Godhood IC

[Ipphli]

"Mostly just self reflection. It was kind of odd though, by the time I got my head wrapped around one question, I had to start thinking over an issue that came up in the previous questioning."
Icarael remoed his helm and smiled. "Still, it's good to share an existence with someone else without resorting to violence."

"Indeed. If only such a thing were possible more often. But I do not think those other gods will leave us be for long. In time they will come for us."

[Ringwrym]

Sense the prensce of other gods Cavor rushes above Gade.

So I see you have returned

[Iethloc]

"Do pardon me for being late. I got...sidetracked," Dezisorn chimed in as he appeared next to the Gods above Gade. He wore the same human guise as he often did, his time spent away not appearing to have changed him.

"But don't worry about that. Since it looks like we've already gathered nearly all the 'good' Gods, we should start planning. We can have more pleasantries when there's no imminent threat of Darkness.

[razovor]

File 563hgg638dh6 (Assessment of blast)

Collective killed: 4,562,729

Buildings destroyed: 785,393

Photon turrets destroyed: 693

Photon turrets damaged: 92, 13 recovereable within battle time, squads assigned to repair.

Central data Bank: Completly destroyed

File gh456gfh37fdh (Battle plan 54K)

1) Swarm move to replace destroyed data bank, connecting themselves to data relays

2) Collective members within 1 mile of teleportation relays form into battle formation and teleport away to battle the threat at the periphery.

3) Remaining collective members enter nearby buildings and take defensive firing positions. Fire is concentrated on single targets, to attempt to draw fire away from the photon cannons.

4) Photon cannons activate, concentrating fire on single enemies to bring them down.

[Imperial Psycho]

The Masked One floated, deep in thought, in a casual sitting position. Every second new information poured into his head, until suddenly, a flood of cries came. From the Disk. The Swarm. It seemed the Madgod had acted against it. Changers watched the spectacle from their viewpoints across the Black City. ...a new weapon?... I need more information on the Madgod.. Then he sensed it. A gathering. One had the taint of the Madgod....but the other... it was the new gods, surely! Hrothlar was not with them. He supposed it was as good a time as any, to introduce himself properly. Moments later, he teleported himself to their location.

As he appeared before them, he stifled a laugh. "It is a nursery! All of the Little Gods are here! Welcome to the universe, new ones. I hope you have enjoyed your stay so far...despite your...welcome. I take it you are rallying against the MadGod, and his allies. Whatever preconceptions you may have about me, new ones, know that I am opposed to the Madgod. You can trust me in that. "

[TheDarkDM]

Before the Hounds of Kaal'ex even collided with the defending members of the Collective, streams of acid were vomited forth. The first wave of defenders died in a melting agony, but in many ways they were the lucky ones. The second wave of defenders had to contest the razored claws and bladed tails of the surging Hounds, and many were cut down before they managed to halt the Hounds' advance.

Far above the Disk, the Void Reaver fleet was engaged with the remaining Photon Cannon batteries. With an explosion of entropic plasma, one of the great beasts fell, crushing a mass of perfect building beneath its bulk. But despite the causalities they were taking the Void Reavers inflicted grievous damage upon the Disk's defense grid. As the wave of Hounds stalled, a trio of void Reavers moved over the largest knot of Collective soldiers and unleashed a rain of fire. Though the Collective reacted immediately with deadly precision to close the gap, the loss of numbers shifted the balance back towards the Hounds. As the hours went on, more and more of the Collective fell, and they were pressed further into the Disk. As Void Reaver corpses burned above and viscera fell to the metal Disk, the last bastion of the Collective gathered around the remains of the Central Data Bank, the last remaining area protected by Photon Cannons. Despite their might, it seemed as though the armies of Kaal'ex might be forced to concede defeat, until a flicker of green lightning arced across the sky above the last bastion. As the Collective gazed up in disbelief, the Basilica of Flesh returned to the material plane, its wounded flesh grown over in an oily black carapace, portions of it bubbling out into tendrils. While most of the tendrils were the same as those that assaulted Gade, some were tipped in red eyes, eyes that unleashed beams of flame. Its vast bulk was too much for the remaining defenses, scouring the last remnants of the Collective in a flurry of fire and shrapnel and acidic slime.

On the dead remnants of the Disk, the Hounds of Kaal'ex began to gather their dead, hauling millions of corpses back through their portals. The Collector corpses were gathered as well, though half were left in massive piles for Seln's collection. Back in the Black Pyramid, Kaal'ex smiled broadly, revealing black diamond fangs, and addressed the Conclave.

"Well, that should alleviate the threat of the Swarm. A shame, really, that we couldn't wait for them to turn their weapons against the planets they were defending, but the risks were too great. Seln, half the Collector corpses are left on the Disk for your use, and now it seems our forces have an ample supply of ore for expansion. Now, we must discuss how to deal with the Second Council - Oblivion, have you made your choice?"

[daelrog]

"Nursery?" Icarael looked puzzled at first, but then brought his hand to his chin and smiled. "Yes, I suppose that may be true."

He turned to everyone. "I think patience may be our greatest asset right now. Unless the rest of you have learned more than me in the past couple years, I know nothing of the Trintiy we faced. To be honest, I think I am only beginning to understand who I am."

[BladeofOblivion]

Oblivion peered carefully at the book, turning its pages and reading quickly.The Swarm, you say? Curious, there is no mention of a god called The Swarm in this book. Come to think of it, I noticed a few other... ...oddities. Here, on the recounting of the First Godhood War, it says that Kaal'ex defeated Hrothlar in battle and then retreated from the "other gods" to save the Basilica of Flesh. Despite the fact that Hrothlar is the only opponent listed on the opposing side. In addition, I find it difficult to believe that Moarzed simply sat upon the sidelines in the second war, rather than, say, defended his allies. You list no opponent for him, however, so that seems to be the case. In fact, the Disk is not marked here at all. Seln, are you attempting to hide something from me? Oblivion closed the book and looked at Seln suspiciously. He then turned to Kaal'ex and said: The nature of my purpose does not allow me to forge an official alliance. However, the key word there is "Official." I would be glad to aid you in your struggle. He turned back to Seln. I am still curious what you are hiding. Oh, and on a sidenote, do you really control that many Boneborn? If that number is accurate, how are you NOT leading this conclave?

[Creed]

The book is incomplete. I defeated the Masked One in the Second War. Moarzed says quietly

[Imperial Psycho]

"You do not know much of the 'Trinity'? That is easily rectfied. The Madgod, Kaal'ex is the most dangerous of them. He was the catalyst that caused the Trinity to form. On him,I know the least. I know he has legions of abominations at his command.. Nova's strength comes from numbers and technological advantage. nullify either, and she is defeated, though do not let your guard down around her. She is silver-tongued, an expert at weaselling out of charges. Moarzed is the least dangerous of the three. He has no significant forces. Leave that one to me. There is also Seln, the undead god. I do not trust him. Lastly, there is Milton, who threw himself at Nova's feet in the Second Battle. I presume you would know more of him than I.

[daelrog]

Icarael shook head. "That is a ncie overview old man, but it is little to go on. What makes Kaal'ex smile? What is Nova's favorite color? Her favorite song? What does Moarzed dream of when he closes his eyes and chooses to rest, if he does so? This Trintiy seems to have its own strange code of honor, where misleading is far removed from lying, and lying is far worse than genocide. What of this?

As to Milton... yes, I think I do know him. The Fierce Steel Dragon, Blond Demon Milton of the Resplendent Way, god of charm, contracts, insight, and weapons. I am not entirely sure what he is doing, but he is not one to play the role of subservient. However, he is patient, and I wouldn't be surprised if his untimely affection for Nova was completely a lie.


He looked up at the Masked One. "Surely, she is not the only goddess, is she?

[Imperial Psycho]

The Masked One shrugs. "She is the only one I have met. But do not call me old. Nova, Seln and Hrothlar are the Old ones. I am...somewhere inbetween. And Little is what we have. I can give you some details of the Raposa forces, at Nova's command, but I know little of Kaal'ex, and less of any forces Moarzed might muster. "

[razovor]

The Swarm left the ruined disk and flew off across the galaxy. It travelled straight to the centre of the galaxy, to the Super Massive black hole that rested their.

The Swarm created a ball of new metal, small but dense, and populated it with a few of it's collective. It browsed through it's archives and found file 7gd63hd6g5, which detailed a new form of anti-gravitational bubble.

The Swarm surrounded the metal ball with this bubble, and cast it into the black hole. It flew straight through the black hole and formed around the singularity at it's core.

The collective, protected by the bubble, began work on their new city.

Spoiler

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1 Act: Start a new city, at the centre of the Super Massive black hole, protected by a bubble of
anti-gravity.

[daelrog]

"I think we may be jumping to conclusions too quickly, speaking as if war has already been decided upon. Even if we do make that assumption, what do we have? If we know nothing of who is to become our enemy, at the very least we can evaluate what we have.

"I for one have nothing. I do not have armies, or minions, of demigods, or anything of use for some great war. Who here can say they have the forces to challenge those in power? Unless the tides of fortune have turned since we last met, I think all we can do is build."

[Imperial Psycho]

"I decided to battle with the Trinity quite some time ago. you may take your time to decide if you desire. But of course, immediate assault is folly. Building up our forces is vital, but they can build as fast as any of us. Their support needs to be eroded. Moarzed, Seln, and Milton. If any or all can be turned against them, we gain an advantage."

[Ultimarr]

"Ah, I seemed to have left that out. Quite sorry, I made that on the moment based of a book that the council used to have, but its very outdated by now. Yes, The Masked One is a deviant trickster who seemed to have a grudge against Moarzed, but he has since defeated the liar. The swarm is... not really important anymore, as it is almost destroyed and driven back by our friend Kaal'ex, as you have seen.

Speaking of that, Dreamer, what are the capabilities of that crystal you have formed? It seems immensely powerful, I wonder why we shouldn't just use that to destroy anything this second council throws at us. I am sure it has its limits, but that was quite impressive.

Also, I laugh if you think I hide things from this conclave. I am a simple scavenger after the hunt, picking up whats left and using it for my purposes. I seek not to deceive my allies, for the corpses of our enemies shall help me learn more about undeath than even a god knows, helping us conquer more races, gods, even universes (Universi?).

Well this has been fun, but I must depart. The Second Council is meeting soon, and the longer I wait the more time The Masked One has time to spread lies and deceit about my name. I assume you still have things to discuss though, so I shall talk through Ereptor here. Good day, I shall be back with information on their plans."

On que, Seln's demigod steps out of the shadows and stands by Seln's throne, ready to answer any questions, his mouthless face completely neutral. Seln then fades into the shadows himself, and warps away..

Peres
Moments after the collective went dark, hordes of Cado Sanctus and Boneborn flooded onto the photon cannons built around the perimeter of the city and around the planet, starting to disassembling them, searching to find out what makes them tick. What, did you think Seln actually trusted The Swarm?

Istaria
Seln, curious if any other new gods formed, comes out of warp next to the solar forge, glaring around its massive perimeter for any sign of the divine. Suddenly, he spots a humanoid form far off in the distance, and warps there. Looking over the split form, he speaks to the new goddess;

"Welcome to the universe, I presume you are a new deity? I am Seln, god of Insects. I realize that you must be wondering why I am seeking you out, yes? Well, this universe is in war. There is a group called the conclave that seeks to take over many universes, and they hold much power here. Then there is the Council, which I am on my way too. They are fighting the good fight, and seek to free this universe and cast down the Conclave. I would be glad if you could join us in our meeting, it is a noble fight with many benefits for the winners. If you wish to learn about this universe before going so readily, here is some writing that I have composed for just such a purpose;"

He hands her a book that goes over the basics of everything that has happened and all the gods, excluding things that obviously only the Conclave should know for now (The destruction of the Swarm, the Pyramid, The Shades, Oblivion).

"You are free to decline, do whatever you wish."

Limbo
The list of the wonderful technology of our empire, all hail emperor Telyr, master of all!

Spoiler

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Ground Based Vehicles:


Regiv Mobile Combat Bike: A small personal bike, it is quite common. Used for quick strikes and scouting missions, it is capable of driving on most rough terrain, and may be armed with two optional spikers.

Kelten Armored Support System: A six wheeled tank like vehicle, it is armed with two linked spikers on the top on a turning base, allowing for aiming. Heavily armored, it used for hitting hard and focused on less protected enemy lines, or supporting infantry with heavy firepower. Variations include transports that give up the cannons for more transporting space and armor.

Kerdaz Ranged Support Cannon: A large vehicle mounted on treads, it is basically a mobile cannon. Armed with a large bonebreaker cannon, it launches a shell high above soldiers heads, landing with deadly precision, exploding on impact with dark magic. Used for clearing the path for the raids of smaller vehicles, or supporting infantry charges with deadly rain. Quite expensive, they are mildly rare.

The Shining Star of Limbo, the Telyr Armored Obliterator Platform: A massive six legged spider like behemoth, it is the most powerful thing at the disposal of the Dark Elves. It is plated with the best magically reinforced steel, giving it enough armor to sustain multiple artillery hits. It's armed with twin Soul Cannons, experimental weapons capable of launching bolts of pure dark energy at enemies, scouring away anything unlucky enough to be hit, even solid metal. In addition, there are four nests where crews fire mounted siege spikers and spells off at anyone within range. At the moment, there are only three in existence.

Void Based Vehicles:

The Veltisk Strike Fighter: The first voidship, it is a mobile craft that is the most maneuverable of all the voidships. It is plated with psychically reinforced metals, it uses the standard tri-reactor (Shadowtech, Soul Drive, and Psychic Generator), and is armed with twin rapid-fire darkcannons. The most common voidship, it is tiny compared to a aethership or necropolis class.

THE REST COMING SOOOOON!

[Ipphli]

"I too have nothing yet. And while I hope peace might come to the universe with our leaving of our home galaxy," says Gareph quietly, "Somehow I doubt the Trinity will be content with what we have given them."

[Mashimoto]

As the Second Council talks, two figures begin to emerge in the distance. One tall, robed, and thin and the other broad, muscled, and winged. The tall figure kept his back straight with some difficulty, carefully hiding the grimace on his face with curt, narrow lips and using the staff he carried more as a cane than walking stick. Both wore swords on their belts, which swayed back and forth as they made their way, one step at a time, toward the group.

"Hello," the Old One muttered, holding his pointed hat to his chest and bowing his head politely. "I believe I have met most--if not all--of you. I am Hrothlar. And this is..."

"Draco." the winged swordsman grunted.

"Yes, Draco. He is my..." The wizards' blue eyes matched his robe. They shifted to Draco briefly, "Apprentice."

"Partner."

"Son."

Draco looked away, but didn't protest.

"Now--I believe we have business to discuss."

[daelrog]

It was him, the one that had fought against the god of dreams. Along with his son, the losers from before were all together now. Cavor, Dezisorn, Gareph, Hrothlar and his child, and the 'god of lies' whose name Icarael still was not certain if he had heard or not.

"I think the first thing to discuss is what actually is going on. How did it all come to pass, that this god of dreams and his supporters came to rule? I think there may lie the origin of our birth."

[Imperial Psycho]

"I arrived only as the Madgod began his attacks, but as I understand, he and Nova call themselves siblings, and the Madgod decided to assault Gade, the planet near us, with his Demi-god, the Basilica of flesh. Hrothlar and various other gods attempted to fight him, notably Heretic, the Swarm and myself. However, Hrothlar fell, Heretic disappeared, and I fled. I am unsure what happened to the Swarm, but it appears to be alive, and not part of the Trinity. Once we were defeated, the Trinity were free to unleash their mortal forces upon various neighbouring planets and cultures. It was about at that point that you arrived. Oh, the first battle also saw the destruction of the Arbiter, a being created of order and law by the original Gods, of whom only Seln, Nova, and our dear friend Hrothlar remain. I do not see how this information assists us, however. The past is done. "

[Mashimoto]

"Of course the past matters--it is all that exists. We must make our decisions now based on it and create a future from it. We must weigh our options against our enemies--" The wizard Hrothlar said.

"We've got to attack. Retreating was a mistake, we've given them the advantage. If we don't aggressively counter-attack, they'll only garner more strength." Draco replied.

"Stay your passion, Draco. You will find it a sword that cuts both ways."

[daelrog]

Icarael took a moment to let the Masked One's words sink in."Why though? What are their motives? What are yours? We are nothing but the past. We were created in accordance to what had happened. Your animosity towards the Trintiy stems from past actions. Without understanding the past, such a war you're asking for means nothing.

[The_Snark]

III. Of the . re. . . . . . o. . .Machi. . . . e

I. An . . . . erl. . . . N . . took upon herself to. . . . , and. . e. . sf. . . . .je. . . a. . . . .whe. . i. . lan. . . p. . we. . . . . . . . t. . . ly. . . br. . . . . th. . . r. . . . .
II. This world was greater than the last, for it was home not only to dumb beasts but to thinking beings. They were not the greatest of the folk who live among the stars, and could no more have stood before the Storm Empire than a sand castle could face and defeat the sea; but the Far-Flung Hand was but one machine, and the Goddess deemed this a fair test.
III. Too, these folk possessed magic of a kind, which was anathema in the eyes of the Goddess. For this she ordained their destruction, and yea, it was a convenient excuse.
IV. Once more the passage of the Hand rent the sky asunder. Half the world was filled with the light of its passage, and with its landing the greatest city of this world was reduced to ash and glass.
V. All across the world people saw the white light, and wondered. Soon the news spread, that fair Alta-Upon-the-Sands was no more, and they trembled with fear. Then the news came that a Thing strode the blasted lands nearby, burning and consuming all that it saw. Many thought it must been born in the dead city, and many wept and cursed the magicians of that city for calling it. Others called it the wrath of the gods, and declared to any who would listen that the end times were upon them. They were in fact correct, for the mad have always had a kind of wisdom.
VI. But the people of this world were not weak, and though some despaired, others felt anger. Armies gathered to face the Hand, and for the first time it was put to the test in true combat. Armies fell before it, their swords and arrows ineffective against its chrome-plated skin. Then came other things, warriors riding great beasts, and ambushes, and primitive lever-arm devices, which hurled great rocks at the Hand.
VII. This failed, the people of this world turned to sorcery. The best . . . . a. . . . . . . . . . . . . . erm. . . . . j . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . witheld . . . . . . . . . . . st . . . . e . . .
IX. Up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . tore the veins from the earth and with the heat of its weapons smelted a crude iron. This it affixed to itself like the shell of a tortoise, and the black magics that had wounded it before shattered upon this shell like
X.
XI. . . . . . . . . . . . . in their madness they believed it a god, and made sacrifices. When the Hand came they fought for it, and when at last it permitted them to approach they carved runes upon
.
. . . . . . . . threw themselves upon
. . . .a . . .dl . . . . . . l .. in . . . . . . . .e fires . . ch. . . . . . ther
.
. . . . . . . . . .a
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .es
.

[Imperial Psycho]

"You are wrong there, Hrothlar. The present is all that exists. The past is manufactured, as is the future, though in different ways. The past is memory, and record, neither of which can truly be trusted, as both are all too easily tampered with. The future is what it is made. Both of these are irrelevant. Action is important, not motive. Is there a difference between a man killed on accident, and a man killed on purpose? The man is just as dead, either way. Our decisions must be based on what is not what was. Their motives are unknown to me. My own are not important. My animosity towards them comes not from the past, but from the future. They could potentially ruin us all. " The Masked One giggles, and grins from behind the mask. "But we will get nowhere from waxing philosophical. The rest of you have heard my thoughts, but for the benefit of the newcomers, I suggest eroding their support. Nova and Kaal'ex are unlikely to betray one another, but Moarzed, Seln, perhaps even Milton.. they could be turned against them.

[Iethloc]

"From what I could discern, their motives do not coincide with ours. They had intended to utterly destroy the population of Gade, didn't they? And this Basilica of Flesh...I doubt it's a peculiarly named orphanage," Dezisorn said, slowly twirling his cane in his good hand.

"I agree with the giggling god's assessment. I think neither attacking nor simply marshaling our forces will be sufficient. They've got a head start on both of those. We must find their weaknesses, and through those destroy them. It doesn't matter how difficult this will be, because brute force is no longer an option."

[daelrog]

Icarael put his helm back on, not feeling like letting the others read the slight annyoance on his face. THough his heart told him what they all spoke was true, it still left a bitter taste in his mouth how quickly and easily destruction, war, and death became cneterfold to what they intended.

He also decided to drop the argument of the past's importance. In his mind, he played out his retort, that if one sought to prevent further deaths - that is, if this god thought that to prevent such untimely deaths was a worthy cause - that the way in which one mrotal died would affect how to handle preventing further loss.

"Trickery is not my expertise. I cannot help but think though that they will be thinking the same things of us what we do of them. If we turn one of them to our cause, it will matter little if they turn one of us. Which one of us do you think they will try to recruit to their cause?"

[Imperial Psycho]

"I know little and less of each of you, New Ones. I could not possibly comment. Though I assure you, I would never be swayed to join the Trinity! It is difficult to tell whether he is being serious.

[Ipphli]

Gareph crosses his arms before his chest, staring at the others in turn as they speak. When the conversation lulls, he speaks up. "Much as it pains me to admit it, but Dezisorn and the Masked One are right: open combat alone will not defeat this Trinity of Darkness.

But we should have a little time, at least, to prepare. Our enemies will surely seek to consolidate their power and ensure that entire galaxy is firmly in their hands. I pity anyone still there that does not follow them..."

[Ringwrym]

Hearing the older gods say past actions have created this feud. I say let the mortals decide there fate. I propose we built a colosuem that will host a series of games.

[Imperial Psycho]

The Masked One bursts into laughter. After several seconds of hysterical laughter, he composes himself. "Are you sure you haven't been touched by the MadGod? This conflict was begun by an aggressive move by Kaal'ex. More importantly, the Trinity have shown themselves to be exapansionist, and aggressive. This isn't a matter for mortals, it's a matter of the gods. And you want to...host....a series...of GAMES!" The Masked One lapses back into laughter.