LOF - Aftermath II - Hidden Hungers

[Cyril Darkcloud]

ooc: During the slowdown, the anniversary of an event of no small significance came and went unmarked ..... Until now that is. [img]graemlins/blueblink.gif[/img]

The Ruins

Even the grasses pause today in their silent encroachment upon the rancid and debris-choked waters of the moat. Posting has continued upon the boards in indifference to mighty pile of broken stone that marks the spot where one year ago as the software of these forums reckons the dating of posts the one called Larry was slain in desperate battle. Post counts are happily spammed into ever increasing numbers and the usual recurring questions are posted in the game forums and other rpgs proceed apace in the ebb and flow of their story, and here at the very center of the Inner Forums there is naught to mark so singular a day save a mute pile of jagged rubble surrounded by a stagnant tarn and kept company by the silent swaying of an unusual grass within a wind whose aspect has taken on a decidedly malignant cast.

ooc: Happy belated anniversary.

I'm waiting on posts from Ruby and Syrathic before moving things too much farther along.

[ 05-20-2003, 03:52 PM: Message edited by: Cyril Darkcloud ]

[RevRuby]

ruby hands syrathic what he has asked for. "i-i suppose wyrd and i will find a place to camp. i have my doubts he'll be allowed in an inn." she sighs and turns away. looking back she says, "i will be around. if you call my name wyrd will hear and let me know. i will be ready whenever."

walking away her gait is slow, almost reluctant. by the direction her head is cocked anyone watching knows she is talking to wyrd.

[Cyril Darkcloud]

ooc: Ruby - There is no space outside of the village suitable for camping. You’ll need to stay with the group. It should be possible to arrange for space to stay in one of the buildings – there’s no need to go into great detail roleplaying that.

For Morguerat

The guards assigned to the task are silent as they work. The brutality of the interrogation is obvious and the utter joylessness of it is puzzling. Grim, relentless and bearing the anger of a deep pain. Fallen. They are silent as they clean the space, as silent as the tall man of broken nobility who has just left. There is nothing to say and so the work in silence. There sleep over the coming days, however, will not be so quiet.

ooc: DMs Note - Obviously a definite alignment shift has taken place. I want to stress, however, that none of the party was present for the interrogation and will not be aware of this for the present.

[Lord Starshadow]

Syrathic HP:45/74

Syrathic smiled absently as everyone parted ways again, his eyes following the Elf maiden a little ways. Then he sighed softly, shaking his head slightly. "And once again, we all go our separate ways. It seems that we're more of a haphazardly thrown together group than I thought." He thought for a moment to himself. "Well, I might as well see if I can find anything else that might be of use to myself."

After a few moments of searching, he found the Gnome that had helped him procure that nice theiving equipment. "Wait! What is his name? Think Syrathic! You can't just call him Gnome, especially since he's been so helpful." It was a minor fault of his, but he had been working hard to fix it.

Syrathic thought back, and just before he called out to the Gnome, he recalled the name. "Hey, Kellor! Can you help me again?" he asked with an embarrassed grin. "You seem to be very knowledge of my craft, so I was hoping you could help me find some lock picks or some climbing gear."

When Kellor nodded, Syrathic sighed with relief. He was emotionally drained. "I hope we have a day to rest and recuperate," he thought as he followed Kellor.

[AzRaeL StoRmBlaDe]

Dantes looked over and was pleased with the accomodations that the gnome council had offered him. Even though they were not able to help overly much, the loaning of this room and the 2 retainers was a great relief to Dantes, as he had so much to do and so little time to accomplish it. Dantes pulled out several scrolls he had scribed the day before and gave it as well as all his remaining money to the gnome and then sent one him out to the nearest magical scroll shop to try and trade for some spells that would be of greater use to him Dantes also gave the gnome instructions to find the rest of the party and bring them to the building the council had loaned him for them. Meanwhile Dantes and the other gnome hauled the heavy runestone into the middle of the room and, with the help of the gnome, Dantes began examining it and testing it, trying to discover the magical means by which this runestone was created, and unlock its secret. Obviously it wasn't too effective against whatever killed the dragon, but none the less it was a pwerful magic, not to be dimissed. Discovering the secrets of the runestone would not be easy, and he knew he didn't have a lot of time. Dantes worked as if a man possesed. He worked long into the night, and well after the gnome returned with his spell scrolls and change, and long after both the gnomes left for the evening only to be replaced by different gnomes. He continued to work as these gnomes lapsed into slumber, and the only sounds heard throughout the town were the quiet snores of the slumbering gnomes. And the muted chanting of a certain mage as he tried to unlock one of the secrets of the fallen dragon.

OOC: Ill leave what scolls I actually got up to you, and how much they cost, you can PM me or post otherwise. I would list them in the order of my what I would prefer. #1 stone to flesh x2, #2 passwall x1 #3 stone shape x1 #4 move earth x1 #5 wall of stone x1 #6 transmute mud to rock x1 #7 transmute rock to mud x1 #8 flesh to stone x 1. I think I had two jewels left and whatever coin I started with. I will also leave my progress on the runestone up to you as well, either post results or PM them to me and I will post as needed.
Glad to be back in the swing of things, and glad to be back with you all.
-AS

[ 05-22-2003, 05:32 PM: Message edited by: AzRaeL StoRmBlaDe ]

[Larry_OHF]

OOC>>>A little history lesson, or at least a review so that you can all remember. Tis not good to soon forget.

Know thy Enemy


* This is a summary of the Mad Modding Mage of Ironworks. Some detailed information that has never been introduced can be found here.

Long ago, in the Mad Mage’s history, he was simply known as Larry. He was a respected member of the Ironworks’ family and a bit on the quiet side. He never had much to say or quarrel over in many threads that made up the world of Ironworks. Eventually, the Overlord Ziroc saw fit to bestow Larry with the Power to Moderate. He was given a realm of his own to tend to and nourish. It was known as the Role-Playing forum. On this forum, began many adventures that Larry became involved in. He met a lady in one of those worlds named Mistral Freelight, who he loved very much. After many adventures and near death experiences, Larry and Mistral were wedded. Their new lives together would not last long, however.
Much turmoil came about in the forums in those days. In the wake of it all, Mistral died, yet not honorably. She had fell into instant and passionate love with an elf as her true feelings were revealed to her in the shadow of death. Larry happened across this discovery as she lay dying, and he raised he sword in terrible anger in an attempt to strike down the elf. As fate would have it, the sword was an enchanted or rather cursed blade that belonged to the family of the elf that Larry tried to slay. As he brought the sword near to the kill, the sword refused to strike it’s true heir, and instead flew widely away from the elf and struck Mistral instead, killing her. Larry’s pain and anger was so great that he found himself actually changing alignment. He had been Chaotic Good his entire life, but now his heart had turned to that of Neutral Evil. He cared neither for his life nor any other’s, and roamed the forums many years with no direction nor hope.

This is when Larry’s fate caught up with him, because in those days, he had been reading much on the History of the Netherese. These people were found in old documents and novels that were scattered across the bookstores and internet. The Netherese were mighty in their power and were considered Gods. Their story shall not be told here. Let it suffice to say however that one of these men had discovered a demi-plane of Shadow, where new magic that had never been seen on this website before existed. It was based on it’s own weave of shadow, and tied not with the weave of Magic governed by Mistra, Goddess of Magic. In fact, the demi-plane had been created in defiance of her by another Goddess. All of this, did Larry learn about and read about. Finally, he realized that this power could be his, if he worked hard enough for it. Many months did he study, driven by anger and hatred for goodness and light. He learned about the creatures and denizens of Shadow. He learned about the magics and the powers. He learned about how shadow could become strong like unto stone, or used as gateways to other points of darkness. At some point, it is rumored that Larry gave himself over to the Shadow, thus becoming a new entity that is horrible to talk about. Few even remember this creature in their old first addition Monster Manuals of D&D. The stats were never carried over to newer prints of this book. Yet it has never been confirmed that such a transformation had occurred. Many hoped that it was simply rumor.
Larry, dubbed by some as the Mad One or the Modding Mage, began his reign of terror soon after. Many threads were visited and harassed by Larry’s powerful force. He created many terrible beasts and worst of all…a tower of powerful magic sown together by shadow. It rose menacingly in the air in defiance of the sun. The land all around it died and rotted. Worst of all, nobody could expect to fight the Mage and win, or live. Not until a man by the name of Cyril Darkcloud came along. His rebellion that he rasied brought the Mage down, as well as his terrible tower. To this day, the land still seems haunted however. The darkness has never quite been washed away, and the ruins of the tower are told to be of the coldest ice to the touch. Death is in the air like a heavy fog. Nobody except the most desperate thieves will even attempt going there to loot the place, though none of them ever walk away with what they intended, if they walk away at all.

[ 04-10-2005, 06:41 PM: Message edited by: Larry_OHF ]

[Cyril Darkcloud]

ooc: Just thought I’d lighten the mood a little [img]graemlins/blueblink.gif[/img]

DOOM

The single syllable echoes through the lightless depths, a shout composed of numberless hoarse voices whispering in unison. The slow and heavy air rings with the note of its impact. DOOM. Again and again the terrible note rises from tongues without number or name as if the death cries of the fallen dead of the roleplay threads of the forums had suddenly found sufficient life on their desicated tongues to utter a single common syllable. DOOM. An oppressive word that will be neither ignored nor denied, it rings in the hearing of all who dwell in these lightless warrens so far below the open skies of the forums. Heard by all it names the common fear of all. DOOM. The lifeless whispers gasp as one in the wake of a great reaching out of ravenous appetite, an appetite grown so great that the seal upon the Yellow Kingdom is no more. DOOM. The hoarse groanings of the dead call out as a troop of giants thrusts aside guardians ancient and terrible. DOOM. A voice rings out in a timelost chamber inisisting that none shall contest its claim and a mighty hand snatches books written in a blasphemous tongue and bearing secrets best left buried and forgotten. Even the dead shudder in their sleep as the nightmare grows strong. And the Underneath of the Forums shudders a moment as a lifeless host murmurs DOOM.

And beneath the whispers of the dead sounds a gleeful and malicious tone as the very air which bears their voices forward exults in its message.

Yes! O yes!

Soon the air shall grow still once more but the portent it bears shall weigh heavy upon hearts already oppressed by gloomy foreboding and beneath its stillness a hidden laughter shall linger.

And so it is that the first great blow has come to be struck.

Credit where credit is due – the above is a riff on Walt Simonson’s classic storyline that began in Thor #337 [I used to collect comics].

[ 05-23-2003, 11:27 PM: Message edited by: Cyril Darkcloud ]

[Cyril Darkcloud]

ooc: I forgot to note this above -- Very nice post, Larry [img]graemlins/thumbsup.gif[/img]

For Dantes

Long has the mage labored to fathom the stone and yet there is a peculiar and defiant character about the object. The runic mark it bears at first seems a clear and distinct symbol of some rare and arcane tongue. The longer one studies it, however, it becomes clear that there is a subtle instability about its form, a slight shifting of the angles of its lines as if it were a series of alternating runes. But there is no clear pattern to be discerned in the shifting of its lines and no obvious series of symbols to be seen. The stone itself does not change but the marks cut into the stone somehow shift. There is, further, a danger about the stone, a magic of another kind that has been overlayed upon it. Patient study bears some fruit, however, and two enchantments can be discerned. One seems to obscure the character of the stone and contain its power and the other an enchanted trap of some sort, a spell designed to destroy any who would seek to remove the obscuring veil upon the rune.

[ 05-24-2003, 01:12 AM: Message edited by: Cyril Darkcloud ]

[Cyril Darkcloud]

ooc: Dantes - I missed the edited part of your post – sorry about that. Let's assume that you can easily manage your top 5 choices as well as sufficent ink and materials for scribing the new spells into your books.

[ 05-25-2003, 04:04 PM: Message edited by: Cyril Darkcloud ]

[Cyril Darkcloud]

ooc: Figuring that TAO will find her way back here eventually....

For TAOWolf

The brilliant flaring of light is followed by a searing touch of twin arcs of fire that race outward from the woman’s staff. The creature is inured to such things as flames, however, and, while stung, its wounds are not so great as to give it significant pause. The light and flame provided sufficient distraction for the woman to lose herself and the many eyes of the creature look for her without success. Still, movement is limited in an area so small as this and as the gibbering speech of its many mouths rises again to fill the air of this space with its noise, the ground grows soft and muddy. Gathering its vague shape into a mass the creature rears back in readiness to spring outward at the first indication of movement or struggle in the muck. As the ring of mud extends outward, making movement difficult, smoke rises to fill the chamber. Once more the creature pauses.

ooc: The mouther has been damaged for 10 hit points. Movement will be very difficult due to the mud. The mouther does not seem to be affected by the mud. The initiative is with you, however, as the creature is distracted.