Dead Legends

[Dharuhk Svahre]

Althanix paced around the dark cave with great anticipation. It was about time to begin! Time to start what he had been working towards for centuries. He took a second to look as, he had hundreds of times before in the past hours, to see that the mirror that made up one of the walls of the cave was still dark. It had to be soon. Very Soon. He paced around some more, trying to maintain sanity as the hour of his greatest experiment was at hand. He needed to be calm, composed. He was the figure of a great and noble mage, and time meant nothing to him. it was meant to serve him.

"STUPID MIRROR!!!!!!!!!!!!! SHOW IT TO ME!!!!!!!!!! RIGHT THIS INTANt!!!!!!! I DEMAND IT!!!!!!!! DO NOT DEFY ME!!!!!!!!!!"

His tyraid of shouts and curses at his dark mirror was cut short as the cave began shaking, hurling the mage off of his feet and into a nearby table. Consumed by the thought his expiriment had gone awry, he began to cry and sob, begging the gods themselves to save him. And so it would seem, they answered.

The cave became silent once more, and the mage, after a quick pause to confirm his safety, picked himself out of the ruins of the table and its crushed contents, and tried to regain his composure. It was merely a miscalculation. Nothing to be concerned over. He was the great Althanix, and nothing could phase him. He turned to survey the damage to his appearance in the dark mirror, only to be foiled by a pictue of an island on the mirrors surface instead. He was forced to rearrange himself without the aid of the mirror.

"Infernal mirror. Refuse to show me the image of my new island, and now you won't even let me see my reflection and instead show me the picture of that damned island. What is this world coming to... WAIT!!!! MY ISLAND!!!!!!!"

he slammed his face into the mirror with no concern for outward appearances or the later concussion he would have to suffer.

"There they are... I can see them... oh so many of them too!!! This is my day. This is my great day!!!"

The mirror started to display red dots, most starting the in small town of Discra, a quaint little mountain town that would probably be still realing from the blast that had upset Althanix's cave. He could see it through the mirror, the kids walking by stopping to stare at the coalesing magical particles that were now forming into actual beings. Adults running out of their log houses to see the source of the commotion. To try and understand. They would understand all to soon. THEY WOULD ALL UNDERSTAND!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Nephtys]

Pain. Centuries of torment, hatred, agony, sorrow, fear and doubt. A slow fading out of existance. And then, at last Death. Final Death, black and endless, with no sensation, no awareness.
And then, suddenly, awareness came flooding back, and the solace of millennia of Nothing, was as nothing. All the agony that death had spared her exploded once again in the memory of every nerve of her body, every hidden corner of her soul. She cried out, a wordless roar that could shatter stone, and then she was silent.
Only then, awoken by her cry of agony, did she become aware of the world around her.

 

[Vertexx69]

Nothingness, with the simple exception of the soft and endless rumble of the raging water beneath him. He couldn't hear it, he couldn't see it, but he could somehow sense the water retreating throughout the eons far beneath the crevice where the ancient vampire's desiccated form lay. Imperceptible to anything not immortal, the eternal blade of the black river slowly carved its way down through the stone of the eastern mountains, and making the bottomless gorge of Mon'Sharu even deeper.

Then there was something...else. The endless vibration of the roaring water wasn't there anymore, but there was a feeling in the center of his chest. The last splinters of the trio of arrows that had pierced his heart were drawn slowly out of him by some unseen force, he revived in the cold and lightless confines of his silver coffin. Luckily the pouch had fallen from his belt, and so it hadn't turned to mist with the rest of his possessions. His mist flowed out of the tiny opening of the portable hole in the unassuming pouch. Retrieving his bed and securing it once more to his belt, Hanshu could see only the black stone walls that surrounded him.

Reaching into another pouch, he withdrew a slender wand and a pair of coins, one of which was secured to the inside of the pouch by an adamantine chain. He cast the deeper darkness onto each of them and stowed the wand before rising into the air, adjusting his clothing while he shook the ages of dust away...

 

[Albedo]

Dizzy opened her eyes. That was the first sign that something was wrong. What seemed like moments ago she had felt an axe blade slice cleanly though her demonicly altered neck. But maybe it was all just a dream. Maybe she was at home with her family, and none of her violent, dark, and cursed life had actually transpired. She took in the scene of the sky, an unfamiliar sky to be sure but at least it wasn't where she had died. The dream theory gained itself some merit.

Her eyes lowered until she spotted the townsfolk and the mountain town she had awoken in. Maybe this is where she belonged. Where she had lived her life until a dream had whisked her away. Hesitating a moment, she gathered the nerve to direct her eyes to her own self, raising her arms for inspection. It was at this point the rage consumed her.

Slamming her demonic fist into the ground hard enough to pulverize the stone beneath it, she did not even hear the horrid roar that past through her lips and echoed throughout the village. The peace she had hoped for in death was denied to her. The solution for the monsterous curse bestowed upon her denied as well. She had nothing to live for, yet could not be left to die. Her life truly was a horrid curse.

That damned mage had outdone himself. She knew that wherever a destroyed soul ends up, he was probably laughing at her right at that moment. Upon that thought, her rage switched to tortured laughter as she flopped onto the ground defeated. She truly was the punch line to some joke somewhere.

 

[Jemal]

For a time after her death, Kayla had drifted along on the current of the song, her soul becoming one with the music, with the universe. She had thought that it would leave her, would find someone else, but it hadn't. It had embraced her, as it embraced all who sought it out, who understood it.
She heard the tales, the songs, the ballads, she saw dances and plays, she understood the universe.
But now the song was growing discordant, the notes disjoined. Something was going very wrong, some great magic that was not meant to be. She felt the force of it, ripping reality asunder to restore life to powers long dead.. and to animate those that were not alive. And then she felt the music swelling, the tune rising to meet the great force, and then as the Crescendo approached, something she hadn't felt in untold years - Solid.

Kaylas eyes opened, and she knew not where she was, or why she was here. But she knew something big had happened. Her gaze travelled the square, noting the other figures standing with her, and the awe with which the townsfolk gawked. Her mind flowed over with tales of these beings surrounding her - True Legends, each and every one of them, and each of them meant to have died long ago. Had she been restored by the same force that had brought them back? Or was this the song, sending her to act as a balance, a counterpoint?

She didn't know yet, but there were more immediate concerns - Such as why these people in particular had been brought back, why here in this town, why NOW... and perhaps most boggling of all, WHEN was now?

She heard.. no, FELT the roar of sheer rage, frustration, and agony, and started towards the source before realizing who it was. That was when they came back to her - The Ballads she'd heard as she rematerialized were the stories of those in the square with her, and she realized with a sinking feeling what they all had in common.
They were weapons of destruction, fueled by pain, anger, grief. Their pasts were filled with death and despair. They were not evil.. well, not completely, but they were not kind and loving souls of compassion. Whatever force had brought them back had done so because of their sheer destructive power.
"Dizzy, please, this is not hell, your curse is.." Kayla was interupted when the lady fell over, bursting forth in laughter... But there was no mirth, no joy - This was the all-consuming last resort of someone with too much sorrow and anguish.

And before she knew what was happening, Kayla was singing. It was a wordless, enchanting tune, but it left those hearing it feeling something that was often missing - Hope. She knelt beside the lady of dismay as she sang, searching for some sign as to whether the curse had consumed her completely, or if there was still the soul of a good woman within that wretchedly twisted body.

If her soul had been consumed as had her body, Kayla would be left with no choice.. she hoped it would not come to that.
[sblock=ooc]
Casting a Persistant Good Hope.. It says it counters and dispels Crushing despair, so I figured it's fitting.
Targets are self+all legends in the square, and whatever townspeople happen to be within 30'.

Figured I'd roll her knowledge about everybody who's posted in the RG so far.
[sblock=Dizzy]OK, so I got everything except these two:

Knowledge Religion DC 35/42: The Lady of Dismay was doomed to be overcome by her curse. It was only through intervention by Gwynharwyf that she was able to overcome the darkness inside of her and harness it to give her the strength to continue fighting.

Knowledge Religion/Planes DC 40/52: While her life goal was to break her curse, The Lady of Dismay's true purpose for venturing into hell was to prevent Mephistopheles from using an artifact gate to invade the material plane. She actually accomplished this goal, thwarting the Devil Lord's plan and saving the material plane.

*L* Wow, so I know everything about her EXCEPT the fact that she wasn't overcome by the curse. Ackward.[/sblock]
[sblock=Hanshu] Everything[/sblock]
[sblock=Omega] Everything[/sblock]
[sblock=Shahaza] Uh, just belatedly realized neph don't got that yet. (I'll assume with them rolls I know a fair bit, but won't use details till you got'em)[/sblock][/sblock]

 

[Nephtys]

The memory of pain lived on, but the reality of it faded. Other things were more important now. Most importantly, she was alive.

As a Demon Lord she had taken preparations for the event of her death,
meticulous precautions to prevent her soul from destruction or absorption by the Abyss. Then, with her soul intact her servants would restore her to life so she could take her revenge against her killer. It seemed to have happened as she had planned, but her surroundings made no sense. Why would she be restored here, among mortals on what appeared to be the Prime Material plane? And why, if her savior had meant to use her would she emerge whole and unbound, in posession of some of her most valued treasures? No servant of hers would be so bold, no enemy so foolish.

Appearances could be decieving, she was alone here, and vulnerable. Studying her surroundings piercing eyes, now deadly calm, she notes two potential threats. One, a woman in the throes of madness, beautifully marked. The other, a beacon of magic singing a comforting tune, with her back turned seemingly heedless of any danger.

 

[Shayuri]

Most legends were flesh and blood; men and women who had, by virtue of inborn talent or singular training or simple unquenchable endurance, risen above the rank and file of their people and achieved greatness.

One was different. It was a spindly, spidery thing of silvery metal etched with gleaming blue runes. Its legs bent backwards, like the hind legs of a dog, and its oblong, angular head sat forward on its hunched shoulders like an oddly cut gem. A pair of red circles marked the location of its 'eyes.' No further facial features existed, or were needed.

On its right arm, overhanging its clawlike hand, was a large and complex-looking apparatus terminating in a metal tube. On its left forearm was a circular metal plate that seemed to radiate a thin distortion in the air.

The...creature? Machine?...twisted at its waist and peered around at the town and the frightened populace. It noted immediately that some residents of this unidentified location appeared combat-ready. They, and their equipment, were hodgepodges of different appearances...some even non-humanoid.

A moment to sample the environment confirmed what it had already surmised. The air here was different. Warmer and moister. The vegetation here was not native to Imperial lands. The people appeared to be a different ethnicity. It was not where it had been just moments ago. Strange. It had not been aware of a teleportation magic being cast.

One of the others called attention to herself then by engaging in some kind of musical vocalization. Unmoved by its beauty, the machine-man clomped over to the singing one and spoke in an inflectionless, hollow voice.

"Where is the Empire's nearest border?"

 

[Jemal]

"What the hell you think yer lookin at, Snakey?" The deep voice could be heard in Shahaza's head, and definitely did not come from the singing woman, who still seemed unaware. "Kaylas too trustin for her own good, thats why I got her back. And you better not come anywhere near it, capiche?". Though the voice is far from imposing to a demon queen who ruled her own layer of the abyss, it does seem rather adamant.

Unmoved by its beauty, the machine-man clomped over to the singing one and spoke in an inflectionless, hollow voice.

"Where is the Empire's nearest border?"

Kayla stopped singing, though the song seemed to linger in the air. "The Empire is long gone, Omega. It Faded into dust Millenia ago." The silver-haired beauty stood and faced the war machine "You were assaulted with a field of anti-magic, a most despicable tactic, and without your connection to magic, they were able to deactivate you. It fell Three Thousand years before I was born, though I have no way of knowing how long ago that was. Your mission is complete, both Predas and Targas are long gone."

She turned to look at the others "I know not where we are, or when, but I know each of you. The song of magic that built and maintains the universe has told me of you all, of your rise, your battles, and your final days. We all have questions, primarily Why are we here, and where IS here, but I do not have the answer to either of those, except to say that there is some purpose behind our return, and the forces present in this village could be used for either great good.. or great destruction."
[sblock=ooc]
I know the Rod's intimidate check can't scare the Marilith, but he's Kaylas Guardian, so by gosh he's gonna try. [/sblock]

 

[Dharuhk Svahre]

While the beings that had appeared in the center of town continued to converse, the sound of timed, coordinated footsteps began to permeate into the background. It wasn't long until a long row of shiny armored city guards entered the scene and began to encircle the newcomers.

"ALRIGHT, EVERYBODY HERE IS UNDER ARREST FOR SUSPICION OF MISCHIEW AND TRAVEL PERMIT VIOLATION!!!!!!" A fat bald man stepped out from behind the ranks holding a scroll, his voice booming unnaturally loud. "I RECOMMEND YOU COME QUIETLY OR WE WILL BE FORCED TO TAKE EXTREME MEASURES!!!!!"

 

[Shayuri]

Omega ignored the guards. Rather his 'eyes' remained fixed, unblinking, on Kayla. He detected no hint of deception in her features or voice. What she said was not impossible either, but it left many questions unanswered.

All of those questions were, of course, entirely irrelevant. The only important thing was that its purpose was compete. Targas was destroyed. The vendetta was carried out...if not in the fashion it had intended.

Now what?

After a moment of consideration, Omega said, "Direct me to where Predas once was. I will seek new directives from their descendents."