Another God Game [IC]

[Hoplite]

The words of the raven lord sound hollow to Talarius, meaningless. He seems vile, tainted. He doesn't understand the world like he does. But he did have a point, if the guilty need to be punished, Talarius had to do it himself.

The voice he heard was right. If the raven lord did not punish the guitly he himself had to be guilty and the guilty had to be punished. He would wait a while and when the moment was there, kill the Raven Lord.

"Wait, please, don't go Raven Lord" Talarius drew his sword.

I believe you are right. I am the one who should punish them.

[Athaniar]

The Air Dragon returned to his comrades.

Alas, I could not implant the discord.

Perhaps it was for the better, the Water Dragon said calmly.

Ah, I would have loved to partake in the world's first battle, the Fire Dragon said, dissapointed.

I do not believe the Master requires combat this early, the Water Dragon replied. This was for the better. Warfare can wait. For now, we need plans.

The Fire Dragon looked a little annoyed at this, but the Earth and Air dragons seemed to agree.

[Eldan]

The Raven Lord

The Raven Lord turns around to face Talarius again.
"If this is what you believe you must do, then do so."

[MrEdwardNigma]

Notion

There is life, in the beginning: a spark becomes a turquoise flame, and around it swim butterflies and birds with purple feathers and tiny jellyfish with the same sheen as the blue moon. Notion stirs slowly under the weight of this pregnant new world, though for a single instant his heart aches as if diminished in size and love. The great swarm follows like a trail of falling leaves in the wake of the small spark, and where the great swarm of Notions treads, empty land bears grass and trees spring up, fully formed with leaves and flowers of every color.

The swarm of things stirs for a moment and the flame settled into the newly-fertile ground like a fiery seed. A tree bursts forth from the new earth, a tree itself covered in every sort of plant and fruit and vine and flower. A tree whose boughs play home to frogs and birds and foxes and beasts as great as tigers. At its core, a small knot hollows itself into the tree, and the flame emerges there, quickly attracting its horde of voices. A butterfly with great green wings lands on the flame and speaks to itself:

"The tree is finished. The flame is settled. What now, brothers of the Notion?"

A thousand voices answer, chattering away, advising a thousand different courses of action.

Herne, the Old One
Having drawn a line of forest across half of the new world, Herne stops. He is facing a small garden now, as that seems to be the best way to describe it. here his forest ends and this calmer, less chaotic forest that allows the light to shine through begins.

Herne lets himself fall backward and sits. The earth quakes lightly as the giant satyr drops onto the grass. Soon enough a beast, newly created, makes it's way to Herne. Herne smiles broadly, revealing his gigantic teeth, a human sacrifice still caught between them from last creation.

"And thus the Old One spoke, and thus he invented dinner"

Herne laughed, making the trees shake and grabbed the beast. As the creature whimpered he tossed it into his mouth and chewed. You could hear the crunch of bones as the the Old One sat there, stuffing himself. Blood ran down his chin and clotted up his fur, but Herne was pleased.

[Arioch]

Karos paused in his work. With every passing sunless hour, his strength grew, and his realm grew with it. Now there were four spires where one had stood, with three surrounding the central tower. This was good.

Karos turned his attention from the dragons for a moment. They were not the only powers on this earth, nor were they the greatest. He sought out the second deity, the one who had left to search for followers. There. There he was, speaking about punishment as though the world was somehow just. Perhaps--

Karos jerked backwards from his pool of shadows. There was a being close to the foolish god, a being he knew. But how did he know? That was impossible!

[Athaniar]

Feeling dissapointed, the Fire Dragon had walked out of the Elementals Conclave, the scorched land where the Dragons had been created, to find something to do, impatient as he was. It was then he stumbled upon the forest.

What is this?, he asked himself. I am not sure, but I can feel a loathing for it, a deep-seated hatred... I feel I need to destroy.

And so the dragon inhaled deeply, and then exhaled a great jet of fire and magma from deep within himself. The fire immediately ignited the trees and plants. Tarhît'rolüzgèl was pleased, as he took off, his fiery wings lifting him into the air, and started to further immolate the pristine woodland.

[MrEdwardNigma]

Herne, the Old One
Herne got to his feet. For the first time he felt the call of that primal desire that had summoned him, a call stronger than that a mere beast could feel. Sentient creatures had been created. Herne laughed again, and again the trees shook in the small paradise.

Moments later, a dragon high up in the sky found himself very encumbered indeed. As the forest beneath him burned, he noticed a gigantic creature sitting on his back, while it had not been there before. The dragon's wings could no longer keep it in flight, so he and Herne, the god that was so heavy to this dragon, plummeted down into the blazing inferno.

Upon making contact with the earth they created a massive crater, surrounded by a sea of fire. Herne was still sitting atop the poor dragon, and he seemed to be trying to remove a human leg from his teeth with one of his fingers.

"You have destroyed the forest, dragon, on a whim alone. What do you have to say for yourself?"

[Hoplite]

Talarius thinks deeply about what he has to do. When he punishes the raven lord there will be no god who watches over the dead. He will have to wait until he is sure there will be other gods watching over the dead, but he will kill him if the raven lord seems to be doing to much bad things.

OOC: I will have to go now, will return in a few hours.

[Eldan]

The Raven Lord

"There is a great destruction. Many plants have passed into my domain."
With those words, he turned around, leaving Talarius alone. Stepping into the shadow of his Cloak of Dust, he stepped out near the giant crater.
"I see. With the first sentient creature, the first destruction."

[Athaniar]

The dragon was furious.

Let me go, you abhorrable beast! You and your creation is heresy to the element of fire!

And the dragon started to dissapate into flames in order to escape back to the Conclave.

((Just a note: the elemental dragons may turn themselves into their element, as evidenced by the Air dragon earlier. Still, this does not mean they are invincible.))

[Athaniar]

((I'll have to leave for, like, an hour or something. Can we say the Fire Dragon flees back to the Conclave for now? There will be time for revenge later.))

[MrEdwardNigma]

Herne, the Old One
Herne grabbed onto the fire tightly.

"Oh, no, little one, I am a god, you don't get off that easily"

His mighty arms pressed the dragon back into it's original shape.

"Heresy were it indeed, had you not burnt down my creation, but not for fire, for fire is not a god. It were heresy to yourself, for you felt like it, and then none should be allowed to stop you. You have acted upon primal desire, beast, and I like that"

Herne loosened his grip, but still did not step off of the dragon.

"It was stupid, thoughtless and inconsiderate, what you did, but it is what you felt like doing. Wrath. A very strong urge indeed. How about joining a new god, little one? A god who understand those beastly urges"

[Eldan]

The Raven Lord

The Raven Lord now stood on the rim of the crater, facing the burning forest. Then, adressing the charred remains of the trees, he spoke:
"Come. The essence of those who died in the first destruction."
With a wave of his hand, he sent forth his raven to collect the essence of the dead plants and bring it back to him.

[Hoplite]

Alone again, Talarius continues his search for followers.

"It seems nothing, no animal or human, lives in this place."

He plans to continue his search for not more than an hour or two and then return to Allwyrm, who has completed the creation of followers, if the Raven Lord was right, of course.

[Arioch]

Karos' project was underway. Soon, his plans would be safe from the dragons. But still, it was always better to have allies. He turned his attention to Talarius, speaking to him through the shadows.

"The Raven King will not punish the deeds of mortals. He is not concerned with the past lives of the souls he collects, but I...I am happy to torment those you deem sinful."

[Hoplite]

Surprised by the voice from the shadows, but happy to suddenly have found another god, Talarius answers:

"Greetings, I am Talarius, you seem to know the Raven Lord already. You seem to be the just and right person to rule the dead, will you help me kill the Raven Lord?"

Talarius smiles, thinking he is the one who is in control.

[qube]

((ooc: I'm assuming there are already humans ...))

On the top of the belltower of the city of Krondar, a cloaked warrior sits pondering. The final treasure, worthy of my attention: the Spark of Life. a priceless ruby, of which they say one can extract divinity if one knows the secret. Luckely for me, I have already unraveled the mystery in the forbidden scroll of Actaeon..
Dust appearing from the desert to the north, catches the warriors eye.
"so ... they finally figured it out, did they?" he mutters to himself.

The cloaked figure leaps of the tower, with only a thin rope to hold him. As he reaches the maximum distance the rope pulls him back, towards the tower, and the mysterious daredevil tumbles in the room where the large large bell resides.
Stomping is heard on the stairs. Heavy boots and armor clatter. the
guards have been warned. As the hatch in the floor flies open and the first guardsman appears, the warrior takes a small leap back into the hole where the bellrope reaches the bottom of the tower. "WHERE IS HE?" a second guardsman asks the first one, but no reply comes. The first gaurdsman turns around to his collegue and drops on the floor ... 2 metal darts pierce the neck of fresh corpse.

Slowed by grabbing the rope, the assassin comes down on the stone floor of the belltower which leads directly into the temple hallway. As he walks through the corridor he reaches in a pouch pocket and throws some metal objects onto the floor, right in front of a open door. As he moves deeper into the sanctuary, boots again stomp on the stairs, this time downward. As the guardsmen enter the corridor, the first finds out the hard way that what the assasin left were a mix of marbles - on which he slips - and caltropes, which are now lunched into his legs, arms and hands. the guard screems of anguish as his mates - now only 5 of them - pass him, in search of the thief of the scroll of Actaeons.

As they hear the warrior's chainmail through the corridors of the lower cloiser, they descent down the staires of the ancient building. the first guardman sees a symbol marked on a pilar. Too late he realizes that his make is a explosive rune ... which he pais for with his life. the explosion also triggers the pilar to collapse, taking down part of the ceiling. the other four could no longer enter through this stairs. they would be forced to take the long route around.

Meanwhile in the lower cloister the two full plated guardians in front of the inner sanctuary's re-enforced door were alarmed by the nearby explosion. Turning their attention to the left corridor, one of the guards bangs on the heavy door, two times. "THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG. DON'T OPEN THE DOOR UNLESS ... ". The words get stuck in his throat as the doors falls backward.
The door somehow had become nothing more then a wooden plate in front of the rectangular hole in the wall. In the next room all candles were out, but in the light of the lower cloister, the guardian could clearly see one of the acolytes, slashed dead on the floor. the guard turns around to his parter and starts "PETRUS, WE NEED TO ..." but Petrus drops to his knees. A serpent blade is stabed in his back, clean between the shoulder plates of the armor. A sound comes from the inner sanctuary and as the guardian turns his head to see, his last view is a cloaked chainmailed figure shooting a crossbow bolt, right through the eyeslot of the metal helm ...

The way was clear now. the outer cloiser guards were rerouted; the lower cloiser guardians and the inner sanctuary's accolyte. The cloaked assassin now continues his journey. He walks unphased as a swirling blade trap slashes only inches behind him. "badly timed traps ... perhaps if they made he trigger mechanism of iron instead of wood, the traps woudn't be so corroded here". He tilts his head backwards, when a arrow flies from the wall. He takes a short run to jump over a spiked pit trap, then tumbles away to evade a flame strike trap, then continues to rolls as spikes shoot from the floor and finally lets himself get hit by an illusionairy bolder that rolls through 'm. he stands up and throws a small iron bar inside an opening wall, disabling a trap that would flood the corridor with alchemist fire.

As he comes into the room containing the Spark of Life, the answer to divinity
is quite simple. The assassin takes the 2 pound flawless emerald, admires it
for all its beauty, and then smashes it into the floor, shattering the radiant
shell of divinity, and so aquiring it.

... as last act before acsending to wherever Gods go, 50 arrows fly trough the desert, each piercing the harts of the 50 soldiers of Actaeon who came to aid the Krondar guardsmen to stop the assassin.

...

*poof*
a invisible man in a dark cloak appears in your mids ...

[Arioch]

Surprised by the voice from the shadows, but happy to suddenly have found another god, Talarius answers:

"Greetings, I am Talarius, you seem to know the Raven Lord already. You seem to be the just and right person to rule the dead, will you help me kill the Raven Lord?"

Talarius smiles, thinking he is the one who is in control.

"The Raven Lord is death's incarnation. He would not be easy to kill. However, we could rob him of his power. The less souls he recieves, the less influential he will be. A new age is dawning, and soon sentient beings will cover this dark earth. I suggest a deal: you grant me dominion over those souls you judge to be evil, to do with as I wish. In exchange, I will lend you my powers and side with you when the inevitable conflict comes.

Karos smiles in his tower. Perfect.

"Perhaps, together, we can make this world a better place.

[Hoplite]

Your words are gold, my friend. We have a deal, I shall give you the souls that are evil and corrupt. They deserve to be punished. But tell me your name, so I know how to call my allies.

If only Talarius knew the games all the gods play with him, he wouldn't know what kind of revenge would be appropriate.

[Arioch]

"My name? I am Karos. And you are Talarius."

Karos' voice beganto fade.

"I will see you again, my ally, when the time is right. If you need me, just call my name."

The shadows faded, and Talarius was once again alone.

Back in his tower, Karos continued to work on his defences. The towers were now surrounded by an empty citadel, ready to be filled with soldiers of the night.

And within the tallest tower of all, Karos watched the world.

(I'll be back in a few hours.)

[WhiteKnight777]

Arx

Even as the others worked their will upon the world, Arx was at work. He had found a cave in the mountains, high and inaccessible, and there he had built a workshop. In this place he tinkered, from raw elements and the power of the Heart sending forth creatures exotic, strange and new into the fresh-born world, scattering them upon completion to awake into the world. It was curious - as he fashioned his firstborn, the dragons, he felt as if he were not pulling them from within but from somewhere else - some long-forgotten but half-remembered source. Still, he shaped them anyway, making them of many kinds - some of the hues of the rainbow - red, blue, black, green, and white, some with skin like gems or precious metals- diamond, ruby, topaz, gold, silver, bronze, electrum and adamant. And then there were the mightiest of all - those forged from pure light and those made of force given form.

After the dragons came the Thunderbeasts - vast, powerful creatures, some of four legs and some of two, all of them massive and potent, yet possessed of intelligence no greater than that of common beasts. Tiring of the creatures of the scale, he turned his attention of other things - First a series of hybrid creatures - the centaurs, half elf, half horse, to dwell in the deep woods and plains, sylvan creatures. He looked down at them and smiled, watching them canter accross his worktable, whinnying joyfully before he put them into enchanted sleep and transported them to awaken far away

next came the Arachne, the siren-like creatures, half woman, half giant scorpion or spider, with the power to lure men to their doom and a hunger for flesh. He smiled - the antics of these creatures would prove most interesting to observe, and challenges to overcome for those who reckoned themselves powerful. Let us see if potent might is enough to quell the song of the heart.

Next, Arx considered the world. There were many beasts, mostly those that he created, creatures of magic - but none could study it, save the dragons, and they were few and scattered. Perhaps a new species... one more suited to the study of magic that might prove better able to advance it within the confines of the world. This thought pleased him, and so he set to work - he started with the basic form of of two legs, two arms... another half-glimpsed memory, altering it slightly - within the body he put networks of natural arcane power, like ley lines, through which magical force could flow, giving them a natural aptitude for the study of the arcane. Their lives he made long, like unto those of the dragons themselves, and their senses he fine-tuned that they might sense magic itself. Last of all, he found a place for them to dwell, an isle in the north of the world, isolated and wreathed in mist and surrounded by the crashing waves and rich in magic where they might grow, prosper, and learn and he set the first of them there to dwell.

At last, Arx smiled. It had been productive and enjoyable - but now, time for a break. He needed a better workshop than this simple cave, and his fortress had been too long neglected. His next task was to make it into a dwelling worthy of the Lord of All Magics.

[Eldan]

The Raven Lord

And after he had collected the essence of the first destruction, the Raven King pondered the world, and the new creations awakening therein.
"I shall create aspects of myself", he then spoke.
"One aspect for each sentient creature, that they might be called to sleep by a form they can trust."
Once again drawing on the dusk he took with him wherever he went, he began his creation.
He formed them, a Dragon, an Arachne and a Centaur, and one of the new species that was not yet named, all in a shape that was comforting to the species it was created to resemble, but all colours half-faded away and insubstancial. Still, they were handsome, but not beautiful, with voices kind to those they were meant to take.
And when there shapes were perfected and stood before him, he gave them a tiny spark of his essence, so that they would awake.
"You are the Wraith,", he spoke.
"And you will go forth and collect the essence of those who have died not in the name of another god or cause."

[Athaniar]

From the safety of the Elemental Conclave (for the dragons had raised an elemental barrier around it), the Water Dragon scryed on his fiery brother. He sighed.

Now look what you have done, brother. But do not worry, I can work it into my plan. Somehow.

But then the Earth Dragon approached the Water Dragon in a hurry.

Brother, we have trouble. It would seem that we have imposters. Our Master has ordered us to try to recruit as many of these lesser "dragons" as possible, and destroy those we cannot convert.

The Water Dragon looked pensive.

---

The Fire Dragon was held steady by the Beast God, and had now been given a proposal. He smiled within himself.

I accept your proposal, o Mighty One of the Woodlands. My creator, I am afraid, does not understand the primal urges of Fire. I think you do.

[WhiteKnight777]

Arx

Arx watched the scattered groups of his new and as yet unnamed people from the security of the Hearthold. They were progressing well - but still slowly. Invention at this stage was a hit and miss sort of thing - they were clever creatures, clever, but as yet with little wisdom. Yet Arx was not content to wait. He wished, more than anything, to see these creatures progress - he wanted them to create, to not merely imitate but bring forth new things upon this world.

And so he revealed himself to them, and went among them. And at first they were afraid, and fled from his radiance and power. And yet slowly, some, the bravest and most curious, came to him, and he instructed them in the basics of civilization - the wheel, fire, how to smelt metals and carve stone. They learned quickly, and grew delighted with these new tools. And Most of all, Arx gave to the best and brightest of them the secrets of first magic - the fundamental principles of the Art from which could be derived all mortal spells. And they flourished and grew wise and strong. Arx treated them as favored children, and gave unto them gifts - powerful lizard-creatures, great in strength, yet tame and docile, to be beasts of burden. Fierce creatures to be guardians and mounts in the hunt and to defend themselves against the predations of the world, for though Arx had not yet met with them, he knew the other gods were abroad and likely creating their own folk.

And last of all, he gave them his latest creation - Sleek, powerful creatures, swift of wing and strong of sinew, powerful, hardy beasts that could carry others astride them and outfly the northern wind. And after this last gift, he told his children that he would leave them now, for they needed to grow and prosper, and find their own way in the world - but for those who wished, he would always be only a prayer away. Those who chose to enter his priesthood would be able to commune with him, and recieve his guidance. And in their gratitude, the people gave themselves a new name: The Arxari, the Children of Arx.

[Athaniar]

A group of frightened men (those who were the most afraid of Arx) had hidden in a cave at the coast. Suddenly, a chill wind started blowing. The wind spoke to the men.

Be not afraid of the evil that walks among you. I know it has claimed your brethren, but I am here to lead you to a brilliant future.

And the men were calmed by the voice, and they felt as if they could trust it with their lives.

You will be the Hatchlings, the followers of greatness. Your destiny awaits you.

And so the men were swept off their feet, and transported to another part of the world, the scorched ground known as the Elemental Conclave. There, they found themselves enhanced, but another detail also made them different: they had grown scales.

[Hoplite]

Bored, lost and alone, Talarius believes there are no other creatures, at least no sentient non-plant creatures.

Allwyrm! Where are you? There are no living creatures in this entire world except for those you created! Let me be with them, so we can rule together! I have great news about the afterlife and the god that rules there!

[Athaniar]

An icy mist suddenly appeared before Talarius. The mist formed into the Water Dragon.

Oh, but others there are.

From behind the dragon appeared scaly beings, with two arms, two legs, and one head each.

These are the Hatchlings, the Water Dragon said. And they have voluntarily chosen to serve us. These will be our followers. And to tell us of that death god.

[Eldan]

The Raven King

The King now saw that the time for the creation of his realm had come, a place for the dead to rest in peace, after the struggles of life. And so he ventured forth to the dark and warm roots of the earth, where he carved an immense cave.
Drawing upon the cloak of dusk again, he set a pale, grey light into it's center, and filled the cave with air neither warm nor cold, and perfectly still and silent, so that the eternal sleep would never be disturbed. Then, he sat down and, below the grey light, began to build a new object.
It was a pool, a well, which reached down further than anything else created to this moment, and it was filled with water that, in the grey light, seemed black as the night.
This was the Well of Spirits, where the living could call upon the wisdom of the death for but a short moment. Those who knew it's secrets could call forth a mere shadow of the well's power in any pool of water, but such an action would always have it's cost.

[Hoplite]

Proudly Talarius starts to tell:

I will, my friend, tell you about Death. There are two gods. The first is called The Raven Lord. He is chaotic and I think insane. He is evil and should be destroyed. We can not expect him to behave according to our laws. There is still hope however, as there is another deity, his name is Karos. He is just and I have met him. He will help us and punish those that need to be punished in their Afterlife. We have a mighty friend, but we must try to destroy that Raven Lord.

[Athaniar]

The All-Lair

In the mysterious abode known as the All-Lair, the Allwyrm, for it was his plane, bathed in the magma streams and rested on the sheets of ice. But he grew bored of it, now that things were taking shape down in the world itself, so he decided to "Improve" the Lair. He raised huge stone shelters from the primal matters, where his most faithful could dwell. But how would he gather more faithful? He came up with an idea: three great temples, to honor his unfathomable glory. He opened portals to the material world, and sent the temples (yes, they were already built) plummeting down. One temple landed just outside the Conclave of the Elements, another landed in the charred woodland, not far from where the Fire Dragon was being held, and the third landed in the sea, the crash creating an island (don't ask) for it to stand on. The landing of the temples was felt across the entire world. In each temple, the Allwyrm then created the first Elementals, shards of the elements, that would serve him and his champions. The Allwyrm smiled, with all his heads.