The Lord of the Forums >>> Return of the Nightmare

[TAOWolf]

OOC: okay, there should be a post between my previous one and this one from Arcades... but I don't know when I will be back in here tonight... so I'm going to go ahead and post this...



As Arcades lands, she jumps off and wasting no time, runs straight into the ley line, warding herself as she enters from the taint. Kneeling on the ground, she drops her pouch on the ground dumping the contents. She pulls out certain blood runes and places them in a circle.

She immediately takes the s'angreal, and sets it on the ground next to the runes placed in a circle in front of her.

Noticing the look on Arcade's face, she shakes her head, whispering.... "I know old friend, but we are out of options....it is the only option we have left to try to save them later."

OOC: small note of importance. The object on the ground is called a s'angreal. It is a small white and black disc that will open a portal in the ley line. Since the ley lines are already corrupted, the power of the disc will reverse, causing a rift in the line where we are at and will cause a rift in the flow, leaving a "hole" in the lines. This will keep the shadow from completing the circle in the lines, and will give me a fighting chance to restore them later.


Reverently, she lays one hand on the hilt of the SpiritSword, slowly drawing the blade out of the sheath. Blue fire crackles up and down the rune carved blade, as the sword builds in power, and a mad insane whispering of lost souls reach for the shadow they feel in the ley line. Slowly she steps up to the s'angreal, raising the sword above her head as the wind shifts in the ley lines, and silver lightning crackles in the sky, her hair flowing around her like a cape as she whispers....

" I call upon you Taliesin..... of the ninefold elements...help me now to sever this one part of the ley lines.... This must be done if any of us are to survive. I draw upon the five Aicme(the five Oghams of the rune power), and ask you place an Airbe druadin this place till the power ("hedge" a magical barrier no one can pass through)those of us who draw from it can be restored. Help me Taliesin, with the power and might of the SpiritSword, with the help of this ancient s'angreal.. help give us the precious moments
we need to restore balance to this unforgiven place...."

As she slams the SpiritSword into the s'angreal, cutting the disc into two perfect pieces, she screams the battle cry of her kind and the words of power, "Gurth gothrim Tel' Mithrim!!!!.... Vara tel' taurninin, cumhacd chun an snath!!!!!".....


A ripple begins at the point of impact, and she throws herself out of the ley line, still gripping the sword, as the ripple expands sending an invisible wave of power to the four corners, and a visible rift appears, undulating in a space in time cutting the ley line in two.....

[ 01-14-2004, 06:51 PM: Message edited by: TAOWolf ]

[ArcadesSabboth]

ooc: Grrr, sorry for not being around, my sis gave birth to my nephew this week.

Arcades carries Kaylisa to the immediate vicinity of the ley lines, cautious not to land within them. The old dragon spies a place near an old Oak tree where a bit of mistletoe remains alive, and decisively lands there, allowing his Druid friend off.

Kaylisa, be cautious. Should those beasts return, I might not be able to hold them off for long.

[TAOWolf]

She rolls to a stop next to Arcades, and goes to one knee, looking at the rift.... "It is done...."

[Cerek the Barbaric]

Zachary follows the warrior in his wandering. He isn't sure if the warrior really knows where he is going, or if he is just wandering aimlessly, but since he knows nothing about the caverns they are in or which direction to go in, following the warrior seems as good an option as any. Besides, he can't shake the feeling that he is supposed to do "something" to help this man. He has vague memories of when their journey first began. The man before him claimed to be a paladin, but was obiously troubled by his choice even then. He seems to have changed greatly during the time that Zachary was wandering around in a mental fog of his own. He seems much more troubled and unpredictable, and his thought patterns were the very essence of Chaos.

Zachary feels that the man before him is teetering on a brink and that some hidden force is pulling him farther over the edge with each passing hour. There are times when the warrior seems to lean back away from the precipice and Zachary can see a glimpse of the man he entered these caverns with, then the man's entire demeanor seems to change and Zachary sees nothing in his thoughts or actions that bear any resemblance to the man he knew, albeit briefly, when their journey first started.

This whole affair has left the cleric troubled, confused, and uncertain over which course of action to take....a feeling that is very UN-familiar to Chosen of Odin. Always, his path has been clear to him and always has Odin smiled on him and his efforts. But Odin seems to be farther away than he has ever been before. Perhaps it is just the depths of the caverns he is in, but Zachary senses there is something else at work...some...."force" that is actively barring Odin's presence from this place and severely limiting the help He can provide his favorite cleric.

All of this is very, very troubling.

[TAOWolf]

She rolls to a stop in front of Arcades, and goes to one knee, leaning on the sword while she gazes at the rift...

"It is done......."

She looks up at the mistletoe in the dead Oak tree, and smiles slightly. Standing, she looks up at Arcades, "Arcades, could you please pick that for me?"

[Cerek the Barbaric]

Zachary follows the warrior for a short distance, but the turmoil of his thoughts seem to grow with each step rather than diminish. When he finally recovered from the Fog that had enshrouded his mind, he was certain there was a purpose for him here...and that it involved the paladin. But after his attempt to communicate was so savagely rebuffed, he is no longer sure that there is anything he can do for the man. There is no doubt that another force is at work in the warrior's mind. Zachary could sense it's presence, albeit just barely. And whatever the force was, it launched it's own mental assault on the cleric through the very link he had established. He was surprised at the strength and savagery of the attack and could not fend it off completely. Given the fact that this force is a constant presence in the warrior's mind, Zachary isn't sure there is anything in his power that can overcome it.

As he ponders these revelations, he feels the haunting feelings of hopelessness creeping into his thoughts again. It creeps into his thoughts slowly but steadily, like a snake slithering down into a rabbit's burrow. Zachary shakes off the effect by physically shaking his head and slapping himself in the face. The sting of the blow brings his mental awareness back to the forefront and manages to push the feelings of hopelessness back - for the time being.

For once in his life, Zachary is completely at a loss as to what he should do. He can't shake the feeling that this whole mission is becoming a lost cause. He doesn't have the slightest idea where the rest of the party members are, nor does he even really know where HE is..other than somewhere deep in the caverns.

Not knowing what else to do, he calls out in desparation to Odin. "Odin, All-Father, hear my cry. It is I, Zachary Thorrson, your favored cleric. I live only to serve you, All Father, but I am at a loss as to what to do. I need your guidance. I need your direction. Show me what path you would have me take, so that I may bring honor and glory to your name and the Halls of Valhalla. Guide my feet and direct my thoughts so that I may serve your purpose in the manner you see fit. I trust you, Odin, to watch over me and to lead me down the path you would have me to take. I will follow whatever path you choose, just tell me what I must do."

He was surprised at the volume of his own voice. The caverns echoed his plea and amplified his words as they bounced back and forth among the rocky walls. Zachary closed his eyes in concentration and focused his all his mental energy on listening for Odin's voice. His hand grasped his holy symbol in urgent desperation, but Zachary wasn't even aware that he did so. He waited for the echoes of his voice to die down so that he could hear the voice of his beloved deity.

Finally, the echoes died, and all was silence. Silence that seemed to last a very long time, until the very lack of sound became almost deafening. Then finally, faintly, he heard a reply....or at least thought he did. He asked again for Odin to guide him and to show him the path. Again, he felt the presence of the All-Father, but it was still very distant. He heard the words a little louder this time, but still couldn't understand them.

He dropped to one knee, his right hand still grasping his holy symbol, and his left hand holding tight to the shaft of hiw warhammer. Once more he pleaded for Odin to make his presence felt, and once more he felt the All-Father's spirit touch his own. This time, the connection was more tangible....and this time he heard Odin's instructions clearly.

"Come Home"

Zachary eyes flew open as he stared ahead into the darkness of the caverns. It was then that he realized there truly was nothing more he could do here. The warrior had apparantly made his choice and there was nothing Zachary could do to reverse the consequences of that decision. As for the rest of the party, Zachary sensed that he would never be able to find them in time...in time for what, he didn't know exactly. He just knew that his part here was done.

"Come Home"

How welcome and inviting those words seemed to him. Home...a place of comfort and contention so unlike the hopelessness that saturated the very walls of these godforsaken caverns.

"Come Home"

Yes, thought Zachary. It is time to go home. Thought became action and Zachary began casting a spell, a spell that would return him instantly to the comfort and safety of his private quarters at his temple. As he chanted the arcane syllables, the pervasive hopelessness finally fled, and he felt himself being transported across the planes, back to his home he had left so long ago (at least it seemed like a very long time since he had last seen his home).

Then the spell was complete and he stood inside his quarters at his temple. His bed was nearby - which was good thing - because a wave of exhaustion washed across his body. He managed to make it to the bed before surrendering to the fautige that suddenly flooded his body. His last thought for a long time was how soft his pillow felt. Then he slept.

[Larry_OHF]

Echo

The stillness of the room in which Rhianneth meditated had been uninterupted for hours.

But then the walls began to echo a voice again.

"Rhianneth...Rhianneth...anneth..."

"Arise, for it is time...it is time...is time..."

"Tell me of your meditation...your meditation...meditation..."

[ArcadesSabboth]

Arcades looks up to the mistletoe and takes it off the branch in his teeth, taking care not to crush it in his mouth. The dragon lowers his head and drops the mistletoe into Kaylisa's hands

Might I ask what you require this for my friend?

[mistral4543]

Rhianneth

Her eyelids fluttered open as she heard the Echo's pronounciation ~ So it is time... time to do what I must. ~ It was a bitter gall that she was sucking, that Larry was no more and her last chance of exacting revenge upon Mistral. Still more did the words of her now forever lost father ring in her ears as she raised herself to an upright position and glance about, her eyes somewhat still opaque.

"My meditation was... not as well as it ought to have been." ~ The tone of her voice was cautious, and a little regretful ~ "Nevertheless, I have concluded that I should do something, since I have come so far." ~ Did she imagine a little trembling in her voice? ~ "I... I need to find whoever is left of my former.. companions." ~ It must be the wind that's causing the shivers. ~ "Will you h... help me find them?"

[Larry_OHF]

Echo

"Oh yes!...yes...yes..."

"First, you need cover...need cover...cover..."

The Echo began building in volume, creating strange noises that made one think that something large was down the corridor of darkness, coming this way. It began growling and stomping. The echoes of this sound were magnified over and over. Thus the Echo had created an echo of what sounded like a dragon or otehr large and angry beast coming this way. In her ear, ever so softly, Echo said,

"Now that the cover has been made to hide your escape...make your move..."Once you are out of earshot, I shall provide the way to your group that are assembled. It is a long way, but you can make it. Now Go!...go...go..."

OOC>>>Echo has created an echo of a large beast of unknown size and type to catch the attention of the giants, so that Rhianneth can go unnoticed.
Rhianneth, once you are out of harm's way and hidden properly, I shall provide the next post for your guide.