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Post by The Mammoth on Apr 6, 2008 4:43:02 GMT -5
The heavy rain pummeled the ground of the old town. There was darkness, nothing but the sound of the rain. The moon covered by heavy clouds, and only on occasion was the silence of the night interrupted with a horrible explosion of thunder. Whatever life remained, it was not stirring. How a town so well kept could be so silent, even in the dead of night made no sense. The stone road was slowly being covered with water and mud, and suddenly a greave slammed onto the stone from the mud. Walking from the darkness of the plains outside the town, stood a warrior clad in black. Holding out his blade in front of him, the flame from the weapon lit the way. The town around him was deserted. He narrowed his eyes. The area was too well kept to have been abandoned for long, but there was no sign of life in this town. The doors were broken in on a few shops, this sad town was dead.
The man walked forward, wondering what could cause such a established and nice town to be deserted, or abandoned so recently. His black armor made him blend in well with the darkness of the night, but his blade lit the entire area, making it very easy to see around. He walked into a nearby inn, and his thoughts were only reinforced. There was nobody here, nothing but a small patch of blood, sitting on the counter by the bell.
“What have you walked into, Horacius…” The man said, turning from the building.
He had traveled for a long time, trying to escape his past. Ever since that fateful day when he left the Order of the Radiant Heart, when he destroyed what he had grown to fight for all his life, he had tried to move on, help those in need as he wandered from place to place. His reputation, as well known as it was, nobody knew his face, but his description was well known. A tall warrior clad in black, carrying a massive tower shield and a sword of flame. He was Horacius Mecrast, The Fallen Paladin. He shook off the thoughts of his past, they troubled him, and only saddened him as they made him think of his slain wife and son. He still struggled to believe his own order could have done such a thing…
But this was no time for dwelling on the past. He began to move through the town, when suddenly he saw what looked like people. He called out to them.
“Hello! Are you alright!?” He said, the people slowly turning to face him. That is when he saw what they were. They were undead, the soulless and emotionless look on their faces gave it away… Ghasts. The recently buried, corrupted and poisoned so that they harm all those near them. The air was tainted with their poison, as they expelled it as they moved. Horacius wondered what evil could be so near that undead were present. It seemed he had found another cause, another people that needed help, another chance to remove all doubt that it was not he who fell from the path, but the order. They were a lesser form of undead, but problematic nonetheless. Their powerful stench and poison made them especially deadly. Horacius raised his sword in the air, and a golden light overcame the flame, suddenly and explosion of holy energy burst into the air, killing two of the ghasts, dispersing their poison, and causing the others to weaken. Even the undead knew fear in the face of a Paladin..
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Post by knightc3 on Apr 6, 2008 9:40:34 GMT -5
It had taken him so long but he had finally caught up with the man he had been trying to catch. He quicken his pace, almost running now as he entered the old town he was told Horacious was heading to. He had been warned by a beggar that this town was haunted by the dead. He had heard of dead creatures coming back to life and had seen his mentor slay them long ago. But he wasn't sure if that was indeed the case here. The beggars could not be trusted as they were prone to spread rumors just to get attention but the old man who had told hims this seemed genuinely scared of this town.
He would have avoided the town as he knew his limitations. There would have been no point in rushing towards danger without knowledge or preparation. But this was different for the man he had been tracking all these years was here and he wasn't planning on loosing the trail again. He slowed down his pace as he entered the town, which was surprisingly completely deserted. He took his sword from its sheath and the shield, walking forward carefully and silently. Maybe the old beggar had been right after all. As he took a few more steps forward, he could smell the death in the air. He spun to see what had made the noise when he heard a door close noisily. He moved forward carefully to inspect.
He came to a stop in the middle of the street behind a large man who held up a flaming sword in the rain. He could just stand and stare at the man in the black armor, relieved to finally find him, as he killed a few of the creatures in front of him. He had stopped paying attention and didn't realize a group of them approaching from behind him silently.
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Post by Roara on Apr 6, 2008 12:07:09 GMT -5
(I have no idea how to work Evan in here. Wanna PM me?)
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Post by The Mammoth on Apr 6, 2008 23:49:05 GMT -5
Horacius could feel the presence of the squire behind him. The presence of another holy energy emitting from behind him was obvious. Although, he did not know the ghasts were attacking from behind. Moving forward with a few evenly paced steps, he struck at the ghast closest to him. They were quicker than zombies, but just as fragile. With a well placed strike, he split the front ghast in two. The others moved around him, and he raised his hand in the air again, a golden glow emitting from him. He waved his hand toward the ghast and watched it turn into dust. Turning quickly, he cut the head off the other ghast, leaving them lying before him.
When he turned to see the man or woman behind him, he saw the young face of a squire. No doubt he was a squire, he was too young to be a Paladin, but he was also emanating a glow of one trained in the slight arts of holy spellcasting. He stepped forward, only to see more undead coming from the shadows, this time, they were more undead. Horacius jumped into action, knowing that the squire could be overrun if he didn't. He ran forward, running by the man and cutting down two of the zombies that were moving toward him. With a few slashes, all of the undead were down. He turned to face the man before him, and spoke plainly.
"Who are you? And why have you come to this place?"
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Post by knightc3 on Apr 7, 2008 9:30:06 GMT -5
When Athon saw the man run towards him he thought he was about to be attacked. He then sensed the undead behind him as the stink suddenly increased. He instinctively ducked as a hand passed over him where his neck would have been. He brought up his shield, swinging it from in front of him and hit the shoulder of the undead that had tried to rip his neck. He couldn't do much else as Horacious quickly took care of the rest of them.
He was at loss of words as the question was asked. He hadn't really thought about what he would say when he met him. He wasn't scared of him but then he wasn't confident in front of him either, specially while he stood in an battle stance. He spoke quickly, "My name is Athon Brackus. I was a squire at the Order of the Radiant Heart. My mentor was Fergus Grator. I am not here to exact vengeance because I know now what really happened. I even visited your family's graves to pay my tribute....", he stopped himself realizing he might have said too much. He gripped his shield tightly even though he knew the force of his swing alone might be enough to knock him out for good.
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Post by Da Pwny on Apr 7, 2008 17:06:41 GMT -5
From a branch high up in an oak not far away, a lone figure sat. Though hidden underneath a forest-green cloak, and even with her face being masked behind the collar of it, her eyes portrayed a piercing stare, watching with intent the two men before her. One was a giant of a man, and the other seemingly a passerby, though he seemed to be speaking fairly open with the big man. She knew Horacius, but this other one she knew of not; perhaps an understudy, or a man out seeking revenge upon the Fallen One... It was Horacius she worried about, however; he was the one she was seeking presently, and possibly the only one who might know anything about what had happened to her village...
Her hair, which was usually displayed or dyed a different shade, was cloaked in pitch-black cloth so as not to give away her presence. Her overall appearance was mysterious at best, and at worse, threatening; at the moment, however, she did not mean harm to either man, though the unholy beasts would be an annoyance... For now, she watched, her presence non-existent, thanks to an untraceable spell that she'd cast some time ago. Undetected by the Wraiths, she had laid there in wait for the last few hours, and now that the spell was beginning to wear, Naomi would need to move sometime soon before they came at her...
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Post by The Mammoth on Apr 7, 2008 21:57:41 GMT -5
Horacius' eyes showed a fire that had seldom been seen before at the mention of his family, and then it quickly turned to sadness. He was enraged at this squire's mention of his family, but he knew it was not his fault. Athon was just a kid, he didn't know any better. The memory, the though of his wife, her golden hair blowing in the wind, her smooth skin as he met up with her after a long crusade for the Paladin's, and the taste of her lips, the memories flooded back... His son's exuberant face, happy to see his father return home, hoping he would teach him something about swordplay, or share the stories of his travels. He turned away from Athon, his eyes closed, fighting back the tears that so badly wanted to pour from his eyes. Even after these years, he couldn't come to terms with his loss. He didn't think he could ever get over it. That which he had loved, slain by that which he believed in. He finally sighed, turning back around, his face returning to normal, and his eyes showing a small hint of compassion through his helm.
"Grator was a good man, even if he was a fool. If you were here to exact vengeance, you'd have done so already." He sheathed his sword, "So... You know what happened, you know what I have done... why are you here? The Order is ended. There is no more Radiant Heart. The sooner you learn that, the better off you'll be."
He turned to walk away, when he stopped. He lowered his head.
"I apologize." He said, turning back around, "Memories of the past can make me bitter. It is not your fault. You obviously followed me for a reason, and knew of my past... You want to complete your training... Don't you?" Horacius said, it occurring to him why this squire would travel so far to find the only remaining Paladin of the order. From what he had heard, none who fled from the order continued their life as a Paladin, so Horacius was his last hope to complete his training as a Paladin of the order.
It would not be easy, if that were the path Athon was looking to travel down. Horacius had learned much about what a Paladin's power truly came from, what they had been taught in the Order... Most of it was lies. Such changes to what you had been raised to believe, may be catastrophic... Horacius didn't want to make this young man, so full of zeal, feel the torment that he had to live with day to day...
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Post by knightc3 on Apr 8, 2008 9:08:14 GMT -5
"I am sorry, I didn't mean to...", he paused as he heard what he was saying, relaxing his hold on the shield, convinced he was not going to be attacked. "Yes, that was the reason I have been trying to find you for... seven years. My mentor told me to find you. He believed you were the only one who could train me to become a paladin. Thank you for killing these, I know I should have been more careful." He paused again looking at the man trying to know as much about him as he could in sight.
His eyes focused behind Horacious as he caught sight of something shimmer in the dark. He couldn't be sure what he saw so decided not to say anything. He looked back at Horacious waiting for an answer but his eyes kept moving back to the same spot, wondering what, or who it had been.
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Post by The Mammoth on Apr 9, 2008 5:51:57 GMT -5
"If this is the road you want to travel..." Horacius stopped, thinking carefully over his next words, "Be prepared, for when we begin, I will not let you stop. This will be harder than anything you've ever done."
Horacius could see he was distracted, and turned to look for what he was staring at. He could see very little, and he struggled to see anything in the dark night. He stepped forward for a second, and watched the trees, knowing that was probably the only place for someone to hide in the plains past the small town.
Finally, he pulled his blade.
"Show yourself." He said, not knowing if anyone was truly there, but he assumed they wouldn't be smart enough to show themselves...
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Post by Da Pwny on Apr 9, 2008 21:40:34 GMT -5
Naomi raised an eyebrow... was her watchfulness really that potent? She'd gone undetected by the undead, and the spell had worked numerous times before... still, she'd seen what this one had done to those abominations, and Naomi would rather not have anything similar happen to her.
Dispersing the spell, she dropped from the tree, dismissing the avatar from her presence so as not to start anything too off-beat yet. Standing up straight, she cracked her neck and several other things, trying to remove the stiffness from her body as she leaned up against the nearby tree. She wasn't about to make any sudden movements towards the men, simply watch nonchalauntly from a distance until either they moved on or came up to her... if one or both of them attacked her, however, that would be a whole 'nother story...
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Post by The Mammoth on Apr 9, 2008 22:55:10 GMT -5
Horacius nodded, grunting approvingly. He was surprised.
"Stay here." He said to Athon. He didn't want to risk seeming threatening. He held his sword by his side, just for light, and began moving toward the woman. He held his shield down by his side to show that he meant no harm. He would see the intentions of this person before he started a fight. Finally reaching this person, he noticed it was a woman, first a foremost. Secondly, he noticed she was trying hard to stay hidden, at least thats what he deduced from the clothing.
"Any reason you decided watching us was a good idea?" He said, getting to the point.
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Post by knightc3 on Apr 10, 2008 10:50:51 GMT -5
Athon didn't think of Horacious as a rash man but he certainly was bold. He had gone ahead to challenge whoever it was that hid themselves so well in the darkness of the tree. He had stayed till the woman had showed herself. He was curious to see who it had been that could be in a place like this. No one would ever be here unless they had a very good reason to be. She must to. As Horacious walked upto her, he followed and putting his shield back on his back, keeping the sword in his hand in a hold that was more comfortable and less threatening.
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Post by Da Pwny on Apr 10, 2008 14:37:52 GMT -5
"Yes" she said matter-of-factually, in a tone that would have tossed most others off-base almost immediately, her hand slipping to the hilt of her own blade as she finished "and for now, they are all my own, in case you wished to actually know that." She had been taught from her first steps never to leave herself without a defense unless it was to lure the enemy closer to her. Which, in this case, where he had stopped was just inside her comfort zone.
As well as her kill zone.
She visualized the attack in her mind, but made no movement at the time to enact upon it; she did not act, only react. Naomi was above blindly assaulting an enemy like a fool... she observed her enemy, then based her attacks upon that. Simple in concept, but much harder to complete, considering most situations were never in her favor... Her eyes were locked upon his body language, or at least that little bit she could make out from under his armor, as she awaited whatever response he would give...
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Post by The Mammoth on Apr 10, 2008 15:47:37 GMT -5
Horacius turned from the woman, walking away and heading back to the corpses of the undead to inspect them.
"Then I waste my time speaking to you." He said, not wishing to further waste his time. This was one of those women who thought being a vigilante meant she had to act brash and have no courtesy. Horacius was not in the mood to deal with someone who didn't have the common sense to speak when obviously they were not interested in a fight. But, since he was no longer bound by any rules of conduct of a Order of Paladins, he knew he could just kill her if he felt necessary. But, his moral code, his ideals that he held, that until someone has proven evil, he will not harm them, stood fierce.
He walked by Athon, and shook his head.
"I told you to stay put so she wouldn't be on edge. If you want me to train you, you had better start listening to me." He said, obviously annoyed that such a simple task was ignored. He could feel his bitterness returning. Athon reminded him of the past, and its something that pained him greatly. However, he knew it was not Athon's fault, and that he simply wanted to assist the forces of righteousness. His cause was pure...
"But..." He said, smiling and patting the young man on the shoulder, "No harm, no foul, right?"
He continued moving back to the corpses, and began inspecting them, finding nothing but trace elements of necromancy. These were not idle spirits that needed to be laid to rest, these were conjured creatures. That was not a good sign.
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Prime
Apprentice
Posts: 86
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Post by Prime on Apr 11, 2008 20:16:07 GMT -5
"I think you made him mad," Kyle Heron said, stepping out from behind the tree the young lady was leaning on. He was odd, in a way. Light didn't seem to want to touch him, though he was as well lit as the young lady before him. He was wearing white leather armor, complete with vam-braces and leather greaves. Over his heart, their were three black hearts, pointing towards his own. He looked at the young lady with dark, violet eye's, and gave a ready smile. "I won't hurt you, no worries." He said, he could clearly see she was tense. "An interesting spell you have there, a little like that which I've practiced in, though not quite up to par." He said, "No offense of course, unlike myself, you're no Shadowdancer." He said, inclining his head in respect despite that. He thought she'd progressed rather far for someone not officially trained.
He brushed past her, careful not to get so close as to disturb the lady, but enough to make his intention clear. "Shall we go join them then?" He said, resting his left hand on the pommel of his sword. The weapon lay in a plain, white sheath, totally at odds which what his art suggested, and from within came a sense of age and wisdom. Though why such things would pertain to a weapon would be anyone's guess. He raised his voice, "Hail!" He called, not wanting to surprise the paladin. That could yield possibly deadly results, and her preferred his head connected to his body. He stepped over the corpses calmly, standing right before the paladin. As he came within the radius of the swords light, it was finally possible to make out his hair color, which was a jet black as deep as the night around him. It didn't even shimmer, a characteristic of shadowdancers. "Nice to meet you, I'm Kyle Heron. Also known as Tri-Heart Heron, I was in your bingo book before you found out about the Orders less holy pursuits." He said, holding out his hand. "Though I do hope we can put that behind us, I never stole from anyone who couldn't afford to part with it, and I didn't do it for myself. I'd like to assist you in finding the origins of this...death sickness." He said, "My cousin lived here. I was unaware that he'd been turned into a walking cadaver, I find that highly...irritating." He had a white knuckle grip on his sword, but his face remained calm.
"I hope there are no objections?"
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