The Ultimate Conflict (Of Havens and Empires) IC

[Starsign]

Usabhar's eyes gleam in wonder at the sight of the silver door. How such a door went under his notice for so long is astounding, if it was even there since yesterday. Usabhar felt like who or whatever might be behind the door is calling him. There was a reason why the door is here and any reminder of guests is forgotten as Usabhar reaches for the handle and opens the door. His mind races on who could have created this door, and whether this person should be commended or punished depending on his/her motives.

Either way, Usabhar's curiosity is as great as his might and in no way does he want to simply leave after seeing and opening a door of this design. He enters the room as soon as it is opened, unknowing if this may be an alternate dimension or not.

[Realms of Chaos]

The Portal Chamber:

Spoiler

The nearest eternal is confused. "This thing was crafted by the artificers, just like the others. Judging by its number, however, this thing must have been made decades ago. Is something wrong with it, My Lord?"

"Your presence is acknowledged. Your orders are acknowledged."

Usabhar:

Spoiler

For better or worse, no room (at least in the traditional sense) rests beyond the door. Instead, the wall seems to be seeping and drooping inwards as if it were formed of quicksand. The walls seem amorphous and though you can't see through, it may be possible to pass through the wall.

[Emperor Ing]

The Portal Chamber

Where did it come from, how did it get here? He doesn't even answer the question. His urgency and questions are probably all the Eternal needs to know that something is most certainly wrong.

Korshim meanwhile begins to dig into the Golem. Although he can hear the golem and others can hear him, the golem is mute to everyone else.
The High Lord requires that you tell me where you have been in the last seven Emanacalian days. Furthermore, relay to me every event to your recollection that references a "Boiler Man."

[Starsign]

Usabhar's eyes quirk up as he notices the "door" is more of a portal. It's clear to him now that he's being called by whoever created this portal. How or why, he didn't understand... But that's what his curiosity is for, to find out. He had obligations to fulfill; the guests, prayer, and feast all still await the dwarf. Yet above all, he is curious. Perhaps a flaw of his traits, but there is much of the world Usabhar has yet to see and this portal is one such thing. Bravely he enters the portal, unknowing if he ends up in a divine realm, a trap, or some sort of eldritch location. Either way he is unprepared but confident.

[Realms of Chaos]

Portal Chamber:

Spoiler

"As far as I can tell, it has been here since it was first commissioned. I think it's been guarding one of the main gates ever since I arrived but I've honestly never stopped to check a golem's number in the past. With authority over lesser constructs as broad as it is, nobody really has cause to, sir. If it's relevant, at least three other golems were guarding the same location."

"Unit has been guarding chokepoint 3-A into the Great Hall for the listed duration. Boiler Man is not listed in relation to current duties or sensory records."

Rahja:

Spoiler

Since yesterday, you have sensed battles and wars raging across worlds the multiverse over. Most of them have finally calmed down but one of them, on a world not far from Emanical, has been continually roiling all morning. As Wero speaks with his eternal, something of a dam seems to break as the "slow" and constant trickle of pain and death gives way to a torrential flood of death.

Usabhar:

Spoiler

Stepping through the portal, you find your skin baking once more as you walk out into a desert. The door behind you, if ever there was one, is nowhere to be seen. What you can see, however, and nearly mistake for a ring of mountains, is some sort of winged creature curled up into a ring around you, halfway buried into the sands.

[Ridai]

Standing in the portal chamber, Rahja seems momentarily out of it before her eyes widen, Celestica feeling the tiniest hint of the torrential wave of death she senses. Wasting no time, she interrupts the proceedings without warning. "High Lord, one of your worlds is dying." She gives the position of the planet relative to Emanacal and the general area of this wave of death. Without hesitation, she grabs Celestica's shoulder and teleports herself and her to the source of this disaster.

Spoiler

Interplanetary Teleportation to the center of this event.

[Emperor Ing]

Three? Well- Rahja informs the High Lord.
Tell my Generals we are at war again. No hesitation! He says as he immediately makes a grab for Rahja before she teleports, hoping to be included in that spell. What he said on that first backwater world is as true now: If they want the Empire, they will bleed for every square inch.

Reflex save if necessary
(1d20+53)[58]

I see. Have any additional constructs been, within the last one Emanacalian year period, been commissioned to the Portal Chamber? Priority: Constructs of non-Eclipsian designation.

[MikelaC1]

CELESTICA

woops, what? Celestica spins around, momentarily disoriented by the teleportation used by Rahja but her faith in her soul mate allows her to orient herself quickly. If there is war here, she's ready to deal with it, as her hands are already reaching for her bow.

[Starsign]

Stepping out of the portal, Usabhar internally sighs as he realizes he's in a desert and that the portal behind him has disappeared. Usually he announces his leave before disappearing so this is going to be an awkward case for the dwarves when they realize their paragon has gone missing. Hopefully it will not be for too long.

Usabhar takes a look around to realize what is surrounding him; a massive winged creature. Unintimidated, though curious, Usabhar looks for the creature's rested head, if there is one in sight, and begins walking towards it. His voice booms out bravely and almost impatiently to the creature and other denizens of the desert. "Awaken great beast! What has been ailed that requires my presence here?!" Usabhar's lance materializes in his hand as he straps his weapon on his back.

[Realms of Chaos]

A World Under Siege:

Spoiler

Arriving at the destination, you see that the architecture here is very much unlike that on the other worlds you have seen. For that matter, this is no world that Wero has ever seen... or at least, not firsthand. The architecture is towering and consolidated with buildings woven together a few hundred feet into the air, building a canopy for this urban jungle. Magic just about surrounds you all, most of which is restrained for utilitarian functions (food production, teleportation, weak divinations, faint abjurations, and so forth). Screams emerge from just about every building as a flood of humans rushes out down the street, followed by their slaughterers... Wero's own soldiers.

Looking down, Wero recognizes the sigil engraved into the road beneath your feet, even coated in blood as it is. It would seem that you stand on the Grand Imperion.

The Portal Chamber:

Spoiler

"Within previous year, fifteen new units observed. All Eclipsian. Designation within chamber is irrelevant to this unit's primary... malfunction. Core temperature maintenance offline."

Usabhar:

Spoiler

At first, it would appear that the beast is truly dead and immobile in the sands. As your words echo through the waste, however, it takes in a slow, deep breath. It slowly lifts up the tip of its tail from the sand, causing the dunes beneath your feet to shift. Shaking its tail through the air and causing a layer of dust to softly fall down, you can make out the gleam of its silver scales from behind the layers of sand and dust.

[Emperor Ing]

The Grand Imperion

Lord Wero's senses are immediately brought to alert against the screaming throngs. Looking at their direction, he notices their assailants are Eclipsian warriors. This...can't be right. Looking around he notices the world is unlike any Eclipsian worlds. At all. And that's not even including the rather ubiquitous and creative use of magic. Looking around, he notices the symbol of the Pirate World. Hah, the healer lead the High Lord into believing one of his own worlds was under attack. This is certainly a relief.

He looks down on Rahja and speaks in a surprisingly amused tone. Hah, it would appear you've mislead me. He looks back on the massacre. Everything seems to be in order here. Not my preferred method of prosecuting a war, but whatever works.
Of course there is something nagging on the back of the High Lord's mind. Looking to alleviate it, he enhances his vision to bypass illusions and to make sure he is not being fooled by yet another grand illusion. Of course he might have spoken too soon.

Spoiler

Lord Wero casts True Seeing on himself, then looks around for abnormalities
Perception check
(1d20+43)[59]

The Portal Chamber

Spoiler

What do you mean "Core Temperature Maintenance Offline?"

[MikelaC1]

CELESTICA

Celestica looks quickly to Rahja for confirmation. She wouldnt make a mistake like that, she is sure of it, so something here is not what it seems.

[Ridai]

"I don't have knowledge of your worlds and the sensation of death does not bother with political borders. Given how close this world is to Emanacal and how many worlds the Empire possesses, I assumed it was one of yours." Looking at the horrible massacre, Rahja tries to find traces of enchantment magic or other control over the killers to make them do this on such a scale, rather than this being proof that the Empire is so incapable that it has to resort to the basest of methods.

Celestica only

Spoiler

Celestica gets an unspoken confirmation in addition to what she has said. She can also see her soul mate ball her fist so hard she draws blood and that she bites her tongue to not lash out at Wero and that she is barely capable of not stopping this on her own. Celestica can only see the massacre in this place, but through their bond, she catches a glimpse of the full agony of lives taken en masse all across this world, as felt by Rahja. Only Rahja's will prevents her lover's mind to be engulfed by those sensations she always feels, although most often not as strongly as in this case.

Spoiler

Rahja does this as quickly as possible:

Take 10 on Sense Motive to detect enchantment and to detect surface thoughts to determine who is in control and what their plan is and who gave the order.

Rahja also uses her various senses and magical effects, as described above.

[MikelaC1]

CELESTICA

Wero's soldiers, slaughtering innocent civilians? I have no intention of allowing this to continue.
It only takes a moment of thought for Celestica to realize what she has to do, and even less time to put it into effect. Using her dimension door like ability, she "jumps" in between the fleeing civilians and the pursuing soldiers, facing the soldiers. Summoning up her loudest voice, she addresses the soldiers.

HALT
I dont know who ordered you into this massacre, but I am telling you right now
STAND DOWN.

If the soldiers do stop:
She will turn to Wero and say....Did you order this?
If the soldiers dont stop:
The first one that tries to go past her is going to the recipient of an unarmed, non-lethal attack and monk stun.

[Starsign]

Usabhar keeps his footing amazingly still as the desert sand shifts and shakes at the awakening of the giant creature. His greataxe then materializes as it is strapped to it's back in preparation for a possible battle. The sands beneath and near him chill and freeze in the paragon's presence. In any situation, Usabhar never lets himself in a trap that he has to plans to escape from. However the sight of silver scales on the dragon's body holds his aggressive stance still for a moment. The dwarf begins to calm as he resorts to a neutral post, looking up to the silver dragon. The sand near him however still freezes in his presence if only to give a passive showing of his power.

"Great silver wyrm," Usabhar begins to speak in a more professionally friendly tone, "forgive my impatience earlier but I had not known the time we would meet. What had brought you to this world seemingly empty of all but heat, and why did you request me here?"

[Emperor Ing]

Originally Posted by MikelaC1

She will turn to Wero and say....Did you order this?

I authorized the invasion of this world, yes. This massacre doesn't seem to phase him in the slightest. Don't be mistaken. Those are not "civilians." They're pirates. This world is under the total domination of the Grand Imperion. A renegade planet that drifts through the multiverse and plunders whatever world comes into proximity. It is accurate to call this a Pirate Planet.

That being said, I am rather surprised to see a city of this size under attack by my soldiers so soon. I cautioned against a trap. Even my dear daughter would have taken the time to requisition a supply line of food and water.

Also, please don't force my warriors to disobey direct orders from their superiors. You'll only get them needlessly killed.

[MikelaC1]

CELESTICA

Celestica doesnt budge or move in the slightest.

We are facing an invasion of the multiuniverse across hundreds of fronts, unprecidented in our time, and youre wasting your time subjudcating this planet. Without a great deal of proof to offer? These soldiers would be better used being deployed to fight off the invasion or rebuild the devastation

[Emperor Ing]

Do you see this emblem? He gestures at the symbol at his feet. Do you know what it means? I have traveled the multiverse many times over, personally overseeing invasions, sieges, and campaigns of every caliber. In many worlds, this symbol is synonymous with evil. Each has their own mythos, but the story is always the same. A demon world appears in the sky, and men possessed appear from it, leaving nothing but death and destruction in their wake. I have been going after this pirate fortress world for centuries. Now the opportunity to bring this evil world's wealth and resources into my subjugation presents itself, you're absolutely right I am going to snap at that opportunity. The Imperion is evil, make no mistake about it.

Now that I think about it, it's entirely likely my warriors are driven by a thirst for revenge borne upon by their world of origin's oral tradition.

[Ridai]

Standing in the middle of this massacre, Rahja heads to the center of the plaza. Before her, a rather large drum materializes, complete with sticks in her hands. When she first hits the drum, the sound is so loud it reaches to the very tops of these spires, so deep it reverberates in the very bones of everyone who hears it, small pieces of debris getting flung away from Rahja from a small dramatic shockwave. For a short moment, the aasimar draws everyone's attention to herself as the almost deafeningly loud, yet masterful performance continues for a short time, leading the minds of the audience towards ceasing all violence and listening to her.

After a small moment of silence, the drum disappears and Rahja begins to speak to the High Lord. "This invasion needs to stop immediately. This world is the home of countless monsters, but many more call it home who are not involved in the raids and know nothing else than this lifestyle. You're people are right to demand justice, but they are acting no better than the poor excuses for sentient beings they see their enemies as. Let this invasion continue and countless of your people will fall in search of revenge for no reason, only to have a world added to the empire whose mere presence will lead to chaos within it, survivors killing your subjects and your subjects killing and ostracizing this hated people and whoever is in their way to do so."

"Frankly, the methods and goals presented here are foolish. What I offer instead is a path without further bloodshed on either side, as well as this world no longer being a threat to anyone. Let me speak to the leaders of this world and try to make them see a different path for their people, one that does not lead to their eventual extinction at the hands of those they have wronged, one where those who have wronged others will be judged accordingly. If I succeed, this threat to your empire simply vanishes entirely and all these troops can go back to defending your worlds and aiding the weak and innocent while no governor and his staff need to divert precious time to attempt to rule this world in this time of crisis. If I fail, I will not stand in your way of conquering this world in any way you please."

Spoiler

Rahja casts Inner Beauty on herself.

Fascinate with it's range multiplied by 11 (990 feet), followed by mass suggestion to cease all violence and listen to Rahja. DC 38 if needed.

[Emperor Ing]

You're treading thin, healer. The great dragon hisses.
Forcing my warriors to disobey orders places them in grave danger, and you force my hand in either the support of my dear Lord General's campaign of purging these monstrous creatures that dare call themselves human, and risking the destruction of numerous accumilated technomantic treasures, knowledge, and magical artifacts, or the subjugation of a society that, at its core, is diabolic. Nay, demonic. And will fester as a cancer in the Empire.

[Ridai]

Rahja does not show much of a reaction, remaining resolute. "I am forcing your hand in neither of the ways you described. What I am proposing is neither purging them, nor subjugating them. No threat for the empire, no threat for this world, no more lives of those who serve you faithfully lost."

[Emperor Ing]

I don't think you entirely understand. The Imperion has made an enemy of the Empire. As such they are to be dealt with accordingly. Whatever you feel about that policy, know that I am not the only nation with access to interplanetary travel who feels this way. The Imperion has made MANY enemies.

The Imperion will fall, their populations will be slaughtered, and their treasures will be plundered, whether the Empire of the Eternal Eclipse has a hand in it or not. The question truly is whether or not I can achieve some sort of gain beyond the destruction of a hated enemy.

[MikelaC1]

CELESTICA

Celestica stands resolute with Rahja.

There will be no slaughter. Not on my watch. I will support peaceful annexation into the Empire, but no slaughter. Once a member of your Empire, no other Empire will dare attack them, for in doing so, they will come up against your forces in defense. Their evil natures can be reformed, and their dangerous treasures properly disposed of.

[Emperor Ing]

I have a mind to agree, annexation would be for the best, followed by assimilation. As peaceful as we would like it to be I fear even if their leaders are fully cooperative there will be more than a few elements of resistance. This world's people are fundamentally evil, so some fundamental changes will be necessary.

[MikelaC1]

CELESTICA

I have no problem with defeating those factions who chose to rebel against the legitimate authorities. Thats something different than complete slaughter of all.

[Ridai]

"Peaceful annexation it is, then. Though I will work to soothe said resisting factions, as they will harm their own people as much as yours, it is a fate of their own choice and thus they will have to live with the consequences. If you allow, Celestica and I will meet with their leaders and convince them of agreeing to annexation to prevent further bloodshed."

[Emperor Ing]

By all means, go. My terms are thus: Complete and absolute submission to the High Lord of the Empire of the Eternal Eclipse and unwavering adherence to the Lord's Law.
The High Lord pulls out a rather large book from an unseen space. Although large to your porportions it's barely larger than the tip of his finger. He also levitates what appears to be a pen, and hastily writes something into the book.
The prior terms are non-negotiable. In exchange the Grand Imperion will be annexed in full into the Empire of the Eternal Eclipse, complete with the full privileges and responsibilities this entails, including a garrison of Eclipsian warriors for protection against the various other nations that seek the Imperion's destruction at its present moment of vulnerability. Furthermore, the present leader may be considered for candidacy for Governorship as described in Section 4 Clause 81 Subsection Q through Subsection T. Scribble scribble
The leader is recommended to take the time to review and study my law, but are advised to make a quick decision, as refusal may mean complete annihilation from the various other multiplanetary nations the Imperion has made enemies of in the past.
He hands Ridai the large tome that's titled "The Lord's Law." A quick thumb-through likely won't likely see the edits the High Lord made, but he mainly made marginal notes telling the reader to disregard the more genocidal aspects of the law.

[MikelaC1]

CELESTICA

Celestica takes the book and the accompanying documents that she presumes the leader is supposed to sign to complete the annexation.

We will return as soon as we have their full agreement

She turns to Rahja, whispering conspiratorially, although she knows full well Wero can hear her.

If ever you are having trouble sleeping at night, try reading the Lords Law. Its a real snooze-er-roonie. Either that, or the material component to a confusion spell... giggle.

[Ridai]

Rahja nods in agreement with Celestica and Wero, glad that the order to stand down will be given to Wero's troops. Hearing Celestica's whisper, she giggles in kind, answering "Oh, I have something else on my mind at night."

Heading to one of the locals with Celestica, Rahja simply wipes away everyone's wounds before adressing the Imperion citizen with a gentle smile. "Please direct me to your leaders, if you would be so kind."

Spoiler

If necessary, assume a diplomacy result of 159 (take 10).

[Realms of Chaos]

The Imperion:

Spoiler

With the civilians (and Eclipsian warriors) in the area pacified through her magic, Rahja finds no difficulty in finding an communicating with a nearby Imperian, a small girl no older than 10 who willingly walks up to you as she realizes what you're after. "Our Primus ran down into the planet," she says, "into the castle he has at the core,"

The Portal Chamber:

Spoiler

"Unit overheat imminent. Emergency countermeasures triggered. Venting excess heat through primary processor."

Korshim knows enough about the design of golems to say that this is not a good plan. If the processor in its upper chest is fried, the entire thing will become an oversized paperweight.

??? (Usabhar):

Spoiler

The great dragon snorts through its nose, blowing away a small storm of dust and sand and revealing its mouth. The dragon coughs up another storm of dust, each cough a peal of thunder.

"Come, Usabhar."

With nothing more than it's voice, you know. You have found the dragon of myths and legends. You have found your god.