TheCog posted:I mean if the goal is to hit 3000 posts, then its easy!
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Jul 21, 2016 05:00
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Waci posted:"Cousin, calm down. I'm sure there's a reason for the status quo that will make perfect sense once we know what happened between your time and now. I'm sure Ishamael here is just about to explain what that is if you just stop smashing everything for a moment. Isn't that right, Ishamael?"
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Jul 22, 2016 20:37
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B.B. Rodriguez posted:This is killing me Tomorrow.
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Jul 23, 2016 23:54
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Hot Dog Day 80 posted:Sometimes you say that and then post it a day early anyway. There is 0% chance I am updating tonight.
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Jul 24, 2016 01:36
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Still working. Still intend to update today.
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Jul 24, 2016 20:16
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quote:17:29:10 | <~Diog> this game
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Jul 24, 2016 22:29
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I have been working on this all day. I need a break. The recap as it stands if very long. I am going to post what I have so far after I finish proof reading it. I may continue later. I am afraid at this point I may be ready to give up for the day, I've been reading and working on the next update as well for an entire day.
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Jul 24, 2016 23:20
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Please do not post anything for the next ten minutes. This is uh, big. It is a recap of half the game. So it is big. I want the posts to all fit together. I will do another post when I am done. Thanks.
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Jul 24, 2016 23:44
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 Snarls's slobbery tongue licks your face as you roll with him in the grass!  I am the Predator! I am the Predator! he thinks at you as you play with your beloved dog. No, no, you are the Predator! No! Me! The two of you laugh and tussle in the dirt. You are taking a much deserves break and giving Snarls some quality time. The battle took a lot out of him and you could use a rest as well. You've been spending days lifting rubble to dig out the treasure and spoils of your recent victory and days more, with the aid of hundreds of men and their livestock, to drag most of it to an altar and offer it up to El. El is probably going to be pretty pleased. Of the many deeds of your life, the good and the bad, would any deny this is without a doubt your greatest? You have saved hundreds of people who lived only in terror of a gruesome death and perhaps a worse fate beyond, saving a people who never even knew the word "hope". If you make it back to Whose a good boy? Snarls thinks at you. "You are!" you tell him! He gives a happy bark and rolls onto his back, urging you to rub his belly, you do so and think back upon your life and all that led to this moment. Your life has been unusual to say the least... The Life of Year Zero. You are conceived. Based upon information you learned later in life you are reasonably sure this actually happened. You don't remember any of this, being a fetus and all. Year One. You are an infant. Your recollection of events are fuzzy at best. You form no memories. Years Two through Four.  You form memories. You live in the village of Athar. A remote village amidst jungle on the edge of the sea.  Everyone in Athar always has plenty of food, the weather is always mild. Some might call it an idyllic life, a tropical paradise. There is no jealousy or hatred or crime or sickness nor danger. Nor is there personal property, writing, metal working, agriculture or animal husbandry. Your people fish the seas and live at ease, though they are primitive. Your father is Shushem, the village priest. He is in charge of everyone in the village. Your mother is Nami. You also live with Jalitha who to your young mind is kind of like an older cousin. She looks different from everyone else though, her skin is much lighter. She does all the cooking and cleaning. Your first real memory forms at age four, a bad one. Jalitha gave you your first haircut, or tried to anyway. Your father discovered this and as he stopped her, the knife slipped and cut your scalp giving you a scar atop your head that will last much of your life. Accusing her of being a witch, your father forced you to cut off her hair, nearly beats her to death and nearly drowns you in an attempt to "purify" you. In that terrible moment at the edge of lucidity, as sea water filled your lungs... a voice.  There have been many quiet times in your life since, often as you lay alone and try to sleep where you wonder what you heard that day. Did you hear anything at all or was it simply the terror of a frightened child? Jalitha walked with a limp for many, many years after. Years Four through Ten You grow. There are others in your village. Less than a few hundred, your people don't really use numbers much. Other notable people include your beloved Uncle Jorah, a fisherman, big and strong man, he took Jalitha in after Shushem threw the slave woman out of his home. There are no slaves in Athar, she is the only one. Your father fished her out of the sea and claimed her as his possession. He didn't want her in his home after her attempted "defilement" of you. The other children did not want to play with you as a child. You only later discovered, because of their parent's fear of your father. You also looked different. Your hair had a bit of a white streak on the top because of the scar and your skin was notably lighter than everyone else, everyone besides Jalitha, she was much lighter skinned. From your Uncle Jorah you learned to be an excellent spear fisherman and to swim as if you were a fish. For the rest of your life you would feel calm and at ease while swimming and would always have a stellar ability to hold your breath. You learned much of the sea and the creatures within it. Your Uncle Jorah always had time for you and loved you very much. From him you learned to be a man, a man you wished was your father in truth. You learned other lessons from your real father. An impatient and cruel man, he would beat you often for the slightest miss-step or error in your lessons. You were taught of the gods and of the sacred rituals to appease your god, to one day replace Shushem as the village priest and the High Priest of all of the scattered villages of your people. Chief among the many gods of your people god is Asherah, a god of the seas, a great shark who made the world and all in it. And in his time, consumes all. He is not a god to be loved, but one to obey or terrible punishment shall follow. Your people obey. Life is sweet and easy. Well for everyone else. You often ran off from your lessons to go fishing with Uncle Jorah and your father was a terror to you when you later came home. You liked spending time with Jalitha in your youth and as she cooked she told you stories as well. There was a great deal of violence in her stories but they were rather exciting, people fighting each other or slaying giant monsters or sky giants fighting monsters to protect people. According to Jalitha, the world was filled with dangerous and scary monsters always just over the next hill, but you did not need to be afraid because the sky giants would keep them away. The monsters took many forms and shapes. Scary people who eat other people were a common theme but they were always stopped just in the nick of time when the heroes defeat them to save the innocent. The best stories that she told you were about the sky giants Smattas and Maranal. Smattas she said, was the spear of the Sky Giant El, the father of the Sky Giants. In her stories Smattas always arrived to defeat horrible monsters and save little children when all hope was lost and he always, always, always won, even when it seemed impossible. According to Jalitha, when you were in danger or in trouble you should ask El to send his the sky giants to save you and if you were nice to other people and did not hurt people than they would always keep you safe. According to your father, Asherah did not help people but will punish you if you disobeyed by sending the fish away or sending storms. According to him, sometimes Asherah's other children, lesser gods would help you and sometimes they would hurt you. Later in your youth you were less rebellious and more obedient to your father. He was no less demanding for perfection and no less cruel as to your failure but with obedience came less reasons for his anger. He once even told you he was as cruel as he needed to be, for if you failed to properly assuage Asherah's wrath when you replaced him, your people would pay the price. Year Eleven and Twelve  You were on the beach when a small group of rather big strangers visited the village. Your village was remote. A few other villages lay to the south but your people knew of no others, with only vague ideas that there were other people but very, very far away. Visitors never came to your people. Not ever.  Perhaps the meeting may have been peaceful. Perhaps the misunderstandings may have been set aside. Perhaps. The leader of the strangers, the tallest man you've ever seen offered your father wine but not sharing a common tongue and he thinking it poison, tried to tell the strangers to leave. Perhaps it may have been peaceful. Perhaps. Such was not to be when Jalitha ran up to the foreign men, a basket of pearls in her arms, tears streaming down her face and frantic words coming from her lips in a foreign tongue as she begged the strangers for aid! From her stories you learned a few words of her foreign tongue. She screamed the word "cannibals!" as she pointed an accusatory finger at your people! Jalitha yelled to you to come, the strangers were going to rescue you! From what!? That was your home! You ran between the two groups hoping to stop any violence but the strangers grabbed you. It was day, yet as quickly as you could blink, the sky turned black and day became night. Bolts of lightning crashed into the trees around you.Your father's eyes glowed bright red. Your father raised his hands and shoot lightning from his fingers at the leader of the strangers and at two of the men next to him, a miraculous power you had no idea he possessed. The two men beside the stranger's fall down and the rest of the outsiders screamed, their leader crying out in pain but not defeated. Some of the other outsiders stabbed their spears at your fellow tribesmen, two went down bloody and screaming, their screaming ceased after another quick stab and a jerk from the stranger's spears. One of the strangers stabbed your father in the chest, no blood spurted out and it did not seem to slow him down, nor did the next two spears to pierce his chest have any obvious effect. Your father launched two more bolts of lightning into the chest of the lead stranger man whose strange shiny clothing you later learn to be armor was burned through to their chest. The man, crying out in pain and drew a very large and shiny knife from his side, one you did not recognize as such but was in fact, a sword. With one quick motion he lopped off your father's head. The clouds instantly parted and it was once again day. With you and Jalitha in tow the strangers fled for their lives. That day and the days ahead brought many revelations. That Jalitha was your mother in truth. That Shushem was not your father, though she would not name the man who was. That the idyllic paradise of your people was not so. That the reason your people have among them none who are ill or deformed or injured or old is because such are eaten by the men of your village in profane cannibalistic rights, or thrown into the sea, into Asherah's waiting maw. Even young children when too many were born were sacrificed. That your entire life you have lived in a farm. A farm of men, for the benefit of demons. Fatted calfs to be grown and consumed. Yet your mother told you not to worry. The sky giants finally answered her prayers! By sending a band of heroes from a distant land to save the both of you! Your rescuers thought they were mere explorers but swiftly agreed that surely they unknowingly had been sent to rescue you both. Your saviors? Tudiya, the King of Zepath. A giant of a man with muscles atop muscles atop muscles. Barkof, his cousin and second in command, nearly as awe inspiring. Aaron, the youngest of the explorers, a trainee, Tudiya's grandson. (Judah Note: Many years later, he lead the pilgrims passing through Tadmor) Ishamal, an old man and not so physically intimidating as the others, with gray hair, something you had never seen. You never saw an old man before. Yet for his age, he was vibrant and fit, marching along in armor like the rest. Throughout your youth Jalitha told you "sky giant" stories, though your false-father punished her severely and beat her when she was caught. The purpose of these stories? Though you only in later years realized why, it was so that if a day came that rescue might come from her people and your rescuers were to decide if you were a cannibal or a victim, you could tell them of El. Jalitha's people have strong views on cannibals, that all such monsters should be slain without pause. Tudiya, a king, gave you your first haircut shortly after your rescue, a great honor. Among Jalitha's people a father gives their son their first haircut, an Upsherin. Tudiya gave you yours and a new name. You were named after Enkidu, a wild man from a story who was civilized by the hero Labaras, Tudiya declaring that "As the wild man Enkidu, a beast of the wilds was brought to El, far from the cities of our fathers, so was this child. I declare his name shall be Enkidel, for he was as Enkidu and brought to El from afar." Tudiya further declared you would be treated as if you are born among his people. The days ahead were happy days, though confusing ones for using mystical power only Tudiya spoke your tongue. All treated you with kindness, your mother often assuring you that your new home would be a happy one. You also met the youngest of the group, Danal, the King's only son who came along for some quality time with his dad. Though you did not share a common tongue and though you were six years older, the two of you became quick comrades, inseparable and the best of friends and would remain so for many long years. You always played alone as a child and with all of the strange powers you saw in those early days you learned get surely the greatest magic of all, is the magic of friendship.  Though you did see rather a lot of supernatural occurrences and magic on the journey to Zepath.  When your group encountered a series of giant lizard-monsters and your rescuers did battle with them you used Shushem's giant shark took which you were wearing as a necklace and cut your palm with it in an attempt to "help" them by shooting lightning at the monsters.  Which you had no idea how to do. Yet there must been some strong magic in that tooth for no sooner than you cut your palm you soared into the air like a rocket, towards the sea.  And also for reasons you have never clearly figured out an explanation for, filled you with a TREMENDOUS and obviously supernatural hunger. Soaring hundreds of feet into the air and hurtling towards the sea, the old man of the group, Ishamal, either flew up towards you or leaped towards you, grabbing into you and invoking the name of the Melachim somehow stopped your flight. With many stranger powers on display, it was only in later years did you discovered that no one among Jalitha's people can jump to such great heights, nor fly. The journey to Zepath took months with a number of other monsters slain along the way but only one truly noteworthy supernatural incident.  Sneaking away from camp at night to play with Danal, you discovered some kind of large structure made of white stone with a texture like tree bark which was... significantly larger on the inside than the outside. In all the years ahead you never discover who or what made the place. Danal and his pet monkey fell asleep within but you for some reason, you did not. Within the place you found a number of apparently supernatural items and took with you, two. A pair of sandals made of white leather and a flute made of white stone. As you would later discover, the flute bestowed the ability to play it with tremendous skill and beauty. The sandals? The ability, apparently, to delay fatigue, hunger and thirst while you walked. Also, they gave you perfectly toenails you never had to trim. You would keep the sandals throughout all the years ahead. While all treated you kindly, you experienced more than a bit of culture shock. The ways of your rescuers, the men of Zepath were more than a little strange and alien to say the least though you did learn bits of the language from your best friend Danal. The men of the group seemed to take great amusement from your barbarous and strange ways though they were never cruel in their actions.  Three months after your rescue you came upon Zepath, passing through its gate, the head of a dragon slain by Tudiya.  Never having seen a structure larger than a grass hut the place seemed tremendous to you. It was only later you came to understand that Zepath was one of the smallest cities in Ur and one of the most remote, far southwest of Baitel and close to the sea. (Judah Note: Baitel is northeast of Tadmor. Draw a line southwest. Zepath is almost straight southwest of it and at the very edge of civilization). Less than ten thousand people live in Zepath. Upon returning to the city, Tudiya told an assembly of his people of his triumph over a great victory as he and his men killed thousands of demons and cannibals and a dark sorcerer before they rescued you and your mother. The two of you corroborated the story.  For many years after you would live in Tudiya's palace, your mother becoming a cook and a servant and you becoming Danal's playmate. Shortly after your arrival Danal had you pick a puppy out, telling you that every boy should have a dog.  You picked Snarls Barkley. Danal told you that the one you picked was "a silly name and an ugly puppy!" You grinned and shook your head, declaring "*I* think he is cute... and he is VERY smart!" The bond you would form with your dog would surpass that of any other, the bond between son and mother, man and his wife, father and children, your love for Snarls would surpass that of all others. Since he was after all, your first wife. (Judah Note: In a rather weird incident involving Enkidel's ignorance of an ancient arcane language, Enkidel would eventually, effectively, sign a document declaring Snarls his wife. This was a mistake. He did not intentionally marry his dog. Though throughout their adventures none would ever hold a place in Enkidel's heart such as his beloved dog).  Year Thirteen  Danal is a spoiled brat. Though you did your best to tame his more wild side and would succeed, eventually. Though adjusting to foreign ways was odd and took time Danal aided your integration into Zepathan society. Other people in the city did not like you very much. The men of Ur are xenophobic in the extreme and not without cause. All lands beyond Ur are the domain of monsters, cannibals and demons. Your dark skin marked you as different. Danal did not matter. In time you became as brothers as the two of you, Snarls in tow roamed Zepath, playing and enjoying your youth.  You were fed alongside Danal and given instruction in sacred and secular matters as well, though you quickly surpassed him in both as Danal found "studious" matters boring, finding far more excitement in marital matters, in the ancient stories of your people the "Old Tales" and watching fighting men train. In time you learned to read, write and do mathematics A few words on Zepath, notable people in your life and Zepathan culture which you learned during this time period or the years ahead. Tudiya is the king of Zepath which is a far less powerful role than in most cities. As King he can technically rule by decree but never does, his duties mainly consist of arbitrating disputes, punishing criminals and commanding the Mighty Men of Zepath. The Mighty Men of Zepath are the men of the most Blooded men in the Zepath, each possess a range of supernatural powers among them, great strength, reflexes and durability. Zepath is at the very edge of civilization and monsters roam beyond. The Mighty Men periodically go on long patrols, hunts beyond Zepath's borders to cull their numbers and keep them safe. Just as in Tadmor, slavery exists. People are not equal. The old are better than the young. Men are better than woman. Blooded people are best of all. They are smarter, wiser, stronger, swifter and just all around better. Zepath has a relatively small number of slaves but not dramatically so, most of the farmers are free men. Zepath does not have serfs. No city in the region does. Most of the cities of Ur have quasi-mythic stories about their founding. Tadmor was supposedly founded by a man hunting a terrible hydra to avenge his brother. The men of Zepath believe that in ancient days their ancient fore-bearer, Zepa was guided to the spot by the Ophanim Damat, the Ophanim of travelers, among other things. It is said that Zepa had a mighty battle with the demons of the sea and drove them from the land, then built the city. While other cities are said to have been built roughly in an expanding circle from Baitel beyond other cities, Zepa, the Zepathans believe, is different. They believe it is one of the oldest cities in Ur, that Zepa went far beyond Baitel to build his home. It is also worth noting that while the Old Tales focus upon the deeds of great men in ancient days, the sons of Labaras are not included and largely unknown, being said to have built Baitel while their own sons, Labaras's grandsons did more famous deeds. The men of Zepath believe their mythic forebearer, Zepa, was a son of Labaras and this is a point of pride for them. No one else believes this or cares what the Zepathans think because they are yokels on the rear end-end of nowhere and not important to the rest of Ur at all. Most people in ur have never even heard of Zepath. The Zepathans believe that except for Baitel and a handful of other cities that mankind has grown sinful and decadent and that they are El's standard bearers. While others would find this claim ridiculous, the Mighty Men of Zepath are tremendously more Blooded than any other men lest one go to the Great Cities near Baitel itself. This Bloodedness lends weight to the Zepathan belief that their fore-bearer truly was a son of Labaras. For their power, the Zepathans are isolationist and in their remote city virtually never interfere in the affairs of others. With great Bloodednes comes less sons. Tudiya, well over a hundred has only ever he one, Danal. He has dozens of wives and more daughters than he can count, some of which live in the palace with you but most of whom do not. Danal's mother died in childbirth. Tudiya's only other male descendant is his grandson Aaron, who at this time is a trainee among the Mighty Men. Tadmor is many, many times larger than Zepath and even if they are crumbling, has great monuments and large, impressive walls. Zepath lacks these. The walls are less than fourteen feet tall and not a serious impediment to any would be attacker. The King's palace, while having a rather impressive and beautiful garden is not very large. The only truly grand building in the city is the temple of El which though not particularly large is richly decorated and beautified over centuries, nay millennia of effort. Zepath lay close to the sea, less than two weeks, potentially significantly less depending on how quickly one might travel. While all lands beyond Ur are monstrous, the sea is known to be the home of great and terrible demons, the offspring of the dead demon Asherak, who was slain by the Ophanim in the dawn of time upon El's orders. An outside observer might not think this rational. As you would learn in later years... terrors lurk within the depths. As best as you would ever learn, no city in Ur closer to the sea. Yet for fear of those terrors in the depths, no men anywhere in Ur use boats to travel, doing nothing more than using rafts to move heavy loads close to the shore. No one in Ur cares about Zepath, most do not even know it exists but for those who do know, it is thought of as "those lunatics who live near the sear". The people of Zepath eat well and are generally prosperous and happy though unlike the fishermen of Athar, they have to actually work for their food. Men farm fields or herd livestock. Unlike Tadmor and its sprawling villages, no one lives more than a day beyond the walls of Zepath. For reasons you would only learn a few years later...  Near the end of your first year in Zepath you had the rather shocking realization that you were a slave. The property of Tudiya, a spoil from his conquest. While this troubled you, you decided not to ask anyone about it. For a time at least. Most of Danal's sisters are were older than you, most are married and have children even older than you and Danal. Only a few of them lived in the palace. Naomi lived in the palace with you though. She was one of Danal's youngest sister and only a few years older than you. She was very pretty. When you first met Naomi you did not know who she was. She asked Danal who you were and Danal said "He is mine! And he is really smart! Look! Go get the ball Enkidel!" Danal threw the ball... You knew that Danal did not mean anything bad by it because he was your BEST friend but he was also a little kid. You whistled and pointed Snarls Barkley, ever at your side, to get the ball, which he did, then stood upon his hind legs and offered it to the laughing Naomi. She seemed to find you foreign and interesting and had many questions for you about your village. While most people your age shunned you for being foreign and odd, she seemed to like you and appreciate the positive influence you had on Danal. Year Fourteen  Always large, you experience a growth spurt. You are now 6 feet, three inches tall. Uncle Jorah always seemed bigger when you thought of him, for he was the tallest man in your village, but are probably taller than him now. Your peach fuzz facial hair has grown into a scraggly beard. You have bad acne. You are the terror of the kitchens with 6 regular meals a day for you have a voracious appetite.  You are rather thin and at times your limbs feel awkward, you have stubbed your toes a number of times as of late. You often bump into Aaron in the kitchens, seemingly as ravenous as you, the youngest of Tudiya's band of Mighty Men and the son of Rathal, Tudiya's eldest daughter. Still, there are many in Zepath far taller than you. Tudiya's Mighty Men, who rescued you from Athar are all seven and a half feet or more, Tudiya towering at roughly eight and a half feet of solid muscle. Whatever lineage which spawned Tudiya is common in the city and ordinary men a few inches over seven feet tall are a common sight in the streets. You meet ordinary men every day almost a foot taller than you and you do not turn heads walking down the street. (Judah Note: The men of Zepath are significantly taller than the men of Tadmor. Living in Zepath is not unlike living in a NBA training camp. Some people are enormous, but everyone else is still pretty drat tall. They also live long lives. Most Zepathan men who are at least a little Blooded can expect to live almost a century and be lucid and healthy until the end. The well Blooded can expect to live far longer.) As you aged you spent as much of your time as you could with Tudiya, shadowing him as he did his Kingly duties and dragging Danal along. You became a normal part of his daily routine, on those days that he would set up his stall in the market to dispense justice, you carried his King's Chair to and from his home, you ran small errands for him and gained a greater understanding of the laws and customs of Zepath. You frequently ran messages for him to other places in the city. You were often close at hand as he officiated his other duties. While in Zepath, Tudiya showed greater restraint with the miraculous powers he displayed during the trek through the wilderness, but you have seen them on display them on rare occasion.  You learned that Tudiya's family are ancient rivals with the kings of Ibleam, a city larger than Zepath and one of Zepath's closest northern neighbors, the feud being rooted in a murder some long dead Ibleamite king committed. Wars break out on rare occasion but sometimes merchants are troubled, or livestock seized. You have learned that Tudiya's family are also allies with the kings of Taanach, a city north of Zepath. Barkof, Tudiya's cousin and the captain of Zepath's Mighty Men began to take a larger role in your life during this time as Tudiya wished him to begin training you to fight. All the free men of Zepath are expected to fight in times of danger. Barkof, well muscled and roughly eight feet tall for whatever reason, wished you to train with him at the Temple of the Melachim. The Temple of the What? The Temple of the Melachim. An oddity in Zepath, a cult existed in the city which worshiped the Melachim, a crime which would be punished virtually anywhere else in Ur with a swift death. It was not until many years later you might discover why Tudiya allowed the place to exist. The large bushy bearded man is frightfully strong, possibly only second to Tudiya himself. Danal needed no encouragement to come along, he loved all things related to fighting. You watched Barkof and the giant priestess Bareen train many men to leave Zepath to hunt monsters. Most did not return. Some did, carrying heads and trophies of grisly and hard fought victories.  During this time you also made a new friend, Paebel, the freeborn child of a debtor slave who worked at the temple and was the same age as you. In time Paebel would become one of your truest, closest and most trusted friends. You were a child. You did not go join in monster hunting, but for the first time you practiced using real weapons. For many long hours you practiced with a wooden staff with other children and on occasion with young men, doing grievous injury to straw and wooden dummies. From long hours savaging foes of straw and wood, your lanky frame slowly began to put on some muscle. Another matter of note in your fourteenth year. Naomi was only two or three years older than you and growing more beautiful and well shaped with each day. When you first arrived she found you strange and exotic, asking you many questions and giggling at the strange way you spoke. Yet as time has passed, as you traded your loincloth for more normal clothing and your mastery of their language improved, she has become your friend. Many evenings you would play with Danal by the rivers edge beyond the city and a few months ago, Naomi began to sometimes join you.  It has all been so easy and natural, she has been a good friend and you feel you can be yourself around her, without any judgments. You hardly noticed when Danal would play further and further ahead of the two of you with Snarls Barkley and the other dogs, your pace slowing, you cannot recall if she held your hand first, or you held hers, but you have held her hand each time the two of you walked out here for the last month. You could almost swear that your dog is keeping Danal and the other dogs busy on purpose to give the two of you time to be alone. The breeze is gentle and setting sun is beautiful, but not as beautiful as Naomi, at this very moment you are wondering if you wish to be, or can be more than friends, uncertainty in your mind and hormones raging in your body, she is only a few inches shorter than you, she gently pulls you in for a kiss. The feeling is... magical. After a short time, you part, both of your faces red and return home. You seek out the advice of the old man Ishamal the next day. Ishamal is not a native of Zepath and he is old. No one really knows how old. Most think he is a retired hero from Baitel. Being so old, he is a master of every trade and gives advice to many in the city in their trades, every family counts him as an old cherished friend. You talked to him about your feelings with Naomi and he urged you to break things off with her. You agreed.  Your heart broken, Ishamal took you on your first bar crawl and for the first time in your life you became deeply and truly drunk.  Another rather noteworthy event occurred in your fourteenth year as well. Several weeks pass. It is an ordinary day. You are standing beside Tudiya as he sits upon his King's Chair in a stall in the market, listening to two merchants argue their cases, one delivered a number of sheep pelts to the other, but they were too small and... You hear a sound like a loud trumpet blasted east beyond the city. Aaron rushes through to the market before Tudiya and kneels briefly before him. "My king! An army of minotaurs marches upon the city from the east!" Tudiya rises and looks to you. "Take the King's Chair and return home. Do not leave it and do NOT head to the battle!"  Once a generation or so the men of Zepath are attacked by the demons of the mountains, the spawn of Fare. Fare is said to look like a great and terrible bird and dwell within the mountains east south-east of Zepath, the spawn of the terrible demon Quetzl who was slain in the dawn of time. Among the creations of this terrible demons, the monstrous and terrible minotaurs. You climbed atop the palace and watched the battle with Danal. The battle was a mile or more away, you only realized later in life that you had truly stupendous eyesight. Tudiya challenged the leader of the minotaurs to duel and after his victory the invaders routed, pursued and swiftly cut down by the men of Zepath with the Mighty men at the lead. As the battle shifted away from the city and the bolder Zepathan youths raced to the initial site of the battle hoping to claim trophies, you joined them. There you joined in a general brawl of youths in hopes to claim the horns of the leader of the minotaurs which Tudiya slew.  You were beaten like a rented drum but for your efforts you helped your friend Paebel claim some choice trophies. He later sold them, buying his father's freedom and cementing your friendship for the rest of his life. You had a rather odd dream when you were beaten unconscious, imagining yourself on a beach near Athar and conversing with your Uncle Jorah. You met with Ishamal after the battle, when you asked for his guidance about your odd dream he was illusive but gave you a strange citrus drink.  He did not tell you at the time that the weird tasting concoction was though later in your life you learned its significance. That it would help shield your mind from outside interference, but not infallibly so and not from beings of sufficient power. Revelations you only learned years later. Year Sixteen After living in Zepath for five years you have integrated into Zepathan culture. Despite your status as slave, Tudiya has treated you gently, feeding, clothing and educating you. You have been half errand boy and half page to him for years, dragging along with you Danal who had less interest in such things and for whom you may as well be an older brother. To be a free man of Zepath(which you are not) is to raise arms in time of war. You went to Ishamal to ask him to help you learn to fight. You have excellent hand-eye coordination and stupendous eyesight, when you chose the bow he introduced you to his friend Chait who became your archery tutor.  Chait remarked that you had "natural talent" for the bow. A phrase you seemed to hear many times during your youth, you seemed to excel at all you would commit your eyes to. While you spent most of your adolescence skinny, your six daily meals and regular training with Chait have added muscle to your wiry frame. You are putting on more muscle every day and some days sneak in a seventh meal. Your patchy facial hair is now a bushy but neatly trimmed beard any man of Zepath would be proud to call his own. Every person in Zepath knows who you are, your dark skin alone marks you as different, but if you did not have it you might be mistaken for a fit man in his early 20s. Groups of young maidens sometimes go silent when you are close to them in the market, then giggle when you have passed. You have realized that your hearing is rather good at this point and you have overheard a number of inquiries among them, wondering if you are big all over, sometimes they also make comments that they wish they were Batshiba. Batshiba, as you know, being the temple slave that Labaras uses to "gentle" Enkidu. You are a looker. Children no longer mock you or call you a cannibal. With your excellent hearing, several times you overheard very young children, upon seeing you for the first time, ask their mothers if you are Enkidu and you have overheard foreign merchants say the same in jest. It was during this time you began to have a rather odd realization. There is no other way to put it. By now, it is obvious to you that Snarls Barkley can understand you. Whether or not he can understand all speech or just you was unclear. When you tried to test it with Danal, Snarls fell onto his side for tummy rub rubs, a laughing Danal obliged, commenting that "he did not need to talk to get what he wants!" Something odder still occurred your sixteenth birthday.  In the dead of night you were woken by Tudiya and lead off into the wilderness without explanation and told to pick one of a number of objects. From them, you chose your dog. Probably a wise choice and one which saved your life more than once in the weeks ahead. Lead off into the wilderness Tudiya told you a tale. Of the creation of the world. Of the history of Ur. Of the struggle of man against demons.  He painted a grim and somber picture. "Every generation men's faith in El weakens. Every generation, the blood of Labaras grows weaker. Labaras is in Paradise and few of his sons remain. Men such as Ishamal are uncommon, we are fortunate to have him in Zepath. The Ophanim still aid us... but there is no promise that they shall always do so, if men do not keep strong in their faith. Thus I take you into the wilds, that you may find an offering worthy of El. Demons are not at the walls of Zepath now, nor do I believe you will they be in your time, but you must pass this tale down one day, to your own sons and ensure they remain strong in their faith. El draws no power from your words and no strength from your offerings, but if we do not show him our resolve, then the Ophanim shall aid us no more and there shall be no place in this world for our sons."  After the tale you are marched south of Zepath for a full week, to a parched and desolate land filled with dangers. You were told to find an offering worthy of El. Or to nor return. You were given no food or water and with only your dog to aid you, you were in serious trouble. Well your dog and uh... magical sandals which delayed fatigue hunger and thirst while you walked. Those probably helped rather a lot too. Presenting new and interesting problems, like instead of dying on your feet you would probably only die when you finally stopped moving. The sandals were your secret, you never told another soul about them. After some time in this desolate wasteland and you encountered a lost traveler who seemed to be far worse off than you. Rather than eating the man's food and drinking his water, you put his water-gourd to his lips and made a rather... astounding discovery. You had found no lost traveler for after you gave the man water he stood up and stretched as if he was perfectly alright, two large sets of wings bursting through the back of his robe which itself had become a fantastical garment made of gold, silver and gemstones. Thirteen feet tall or more...  You met a Melachim, Azzazel, the self proclaimed "tester" of virtue. He created an oasis around the two of you and you talked for a time. Azzazel seemed rather jovial, whimsical and perhaps a bit unbalanced.  Azzazel offered you a great deal of aid on your quest if only you would sell him Snarls! His interest seemed to be in your love for Snarls. Yet during your conversation he seemed to become tremendously curious and far friendlier when you asked if he knew Ishamal. When you told him a bit of Ishamal and where he was, Azzazel offered you considerable aid on your quest. You declined this aid not wishing to cheat upon your trial, taking instead only some food and water for Snarls. You never truly discovered who or what Azzazel was and why he did what he did that day. For his own amusement? Some unknown reason? Perhaps he was truly "testing" you, to see if you would cheat? In the end he asked you to convey a message to Ishamal. After two truly miserable days struggling through a desolate wilderness without food or water you found a small forest. Within you found a magical pillar which spoke out loud, declaring that it was the voice of Zepa and boasting that he had dueled Asherah and driven her into the sea. It also spoke of Zepa's eternal laws. Upon the side of the pillar was written what seemed to be the long lineage of Zepa of many his male descendants, up through Aaron.  You signed the pillar using a mystical instrument. It was only years later you realized that you had technically written that you were married to Snarls. You are pretty sure this is simply an oddity of your life and that it had no real consequences. You passed out from fatigue shortly after during an attempt to create a fire. You journeyed on, deciding to go to the sea in hopes of recovering pearls as an offering to El. Pearls are tremendously valuable and it would be quite a deed to even see the ocean and live. Along the way, tired and starving you came across a monstrous, demonic jackal and beat it to death. Rather than immediately eating, you somehow managed to erect an altar to El first and offered much of the meat to him.  The meat burned in fantastical manner before your eyes, in mere moments. Clearly your offering found favor with El. You journeyed on, eventually finding the coast and learning bits about wilderness survival along the way. Of which you knew pretty much nothing. Tudiya dumped you in the wilderness truly unprepared. Eventually you reached the ocean.  Surviving on the beach was far easier, you fished and swam and life was far more pleasant than your quest thus far. You searched for pearls and found many. Things were going pretty well until during one diving session while you were fairly deep, every living thing in the area ran away as if their lives depended upon it, which it turns out it did. Diogines posted:You swim as quick as you can towards the beach. Diogines posted:In your month in the wilderness, you fled one giant lizard, met Azzazel and slew some sort of monstrous jackal. You ran for dear life and somehow, somehow escaped the impossibly large monster which even chased you a fair ways in land, splintering trees like they were toothpicks. When you got far enough in land it seemed to give up pursuit. You later named that terror Eyescream. Snarls was injured during your escape and Azzazel appeared a short time after, offering to send both you and Snarls back to Zepath. You declined this offer and asked him to heal Snarls instead. At that, Azzazel said you would owe him a "favor" and promise not to tell anyone about meeting him, you declined his help. You continued on but as Snarls condition worsened you feared he may perish and several days later you called to Azzazel, who appeared before you in the form of a goat. Azzazel has a thing for goats. He claims that he made them. All of them. The creator of Goat-Kind as it were. When you agreed to to perform a "favor" for him, he agreed to help you, declaring that... Diogines fucked around with this message at 00:50 on Aug 4, 2016 |
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Jul 24, 2016 23:47
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Diogines posted:"You have faced hunger" says Azzazel-as-goat "thirst, cold and heat. You have faced temptation, greed and danger. Lust was not on the list this time but I suppose it can't be helped. Well, you didn't hit all of the big ones Creature, but, I say you, close enough! Today you have overcome PRIDE! I give you high marks! You have been tested and I, Azzazel, the Tester, say you have passed! Now get out of my land, your stinking up the place and scaring my goats!" You washed up on a river bank near Zepath and went home. Given up for dead by the people of Zepath(including your very distraught mother) your return drew all eyes. The fact that Azzazel gave you some pretty stylish clothes when he transported you and also uh... braided your beard and oiled your hair may have helped. A bit. You made your way to El's temple and told a large crowd of your people what happened on your journey, exempting the bit about Azzazel. You placed upon the un-lit altar the precious pearls you had gathered and the skull of the monstrous jackal. Tudiya taught you that El does not care about the material value of an offering, but it is the meaning and difficulty in acquiring it which matters. As one of the temple priests touched the altar with a candle to light it...  Diogines posted:Your offering can hardly be described as flammable but as the candle touches them, they burst into flames which rise about a foot above the altar. The flames are not as they were when you sacrificed the jackal meat, a roaring inferno which knocked you off your feet, yet your offering does burn. Zebanetha raises his hands to the assembled crowd which goes quiet again as he tells them the obvious "El accepts the offering!" From that day forward you were a free man. And the adopted son of a king. Danal was thrilled at your return and demanded you recount every detail of your adventure, which you did, omitting Azzazel. He was also exuberant as he thought that meant he would not have to be king one day. You both agreed neither of you wanted the job. That the decision would probably not be made for many years, you both hoped it might be Aaron.  No longer a slave, you reconciled with Naomi shortly after your return and pledged you would find some way to be together. You sought out Ishamal and he agreed to help win Tudiya over. He also gave you an enormous and impractical club so heavy you could not lift it when you returned. He said it was made of red cedar. Why he gave you the drat thing is a mystery you never unravelled. Two months pass. You discover that you will be squiring for Aaron, joining him as he hunts monsters, aiding him as he deems fit, carrying his pack and learning. An opportunity you relished. A short time before you were to depart however you approached Tudiya and asked for permission to wed Naomi. He agreed but named a bride price of a hundred monster foreskins which you were to obtain within two years upon your own efforts, not Aaron's leaving. A ridiculous and seemingly impossible task despite your growing skill with your bow. Oh and he can talk. Who? Snarls. Your dog. You are not sure exactly when it happened but you realized about this time you could share your thoughts with Snarls and vice versa. Not too long after this realization you decided you decided to try to smell through Snarls's nose. Your... efforts did not seem to work the way you had hoped and you appeared to... swap bodies with him. As you tried to switch back Snarls nearly perished and you passed out.  You awoke on a beach near Athar and spoke with a figure who took the guise of your Uncle Jorah who told you that you nearly perished and asked you to stop "experimenting". You had many questions and "Uncle Jorah" agreed to answer some of them if you would "agree to not attempt or to engage in activities which bend or break the laws of naturalistic causality for one hundred and twenty native lunar cycles." You agreed and he began to give some very vague answers to some of your questions. When a goat which sounded suspiciously like Azzazel arrived. The two argued about matters you did not truly understand, eventually turning violent. When you woke up Snarls seemed to be alright. A short time later you joined Aaron and set off to patrol the wilderness beyond Zepath to hunt down monsters and lessen their numbers. You learned a great deal of the wilds following Aaron. The most notable encounter during this time was a grove scorpion.  An enormous scorpion far larger than a man. Aaron seemed to have the situation well in hand though you landed a truly stupendous shot with your bow straight through the beast's eye at great range, slaying it. Aaron was rather impressed, as was Snarls. Year Seventeen  You have grown. A year ago you were tall, but your height not unheard of for those who are not Blooded. You have grown almost an entire foot, you are now 7 feet 11 inches. An inch taller than Ishamal and taller than anyone else in your entire city, with the exception of Barkof who is an inch taller than you and Tudiya who towers above all at 8 and a half feet of solid muscle. You are a few inches taller than Aaron, though you have little doubt at all that your strength is no match for his supernatural strength. He may not be a Tudiya but he is very clearly far stronger than a man of his build should be. You are stronger than you were a year past, but your strength probably not supernatural, but rather in scale with your large size. Your appetite is ludicrous. You are up to the equivalent of eight meals a day, sometimes with snacks in-between. Once you expressed concern to Ishamal as to your appetite which seems to outpace all others, he laughed as he often does and told you not to worry and it should not trouble you, you are after all, a growing boy and that your hunger should subside. Eventually. Probably. But it is not something you should worry about for now and he tells you outright that Asherah is not to blame and you need not worry on that account, even if you will drive your father into debt-slavery just to keep you fed. You continue to put on muscle and are increasingly pleasing in the eye of the opposite gender, you still hear maidens whisper as you pass in the market of their desire for you to do to them as Enkidu did to the temple priestess who ravished them. Discreet opportunities have presented themselves with willing, eager partners. You continue to follow Aaron through the wilds and learn much of them and the hunting of monsters from him. Through your efforts (mostly his) many monsters are slain including: Nineteen minotaurs. Seven ogres. Sixty three goblins spread between four different dens. Eight giant snakes, some of the fire spitting variety, some not. Another grove scorpion. Fifteen harpies. A giant which Aaron hopes was mortally wounded, but which the two of you let go, not wishing to tempt fate. You earned a bit of silver from your working for Aaron and bought a few slaves. You have a drinking buddy about your age, a journeyman potter Lefkandi who recently started his own business. Lamenting how much he hated digging clay to make pots(as is traditionally done by potters), you contracted with him to have your slaves dig it for a share of his profits. This proved to be a financially sound decision for all involved. In time you would also sponsor a fletcher to open a new shop.  During this period of time a series of sporting events were held in Zepath, with a number of visitors from Tanaach coming as was tradition. You engaged in a foot race against other youths, including Lullaya who had been a thorn in your side during all of your time in Zepath. While racing and pushing for more speed you felt a tremendous and terrible hunger and so ran off from the race to indulge in it. Later in the day an archery contest was held at the Temple of the Melachim and you decided to participate. You had a rather interesting chat with Bareen in her temple during that time. The High Priestess of the temple, the woman had supernatural powers which defied any obvious or conventional explanation. You and she had a quiet chat during this time where she told you that you were 'special' and tried to convince you to leave the city with her, telling you many queer things, among them that the Old Tales were a fabrication and that El did not exist. She offered to teach you, if you would leave the city with her. When you refused, she took you and Danal hostage. Tudiya and the combined Mighty Men of Tanaach and Zepath arrived a short time later and a battle raged in the temple.  You killed a man for the first time that day and killed several more with your bow. A titanic struggle occurred as Tudiya and Bareen threw each other through buildings and eventually fought beyond the city itself. With Aaron you explored under the Temple of the Melachim and found a tunnel and at its end...  A wall made of human remains. Something evil lay beyond... but you decided to tear it down.  Bad-Smellers Snarls told you. Demons. What terror lay hidden under that temple? You did not stick around to find out. Eventually Tudiya, aided by his cousin Rimush, the King of Tanaach defeated Bareen beyond the city, slaying her though from the effort Tudiya was exhausted into a state of unconsciousness. A few days later, the Melachim worshipers defeated, the survivors were gathered and judged. Nearly all the men of Zepath called for blood and wished all of the heretics killed and at a public gathering Tudiya's counsellors said as much. Ishamal urged mercy and seemed to sway the crowd. In the end Tudiya sent most of the heretics to fast and pray. Those who would recant their heresy were forgiven after a grueling six day fast. Those who shed blood but did not take a life and would would repent were told to walk to Baitel and if they did such, would be forgiven. Those who would not recant their misdeeds were to be executed. As the city watched one of the heretics cursed Tudiya declaring that a doom was coming to slay all he loved. The man produced a knife to cut his own throat and defy Tudiya. You put an arrow through the man's hand and Tudiya promptly had him burned alive.  A handful remained who had taken a life, most of those who actually fought died in the battle. Two of the heretics recanted and were given a swift death by decapitation. Several more were exiled in secret and sold into slavery, the city thinking them executed. Barkof, the commander of Zepath's Mighty Men had been in league with Bareen though his motive was unclear. He fled in the chaos and later so did much of his family. Six months later a band of angry potters tried to have Lefkandi punished for breaking Pottery Tradition. Tudiya sided with Lefkandi as his actions defied convention, but were not a crime. Magic and sorcery do not exist. Or they are not supposed to anyway. What fantastical abilities the well Blooded have and what they can do is by virtue of their lineage, no more and no less. There are witches in the world but they are foul things and almost all of them, charlatans. Yet there is an old crone in Zepath who named Indor who sells tonics and baubles which are said to truly work. You declined her offer then though would accept it in the years ahead. She tried a number of times to convince you become her student, that offer you never accepted. At seventeen and a half you decided to eat a pebble to see what happened. You pooped it out. It was slightly smaller after, slight. This seemed less insane at the time. Though you had secured many monster foreskins from your own kills helping Aaron, Tudiya told you to get the rest without his aid, though you could seek the aid of others who would be willing to help you. For your great stature you lacked the strength, swiftness and endurance of greater men, yet thinking that you had such (and hoping for a rare chance at glory and riches), many volunteered to join you.  The more notable members included... Paebel: Your friend, about your age. He was a servant at the temple of the Melachim and fought against Bareen's other followers during the battle and after it became a hunter. He helped you to recruit others and execute your plan. Jobe: An acolyte, a low ranking priest from El's temple. He told you he wanted to show he could do more than pray for El, that he could fight for him. Paebel did not want to take Jobe along, fearing he was a spy or would discover the fact you had made a deal with Indor(you made a deal with Indor, details below) but decided to take him along. Jobe was a bit tall and beefy for a priest but was not Blooded by any stretch. Asahel: A runaway slave from Ibleam. The youth told an odd tale. Of being awoken by a dream in which a goat told him to awaken, flee his master and join you. Apparently taking him along was your favor to Azzazel? Gaddiel: A slave. Your slave. You wanted some help to deal with the donkeys so you took him from back from the potter Lefkandi. Gaddiel was a rather unhappy slave and very probably on the verge of suicide before you took him. For this act you would learn his love and admiration. In time. Despite integrating into Zepath, your innately foreign nature meant that Blooded youths, the young men of the most Blooded families of Zepath did not wish to join you. Lullaya poisoning against you did not help either. Yet you were able to recruit four. Uriah: Nephew of Barkof. Brother of... Lullaya. His younger brother. Uriah was fourteen and one of the only members of your group younger than you, everyone else was about your age or within ten years your senior. He hated older brother who had been cruel to him throughout his youth. When he first approached you he brought sausages for Snarls, which won him over immediately. You were hesitant at first but Snarls persuaded you to take him. Uriah made clear he was joining you to shame his older brother by gaining greater glory at a younger age. He was 6'6 and had six fingers on each hand. You arm wrestled. You won. Barely... you are three years older than him and two feet taller. You lack obvious Blooded strength. Uriah does not, though he is young still. He had fine and expensive arms and armor. He also brought two of his slaves with him, to perform labor during your trip and tend to the pack animals. Jassiel, son of Obel, a Mighty Man of Zepath who helped you train in melee combat. Blooded, with six fingers on a hand. 6'10 and fifteen years old. He intends to make this trip his Manhood trial. He trained to fight with a shield and spear for several years. You arm wrestled. He won. He had fine and expensive arms and armor. Ithma. Grandson of Obel. Blooded, with five fingers upon each hand, 6'9. He was eighteen and never did a Manhood trial. He also intended your journey to be one. He also had training to fight with spear and shield. You arm wrestled. He won. He had fine and expensive arms and armor. Gareb. 7'3. Gareb had an almost Mighty appearance. Five fingers on each hand. He was twenty years old and the son of one of Zepath's other Mighty Men. He trained to fight with spear and shield but loathed to do so. He is an artist, a painter and a sensitive soul who has no lust for battle or love for glory. His father threatened to disinherit him if he did not go monster hunting, the fact your group set off to do so around the same time was convenient. You would come to think of them as your Mighty Sons, as they were the sons of well Blooded men.  The rest of the men who joined you were a mixture of caravan guards, farmers or craftsmen. Most were a bit Blooded and thus a bit stronger and taller and tougher than other men, but many people in Zepath have a more famous Blooded ancestors. The name of this MIGHTY group of would be heroes? THE BALLS OF LABARAS! A profanity but not a particularly irreligious one. Men say "Labaras's balls" to express shock or sometimes displeasure but usually shock or surprise. You struck a deal with Indor at this time. You would fetch her bits from monsters and she would pay you well for them. As a signing bonus she gave you a charm of her choice, you picked a necklace with a small goat carved in wood which she said would "Make your tongue clever and more persuasive, it shall aid you in commanding your men."  With the death of dreaded beasts and monsters as your aim, you set off with your comrades into the wilderness. Looking back you realize what a... tremendously foolhardy trip it was. Had you run into some of the more dangerous beasts known to live in the countryside, none of you would have made it back alive. You were lucky. Snarls's nose to detect danger helped but there were many times in the years after that you wondered if your entire group would have perished if the wrong creature caught your scent.  You found a den of goblins. Positioning your men on both sides of the cave mouth, you stationed your donkeys and slaves in open view, you lured the goblins out of the cave...   And you slaughtered them in great numbers. Those goblins which fled you chased into the caves, slaying all who stood before you. You found a goblin settlement deeper in the caves and though hundreds of goblins fell upon your group you held them on your overlapping shield and did great injury to them with spears thrusted between, your men slew hundreds of goblins that day, though one of your men you left to guard the donkeys would die later in the battle.  As your men looted the place, you found a profane statue and some sort of... shrine, guarded by a chained up ogre. You slew the ogre but when you smashed the statue, the stone began to bubble and boil as if it was alive. The form of the statue changed and contorted...  ...until it became a foul monstrosity of teeth and tendrils. A demon! A demon in Ur!? You and your men fought courageously yet the creature had vastly superior strength to even the most Blooded of your young comrades, limbs carved off regrew swiftly. It threw your men around like rag dolls, nearly slaying several. You dropped your shield and spear and threw back your head and made a sound.  A sound Tudiya later told you was the true name of El. The entire cavern shook as if there was an earthquake, the men fighting beside you were thrown backwards into the air and others stumbled. Directly in front of you the, the demon was driven into the cavern floor as if something unseen smashed it with great force, it's tendrils crashed into the rock floor with the rest of it with such force that the rock cracked.  Your heart stopped beating, your vision blurred, you tasted blood.  Yet then a bright light appeared and you found yourself filled with great strength. You ripped a stalagmite from the floor and beat the demon to death with it. You later learned the creature was called a Zviv and was among the least of the demons of the world. Still, a great victory, your men gathered up the spoils they could find and the injured and returned home. A demon, in Ur? Inexplicable. Yet stories of what you did that day swiftly spread through Zepath and your deeds were seen as a great victory. So great in fact that Tudiya said you need not gather any more foreskins to claim Naomi as your bride and you would be wed to her in the morning. Yet Ishamal wished to speak with you soon after. Telling you strange and ominous things. That you would grow greatly in power in time, surpassing even Tudiya. And that... measures had to be taken. He was sparse upon the details and left your many questions mostly unanswered and what questions he did answer were deeply unsettling. Yet the old man, your friend, told you that you must make a choice. Death. Exile from Ur. Sleep. To limit your power. Or to study, whatever that meant, to control yourself lest an incident such as occurred in the cave occur again, yet with calamitous results... and also give him your children. In the end you chose to study and when you did, Ishamal asked you consent to be made sterile as well. You said you would think about it and decided to go to a certain strange rock by the river beyond Zepath shaped like a goat. You found Azzazel there and questioned him. Though he was in good cheer, his answers were comical, cryptic and less than helpful. You finally returned home and went to sleep. Many men have dreams the night before their wedding. Usually about their wives to be? Few have dreams such as the nightmare you had that night. Though when you asked Ishamal of it the next day you learned it was no mere imagining, but a vision.  Of a world where the sun never rose again and black ash choked the sky. Where every green growing thing perished. Where men struggled against the maws of demons yet their struggle was for naught. Of the great power you possessed and the people you tried to save... Diogines posted:The numbers following you dwindle as you trudge across the wastes. Each day it becomes harder to make the air they need to breathe. Each day it becomes harder to make water. Each day it becomes harder to make food. There is nothing left to scavenge in this poisoned world and those who follow you in a procession would perish without you. You have long since wandered beyond the lands you recognized but you would scarcely even know your home anymore. Mountains rise and crumble. Seas flood land and fade away. Molten rock flows freely. The world was dead yet you remained. You struggled on until those... things still fighting overwhelmed you. And then the world itself, the very land, destroyed by a great flaming sword descending from the sky, along with a message. "And thus it ends El King of the World Who causes the sun to rise and to set And brings the rains in their seasons Who was Alone when no things were His Children watched the first sunrise And yet you declare your wisdom Greater than They Who Are Eternal And dwell in the Eternal House at His feet THUS SMYTHOS DECLARES After your seed All this follows Humble yourself before His Children And in your long years Bind the Eternal Hunger Forever You went to Ishamal who chastised you for some of your more heretical thoughts and told you the dream was a message from Smythos. You agreed to be made impotent. Whatever Ishamal did to you, you felt nothing. You went to find your bride to be and told her that "I... I had a dream. I will never father a child Naomi." Naomi was quiet for a long moment and looked up into your eyes and said "If we cannot have sons of your flesh, then they will be the sons of our hearts." You embraced her and she, you. She truly loved you. Several of the Balls of Labaras came to you shortly after that. They wished you to declare them to be men in El's temple, as is usually done for youths by their fathers. You agreed. Later that day before your friends and people, you were wed to a woman whom you loved and who truly loved you. Much celebration occurred throughout Zepath. You were given many gifts by well wishes that day, including a home.  quote:It may not be a palace but it is all yours and large enough for you, Naomi, another free person or two and several slaves. By the time you are thrown into your bed both you and Naomi are bare. The party goers retreat. Year Eighteen You and Naomi enjoyed the life of the newlywed though you also spent a great deal of time training with Ishamal which took the form of bizarre breathing exercices, exercice, holding your breath and meditation. Your Mighty Son Jassiel, seriously wounded and recuperating was replaced by another young Blooded man of the city, Ira. Your strength began to fluctuate during this time period, sometimes gaining great but brief spurts of strength. You grow another two inches and are now an inch taller than Tudiya, even if you lack the fantastical strength, durability and wide variety of powers he and his Mighty Men possess. You and your men continued hunting monsters in the wilderness and dragging their corpses back to Zepath for sale. Merchants from the interior come to Zepath to buy bits of dead monsters to be sold as sacrificial offerings in the interior and all of you are making quite a bit of silver from it. Though you made far more silver secretly selling to the witch Indor. A move which if Tudiya ever discovered would have been a source of immense shame. Indor was directly responsible for the prosperity and wealth of you and your men in the early years of the Balls of Labaras. Year Nineteen  You continue to grow in strength and height. You are now eight feet and nine inches tall. You are the tallest person you have ever seen. Except for those who have traveled far, you are the tallest person most people in Zepath have ever seen. You gain great physical strength, perhaps the strength of three men? Your purse continues to fatten as you and your men hunt many monsters in the countryside beyond Zepath. Snarls's nose is a tremendous asset in this endeavor for it is his nose which allows you and your men to avoid monsters which would otherwise kill you all. Though it was not foolproof and men did die in the early years of your adventures, though never in great numbers. Uriah is able to create fire by speaking the mystical words Vayahi Or. At age fifteen this is... tremendously young and that he was not taught how to do so but figured it out on his own? Your Priest-Ball Jobe declared it a clear sign of El's favor. A priest from the city of Megido arrived in Zepath, why was unclear though he had a private meeting with Tudiya in El's temple. He asked you where the battle occurred where you slew the goblins, you told him. You paid a carpenter, your friend Mayim to build a bridge which helped some farmers and would later turn out to be a wise investment for you. During this period, there were a handful of times during your hunting when time seemed to pause around you. There were times where you felt a surge of power as if you could suddenly summon great strength. You were not able to cause such incidents to occur, they simply did. When those incidents occurred, you tried to calm down as best you could, even if there was danger in trying to steady yourself in the midst of danger. You calmed down and the odd feelings passed. Ishamal was pleased that you did. While out hunting monsters with your men one day, you hear a horn, somewhere far to the east...  Snarls sniffed several times and his ears suddenly perked up. Mancows. Many-Lots! You scouted further east and found an army of minotaurs. Another? They attack Zepath once every generation or two when their numbers in the mountains grow great, always lead by some great beast of their kind. Two attacks in a generation, yet alone a handful of years after the last? Unheard of. Nor was this army lead by minotaurs, but by man-shaped figures eight feel tall and clad in silverish armor. You have never seen an orc before but you have heard stories of them and they had a vague resemblance? You would later learn these creatures were no orcs.  You swiftly return home with your men and warn Zepath. The men of Zepath quickly arm for war.  Tudiya challenged the strange creatures to a duel, chopping one in half and exploding another with a mystical shout. The last of the strange creatures walked towards Tudiya. Yet as he did six captive women at the front of the invader's horde floated in the air, tethered by the chains the minotaurs held as if they would float away without them. The heads of the women rolled back and blood began to flow out of their mouths, noses, eyes and palms into the open air.  Even with this oddness, the spirits of men of Zepath were tremendously high for their king has slain two of the creatures so far. Every eye was upon Tudiya and the (orc?) Except for two. You notice among the lines that two men of middle years and apparent Zepathan appearance with fine and expensive armor were walking through the ranks, taping some of the men briefly on their right shoulders, where priests has smeared sacred ashes in preparation for the battle. The pair were out of place and should be up front, their armor clearly noted they were among the elect of Zepath. Yet they simply walked through the ranks with ease, deftly moving around the men of Zepath with ease and grace, some even move slightly as the two figures pass. They seem to disappear as your vision moves across the crowd and re-appear elsewhere, their armor and appearance changing subtly as they do, or perhaps there are not two? More? Less? Whoever they were, your attention was drawn back to Tudiya and his foe for with a mystic word...  Tudiya caused the ground to open and swallow the invader. The six captive women floating in the air tumble and fall to the ground. The cloud of blood floating above them splashed into the dirt and onto the women. The amount of blood which had left their body... they were dead. No blue vapor leaves their bodies, they lay still, unbreathing. The minotaurs bay and snort, they scratched at the dirt with their hoofs and it seemed as if they may simply flee. There was... some force unseen moving among the minotaurs... something malevolent. You could almost swear you heard it whisper, as if you could hear it say... something on the very edge of your perception. In past battles the creatures would flee in terror when their leader was defeated. Instead the minotaurs gave a roar. And charged.  Tudiya raised his spear into air and shouted Let None Escape Alive! Several thousand men yelled "EEEEEEEELLLLLLL!", raised their spears, their shields and charged! You and your men at the bottom of the line race as swiftly as you may towards the foe! You feel filled with tremendous strength and as you and your men smash into the minotaur line you do great violence upon them, rending bone, snapping flesh and disemboweling minotaurs with tremendous fury!  [An awesome action sequence occurred where pretty much every individual voter who suggested a form of violence, had such violence occur and succeed in their attempts, though some not as spectacularly as they had hoped.]  Soaked head to toe in gore and viscera...  The minotaurs are defeated. You and your men slew a great many that day yet none of you took any injuries. Less than forty men on the Zepathan side died in the battle, a truly miraculous and astounding feat. You and your men showed great valor as well though you took praise for such deeds humbly. When Tudiya called together his counsel you were invited to attend and when he spoke of a number of tasks which needed doing in light of the battle, you volunteered to track the minotaur attack to its source. You had planned to go with only Snarls that you might move more quickly but before you departed Asahel came to you and said "I... have a feeling as if I should come with you." You asked him if he had another dream. Asahel shook his head and said "No, but I just feel as if I should come with you... as if it would be a very bad idea if I did not." You decided to bring him along. Shortly before leaving you had a chat with Paebel and when you questioned him on the source of his heretical beliefs he claimed that during a hunting trip with Bareen's men he had a prophetic vision which saved his life when the others on his hunting trip all perished.  An army of thousands of minotaurs left an easy to follow trail. You followed it towards the mountains of Fare. After a long journey, you reach their edge and see the trail the minotaurs left clearly goes towards them.  For some truly inexplicable and mind-bogglingly stupid reason you decided to stop breathing. [Note to Judah-Players. Yeah. That is basically what happened. The precise motivations of how and why this happened are unclear. I can't even try to link it to the motivations of the players. This was by a wide margin, hands down, the stupidest decision the voices controlling Enkidel made in his entire life. Some people may have been trying to experiment though the timing could not have been worse.] Most people can't actually die from holding their breath. If they somehow pass out, they will start breathing again. Enkidel, with some supernatural abilities... is not most people. Despite being conscious and FULLY AWARE of the fact that him not breathing was causing injury to his body and very possibly going to kill him, despite Snarls panicking, despite Asahel panicking. Despite a clear and unambiguous message that it was going to kill you and with the full knowledge such would occur, you decided to keep holding your breath anyway.  Snarls barking and Asahel's frantic yelling eventually fade, only to be replaced by a ravenous HUNGER! You go to the verge of insanity and are filled with immense hunger. You MUST eat. Your flute, sandals, Snarls and Asahel are the only food in sight and so you eat the flute first. As you go stark raving mad Asahel throws his heads up and apparently shouts to the sky for help! You manage to summon what small bits of self control you have left and decide not to eat Asahel or Snarls and instead struggle with the impossible, voracious, bottomless hunger which has now filled you. HUNGER HUNGER HUNGER!!!! You are hungry, Snarls, Asahel, your sandals.... the ache within your gut is yelling, screaming, demanding it be fed, you snarl and look back and forth between Snarls and Asahel with wild eyes. Asahel is obviously the tastiest morsel, he is distracted, shaking one hand at the sky and yelling words, but that will only make it easier to peel him out of that armor and consume his succulent flesh, which you should most definitely do! "-....ANSWER ME DAMNIT! WHA-" Mindless blathering. It is not about food, why does it matter? EAT!! EAT!!! HUNGER!!!! Snarls is leaning against you and barking, panicked and confused, you don't even need to peel him, utterly defenseless, just sink your teeth into his neck...  ....hurt!?! Predators!?! What do!?! Master-father-brother-bestest-frie- Your sandals, the least tasty, but you'd have to undo the latches and that is work and BRAGH I AM HUNGRY WHY AM I NOT EATING THERE ARE THINGS TO EAT JUST EAT!!!! NOM NOM BRAGGH!!!! HUNGER!!!! You decide you WANT to eat... nothing. You turn away from the two of them and look frantically for something, anything, you claw at your armor, throw back your head and cry out "EL HA MELECH KOL HA OLAM!" Asahel lowers his fist and stops yelling, he rushes to your side, there is a brief flash of light but it is not food related and thus unimportant. Asahel presses... something into your hands.  Plants with some sort of white flaky substance on it, the flakes glitters in the light but you hardly care about how it look because the smell is... fantastical. It... it is FOOD!!!!! YOU HAVE FOOD!! EAT! EAT! EAT!!!  You take the food and tear at it with your teeth and swallow as quickly as you can. It tastes far, far better than your flute. It is the tastiest food your tongue is equipped to handle and slightly tastier than that, the tastiest thing you can conceive. Details at the periphery of your awareness suddenly seem more important or a least, are more available to your conscious mind. Such as Snarls who is pressed against you whining. ....okay!?! Hurt!?!? Sick!??! Predators!!!? What happened!? No man-cows! No bad smellers. What happened!? Or Asahel who is sprawled in the dirt next to you and panting heavily. His armor has fallen off and his face is... different. It is smoother and glows gently, it may be difficult to miss the...  ...pair of wings he is lying upon and which look to be attached to his back. You finish eating and fall upon the dirt beside him, utterly exhausted but only very hungry, instead of... HUNGRY!!!! You pant, utterly exhausted, Asahel beside you pants as well, a small trickle of light growing and shrinking with his breath.  "[pant pant pant] Our... [pant] mutual friend asked me to keep an... [pant] eye on you" Asahel says. His voice has changed. It has a melodic tone to it, almost musical. "I... [pant] really rather liked... [pant] this place..." Snarls licks your face and wags his tail with great pleasure at your apparent recovery from your condition. GOOD SMELLER! Asahel takes a few deep breaths and says... "B... [pant]... Ba.... [pant]... "Bereshit bara Elohim-" Asahel says... something.  But after a few words, he tires and pants again, light growing softly and dimming with each breath. "I... [pant] don't think we have time... [pant] for a history lesson, besides [pant pant pant], it seems like the more done... the worse things turn out..." Snarls continues to happily lick your face. All that matters to him is your well being and you seem to be very tired and very hungry, but otherwise, alright. "[pant pant] You can't... [pant] ever tell anyone what happened today [pant pant pant] not even Ishamal, he won't... just... don't tell him." Snarls continues to deliver a very happy tongue washing to your face. Alright!? Alright? Better? Better? Feels better? You lay on the dirt, Asahel beside you, the pulses of light he gives off are growing fainter with each breath. "[pant] You know, I really liked this place... [pants] I'll be sad to... [pant] to go... those far wiser have their [pant] rules and I probably just broke... most of them... [pant pant pant] whats... one more?" Asahel rolls on his side and reaches out a glowing finger and taps it to your brow. You suddenly feel an awareness of yourself in a way may not immediately understand, though some small portion of it you do.  You have the strength of a man of your build and nothing more. Any further expenditure of [???] will drive you from reason. Diogines fucked around with this message at 13:48 on Jul 25, 2016 |
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Jul 24, 2016 23:49
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"[pant, pant, pant]... follow your heart, it can't turn out any [pant pant] worse I suppose... [pant] you... [pant] you could do great things Enkidel [pant] if... if you put your mind to it..." Asahel glows brightly as his limbs turn to light. He soars upwards as a pillar of light...  He is gone. You lay in the dirt, hungry and exhausted but sane, Snarls continues to happily lick your face. For the rest of your life you never tell a soul what happened that day. You never obtain a clear answer on exactly what happened and who... or what Asahel truly was. One cunning Goon(Vavrek) realized shortly after that in Hebrew the name Asahel meant... "Made by God." Was Asahel a literal guardian-ange... guardian-Melachim, sent by Azzazel? Or was he simply spying on you? For what purpose? You never truly find out. For nearly three years he was among your closest friends, in how many small ways did he affect your life during that time? And how much more may have have effected it if this tragic incident did not occur? Who can say? You told your Balls that Asahel, whom you claimed to be a foreigner, decided to go home. You would never see Asahel again. Exhausted and starving but alive and filled with grief you return home. Snarls had to hunt wild game and feed it to you raw before you were able to get moving. But for his encouragement, prompting and nagging you would have given up and died. On the way home you pass Ibleam and see a few of the furthest farm houses were burned. Did the invaders get their captive women from Ibleam and pass the city by to attack Zepath?  A short time later Tudiya asked you to sit on the King's Chair in the market and dispense justice in his stead, a task he has delegated to others before but never to you. A sign of trust. You didn't kill anyone, the disputes brought to you were mostly about commerce and fairly dull. Though not mentioned in the recap up to this point, your mother fell in love with Tudiya. That night you suggest that he marry her. Apparently they both wished to for some time but did not want to rush things given the fact she was your only blood relative in the city. Tudiya agreed and you negotiate a bride price. Though the price in this instance is a bit... unorthodox. It had already been decided that when Danal turned sixteen he would go to Baitel to find a bride of his own and you would join him to make a pilgrimage. The bride price? That all the foreskins you collected from your earlier hunts, would be sacrificed at El's temple on behalf of the line of Zepa. You readily agreed. Time passes. Factoring in the time you spent on your solo trip to the mountains, returning and resting after, your men were idle for four months. A few of your men made bad financial decisions or gamble or drank away the riches you earned them and went into debt. You bailed them out. They were pretty happy about that though some a little miffed you wanted partial repayment. You warned them that you would not do it a second time. No such incident would occur again in the future, they took your warning to heart. From their perspective, they are your fighting men and you left them to idle, obviously you should cover the bill! You never gain a clear and precise understanding of [???] or of whatever Asahel... gave to you? Did to you?  But you had some theories. It seemed that [???] would slowly, VERY slowly increase over time and that your strength, coordination and endurance were closely linked to it. Using supernatural abilities seemed to decrease it at a tremendous rate. You had many theories. You had few answers and even less certainty.  During this time of recuperating you begin studying metallurgy with one of your most clever Balls, the Smith Adina who has also functioned as the quartermaster for your group. Of the many arts of smithing, the refining of metals and the making of alloys was what interested you most. Adina told you that you had such a "natural talent" for working a forge. Danal apparently had a brief illness while you were away. A bit odd as the Blooded rarely if ever get sick but Danal has always been a bit of a runt. He was fine by the time you got back. Danal was not jealous or upset at your success and overshadowing of him. The opposite. He was wildly enthusiastic about your success and eager to hear of your every battle. When the two of you were younger it was assumed he, the son of a well Blooded king, would go off to be a hero and you would do your best to keep up beside him. The opposite has since occurred. Danal's growth slowed below that of what is common for a Blooded man though at the age of fourteen he finally seems to have hit a growth spurt. He asked to join your Balls. Uriah, the star of your Balls was his age when he joined, the youngest of all your Balls. Yet Danal lacked Uriah's blooded strength. You said Danal could join but he would be put on guard duty with the pack animals, he could only join your fighting men if if he bested any of the Balls of Labaras in a battle. Danal was not as strong or tall or well trained as any of your men. Cunningly, he chose to fight Snarls. You told him that was rather a good try, but uh, pick an actual person. He fought Benaiah, a relative of Agamemnon, the smallest and weakest of your Balls. Benaiah defeated Danal twice. He joined your Balls after that but was put in the back row. Year Twenty  You continue to grow. As does Snarls. The fact that your constant companion was always "just up past your knee"(for a time) was hard to notice. For now, Snarls growth seemed to match your own. Considering you are eight feet and nine inches tall, Snarls is enormous for any dog. With a year having passed to consider whatever it is Asahiel (did?)(gave?) to you, it has become clear to you that your strength is growing steadily, albeit slowly. There are days your strength seems greater than usual and says where it seems to less, wild swings without apparent cause, but the general trend is a clear, slow, upward one. You considered your growing strength in a calm moment yesterday.  You benefit from physical strength equivalent to three times what a man of your build could summon. You have a modest benefit to your overall endurance. You have a small benefit to your reflexes. Any more than a modest expenditure of [???] will drive you from reason. You have continued the breathing exercises which Ishamal taught you. You can hold your breath for thirty minutes while doing vigorous activity, an undeniably superhuman feat. The purpose of the breathing exercises is not a secret, indeed, Ishamal told you their purpose more than a year ago. They are intended to teach you a degree of self control and to in Ishamal's words "prevent outbursts". In the past there were moments where time seemed to slow around you and there were instances where you felt great strength flood you. Ishamal instructed you when such times came to focus upon holding your breath and try to calm down. There have been a handful of such incidents, but they were rare and you successfully calmed down. Tudiya had become suspicious of who was supplying Indor during this period of time though his suspicion, somehow, never pointed to you. With a pause in your monster hunting during your trip and then months of rest, Tudiya's suspicions eased. Indor offered to pay you better if instead of bringing her the corpses of monsters, instead escorted her daugher Puabi into the wilds. As Indor had explained, "freshness" counts and the most valuable bits for her work must be taken as swiftly as possible. With the aid of Snarls, Paebel and some of your heretical Balls, you escorted Puabi into the wilds in secret and hunted monsters for her to carve bits out of. She wanted to incapacitate monsters and let you vivisect them. You drew the line at that. Still, what small bits of monster flesh she took were apparently far more valuable than the corpses you had sent to Indor in secret before and you were paid quite handsomely for it. She also gave you two small clay jars and said of them "Pour these upon a wound, they will seal any gash or cut of the flesh, no matter how dire and if both are used, a severed limb, if done swiftly after they are cut from the flesh. One alone will suffice for a finger, or a toe or a nose. If the injury under the wound is too great, a man may still die, but not for loss of blood." She also gave to you a dagger made of pottery and said of it "this shall save a man from a dire injury to his flesh, beyond the skin and muscle. A cut bowel or lung or crushed liver, if used soon after the injury. Stab the man in the injured spot with this dagger and the injury will swiftly mend." She gave you a pick of several charms. You picked a necklace with a rat's skull carved of wood and of it she told you that "It does not throw a veil over you, but it shall help hide your passing in the wilds. It's effect lessens depending upon how many are with you." Naomi spoke to you recently and said "I wish children's laughter for our home, you deserve a son to carry on your name my love, if not your flesh. We might claim another's child as our own." She wanted to adopt children. Ishamal once told you that Naomi could be made to have children who have your appearance. He did not elaborate on the details, except to say it could be done. Both of you felt more than a little uncomfortable during that conversation. When you tried to ask him who the father would be he only said "Not you." Now, you may have been young, but you were relatively certain where babies come from. After a moment he said "...and not me. The answer is complicated. The child would resemble you and Naomi and be yours to claim. It is not an option I was eager to explore, but I did offer. It is not... a good idea for you to produce offspring Enkidel, yet it is not right to deny you children either, thus I offered. They would not be the children of your flesh, only of Naomi's, yet resemble both of you." Ishamal, often tight lipped was especially tight lipped about answers to your questions that day. You told her "Ishamal said that he can give you a child" you tell her. "Give me? What do you mean?" There are many strange moments in the course of a person's life. The time where Enkidel tried to explain to Naomi that with Ishamal's help, she could bare children which would be hers, but not yours and would not involve anyone else performing a reproductive act with her... is one of those strange moments. When you finished trying to explain it to Naomi she said "I... I don't understand." You were forced to admit you don't either. "But Ishamal will help us have children?" she asks. You tell her yes. "Then let's start now" she says, as she grabs you and drags you to your bed... you don't put up much of a fight. The next day you spoke with Ishamal and asked for his aid in this sensitive matter. He agreed and told you "It will be done then. Do as you would with your wife, a child will be conceived, in time." During this year you decided you wanted to chat with Azzazel. He did not show up. During this year you also became increasingly aware of a sense or senses for which you had no name. Diogines posted:Far to the northeast, one thing presses upon your senses every sleeping and waking moment. You know where it is, at any moment, buried in the dirt on a moonless night, you would still know the way. You are becoming increasingly aware of the Presences of Zepath. It is a strange feeling and difficult to articulate into words. It is an awareness of... location, which you feel as a sort of pressure upon your mind. A number of persons within the city have a Presence, but some things as well. The Presence of Ishamal is immense, dwarfing all others by orders of magnitude. Tudiya has a strong Presence which dwarfs every other in the city but in turn, is dwarfed by Ishamal. Aaron has the next stronger presence, which is weaker still than Tudiya's. You would never get a clear answer from anyone else on what Presences were and what the feeling meant. Though for many years you would think that it had something to do with "strength", certain incidents later in your life drew that into question. Whatever it is, it seems more complicated than that? Or perhaps not. Year Twenty One  It is the dry season now, your trip to Baitel is timed for the rainy season when travel is easier, a few months from now, a bit after Danal's anticipated return from his Manhood trial. You are still growing and are now eight feet, ten inches tall. A year of monster hunting is behind you and a mighty haul it has been. The countryside of Zepath is as safe as it has ever been and many, many beasts have fallen to the spears of Enkidel and the Balls of Labaras. Ishamal gave you a new exercises for your training recently. It involves trying to separate dirt from water in a bowl or cup while sitting beside the river. Initially you had no success at all. In time, you would start to move the water a little though more often, explosively shatter the clay vessel or concentrate so hard your head ached.  Hey there. Three months ago your first child was born. The labor was fairly short and with your mother as the midwife to aid, you delivered your first born into the world. Perfectly healthy and happy with a thick head of hair that Zepath believes to be a sign of a healthy child. Ten toes, twelve fingers... You have a son to carry on your name. You wrapped him in a blanket and handed him to Naomi who looked up to you exhausted and with a large, tired smile said "A son Enkidel, you have a son... what do we name him?" You named him Asahel, in honor of your departed friend. While your great popularity in Zepath was not exactly in danger, the apparent infertility of you and Naomi was a topic of some... public concern. That two prominent young, obviously healthy members of Zepath did not have any children was seen as... odd. The people are Zepath are joyous to see that one of their favored sons finally has a son of their own. You have never been present for a child's birth before and as your son took his first breath you felt... something. That flurry of emotions a father feels when he sees his first child? Or did you feel something else? Every waking moment and every moment you are asleep you know one fact with complete and utter certainty and that certainty is there is something... immense far to the northeast. Yet as your son took his first breath for a moment that feeling was... (lessened?) (interrupted?) (strengthened?) (weakened?) (something else?). You are not sure how to describe it. Something happened or ceased to happen or happened more or less... and you saw a small bit of translucent blue vapor enter your son's mouth. Your people believe that El does not directly interact with the world, that he sends his Melachim to do his will... except for one deed. It is believed that El personally breaths each new soul through the mouth of each new born babe when they take their first breath... and you may have just seen exactly that occur. Danal turns sixteen. In a ritual mirroring your own, he is brought into the wilderness by Tudiya though you come to join them and see Danal off. Of the items offered to Danal, he picked a spear. This is apparently the traditional choice which almost everyone who goes upon such a trial selects. You have gone camping with Danal many times near Zepath, trips which he enjoyed. You taught him a great deal of surviving in the wilds. You went out, not knowing how to find food, water, not knowing how to start a fire or build a shelter. Danal knows all of these things, thanks to you. He is in a far better position to take the Trial than you were. Though he does not have magical sandals. Nor a sentient dog. Nor ridiculous hearing and vision. He also, probably, did not have a Melachim watching over his shoulder as you did. You know he is unlikely to meet Azzazel. You tried to ask Aaron about Azzazel in a roundabout way and Aaron seemed to have no knowledge of him. You asked Azzazel if he met Tudiya and while Azzazel did not explicitly deny it, he hinted he did not. In all likelihood it shall be Danal alone against the dangers of the wilds. He is growing taller and stronger... but has not shown any Blooded strength, nor blooded abilities, things which both Aaron and Tudiya had at this age. There is a very realistic chance this is the last time you would ever see Danal. After a full week, you crest a hill and look down into the land before you. Danal has the look of a young man who means to make his father proud. It is parched and desolate. You know the land beyond Zepath and you know it will, this is the driest, most desolate area beyond Zepath. Tudiya faces Danal and places his hands Danal's shoulders. "I shall see you in a month. I will be waiting for you at home. Return with an offering worthy of El or do not return at all. May Smattas and all of the Ophanim watch over you." You told Danal "El does not measure devotion in pounds of silver, or care for pearls. Tudiya once told me: "Things you value which you surrender, things gained at great cost and hardship, such are pleasing to El." Tudiya nodded in approval and Danal said "I won't let you down. I promise." The trip back to Zepath was silent and about as solemn as you might expect it to be, with a man who just left his son without supplies in a desolate wilderness to fend for himself. You return home. Time passes. Danal does not return on time from his trial. Each day you see Tudiya grow a little more somber. You can see the concern on Naomi's face as she tries her best to stay hopeful. Your mother is worried as well. A month passes. Two months pass. Danal does not return. You asked Aaron to help you search for Danal but he shook his head sadly and said "This is his task to do Enkidel and I... I could not carry him back. He is in El's hands." Shortly after you packed and then left the city. You took your armor, spear, shield, bow, some of Indor's medicine as well as a few pounds of silver worth of gold and departed, as well as the other essentials for such a trip. You are going to find Danal. You travel as light as you reasonably can, in armor. You and Snarls follow the route you and Tudiya took, making your way towards the spot you last saw Danal. Pack! You find Paebel who apparently left several days before you with similar ideas. Paebel told you that "His trail leads to a forest five days south of here. There is some... creature in it, something big, though it would not leave the trees and I could not see it clearly. It followed me at the edge of the tree line for three days walk as I tried to get around the trees. At the south end of the forest, I saw the remains of a campfire, maybe two months old. I... I dared not go further Enkidel, I am sorry." You have known Paebel for many years, one of your first friends in Zepath and the same age as you. When you were both young, he dreamed of going off to be a hero... yet he is Unblooded and such a destiny is surely not his. You tower over your old friend now, a man of average stature. Still, going this far on his own, he has shown great courage. No sane ordinary man would ever go this far into the wilderness, certainly not past the southern edge of the world. You have encountered him as he gave up and returned. Though you could move more swiftly without him, you decided to take him with you anyway and headed south. You reach the forest within which lay Zepa's monument. As you walk, you suddenly feel as if you walk into an unseen wall and are staggered. Paebel and Snarls are unaffected and do not feel or see it and look to you. Paebel asks "Are you alright?" IF YOU ARE OF MY LINE, CALL OUT TO ME. ALL INTRUDERS, KNOW THAT IF YOU ENTER, MY MIGHT REMAINS AND I WILL SEND YOU ATOP THE MOUNTAIN SWIFTLY AND WITHOUT MERCY. You feel the words. They come from somewhere within the forest. The tone of the voice is familiar. Paebel and Snarls look to you to see if you are alright, they clearly cannot hear the booming voice. You tell Paebel that "This forest is sacred to the line of Zepa, you can never tell anyone of it, or what is within." Paebel agrees. You speak to the open air. "Zepa! Hear me! I am Enkidel, son of Tudiya! Of the line of Zepa by pledge! I come in search of my brother, also of your line. The man beside me fights for our family and I am honored to have him stand with us. Will you permit us to enter unmolested?" You may enter. Do not let your talmid stray from your sight You find the monument and see that Danal has signed it. Dead or alive, you are going to find Danal. You leave the forest and using your tracking skills and Snarls's nose, do your best to follow Danal's trail. There is not much of one, two months of wind leaves little in the way of foot prints. You journey on. A few days later...  You climb to the top of a hill. A shadow passes over you. You look up to see what casts it. A bird. A bird of immense size far overhead eating what looks like a screeching deer. The deer lay within the bird's massive claws and is being consumed alive, mid-flight. You cannot help but notice now that the side of a hill a mile or so ahead is littered with bones of many sorts and what looks like a large nest lay atop it. None of the bones are obviously human but you do not stare long, you are preoccupied. Would you find Danal's remains be among them if you got a closer look? You have heard stories of such birds. It is a Roc. Massive birds with talons like spears who eat their prey alive. Their nests are known to contain treasure. Their claws are known to contain death. The roc dives at you and Paebel. As it barrels down at you, you launch an arrow at its eyes a mere forty paces away. The arrow flies as the Roc moves to meet it... You miss your target. ... ...and lodge the arrow firmly in the center of the roc's forehead. It screams and screeches in pain as it crashes into the dirt. You use your spear to finish it off. Paebel is suitably impressed. You just took down a giant monstrous bird with one arrow. Paebel stammered and said "I... I just saw you do that and I can't believe it!" You search the Roc's nest. You find bones but none of them are Danal's, somehow you would know if you saw them. Though you do discover that, apparently, Roc's poo poo gold because it seems to be used as a sort of glue to keep the enormous nest together. You also find an enormous egg, which you take as well as some gemstones you found in the roc's gullet. You offer the Roc to El. The corpse burns but not in any apparently supernatural manner. You decide to return home. Naomi asks you what you plan to do with it. Because you are clearly a lunatic, you tell her "Raise it! I will use it to soar through the skies and hunt monsters!" Naomi takes your hands in hers and says "Enkidel. You have a son. You have me. You can't keep a monster in our home, you... you just can't." Ishamal tells you that you are a lunatic. Tudiya tells you "I will not tell you what you cannot do my son, you have proven others fools who made such claims of you. But if it eats cattle or a person, do not imagine I will be merciful. If it eats a freeman your life will be forfeit." Naomi eventually talked you out of it. You decided you could travel to the city of Tanaach, Zepath's closest neighbor and sacrifice the egg to El there in honor of its king, Rimush. Tudiya certainly approved, he and Rimush are cousins and old friends. Some time later you go to Tanaach with your men. Danal has been gone for six months and has been given up for dead.  The word to describe Tanaach might be... large. Yes, that would work. It is bigger than Zepath, its walls stand twice as high, a bit over 20 feet tall and look wide enough for a man to walk across. It stretches and sprawls alongside the river, perhaps half again larger than Zepath? While you are still several hundred feet from the gate, with your exceptional hearing you hear one of the guards at the gate yell "Get out here!" You see two dozen men who must have been at a guard post within the city, filter out and block the way in. When the guards realize who you are they let you. Everyone who sees you and your men in the street stare at the dark skinned giant. Many mistake you for Enkidu. You made your way to El's temple. It is large, larger than the one in Zepath, though not nearly so richly decorated. A cow is burning upon the altar. None of the priests, the junior acolytes, nor the senior ones gawk at your arrival or seem shocked, unlike pretty much everyone else you have passed since coming to the city. The High Priest, a kindly looking old man says to you "Word of your good deeds have reached us here. Welcome and be at ease in the House of El, sons of Zepath." You can feel a Presence within Tanaach, several in fact, the most powerful seems to be coming from the Temple of El, though not so strong as that from Zepath. Comparing Presences to each other is very difficult unless the difference in scale is large. The Presence from the Temple of El is the largest in the city. You feel another someplace else, moving, King Rimush? Beyond the two, there are no other notables Presences within the city. You burn the egg, there is no obvious supernatural response from the fire.  A week passes. A very, very drunken week. You have probably never had so much wine in your life. King Rimush, eight feet tall and massively muscled laughed and hugged you warmly when he first saw you, saying "My boy! Welcome to Tanaach!" He was delighted at your offering and has hosted you and all of your Balls in his home. During the day you have hunted for sport with the King and his Mighty Men in the hills near Tanaach. Your skill with a bow is noted and remarked upon favorably, though King Rimush and his Mighty men favor normal spears, thrown with strength that only a Blooded man could match. Rimush roared with laughter when you told him that you named your band the Balls of Labaras. During your trip to Tanaach you visit the adventurer Eleazar. During the battle at the Temple of the Melachim you brought a man who was dying to to El's temple for healing. That man was Eleazar. He is older than any of your Balls and a little Blooded but only a little. Yet the man, older than anyone in your Balls, has a wealth of experience working at a trade which should have gotten him killed. You recruited him. In time you would appoint him as your second in command of the Balls of Labaras. A heretical worshiper of the Melachim and an adventurer to boot, Eleazar would blend conventional tactics with more unconventional ones to great effect. Whatever advice he gave you, generally, focused upon achieving the objectives you would set while minimizing your own casualties. Though he would tell you more than once over the years that the goals you set were suicidal. You usually listened to such advice, but not always. During one drunken evening at King Rimush's home, at his prompting, you told him of Athar and the harvesting of men for demons there. So moved by your words was Rimush that he pledged to at once go to Athar and free them! poo poo! Uh... uh... crap! Ishamal and your mother both told you to speak as little of Athar as possible, always. Ooops. You improvised, telling Rimush that his noble intentions were well received but that a great wave wiped out the village as you fled. A very attractive slave woman came to your room that night, claiming that Rimush sent her for your pleasure. You slept with her. You later discovered that to be a lie. Well not the pleasure. She was pretty great. The lie being the bit about her being a slave woman. You later discovered she was one of Rimush's unwed daughters hoping to get a baby out of you and thus force a marriage. Well the joke was on her, you were shooting blanks! That night you had a strange dream...  Of being lost and alone in a tropical forest. Of being pursued by a terrible danger. Of a desperate search for... something. You yell to the person next to you "KEEP GOING!" But who were you talking to...? Where are you? Who are you? You are lost. Suddenly you remember. You realize where Mount Har is. Suddenly you are no longer lost. You want to remember the way and so you do. Mount Har. Somehow you know where it is, it is obvious. Which means you have been running... southwest, towards your pursuers AND the sea, which could be worse!?! You yell to your companion "We've been turned around! This way! Hurry!"  Your prize. You know which way to run now to save yourself but your prize.... With it, your father will glorify you and your brother lavish you with praise. You will finally show him you that your... that you are good enough. You... had it? You think? You can't... you can't remember what it was or where it is... somewhere, lost in the forest... you will not leave it behind, it is somewhere north of you. You stored it there for safekeeping. But there are other problems. You are making noise, a LOT of noise as you run. You found that the largest predators would not chase you within sight of the ocean, they would turn back, terrified. Using all of the stealth your brother taught you, you snuck down the coast at the edge between the sea and forest, raising small altars each night and sleeping in trees. Now... now you KNOW the horrors which lurk within those waters, the unspeakable horrors which will consume your flesh, nay your soul, you dare not return to the sea and with all the noise you make, the many monsters in this forest will find you, if they have not already.... you can feel them, you know where they are, if only you can remember... and so you do. You hone your senses and suddenly it seems so obvious...  You know where the prize is. Where Danal's prize is...  You find Danal's prize and you whisper it into his ear, he realizes the information as if he recalled it himself, but you hardly care if he finds it now, his fate hardly matters, the answers to all of your questions are unfurling before your eyes like a cloth which grows forever in each direction, yet each fiber is clear to you...  W...ke ...p En...idE..! Diogines fucked around with this message at 13:47 on Jul 25, 2016 |
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Jul 24, 2016 23:49
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You feel a voice calling you back towards... yourself. You feel your mind retract upon itself. You lay in your bed in the home of King Rimush. Your partner from the last night is gone. Snarls is asleep next to you, his head rested on your pillow and one of his massive paws draped over your chest. Yet sitting on the edge of the bed beside you is a woman of indeterminate years wearing a simple and inexpensive brown robe. She strokes the side of your face gently, you are exhausted and feel a strong that you must sleep. You are tired, very, very tired. She speaks to you. "Child..." "You were selfless to help him Child, but it was not wise. No rescue will come to save you from yourself. Not again. Gentle your fears on the boy's account, know that his compassion and courage this night have found favor in the eyes of our Father." Her voice is soft and melodic, you can feel empathy from her every word and peace radiate from the spaces between them. You feel at ease simply from her presence. There is no judgment, no scolding, only understanding and compassion. You are tired. Very, very tired, he gentle words comfort you back to rest... "Tell the King of Zepath not to weep, for we shall be beside the boy till he returns, yet tell no others. We will speak again, but not before you are ready. Know that your teacher is favored in the eyes of our Father and teaches you only from love. Now sleep Child... and do not destroy." She strokes the side of your face again gently, the edge of her hand is warm and tender. You feel yourself falling asleep. She has not sent you to sleep, you are simply dead tired. "Thank you" you say. The woman smiles a warm, but sad smile and brushes the side of your face gently, her fingers are warm and her touch filled with love. Sleeping beside you, Snarls snuggles closer to you. You drift off back to sleep. You return home the next day. You go to Tudiya's home. It is still richly decorated, yet no longer a happy place, the slaves and servants you pass in the hall have sullen eyes, your father's grief has spread to the rest of his home. Before you left for Tanaach men in the city spoke quietly that it the time had come for Tudiya to erect a grave for Danal... and another month has passed still. Tudiya's home is no longer a happy place. Danal has now been gone for seven months. You find Tudiya in the large gardens behind his home, he is in his workshop in a corner of the garden, chiseling a statue. The statue is incomplete, most of the middle is unfinished, but the legs are clear and the face... Tudiya is a master of working stone and the statue looks almost real. It is a statue of Danal. Tudiya places down his chisel and looks up to you. He is still maintaining his beard, but large bags are under his eyes. The man has lived a century or more and had fathered only one son. A son he sent into a harsh wilderness and whom he must thinks dead. Even before your trip the people of your city whispered that your brother was dead, now a statue is carved as a memorial because nobody could be recovered? Tudiya: "Welcome home my son. You are back soon." You were only in Tanaach for a week, for a trip which takes two weeks each way... you did stay a short time. You: "King Rimush extended every hospitality to us and was a gracious host. I was sent home early, with a message for you." Tudiya: "What message does Rimush send you with?" You: "I do not come with a message from King Rimush. As I slept within his home, I heard a voice call me to wake up. A Melachim sat on the side of my bed. She bade me tell you that that they will be beside Danal till he returns." Tudiya lifts his chisel and hammer and with one strike shatters the half finished funerary statue to rubble. "El is full of mercy" Tudiya says to you. Several more months pass. Diogines posted:It is the afternoon, you are running laps around the city walls. As you pass one of the gates, a passerby tells you "Haven't you heard!? Danal... he's alive! He just got back!" A great celebration is held but Danal is not in the mood to party. You find a quiet place to speak with him and the wild man Bagar. A man you know. A few years before you were rescued from Athar, Bagar simply went missing. You discovered what happened to him now... Diogines posted:At first he seems afraid when you, a giant of a man, surely the largest he has ever seen, approaches. Then he breaks down sobbing and hugs you. You tell him that you are Og, but that you were rescued by the people of this village, their um... head hunter adopted you. Your name is Enkidel now. You assure him that he is safe here and you will help him however you can. Bagar nods, sniffling. You think for a moment and then you say "I will take her, I and Naomi will adopt her." Danal says at once "Yes. I want her loved, not a servant in a stranger's home." Ruth and Danal are both more than a little upset at their parting but Naomi is overjoyed at the new arrival to her home and Snarls and Asahel both take to her at once. You raise Ruth as your own daughter. Bagar seems calm enough in your home... but at times he sobs uncontrollably or seems to withdraw into himself. He cries in his sleep. He seems more at ease around you, Danal, Jalitha, Asahel, Snarls and Ruth but not around others. People point and stare and him when they see him. Every problem you as a mixed breed child encountered when you first arrived, he, a probably mad adult suffers from worse. Naomi told you "I feel badly for him, he seems harmless enough, but what might he do to our children in a waking dream, not realizing? I am afraid he might hurt us." Keeping him in your home will damage your reputation when merchant guests come. They will not be nearly so sympathetic. Two months pass since Bagar came to Zepath. You prayed sincerely to El to heal his troubled mind, pledging to do a service of El's choosing if he would heal the poor man. If anything miraculous occurred, it was not obvious. The next day you brought him back to the temple of El and asked the High Priest, Zebanetha to take him as a servant at the temple, as a favor to you. Zebanetha agreed. He asked for your help to translate to Bagar. He took one Bagar's hands in his aged hands and spoke. "Tell him" said the kindly old priest "that when he was forced to flee into the forest Jalitha prayed that he be kept safe. Tell him that El protected him because he was innocent. Tell him that this is the house of El and as long as he remains here, I promise he will be safe. Nothing can hurt him here, not in these walls." Zebanetha's tone is kind but filled with conviction, as if he truly believed no evil could enter this place. Does he? Is he right? "Tell him that we will take care of him now." You translate, Bagar is agitated and does not want to stay, but you promise him that if he wants to come back to your home in a few days, he can. You visit him a few days later and see him in the temple garden, wearing a robe like other servants. He is weeding a patch of land to plant vegetables in. Zebanetha told you that "He sleeps soundly, do not worry while you are away, he will be in good hands with us." You visited Bagar often in the weeks ahead. Others in Zepath still gawk and stare but the priests, acolytes and temple servants are kind to him. He seemed... calmer. He is clearly still not... all there, sometimes he simply stares vacantly, but he no longer breaks down sobbing and seems to be happy? It seems like Bagar will be okay. Time passes. The time comes go to to Baitel. You are tasked by Tudiya to find Danal a wife there as well as sacrifice the monster foreskins you gathered. You bring with as well all of the Balls of Labaras and a donkey train full of monster bones and flesh you intend to sell at the markets in Baitel.  Such things will be seen as rare and exotic and fetch a tremendous price on the sacraficial-offering market. Your group should all return rich men. Still you want... more. Something else. It took two and a half weeks but you and your Balls have successfully captured a minotaur. The first two forced you to kill, the third you killed by mistake. The fourth was a smaller one, weaker and thus easier to chain. The fact you are almost nine feet tall and have strength far superior to what your frame would indicate might help. You smacked it in the chest with your shield and then pinned it down while your Mighty Sons chained it. Whooooah boy was it pissed off. But you did successfully chain it, cage it and have it ready to go. Many in Zepath came to gawk at it before you left. You had a special caged-cart designed to hold the minotaur. A live minotaur will sell for a fortune in Baitel, besides being quite a spectacle to behold by everyone who sees you along the way! You cut a deal with a merchant you knew named Avram to act as your guide on the trip to Baitel. You also took with you a handful of young Zepathan men who wanted to join you on the pilgrimage. Such common men would never stand a chance to go to Baitel. You presented a unique opportunity for them and they joined you, 72 of them.  Many people wish to die Baitel. It is considered holy to die in the shadow of Mount Har and that the climb up will be easier if you do. Men come from across Ur to die there if they can, there is an immense cemetery beyond the walls, usually only the very rich, or those in nearby cities are actually able to make the trip. Men from places as far as Zepath almost never make it. A number of old men want to join your caravan, to spend their final days in Baitel. It would be considered a pious and holy thing to take them with you. You bring twelve old men with you. Zebanetha praised you for bringing the old men along and said that he would bless your trip and give you a banner to hang alongside others on your donkey train "With it, others will know that the Temple of El blesses this journey. Only a fool would do evil to you or seek to delay you." As you would later discover, without that banner it is possible your journey may have failed. The Witch Indor offered to pay you well to deliver "something" to Baitel, you declined. Ishamal speaks with you the morning of your departure and tells you that "The House of El will probably have questions for you when you arrive. Do not volunteer anything about Athar or Asherah, but do not lie to them, answer any of their questions honestly." Perhaps some topics you were asked not to speak of come up? Such as never telling anyone about the events under Bareen's temple. Your promise to Azzazel to speak about him to none but Ishamal? Your promise to Ishamal to not speak to others of the details of your training with him? He reaches into a fold in his clothing and hands you a small ring made of stone.  "I don't think you are going to need this" says Ishamal "but I am sending you with it anyway. If something truly dire occurs beyond your comprehension, place the ring on and snap off the top. Speak and I will be able to hear you and you, me. By dire... I mean that your training fails catastrophically. If you begin to lose control of yourself. I don't imagine you will, but I don't want to take any risks. It will only work once, give it back to me when you return." With much fanfare you depart. You pick up a few more pilgrims as you pass through Tanaach and by that point your caravan is composed of 155 people. The next city on your route? Dor. When you reach Dor your group are mistaken for Barkof's group of bandits and you cause a panic. You send one of your men ahead to try to defuse the situation. Your messenger returns, "By the time I arrived King Manasseh was waiting with his Mighty Men beyond the walls. I told them who we were. He scowled at me and said that no kin of Barkof may enter-" your messenger pauses for a moment and then says "-and no cannibals may either, that they are fit only for the tips of their spears." Your Balls yell their outrage. "I asked if Avram could enter to trade and buy more food, he said yes." You buy supplies and on from Dor you go. During the day you walk and at night you sleep. A number of the pilgrims asked to train with you and your Balls and you obliged them. Sun rise, sun set and many miles are walked in between.  You walk on for another 80 or more days, you are about halfway to Baitel. You pass through a number of cities, including the cities of Heres, Ahlab, Libnah, Beitshean, Aijalon and Shaalbim. As you travel further north and east, it gets a bit cooler each day, pleasant as you live in a hot land. As you travel, you find that the land that each city farms spreads further and further beyond it's walls. The reaction you gain in each city varies. The King of Heres cheated you and levied a large toll upon your goods. He may not be a match for King Rimush of Tanaach, but he was more than a match for your Balls and so you were forced to pay. His neighbor King Adullam, the king of Libnah was a pious man. He welcomed your group of pilgrims warmly and sent you off with plenty of supplies. He urged you stop on your way home, promising more of his hospitality on your return. In many places your dark skin causes men to accuse you of being a cannibal and in others your great stature and traveling companions has them name you a Hero. You send a few of your Balls ahead of the main group, to let those places you pass know you are not rampaging bandits and the incident at Dor does not repeat, though one of the other cities you passed flatly refused to let you enter, they did not harass your group otherwise.  One evening as you and your men settle down for the night you walk among the tents. As you step by a tent, you see a woman with ordinary hair and ordinary features wearing a plain brown robe, thirty or so? Sometimes when you have passed close to villages, villagers have visited your camp at night but you are not camping in some farmers fields this night. She is a bit tall... She looks you straight in the eyes and says to you "The village of Ashkalon is close. At dawn, make your way there. The merchant will know the way." The woman turns to step behind a tent. She is ten feet away. You do not dive tackle the woman and yell at her as loudly as you can "ARE YOU A MELACHIM!?! WHY DON'T I POOP!?!? WHAT DO YOU KNOW! TELL ME!!!" Such ideas do not even cross your mind. You nod to her, she steps around the edge of a tent. You follow a moment later and confirm that she is indeed gone, she has disappeared. (Judah Players: You realized at one point that you had not defecated in... a few months. That was a couple of years ago. The fact you don't defecate is a mystery which has often been on your mind once you realized it.) When you ask your merchant guide about the village of Ashkalon he urges you to avoid it, apparently it is in the middle of a warzone, a war between the cities of !!!TADMOR!!! and Harmath. You disregard the warning and lead your group there the next day.  A typical village. There are no villages near Zepath, what with the monster filled countryside but the interior, aka the Donut is filled with them. Many villages lay between the cities of Ur, which are far closer to each other in the interior. Your people believe Baitel and the nearby cities to be morally righteous. And Zepath and Tanaach to be as well. But that many of the cities between here and there to be decadent, sinful and ruled by warmongering petty kings who only lust for conquest and their petty appetites. Though Enkidel has never actually said the word "Donut", Enkidel's player have, in their inner monologue, referred to this region as the Donut of Douchebags, aka the Donut, because at a certain distance from Baitel pretty much every king is a jackass and war is if not constant, then far too frequent. The village is a perfectly typical Donut village. You've passed many. Though this is the first one you've seen being looted and burned.  War is brutal. Men slaughter each other, their wives, sons, daughters and burn their farms. War, a vice that the men of Zepath look down on as foolish, why waste blood on it when there are monsters at the gates? It is a vice that the inner cities participate in routinely. With the Old Tales as your guide, this sort of slaughter would not merit a message from a Melachim. Not until those responsible started flaying their victims alive, boiling them alive or committing even greater atrocities. Mere slaughter and pillage is simply by and large a fact of life in the Old Tales. Exceptional slaughter on it's own may merit intervention, but it usually does not. You see the village shrine of El. It is on fire. That... that could do it. You tell your Balls "The village is under attack. El's shrine has been burned." Uriah yells out "We will kill them all!" joined by Ithma, Ira and Danal who yell their anger and a moment later by the rest of your Balls who scream their defiance, except for Gareb who remains pensive, not at all uncharacteristic for him. When he is not ripping limbs off of Zvivs he tends to be calm and composed. Avram looks to you and raises his voice to try to be heard over your Balls, he says "Noble Master! Please! This... this is not our fight, you have brought these riches all of this way, to risk it, worse, to risk the lives of your most pious pilgrims... we should just go on." Uriah looks to Avram and says "We are the Balls of Labaras. We do not shrivel in fear." Despite your greater stature, equipment and experience and the obvious optimism of your balls, you are vastly outnumbered. Fighting the monsters of the wild, you have always had the numbers greatly in your favor. The many hunts of your Balls have kept your casualties low, this is different.... men would probably die if you decided to attack.  You look to your Balls and say to them "Men! Yesterday, we were the Balls of Labaras. Today, we are the Fist of El! CHARGE!" Your men yell out "EELLL!" and then charge! Ahead of you the slaughter continues. But not for long. Around the time when your group closes the first of the two miles to the village you see a man about 7 feet tall yell "GIBBORIM! GIBBORIM! FORM RANKS!" The slaughter pauses as the attackers largely scramble away from their slaughter and looting, either joining those around the tower or running towards the main square. A number of the surviving villagers manage to make it away. You know what the term Gibborim means. It is a somewhat formal term for a group of Blooded men. Ahead of you the invaders form in hasty lines as best as they can. You see in the middle of their line, two men who are each a little over seven feet tall, their height stands out, they tower over the rest of the soldiers, who are short by Zepathan standards. Both of the men are wearing real armor. One of the suits of armor is of a fine and expensive quality, though nothing like Mighty Man make. The other is of average quality, but still far better than what any of the rest of them are wearing. The men of you look afraid. They are shorter than the men of Zepath and their armor is inferior... but they are about to fight. You are about two hundred paces away when one of the two taller armored men cries out "WHO ARE YOU?"\ You yell back while still running "WHO DARES TO BURN THE TEMPLE OF EL?" "ELLLLLL!" cry your Balls. You see two hundred and fifty men ahead of you and they are terrified as a dark skinned giant in glistening armor descends upon them to bring El's fury. Several men near the middle edge backwards, the man in expensive armor draws a sword, pulls back and slices one man next to him from shoulder to crotch in one blow and bellows out "ANY MAN WHO FLEES DIES AT MY HAND! I AM SAUL, PRINCE OF HARMATH, COME AND DIE!" You see your first casualties as one of your foes clutches his neck and falls to the ground screaming, an arrow just hit him. Paebel and Gaddiel, who ran behind your Balls have stopped running and began firing arrows. You see men in the rear ranks of your foe raise their shields over their heads, several more fall screaming. Snarls is beside Paebel and barking loudly! WE ARE THE PREDATORS! YOU ARE THE PREY! WE ARE THE PREDATORS! YOU ARE THE PREY! Diogines posted:The Association of Urian Mothers Against Violence keeps sending me angry letters. Something about corrupting their children. My attorney has advised me that I have to give in to their demands or else I will be sued into third world poverty. In lieu of pictures of extreme gore and violence upon the human form... Diogines posted:You duel with Saul. It would be more thematic if after great adversity and hardship you were nearly slain but then turned a blow at the last moment, spilling out his entrails. He clutches his hands at his intestines as they spill out and says "How... how could YOU have defeated me..." then fallen over stone dead. Uriah slams into Saul's back with his shield and as he does you thrust your spear ahead as hard as you can. You hear a sickening sound of sinew and flesh snapping as you catch him between a joint in his breastplate, twist your spear and pull it out. Saul falls to his knees, Gareb leans down and snaps his neck.  Diogines posted:You take a breath and look around. Diogines fucked around with this message at 03:05 on Jul 25, 2016 |
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Jul 24, 2016 23:49
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The blue fog around you is quickly losing its cohesion, the hints of man shaped figures within it swiftly becoming mere blue vapor, you hear pained, frantic, terrified screams, pleads for help... -El! ....lp.... ....m.....e....e.....eeeeee....e But they grow quieter by the moment. Every hair on your arms and the back of your neck is standing on edge. You shake your head and say to Gareb "I'm.. I'm fine. Gather the men, put out the fire on the shrine and save anyone we can, even the soldiers." The invaders are slain or defeated, the wounded tended to and many of your men work to put on the fire on El's shrine. The villagers praise you as heroes surely sent by El himself to save them in their hour of need!  Diogines posted:
Diogines posted:You tell the old man "I need a moment, I will be right back." The man looks a bit surprised, but probably not any more than he was to see a the tallest man he has ever seen, black skinned no less, save his people? You tell your men "I was given a message to deliver to the king of Harmath. Uriah, Danal, Jobe, I want you to ask you to come with me. The news I have for the king is... not news he will like." You send the rest of the group towards the next city on your route, intending to catch up with them. You also took with you thirty of the invaders who you took as captives, intending to give them to the Temple of El in Tadmor for judgment. You did not chain them, the men seemed terrified of you. Uriah said to them with a grin "Just try to run." In the days ahead, none of them try to run. Two days later you see the city of Tadmor in the distance. It has probably seen better days.  [Capybra Note: While interesting, many of the smaller details which occurred at Tadmor may not be of tremendous importance to Enkidel's life. However! It may be interesting to some of you! So. If you were a Judah-Game player and want to read this part in more detail, it starts here: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3550307&userid=129241&perpage=40&pagenumber=74#post430627034 ] You make your way to the siege lines and give your prisoners back to the Harmathans as a sign of good will. You manage to talk your way into a meeting with Zobah, King of Harmath and leader of the coalition of cities currently sieging Tadmor. Diogines posted:
You climb a hill to watch and see what will happen next. Several dozen men come to your camp that night. Some of them are your former captives. Others are simply their friends or relatives. It seems they heard about your warning and they DO believe it! They wanted to come with you. You said they could, though by the time the events at Ashkalon ended you simply sent them home. Diogines posted:You are not an expert on siege warfare but you have had a few lectures from Tudiya and accounts from the Old Tales to guide you. As far as you know, it comes down to numbers. One man on a wall is worth several beneath it... but it looks like the King of Harmath and his allies have brought plenty. Their army is vast, far larger than the population of Zepath itself. Zepath's population is measured in thousands. Zepath has no census but probably has somewhere between eight thousand and twenty thousand people living it, including women, children and slaves? Surely closer to ten then twenty. This army is measured in the tens of thousands, sixty thousand soldiers or more ring the city by your guess, not only the men of Harmath but three allied cities and Blooded men as well, possibly their own kings. You try to think happy thoughts and drive these terrors from your mind. You maintain your sanity but remain deeply troubled until you leave the area and even then, for days after when you think upon it. Diogines posted:You watch King Zobah. He is a few hundred paces from the eastern gate, surrounded with what look like his allied kings, their Mighty Men and a few hundred lesser Blooded men. Most of them have fine and expensive armor. If you had to guess, the three other men you expect may be kings are all about seven and a half feet tall. They would to crane their necks to look at Tudiya and would need to get a step ladder to look you in the eye. Even the most Blooded of four cities gathered together look so... short compared to their counterparts in Zepath and Tanaach. You decide not to commit suicide and simply watch. The west wall falls. Invaders swarm over it in great numbers, from what you can see from your vantage point, the defenders are trying to hold out in the streets nearby. Some of the buildings in that portion of the city are aflame. The fighting on the north and south walls are thick but they have not fallen. Torrents of blood are shed at the eastern wall, the wall closest to you and many thousands of men have died. You watched as the Blooded men of Tadmor ran out the gate as the siege tower fell upon their foes. They slew many more with their swords and spears in the initial confusion but the attackers fought back, those not struck by the tower and those who climbed from it. The blows of their weapons are the loudest of all the sounds upon this battle and you see small glimmers of light upon the sword, spears, shield and armors of combatants on both sides. You see blows with such ferocity that any weapon would shatter, yet they do not and realize that the Blooded men, some of them at least must be hardening their armaments somehow? Can you recall ever seeing Barkof, Tudiya or Aaron break a weapon they held, a subtle Blooded power you were not previously aware of? You see a figure atop the rubble pile from the siege tower continue to smash at it over and over, with each blow, puffs of blue smoke rise as if he was beating a rug clean. The figure is a bit taller than King Zobah, it is probably the King of Tadmor? He does not look like a Melachim. He continues to wield a 15 foot long piece of wood as a club which should already be splinters. When combatants try to climb the rubble pile to get close to him he smashes them away in a gesture not entirely like hitting a home run in baseball. No fire rains from the sky. No miraculous lights descend, no winged figures join the battle. You see men slaughter each other in great and sickening numbers and it is both awesome and terrible. Every lecture from Tudiya about the wastefulness of many of the interior cities rings in your ears. King Zobah was the first king to die, you think at least. With a smash at the top of the pile you saw his figure rise as if made of blue smoke, his every feature clear and perfect. He struggles to strike at the King of Tadmor and flies backwards, towards the northeast as if pulled there with great force. A time later in the battle you see two more forms rise from the pile, made of blue smoke, forms which match two of the other men you suspected to be King Zobah's allies. They too fly to the northeast. Men die in great and terrible numbers. You hear the anguished screams of the dying and perhaps many of the (dead?). A blue cloud forms over much of the city though it fades away as the battle ends. With his third rival monarch slain, the King of Tadmor joins the battle in earnest. It is this time that Gideon and his friends flee, knowing that they won't be punished for desertion they make for their village as quick as they can. You enter the city later to help fight fires. You are summoned to meet with Joram, the king of Tadmor who tells you of why this war was fought and asks for your help in an... unconventional manner. Diogines posted:The old king looks to Danal and asks "You are Tudiya's son?" Danal looks to you. You nod. Danal says "Yes, Tudiya is my father." The king looks to Uriah and says "And you?" Uriah answers "We are cousins." King Jehoram looks to you and says "And you are not, where did you come from?" Danal says no. Uriah's face becomes a large grin. Well no. Uriah has been grinning during most of this conversation, so it is more accurate to say his face remains a big grin. He says "Noble King. What you ask for is great, but I shall not shirk in my duty, I shall give it my all." Uriah has four very uh... active days.
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Jul 24, 2016 23:50
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You continue on your journey. You pass by a number of famous cities and play tourist as you do. The further you get out of the Donut, the more grand and fantastical are the places you see, such as Old Shinar. You know the story. Long ago, Shinar, one of the grandsons of Labaras gathered together his sons and his grandsons and devoted themselves to build a tower to reach the sky. The tower climbed higher and higher each year. Yet the base was not wide enough and the tower collapsed upon it's own weight. The debris looks like it spread out for miles. The base of the tower still stands, a city nestled within it, your Balls stopped there for the night before you moved on. A strong Presence came from the stones of that place. Shinar is said to have survived but most of his sons died when the tower fell. According to the Old Tale, Shinar and his remaining sons made for Mount Har, weeping all the way, even as they climbed the slopes of the Mountain. You visit the city of Efrat. You knew the story of the city. King Amos was said to be a grand builder and artist. The tale goes that one day that as King Amos sat upon his throne, his magistrate came to him and said "My king, our foes turn their plow shears into their spears, we must do the same." And King Amos answered his magistrate saying "We will not sharpen our spears, El shall protect us." The magistrate came to King Amos again in the years after and said to him "My king, our foes train their sons at war, we must train our sons for war." And King Amos answered his magistrate saying "We will not train our sons for war, El shall protect us." And when the Magistrate told King Amos that their foes marched upon the city, still King Amos answered him saying "El shall protect us" and so he said, even as his foes entered the city. When the magistrate said to King Amos "My king! The city is fallen!" King Amos did not show fear and said only "El will protect us." King Amos fled into the Temple of El with his sons as the city fell and the invaders would not follow, for no man dare to defile El's holy ground. Calamity and ruin will surely follow. What the lesson of the story is, if any, depends highly on who exactly is telling it. King Amos and his descendants remained on the temple grounds and centuries or millennia have passed since. The Temple of El in Efrat is said to be truly beautiful, a rival to almost any structure but the House of El in Baitel for while King Amos's foes warred, King Amos only glorified El's temple. In time, the invaders built a great wall around the temple grounds to prevent their foes from escaping. The temple grounds cover several acres, as best you know the land has been converted to farmland and none but El's clergy enter or leave through the single gate. The walls are about a hundred and fifty feet high, no one can see what truly lay within. You were denied entry but Jobe, being a priest was allowed in and described the place as having beauty unlike anything he had seen in all his life. A strong Presence came from within. Jobe also told you King Amos was alive... tending to a garden inside of the temple. The man must be hundreds, thousands of years old!? Jobe said he was a giant, even taller than you. About a month from your destination you see something in the distance, a line on the horizon running from earth to the sky. You rub your eyes for a moment but the speck remains. It is not a bug and there is nothing wrong with your eyes. The world... the world does not work like that. Nothing, no matter how large, even with your exceptional vision, nothing can be seen at this distance. In another cosmos it might be understood that since world is round, there is a limit on just how far away any object can be seen before it becomes obscured by the curvature of the planet. Like This. Well, that has nothing to do with what you see now, besides, everyone knows the world is flat. About a month from your destination you see something in the distance, a line on the horizon running from earth to the sky. You rub your eyes for a moment but the speck remains. It is not a bug and there is nothing wrong with your eyes. The world... the world does not work like that. Nothing, no matter how large, even with your exceptional vision, nothing can be seen at this distance. In another cosmos it might be understood that since world is round, there is a limit on just how far away any object can be seen before it becomes obscured by the curvature of the planet. Like This. Well, that has nothing to do with what you see now, besides, everyone knows the world is flat.  A towering edifice, it stretches high, high into the heavens, so high that you cannot see the top, even those portions not obscured by clouds are too far to see. You know what lay atop this massive stone, the gates to Paradise and beyond, Paradise, El and the Melachim. You cannot see it from this distance, but you know what lay at the base of the mountain, Baitel, the First City. When Labaras climbed Mount Har he met with El and where he descended he erected an altar around which he built the House of El. There he and his sons created civilization and in those ancient days Zepa left, to claim a land to claim as his own, your adoptive ancestor. You walk on. Each step towards Baitel, you can feel the Presence ahead pushing upon you more strongly. It is no longer simply northeast, it is northeast and up. You don't think this feeling which has pressed upon you for years now is coming from Baitel. It must be coming from atop Mount Har. A few of your Pilgrims gave you the smallest flicker of a Presence but no longer. The Presence from your Balls seems... gradually muted by whatever lay ahead of you. You walk on. A month from the city itself you pass a guard tower and come to the edge of Baitel's domain. Each guard tower demands you unpack your entire caravan and let them search it. This took rather a lot of time and slowed you down. You never find out why it was being done, did they sense something off about your group? Eventually a priest at a village near the road tied a strip of cloth around the banner at the front of your group which apparently indicated that they did not need to search you. Diogines posted:You journey on. Diogines posted:You brought from Zepath and Tanaach old men who wished to die in Baitel. Fifteen came with you, two perished and so you carried their bones. Diogines posted:You and your Balls all put on your best, most formal clothing, trim your nails, wash behind your ears and then depart. With you, you take the jar of monster foreskins as an offering for the Line of Zepa, but no other offerings. Your most formal clothing consists of an expensive white linen robe with blue threads sewn into the edges, tucked into the leather skirt Azzazel gave you. Most of your Balls dress similarly, your common Balls wearing less expensive robes and your Mighty Sons wearing expensive robes along with a leather skirt as you do, a garment generally reserved for the social elite and heavily Blooded. Diogines posted:You place your sandals in a box held by one of the servants, as well as your knives and the rings in your beard. Of the ring Ishamal gave you? You almost consider parting with it as well but decide to keep it where it is, inside of your garments. The old priest nods approvingly "Good" Aharon says to you "very good." Aharon says to you in a kindly tone "Do you know why you are here?" You tell Aharon that "I am here to see Danal married and for him to visit the House of El. To offer sacrifice to El at the base of the Mountain. Beyond that, I don't know." Aharon says "You are, yes, but there is more than that. Tudiya asks for our blessing in the choice of his successor. He sent us several candidates he might choose." You were already aware of the fact that while kings chose their successors, or in some cities the successor is chosen by birth order, the House of El meets each first and can decline to give their blessing, which almost certainly means that a man won't become king. You are not aware of El's temple explicitly proclaiming a man can't be a king, but what man would pick an individual who is found wanting by the Priesthood? "That is why you are here" Aharon says "or at least that is why Tudiya sent you." Tudiya would alongside Danal consider Gareb and you as his successor? You? Your... complexion is rather different. That would be a... highly unconventional move. Aharon asks you "I suppose I should ask you then. Enkidel, do you want to be king of Zepath?" You tell him "I'm not sure... How do I know if I would make a good king?" "A good king? That is quite a question, what makes a good king?" the old priest asks. "There is a lot of debate over that, ask ten men, get twenty answers. A king should be courageous in the defense of his people wise, patient, kind, generous, bold and learned, yes, yes, yes, all of that, but what do those words mean? Many with the best of intentions, with superior intellects and skill control the lives of their people closely. Yet men are not birds to be caged and fed and cared for while locked away. Others, with their great power, seek conquest for their own glory and wealth for their own desires and perhaps such conquerors are men of renown, but are they truly good kings? Some turn their back upon their people, finding fascination with studies and arts unique only to men of such power and intellect. It might be said that a king... a good king mind you, is a servant to his family, his people. Knowing that what they desire and what they need are two different things entirely and managing that balance carefully. By that standard, the kings of Zepath have been exceptional." "I don't know" you say. "It is a lot to consider. If that is El's plan, or perhaps Gareb? He is patient, calm and has excellent judgement." Aharon nods approvingly and says "It is a weighty matter and not a task taken lightly. Surely you know that with the blessing of Labaras's lineage, comes great longevity. How many years might lay before you, Child of El? I imagine when you leave our city you will return home, what will you do then, with the years before you?" You say to Aharon "There are many things I wish to do. I wish to travel and see the world, yet fight the terrors near Zepath with my men. I wish to study and learn the history of Ur from temple records, yet help my brother fulfil his vow to free those enslaved by demons. I wish to go to Seir I think and learn the bow from them. Many things." The old priest nods approvingly, a small, calm smile on his face, he says to you in a patient tone "Quite a list but you have no rush, many days lay ahead of you Enkidel, each with promise waiting to be fulfilled. I do not imagine Tudiya will pick his replacement for a century at the least, probably two, the world lay spread open before you and waiting." Aharon says to you "Many have doubts Enkidel, of themselves, of others, of El and this house. Some do not and perhaps they should, for doubt is a road to wisdom and certainty a wall to bar the way to learning. You have some doubts Child, but do not have fear, no one here is going to harm you and no matter what that woman-" ...Bareen... "-said, we won't imprison you either. When you wish to go home, we shall wish you well and send you off. If you wish the truth, this is the truth." The old man seems calm, warm, friendly and utterly sincere as he tells you "El, Eternal, existed when no things were. He made all that is and through this House, we do His will. Men cannot forced to be kind to each other Enkidel, to try to force them to be so would be monstrous and even if it could be done, they would cease to be men, more monstrous still. From this House we teach men to be kind to each other and when they do more than can be borne, rarely and with great trepidation, we stop them from doing more harm. We guide men, teach them and protect them from the horrors that lay beyond." The old man says to you "That is the truth of it. That is all. There is more to learn, there is always more to learn, but that is the heart of it. I only wish the truth from you Child, do you believe me?" You have a small bit of doubt in your tone but after a moment you say, "Yes." Aharon nods and says "Good." You ask him "Is it important to you that I believe you? Why?" The kindly old priest says to you "Because I wish to invite you to join this House" he says "There is place for you here Enkidel, if you wish to take it. Why do we offer? Because you have a thirst for knowledge beyond the common tales and we have answers we can give you. Because you have served El's will well and through this house, might serve it more. And truthfully, because you are a risk to yourself and to others Enkidel. Ishamal helps you to manage it, but we have resources he does not and can teach you to control yourself far more swiftly than you might learn in any other way, in any other place, from yourself or any others, a matter of decades, not centuries. You have an adventurous streak, we would bring your wife and children to live with you here, there would be a time for study but the years of it would pass swiftly as you learn. When your studies complete, we would send you upon tasks to better El's will and when you have perfected such tasks, bless you to do this House's will as you deem best. If after your trip to this place, you have decided that a life of adventure is not for you, a place of study, contemplation and wisdom waits for you as well, though I do not imagine you would wish to claim it." "You do not need to decide now" he says "I am sure there is much you wish to do in the city, though I would ask your response before you leave." It is an offer you would ultimately decline to accept. You tell him that "I need more time to think about it, I want to speak to those in Zepath first, I will send my response back here if I say no, or come if I say yes." Aharon nods and says "Very well. The offer remains open, at least for a few years." You are lead back to the sanctuary where your Balls are making their sacrifices still. A few hours later both Danal and Gareb return. "How did it go?" you asked. Gareb says "They grilled me for hours, they had many questions." "Me too" says Danal. They did not question you much, what if anything might that mean? The old priest Aharon comes a short time later and asks for the container you carried here.  The priest places a hand on one edge and you see tiny flicker of white light spread from his fingers and down the intricate silver work of the container. You watch as the intricate vines part and the container opens. Aharon removes a small tablet from a fold in his robe and places it into the container, then hands it back to you saying "Please deliver this to Tudiya, King of Zepath. Please do not try to open it, or let others try to do so." The contents of the container probably has the feelings of The House of El upon potential candidates for Zepath's future king. You would later discover that the House of El approved your Mighty Son Gareb, your brother Danal and you as potential choices of the King of Zepath, should Tudiya select you. Aaron went on a pilgrimage some years later, you do not know for sure but suspect he was likely approved as well when he went. The minotaur you dragged across half the world and the bones and offerings you brought are sold.  A tremendous sum is raised. You and your men are rich. You and your men play tourist for a time in Baitel, seeing the many sights and visiting places of ancient stories. Gareb spends some time at the Academy, an ancient place of learning which only accepts the Blooded to study. Uriah and some of your other balls fight in the Colosseum. They bet on themselves. They lose. You decide you want to get a REALLY good bow! Diogines fucked around with this message at 03:28 on Jul 25, 2016 |
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Jul 24, 2016 23:51
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Diogines posted:Many men from all corners of Ur wind up in Baitel. Despite a diligent search, you do not find a Seir bow for sale. You find a few merchants from Seir in the city but they hardly have Seir bows with them, such are immensely valuable. Diogines posted:You are not carrying all of your wealth with you and coins do not exist, but there are roughly standardized weights of metal which are commonly used in trade. You take a small bit of gold from a pouch on your belt and hand it to the slave, saying to him "I will take the shot." The bow was nearly impossible to string and nearly impossible to pull back. You play fetch with Snarls, he fetches the arrow every time you shoot it, he has fun. It takes you nearly an entire day but you eventually get lucky and nail the target, five hundred paces away. Hadad, an enormous man lets you into his house, you find him in his workshop working on some bows. He tells you "I saw. You got lucky. Reclaim your silver from my slave if you like and go away. You are not a real archer." You say "I want to be." Hadad of Dinhabah says "Which is of no interest to me. Go away." He touches the bone he is carving and you see a small twinkle of wight light from his finger. He holds the bone up and blows on it, if that did anything to it, it is not apparent. He places the bone down and turns on his chair to you and says "We let cannibals in here now? That's new. But no matter, leave me be." He motions you to leave then says "Wait a moment. That bow. Where did you get that?" When you reveal that it was given to you by Chait, Hadad is incredulous. Haddad apparently thought that Chait was dead. Your archery mentor, apparently is a bow maker of some renown from Seir the City of Archers. A man Haddad thought long, long dead. Just how old is Chait anyway?  Hadad agreed to sell you a bow for 300 pounds of silver. A truly ridiculous sum, nearly all the silver you had. A vast fortune. Yet you seek to buy a weapon made by an ancient master of their trade, something you very probably could only buy in Baitel or Seir. You told him "It's a deal." Haddad replied "You don't actually have 300 pounds of silver." That was a statement, not a question, to which you said... Yes I do. "Well. Good. Here is the bow, fetch the five arrows from my slave and have the silver brought here by tomorrow night." With that you took the bow and several strings as well as a few strange arrows. You decided not to rob the ancient Blooded man, probably a good move. You had the silver delivered to him. The next morning there was a knock on the door to your room at the House of El. The House of El decided to host you while you were in town, they were quite pleased about what you did at Ashkalon. The man knocking at your door? Hadad's slave. The slave says to you "My master has just learned of the minotaur you brought here and then said, and I quote, "You mean that lunatic was the one who brought the minotaur? Tell him to come haul the silver away. It is stinking up the place. He can keep the bow if he likes but remind him I will climb down the mountain if I ever learn he sold it or gave it away. If he thinks no one comes down, I am sure El will be an exception should I need to come to kick his rear end." Diogines posted:You stay in Baitel for a time, meeting many exciting people, going to many interesting places and having many interesting experiences! Diogines posted:There are many old men of great Bloodedness in Baitel. Many, most, are old men who have ended their adventures, who have left their wanderings and battles behind and now have retired as it were, to wait to climb the Mountain. Some, a smaller number, are men who have ended up on the wrong side of a war, made too many enemies and so left their homes for the relative calm of Baitel. Yet others left to make way for a younger generation to govern their cities without interference. During your nights, you spoke to many of these men and learned of their battles, asking them what it was truly like to fight many of the monsters of Ur. If these men are to be believed, the interior of Ur is not nearly so safe as most men think, with the dangers largely hiding underground. But most of the men are old, are they telling you of Ur as it truly is now, or how it was in centuries past? Danal ultimately picks Bilhah, daughter of Reuben, a Blooded family with an ancient lineage in Baitel to be his bride. Reuben stands at about nine feet tall and has six fingers on each hand. He has many daughters and is convinced that the obviously pious men of Zepath will take good care of one of them. She is not the first born daughter among her siblings, but she is Danal's choice and does not seem terrified at the prospect of moving to Zepath, for your stories of his exploits have convinced her that Danal will keep her safe.  The wedding is arranged quickly and the night after spent happily celebrating with your countrymen and your new relatives. Several of your unmarried Balls found wives as well and they arrange for all of the weddings to occur at once. Reuben gives Danal two donkeys packed with valuable goods as Bilhah's dowry, to help them establish their new home. Diogines posted:
Your trip home is mostly uneventful...
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Jul 24, 2016 23:51
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This is a recap of half of the game. It was written in a way to remind people of some of the most interesting events. Events and occurrences which were important were not necessarily selected, only the interesting ones. Which is to say, just because I picked something does not mean it actually mattered, only that it was interesting and probably stuck out? Some, many events very probably don't matter in the ultimate life of Enkidel. Some very probably very important things were omitted. This was intended to help jog the memories of Goons who were with us from the start and allow those who only played Judah to get up to speed. You don't always realize what was important until down the road. This is about half the game. I am taking a break for a few hours and may start up again later. While working on this, I've also been working on the update. We may update tonight but at this point I am honestly not sure. It could be a few more days if not tonight. There are many mysteries in Enkidel's life. Please note that in this recap when I said you "knew" something or "believed" something, this may not always be true. It was based on Goon beliefs at the time. Things you saw and heard all happened. How you interpreted them may not be correct. Diogines fucked around with this message at 23:59 on Jul 24, 2016 |
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Jul 24, 2016 23:56
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SniperWoreConverse posted:i read the words I would like to comment briefly on 2! In Goon defense, why exactly Enkidel was different and needed training with Ishamal was never explained. Also, asking him to abandon his home and friends was certainly asking a lot. It did not seem as urgent a problem at the time. Diogines fucked around with this message at 14:45 on Jul 25, 2016 |
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Jul 25, 2016 14:36
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Dr Subterfuge posted:Ah. Maybe not abandon wife and kid? He said you could bring your family. On the other hand, you may have been giving up your freedom for decades. Who knows how long the training would take and how long until you showed enough competency to become a "free agent"? It was a big commitment. This was noy in the recap but joining the clergy is for life. There are no ex-clergy. Also a large portion of Enkidel's mind did not trust organized religion at the time. The road not traveled. What if you took Azzazel 's invitation to go party with him, what if you went with Bareen? What if you ran away when Tudiya came to Athar instead of going into grabbing range? This may have been one of those. Diogines fucked around with this message at 15:30 on Jul 25, 2016 |
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Jul 25, 2016 15:27
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Re-reading the Ahaaron chat again. Two choice quotes:Diogines posted:"The sons of the highly born, your..." he gives a small, friendly laugh to use the slang your own Balls have come to use "...Mighty Sons will have to return to Zepath. Not that they could not remain I suppose, they are free to remain in Baitel if they wish, but this invitation is not extended to them. They have obligations in Zepath. In time, their fathers, uncles and cousins will grow old and they must be there, to protect Zepath from the dangers beyond. As to the rest? If they wish to remain here, they may, but your training will take several decades and while a number of them will benefit from the longevity of Labaras's blood, they will be older men by the time your training is finished. I don't imagine they wish to leave their families." Diogines posted:"Your children will not inherit your property, nor will rule any land in your own name. For a time, your freedom will be restricted as you learn, but gradually restored and in time when you perform your tasks well, you will be sent to do El's will in Ur, as you judge to be wisest." You would essentially give up your old life for good and spend decades studying. Then more years working and be "free" to direct your efforts on the House of El only after you proved competency. Beat case scenario from that description? 50 years or more until you could be "free"?
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Jul 25, 2016 15:57
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Arkanomen posted:An Awesome Post.
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Jul 25, 2016 20:07
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SerSpook posted:Guys I know kid teleport will probably win You want to make an iron man suit?
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Jul 25, 2016 21:36
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SerSpook posted:Let's create a series of tablets/scrolls/books called the Complete Guide to Everything. Full of knowledge we have while in this mode, at least mundane knowledge on city management, smithing, architecture, metallurgy, physics, chemistry, biology, etc [Checks with the Capybaras] "Wait, did he..." "..." "Fred, wait, what if..." "....er..." "...um..." "... technically..." "...are you kidding me? There is no way that he cou-...."  That idea will be formally processed and if viable added to the options of the next update. Diogines fucked around with this message at 22:16 on Jul 25, 2016 |
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Jul 25, 2016 22:14
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Please do not post for five minutes. Thank you.
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Jul 26, 2016 02:25
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Your trip home was mostly uneventful and though probably not important, there is perhaps one interesting incident on your return. With the war over, you had no reason to take a detour and so you pass by the city of Harmath, the instigator of the war against the city of Tadmor. There you discover that the magistrate of the city is none other than Prince Zahari, the son of King Zobah. When you delivered your warning to King Zobah, that he was to abandon his siege at once, one of his sons encouraged him to do so. That same son survived the battle and was taken prisoner, you told King Jehoram of his words and urged he be merciful. Prince Zahari is a prince no more, now he is a mere magistrate, ruling the city of Harmath in the name of those who conquered him, now wed to one of the daughters of King Jehoram. When you met the man he seemed terrified and said to you "We will give El no cause for offense, I swear it, the serfs are free and will never come again." You assured the man that you were simply passing through and not here to pass on divine judgment. At least not today. Uriah grinned when he told you he had a brief chance to see the Magistrate's son, who had six fingers on each hand... and hair and eyes the same color of Uriah. Year Twenty Three Your trip has been a long one. Eight months to Baitel and then a month to the city proper, five months within the city itself and eight months to return home. You have been gone for almost two years. You enjoy a heartfelt moment when you are reunited with your beloved wife. Snarls and your son Asahel have a joyful reunion. There is a brief scuffle over who will raise Ruth. Danal wants to reclaim her, now that he is married and has a mother for her but Naomi talks him out of it. Ruth cried when you came home and hugged you, her mother taught her all about you, her father, a great hero. You confront your archery teacher Chait. Having discovered in Baitel that he is apparently... very very old, what is this seemingly unremarkable man of not particularly uncommon stature doing, literally on the opposite end of the world from his homeland in the far north? Chait tells you that "You get to a certain age Enkidel and you've seen all you wish to see, you have gone wherever you wish to go, you've fought all you wished to fight. Those who know you and know your tales get the idea that you know what is best for them, they want you to be in charge and... they just won't take no for an answer. So I left. Zepath is about as far south as you can get. A nice place to be left alone... and few to notice you, unless a young man happens to go to Baitel and meet an old man and show him a certain bow..." Chait gives a small laugh at that "I trust you aren't going to tell?" You kept his secret. You, he and some of his friends also went on a tavern crawl and got very, very drunk to welcome you back in style. In Baitel you searched for evidence of your mother and found no sign she was ever a servant at the House of El. When you try to ask her of this on your return, gently, she refuses to give you answers, saying only "I can't ". You would try a few more times over the years but ever without success. Jalitha, your mother would never speak more of her life before she came to Athar. Year Twenty Eight  Five years pass since your return to Zepath from Baitel. Not long after your band returned, Aaron went on a pilgrimage to Baitel, alone. He returned eight months later, having spent two months in the city, studying at the Academy. Naomi is 32. Your son Asahel is eight and a half years old. Ruth is about 10 or so, you do not know her true age. Danal is 24. Asahel has been raised on a steady diet of the Old Tales and other stories of great deeds and monster slaying. Such as the tales of his own father. He has a great love of such stories and aspires to be a great hero someday himself, just like his father. He still plays with the toys you brought back from Baitel for him, carved figures of men and terrible beasts. His treasured favorite is of the wild man Enkidu. You taught him to love the wilderness and a great deal of surviving in the wilds. As once you taught Danal how a man might find all he needs to live beyond the walls of your city, so you have begun to teach it to Asahel. Asahel has shown both an interest and an aptitude in such matters. Ruth is a dutiful and obedient daughter, mindful and loving to her father and mother. She is a girl, her fate is to one day be married and sent off to another man's home, even if such a day is still distant. Though she has been showing an increasing interest in your archery practice as of late... Asahel and Ruth got puppies. The Pack grows.  Naomi remains a loving, supportive and devoted wife, still enthralled by the tales of your adventures and telling you flatly no when you have an idea which is too... unconventional, such as the time you tried to bring a pet Roc home. She continues to manage the household finances. Your home may not be filled with splendor but you are a wealthy man, living the upper middle class Urian dream. You own some flocks and herds of livestock you earned with your own efforts. Life is good. Life is also busy. Training with your new bow became your passion. It is larger than your old bow, about five feet tall and made of strange materials. It is a bow is fit for a master and you decided you wished to be one. You trained with Chait, drilling for hours if not every day, then most days. He had you perform many exercises not directly related to archery as well, such as throwing javelins or small stones. When you asked why, Chait told you that "It will help you hone your eye." So you drilled. Chait's guidance was subtle, urging you to try different techniques until you found one which suited you, rarely if ever did he tell you the right way to use the bow, suggesting rather to try new ones. By the time five years passed, you were not firing multiple arrows from your bow at once into a bulls-eye with your eyes closed, but you have gained a substantial amount of skill in using your new bow.  You are very probably the second best archer in Zepath, after Chait. And well, probably third, since Ishamal seems to be a master of everything? You have never seen him use a bow, but it is a well known fact that he is a master of every profession, indeed, men of every trade seek his guidance. Chait recently told you that "You have much to learn still, but you are making great progress. Men may mock the bow till the end of your days, but it is an elegant weapon, it is a precise weapon. Some might go so far as to say El favors it, for while a spear or sword or club in its brutality may cause havoc, an arrow strikes but one target and is not as apt to destroy." You can reliably hit a stationary man-sized target at 400 paces with your new bow, with your new arrows. This is a feat of archery you would have once thought to be essentially impossible. With normal arrows, you can reach about 300 paces, which is likewise, vastly beyond anything you could have ever imagined to hit with your old bow. Your ability to hit moving targets varies. Your mastery of the bow would only increase further with time, practice and age. You continue to train with Ishamal as well. By the time you returned from Baitel you have become an expert dirt-strainer, becoming a master at separating dirt from a bowl of muddy water with your power. Ishamal has you perform other tasks as well, having you practice each in turn for months until you practice it. After mastering the straining of dirt from water, he has you swirl a small pebble around a bowl of water. That took a number of months to master, you kept breaking the bowl. After you became a master of pebble-in-water-swirling Ishamal had you practice closing your eyes, sticking cotton in your ears and navigating by... a different sense. You thought Ishamal crazy when he said you could do it, but he insisted it can be done. He told you to feel for El's temple, for Mount Har, for strong, fixed points and see the world as if through their shadow. You now have a greater ability to detect Presences from people, places and things as well as to distinguish between them. You feel your mind expanding.  With your constant focus upon archery and your increased attention to Ishamal's lessons, you have very recently learned how to invoke what you have come to nickname as... arrow time. What exactly you are doing is unclear, but its effect is apparent. Time appears to slow, allowing you line up shots with your bow which might otherwise be if not impossible, than grossly improbable. Ishamal is not aware, or at least you have not told him anyway. Each time you invoked this, and you only discovered how a few months past, [???] decreased by a significant amount, leaving you notably weaker for some time after. With your increased understanding of yourself and of [???] you guesstimate a single use of "arrow-time" may displace weeks or possibly even as much as a few months worth of [???] gain. The more difficult the shot, the longer you must invoke this ability and the duration of the ability seems directly tied to the rate at which [???] declines, which is rapid. When you spoke of it with Ishamal he demanded you cease, warning of dire but catastrophic consequences if you did not cease. Part of your agreement for Ishamal to teach you was for you to not experiment with unknown abilities. A pledge you often kept. And also broke many times in this period of your life, doing so you thought, in secret. A new city has been founded, built from slaves and plunder. This new city is small, but growing. The city of Barkath. It lay south of Megido, along the road to Acco. It is said that Barkof married one of the daughters of the king of Megido, a rival of the king of Dor and thus sealed an alliance with him. Many cities grow to hate Zepath in the years ahead because of Barkof's banditry. You made a few token hunts with Puabi for Indor. Enough to keep her happy and to remove any risk she might try to blackmail you with your past dealings but you gained little in return but some silver. Indor told you more than once that "There are doors we can open Child, if only you will open them." You refused to help Puabi carve flesh from monsters while still alive, as you had refused before. You and your men continued hunting monsters, seeking ever greater challenges. The greatest beast you slew in this time?  A beast of legend in the mountains. The Manticore. Though victorious your Mighty Son IRA perished in the battle , your first Mighty Son to die for you. You replaced him with Nahari, a man of 30 years and from a well Blooded family. You watched as a blue vapor came from his mouth, dense and almost solid, it hovered in the air for a moment and Ira reached for you, saying "You are aflame Enkidel! You burn like the sun itself!" Ira seemed to struggle to reach for you, as if pulled by a great force to the northeast... yet his struggle only lasted a few moments and then he was gone, soaring off into the distance with great speed. Ishamal remained tight lipped when you spoke to him of the "blue specters". Though he was a patient teacher his refusal to answer many of your questions would at times drive you to great frustration and at other times you briefly thought he may be plotting against you somehow. When you asked Indor of the blue specters she refused to speak of them at all or even acknowledge if she knew what you spoke of, the closest thing you ever dragged out of that old witch to "Speak not to me of the Dead" and on another occasion "Meddle not with the dead, it is seen by they who watch" though the latter was not in response to an inquiry about the blue specters only you seemed to are.  The knowledge represented in Asahel's... gift. It seemed to become full for the first time about a year ago. The "color" seemed to gradually darken after . Your ridiculous appetite seemed to fade as the "color" darkened. Some days you only ate as much as two men. Your strength did not seem to increase any further but you seemed to have the strength of thirty common men, a drastic amount of strength. The "color" lightened dramatically as [???] decreased. Your strength, though still tiny compared to the likes of Zepath's Mighty Men has become truly superhuman. If you considered [???]? You benefit from physical strength equivalent to that of twenty five men of a fit build. You have a significant benefit to your overall endurance. You have a significant benefit to your reflexes. Any more than a very significant expenditure of [???] will drive you from reason. You now stand at the truly staggering height of nine feet, three inches. You saw some taller men in Baitel but few others. Your height is truly immense and you tower over lesser men. You and Naomi have had to get uh, creative in the bedroom for quite some time but you manage. You never gained a clear answer to your toughness did not seem to scale anywhere nearly as swiftly as your strength did. You are in the bizarre position of having the physical strength to punch your own arm clear off your body if you're really tried. Tudiya came to you during this period saying to you that "You have gone to Baitel, you have fought for your home and for your people. I think you are ready my son. Are you ready to take your place, as one of Zepath's Mighty Men?" You told Tudiya you could not. Perhaps one day, but not yet. Tudiya gave a small laugh at that and said "Oh well, I shall be patient then. Time is something you should never worry for Enkidel, the days of our line are long. The blessing of the line of Labaras, of the sons of Zepa, that in our long days, we may do much for our people." To join the Mighty Men would limit your freedom, you didn't want that obligation. To be a Mighty Man is to be even more at the beck and call of your king than you already are as his son. You spent a bit of time studying metallurgy with Adina but you let it lapse during this time period. At this moment, you are camping about a day beyond the city with your nine year old son, Asahel, as well as Snarls Barkley and your son's new puppy. You have made camp on top of a small hill. Today, you are teaching Asahel about the sorts of wild growing plants which are safe to eat and which are poisonous. At this moment you are telling Asahel that even though they look tasty, most of the berries out here will kill a man dead. In the way that any suitably adventurous young boy should be, Asahel is wildly entertained by your description of just how they will cause someone to die horribly. With you are supplies suitable for a camping trip to last , as well as you arms and armor. You are not wearing them, you are only a day from the city, the odds of encountering monsters out here are pretty much nill, still, you brought them just in case.  Overhead, the sun is warm and the wind gentle and cool, the weather is excellent.  It comes in a brief flash and then it is gone. Something dreadful. Something bad. It... it has already happened... or... it will happen. Somewhere to the northeast- is it happening now? To the east. Northeast? Near Ibleam? Ibleam and Zepath have had strained relations for generations, with occasional banditry and cattle raids by the men of Ibleam. Ibleam was founded long ago by settlers from Zepath but according to the Zepathan view, the people of Ibleam are borderline heretics and their king a wicked convention defying tyrant who levies taxes on his people! Based on what you learned in later years, Ahaz, King of Ibleam was not truly a tyrant and the Zepathan view was... overzealous. You tell Tudiya of your vision and then make an offering to El. You dream of crows and arrows, of the moon sailing across the sky. Strange omens indeed. You interpret them to mean you should go to a hill in the wilderness east-south-east of Ibleam. You gather up the Balls of Labaras and swiftly depart with all haste, making it to the hill just in the timing indicated by your vision. You left behind your pack animals and slaves, you would not make it there in time with them. Snarls smelled them before you saw them. Mancows. Many, many, many lots. Close. Sundown.  ANOTHER army of minotaurs!? One comes every generation or two when their numbers grow great. Now... a third? Three armies in less than fifteen years? This is something different. From all you know, nothing like this has ever happened before. You and your men continue towards the minotaurs and hear a chant coming from the east, a chant from tongues which are not human and very clearly not minotaur. "Fare! Fare! Fare Ha Melakaht Mokt! Fare Gadol! Fare Zabol! Fare Ha Melakaht Mokt! Fare! Fare! Fare Ha..." The chanting is accompanied by the faint and distant drumming of evenly placed footsteps. Marching. You hear the occasional roar of a minotaur as well. You break off from your group to spy upon the invaders at night as they make camp. A great horde of minotaurs but... other creatures as well. Demons shaped as giant centipedes.   Worst of all (monster?)(demon?)(creature?) you would come to know as the Bnaimokt. For a time you called them Norcs as they bared a superficial resemblance to orcs, a race of monsters from a distant swampland, though creatures you had never seen.  Each are about eight feet tall and less bulky than a minotaur but broader at the shoulder than a man. Some wear the strange armor made of silver, armor so odd looking you once thought them insects. The minotaurs are spread out across the valley floor in a chaotic mess, but these other creatures seem to have erected tents in neat and orderly rows which clearly speak of organization of some sort. Tough to tell how many there are of them, perhaps a thousand? You see one of them rip the heart of a minotaur from their chest with its bare hand as it is chained to an altar displaying obviously tremendous strength.  You sense several of the Bnaimokt significant Presences. You catch a glimpse of their leader, a creature thirteen or fourteen feet tall.  You have difficulty sleeping that night, seeing images of the horrors you have heard of in the Old Tales. Savage and bestial minotaurs do not come. An army of demons has marched out of the mountains as in ancient days. You send Nahari to warn the men of Ibleam and Gareb to warn Tudiya in Zepath. Eventually the invaders reached Ibleam, for Zepath is not the target this time. Was Zepath deemed too tough a nut to crack? Ibleam's king is well Blooded among the kings of Ur but not so greatly as the men of Zepath. Perhaps hoping to flank the invaders during the battle, you and the rest of your Balls hide on a hill near the city and wait for the fighting to begin. You hide east of the city with your Balls and dig in. The hill is steep on all sides but the northern slope. It is easy for you and your Balls to conceal yourselves on that side of the hill. Your Balls rest, eat some olives and await the battle.  You peak over the top of the hill periodically and spy upon Ibleam. You have a good view of the city from here. The city is packed full of people, it seems that the people, it seems that the warning you sent, if not believed to be true, was at least responded to seriously. The invaders have yet to show and so, you wait. Your Balls get some much needed rest that night. The day ahead, you spy upon Ibleam as best you can. Men continue to move through the city streets, drilling, preparing for the battle. You see the king of Ibleam more than once. You also see your Mighty Son Nahari, drilling with others. He does not appear to be a prisoner. The sun creeps across the sky. Your Balls joke with each other about who shall slay more of the beasts in the battle ahead. Their expectations are high, they expect a glorious victory over the forces of Fare, for with you, their great leader, how can they fail? The sun sets. You hear the horns and the drums and the marching of the invaders, they are almost here. "Fare! Fare! Fare Ha Melakaht Mokt! Fare Gadol! Fare Zabol! Fare Ha Melakaht Mokt! Fare! Fare! Fare Ha..." Several hours after dusk... they invaders arrive. You watch as they march towards the city. Even at night, you see a tent raised still, nine Norcs carry tent poles, near the very front of their line. You do not see their leader, he must still be within. The invaders carry not a single torch, not so much as a flicker of flame. Your vision in the dark is excellent, this does not present much in the way of difficulty for you and the men of Ibleam seem to be able to tell where they are clear enough, if nothing else, from all of the noise they make. The moon is gone this night, only the stars light the field. Each Norc wears armor made of silver. Their weapons vary. Many favor spears and shields, in fact the first several ranks have nothing but them, though the shields are larger than the sort used by men, large and square. Ranks. They form neat and orderly ranks, just as neat as those of the men of Ibleam across the way... after the first few ranks, the weapons vary, large two handed swords seem popular. Every Norc you see has three javelins on their back as well. The weapons of the minotaurs are brutish and simplistic, mostly made of wood and stone, clubs and axes. Here and there you see a silver two handed sword, probably from the Norcs, but only a handful. The men stationed at the western most bridge put it aflame, the army of Ibleam stands between the two remaining bridges, ready to meet their foe at either or both. You see the King of Ibleam, King Ahaz at the front of his people, his Mighty Men beside him. You see your Mighty Son Nahari in the line, in the first row, though not near the Mighty Men of Ibleam, he seems to be among the other men of Bloodedness of the city. The men of Ibleam are in neat and fairly orderly rows. Like the men of Zepath, they must surely drill at war every summer, so they form lines as they have trained to do. Priests walk up and down the line of the men of Ibleam, swinging golden censers and saying prayers.  You see King Ahaz walk beyond the front of his men. He has a strong resemblance to Tudiya, same coloration, same eyes, hair, beard. He could be a brother or a distant cousin... indeed, he is a distant cousin. The man has ridiculous muscles atop muscles and stands tall atop all the other men of his city, yet his build is not so ridiculous as Tudiya's. He is built more like his cousin, King Rimush of Tanaach. King Ahaz raises his spear in one hand and shouts out "I am AHAZ! KING OF IBLEAM! TRUE HEIR OF ZEPA! Send forth your champion! Come and face the Spear of El!" You hear a word of some sort shouted by one of the Norcs in reply. You see several flames sparked among the Norc lines. When you spied upon their camp you saw what looked like incomplete scaffolding. You could not make sense of it, what use would wheeled, unfinished scaffolding be? They could not use them to climb the walls, what possible use could they be now?  King Ahaz yells again "FOUL SPAWN OF FARE! You have come ALL of this way, to cower across the river! You have come this far, come, come a little farther! Send your champion forth!" You feel a command behind this word, it has weight, depth, it is a command which should, MUST be obeyed! You hear a word shouted loudly by another Norc. The scaffolding... oh no...  That is not unfinished scaffolding at all. It is some kind of... bow? It is not a bow, more like some kind of giant sling? All of the ropes swing on each of them in some manner and you watch as a large logs, covered in oil and now aflame, hurdle through the air towards the position of the men of Ibleam.   Their target is not the men of Ibleam, it is the two remaining bridges.  The wood crashes into the bridge, splintering large portions of them, other sections of the bridge are already aflame. You hear a Norc shout a word, they are reloading the weapons. You see the face of King Ahaz, King of Ibleam, shock and uncertainty are represented in equal measure. Your Balls stand silent and look to you for guidance, this... this is not the way these battles are supposed to go. Ahaz, King of Ibleam has a look of shock and confusion on his face in equal measure. The bridges of Ibleam are shattered and burning and his foe refuses to duel him. The confusion last but a moment as Ahaz lets lose that most classic of Ur battle cries "EEEEELLLLL! Drive this filth from our fields!" Ahaz, King of Ibleam charges ahead of his people, his Mighty Men behind him and the rest of his people behind them, charging as well. As King Ahaz reaches the river, which he does with great speed he shouts a word, a word which has weight, depth. The word is a real thing. KAFA! He does not slow for even a moment as he races towards the river, as King Ahaz's first step touches the water...  You feel a strong and chilling wind blow over you for a moment. Where Ahaz's feet touch the river, it seems to freeze with a thick layer of ice. By the time he is across a span of ice at the surface of the river about three hundred feet wide has frozen solid. Not enough for the men of Ibleam to get across in formation, but it is a crossing and one they show every intention of using. Ahaz races ahead of the Mighty Men of Ibleam as they race ahead of the men of Ibleam. Perhaps these invaders have underestimated the men of Ibleam and the Bloodedness of her king? Or perhaps not. Orders are shouted among the invaders. A fourth or so of the foe, Norcs and minotaurs race to the west, away from the main formation. At the lead of the formation of the invaders, the Norcs march ahead in orderly rows towards the rapidly approaching King Ahaz, the minotaurs close behind. The trebuchets continue to reload, manned and guarded by the Norcs, more flaming logs. At the front-right, the demons have been unchained and at a shout from a large Norc, they head northeast, directly in your direction. To attack you? To flank the charging men of Ibleam... or to go wide around them and crawl over the barely defended walls of Ibleam and do horrors to those within the city? Every man who can fight surely is, but for a truly token force near the gates Ibleam lay undefended. At the lead of the Norc formation, the nine Norcs carrying tent poles jab the poles into the ground and go to the head of the Norc formation. The Norc formation parts as they march around the tent, reforming on the other side of it. You turn to your Balls and say "MY BALLS! With a heart full of El we can overcome any challenge! And with a fist full of El crush any demon!!! EL HA MELECH KOL OHAM!" Your Balls shout back EEEEEELLLLLL! as you charge down the hill, your eye upon the demons which look to be swinging wide around the clashing armies, towards Ibleam. You see King Ahaz crash into the Norcs with a sickening crunch and a loud clang. The blows between he and the largest of the Norcs are fast and loud as they duel, joined a few moments later by the Mighty Men of Ibleam. From what you saw, seven of the largest Norcs traded blows with Ahaz, six still alive by the time the Mighty Men joined their king. The trebuchets fire, directly into the advancing line of Iblemites as they cross the ice bridge, large flaming logs smashing into them, slaying many. The ice bridge holds but a number of gaps have been broken in it. The men of Ibleam continue to charge. The force which split off west from the invaders continues to move west. Where are they going? Those are other battles, they are not your concern. These are: Ten large demons(?), headed towards Ibleam. EEEEEELLLLLLLLL! As you and your Balls charge, yelling your battle cry, the demons change direction towards a closer meal. You and your men. They look large and hungry, they certainty mean to make a meal out of you. Twenty feet long, they look at you with empty eyes and hunger upon their tongues, for where eyes should be in their skulls, you see empty sockets. As you charge, you can feel the hearts of your Balls beating in step with yours, their lungs breathing in sync with your own and their purpose and yours tightly nit.  You feel strange in senses you still poorly understand. But perhaps not so poorly as you once did. Your Balls continue to shout their hearts out. In Ibleam, a few scared women and children may be in position to see a band of strangers charge out of nowhere towards the oncoming demons. [???] is decreasing. A rough map of the battlefield as it stands now. As with the other maps, sizes are not even remotely to scale and locations are only rough approximations. This is not a precise map  A few moments pass as you charge, screaming with your Balls, your battlecry, EEEEELLLLLL! King Ahaz battles the tallest of the Norcs, his Mighty Men beside him. Your attention is upon your own battle, the imminent danger of the large demons in front of you. Yet a few other details at the periphery of your vision, the edge of your hearing may have drawn some small part of your attention. HEEEEELP MEEEEE!!! The men of Ibleam charge across the ice bridge. Death rains down upon them in the form of flaming logs which crash into them. You hear the battlecries of the men of Ibleam. You hear the roars of agony of those maimed. Your attention is upon the foe right in front of you, but perhaps you hear more? "HELP ME! F-- TH.. LOVE OF EL! Heeeeelp mmm.e....e.....!...."  ... n-n-noooooo! ....elp me..... ....anyoe... ...aaaaaah! E.....eee....e...l.... .....someone.... .....elp m-.... A pang of dread strikes your heart. Something is wrong. Something is monstrously, terribly wrong. You hear other voices screaming, their pleas full of panic, fear and terror, crying out.  Mother! ...elp.. El! Fath-r! -ave- El-! You hear the confused, fearful and anguished cries of others and firmly resolve to yourself that you will do what you can to stop them, by winning this battle. As you near your foe, your Balls lock shields and slam into the demons with a sickening !CRUNCH! The hides of the demons are thick and their teeth razor sharp. They swarm over your shield line all at once and it is all you and your Balls can do to to try to cluster together in twos, threes and fours and stab at the beasts as they try to consume you. As one of the beasts is about to disembowel your Smith-Ball Adina, the way to save his life is abundantly clear. The adventurer Eleazar is next to him and so you whisper to him... Stab now! As Eleazar stabs with his sword you whisper to Adina... Jump back!  As the creature pounces on Adina, he leaps back and Eleazar deftly catches the creature in a segment between two segments of it's armor, inflicting a terrible wound. Your attention is drawn to the foe directly in front of you, it leaps on you, a beast weighing hundreds of pounds, despite your large stature this thing is far larger and far heavier, you are knocked onto your back. It rears it's jaws back to strike at your neck. This is the end. Paebel, aim for the eye! A brief moment later you hear the familiar FWOOSH of an arrow in flight, followed by the THUNK of an arrow as it lands in the empty eye of the creature atop you. They lack eyes, but it seems the spot vulnerable and the creature shrieks and rolls in agony. You manage to climb out from under it and stab it several times.  One of your common Balls is not so lucky, by the time you rise, his chest has been ripped open, you see organs in pieces and shreds. Elika is one of your original Balls, he has been beside you through every danger and hardship. Twenty eight, the large farmer is married and has two young sons. You see a blue vapor flow out of his mouth, you see your Ball float before, every detail of him crisp and clear. He reaches for you but you can already see him struggling, a great force pulls him to the northeast, he manages to say to you "I did my duty! Look after my sons!" The force pulling him is too great, in the smallest moment he will be gone, even as he reaches for you, arm outstretched, fingers straining. You ignore him, you have other priorities, such as saving those of your Balls which still live. You might catch a glimpse of shock, of betrayal upon his face as he soars off to the northeast with great speed, but you have other priorities. Probably a pretty important priority, yes. Two down, eight to go. You keep fighting. Uriah, smash it!  Ira, lean left now! Danal, bash your shield!  You feel... you feel what? You are not certain exactly. You feel no stronger, no swifter yourself, but all around you, you see how your Balls fight and where a quick and decisive movement might make all the difference and so, you tell them. Hiddai, stab to your left! Or, most of them anyway. Hiddai seems unable to hear your whisper or if he can, he ignores it? A gap has been left where you expected his shield to be and so you dive in yourself, bashing the legs of one of the demons, it turns it's head towards you, it is perilously closed and well positioned to do terrible savagery to you. Gaddiel, shoot it's back! As an arrow lands into its other side with a THWAP it turns, distracted and you jab your spear into a gap in its armored body. Blood pours out of it.  You stab it several more times. The battle goes on. How... how your Balls could fight, if not... stronger, than better, seems clear and so you tell them how. Some perhaps seem better for this purpose than others but if they are, you are a little distracted at the moment. After several minutes, the terrible battle is ended. Another of your common Balls lay dead. His head was ripped from his shoulders by one of the beasts. You watched as blue vapor poured out of his mouth, forming a perfect copy of his body, as he soared to the northeast with great force he laughed and said "KILL EM ALL ENKIDEL! EVERY LAST ONE!" One of your Balls has a broken leg and many have small cuts and bruises but nothing immediately troublesome. Your Balls cheer in their victory! One cried "EL!" Another cries "ENKIDEL!" Uriah laughs as he pats Danal on the back and pants, Danal says "I... I think you win." Uriah huffs and says "Three? Did anyone get more than three?" You hear other Balls murmur. No. Looks like Uriah has the high score. You pant, huff and puff. You... you could really use a good meal right now, some beef and maybe some roasted onions and some of that soup your mom makes with peppers and a pitcher of orange juice and oh! Some of those little fish roasted in butter and and... something else. Something nearby which would be just... amazing. What is it? You briefly, for a moment, try to calm yourself and consider [???]. What did that just cost you?  You benefit from physical strength equivalent to that of twenty men of a fit build. You have a more than meaningful benefit to your overall endurance. You have a meaningful benefit to your reflexes. Any more than a significant expenditure of [???] will drive you from reason. Twenty or so? What were you at before you just did... whatever you did? Twenty five? Twenty eight? That cost... that cost you quite a lot. Weeks, no, a few months of what you would have gained? You are still in fine fighting condition and superior to any normal man, vastly so. Even if you are not near a Zepathan Mighty Man in terms of raw strength. At your peak, you might have had as much raw strength as the weakest of Zepath's Mighty Men, even if you lacked many of their other powers and abilities, now, you have not even such strength. You think you know how you might invoke... whatever it is you just did again if you tried? Probably? Everything seemed... so clear and obvious when you did that, whatever it is you just did. You look around the battlefield. Oh no...  The army of Ibleam has been enveloped. You are at the same elevation as the rest of the combatants now, so you cannot be certain of their numbers. The minotaurs seem to have surrounded the men of Ibleam on all sides. You cannot be certain of their numbers, but you think that most of the Ibleamite men are likely dead. You hear blows so loud you hope they could only come from Ibleams King and Mighty men... you hope, but you are uncertain. A thick blue haze lay about the main battle and you hear horrifying screams of agony, fear and confusion, begging pleading EL! SOMEONE! ANYONE! NO! NO! Nononoo... no.... ...lp... me... NO! You have to focus... focus...  Something is wrong, DRASTICALLY wrong, beyond the imminent destruction of Ibleam, something is horribly wrong, something else. The trebuchets have not moved, they fire upon Ibleam, you see small fires in the city, though large portions of the city are inflammable, it is not an inferno, not yet anyway. You see a hundred or so Iblemites who seem to have made it away, fleeing into the gate. One of them looks a bit taller than the rest, maybe one Mighty Man made it out? It could just be a tall Blooded man. Some of the minotaurs in the main battle are surging past, towards the ice bridge. The portion which split off is as you watch, swimming across the river. Under combat conditions it would be suicidal, unopposed they have no difficulty. Ibleam is surely their target. MILITARY-EDUCATION-KNOWLEDGE-COMBO-BONUS! The following description was put in the form of a Knowledge Bonus, so that you would actually believe it because you probably don't want to do so. Insofar as it takes advantage of your education on such matters, you now benefit from them. You are not master military tactician, but you have a hell of a lot of combat experience yourself now and you do have some education from Tudiya on more conventional warfare. Ibleam is doomed. The city is barely defended at all except for a handful of men at the gates and the force charging towards it now on the western edge is more than enough to destroy any opposition currently within the city. Unless you believe that King Ahaz and his Mighty Men can destroy the remaining army on their own, the rest of the Ibleamites are doomed, indeed, they are dying as you look on. Are the Mighty Men and King Ahaz enough to destroy the army on their own? Are they even alive? With the screaming for hel NO! GAAAAAH! SOMEONE HELP ME! HELP ME!!!!! Help me...e.....e... no.... l.....- screaming for help, you are having immense difficulty trying to calm yourself to detect any Presences. King Ahaz is probably alive given the fact there is still some form of a battle, many of his Mighty men may be dead. The situation looks hopeless. Tudiya has not arrived and there is no reason to imagine he would within the next few minutes. Focused upon the battles near to them, it seems that your small band is not a priority at this moment though that is highly unlikely to be the case for long. You are going to be noticed soon, if you have not been already. You know, perhaps now more than you did the day before that it is somehow... important that your Balls are kept safe, alive, that they are kept close to you. You feel... better when they are near, better in a way that transcends merely having their help. Splitting them up is an option, but is it one you wish to take at a time like this?  Your Balls are struck mute as they see what you see, the realization that they have won a great victory, yet the city is doomed. Some speak their minds. Uriah is already charging southwest, he only stops when he sees the others are not following you, he turns to the rest of your group and says "Come on! They need our help." Your doctor slave, Hiddai says "It is suicide. Our duty is to our king and city, we must go and warn them." Uriah: "COWARD! The demons are here, NOW! Our duty is to fight them! Tell them Enkidel! How many times have we done the impossible! Where others say we cannot, we prevail! We will SHOW them the might of Zepath and they will TREMBLE!" Adina, your smith Ball: "Hiddai is right. We did our best, we can't save them, we can try to save ourselves." Danal: "We... should make for the gate and buy the people what time we can to flee. In that passage, we will make them pay dearly for our loses. Send... send Paebel and Gaddiel to warn our father and tell him we did our duty. Tell my daughters I fell for them." Gaddiel, your devoted servant: "Fare take me if I would! I will not abandon your side Master." Paebel, with a tear in his eye says "I... I don't know what we can do, but the decision is yours Enkidel. The Melachim have a purpose for you, even if I know not what it is. I don't believe they would let you die here." Eleazar, the adventurer: "No, just the rest of us then?" He gives a small laugh at that. "I've lived more than most of you and let no man say I would be a coward where younger men are brave. If you call for a last stand Enkidel, I am ready to make it." Jobe, the priest: "We... we cannot save them all! But right now women and children surely fill El's temple, praying for aid! Naomi, Ruth, Asahel, they would be in there and now they pray for a savior! El will not abandon them, he will not abandon us, not if we fight with him in our hearts! We cannot leave them! El will come! He will come!" Several of your common Balls murmur agreement, many are clearly in favor of fleeing. Even if they won't say it, they have wives and children of their own. Jobe looks at you with pleading eyes and Uriah points his spear at the invaders and says "Come on! While we can still make a difference!'   One of your Common Balls has a broken leg, you help him up and hand him to Uriah saying "Get him home!" Uriah yells back defiantly "No! I have to fight!' You yell back at Uriah "You are eager to throw your life away, but he did not volunteer his! I am in command! Do as I say!" Your Common Ball protests as well, saying "Leave me behind! I will be alright, save the city!" You yell back, it is unclear if this is at your injured ball, Uriah, or both, "I AM IN COMMAND! I decide who gets left behind, not YOU!" You point to two of your common Balls and say "Get him as far from the city as you can and then make for a city, Zepath if you can." Your other two Balls brook no argument, they grab their injured companion who still protests yelling "NO! Leave me behind!" and half walk, half carry him straight north. You turn to your Balls. "The tree of Zepa's lineage has already lost too many branches. Barkof was a tragic blow to our city. The men of Ibleam did their best, but it was not enough and now another branch is about to wither. We need to save what we can, we make for the palace, to save Ahaz's sons and daughters. If we can find his wife, her as well, we need all the good will we can get and her brother is the king of Dor." Between the slaughter occurring to the southwest and the heartbreak your Balls feel at the scene, most just nod along. Adina says "We can't save them all, we just can't." Your Balls race west as swift as you can, straight for the city wall. As you reach the river, your Balls swim across swiftly, arms, armor and all. Your Balls, even the lowest of them are strong and this does not present a serious problem. As you reach the walls of the city you scale cracks in the masonry and stone and climb atop them. Snarls, you half hug, half carry under one arm while you climb with the other, for your strength is immense and more than enough to half jump, half climb up the wall with one hand.  Much of the city is inflammable but much of it will still burn and so it does. From the top of this vantage point you can see that it looks like those who ran to the south gate are inside and it looks like they plan to defend it. You see them, trying to brace it shut with wooden beams from nearby homes and furniture. It isn't going to last for long. Earlier, when you saw the group fleeing to the gate you saw a tall Blooded man you thought perhaps one of Ibleam's Mighty Men. Your view is better here and you recognize him now. Diogines fucked around with this message at 17:12 on Jul 26, 2016 |
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Jul 26, 2016 02:26
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It is Nahari, you see him pointing and appears to be yelling orders, organizing this final, last ditch defense. You have little time to observe them, you need to move, swiftly and so you climb down from the wall as quickly as you scaled it. The palace of King Ahaz is at the north end of the city and you and your Balls run through the streets, it is utter chaos and anarchy. Many women and children are trying to flee and others, simply trying to hide. Slaves would not be armed to fight for the city and most of the male population which remains inside of the city ARE slaves and they surely have no intention of dying if they can avoid it. As you run through the streets you see a sobbing mother screaming hysterically, cradling two young children in her arms, their throats have been cut. The invaders have not made it here yet, she clearly... sought to give them a merciful end, she will have no such end herself. You see an old man laying in the street, it looks like he has been trampled. You see two women in the middle of the street, fighting over an expensive tapestry. You see several slaves stabbing a man in expensive garb as you run. Did they turn on their master? Without slowing even a moment, the adventurer Eleazar runs one through with his sword and Uriah caves in the skull of another with his shield, the others flee, the dying man can do little but cry in agony as he clutches as his wounds and gurgle blood from his mouth. Many who see you shriek in terror, mistaking you for invaders and run. Several identify you as Zepathans and shriek and flee still, for Barkof has enslaved many of their kin and so they fear you as well. One slave, spear in hand, carries a child in expensive garb in the other. Their master's son? He levels the spear at your terrified and intending to somehow fight you off, you yell to him "WE'VE COME TO SAVE THE KING'S SONS! WHICH WAY TO THE PALACE!?" The startled man lowers his spear and points, you run on.  One woman sees you, a giant of a man and screams "My baby! Save my baby!" She tries to force a toddler into your arms, you run past. You see a group of about thirty or so armed slaves in the street, some with spears, likely stolen, as well as a number of old men, several in armor, alongside a number of youths and a few women and children. They seem to be trying to build a barricade out of furniture in the middle of the street, to defend their homes? Hopeless, but given their options...? They yell in alarm as your band is seen, one man screams "THEY ARE HERE! THEY ARE HERE! REMEMBER THE KING!" Another screams "No! They are men!" Another screams "El preserve us! It's the cannibal!" Another yells "No! It's the Hero of Ashkalon!" It seems your heroics saving that village years ago have spread... The man yells "Save us Hero! You must save us!" You see dozens of eyes look at you in fear and terror, a woman in this makeshift militia, child in hand yells out "El has answered our prayers!" A man yells "Save us hero!" Another yells "My son! He is only a boy! Please! Save him!" "...my brother!" "...my mother!" "EL!" "...save us!" "El has answered our prayers!" "...save us!" "..save us!" "SAVE US HERO!" One of the slaves looks a little more stoic than the others, as others asking, pleading and begging you to save them he simply watches you look to him. You say to him "Ibleam is lost. You must warn Dor in the name of El. Take as many as you can with you. Stop for nothing. Warn the King of Dor. Ibleam will be avenged! We go to rescue the King's son. Go!!!" You close your eyes for a moment and as hard as you can think: Nahari! To the Palace! Now! You've never tried anything remotely like it before and never received a clear answer if it did. You feel a little strange. Did it work? Adina looks to you and says "Come on Enkidel! We have to get to the palace!" Beyond the city you hear sounds of mighty blows still. Perhaps the King is still fighting? If he is, there must be few if any beside him still. All at once you hear many scream and yells coming from somewhere south of you. Of the makeshift militia in front of you, several of the slaves heed your advice and flee, as well as a few of the women. Others put their hands over their faces and sob. An old man in armor, surely donning it for the last time looks at you and says in a tone of bile and hatred "Coward! I curse you a coward! May El curse you for those you left to die here today!" You make your way towards the palace, passing other calamities but you harden your heart to them. You find the palace in a state of chaos. Women and slaves seem to be looting place, grabbing valuables before they flee the city? Slaves and others grab things of value and things which have none and fight for them as the city falls. Many flee at the sight of you, perhaps mistaking you and your men for the King returning, or at least his guards? You see a badly injured slave sitting in a corner. He wears the colors of the house of King Ahaz. You say to him "Where are the Kings sons! We are the men of Zepath! We've come to rescue them!" The slave looks up at you as if in disbelief, that you have truly come and then perhaps considering the truth so absurd that your words could not possibly be a deception, he says to you "The... The temple! They take refuge at the Temple with their mother! Please! Save them!" You are currently in the palace which lay near the northern edge of city. The city has two gates north and south. You are close to the north gate. The main road of the city runs between the south gate and the north gate, passing close to both the temple and the palace. You would have to cross nearly half the city to get to the temple. Escape from Ibleam is close at hand, you are almost out. Those panicked yells may have been the south gate falling... You yell to your Balls "We make for El's temple! NOW!" You turn from the slave and rush down the main street of the city towards El's temple, panicked people run past you north, tryin to get away.  You hear screaming and panic coming from the south in increasing numbers. You still hear blows like thunder coming from beyond the city itself, further south. King Ahar is still fighting? Probably just him and a few Mighty Men at this point, if that... the men of Ibleam were surrounded and vastly outnumbered and for all the Bloodedness of a king of Zepa's line, it seems he could not save the men of his city. As you and your Balls rush through the street you are mistaken for Barkof, Zepa, King Ahaz and a demon several times, slaves beg you to save their mistresses and women try to force babes into the arms of you and your Balls. You continue on as swiftly as you may. The flood of people is starting to slow your Balls down despite your effort, Uriah begins to yell "MAKE WAY OR BE TRAMPLED! CLEAR THE STREET! CLEAR THE STREET!" The flood of people seems to if not... move around you, at least move a bit out of the way. It is not long before you see down the main avenue of the city to the south gate and see row after row of Norcs marching together, slaying those in their path. Many minotaurs are behind them, many spreading out through the city, others following the Norcs.  You run faster. The temple of El in Ibleam is not nearly so richly built as that of Zepath or nearly as ornately constructed. The temple of El in Zepath is, if not a massive temple, a masterwork of artistry and the culmination of generations of improvements. Yet the temple of Ibleam is significantly larger.  As you come to the entrance of the temple you see your foe down the street, coming in this direction. You do not have two minutes until the Norcs are here, you probably have a little more than one. That assumes that minotaurs which have fanned out behind them have not gotten ahead through the side streets... in which case they could be around the corner of any building. You rush into the temple to see several hundred people inside, mostly women as well as a number of slaves, old men and children. Many are weeping, others most are prostrated on the floor, praying, begging for El to save them. It seems as if half the temple shrieks in terror at once: "THEY ARE HERE!" "EL PRESERVE US!" "ITS BARKOF!" "THE DEMONS!" "ITS FARE!" It seems as if half the mass of refugees has another reaction entirely, seeing a giant of a man in ornate armor rush through the door, they yell jubilantly at their salvation: "IT IS ZEPA!" "IT IS ISHAMAL!" "IT IS THE KING!" "THE MELACHIM! THE MELACHIM HAVE COME!" The scene is utter chaos as half the temple rushes towards the far wall away from you and the other half rush to embrace their saviors, you yell as loudly as you can. "WE ARE THE SONS OF ZEPATH! WE HAVE COME TO EVACUATE THE KINGS SONS! WHERE ARE THEY!?" One woman yells out "HERE! THIS IS THE THE KINGS SON!! TAKE HIM!" and tries to press a babe into the arms of Danal.  There is silence for a moment and then chaos as every occupant of the temple screams and yells at once. Another woman pushes a boy of about six or seven towards you and screams in desperation "NO! She lies! This is my son! I am the queen!" A boy of about nine or so yells up "I am his brother! Take me! Take me!" Other women and children scream no no, it's me! It's my son! I am the queen! I am the heir! The people of the temple push towards you even as your doom marches closer outside, several near the front of the crowd begin to fight each other to try to get closer to you. Adina yells to you "Enkidel! We don't have time for this! We have to go! Now!" Hiddai your slave yells "Our duty is to Zepath, it's time to go Master! Now!" Uriah yells loud over all of the other voices and says to you "They say it is impossible and yet we prevail! WE are the Balls of Labaras and WE do not shrivel in fear! We can save these people but we have to FIGHT!" Jobe tries to yell over the clamor "We cannot leave these people Enkidel! We cannot!" Danal beside you, ever eager for a fight, your younger brother, the boy you helped turn into a man has fear in his eyes as your deaths draw near. The yelling, screaming and now fighting in front of you, the steady march of hundreds of Norcs coming this way, fires in the city and others beyond who scream as they perish, the thunderous blows of the battle across the river... this is not an ideal time for superhuman hearing. You yell out to your Balls over the chaos and the maelstrom of noise "GRAB A SMALL CHILD IF IT WON'T SLOW YOU DOWN! WE LEAVE! NOW!" The press of the mob against you and the screaming grows even louder, a number of Balls take children from the crowd even as mothers try to push more into their arms. Uriah is and has always been the youngest of your Balls. You recruited him when he was only 14. You thought of turning him away at first, but he came with a sausage to bribe Snarls and very few well Blooded males of any age wanted to join you. He was probably too young to join your Balls. Except for Gareb, your other Mighty Sons were close in age to you, Ithma was two years older, Jassiel a year younger. Uriah wished to shame his older brother Lullaya, whom he hated for being cruel to him, by outdoing him at a younger age. Barkof's nephew, in the years since, most of his extended family have fled the city to Barkath, to join the patriarch of their family after they had their lands and flocks taken away from them as a punishment for Barkof's betrayal. Have you ever faced a battle Uriah did not think could be solved by charging in? As those around you yell and scream and most of them, in desperation lie about who are the relatives of King Ahaz in hopes that you will save them, Uriah yells loudly "THEN FLEE! BUT I WILL NOT! I WILL FIGHT! WHEN THEY TELL YOU THE STORIES OF THE VICTORY I WILL WIN THIS DAY YOU WILL KNOW YOURSELF A COWARD!" Three of your common Balls, who you know to be of a disposition similar to Uriah try to push the crowd away with their shields, one yells "WE WILL FIGHT! BUT WE NEED ROOM! GET BACK! GET BACK! CLEAR THE DOOR!" Eleazar the Adventurer, with an angry look in his eyes yells to you "Get out of here Enkidel! We will do what we can! Go!" Your smith Adina, who has a child of about four in one arm yells to you "ENKIDEL! There is no more time! We have to go! NOW!" Jobe the Priest has a babe in one arm, a woman tries to force another into it, he yells at the woman "NO! ONLY ONE! I AM SORRY! I AM SORRY!" It looks as if Uriah, Eleazar and three of your Common Balls plan to make a stand here... you have at most thirty seconds before you have to be out that door or you are not going to get away cleanly. If you plan to flee and go now, you will very probably still make it ahead of the main body of invaders coming this way, but you cannot delay any further. Your heart beats heavily in your chest.  Two-beats. Thub-dub. Thub-dub. Two more. Thub-dub. Thub-dub. All eyes are upon you. You have to run, you have to warn Zepath what happened here, sending Gareb was not enough, they won't know what this foe was truly like. Uriah looks at you with defiance in your eyes and behind him, women, children and slaves who look at you with desperation in theirs. "BALLS! SHIELDS UP! SPEARS AT THE READY! WE MAKE A STAND HERE AND NOW! SHOW THEM THE MIGHT OF ZEPATH!" Your Balls give a cheer, Uriah grins widely, claps you on the back and says "They will never forget the battle we shall win this day!" A woman close to you in the crowd with tears in her eyes, a young child in one arm yells out "EL HAS DELIVERED US!" A slave yells out "Our prayers have been answered!" Several break down weeping. As their city falls, a giant of a man, a man of a different color no less, wearing armor of the highest quality has come and promised to save them. Either El has sent you to save these people, which they sure seem convinced of, or you sort of snuck your way into a city as it fell to the forces of demons, checked on building, didn't find what you were looking for, checked another and then were about to haul rear end when you had a chance of heart! THESE people clearly have no doubt as to why you are here! El sent you! Obviously! A woman yells "Nothing can save us now! We are doomed!" Well, MOST of them seem to think El sent you anyway. You hastily fetch a small bag which you have held upon your person for years and hastily pour it into your wineskin, at the same time yelling to Jobe "Break into the back! Get the ashes if you can find them!" You take a swig of the wineskin.  You feel as if you could run for days. Well, you already could run for a few days, now you feel like you could do so for several more! You pass the wineskin to Uriah and yell "Each of you take a sip and pass it on! Just do it!" You hear the roars of minotaurs approaching and the uniform and even beat of marching boots.  The temple is PACKED full of people, five hundred at least, you yell over your shoulder "PRESS BACK AS FAR AS YOU CAN! WE NEED ROOM!" Eleazar yells back into the crowd "Any of you lot who brought spears! Knives! Swords! Anything! Get them up here now!" You hear blows like thunder still, south beyond the city, the crackles of flames beyond as more of the city burns and the snarls of minotaurs as they move closer. Here they come... You hear the march of their boots and the roaring of the minotaurs. You watch a man run to the steps of the temple and fall upon the stairs, his hands clutching at his entrails, his belly has been split open.  Mere moments later the Norcs come into the view, hundreds of them, each clad in armor made of silver which glistens in the fires of the night.  As they march into view, one of them holds up a hand and barks some sort of command, the Norcs raise their shields and hold position. The Norc yells something at you in their incomprehensible tongue.  [...] It has been many years since you fished in the sea. When was it last? On your manhood trial you suppose? It was probably for the best that you escaped a den of cannibals where you were probably being used as livestock... but the sea itself was ever your friend and you had many happy childhood moments fishing beneath those waves, spear in hand.  You don't have much occasion to swim anymore, though you still have excellent skill with a fishing spear. You also now have supernatural strength and coordination. Your good spear rests against your right arm and you have a second clutched in your hand, you got it from one of the people who took refuge in the temple. It is a bit short by the standards of Zepath but it could make a handy fishing spear in a jiffy. Ready to go fishing, one last time? (Optional soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2hRTLdvdnk ) As they march into view, one of them holds up a hand and barks some sort of command, the Norcs raise their shields and hold position. The Norc yells something at you in their incomprehensible tongue. You raise your second spear and yell out as loud as you can "I AM ENKIDEL! SON OF TUDIYA! COME AND FACE YOUR DOOM!"   If this was the the more dramatic sort of story from the Old Tales, the Norcs would shout in their bestial tongue and fall upon your spears in an utter slaughter. Sadly, this is not the Old Tales. This is real life, your foe is very well organized and decides not to commit suicide. Diogines posted:Each Norc wears armor made of silver. Their weapons vary. Many favor spears and shields, in fact the first several ranks have nothing but them, though the shields are larger than the sort used by men, large and square. Ranks. They form neat and orderly ranks, just as neat as those of the men of Ibleam across the way... after the first few ranks, the weapons vary, large two handed swords seem popular. Every Norc you see has three javelins on their back as well. ...oh yeah. And they have those. Another Norc yells something in their incomprehensible tongue.  The first row of Norcs keep their shields up, the second, third and fourth ranks pull out javelins and launch them at you and your Balls!  "SHIELDS!" you yell. Your armor was made by Tudiya's uncle, a Mighty Man smith, it would be the envy of some of the kings of the interior and the rest of you Balls, rich from your conquests have all made the decision to invest heavily in armor of fine quality. Their javelins bounce off of your armor and shields! Some went overhead into the crowd behind you, you hear screams of pain and the rapid movement of feet as those behind you try desperately to press against each other and move away, but there is no place to move away TO, the temple is filled nearly to the brim. Those who suffer behind you are not a problem you can concern yourself with, not now. A second and a third volley follow, doing no injury to your or your Balls at all. Uriah yells VAYAHI OR!!  One of the Norcs near the front of the falls to the ground screaming in agony as flames cover him! Paebel yells out "YOU LOST THIS!" and Gaddiel cries out "COME AND GET THEM!" Two javelins fly over your shoulders into the shields of the Norcs in front of you. Uriah yells again VAYAHI OR! and a second Norc falls to the ground screaming agony as flames cover him! You have never seen... Vayahi Or used that way before. Why exactly Blooded Men do not do so is unclear. Lighting a foe on fire certainly looks like an effective strategy though! The Norc yells more gibberish and they begin to move away! They are retreating! Danal yells out "WE DO NOT FEAR YOU!" Uriah yells out "COME BACK! I WAS JUST GETTING WARMED UP!"  You see them forming a wall of shields at the edge of the temple. You hear Norcs yell more gibberish. You hear the roar of minotaurs, just out of your sight... Here they come. GUARDS THE PACK! You can hear the minotaurs moving into position.  You thinks at Snarls that he is a good boy. One-Pack. Always! He is in the rear, out of the line of fire from the door. Despite the packed quarters of the place, people seemed to be able to make room for a dog which weighs nearly two hundred pounds. Behind you, scared and desperate people look on with a mixture of fear, desperation, grief and perhaps, hope. You yell out "EL HA MELECH KOL HA OLAM!" and begin to beat your spear upon your shield. Your Balls mimic the movement and begin to beat their spears upon their shields as well, they yell taunts and threats at the invaders just beyond your line of shields. You feel strange..... strange. You close your eyes for a moment and try to calm yourself, even as the minotaurs begin to close.  You benefit from physical strength equivalent to that of thirty men of a fit build. You have a very significant benefit to your overall endurance. You have a very significant benefit to your reflexes. Any more than a very significant expenditure of [???] will drive you from reason. You hear the hooves and bestial roars of several thousand minotaurs piling into the street in front of you and filling the alleys beyond. With a yell from one of the Norcs, thousands of minotaurs fill the night with bestial roars and charge at your position!   Minotaurs by the hundred swarm the temple! As the first one comes into range you kick it at as hard as you can!  There is a sickening CRUNCH as one or more bones in it's body breaks and it flies backwards, smashing several more to the ground! You smash a second with your shield full on in the face! CRUNCH It's heads snaps back and it falls onto those behind it as it perishes, it's head broken. ...and here come the hundreds, thousands beside them. They push past and over each other to rush up the stairs as a massive bovine swarm, dead set to trample you and your Balls! You, Eleazar, Uriah, Danal and Ithma are physically superior to normal men. You are larger. Stronger. Your years will be longer and your minds keener. But are you strong enough? As the clubs, axes, mauls and fists of the minotaurs rain down upon you, you whisper into the ears of your Balls with perfect clarity and perfect timing. Uriah stabs a minotaur with perfect timing to cause it to stumble. Ithma takes one in the knee timed precisely to cause it to trip, Danal puts the tip of his spear through his head and in a swift motion raises his shield to block a blow meant for your head. You run the minotaur through and kick it off your spear, sending it flying into the minotaur's behind it!  Eleazar has long debated with you the merits of a sword in monster hunting. When you first met the man and his unusual decision to fight with one, sometimes two swords, he defended it saying "A man will never be so strong as these monsters, but he can be more nimble." It seems Eleazar may be both now. You watch as he holds a shield up with one arm and makes a stabbing motion with his sword over and over and over, slicing into minotaurs! Still the minotaurs press on, faster than you, Eleazar, Uriah, Danal and Ithma can take them! It is all the five of you can do to keep your shields up and try to block this stampede! You whisper to the Balls behind you with clarity and precision, here, strike here! There! Stab there! Shift your weight and strike! And again! The minotaurs press against you as if you were lovers, spears come from over your shoulders and thrust deep into their flesh, you knock them aside as they cry out in pain! And so you struggle. The minotaurs try to press against you as strong as they may, over your shoulders spears stab fast and hard! Danal holds his shield as best he can, you can no longer use your spear, your foe is too close. You push, kick and smash at the foe, as does Uriah and Ithma, Eleazar stabs and stabs and stabs again! How much time has passed? You do not live in the here and the now, the future nor the past. You live in moment, the moment each of your Balls needs to know precisely when you strike, you live in that moment, only in that moment and in no other. It could be minutes, or it could be an eternity, all that matters is whispering to each Ball how they can do their best.  (Please watch this brief moving-tapestry of what you and your Balls have been doing for an indeterminate amount of time before moving on. Thank you https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFvcUXxo6P8 . I am not kidding. Please watch this before moving on. Thank you.)  Mount Minotaur has been born anew. The minotaurs stop flooding up the stairs, for they can no longer clamber over the corpses of the dead, the pile has grown too high and the steps have become too slick from blood and viscera and entrails! Behind you many of the Ibleamites are crouched in prayer and Jobe is burning several minotaurs on the altar. How did he even get them in there? Your attention has been... highly specific and at the same time divided for an indeterminate amount of time. Trying to recall precise details of whatever the El you have been doing since the Minotaurs tried to storm up the steps is... foggy. Jobe looks up from the altar for a moment and yells out to the Norcs "THIS IS THE HOUSE OF EL! WASHED ANEW IN YOUR BLOOD! IF YOU WISH THIS HOUSE, COME AGAIN AND KNOCK UPON OUR DOOR!" WE ARE THE PREDATORS! YOU ARE THE PREY! You hear a voice shout back from off to the side, out of your direct view, among the Norcs, who still ring the outside of the temple. No human tongue speaks it, the sounds come out awkward and strange, but you to understand them. It is the tongue of the men of Ur spoken by one who is not used to it. The Norc yells to you "ASHRAKAN! Take your Thralls and dive back into the depths! Give us the meat and GO!" You yell back "SLAVES OF FARE! WE HAVE LEFT YOU MEAT UPON THE TEMPLE STEPS! TAKE IT OR JOIN THE PILE!" The Norc yells back "We shall roast your thralls an inch at a time and cast you screaming into the Deep Dark!" Uriah yells VAYAHI OR at one of the dead minotaurs near the entrance, the corpse ignites, you lift it and toss it around the corner into the Norcs! A flurry of javelins comes in response as you peek your head around, Danal steps up, shield in hand to block them. Minotaurs and Norcs begin to drag corpses away from the steps. You seem to have at least for this moment, a brief reprieve. Five men and their shields in the doorway is all that prevents the Norcs from entering the temple and should you lower shields you can expect a rain of javelins in reply. Hundreds of Norcs and thousands upon thousands of minotaurs surround this temple in every direction you can easily see or hear. You still hear fires crackle throughout the city and the screams of pain of the dying and the dead further away. You still hear cracks like thunder coming somewhere to the south. Why are they dragging the bodies away? As you pant for a moment and consider what to do next, you hear the voice of a child of maybe eight or nine somewhere at the rear of your Balls say "My... my father really is the king. Is he alright?" You say to the boy "Your father still fights. Have faith in El, child." Norcs move up, covered by comrades with shields and begin to pull away he dead. VAYAHI OR! ...rather they were. After Uriah set another aflame, the Minotaurs began to move the corpses instead. You threw knives and spears which those within the temple had gathered up, but your ammunition was limited and the minotaurs numbered in the thousands. You decided to conserve your arrows for now. You issued orders to your Balls. "Grab whatever you can and get a barricade up here!" You send one of your common Balls into the back to search for oil. And so they dragged the corpses away. Tables, chairs, shelves from the back, stone benches, anything which could be moved to add to the barricade was moved and you erect a fair makeshift barricade in front of the door, about five feet high. You prepared for the press of the Norcs and their long spears, they continue to move away the dead minotaurs. The common Ball who searched the back of the temple told you that he found several sealed pots of oil used for the altar, expensive and valuable. The temple stores are well stocked for food, though not enough to feed the hundreds of people in here for long. The Norcs seem to reposition themselves so as to not be easily set on fire or hit with projectiles by you. The minotaurs continue to pile the Norcs up in front of them.  With hundreds of large bovine corpses... they form a wall about four feet tall blocking the road to the temple completely, supplemented by furniture from nearby buildings. You hear one of the Norcs shout an order, you recognize a few of the words "HOOS LIVE" more gibberish "STREET DIE" more gibberish "HOOS LIVE" more gibberish "STREET DIE". Many of the minotaurs roar and make bull noises and then... they march off. Some of them. With your stupendous hearing you can know it is a great many, but you cannot know how many. Enough to sack the city and still siege you in the temple? That looks as if it may be their plan... you hear some of the Norcs begin to chant as they walk off "HOOS LIVE! STREET DIE!" You guessed at their numbers before, perhaps 400 Norcs? Perhaps a bit more than three thousand minotaurs? How many are still besieging this temple? How many moved on? When you last saw it looked like part of the Minotaur horde was headed this way as well, are they in the city? You still hear thunderous blows beyond. The Norcs seem content to wait and so you do as well. Behind you, scared people in the hundreds. Women, children, slaves and some men too old to fight as well. You hear the sobs of those who are scared, the frantic, desperate prayers of many, you hear the cries of pain of the wounded, the maimed and the dying. You hear strangers try to comfort children they do not know, they wish to know where their parents are and so they lie to them or comfort them as best they can. Outside, it begins to rain.  It comes down at first with a few drops and then begins to storm. It is the harvest season. It might rain in this season, it is a bit early to do so, but not obviously supernaturally so. The drops come down in growing intensity. You hear thunder, likely true thunder, some near, some far.  Periodically you manage to catch a glimpse of a minotaur head, peering into your line of sight to see if you are still there. You manage to catch one of them square in the face with a spare spear one of the Iblemites gave you. It roared in agony. It charged the temple steps, you heard the Norcs yell something, probably "GET BACK HERE YOU STUPID COW!" Your Balls made quick work of it. The Norcs looked as if they might press an attack as you tried to haul it over the barricade, a number of javelins were thrown as you did, but once you pulled the beast over, the Norcs returned to their own barricades. +Several Hundred Pounds of Beef! Hours passed.  How many till dawn? If help was coming, you try to guess at the timing? If Gareb got to Zepath when you hope he did, how long would it take Tudiya to get here if he did? Could he be here this following day? The day after? Would he even come? The Norcs seem content to keep you bottled up here for now. The rain continues. You and your Balls remain at the barricade, ready for an attack at any moment. Several of the wounded who perished in the last night have died. The temple smells of the stink of hundreds of people, of the blood and poo poo of the dead and of the waste that even the living must do, mostly done in the priestly quarters in the back. Several times, the wounded and dying were brought before you by others, asking that you bless them, either that their climb up the mountain be swift, or perhaps, that they might yet recover from their wounds. Snarls is in one corner of the temple with a group of children, trying to comfort them as best he can. At one point a hungry looking man comes near him with a knife, saying softly "Gentle boy... good boy... its okay... just... still boy." Paebel rushes over, though before he gets there, Snarls leaps onto the man, pinning him on his back, his massive paws on the man's arm. Snarls looks the man in his eyes, points one paw at the knife and then shakes his head at the man. He goes back to comforting the children. You continue to periodically hear thunder, some natural, some probably from the battle beyond. You continue to feel... strange. Adina says to you "They are hungry Enkidel... what do we do about the food?" Adina's analysis of the temple stores is that there is enough food stored within to feed your Balls for about a week, this is not enough food to feed these hundreds of people even for a day. If you cooked up the minotaur, you could probably stretch your Balls supplies to two, though it will do little to feed these people, there may be as many as six hundred people in the temple. Between the rain, the thunder and the noise of the temple, you have difficulty telling much of what goes on beyond the temple. You think that more minotaurs may be in the city now, but you can't be certain. The rains seems to have put out the fires in the city. Once or twice you think you hear the creak of wooden wheels but the sound is tough to make out if you do. You feel... strange. You hear a voice shout back from off to the side, out of your direct view, among the Norcs, who still ring the outside of the temple. It is not a human tongue, the sounds come off strange and hard, a Norc. The same one who last spoke to you. "ASHRAKAN! The city is ours Ashrakan! The noisy one is dead Ashrakan! Give us the meat! Take your thralls and flee to the depths! Do this or we will crush this place atop you! We will drag you from the rubble and cast you screaming into the Deep Dark!" FoxTerrier posted:If the noisy one is as dead as you say, why do I yet hear his blows echoing from the battlefield? Or perhaps I am mistaken, and that is merely the sound of your gargantuan mother and a mancow in heat? Diogines posted:"Your ears are broken Ashrakan! We roasted his flesh, Ashrakan! I dined upon his tiny balls! Give us the meat and you can go! You are far from the sea Ashrakan! This is our domain! Give us the meat!" Task Manager posted:This is your domain? Odd, I've never even heard of you, though your smell proceeds you. What do you call yourselves when not Slaves of Fare? Diogines posted:After hearing this, the Norc says something to another Norc in their strange tongue, they talk back and forth for a moment. Finally the Norc shouts back "We are the Bnaimokt! This place is our conquest! I, Dar Gallu commend your skill but it is futile! The city is ours! The meat is ours! All of this, is ours! There is more meat to be had, accept your defeat, take your thralls and go! On your way back to the sea go west where the river bends, you will find meat there! It fights poorly and dies easily, you will have your fill! By the Sacred Suns I swear, give us the meat and you may go!" Several times, the wounded and dying were brought before you by others, asking that you bless them, either that their climb up the mountain be swift, or perhaps, that they might yet recover from their wounds. You granted such requests, lowering your spear and shield a moment to pray and ask that El grant them a swift recovery, or that their climb up the mountain be swift and easy. Whether or not such blessings had any effect, it seemed to comfort the wounded, maimed and dying and boosted the morale of the scared people of Ibleam. [...] You shout back to the Norcs "Do you not hear the thunder? The rain? Do you not feel the wind? You say this is your place, your domain. But it is owned by the one coming now! Flee, or face his wrath!" The Norc shouts back "All that comes is your death Ashrakan! But we are patient, we will wait till we cast you into the Deep Dark! First we will cut pieces off of you, a finger at a time!"  The storm continues. More time passes, about noon the thunder seems to intensify.  It becomes... rhythmic.  It is not merely thunder. You hear a yell, a very loud yell and then a flash of lightning.  EL  EL  EEEEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL  The temple shakes, the earth shakes, bits of masonry in the ceiling of the temple flake off, woman and children scream. Lightning is striking across the city, one bolt smashes into the building across from you, you see stones crash down into the square in front of the temple. Every hair on your body stands on end. The Norcs outside are talking all at once. You hear the Norc you spoke with earlier shout over them. Several of the Norcs run off. You hear the bestial sound of minotaurs yelling in confusion and fear. It has stopped raining. Several Norcs shout at each other and then... you hear the sounds of Norcs and the stomping of hooves. Paebel says in a tone of disbelief "They... they are retreating. We... we have won!" A great cheer goes up throughout the temple, slaves hug each other, women weep, children smile. The wife of one of Ibleam's Mighty Men are within the temple and she yells out "The Zepathan! The Zepathan has delivered us!" Another cheer goes throughout the temple. Your Balls cheer as well. You finally place down your shield and spear exhausted and a rush of women try to kiss you all at once, every eye in the temple is upon you. Snarls barks excitedly: Strongest in the pack! Strongest PACK! All days! Despite your survival, you realize that you and your Balls are no match for massed Norcs and that charging them now as they flee would be suicide. You wait for the sound of Norc footsteps and Minotaur hooves to be distant and finally emerge. Ibleam is in ruins. You see that many of the buildings around you were ravaged by the flames before the rain began and you see cracks in the street where the ground has split. You swiftly climb the side of El's temple to get a better view of the city and see it is a desolation. Many buildings across the city are burned and many more, fallen over. King Ahaz's palace looks like a heap of rubble. Oddly enough, the city walls look like they did pretty well, none of them look like they crumbled. As you scan them you see that the towers at the north gate of the city have a number of people atop them. You recognize one of them. Nathari. You look south beyond the city, where the armies clashed. 
Diogines fucked around with this message at 17:26 on Jul 26, 2016 |
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Jul 26, 2016 02:27
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You see a large hole in the ground with what looks like flaming dirt in the middle, not far from where King Ahaz first met the invaders. For hundreds of feet away from it you see not a single blade of grass nor stalk of wheat. Even the corpses of the fallen, which must have numbered in the thousands are gone though you see some further away. You see the invaders further south now, leaving. The minotaurs drag their rolling supply cages as you saw them do on their way to Ibleam but now... they are filled with people. The people of Ibleam, tough to guess at the numbers, several thousand it looks like. Diogines posted:You see, towards the back of the organized camp, near the edge of the minotaurs sprawling camp, many, many cages mounted on wheels. Some look like they have food and supplies in them and are guarded by the strange humanoid creatures which are not orcs. Many of them are empty. You do not obviously see any of the silver weapons or armor the Norcs brought either. Their withdraw seemed fairly orderly, perhaps they took them with them? You see a number of Minotaur corpses strewn about the battlefield, but no Norcs. Not even the ones outside of the temple, they dragged them off as well. At some point in the immediate future you manage to rejoin with Nahari. He is not happy. "Where were you!?!?" He yells with rage. "You sent me to Ibleam and then... and then NOTHING! I warned the King and he took our warning to heart! I FOUGHT! THEY FOUGHT AND THEY DIED! WHY WERE YOU NOT THERE?!? WHY DID YOU SEND ME TO FIGHT ALONE!?" You tell Nahari that "I thought I might do more good by striking from a hidden position than by joining the main battle. I don't know whether I was right or wrong. We faced and destroyed a group of demons seeking to devastate the city, and we reached the Temple of El in time to defend it, but still... forgive me for not having sent word." Nahari places his hands over his face for a moment and looks as if he might yell again, then takes a deep breath and says "...fine. Fine. What do we do now?" You swap stories of the day's events in more detail. Nahari reports that he made for Ibleam swiftly and was taken at spear by one of Ibleam's Mighty Men almost as soon as he arrived. He managed to talk his way into an audience with the King of Ibleam and persuaded him of the danger of the invaders. In what short time the city had been warned, they made the preparations that they could make, moving as much within the city walls as possible and evacuating the nearby farms. Nahari waited for you to join the battle and... he never saw you and thought you dead at the hands of the invaders before reaching Zepath. "They should have broken" Nahari says "Their King's charge should have broken their spirit, but it did not. We were surrounded and the fighting was intense. Those demons" - Nahari makes clear that he thinks the Norcs are demons "-have armor tougher than any but the best I have seen before and they are strong. We were encircled and the common men of Ibleam didn't stand a chance. Some of them had great strength, a rival to that of any of the Mighty Men of Ibleam and Ahaz and his Mighty Men dueled them while the rest slaughtered the men of Ibleam. Some of the Ibleamites tried to fight their way out and I joined them. We made for the gate and hoped to delay the charge into the city, at least for a short time. As we barricaded the gate with everything we could grab from nearby homes, I swear I heard you yelling my name and so I abandoned the gate and could not find you. It was too late to get back to the battle so I made for one of the towers on the north gate of the city. The demons tried to take it several times but we held out, myself and a few others for they only had one door to get in and steep steps to get to that door. We had a good view of the battle from the top as well. I did not know it was you in the temple, I saw the battle upon the steps. I saw King Ahaz fight as well, the man fought like I have never seen a man fight before, he and his Mighty Men but it was not enough. Eventually it was him alone. When the last of his Mighty Men fell, he called the Wrath of El upon them and destroyed... everything, himself, the demons, the minotaurs, everything. The earth shook and cracks opened within it as El's wrath fell upon them, half the city tumbled over and I prayed the tower where we hid would not as well." What about the tent? The creature inside? Did he see it? "No" Nahari says "the tent did not move at all and I did not see anything come out of it. When their King called upon their end, the light was blinding, I could not look directly upon him. The tent was there before Ahaz called doom upon the demons, when it was over the tent was gone, the tent, Ahaz, the living and the dead, everything in the middle of battlefield, gone. From what I saw, as the numbers of the men of Ibleam dwindled, more and more of the invaders made for the city. They rounded up thousands of people, pushed them into cages and hauled them away. I think about half of the invaders lay dead by the time it was finally over? Maybe half?" Ibleam was destroyed by the battle, the male population slaughtered and much of what remained carried away. Ahaz dead. You... take control of what remains? You and your men try to organize the slaves to dig out those trapped in rubble as best you can. About half of the survivors are slaves, most of them native Ibleamites and about half as many men as women. Paebel comes to you during this time and says "Some of the slaves masters still live but most are no more. You could free them Enkidel, you are within your rights." You know that the Melachim worshipers are opposed to slavery, freeing them would make you even more a hero in the eyes of the secret Melachim worshipers of Zepath, though it will very probably upset the most staunch conservatives in Zepath. In a decision which would win you the love of some, the hatred of others and spark a protracted inheritance battle with men from Dor, you also decided to do just that and declared them free men. You discover that the only surviving relative of the king of Ibleam, is his son, a boy of eight. His name is David, he has six fingers on each hand. Any well Blooded family would surely wish to lay claim to the child, even those unrelated to him, who would not wish to make their own line more Blooded? His mother is the sister of the King of Dor and is nowhere to be seen, it appears she died in the chaos. When you asked David, he said the last time he saw his mother, she told him to run for the temple and she went to search for his brothers. She never made it to the temple. You consoled the poor boy as best you could. "Where do I go now?" he asked you with tearful eyes. You told him "When we are done here, we are going to Zepath, to visit your cousin. He is the king of Zepath and a great hero. He will make sure you are taken care of, I promise." David gives a weak nod. The child seems crushed at the destruction of the city, the death of many of his relatives and his becoming an orphan. When you eventually returned to Zepath you took him with you, brought him into your own household and raised him as your own son. He grew up to become a brave and honorable man, hoping to embody the values of "Hit it Hard Enough and Believe in El" that Uriah and Danal held so dear. He possessed a courageous heart and the values shown by Uriah in the Temple of El in Ibleam would be one he hoped to match. In time Aaron would arrive and some time later, a band of fifty House Men from Zepath. House Men being men from particularly Blooded families, though not anywhere near Mighty Men. As Aaron took command of the tragedy in Ibleam you went ahead alone to try to track the invaders as they fled with their captives, the people of Ibleam. You attacked their scouts, sentries and pickets at night with your bow, employing stupendous ambush tactics and brutalizing their corpses to strike terror in the hearts of the Bnaimokt who later found them. On one corpse you found a queer idol. YOu also found some strange golden discs which you did not at the time identify as coins, men in Ur do not use coins. You placed the strange idol atop a hastily constructed altar, along with the corpses of several Bnaimokt. You gathered a number of stones and placed them beside a large, flat boulder. It was a crude and hasty altar but one which conformed with the proper way to construct one. You gathered up branches and scrubby plants and piled them atop the altar with the corpses. You took some oil with you and you poured a bit of it atop the corpses as well and set it alight.  You bowed your head and ask that El grant you victory in the battle to come and that the climb of your dead Ball, Elika, be easy and swift. The small idol burned swiftly as if made of kindling and the rest of the offerings simply burned. The hairs on the back of your neck rose, you felt as if you are being watched. You heard a voice in the crackling of the fire atop the altar.  There was a strong gust of wind and the flames go out. You did not again offer the corpses of the Bnaimokt as a sacrifice and warned the men of Zepath against it as well. After stalking the army for several days they cease and begin to conduct some kind of... profane ritual involving the sacrificing of the captives and of minotaurs.  You did not stick around to see it, your attempts to disrupt it ultimately failed. You left them there and rejoined Aaron and the other Zepathans who were swiftly headed this way to tell them what you found. By the time you returned to the site of the ritual...  Where the Minotaurs worked to dig in the dirt, you now see thousands upon thousands of minotaur skeletons which look as if they have been bleached white by the son, without a single scrap of flesh upon them or drop of blood. They ring a channel in the dirt within which are smaller bones which look to be those of humans in a sick soup of blood, organ and ichor. One of the Housemen vomit at the ungodly stench as well as two of your Balls.  Many small cracks in the ground are clear all over the scene. Where the altar stood you now see a tunnel about twenty feet wide, descending into the depths. Snarls looks like he is going to be ill at the scene. He coughs several times and then empties the contents of his stomach.  You give him some water, after a moment he thinks at you... They went below. Many still alive. Can smell. Several empty cages are near the hole, about enough for a hundred people? You feel a growing sense of unease, something terrible happened here. You tell Aaron what Snarls smelled. Aaron takes a deep breath, he looks to one of the Housemen and says to him "Yosef, return to Zepath with Danal and tell the King we went below. The rest of you, we are going in after them. If you wish to see your wives again, go now without shame, I release you." Your Balls murmur, as do the Housemen... they do not seem entirely behind the idea of chasing the invaders underground. Yet however they felt, you and Aaron followed them, intent to chase the demons into the belly of the earth if needed to save the people of Ibleam.  Deep, deep underground you pursued, scarcely imagining just how far underground one might actually go. Eventually it appeared that the Bnaimokt split their group in half and so Aaron split the Zepathan forces as well, he going with one half and you another. You eventually caught up the Bnaimokt, the smaller of the two groups.  The battle was fierce.  And not without losses. Paebel takes a javelin to the chest and nearly perishes. The pottery dagger Indor gave you years ago saved his life. You used some sort of... supernatural ability during the battle, heightening the coordination of you and your men, something you would come to call a "Ball Trance", you only ever remember the battle in glimpses and half forgotten whispers, you may as well have blacked out. Your left arm was broken in the battle by Bnaimokt magic as well as most of the bones in your left hand. You also lost a finger. Well, Snarls found it, but it was severed. Two of your Common Balls died in the battle. One died before your eyes. You watched a thick blue vapor, almost solid flow from his mouth. The vaporous form mimicked your Ball's appearance perfectly. He did not look in pain or afraid, he was very obviously confused as he reaches for you and says "What? I... I... drat! Give me a good statue, killing a deeeeemoooooon!" You would honor that request. Years later you would commission a master sculptor to make a true masterpiece, showing all of your Balls who had died up to that point on the steps of the temple of Ibleam, holding it from the Bnaimokt. The captives taken by the smaller, swifter Bnaimokt group? The children of Ibleam. You rescued close enough to five hundred of them who looked to you and your men with a mixture of fear, confusion and awe. Among the children you also found Ahaz, the infant son of king Ahaz. You adopted him as well. He was a bit of a black sheep of the Enkidel household, he never craved adventure or glory. Though you had to fight other monsters and terrors on the way up...   ...including a creature which resembled, but was not truly a Zviv, you and your men eventually escaped the bowels of the earth you would eventually reach the surface, as did Aaron and his group who had with them many survivors as well. Of the many notable deeds of your life few if any would win you more accolades or renown than your deeds at Ibleam. In the years ahead many foreigners would call you the Hero of Ibleam. You did a great and mighty deed and were honored by your people for it. And what of Uriah... You wanted to flee the temple and abandon the people of Ibleam to their fate. Only Uriah's courage and stubborn refusal to depart is what kept you there. You would eventually apologize to him unintentionally stealing his glory, a move he took graciously. This was not the only time Uriah would refuse to follow your orders demanding that valor take the day, though it was the most notable. You had your doctor sew back on your severed finger in a move he told you was completely insane. You became seriously ill later, probably from infection(not that the men of Ur have germ theory), yet you eventually recovered and regained full use of your finger. Well Blooded Men can’t just sew limbs back on, one more unexplained oddity for your rather strange life. You were lauded as a hero when you returned to Zepath. Though Zebanetha, the High Priest of El in Zepath requested you surrender the arms and armor made of a queer silvery metal which you took from the Bnaimokt. He was... evasive on the details as to why, yet you complied with this request as he was quite insistent. The Saga of Enkidel continues... tomorrow night. Diogines fucked around with this message at 03:54 on Jul 26, 2016 |
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Jul 26, 2016 02:27
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You can post again.
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Jul 26, 2016 02:27
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Typo. Second time period was age 28. Fixed.
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Jul 26, 2016 02:40
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Outrail posted:Our risk/reward inputs have been screwed from day one. Working hard gives middling payoffs, but going for broke pays off big 70% of the time and ends kinda bad but acceptably 25% of the time and then 5% of the time we get killed. Only we don't and usual learn something important. Alas, you don't always know them in advance. You decided to Ride the Lightning. Danal decided on good tactics. Diogines fucked around with this message at 16:02 on Jul 26, 2016 |
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Jul 26, 2016 15:54
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I plan to post more each night until we catch up, probably two or three more?
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Jul 26, 2016 19:09
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I could have sworn that was included in the first part of the recap on Sunday?
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Jul 26, 2016 19:22
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the_steve posted:It was mentioned, just not at great length. We have a lot of time to cover. Sacrifices had to be made!
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Jul 26, 2016 19:56
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the_steve posted:I wasn't complaining (for once), I was just confirming that you mentioned it.
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Jul 26, 2016 20:28
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Azuth0667 posted:I did not realize how stupid the breathing thing was until I read that recap. Did a melachim literally get eaten? Not included in the recap but during your visit to Baitel, you saw hundreds of Melachim statues line the road to the House of El. You recognized one of them as Asahel. When you asked a priest for the name of the Melachim depicted in the statue they said it represented an unnamed Melachim from the Old Tales who acted as a messenger.
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Jul 26, 2016 20:31
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Zahrkon posted:Asahel was still a melachim, just a Xephanim the least of thier number. Ophanim are the highest like Smythos/Smattas, Merieniel/Marnal, Damat, Ophal, Xuriel , Faradnu, Yafef, Badoma and Ganal. Not all, but many. There are a lot.
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Jul 26, 2016 20:32
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Fare is said to be the spawn of Quetzl, one of the great and terrible demons slain by the Melachim in the dawn of time. He is said to be like a great and terrible bird and reside in the mountains, the father of harpies. He is also said to stay in his home as he is crippled, with a broken leg and a broken wing, from battles against the first generations of Labaras's line.
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Jul 26, 2016 20:42
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Swedish Thaumocracy posted:Theories. That whole scene was certainly weird. A close examination of everything posted may yield more clues. Diogines fucked around with this message at 21:06 on Jul 26, 2016 |
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Jul 26, 2016 20:57
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That post was awesome but had a few errors. Snarls is... bigger. You didn't get a tooth from Everfang, did you? I don't reacall and am not at home to check. No one says Zepa made your armor. Tudiya's uncle made it. Your (second) goat necklace does not seem to have any supernatural properties. Manticore? Grove scorpion? Goblin battle? Memento from a trip to Baitel?
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Jul 26, 2016 22:44
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SKY COQ posted:
Nope.
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Jul 27, 2016 00:30
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I just bought a coffee. Diog posts no doubt incoming.
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Year Twenty Eight - Continued Ibleam has been destroyed. The free men of Ibleam died upon the field of battle in a valiant but ultimately failed struggle against the Bnaimokt, the legions of the demon Fare. Much of the populace died in the chaos and more was slain as they were carried off as captives. Whatever... deed that Ahaz, King of Ibleam called down to smite the demonic army bathed a portion of the land beyond Ibleam in fire and caused much of the city to tumble in an earthquake, killing more of its people as well. Yet your courage that day is never forgotten. Against seemingly impossible odds your men won an astounding victory. Those you and your men saved in the temple seemed resolute in their belief that the Balls of Labaras were sent by El himself and with his unseen hand guiding all, can you be so sure you were not? Well you do. In the years ahead you suffer more than one crisis of faith, even if those you saved did not. You maintained outwards appearances of what society would expect, regardless of your own doubts. One concern of Naomi for much of your marriage was to make you seem respectable for despite your great stature your skin marked you as different. To that end you have for much of your marriage been a generous host, inviting foreign merchants visiting in the city to stay or feast at your home. One of them, your friend Lu-Shalim surely died among the men of Ibleam. His wife Sabit was among the survivors in Ibleam. You witnessed the tearful reunion between her, her daughter and son and with tears in her eyes she hugged you saying "Bless you Enkidel! May El bless you forever!" She sobbed as she clutched her children close. Her eldest daughter and infant son survived... several of her other children did not. Sabit is destitute now, her house is destroyed, her husband dead and most of her male relatives as well. You tell her not to worry that "Your husband was a good man and I have no doubt he would provide for my family if El forbid such a tragedy befell Zepath. You will come to Zepath with your children, I will provide for you until you re-marry" Overcome by emotion, she tells you that "I... I... thank you Enkidel." While you make a few... morally questionable decisions in your life you are on the whole a kind and generous man, concerned for the welfare of others. One day during the walk to Zepath, David the son of Ahaz, the last King of Ibleam says to you "When I grow up, can I be hero like you?" The other children look to see your response, similar thoughts seem to be on their mind. Considering a month ago all of these children were dead-certain you were a cannibal who Tudiya fed people to as punishment, this is a pretty big upgrade to your reputation? You put a hand on your chin and think for a long moment, then say to him "No man is born a hero child. Heroes are not born of their Blood, but rise to greatness through their will. If you truly wish to be, yes, you can be a hero." David's eyes light up "Truly?" You tell him "Yes, why, Snarls can smell heroes, he has an amazing nose. What do you think boy? Does he have what it takes" Snarls gives a bark. "That means yes" Paebel says. David is ecstatic. You return to Zepath with your men and a few refugees. You give a mostly truthful account of what occurred, though you gloss over the details which are personally embarrassing to you, such as the fact that you intended to leave to die, hundreds of women and children who cried out to you to save them. You lavished praise upon your Balls. [...] Though he was evasive as to why, Zebanetha the High Priest in Zepath asked you give over all of the armaments you took from the Bnaimokt. You complied. Though he offered no reward after you delivered what you took, Zebanetha thanks you saying saying "I know how much you loathe to not be given an answer Enkidel, but for saving El's temple, the least we can do is give you an appropriate reward. Come with me." Zebanetha leads you into a chamber deeper in the temple, he knocks on a door and you hear several bars move. Two guards stand within.  You are offered a reward from the vault in El's temple. You have long wondered what exactly was down there. Even if the occasion to use such is rare indeed, El's temple has a direct line to God and must have had some pretty good stuff down there. You make your pick from the rewards offered. One piece in particular caught your eye.  A strange clay vessel with no opening. When you ask Zebanetha what it is he says "The side must be pierced. A liquid lay within. If drunk, it shall cure nearly any disease and save a man from death from nearly any injury, no matter how dire." You are aware of the fact that El's temple can provide curatives of shocking power but that the strongest of such divine aid is generally not something that can be bought, rather, it is given for a specific purpose or as a reward. You are being offered one such curative. Zebanetha blessed you as you left, saying "You have done well child, may El watch over you." During one adventure later in your life you came very, very close to dying. Having that miraculous curative on hand was likely the only reason you survived. [...] Tudiya calls his counsel and you attend. The matter of Ibleam and refugees are discussed. Garrisoning Ibleam with men from Zepath is seriously discussed. As is attacking Barkof's glorified bandit camp as a show of force to your neighbors that Zepath remains strong. Danal even urges an attack on the mountains. You suggest garrisoning Ibleam and propose a complicated plan for the region. You speak well but Tudiya does not adopt your plan and ultimately decides to resettle as many of the Ibleamites as wish to come in Zepath. Considering the rivalry between Zepath and Ibleam goes back for generations this was rather a compassionate move on his part, Tudiya deciding then that they were ultimately Zepathans as well since the men of Ibleam were once the men of Zepath. Tudiya also decided to claim Ibleam's treasury, buried in the rubble. With demons stirring in the mountains and Ibleam destroyed, you volunteer your men to Tudiya to bolster the routine patrols of the Mighty Men of Zepath. When you met with Ishamal after the events of Ibleam you decide to keep your "Arrow Time" and "Ball Trance" a secret. He answers some of your questions of the demons, giving hints at some knowledge he may possess of them but he remained closed lipped on many of your questions, something you found tremendously frustrating at the time. You spoke with Indor, her information was not as helpful but she was less elusive. quote:From Tudiya's home you fetch young David and his infant brother, who was named after his father, Ahaz. David is only 9 or so, only a little older than your son Asahel. When you tell David that he is going to live with you now, he seems pleased at the prospect, saying "I get to stay here?" After a moment's contemplation he asks "Are you my father now?" Not all of your men were pleased at the Temple of El asking for the Bnaimokt metal. Though a small minority, several of your Balls are heretics. Your best friend Paebel. The adventurer Eleazar. Three others. They, along with your smith-Ball Adina (who is not a heretic) were rather upset at the Bnaimokt metal being taken and hid some of it, thinking it was your will, that you only gave it up because you had to. Indor actually urged you be rid of the stuff as well. You handed it all over to Zebanetha, Zebanetha asks you no questions as to where this metal came from and you volunteered nothing, the old man thanked you as you delivered the metal and said "It is for the best Enkidel." [b]Year Thirty One  Time as it has a habit of doing, passes. Three more years have gone by, you are now 31. Naomi is 35. Ruth is 13, Asahel is 11, David is 12 and Ahaz is 4. Your brother Danal is 26. Your an El-drat giant, now nine feet and six inches tall.  You benefit from physical strength equivalent to that of forty men of a fit build. You have a very significant benefit to your overall endurance. You have a very significant benefit to your reflexes. Y_@ pR1 M&aLB!H_M*/ O(^XxMQ >X0013a. Any more than a very significant expenditure of [???] will drive you from reason. Word has spread of the destruction of Ibleam yet the men of Zepath do not panic. Trade slows for a time in the months after the destruction of Ibleam but from what you hear from foreign merchants, they do not seem overly worried that such a fate might befall their city. The consensus of the foreign traders seems to be that Ibleam was small and weak. Small? It was larger than Zepath, yet from the perspective of foreign traders still, it was tiny. Most traders who come to Zepath come through Tanaach or Ibleam. With the destruction of the city, trade has slowed. The prices of many imported goods has begun to rise, especially metals for Zepath is poor in such things. Of the Ibleamite refugees, it seems that about half the women made for Zepath and half for Dor, the northern neighbor of Ibleam. Nearly all of the male survivors of Ibleam are the slaves you freed, for slaves surely would not fight in times of war and thus they survived. Most were carried off by the Norcs, yet rescued, nearly all of them have come to Zepath. More than once over the last few years, men from Dor have come to Zepath seeking to claim the slaves of their Ibleamite relatives as their property, for when Ibleam fell you declared any slave who did not have a master in Ibleam to claim them. Many slave owners in Ibleam had distant relatives in Dor, who wished to claim their human property.  Such men tried to drag the (former?) slaves before Tudiya upon the King's Chair. You were present for the first of such claims, which came from one of Dor's Mighty Men, who came all the way to Zepath with several of his cousins to claim a dozen men as their property. Dor is as you know, Zepath's eastern neighbor and a foe of Barkof, it is north of Ibleam. You told Tudiya that the slaves should remain free, but spoke little else. After considering the man's arguments for a time Tudiya proclaimed that "It is an evil that you and your kin were denied your property and an evil which cannot be allowed to stand-" The Doran Mighty Man bowed his head and said "You are a wise and just ruler Tudiya". "-yet" Tudiya said "it would be a graver evil for a man to be thrown into chains if he was not truly a slave. I am not of Ibleam nor are your kin, can we be certain that all those your people would claim as their slaves are truly theirs? Southeast of Ibleam lay a hole into the depths where my sons did battle with the demons. We shall erect an altar there. Any man of Dor who would reclaim their property need only come here, take the man he would claim as a slave and then take the man to the altar to swear upon it to El that the man is his slave. If a man of your city does this, the man shall leave again a slave." The Doran Mighty Man frowned. In the weeks ahead... no man of Dor came to reclaim any of the former slaves. Your wealth continues to grow. Naomi manages your household well. Much of your wealth from the trip to Baitel has been invested in livestock and land beyond the city. One of the Mighty Men of Zepath, the Mighty man Obel helped train your group when it was first made. In thanks for bringing two of his relatives back alive from the trip in which you slew the Zviv, he gave you a valuable slave, a doctor. Hiddai never liked you and he hated the heretics in your group though he served you well regardless of his animosity. You once offered him his freedom but he declined to take it. Shortly after you returned from Ibleam he asked to be freed and you did so, even giving him a generous amount of silver to start his life anew. Hiddai did not even want to fight in Ibleam, not from cowardice, he thought the duty of the Balls was to fight for Zepath, not the sinners in Ibleam. You two never really saw eye to eye on much. Despite the fact he had... more than a little bit of information with which you blackmail you, as best you know he kept your secrets even after you freed him. After you gave him the silver he told you "May El watch over you Enkidel and keep an eye on Paebel and the rest, my lips remain sealed but I fear they will lead you to evil." He saved the life of a number of your Balls over the years. Hunting monsters is one thing. Patrolling Zepath's large borders is another. During this period of time you committed yourself and your men more towards Zepath's defense than monster hunting. This took much of your time, but not all of it. Ishamal's training continued to take up a large portion of what remained of your time. Progress was slow. At times painfully slow and during it there were long and frustrating periods where you were certain you were wasting your time and accomplishing nothing. Perhaps looking back you realize that the progress was slow, very slow, but steady? Still at times some small part of you feared that Ishamal was an incompetent teacher or worse, sabotaging you... Ishamal remained kind and patient to you, a man with many demands on his time he gave much of it to you. He continued to have you drill trying to move small quantities of liquid or small objects but you continue to feel your mind expand.  "Think of nothing" Ishamal told you. "Become nothing. Focus on your breathing and upon the space between your breaths and nothing else." This took the form of a fair amount of holding your breath in a dark room, blindfolded but he said you were making good progress. Ishamal's training has had other effects, though ones you have hidden from him. Your ability to invoke Arrow Time has become less draining of [???], as does entering a Ball Trance. [???] seems to be regenerating(is that the right term?) more quickly, though it is still a slow process and it may take months to replenish if [???] was fully depleted. During this period of time a small but steady stream of young men from nearby cities, would be adventurers have come to visit you. They have heard of the beasts you have slain and of your great deeds in Ibleam and they seem to think you some sort of a hero! They want you to train them to become adventurers! A fair number of Zepathan youths wished this as well. Some of the young men who came to visit me are Blooded, most are not. The sad truth is that most of them are going to wind up minotaur meat if they try to become adventurers, they just are not tough enough to survive at it. You sent such men away as gently as you could, trying not to crush their dreams but making clear you did not wish to teach them, nor help them. You continue to practice archery though it was a low priority. You used up all of the healing supplies Indor gave you and helped hunt wild beasts with Puabi to help restock them. You expanded your Balls from 32 in number to 41, replacing casualties and gaining some new recruits. [...] You decided you wished to see in secret, the Melachim worshipers at their rituals. It is an open secret now that in the wilderness west of the city your friend Paebel meets with a number of other Melachim worshipers to make offerings. Many, though not a majority of those who swore themselves loyal to El again after the events at Bareen's temple have returned to their faith and they seem to have some other converts as well. Including a fair number of the Ibleamite former slaves. Your friend Paebel is a Melachim worshiper, as well as three of your Common Balls, your devoted servant Gaddiel and the adventurer Eleazar. It seems they have begun work on expanding the site of their worship. Once they met in many places west of the city and moved often, more recently they erected a large stone altar. It seems they have begun to raise up stones as well, to build a small temple.  You creep upon them one evening and watch to see what occurs. You already knew, but now you have seen for yourself, that Paebel officiates the priestly duties, though two older Zepathan farming women you don't know well do the duties as well. A number of people come before the altar and bring offerings of meat or wheat or the goods and place them upon the altar, or the goods of their trades and place them beside the altar. The food burns easily enough but there is nothing supernatural about it. As you watch distantly in the darkness of the evening, you overhear their prayers. Most pray for health or success in their labors or thanksgiving for prosperity, the Ophanim who they seem most fond of seems to be Smattas by a fair margin, but a number of offerings are also made to Marnal, Badoma the patron Ophanim of farming and Damat, the patron Ophanim of Zepath. Paebel brings the largest sacrifice of the evening to the altar, a young goat. Those present are nearly all from the lowest classes of society and their offerings poor and meager, the goat is the largest offering you see that eve. Prayers are said. Prayers that the Ophanim continue to watch over you, guide you and protect you, so that you in turn, will protect them. Paebel concludes the sacrifices. The two old women pass out some food to the poorest of those present and Paebel and Eleazar pass out a few small bits of silver as well. It is not heretical to pray for someone else's prosperity. Offerings are made at El's temple to ask for the wellbeing of friends or relatives. Of course those are made to El. [...] You trained a bit more with Aaron how to sneak about in the wilds but your attention was focused on other matters, such as your training with Ishamal, monster slaying, training with your bow and being a good father and husband. There are only so many hours in the day. You remain highly skilled at sneaking unseen through the wilds, less so in urban environments. [...] You spend a bit of time beside Tudiya upon the King's Chair and at times, sit upon it for him, something which pleased him greatly. The matters brought before you were usually mundane and boring matters related to commerce. [...] Danal has fathered a son, much to the joy of Tudiya and the entire city. After having fathered two daughters, to father a son at such a young age while being from the main line of Zepa, this is an obvious sign of El's pleasure and blessing upon your entire family! Tudiya could not be more pleased. [...] Young Ahaz knows only you as his father and the boy wants to grow up to be a hero one day, just as his father. Asahel has similar thoughts, as does David. David and Asahel became fast friends and are often in the wilderness close beyond the city, hunting wild game and pretending to be heroes. You have taught both of them a great deal about how to be safe in the wilds and Asahel has been an apt study. Both know well the dangers of going too far on their own and they often bring Snarls with them. You begin taking them to join your Balls on patrol. Yet Ruth is not very lady like. You have hired tutors for her taught her math and reading far beyond what she would need to manage a man's household. You had a bow made special for her and she is rather a good shot with it, often running off with her brothers to hunt wild game instead of learning to sew, much to her mother's displeasure. You have filled her head with other ideas as well, ideas about the role of women in your society. You walk a very close line in your association with Melachim worshiping heretics, perhaps ideas about the role of genders you took from Athar are even more heretical? Who can say. Your home is usually a happy and calm place but over the last few months Naomi and Ruth have begun to argue, often. In fact, the two of them just got into ANOTHER fight! Naomi caught Ruth when she got home after sneaking off to go hunting again with her brothers to go play in the wilds! Ruth believes she is the equal of any man. You have made up your mind. Ruth is going to get her wish, you will teach her the family trade, adventuring and monster hunting and she will not be forced to marry. Naomi was upset but relented. You decide that you will ask Paebel to mentor your daughter further in archery, as well as teach her more of survival in the wilderness and stealth. Paebel is... apprehensive when you ask him, saying to you "Enkidel, people are going... to talk." Oh? Really? That the giant dark-skinned demon slayer has a strange family life? You don't say? [Capybara Note - Despite a number of Goons alternatively hoping and / or fearing a creepy relationship between Ruth and Paebel, a man old enough to be her father, NOTHING ever happened between them. Paebel kept it professional. Word of Fred]. [...] Your Balls have not seen some real action in some time and towards the end of the year they want to go off on an adventure. Among the more interesting ideas your men proposed...  Danal wants to head towards the jungles of Athar and go monster hunting there.  Eleazar says "North of Tanaach is the hill county and within it, somewhere, a great lake underground where it is said lives the Orm. The beast is sedentary and just far enough from Tanaach that it's kings have left it be. It is said it have a great trove of treasure in its lair. It will be a hard fight and we may not all return, but we shall surely be victorious!" Uriah wants to begin a guerilla war against Barkof's followers. Adina wants to go spelunking.  The grizzled retired merchant Agamemnon says "It is said that somewhere far to the southeast, at the edge of the Mountains of Fare, nestled among the hills is a land of giants, ruled over by the greatest of their kind, Amok. Those who sometimes wander near Zepath are said to be those who have left that land. Is it true? Who can say? Perhaps you can find out and if not, perhaps you might slay a few giants all the same?" You ask Zebanetha for some leads and he tells you that "The countryside near Zepath has been safer than it has been in years. I am afraid I have no monster slaying for you, nor much in the way of a reward but perhaps a needful task?" Zebanetha tells you that of the road from Kitron to Heres, about five weeks north, telling you that "There have been disappearances along the road. Not in great numbers. Nor men of great note. A traveler might leave and never arrive. A man may leave a caravan to make water and not return. Small numbers of travelers have disappeared and none have seen anything. I am told one of locals kings sent some Mighty Men to search but found nothing and blame it on a lion. A merchant from Heres told me of it a few days ago when he came to make an offering and ask for El's protection before he went home. I cannot offer much of a reward I am afraid. It could simply be a wild lion. It could be bandits, I do not know." You pick Zebanetha's idea.  You have a few leads on the disappearances. A lion? Bandits? An abusive Blooded man hunting people for sport? If men of substance in the region resent having a foreigner looking into local problems, many of the more commonly born men welcome the Hero of Ibleam warmly. You enjoy a little bit of hero worship and are especially warmly greeted by El's clergy pretty much everywhere you go. You find enough men in the area willing to talk to you to confirm that there ARE disappearances happening but you have no firm leads on why. You turn to Snarls's nose and search along the sides of the road for anything... odd.  On the third day of your trip down the road.... Man blood. Not fresh. Off the path. Old. How far away is it Snarls? Not close. Day?  You just saw something atop a very tall hill to the north of you, far in the distance.  You see a wooden stake at the top of the hill and atop it, a skull, facing south, towards the road. The thing is not painted, but looks covered in blood. A red glow comes from one eye, grows in intensity and dimming as if it were a heartbeat. The skull remains stationary and unmoving. A man with lesser vision would surely not have seen the thing at this distance, if at all. From atop that hill, the skull looks to have an excellent view of everything to the south of it. It might even be able to see the road, which lay far behind you? Searching the area you eventually find a cave.  You gather up your men from their own searches and all go to the cave. Snarls smells men and goblins inside among other, strange things. As your Balls discussed strategies for the coming battle, your Priest-Ball Jobe suggested to you that "El has been with us in every battle, let us make sure he is in this one. Let us erect an altar beyond the cave and make an offering upon it, challenging the brutes and their demonic masters, thus they will leave the cave and we will earn El's favor, both." Your Balls manage to catch a deer not far from the cave. An altar is hastily built outside of the cave. You and your Balls are in a good position to protect Jobe as he loudly gives thanks to El for past victories and asks for his aid in battle this day against your foes. Whether or not this shall truly give you divine aid, it makes your men feel braver at least, to know your god is with you. Perhaps you were before, but you have a realization you are being watched and know with certainly a few moments later when a goblin within the cave cries out in alarm. You hear many other voices yelling, mostly goblins but some men as well and a deep, rumbling one you suspect to be a giant. You hear one male voice cry out "It's Tudiya!" another answers him yelling "Grab your sword! It's the bloody balls of Labaras!" Men and goblins emerge from the cave and you recognize their leader at once. It is Jesbaam. The right hand man of Bareen, the High Priestess of the Temple of the Melachim. On the day that the temple was destroyed he fled along with a number of Bareen's most well trained followers. Jesbaam speaks "If Bareen could not save you, I have no illusions I can. I am a practical man and vengeance for my brothers will wait another day, for I value those still living more than your death." Vengeance for his brothers-? Ah... you... did kill quite a lot of people with your bow in the Temple of the Melachim all those years ago. Jesbaam says "Word of Ibleam has reached us. It seems you have slain a beast or two. If we fight, many of my brothers will die before I bleed you out and I would have them live. I propose you withdraw, we will be forced to find a new refuge and that shall be that. We have been found, even if I win, others will come searching and thus we must flee." He had a few... interesting things to say during your conversation with him, among them: Enkidel: "You fight side by side with monsters?!" Jesbaam: "They at least seek my protection willingly, how many of those fighting for you are your slaves?" [Capybara Note - Not addressed much in the recap but the Melachim worshipers believe in gender equality and the abolition of slavery] Enkidel: "If you truly are most concerned with saving lives, explain what you are doing here and why we should leave you be, so I can judge the truth of your words." Jesbaam: "Surviving. Gathering what we can before the storm hits with its fury. The Betrayers line grows weak and without the protection of the Melachim, Ibleam was the first, but shan't be the last." Enkidel: "Tell us why you use foul magics to hide your dwelling?" Jesbaam: "Jesbaam says "We use what tools we are forced to. Bareen thought the Melachim might be roused to save us, but... it is too late now. The Bnaimokt are only the first of what is to come." Enkidel: "Worshiping the Melachim is one thing, but consorting with Demons?" Jesbaam: He scowls then says "We have done no such thing." Enkidel: "Then explain the disappearances on the road. Simply your "gathering?" Jesbaam: "I have done what I must. What the Betrayers have hoarded in secret, Bareen knew. If we cross blades this day, the one thing I promise is many of your Balls shall die today. The rest is with Ganal. Take your men, go and I shall do the same." [Capybara Note - Not covered in the recap. Another tenant of the faith of Bareen's followers is that while Labaras was certainly a swell guy, that his children were treacherous bastards who betrayed mankind. They think El is fictitious, a lie to justify the divine right to rule claimed by the Blooded. They claim that the wars and infighting caused by Labaras's grandsons] Enkidel: "Tell me what you know of this Storm." Jesbaam: "It is the end. The offspring of the Betrayers forget their horded secrets and cannot maintain the lie of an invisible protective hand forever. Ibleam fell, but it will not be the last. The Melachim will not save us, they have turned their back on the world. They gave us Paradise and we spat it in their faces. Perhaps the slaughter of the masses will move them to mercy but only that, the Bnaimokt will rise from the south and the dragons in the north, Asherah's spawn will depart the depths. The end is coming. Leave us be and you may yet live to see it." Enkidel: "And what do you intend on doing to stop Ur from ending?" Jesbaam: "There is nothing I can do. When torrents of blood fill the streets of every city, when the line of the Betrayers is exterminated, then I can pray, that the Melachim may yet take pity on us and return to save those who remain. Survive as long as we can. And pray mankind's crimes may yet be forgiven." During the conversation it becomes obvious that Jesbaam knows... what? Sorcery? What he called the Mysteries, saying to you "Because those Mysteries which the line of the Betrayers so jealousy guard, I know and shall use this day to lethal effect." He holds up his sword, a bolt of lightning arcs off it and into the crude altar between the two of you.  The stone altar explodes in a shower of rock fragments, Jobe dives to the ground and many of your Balls lift their shields to protect them from the shrapnel. If Jesbaam had that sword in Zepath, you never saw it. Lightning flickers along it's edge. Jesbaam says in a menacing tone "If we fight, Danal dies first." Uriah yells out that he will "Stick that toy up your puckered rear end in a top hat you demon loving whore! Fare will slide in all the easier next time!" Jesbaam says "Still. Danal dies first, if you force this battle." With that sword in hand it looks like he had the means to deliver on the threat. The weapon he has is... fantastical, you've never seen anything like it or heard of anything of it's like outside of the Old Tales. In heroic fashion you challenge Jesbaam to a duel. He accepted. If he won, you would be his prisoner and your ment would depart. If you won, his men would surrender, though you would let his wife and daughter go. You say to Jesbaam that "I understand what you're doing. But this is hardly how one prepares for years of hardship." These cryptic words mean nothing to your Balls, yet Jesbaam says in a somber tone "It is the only way we can." Diogines posted:You would surely do Tudiya proud this day, for you have taken a page directly out of his play book, Uriah would also think this is rather a wise idea as well. You fought with El in your heart. Alas. El did not seem to grant you sufficient resistance to lightning. You do not yield and your men, obeying your orders, do not interfere in the duel. At least for a time. Your Balls have stopped chanting for you to get up. You hear Uriah yell "I have had ENOUGH of this! BALLS! ADVANCE!" A moment later you hear sound of Nahari nailing Uriah in the side of the face as hard as he can!  The next sound you think you hear is probably Nahari nailing Uriah in the head with his shield? You don't have a good view of the two, you don't have any view in fact, you are pretending to be asleep and your eyes are closed but from what you DO hear, Nahari and Uriah are currently engaged in a fist fight. Uriah has the advantage of being more Blooded and is undeniably stronger, yet Nahari has the advantage of age and seems to have better reflexes? You hear the two exchange blows, curse and swear as they continue to try to beat the hell out of each other.  If you had to guess, Nahari's actions are probably more rooted in a desire to follow your orders, rather than his opposition to interfering with a duel? This was not much of a duel after all. You ordered your Balls to not interfere and Nahari is enforcing your will. Or trying to anyway. Nahari would actually fight Uriah more than a few times during the years ahead when Uriah wanted to disobey your orders, whether it was right or wrong to do so. Nahari was steadfast and reliable, you could always rely on him to do as you commanded, even if it was unwise. You refuse to yield and pretend to be unconscious, hoping Jesbaam will come close and you can sucker punch him. At that, Jesbaam declares "If you are asleep then the duel is won and you are my prisoner. My brothers will bind you in a moment. If you think to deceive me, this is the time to yield, for I will stand aside, sword ready while my brothers bind you. Move an inch and I will do what I must." After a moment Jesbaam says "If any of you take a step, I will simply kill him." He was likely talking to your Balls? When Jesbaam's men try to tie you up, you manage to grab one of them, yet Jesbaam kept his distance...  You try to throw one of his men at him.  You even manage to charge at him and smash into him, knocking him over. But not before he strikes you with his sword a final time and as a consequence of repeated electrocution you are simply spent. Jesbaam coughs, rises and grips your hair in one hand as he presses his blade to your throat with the other. With a cough for breath you hear him say "Tell the Ophanim we are worth saving."    You feel your life's blood pouring out of the gaping wound in your neck and watch as your Balls charge towards you. You are in pain, your muscles ache and you feel yourself growing tired... Snarls... you need to.... COMING!!!!! DON'T LEAVE THE PACK! NO! NO NO NO NO NO! You hear desperation and grief in Snarl's voice, but he needs to stop... listen... he... No... Snarls... listen... you need to... Paebel... pack...  Paebel... you... the... need... You cannot move and each breath is labored and requires too much. You are tired... very tired. Danal... co.... DON'T GO! LOVE YOU!  "I can't carry you! Stand up!" You gasp for breath and see Paebel leaning over you, trying to pull you up by your shoulders, Snarls is beside you. A rather exasperated older man, the doctor you hired is beside you as well. You are disoriented and ache all over. You may be able walk but are in absolutely no condition to fight, you feel dizzy and light headed, everything seems too bright and the sounds all too loud and disorienting. Your servant Gaddiel says "Master! Please! We have to go!"  You hear the sounds of combat. You turn your head to see your Balls fighting a great many goblins in the mouth of the cave. You think you see at least one of your Balls already dead, between the noise of the fray and the blinding light of the sun, you can't be certain.  Snarls is atop you now, furiously licking your face.  !!!!!!!!ALIVE!!!!!!!! Jesbaam and his followers have fled into the cave, your men pushed them back. Apparently a lightning sword, while highly effective against a single target, less effective at dozens of really, really angry men in armor. The reward you received from El's temple for your actions in Ibleam? Paebel used it on you, saving your life. One of your own men died in the battle, your men retreated carrying you with them. There is no mixing words. You lost the battle and escaped, barely, with your life. [???] was reduced a significant amount as well.  When you tell Zebanetha what occurred he seemed genuinely shocked that you found Jesbaam, telling you "I... I thought perhaps a lion of some sort or perhaps some bandits? I had no idea Enkidel. I am truly sorry. I would not have sent you to track down such a man had I known." Zebanetha did not summon you and send you off to track down Jesbaam, you asked him for a task for El. He said he had nothing for you, but the words of a merchant and when he dispatched you, he seemed to think the task beneath your Balls. It seems he was sorely mistaken? He did not even offer a reward, it seemed like a minor thing to him. [...] We shall continue, tomorrow. At this rate I expect to do a little more each night and update either Friday night or in the earlier part of the day on Saturday.
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Jul 27, 2016 03:08
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