Dreams of the Second Age - Additional IC

[Rykon]

Aredin


Aredin looks at her silently for a moment, "You know I was about to go into the joke about how I'm an old man with way too much money, but I just told you I was going to stop playing around... So, I will say that I don't know exactly what she wants. I can't even remember her and that really, really bothers me. If I had to venture a guess though, it's probably to either recruit me, or fish for information, probably both if she can. Hmm. If that's not what you were looking for, perhaps you ought to be more precise with your question."

 

[Sherwood]

The Sleeping Chamber





Now that the arcs of Essence have been grounded and are gone, it is safe to move through the room to the next chamber where you see four stasis chambers arranged in a row. Lights on the control panel show that the occupants are still alive, but deep in slumber. Moving into the room, you can see that there is one of each of the four breeds of Dragon King represented here; Pterok, Raptok, Mosok, and Anklok. They are all wearing various types of armor that you can see and there are artifact weapons interred with them. At a glance, Rine is positive that he can work the controls to safely awaken the Sleepers; this technology is very similar to what was used to keep you safe for the years that you also were Sleeping. It will require a Int + Lore roll to begin the reanimation process, and it shouldn't take more than a half hour for all four to come to.


The Holdfast of the Mistress of Tears





Flying over the fortress, Aredin can see signs that this is not a structure just for show. There are some sizable siege weapons mounted in strategic locations on the walls, both mundane in nature and Essence powered. Also, the design of the walls is such to funnel attackers into choke points where they can be butchered by the defenders with ease. Finally, you can see that there are several warstriders parked along one wall, constructs made of flesh and bone, but lethal none the less. Shadow directs you to set down in a open courtyard where several guards are waiting.


Shadow points out one of the waiting escorts. "That is Voice That Whispers in the Heart of Darkness, the eldest of the Abyssal servants of our Mistress. Next to him is our youngest, Doll of Dreams and Blood. Even though she is young, she is the strongest in the necromatic arts of all three of us, having a curious gift in that field."

Voice That Whispers in the Heart of Darkness

Doll of Dreams and Blood


As you climb out of your transport, Doll comes skipping up to you, acting as if she were just a girl in grade school and not the dark necromancer that Shadow has labeled her. She looks up at you, "So, you are the new toy of our Mistress. What fun! Perhaps I'll get the chance to play with you. We have been directed to welcome you to the Holdfast and to escort you to the presence of the Mistress. Don't worry; we have been given strict instructions to play nice with you. No need to worry." She smiles, a creepy look on the innocent looking little one.


Chaing-Dav





Supplies are gathered, and, despite much griping on Wren's part, you are ready to depart into the jungle to get far enough out of sight so she can shift into one of her larger flying forms to give you a ride to Rathess. With her Charms, you expect it will be only a few hours of flight time before you are within sight of the old city.

 

[Rykon]

Aredin


Aredin raised an eyebrow at the young girl as he continued to walk toward through the fortress, "I could say the same to you. Now, I grow bored of all the traveling. So, let's make this quick."

 

[PirateLexi]

Mask


"Oh shush, it's not that far out. And I'm sure we'll have better means of transportation when we get this all figured out." He loads up and gets used to being in the air as they fly off to Rathess, stretching and letting the wind blow through his hair as they move and preparing to keep them inconspicuous if he sees anything off-putting.

 

[Sherwood]

Aredin





Doll chuckles. "Well, since you are in such a hurry, let us not delay any longer. The Mistress wishes to speak with you as soon as possible." Other than the dark death motif and the presence of the Shadowland you are in, the castle looks remarkably ordinary. Ghostly servants going about their business looking up in curiosity as you go walking by. Finally, you are led to a plush sitting room where you are face to face with the Deathlord known as the Mistress of Tears. She is a remarkable beauty, dressed in flowing robes. To the casual onlooker, the only things that might indicate that you are facing some deathly woman is the glowing green skull on the desk next to her, and the large scythe made of Soulsteel that is propped up next to her chair. Looking at her now, there is something nagging at you, telling you that this woman is someone you have known in the past.


In a silky voice, she says, "Thank you Doll, for bringing my guest to me. You may leave now; there is no reason to fear for my safety." Doll bows deeply, "Yes, M'lady. I await your pleasure." With that, she leaves the room, now empty except for the Deathlord and you.


"Come Aredin. Have a seat. Care for some wine? I assure you there is no poisons in it; it is simply a rare vintage that I feel you may enjoy."


Give me a Int + Lore roll to try and remember where you have encountered her before.

The Mistress of Tears

 

[Rykon]

Aredin


Aredin took a seat, removing his pipe and setting it on nearby tabletop, then reached for the wine, "Finally a host with manners. Speaking of... what are you wanting to discuss first?" Aredin watched, eyes focusing on her general shape, the signature patterns of her body language, and speaking rythm. His mind tried to soak in the subtle undertones of her decorating patterns beneath all the imagery of death, but to no avail. Sinking deeper into his memory, he probed the recesses of his life experience, back to his return to the deliberative once his first circle had gone berserk. His mind would spend a brief moment, focusing on every seat in the chamber and the names and faces that occupied them. After taking a long pull from the wine, he sat the cup down as he tried to sort through his suspicions on her identity.

Spoiler

[dice]5786[/dice]


[dice]5787[/dice]

 

[Sherwood]

The Mistress moves with grace, and is somehow familiar to you despite the fact that her identity seems to be just at the edge of your tongue. After pouring each of you a glass of wine, she takes a long drink before saying anything. "First? Where is the rest of your Circle? I was hoping to meet them here, also. Were they too suspicious to meet with the 'big bad Deathlord'?" She smiles at herself as she rubs her hand over the green glowing skull. "Second, I was hoping to convince you to work with me once more, as we have in the past." Suddenly, with that one comment, it clicks. This is Olivia, just much younger than you remember her. There are a hundred different clues to her identity that now stand out like a beacon to you, making you sure that this is the Elder Sidereal that sent you into hiding to protect you from the ravages of the Usurpation.

 

[Rykon]

Aredin


"Wai... you're dead... yet you still hold your Exaltation!?" Aredin takes a moment to physically shake off his befuddlement, "Ugh, back to your question first. They are out recruiting old allies who were also in a long slumber, as well as working with Leeayta, L'ron, and some of the other locals. So, now, I have a ton of questions for you, if you don't mind answering. First, what are the Abyssals really? Where did they come from? Are they related to the corruption in the Exalted from the First Age? If you're even dead, why didn't your shard return to Lytek? And uh, what are you wanting from me specifically?"

 

[Sherwood]

She smiles with your recognition of her. "No, my friend, I am a ghost of my former self. And the Abyssals? They are corrupted Solar Shards, twisted to serve the Underworld and the Neverborn. During the Usurpation, a prison for the Celestial Exalted Shards was made, designed to trap them away until such time as the Sidereals deemed it necessary. The Lunar Exaltations were to morpheus to be contained, but the design worked well on the bulk of the Solars. Many years ago, the Malfians approached the Neverborn with a plan. They would share the secrets of how to manipulate the Solar Essence to serve the Underworld for a cut of the prize; fully one third of the freed Shards would go to the Malfians to become Infernal Exalts. But somehow, the plan was flawed, and out of the three hundred Solar Exaltations, only half were captured by the construct sent to destroy the Jade Prison. So, now a large group of Solars are free, the Underworld now has a dark version of the Solar, equal in power just turned to the power of death, and the Malfians have their batch of Infernals. Simple, no?"

 

[Rykon]

"Half of us corrupted further? Have you learned anything else on this? If they know how to manipulate the shards, is there a way to reverse the madness?"

 

[JayTee]

Rine approached the console with caution, mindful of what had happened to their sidereal friend.


[dice]5788[/dice]

 

[Sherwood]

The controls respond immediately, beginning the reawakening process. It will take about 20-30 minutes to fully dethaw the Sleepers.

 

[Seeker of the End]

Zen-Aku


Zen awaits silently as the Sleepers begin to thaw out of cryo-stasis. During the time his anima dies down and settles while his castemark remains burning on his brow as a sign of his identity of one of the Solar Exalted.

 

[Sherwood]

The first of the stasis pods open to reveal its reptilian occupant. This one is an Anklok, the largetst and strongest of the four breeds. It is wearing Obsidian Armor, giving it even more strength and excellent protection, with a crystaline war club within reach of its clawed hands. After taking a deep breath, its eyes open and begin taking in the visitors that are standing a safe distance away from a possible jumpy Dragon King. With a few confused blinks, the Anklok settles its attention on Zen. In its High Holy Speech, it says, "Solars are here to wake us. Does this bode well, or ill?" With the creak of tired old bones that haven't moved in years, it slowly sits up and swings its legs out of the stasis pod. As it gets up, it turns to regard its fellows that have begun to stir. "We are not alone. Be at ease; they are Sun-children." Turning to look at the Solars, it says, "I am Gara, High Priest of the Unconquered Sun of our people. It seems that we are in your debt for our Awakening, and on behalf of my comrades, I thank you. Can you tell us, what year is it? How long have we been down here?"

 

[Seeker of the End]

Zen-Aku


The Dawn Caste gave a half-bow in respect, addressing the Dragon-Kings as equals, "I am Zen-Aku, Dawn Caste of this Circle. We were sent here by Leeatya to wake you. As for the year," Zen replies in High Holy Speech, "it has been over a millennium and a half since the fall of the Solar Deliberative when we were ourselves were put into Cryosleep. Currently on the new system of dating it is RY 789. Much has changed since the both of our groups have entered stasis."

 

[Sherwood]

In the Sleeper's Chamber





Gara looks at his fellow Dragon Kings in concern. "Too much time has passed. We were only supposed to Sleep for at most a hundred years. Something has gone wrong." The Raptok steps forward. "I am Grond, and I, too, wish to express our thanks for reawakening us. You say that the Solar Deliberative has fallen, but you do not say that it has been restored. Am I reading too much into your comment, or are we living in a dark time, without the light of the Unconquered Sun to guide us? In any case, we have much work to do. How are our hatchlings? Have they been able to maintain the process of Awakening their Essence, or have they fallen into savagery?"


The Holdfast of the Mistress





The ghost looks at you with amusement on her face. "You have always have had many questions for me, and I see that the passage of time has not changed. What do I want? Peace on all of Creation, with love and harmony for all. But, in the meantime, I wish to enjoy the pleasure of your company with a fine meal. It is rare for me to be able to entertain guests here, so I apologize if my social skills are rusty. You are my guest here, and welcome to be anywhere in my castle you wish. Come with me and I shall show you around."

 

[Seeker of the End]

Zen-Aku


"The Solar Deliberative has been nothing more than a ruin for millennium, we plan to start the rebuilding of a new Deliberative here in Rathess once we liberate it from Filial Wisdom and Han-Tha. As for the Unconquered Sun, I do not know. It is likely that he himself remains unaware of our existences. As for the other Dragon-Kings, we recently encountered a large group that have been Awakened, but they are a small minority in comparison to the ones who are now feral."


Zen would then explain to Grond and his companions about the Circle's deal with Leeatya and the Awakened Dragon-Kings as well as an extremely brief summary of what happened while their asleep.

 

[Rykon]

Aredin


Aredin rises from his seat to walk with Olivia, "Very well, a tour it is then."

 

[Sherwood]

The Sleeper's Chamber





The four Dragon Kings are all troubled with the state of affairs as Zen tells it, but they are doing well to keep their heads up. Gara seems to be the one taking charge of the four, and he says, "We will have to meet with Leeayta and this youngster as soon as is possible to start the process of Awakening our hatchlings. From what you have said, there is much credit due to L'ron for the hard work he has put in so far. I have seen the power of the Elder Exalted personally, but I do know that from what you have described, having our help will be invaluable to you. We owe you much, and on behalf of my associates, we will do what we can to help you rebuild Rathess." The large Dragon King offers up a clawed hand to you to shake.


From Pyter, you have heard little over the past hour as he tries to get a handle on the destruction of his fellow Sidereal. He steps forward and says, "I have some news, and not all of it is bad. I have to return to Yu-Shan for a time to bring the rest of the Gold Faction up to speed on what has happened here, and it may be some time before I get back. The good news is, before I came to Rathess to find you, I sent word to a Solar of this Age that owes me a favor or two. He is on his way here, and is nearly at the city walls with his Lunar companion. He calls himself Mask of the Tranquil Waters in Heaven, or just Mask for short. By the time we get up to the surface, Mask should be waiting for us at the temple to Leeayta. Once I make my introductions, I'll be on my way to Yu-Shan to see why I have to drop everything and come running at this exact time." He looks tired, as if having aged many decades in the past hour.


Approaching Rathess





After realizing that you have a Windblade transport available to you, Wren evicts you from her back and tells you to fly your own damn self to the city. You realize that she will be a bit huffy for a while, but for some reason she can never seem to stay angry with you for long. While flying, you get a messenger sprite that suddenly pops up next to you. In Pyter's voice, it tells you that the other Exalts are expecting you and gives you directions on the location of the main temple to Leeayta, saying that you need to be cautious coming in, but the temple itself should be empty and they will be there to meet you shortly.


The Holdfast of the Mistress





Aredin is given a friendly guided tour of the castle with the Mistress as his escort. When you try to call her by the name of Olivia, she shakes her head and tells you that she has given up the right to that name, and perhaps someday, she will tell you the story behind that. On more than one occasion she asks you about the other Sleepers that were with you, and it is quite obvious that she is very interested in reuniting with all of you sooner than later. It is clear that there is some purpose to her interest, but she is being evasive about that until such time as she can meet with all of you at once.

 

[Rykon]

Aredin


Aredin strokes at his chin for a moment, "I really do need to know more about your intentions so I can give them at least a vague idea. I mean really, do you know how much brow beating I had to do just to go alone to see that train wreck of a Solar that calls himself King? Sheesh. It's like they forgot I was an Eclipse caste or something."

 

[Seeker of the End]

Zen-Aku


Zen takes the Dragon-King's offered hand and returns the handshake firmly, "We will also do everything in our power to restore Rathess to its former glory. You have my word that it will be done. Are you ready to leave? Or are there things you need to collect first?"

 

[PirateLexi]

Mask


Mask just chuckles when she makes him fly himself, but hovers along beside her. "Oh you know we can never stay mad at each other. Besides, I know where we're going now. Looks like we get to meet a god today." He grins at her with a little twinkle and leads her on towards the temple, making sure to keep his eyes open for any possible danger.

 

[Sherwood]

The Dragon Kings gather up their personal objects and artifacts. "There are other items here that have been set aside for the hatchlings to use, but that can wait. Let us leave this place and see the sky once more."


Elsewhere, in the shadowland, the Mistress looks over at her guest. "I am sure that if you simply let them know that I am here and I wish to speak with them, that the rest of the Circle will wish to join me for a luxurious repast of fond memories and uncomfortable truths that were kept hidden from us all." She rubs her hand over the glowing skull at her side in a familiar motion. "Isn't that right, my friend?"

 

[Rykon]

Aredin


Aredin nodded, "I'll go call a meeting with them and return when I can."


If there were no interruptions, Aredin would leave on his Orb of Transport, back to the Temple of Leeayta to call the others with his prayer transceiver.


"Alright Taru-Kul, this one is for Nikolai Trotsky again. So, I met with the Mistress of Tears. She is Olivia's ghost and she has information for us, but wants all of us to be there for it. In other news, she has a total of three death knights, which I confirmed to be tainted Solars. One is some sort of warrior, there is the Zenith caste equivalent, and an apparently talented young necromancer. Anyways, I think we ought to hear her out, considering she died to save our lives. I'll be waiting at Leeayta's temple. Thanks Taru-Kul."

 

[Sherwood]

Over the course of several hours, the various groups begin to return to the main foyer of Leeayta's Temple. The group from the Underways are first, and there is much celebrating between the Dragon Kings and their Goddess. Shortly thereafter, Aredin makes his return, followed closely by a pair of Exalts that only Pyter seems to know. The Sidereal walks up and gives Mask and Wren a handshake that pulls into a brief embrace. "It is good to see you again, my friends. You have come at an auspicious time. These fellow Exalts are embarking on the lofty goal of rebuilding the ruins of this city with the aid of the Dragon Kings that still call Rathess home. So, Aredin, what did you discover when you went on your jaunt to the Shadowland?"