.

"We plan to make our contact as soon as possible, but we must warn you beforehand, so that no miscommunications happen, for that would be terrible, and so explain what is it that shall be done."

The two other gnomes nod.

"Our apparatus, the Sky Fleet Beacon, serves twin purposes. First, it allows for long range communication with similar devices we have both in our capitals of Steelamach and Grindforge, and second, it serves as a tracking device, an anchor point for the instant long range transport of our sky citadels, one of which will most surely be sent, to provide a more permanent link of transportation between our continents! One that does not involve seafaring, never again."

The two other gnomes nod, again.

"So we really would like to know where would be a good place to perform the procedures, and if you would like to prepare a diplomatic delegation, or something. A big open area would be preferable, I saw a nice position in the northern cliff, very high, everyone in the city would be capable of seeing it arrive!"

----

Shining Lands

Still nothing of Ichmod.

But then the door of inovation opened, but out stepped not Ichmod, but two humanoid machines with very weak sparks, heralds, perhaps.

Maxinus I and Voice of the Forge appeared.

"Greetings, deities, I am Maxinus I."

"You may call me Voice of the Forge, for I am Vox I, Herald of Creator Forge."

"Lord Ichmod." "And lord Creator Forge." "Send his apologies that he must decline your presence for the time being." "And the Creator Forge apologises for not being capable of presenting itself to you." "But he must deal with particular issues." "That bear little concern to those not the races of iron."

Something about the anaxim looks particularly more vicious than Ichmod's previous works. Probably the several blades, odd openings and other strange addons.

[Noedig]

Callix, the Endless Court

"My thanks for your sharing of this knowledge of my progenitor, and your gracious acceptance of my little trick. I will do as you mentioned and seek out these other gods, these creators of the sun. Beings with the knowledge and power to build such a spectacular work will know much. I will be leaving promptly, but first..."

Callix rises from his seat next to the queen and removes his mask. However, instead of a face beneath it, there is yet another mask, identical to the first.
Callix shapes to eye holes for the mask, but otherwise leaves it completely blank.

"You shall be my herald, and I name you that which you are. Awake, Mask."

The mask floats free of Callix's hands. It does not speak but merely nods its assent.

"He will stay should you need to locate me, or if you would happen to like another performance."

Callix turns to leave.

"Now then, off we go! You there, Sprite. Would you be so kind as to direct me to the ones who created the sun?"

"Master?" The word hummed in Callix's conscious.

"Stay here and watch. Test the strength of the mortals. Subtly. Contact me if you find out something useful. It is important that you be obedient to Rodica, within reason. Goodbye."

Callix, the Shining Lands

Callix arrives in the Shining Lands with very little in the way of an entrance.

"Greetings," he says to no one in particular, though there are several denizens of the realm about. "I am Callix, the Puppet Master. I seek those who created the sun. Where are they?"

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Actions: Create Herald (Mask)-0 AP

[dr.cello]

Celis, The Shining Council

"The Trickster has never been concerned with whether people should like his tricks! That rather defeats the purpose, and where is the fun in that?" He shrugged here in a gesture that displayed far more indifference than any mortal gesture could possibly convey. "But! I have offered a choice, and if the clever shiny lantern god wishes, he may refuse it! I have been away from my court for some time, and Rodica is waiting."

[Selinia]

Isabella's Court, Staunen

Isabella is largely silent as the gnomes entered and gave their introductions and mission statement. She was clearly listening, but her eyes were screwed up in what was either intense concentration or pain, and her fair skin was slightly flushed.

As Mardhin finishes his short speech, Isabella seems to shake off whatever had been troubling her, and spoke clearly with a (only somewhat forced) grin on her face.

"My apologies if I seem... distracted. I assure you, I can hear every word, but I appear to have made a minor slip-up in my schedule, and I have just finished this day's Birthing. I refrained from doing so during the Darkness, and it will be some time before my body is accustomed to it once more. Until then... I am afraid I must bear it. Ah well, such is life."

"In any case... you can communicate over distances?" By now her smile was entirely genuine, her oddly girlish face lit up with enthusiasm. "Our own scientists have been working on that for months now... radios, they call them. Of course, we have some ways to go before they are functional... pure theory at the moment. Does yours, by any chance, function on Basic Science? Or is it of this new "Arcane Science" I've been hearing so much about?"

She seemed to catch herself here, and looked slightly sheepish.

"Ummm... ah, well, please excuse me. I find such things as fascinating as anyone. But you did not come here to teach me the principals of your device, no matter how fascinating it may be. As to your question... yes, the cliffs of Staunen would be excellent. I assume, from your description, that these citadels can fly? Fascinating... almost certainly Arcane Science, that."

"I eagerly look forward to meeting your leaders, Sir Mardhin. Although I will have to confer with my sisters, I personally see much to be gained if our Nations joined with you people. And... you spoke of Humans."

Her face darkens at this, remembering the foul being who had brought these refugees to Staunen in chains.

"Rest assured, something will be done. Even now, new ships are being outfitted as pirate-chasers. They will find that even the most favorable wind cannot outrun a steam engine. Anything you or your people could tell us about them would be of great assistance... in particular, we are worried about how to assault their ships without harming the prisoners on board."

"And... lastly, what do you know of those other races on board with you? The Faeli have been resistant to our attempts to communicate with them, and there seems to be some sort of schism in their numbers. And we have yet to find a single member of the stout folk who is willing to so much as attempt to speak anything but their own tongue. And... but sorry, there I go again... please, I do not mean to interrogate you. In any case, I am glad to hear you will soon be reunited with your people."

With that, Isabella leans back, seemingly awaiting either a response or a farewell.

[Croverus]

The Library

Sordend finishes another tome, setting it aside in a pile for the moment, with the title reading "The Orcs, Watsituya?" in red lettering, though no red ink vials are anywhere around. Sordend gathers two tomes now, and begins filling them with the past and secrets of two more gods; Klashanna and Ichmod. As he wrote abotu them these gods would feel something tugging on their minds, alerting them that their darkest secrets were known. The source of this feeling could be traced to the Library's location, and indeed the front foor was open to all. The previos tome abotu the goddess Asharra would have given the Lady of Darkness a similar feeling. Sordend knew that the gods would know when he wrote of them and never worried about being harrassed. He paused as his observer Mokugekisha send him a flood of images of the Material Plane. Sordend casually pull a large parchment and went back and forth between filling in entries in the tomes of the two deities and beginning a map of the Material Plane.

[Draken]

Mardhin and Isabella, Staunen.

Ouch, she had just been giving birth then and there? The adamantine gnomes cringe.

"Uh... Yeah. And yes, plenty of what we do relies on our arcane crafts, and there is much that can be done with them, long range communication, transport, breaking speech barriers."

"I heard Barlownes Smirgodhstrom Soriristir, from the Cog Towers had plans for a weather controlling device shortly before I left Grindforge."

"Oooh. Sounds like a project!"

"As for the faeli and the dark faeli... Hmm... We heard some tales from the faeli that we used to live with, from their story... The dark faeli started to follow a different goddess, and took on wicked practices, and were eventually banished to the underworld. Not sure what happened afterwards. That is just one half of the tale, of course, we really had never seen a dark faeli until we were in that boat. The dwarves... Eh. Never spoke much with them, they keep a lot to themselves even back in Hope. When the citadel arrives it will have some universal translators we can use, no problem."

"You didn't speak of the citadel!"

"Right, right, I forgot entirelly. Yes, yes it does, in fact, fly! An entire castle in the sky, one of our grandest achievments! You will be awed!"

"Not so sure about meating our leaders, however, there are plenty of them."

"The assembly of Steelamach has nine councils, how about Grindforge?"

"Eleven. I think there are less outlying territories, however."

"True, true."

"Well your grace, I believe this is all. We will go meet with the others and get the beacon ready and in place!"

Mardhin waits to be dismissed and then they saunter off to do as they said.

----

Ichmod

Ichmod discovers that someone is finding out all of his most horrible secrets.

Hmm... Is there any horrible secret?

Don't think so. Ichmod returns to whatever he was doing before.

[Selinia]

Isabella's Court, Staunen

"Goddess above, twenty councils? I spend most of my time trying to one from imploding... your leaders must be hardy folk indeed."

Isabella shook her head, a slightly bemused expression on her face.

"Still, a flying citadel should be a sight to see. The more I hear of these magics, the more impressed with them I grow... and I would dearly love to examine this translator you speak of. Still, if you must be going, I am not one to delay you. Just... make sure you give a little warning before the diplomatic delegation arrives, would you? Having a messenger burst in to announce a meeting mere moments after I have finished giving birth is not an experience I have any desire to repeat. Ever."

Control Room, the Solar Ring

Having secreted the Spark of the Lady Artis safely in the depths of the Ring, Klashanna now examined closely the reading from the odd pocket-plane that had come into existence mere hours before. Then...

"Hex, are you picking this up?"

"Basic divination, very high strength, broad scope... targeting you. Yes, I have it. Unless you are referring to a cranberry muffin, which I do not have. Absolutely not."

Klashanna raised an eyebrow, but ignored the AI's odd phrasing.

"Okay... this is our way in, I think. The MAC is probably a bad idea here, the resident may not be as forgiving as Solaron... data-stream it is. You have the target, Hex?"

"Indeed. Target acquired. Proofing lock... clearing data-streams...saying what I'm doing... and... we are go! Have a nice trip, Lady Klashanna!"

But the goddess didn't hear him - she was already warping directly to her destination, rendered as a stream of invisible code...

The Library

Klashanna shook her head as the air filled with the characteristic static noise generated by re-materialization. She was in... a library? How odd... but it was most definitely a library, with books of all shapes and sizes covering the walls. It appeared to be deserted.

Out of curiosity, she picked a book off the shelf at random (the title seemed to be, "Eris - No, Really") but quickly put it aside... tomatoes didn't do that. She hoped. At this point, she finally heard something - it would have been easily missed, were it not for the dead quiet of the place. It was a small sound... the shuffling of paper, then the scratching of a quill. Moving cautiously, she moved towards the source of the noise.

The place was vast - that was only now starting to sink in. The shelves boxed you in, but they went on for what seemed like an eternity... if there was an organization system behind the titles, it likely transcended mortal thought. At long last, the source of the sounds came into view - a single ancient man hunched over a writing desk, scribbling furiously away. He didn't seem to have noticed her... but she could tell at a glance that he had the Spark - after a fashion. It was different from that of other deities she has seen, either Creator or Destroyer, but it was unmistakable in its nature.

Making up her mind (she hadn't come this far just to wander through some musty bookshelves!) Klashanna coughed politely, hoping to gain the attention of the Scribe God.

"Ahem... sir scribe? I am a Creator of this world, and I have come upon seeing your plane come into conjunction with that of Planet, hoping to gain some knowledge of it. Are you the curator of this place? What is its purpose?"

[Croverus]

He looks up and you notice he has no quils. He is, infact, inscribing onto the tomes and parchment with his fingers, the tips of his nails resembling such quill tips. He does not stop writing while he speaks in an old, dusty voice.

"I am Sordend, the Uncaring watcher. This is the Library. It holds records of every universe to have existed and will hold records of every universe that will exists, until all of reality finally ends and everything that has been and will be becomes Nothing. Who, might I add, has some very interesting chapters on his hobbies. You are Klashanna, Maiden of Invention, and if I might say so, one fo the more interesting deities of this universe. Quite a lto of history and work you've done, very impressive. Your hunger for knowledge and willingness to try, even with almost no certainty of an experiments success... most enjoyable to write about. This book to my left contains almost everything about you. Still trying to figure out what happened with that last experiment. Those equations seemed... funny. And not haha funny."

There's a sudden flutter of wings and Mokugekisha flies in through a portal, landing ont he desk. It's whole body was basically a giant eyeball with bat wings and a pair of tiny arms. Mokugekisha tapped at some of the flat crystals and lights danced across them in symbols Klashanna would never have seen. Sordend waves a hand as he stops writign and both tomes before him rise up, closing and landing on a nearly empty shelf. One has Klashanna written on the front, the other Ichmod.

"I am glad one of you have come. Though I can know all the history of this world, there are some secrets - very few mind you but some - that I must find. But leaving the Library... no, that is what Mokugekisha is for. There are few gaps in your history, but feel free to browse, and I love stories. A person, be they mortal or god, cna think they know so much, but imagination can always come up with something that pure knowledge lacks. And the last batch of gods... well they were a violent buncha nd none too creative."

Sordend took his staff as he stood and began to walk down some stacks, tapping now and then at an empty spot and one fo the books at his table would move to take that place.

[Draken]

Staunen

It was not too long after Mardhin left Isabella, less than half a day, when an unusual event happened.

There was a low vibration in the air, and a weak rumbling of the ground, followed by a low keening from the mountains above.

And those who looked towards the sound would bear witness to the might of gnome craft, as the Sky Citadel, Leoroteis, appeared hovering lazily in the air, a vast structure suspended in the sky.

-----

Creator Forge

It had plans. Plans that went unsaid, and it had to prepare for such plans to come to fruition.

First came the anaxim, the semideities of steel and the searing Phaeton, and the frozen Xixecal.

But that was not enough, these could be sent to many places, but to no avail yet. There had to be more, and there needed to be means to it all.

Legis and Ferrum stepped forward from the lines of the anaxim, and the great blue eye stared at them, handing silent commands.

Cogs turned and pistons moved, and hatches opened in Inovation, to places beyond.

-----

Abyss

It was Legis who reached the Abyss, a terrible sea povoated by things of great power. But great power that was of no use against the terrible engine, whose fledling divine essence gave it awareness of a great distance around it, and thus it could avoid all would be guardians, it also warded it from even the greatest of divinations, thus keeping it a blind spot to those thing's unnatural senses, and those it could not avoid would fail to pierce the adamantine that made it, and would know suffering as the power of lightning charred them, and adamantine blades torn their would-be carcasses into shreds.

Legis' goal was soon reached, upon the broken rocks of the Abyss it found the comatose goddess Asharra, beautiful, but gazed upon by something that had no lust, terrible, but gazed upon by something that had no fear, and most unusual of all, for something like her, vulnerable, and gazed upon by something that had a purpose to be there.

Many a god would love the opportunity to take revenge on Asharra, but alas, no god that suffered her misdeeds was present, only Legis, still an humiliation for the goddess this would surely become, in the future.

The machine pushed her prone form on her back, and produced a round sawblade from one of its many limbs, touching it to the goddess' stomach and making it spin. Only to break all of its teeth, and so it discarded the blade. So it turned her on her stomach, and pushed aside the tentacles that took the place of her legs, even as a metal pipe extended from within its palm...

----

Moon

Ferrum reached the moon. Not much happened there, thus it strode unfettered towards its goal. A palace upon a mountain, where there was a dead god. Ferrum would wish not for its mission to suffer interferences, so it became invisible to common eyes, just as it was invisible to the arcane eyes.

First it dug the bloodied soil, but analysis proved it was not enough. So it went up the mountain, until it found a shriveled corpse impaled on a spear.

The god of death was dead, but he was active in his avatar, which would surely notice the disturbance of the corpse.

No matter. Ferrum would never be traced. So like its peer in the Abyss it produced a blade from its arm, but this one like a tube with teeth at the end of one edge, like the mouth of a lamprey. And this was plunged into the corpse's body, drilling into the center of his chest to bore a hole from which to steal the contents within, until it was sufficiently content in its findings.

-----

Anaxim

From within the metal tube in his arm, Legis removed a glass vial containing a disgusting ichor and several microscopic things it could see only through special devices in its eyes, and the metal tube was cast off in the floor of the abyss, it could not be taken back to Inovation, not ever.

Ferrum retracted the hollow blade into its arm, and from a hatch he looked at the contents, dried organs no starved beast would dare touch.

The anaxim left unhindered, the doors of inovation would open, and they would return successful.

Spoiler

Show

That means, unless something else happens BA and Shmee, they will leave.

[planswalker]

Solaron - The Shining council

"I bid you farewell, clever Celis. Your insight at this council proved most invaluable. May you alays fid my lands open to you.

And to the newcomer Calix, I also greet you with the hospitality of my lands. I can sense that you are like unto the clever Celis, like as I and my brothers are kin. I am one of the four whose energies went into the creation of the Sun Reborn. Another created the populace that guards it vigilantly, and another has woven magic into it and hidden its true nature from all unfriendly eyes, even those of a god. Your brother Ceris completed the contribution by providing the night skies with new stars, ones that can guide the peoples and remind them that light and laughter shine through even in the darkest of times.

Was that a satisfactory answer to your question? I am afraid that most of the gods involved in the New Dawn are not easy to track down. My brother Minrhet can usually be found over in his portion of the Shining Lands. I am afraid that you just missed Klashanna and Ceris as they just left. Ichmd seems to be preoccupied with his latest scheme. My darker brother has not been heard from recenty. I think that I shall pay him a visit after this.

Feel free to wander my domains as you wish, I only ask that you follow the one rule of these lands: Do not harm another fellow creature with the Spark of Life"

------------------------------------------------

The kobolds recieved the mystical Sky Message, but found it hard to understand. Those few of them who had learned how to were puzzled: what was wrong with circles? and what land were they trying to reach? the one thing they did know was that following lights would lead them to- something. They didn't know what, but they knew that they would know it when they saw it. However, neither did one ignore it when the Sun wrote you a mesage. they decided to solve it the Kobold Way: just randomly guess and hope for the best. After a divination from the Oldest Shaman, they decided that the Sun knew well, but Roygbv knew best. If the Sun didn't like being followed, theyy wouldn't upset it. Instead, they would wait until nightfall and follow what they had come to call Roygbv's Hind, mostly due to its resemblance to their ex-teacher's posterior at night. Though this did not increase their productive travel time, they did get the chance to spend fewer resources on flying and more on maintaining the tribe, mostly by being able to feed more mouths, thereby having more young.

[BloodyAngel]

Asharra: Somewhere

With no money or family backing... finding further magical tutors would be difficult. She could live well enough selling her spells, but living alone was not her goal. She did not want to live like some common merchant or tradesman. She wanted to learn... to increase her knowledge and her powers. Magic was the drug she craved, and she was beginning to understand how little everything else mattered.

Seduction had gotten her this far... and it would serve her still. For some time, she sought out mages of known skill and poor morals... and offered herself as an apprectice, serving under them in every sense of the word. She learned quickly, stealing away at night to pour over old tomes and scrolls while her "master" slept. Once she was convinced she had learned all she could, she moved on.

Her third master was a man of dark temper by the name of Martis. He jealously guarded his spells and demanded menial and depraved tasks of her constantly. Pride concerned her not, but she would not do so for no gain. She exhausted him one evening, before slipping off to his libraries to go through his books and see what exactly he was keeping from her, when to her shock, he confronted her. Enraged and accusing, he believed she sought to steal from him and would not listen to reason. He attacked her with the full force of his magic, sending bolts of negative energy to ripple over her and she was forced to defend herself.

It hurt... Everything about it hurt. But she was younger and stronger, and was able to endure his attacks and respond. She called upon a dark spell, calling to his blood to tear free of it's fleshy restraints. With a sudden shudder, he coughed up blood and fell to the floor, unable to maintain focus upon his spells. She pressed her advantage, and within moments, he had seeped the remainder of his life onto the cold stone floor.

Never before had she killed, and now... she wondered why. She had held to the belief that one should hold no reservations in the pursuit of power. Why should murder be any different? She had snuffed a man's life out, and she had never felt more powerful. What was more, now his spells and artifacts were hers. He was a wretched man... he would not be missed. Now all that remained was to go over his things... and then find herself a new "master".

-----------------------

Godly Actions: Aside from being violated... not much. AP = 4
Pantheon AP = 1

Oh... and where is Aurelia being kept? I'm planning to do something with her soon.

[Noedig]

Callix, The Shining Lands

Callix makes a bow to Solaron. He is a bit put off by the brightness of his fellow god, and he interposes his hand palm outward between his face and the hovering lantern.

"It is a pleasure to meet you sun-maker. I can see where they got the inspiration for the sun; you certainly shine like a tiny one. But you said "reborn". That implies a death. How is it that the sun came to die the first time?"