[IC] Ever Dream, The Worlds of Life (Closed)

[Endovior]

ooc: Ah... this is where Ever Dream went. I couldn't find it for a while, thought things had stopped...

"...Zeimur Sakomel Ignan Elmaxis!"

With that, a large explosion shakes the Cosmos. Endovior, silent for some time, appears before Jo'Karr and Yuneki.

"THAT took entirely too long. It seems that I should have been paying more attention to the realm Othar provided for me... by the time I thought to do anything with it, Ahvisun had taken over, providing the impetus for this entire war. I have just corrected the problem. My supposed home plane, is no more, destroyed by a powerful spell that took me a great deal of time and effort to cast, and with it the bulk of Ahvisun's machines. This should slow their assaults upon the other worlds... the random factor will come back into play, disrupting all movements. Unfourtunately, Ahvisun himself has escaped... he, with the rest of my traitorous servitors, have fled to the Plane of Fire. I fear that he intends to seize the Soulforge. If he succeeds, he could twist it, such that all newborn beings in existence will be born evil... not to mention that if he tries to draw upon it's power too strongly, rifts in space and time will form, destroying several planes outright. There is trouble on many fronts... but THIS is a truly dire threat. I need someone to guard the Soulforge while I hunt Ahvisun... his magic is great, and I doubt that anyone but me, his creator, will be able to track him down."

 

[Jochannan]

In the wake of the battle, a terrible atrocity befell the resistance. The angels departed, the new goddess departed, the Titan Jo'Karr departed. To where? None could sense. The forge itself vanished, poof! When those who bothered to listen finally heard the pulse of their life forces again, it was on Zhereus. But Jo'Karr and Alexandra were not among those who fled to paradise.

At malkavia, a tall, armored man leading many Malkavian assasins knocked on the city gates.

"Who goes there?"

"Company 327 sir, we've come home."

"Alright masters, come in."

The great doors of Malkavia swung open. They were slow and bulky and would have required a battering ram the size of a mountain to break open. The armored man strode in with the troops, and found his way to the center of the city. Staring at the bleak buildings, forever enshrouded by unnatural storms, the man seemed to shake his head reprovingly from time to time. Returning soldiers found joy in their families' arms, and commanders faced the grimm responsibility of informing families of casualties of war. At the gates of the central city fortress, a guard notices that the armored man most definitely doesn't belong in Malkavia.

"YOU! Hold fast!"

The man removed his helmet, but the guards had a hard time distinguishing his flesh from his armor. The armor itself seemed to liquify, then flow into the man's body. There stood Jo'Karr.

Elsewhere, the Archangels and Alexandra stood guard, and what they protected, meant life or death for them all. The Soulforge loomed up behind them, with more enchantments and abjurations protecting it than the Forge.

 

[Wrahn]

Nos walked in the “What Isn’t.” Here he was unafraid of the consequences of unleashing his power, reality would not bubble or implode, because here there was no reality. He struck out at the being, whom part of was known as Cyst, shredding and scattering it. It broke the umbilical cord between it and Cyst and fled from Nos.

Still, Nos could not close the hole, such effects would be more detrimental to that reality then him leaving it open, so he sealed it from this side. He contemplated the meaning of this. The portal network would stand as a testament for foolish mages who tamper with realms beyond their understanding. Cyst would never again manage to gather the power to leave what it had become. It would still hunger, still make the journeys through the portal system an exercise in terror, but Shara’s creation was safe from it.

Nos felt Tocho search for the “What Isn’t” as he had once done himself. It pleased him that others were walking down the path of enlightenment that he once walked. Once Tocho failed to find a physical manifestation of the “What Isn’t”, for in truth there was none, he would go to him and tell him of the four barriers, tell him of the price, and if he was willing to pay it, guide him to know the “What Isn’t”.

And then, Tocho “found” something that did not exist. Too late did Nos realize that Tocho was using a manifestation of his divine will to force his cognition into “finding” the “What Isn’t.” A being that has not prepared himself for what he was witnessing, standing in the midst of something he could not comprehend, Nos felt Tocho’s mind crack.

Greatly saddened, Nos contemplated withdrawal from Shara’s creation. He represented a mystery to them and as young as they were, as impulsive as they were, they wished to understand without knowing. Not realizing that you can never get something for nothing.

For now, Nos watched.

 

[magic_gathering2001]

As Nos seales the portal systems from 'What isn't' Othar comes through the break in reality,

"I wish to understand many things Nos yet I am but a child in comparison to you. I wish to avoid tocho's fate, to know the agents that seek me, and most importantly I wish to understand how you exist in the prime"



Meanwhile...

Korbin goes to the portal rift from which Cyst came seaking to cut it off from coming all the way through. He uses the power he received from the barrier for the first time to permanently close the rift between what is and what isn't.

 

[Albedo]

Albedo lead Kerion into the very core of the city of Malkavia, down into a deep cave system and into a room with a strange shroud that blocked out all magic. in the center of this room, a strange circle was etched into the floor. covered in arcane markings, the circle seemed to Kerion to be the key to some arcane spell. Inside the circle, there was no antimagic preventing spells to excist. But instead resounded a great energy which grew as the best mages in Malkavia attended to it. "The problem with this war is that it is all about control, and yet nobody seems to have any. They try to manipulate the transportive nature of magic, and yet cannot use it. And so we will correct this error. Watch." As Albedo points to the middle of the circle, the room begins to glow. All of a sudden, they are no longer standing in a cave, but in a colliseum. There was no scenery here, just a never ending whiteness. The huge colliseum was the only standing structure in the place. And what a magnificent sight it was. Its design was carefully made from artists of all races and religions all over the universe. It was the centerpeice to the whole plane. This sight was belittle by another flash of a prismatic wave that swept over the landscape. Now, many portals opened, but didn't lead anywhere. Yet. "Do you understand what I have done warrior? Probably not, for you are not exactly a master of the arcane arts. What I have done here is nullified ALL control over the portals, and even pretty much all interplanar travel. It now all leads here. Always. But manipulating these forces while so many others try to do so at once is very difficult, and can be changed. So I invented antimagic. This uses a portion of my own essence, which is immune to goldy influence, as well as the skills of my mages to create a barrier which negates all magic and leaves these fields in place. They surround the outsides of all the portals like a tunnel system, preventing any subversion. Even inside the tunnel system there are barriers in place which cause skips through the teleportation process, but do not stop it since the momentum of the travelor continues. But this prevents all spells from being cast through the portal. This plane regulates it all. It even forces all new portals to link to it and adds antimagic as they come, meaning the only time you can affect new portals is when they are cast. There is no way around this plane. Now all invaders must come through here, and defenders have a place to fight without destroying their own land. and then there is you, Kerion, who I have brought here for one purpose. You are to regulate and control this plane, and keep a keen eye on the universes transportation. You will have many strong foes, many who would usurp your power. But I believe you are up to the task. Let this now be known as the Plane of War, and you, being one of the greatest fighters this world has ever known will rule it. Now, you must prepare. The next being that tries to teleport will end up here, and soon, many will have gathered to fight the first regulated war. I shall leave you to your task." With that, Albedo vanishes to Malkavia where he goes to confront Jo'karr.

 

[colindownes]

Algennis

Algennis had slept for a long, long time. It was the sleep of a slighted godling - and it had not been a restful one. The Twister of Forms begins to return to consciousness, slowly but surely. And it begins to touch the world outside its labyrinthian home.

Something had changed in Algennis over the... how long had it been? Centuries? Millenia? Eons? It was impossible for the Lord of Flux to tell. Algennis had slept, but more importantly, Algennis had dreamed. Dreams are the raw stuff of change. Infinitely malleable and fluid, they were mana from heaven for the being that had cowered in the bowels of the labyrinth. It was in the realm of dreams that Algennis began its long delayed return to the Dream of Dreams, the Ever Dream.

Here and there among the mortal pawns of the deities, the presence of Algennis is felt again. A disciple of Jo'Karr... what? Alexandra? Regardless, she reaches out for inspiration and touch something other than the comforting presence of her deity. A prospective student of magic answering the call of Endovior in his dreams is tempted by whispered promises of power, and follows stranger paths. Throughout the battleground of Ever Dream, the dreams of certain mortals are plagued (or blessed, depending on one's point of view) by churning torrents of shifting madness. Some of these individuals gather together, or gather others about them, into mystery cults. Each one is different - there are no common threads of doctrine or belief, save the touch of Algennis in their dreams.

Algennis sleeps yet. But not for long.

 

[Daia]

**Jo'karrs weapon gets stuck in it's sheath if he tries to draw**

 

[periculum]

Unable to locate his querry, Tocarus turns his gaze upon the reavers, who cringe. "Bring me your strong, your bold, your leaders." When those such reavers arrive, Tocarus nonchalantly eats a halfdozen, and with a wave of his hand breaks the legs of the rest before turning to leave. Before he steps through the door his eyes flare with the memory of why he came here at all, he turns and says "Oh, and please let your lord know I wish to speak with him. Thank you."

Back within the Abyss, Tocho sits upon a throne composed of countless humanoid bodies, some mercifully dead, others not, and he rubs his temples. Sinking deep in thought, engulfed by the voices screaming inside him. Quickly awakening, he castrates several nearby worshipers before speaking. "Bring me Jo'karr."
His decree is then heard throughout the multiverse by all of his followers and allies, including those yet unaware of the transformation. It is heard by Albedo, Tensok, Kerion, and even Failure, though the beast Failure cant comprehend.

 

[Jochannan]

Albedo finds Jo'Karr surrounded by spearmen, warriors who did not fight in the war. They knew the former Forge Lord, and knew that they could not harm him, but their loyalty to their leader was absolute.

"How dare you come here, meddler."

"Still grasping for someone to blame for all the worlds ills I see. The hell with your twisted sense of responsibility. I haven't much time, and I haven't much to say. If you still seek to quarrel with me, then we will fight. I will do my best to kill you once and for all. But I think you'll find that unneccessary. The new goddess of inspiration has withdrawn the angels, all of them, to heaven. They now know peace and beauty and happiness, and they are through with you and the rest of the mortals. Even if I still had my former status, I could not move them from this decision. You wanted my influence gone? Well, you're getting most of your wish. I'm still here. I'm not going anywhere."


OOC: Daia, he isn't carrying a weapon.

 

[Endovior]

Guards adequate to the task defending the Soulforge, Endovior travels to what is now Xavax's Palace. He speaks to Xavax. "I assume you are aware of the present situation?"

"Indeed. I would do something about it, but my hands are tied... it's dangerous manipulating the flow."

"Then deal in minute fragments. The energy of the Spellforge comes to this plane anyways, correct?"

"Yes... but I can't actively use it without wreaking havoc upon the planes. All I can do is continue channelling as normal."

"Then do continue channeling as normal... but try focusing maybe a tenth of a percent of a single second's intake here, on this Palace. I will take care of the rest."

Xavax frowned. "It's dangerous... but I suppose we don't have much choice. Whenever you're ready."

Endovior assumed a ready stance, in preparation for casting. "Give me a countdown from five."

Xavax nodded. "Five, four, three, two, one... NOW!"

The palace shook. Everything began glowing a brilliant blue color, as a vast amount of raw magical energy was channeled within. Endovior, already prepared, absorbed most of it. The rest congealed into 7 more Spheres of Annihlation, which went flying out into deep space.

Endovior, fortified with the newly absorbed magic, now burned with blue fire instead of red. He shuddered slightly, then spoke. "The strain... is great. I did not... expect this much..."

"Indeed. Even a small portion of the magic that drives existence is an improbably vast amount, even for a god. Best use it quickly."

Endovior nodded, and just as quickly was gone, off to the inevitable confrontation with Ahvisun.

Xavax gazed through the Portal between the Palace and the Soulforge, and in the distance, he saw the first wave of Elementals approaching the Soulforge. "Best use it quickly indeed... time is short."

ooc: incidentally, I'd note that the portals linking the Forges with Xavax's Palace and each other are unaffected by Albedo's magic, due to the simple fact that all those portals leading to the new plane would destroy it instantly, with the rest of the universe following shortly thereafter. Xavax has wards against that kind of thing.