Thomas Hobbes
First Post
Huzzah!
Eagerly awaiting whatever you've got.
Eagerly awaiting whatever you've got.
Metamorphosis: From Dretch to Demon Lord - Ascension Released!
- Thread starter BLACKDIRGE
- Start date
gloomymarshes
First Post
Congratulations on finding a new home!
I'm eagerly awaiting the next update
I'm eagerly awaiting the next update
BLACKDIRGE
Adventurer
Howdy All,
I am still working on part 7, but to tide you over check out the new baddie in my rogues gallery thread.
Dirge
I am still working on part 7, but to tide you over check out the new baddie in my rogues gallery thread.
Dirge
gloomymarshes
First Post
Mmm, nice blackguard. (also, BUMP!)
OurManMute
First Post
A thread this nice deserves a bump.
So...
#BUMP#
So...
#BUMP#
gloomymarshes
First Post
bump
BLACKDIRGE
Adventurer
Howdy all,
Thanks for being patient, here's the next update.
************************************************************
Part VII - The Nature of Change
Gemnez watched with an air of detached disinterest as a pair of Babau slowly removed the limbs from a squealing dretch with rusted serrated cleavers. The small demon’s wailing cries filled Gemnez’s pleasure chamber but brought him little more than the beginnings of headache. The mighty baatezu had many minions and they often “performed” these little acts of senseless violence for his amusement, but in truth he found such mundane cruelty boring in the extreme.
“Enough!” Gemnez boomed, causing the two babau to cease their amputations in mid stroke. The demon’s turned their ichor spattered faces up to their master with surprise and the dreaded realization that they had displeased the mighty devil.
“Take it outside and feed it to Uzog.” Gemnez continued now that he had his minion’s complete attention. “Please.” The last word came out in a silken purr and was accented by the toothy creasing of Gemnez’s gaudily painted lips. The babau wasted no time in complying and dragged the still whimpering dretch – now minus two arms and most of a leg – from the pleasure chamber in a smear of viscous black ichor.
The sound of the massive double doors closing behind the exiting babau brought a thick sigh of relief from the huge devil, and Gemnez settled his bloated toad-like body back on the mountain of cushions that served as his throne and sleeping pallet. Here in the fortress of Gemnez Drak, he was master and none dared defy him for fear of awakening the ire of his patron, the demon lord Pyrak.
Gemnez let his thick-scaled eyelids close over his yellow-slitted orbs as he drifted back into his memories, tracing the momentous path that had brought him here, to this place of power. As a paeliryon devil, Gemnez had held much power and prestige in the burning gloom of Baator and had served the masters of the hells quite well for millennia. His last assignment as advisor to the pit fiend general Bel had set into motion the chain of events that had led to his exile and his questioning of the very meaning of his existence.
Bel ruled the first of the nine layers of Baator known as Avernus, this vast heat blasted plane was the training ground for the massive baatezu armies that existed for a single purpose, to halt the progress of invading demons on their periodical attacks on Baator. Bel performed his duty with the utmost precision and had not allowed a demon horde to breach the defenses of Avernus in his entire tenure as arch-devil. Gemnez was responsible for much of Bel’s success, using his vast network of spies, both mortal and fiendish to predict the movements of many of the powerful demon lords in the abyss. Because of the reconnaissance provided by Gemnez, most demonic hordes found themselves confronted with Bel and an army of elite devils the moment they stepped from their planar portals.
Gemnez served Bel for centuries helping the mighty pit-fiend thwart the advances of many demon lords and ensuring that the borders of Baator were well secured. The paeliryon was well rewarded for his outstanding service and commanded a veritable army of his own intensely loyal minions, but he was not satisfied. Gemnez like all devils understood the universe as place of well ordered structure, a place where loyalty and adherence to the strict code of the Baatezu allowed one to achieve power and prosperity. Gemnez had followed the law of the hells for his entire existence, believing fully in its teachings. Gemnez believed in the superiority of baatezu kind and like all his brethren hated the disorder and chaos that grew unchecked in the home of their ancestral enemies, the demons. After centuries of working with his spies and informants, many of whom were abyssal renegades; Gemnez began to understand the inner workings of the abyss in a way that no other devil could match.
The rise of a powerful demon lord called Pyrak drew Gemnez’s attention immediately for here was a demon who understood the nature of his chaotic brethren, harnessed it to his will and set it loose upon his enemies. Pyrak was the first demon to defeat one of Bel’s armies; the demon lord had proved to be skilled tactician and had bested Bel by undermining the very nature of his precise and orderly formations. Demonic hordes operated as a huge mob of individuals and although powerful would almost always break upon the formidable array of the infernal ranks. Through fear and outright intimidation Pyrak had marshaled his demonic hordes into simple, but effective formations that could match their Baatezu enemies for that first few moments of combat.
Pyrak knew that his infernal counterparts often composed their huge armies with ranks of lesser devils, which could match his more powerful demons if they their ranks held. The crafty demon lord had defeated Bel in their first encounter by surprising him with a wedge of goristroi demons, huge lumbering brutes that had slammed into the devil army like tornado. The wedge cracked open the precise formation of the devil ranks, reducing them to utter chaos and allowing Pyrak’s horde to flow through the breach. In the chaos that followed the devils were defeated as they were unused to fighting in the wild melee that had been created by the dissolution of their ranks.
Bel was forced to retreat and Pyrak tallied the first of the many victories he would achieve in his long and bloody reign. A superior force of devils eventually stopped Pyrak’s initial foray, but a dire precedent had been set, Bel and his devils had been defeated on their own soil.
Gemnez had been mightily impressed with Pyrak and his cunning use of his demonic horde. He had never seen a demon lord so focused, so driven that even his own chaotic nature took a secondary role to the achievement of his goal. Bel, of course had been furious and his rage had lasted weeks. Even after the defeat of Pyrak’s first horde the arch-devil indulged his fury on his lesser minions, drilling his armies to the point of exhaustion and executing any commander who dared question his ruthless techniques. Gemnez vowed to learn all he could of his master’s new foe and set about gathering all the information he could on the newly risen demon lord.
Gemnez learned that Pyrak had once served under the ancient demon lord Pazuzu, but had defeated his former master and driven him from the abyss. Pyrak had taken up residence in Pazuzu’s grand floating palace and now commanded a near limitless horde of demons and evil flying creatures. All of this was of little surprise to Gemnez, as demon lords often battled each other for power in the endless chaos of the abyss. What the paeliryon found odd was that a relative upstart like Pyrak had displaced Pazuzu, who was one of the oldest and most powerful demons in all the abyss. It was true that Pyrak led an elite force of vrocks known as the Dreadwings, an abnormally loyal group of fiends that numbered over a thousand. It was also true that Pyrak had proved to be a brilliant tactician and a creature that was willing to defy his very nature to achieve his aims. But all of this should not have lent Pyrak the strength to defeat Pazuzu, especially in one on one combat, which was how Gemnez understood the battle was resolved.
Gemnez was baffled by this demonic anomaly and found himself shaken to the core by what Pyrak might represent. Demons and devils came to their natures not of any free will, but were instead created with the aspects of chaos and law ingrained within their very beings. It was all but unheard of for any fiend, be it devil or demon, to forsake his nature, even at the prospect of increased personal power. It was simply inconceivable, a demon’s mind would not operate in a lawful orderly manner, just as a devil was incapable of the random and chaotic thought patterns of their demonic enemies. Gemnez had long considered himself a student of planar philosophy but had always considered the path of law to be superior over that of chaos. But as he learned more of Pyrak he began to realize that Bel’s most hated foe had bested him because he was not bound by the chains of his own nature, and could in fact utilize his own power and potential to its utmost.
Gemnez began to watch his masters and even his own minions closely, observing their behavior and the very nature of baatezu life. For the first time Gemnez began to notice the flaws in what he had perceived as perfection. The rigid hierarchy of devil kind promoted loyalty and a strict adherence to timeless customs and rituals. No devil, no matter how powerful or insignificant, did anything without first seeking the advisement of his direct superior. This behavior functioned at all levels of devil society all the way up to the arch-devils themselves and insured that the rigid line of authority remained intact and enforced. In addition the thought of doing something different than what was expected, or had never been done before was inconceivable. The laws and traditions of Baator had been laid down with the perception that there was no better way and to go against this was considered the crux of lunacy.
All of this law and order served its purpose, as the ordered ranks of devils proved to be a match for their chaotic counterparts, the demons. But there was the stalemate, Gemnez soon saw. The law of Baator was a match for the chaos of the Abyss, but no more. Neither could overcome the other because they were incapable of doing the unexpected. The demons for all their whimsical chaos could in fact be counted on to fight as an individualized mob, a tactic the Baatezu had long learned to defeat. Gemnez and his baatezu lacked imagination and their actions became just as predictable as their foes, this of course was why Baator had long ago ceased sending armies into the abyss, they simply were not adaptable enough to survive.
Gemnez continued to watch Pyrak and to serve his master Bel, but as Pyrak’s victories began to mount the paeliryon began to lose his focus and more over his very drive for success in the world of Baatezu. His understanding of the nature of himself and his fellow devils had awoken something within him, a desire to break the chains of servitude and law that bound him and truly be his own individual. He longed for a little chaos.
Gemnez’s did not hesitate to act upon his desires for change and saw that only one creature in all the multiverse might understand his plight. Gemnez contacted the demon lord Pyrak in secret and requested sanctuary within his realm. Pyrak of course did not trust his new found ally and required that the paeliryon prove his rogue status, something Gemnez was more than eager to do.
Gemnez offered Pyrak the life of one of the minor dukes of hell, a powerful pit fiend named Shenkara. Shenkara served Bel as a lieutenant and often commanded his armies in the arch-devil’s stead when he was engaged in more important activities. Gemnez informed Pyrak that Shenkara would be leading an elite unit of barbed devils from Bel’s Bronze Citadel to the fortress of Karag’Varr. The infernal duke would be easy prey for an unexpected attack from an abyssal horde.
Pyrak was no fool and sent a large force of demons led by Kugrot, a nalfashnee general of no meager skill. Gemnez’s information proved to be flawless and Pyrak was presented with the head of Shenkara by his general the following day. Intrigued by this rogue devil, Pyrak accepted Gemnez’s offer and allowed him sanctuary within his realm. Gemnez had hidden his betrayal well, and his flight from Baator went completely unnoticed.
Gemnez was granted dominion over one of the large spawning pools in Pyrak’s realm, a place the demon lord called “Gemnez Drak” which simply meant “Gemnez’s Hole” in abyssal. The paeliryon was given a contingent of babau to serve him and began his service to his new master as advisor and informant.
The paeliryon soon learned that he in fact had two masters, Pyrak and the sword Fiendbleeder that controlled the powerful demon lord. Gemnez learned that Fiendbleeder was driven to destroy the baatezu and for some unfathomable reason had allowed Gemnez to serve it. Gemnez was more than willing to provide all that he knew of Avernus and Bel’s armies but he was profoundly disappointed to learn that Pyrak’s anomalistic behavior was due to his mindless devotion to Fiendbleeder and not of his own progressive thinking. The mystery of Pyrak’s defeat over Pazuzu was no longer in question, the sword Fiendbleeder was the center of Pyrak’s power, and without it he would be nothing more than a minor demon prince of little influence.
Gemnez lamented that he might be the only being of his kind in the multiverse, until one fateful day when he watched a dretch defeat a balor in single combat. The possibilities that arose from that confrontation were endless and Gemnez found himself possessed of a new purpose, one that required him to find this strange dretch and bend it to his will.
The paeliryon smiled serenely in his reverie, the implications of a faithless petitioner who retained his memories and powers from his previous life was monumental. It represented a new order, a direction that the creative forces of the universe had only just conceived. Gemnez felt the hand of fate at work, something that would change the very fabric of reality was about to occur and he would be the one to guide its course.
The pounding of heavy footfalls pulled Gemnez from his thoughts and he winced at the concussive crash as the doors to his pleasure chamber were thrown open. The reek of brimstone and the invasive stench of burnt flesh filled the chamber as Hedrenatherax stalked into Gemnez’s presence.
The balor had recovered from his dip in the spawning pool and his massive red-scaled body was glowing with unnatural health. The balor wore his usual glare of barely contained violence and dragged behind him the still smoking corpse of a demon burnt beyond recognition. Hedrenatherax tossed the blistered remains at the foot of Gemnez’s cushions and crossed his thick arms over his broad scaly chest, scowling.
“Why thank you, Hedrenatherax, but unfortunately I have already dined and prefer my meals somewhat less charred.” Gemnez lisped with as much mockery as he could muster.
“To the hells with you! You great bloated fool!” Hedrenatherax spat, his thick-clawed hands clenching in frustration. “Do you know what this is!?”
Gemnez ignored Hedrenatherax’s insults as they lacked any real weight. The paeliryon had already proved his physical superiority over the balor and was content to let him have his barbs if they gave him some semblance of independence and power.
Gemnez rose from his cushions and waddled over to the smoking heap Hedrenatherax had deposited before him. “Well, I assume it is one of the babau I sent out after your dretch.” Gemnez answered the balor’s question and peered closely at the remains, it was obvious that the demon had been slain by the intense heat of some kind of fiery offensive spell.
“Yes, and there are three more like it where I found this one.” Hedrenatherax moved to stand opposite Gemnez and squatted down on his haunches. “Look here.” The balor motioned with one taloned hand. “What do you make of this?”
Gemnez shifted his attention to where the balor was motioning and saw that a large ragged hole had been bored into the babau’s chest. The wound would not have been a result of the spell that had slain the demon and had most likely occurred after its death. “The heart is gone.” Gemnez announced. “Are the others such as this?”
Hedrenatherax grunted an affirmative and stood. “The little bastard ripped the hearts out of all of them. I can’t imagine what he could be doing with them.”
“Adding to his power, what else?” Gemnez answered, his voice distant as he measured the implications of what lay before him.
“What do you mean, toad.” Hedrenatherax questioned, his reptilian features creased in puzzlement.
Gemnez sighed loudly, as always Hedrenatherax amazed him with his relative lack of intellect. The balor dealt with every problem in the same way, with brute force. Gemnez found it absolutely baffling that Hedrenatherax had risen to power over his much smarter brethren. “The heart is a reservoir of power, our dretch has consumed the life energy of four demons and has likely grown in power as a result.”
Hedrenatherax shook his horned head vigorously. “You are suggesting that he has climbed to the next form in the tanar’ri hierarchy, a feat that may only be accomplished via the spawning pool. It is simply not possible, trust me baatezu, this is truth.”
Gemnez marveled at Hedrenatherax inability to conceive of something outside his own experience, a trait he was finding more and more common among demons and devils alike. “You are looking for a babau now, the dretch no longer holds are little petitioner.”
“No! That is not possible! I have told you…” Hedrenatherax began to rage, but was silenced in mid rant by the meaty thwack of Gemnez’s huge red nailed fist driving into his chest.
The air was forced from Hedrenatherax’s lungs in an explosive burst as he was hurled backwards by the force of Gemnez’s blow. The paeliryon disliked using such crude methods but sometimes nothing but a direct physical threat would convey his message.
Hedrenatherax was struggling to rise from his ignoble sprawl still stunned by the unholy speed at which Gemnez’s attack had materialized, but the paeliryon slammed him back down with the weight of one colossal foot. “Now listen to me Hedrenatherax, I dislike repeating myself.” Gemnez increased the applied pressure on the balor’s chest to drive home his point.
“You are to leave here and find a babau, he will appear somewhat different from the rank and file. Possibly larger or his coloring may be different. Find him and bring him to me. Do not slay him, or you will answer to me.” Gemnez stared into Hedrenatherax’s eyes, eyes that burned with absolute hatred. Twice now Gemnez had humiliated the balor a fact that surely left an indelible stamp upon the mighty demon’s ego. “Do you understand?” Gemnez finished softly and was rewarded with a silent nod of the balor’s head.
Gemnez removed his foot from Hedrenatherax’s chest and allowed him to rise. He felt the heat of the balor’s rage and thought for an instant that the demon might attack him and he would lose a very valuable servant. But Hedrenatherax simply turned away and stalked from the pleasure chamber, most likely to vent his rage on some hapless lesser demon.
Gemnez sighed again and returned to his cushions. He knew that his hold over Hedrenatherax was a tenuous one but it would hold for as long as it was needed. The balor feared Pyrak even more than he hated Gemnez and failure to contain the menace of this faithless petitioner would mean certain doom for the balor. Gemnez had convinced Hedrenatherax that Pyrak would be much more pleased with the conservation of this new resource than its destruction and had little doubt that the balor would bring Gemnez his prize if it were within his power.
The huge baatezu settled back in his cushions and closed his eyes once more. Visions of power and change danced before Gemnez as he allowed himself the small indulgence of dreaming.
Thanks for being patient, here's the next update.
************************************************************
Part VII - The Nature of Change
Gemnez watched with an air of detached disinterest as a pair of Babau slowly removed the limbs from a squealing dretch with rusted serrated cleavers. The small demon’s wailing cries filled Gemnez’s pleasure chamber but brought him little more than the beginnings of headache. The mighty baatezu had many minions and they often “performed” these little acts of senseless violence for his amusement, but in truth he found such mundane cruelty boring in the extreme.
“Enough!” Gemnez boomed, causing the two babau to cease their amputations in mid stroke. The demon’s turned their ichor spattered faces up to their master with surprise and the dreaded realization that they had displeased the mighty devil.
“Take it outside and feed it to Uzog.” Gemnez continued now that he had his minion’s complete attention. “Please.” The last word came out in a silken purr and was accented by the toothy creasing of Gemnez’s gaudily painted lips. The babau wasted no time in complying and dragged the still whimpering dretch – now minus two arms and most of a leg – from the pleasure chamber in a smear of viscous black ichor.
The sound of the massive double doors closing behind the exiting babau brought a thick sigh of relief from the huge devil, and Gemnez settled his bloated toad-like body back on the mountain of cushions that served as his throne and sleeping pallet. Here in the fortress of Gemnez Drak, he was master and none dared defy him for fear of awakening the ire of his patron, the demon lord Pyrak.
Gemnez let his thick-scaled eyelids close over his yellow-slitted orbs as he drifted back into his memories, tracing the momentous path that had brought him here, to this place of power. As a paeliryon devil, Gemnez had held much power and prestige in the burning gloom of Baator and had served the masters of the hells quite well for millennia. His last assignment as advisor to the pit fiend general Bel had set into motion the chain of events that had led to his exile and his questioning of the very meaning of his existence.
Bel ruled the first of the nine layers of Baator known as Avernus, this vast heat blasted plane was the training ground for the massive baatezu armies that existed for a single purpose, to halt the progress of invading demons on their periodical attacks on Baator. Bel performed his duty with the utmost precision and had not allowed a demon horde to breach the defenses of Avernus in his entire tenure as arch-devil. Gemnez was responsible for much of Bel’s success, using his vast network of spies, both mortal and fiendish to predict the movements of many of the powerful demon lords in the abyss. Because of the reconnaissance provided by Gemnez, most demonic hordes found themselves confronted with Bel and an army of elite devils the moment they stepped from their planar portals.
Gemnez served Bel for centuries helping the mighty pit-fiend thwart the advances of many demon lords and ensuring that the borders of Baator were well secured. The paeliryon was well rewarded for his outstanding service and commanded a veritable army of his own intensely loyal minions, but he was not satisfied. Gemnez like all devils understood the universe as place of well ordered structure, a place where loyalty and adherence to the strict code of the Baatezu allowed one to achieve power and prosperity. Gemnez had followed the law of the hells for his entire existence, believing fully in its teachings. Gemnez believed in the superiority of baatezu kind and like all his brethren hated the disorder and chaos that grew unchecked in the home of their ancestral enemies, the demons. After centuries of working with his spies and informants, many of whom were abyssal renegades; Gemnez began to understand the inner workings of the abyss in a way that no other devil could match.
The rise of a powerful demon lord called Pyrak drew Gemnez’s attention immediately for here was a demon who understood the nature of his chaotic brethren, harnessed it to his will and set it loose upon his enemies. Pyrak was the first demon to defeat one of Bel’s armies; the demon lord had proved to be skilled tactician and had bested Bel by undermining the very nature of his precise and orderly formations. Demonic hordes operated as a huge mob of individuals and although powerful would almost always break upon the formidable array of the infernal ranks. Through fear and outright intimidation Pyrak had marshaled his demonic hordes into simple, but effective formations that could match their Baatezu enemies for that first few moments of combat.
Pyrak knew that his infernal counterparts often composed their huge armies with ranks of lesser devils, which could match his more powerful demons if they their ranks held. The crafty demon lord had defeated Bel in their first encounter by surprising him with a wedge of goristroi demons, huge lumbering brutes that had slammed into the devil army like tornado. The wedge cracked open the precise formation of the devil ranks, reducing them to utter chaos and allowing Pyrak’s horde to flow through the breach. In the chaos that followed the devils were defeated as they were unused to fighting in the wild melee that had been created by the dissolution of their ranks.
Bel was forced to retreat and Pyrak tallied the first of the many victories he would achieve in his long and bloody reign. A superior force of devils eventually stopped Pyrak’s initial foray, but a dire precedent had been set, Bel and his devils had been defeated on their own soil.
Gemnez had been mightily impressed with Pyrak and his cunning use of his demonic horde. He had never seen a demon lord so focused, so driven that even his own chaotic nature took a secondary role to the achievement of his goal. Bel, of course had been furious and his rage had lasted weeks. Even after the defeat of Pyrak’s first horde the arch-devil indulged his fury on his lesser minions, drilling his armies to the point of exhaustion and executing any commander who dared question his ruthless techniques. Gemnez vowed to learn all he could of his master’s new foe and set about gathering all the information he could on the newly risen demon lord.
Gemnez learned that Pyrak had once served under the ancient demon lord Pazuzu, but had defeated his former master and driven him from the abyss. Pyrak had taken up residence in Pazuzu’s grand floating palace and now commanded a near limitless horde of demons and evil flying creatures. All of this was of little surprise to Gemnez, as demon lords often battled each other for power in the endless chaos of the abyss. What the paeliryon found odd was that a relative upstart like Pyrak had displaced Pazuzu, who was one of the oldest and most powerful demons in all the abyss. It was true that Pyrak led an elite force of vrocks known as the Dreadwings, an abnormally loyal group of fiends that numbered over a thousand. It was also true that Pyrak had proved to be a brilliant tactician and a creature that was willing to defy his very nature to achieve his aims. But all of this should not have lent Pyrak the strength to defeat Pazuzu, especially in one on one combat, which was how Gemnez understood the battle was resolved.
Gemnez was baffled by this demonic anomaly and found himself shaken to the core by what Pyrak might represent. Demons and devils came to their natures not of any free will, but were instead created with the aspects of chaos and law ingrained within their very beings. It was all but unheard of for any fiend, be it devil or demon, to forsake his nature, even at the prospect of increased personal power. It was simply inconceivable, a demon’s mind would not operate in a lawful orderly manner, just as a devil was incapable of the random and chaotic thought patterns of their demonic enemies. Gemnez had long considered himself a student of planar philosophy but had always considered the path of law to be superior over that of chaos. But as he learned more of Pyrak he began to realize that Bel’s most hated foe had bested him because he was not bound by the chains of his own nature, and could in fact utilize his own power and potential to its utmost.
Gemnez began to watch his masters and even his own minions closely, observing their behavior and the very nature of baatezu life. For the first time Gemnez began to notice the flaws in what he had perceived as perfection. The rigid hierarchy of devil kind promoted loyalty and a strict adherence to timeless customs and rituals. No devil, no matter how powerful or insignificant, did anything without first seeking the advisement of his direct superior. This behavior functioned at all levels of devil society all the way up to the arch-devils themselves and insured that the rigid line of authority remained intact and enforced. In addition the thought of doing something different than what was expected, or had never been done before was inconceivable. The laws and traditions of Baator had been laid down with the perception that there was no better way and to go against this was considered the crux of lunacy.
All of this law and order served its purpose, as the ordered ranks of devils proved to be a match for their chaotic counterparts, the demons. But there was the stalemate, Gemnez soon saw. The law of Baator was a match for the chaos of the Abyss, but no more. Neither could overcome the other because they were incapable of doing the unexpected. The demons for all their whimsical chaos could in fact be counted on to fight as an individualized mob, a tactic the Baatezu had long learned to defeat. Gemnez and his baatezu lacked imagination and their actions became just as predictable as their foes, this of course was why Baator had long ago ceased sending armies into the abyss, they simply were not adaptable enough to survive.
Gemnez continued to watch Pyrak and to serve his master Bel, but as Pyrak’s victories began to mount the paeliryon began to lose his focus and more over his very drive for success in the world of Baatezu. His understanding of the nature of himself and his fellow devils had awoken something within him, a desire to break the chains of servitude and law that bound him and truly be his own individual. He longed for a little chaos.
Gemnez’s did not hesitate to act upon his desires for change and saw that only one creature in all the multiverse might understand his plight. Gemnez contacted the demon lord Pyrak in secret and requested sanctuary within his realm. Pyrak of course did not trust his new found ally and required that the paeliryon prove his rogue status, something Gemnez was more than eager to do.
Gemnez offered Pyrak the life of one of the minor dukes of hell, a powerful pit fiend named Shenkara. Shenkara served Bel as a lieutenant and often commanded his armies in the arch-devil’s stead when he was engaged in more important activities. Gemnez informed Pyrak that Shenkara would be leading an elite unit of barbed devils from Bel’s Bronze Citadel to the fortress of Karag’Varr. The infernal duke would be easy prey for an unexpected attack from an abyssal horde.
Pyrak was no fool and sent a large force of demons led by Kugrot, a nalfashnee general of no meager skill. Gemnez’s information proved to be flawless and Pyrak was presented with the head of Shenkara by his general the following day. Intrigued by this rogue devil, Pyrak accepted Gemnez’s offer and allowed him sanctuary within his realm. Gemnez had hidden his betrayal well, and his flight from Baator went completely unnoticed.
Gemnez was granted dominion over one of the large spawning pools in Pyrak’s realm, a place the demon lord called “Gemnez Drak” which simply meant “Gemnez’s Hole” in abyssal. The paeliryon was given a contingent of babau to serve him and began his service to his new master as advisor and informant.
The paeliryon soon learned that he in fact had two masters, Pyrak and the sword Fiendbleeder that controlled the powerful demon lord. Gemnez learned that Fiendbleeder was driven to destroy the baatezu and for some unfathomable reason had allowed Gemnez to serve it. Gemnez was more than willing to provide all that he knew of Avernus and Bel’s armies but he was profoundly disappointed to learn that Pyrak’s anomalistic behavior was due to his mindless devotion to Fiendbleeder and not of his own progressive thinking. The mystery of Pyrak’s defeat over Pazuzu was no longer in question, the sword Fiendbleeder was the center of Pyrak’s power, and without it he would be nothing more than a minor demon prince of little influence.
Gemnez lamented that he might be the only being of his kind in the multiverse, until one fateful day when he watched a dretch defeat a balor in single combat. The possibilities that arose from that confrontation were endless and Gemnez found himself possessed of a new purpose, one that required him to find this strange dretch and bend it to his will.
The paeliryon smiled serenely in his reverie, the implications of a faithless petitioner who retained his memories and powers from his previous life was monumental. It represented a new order, a direction that the creative forces of the universe had only just conceived. Gemnez felt the hand of fate at work, something that would change the very fabric of reality was about to occur and he would be the one to guide its course.
The pounding of heavy footfalls pulled Gemnez from his thoughts and he winced at the concussive crash as the doors to his pleasure chamber were thrown open. The reek of brimstone and the invasive stench of burnt flesh filled the chamber as Hedrenatherax stalked into Gemnez’s presence.
The balor had recovered from his dip in the spawning pool and his massive red-scaled body was glowing with unnatural health. The balor wore his usual glare of barely contained violence and dragged behind him the still smoking corpse of a demon burnt beyond recognition. Hedrenatherax tossed the blistered remains at the foot of Gemnez’s cushions and crossed his thick arms over his broad scaly chest, scowling.
“Why thank you, Hedrenatherax, but unfortunately I have already dined and prefer my meals somewhat less charred.” Gemnez lisped with as much mockery as he could muster.
“To the hells with you! You great bloated fool!” Hedrenatherax spat, his thick-clawed hands clenching in frustration. “Do you know what this is!?”
Gemnez ignored Hedrenatherax’s insults as they lacked any real weight. The paeliryon had already proved his physical superiority over the balor and was content to let him have his barbs if they gave him some semblance of independence and power.
Gemnez rose from his cushions and waddled over to the smoking heap Hedrenatherax had deposited before him. “Well, I assume it is one of the babau I sent out after your dretch.” Gemnez answered the balor’s question and peered closely at the remains, it was obvious that the demon had been slain by the intense heat of some kind of fiery offensive spell.
“Yes, and there are three more like it where I found this one.” Hedrenatherax moved to stand opposite Gemnez and squatted down on his haunches. “Look here.” The balor motioned with one taloned hand. “What do you make of this?”
Gemnez shifted his attention to where the balor was motioning and saw that a large ragged hole had been bored into the babau’s chest. The wound would not have been a result of the spell that had slain the demon and had most likely occurred after its death. “The heart is gone.” Gemnez announced. “Are the others such as this?”
Hedrenatherax grunted an affirmative and stood. “The little bastard ripped the hearts out of all of them. I can’t imagine what he could be doing with them.”
“Adding to his power, what else?” Gemnez answered, his voice distant as he measured the implications of what lay before him.
“What do you mean, toad.” Hedrenatherax questioned, his reptilian features creased in puzzlement.
Gemnez sighed loudly, as always Hedrenatherax amazed him with his relative lack of intellect. The balor dealt with every problem in the same way, with brute force. Gemnez found it absolutely baffling that Hedrenatherax had risen to power over his much smarter brethren. “The heart is a reservoir of power, our dretch has consumed the life energy of four demons and has likely grown in power as a result.”
Hedrenatherax shook his horned head vigorously. “You are suggesting that he has climbed to the next form in the tanar’ri hierarchy, a feat that may only be accomplished via the spawning pool. It is simply not possible, trust me baatezu, this is truth.”
Gemnez marveled at Hedrenatherax inability to conceive of something outside his own experience, a trait he was finding more and more common among demons and devils alike. “You are looking for a babau now, the dretch no longer holds are little petitioner.”
“No! That is not possible! I have told you…” Hedrenatherax began to rage, but was silenced in mid rant by the meaty thwack of Gemnez’s huge red nailed fist driving into his chest.
The air was forced from Hedrenatherax’s lungs in an explosive burst as he was hurled backwards by the force of Gemnez’s blow. The paeliryon disliked using such crude methods but sometimes nothing but a direct physical threat would convey his message.
Hedrenatherax was struggling to rise from his ignoble sprawl still stunned by the unholy speed at which Gemnez’s attack had materialized, but the paeliryon slammed him back down with the weight of one colossal foot. “Now listen to me Hedrenatherax, I dislike repeating myself.” Gemnez increased the applied pressure on the balor’s chest to drive home his point.
“You are to leave here and find a babau, he will appear somewhat different from the rank and file. Possibly larger or his coloring may be different. Find him and bring him to me. Do not slay him, or you will answer to me.” Gemnez stared into Hedrenatherax’s eyes, eyes that burned with absolute hatred. Twice now Gemnez had humiliated the balor a fact that surely left an indelible stamp upon the mighty demon’s ego. “Do you understand?” Gemnez finished softly and was rewarded with a silent nod of the balor’s head.
Gemnez removed his foot from Hedrenatherax’s chest and allowed him to rise. He felt the heat of the balor’s rage and thought for an instant that the demon might attack him and he would lose a very valuable servant. But Hedrenatherax simply turned away and stalked from the pleasure chamber, most likely to vent his rage on some hapless lesser demon.
Gemnez sighed again and returned to his cushions. He knew that his hold over Hedrenatherax was a tenuous one but it would hold for as long as it was needed. The balor feared Pyrak even more than he hated Gemnez and failure to contain the menace of this faithless petitioner would mean certain doom for the balor. Gemnez had convinced Hedrenatherax that Pyrak would be much more pleased with the conservation of this new resource than its destruction and had little doubt that the balor would bring Gemnez his prize if it were within his power.
The huge baatezu settled back in his cushions and closed his eyes once more. Visions of power and change danced before Gemnez as he allowed himself the small indulgence of dreaming.
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