RuneScape Forum Archive | The Weapons of Destiny

Dantalian

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“Terrethus was defeated?” said Zaros' shadow, “Impressive, I had not expected those foolish generals to succeed, at least not without a couple of casualties.”

The god's shadow turned to face his elites; Sliske, Orcris, Amatsu, Weva, Ruko, Azzanadra, and the recently freed Nex.

“If it had just been the god generals,” said Amatsu, “You probably would've been correct. However, it appears we had some interference.”

“Interference?” questioned Zaros, “In what way?”

“That boy, the one who caught Terrethus' attack, and used dragonfire, I assume,” said Orcris, “Who or what is he? A normal human should not be able to perform those feats.”

“As expected of Orcris,” said Amatsu, “You remembered him. Did you notice his partner?”

“He had a partner as well?” asked Azzanadra, “I didn't notice anyone.”

“The peddler by the front gate,” replied Amatsu, “He was as great a threat as the young man who fought Terrethus. The two of them alone could have probably handled an ancient demon by themselves.”

“And I assume you know those two?” asked Zaros.

“Indeed,” answered Amatsu, “Diarmaid Kavanagh and Einsem Wershlingn. Orcris, I'm sure you remember Ayumu of the Cult of Darkness?”

“I do,” replied Orcris.

“He is one of the six soldiers make up Mephos' personal guard. Though I'm not sure exactly how this works; apparently each is capable of holding a portion of the Mephos' own power, gaining extensive skills at the cost of temporarily weakening their leader. Ayumu is probably the weakest of the six, Einsem and Diarmaid are two of the strongest. I know for a fact that another, Tyr Rolvsson was active on Muspellheim, it's not much of a stretch to assume he was arrived on Gielinor as well. The two others are Francis Bennet and Katsu Oshiro. Francis is a bookworm who normally disdains fighting, and Katsu is a freedom-loving swordsman, so it's possible that neither is present, but if they are... the six could pose a grave hurdle to us.*

*I thought you dealt with Mephos,” groaned Zaros. "He appears in the Form of a Man with many Countenances; and he hath a Book in his right hand. His Office is to teach all Arts and Sciences unto any; and to declare the Secret Counsel of any one."

29-Dec-2011 03:32:57

Dantalian

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“I also believed such was the case,” replied Amatsu, “Apparently, I underestimated his tenacity. However, the presence of the six guards may indicate that Mephos is still unable to fight. Since they can borrow portions of his power, Mephos usually will not appear himself while those six are active. I suspect that the incubus is still too injured to fight himself, so he is using his guards as proxies. Of course, this does not necessarily mean he's unable to get involved; Mephos rarely gets directly involved with anything except out of dire necessity. I will add though, that normally when he uses the guards he is performing activities on several worlds at once... the presence of a number of these indicates we have his undivided attention.”

“So what? What are six people, no matter how powerful, going to do against us?” questioned Ruko. “Let that pretentious Skotun do as he pleases, his best efforts means nothing.”

“You, underestimate your enemies,” commented Sliske, “Already, multiple threats are closing in on us, and we may not ignore any of them.”

“Do you know something, Sliske?” asked Azzanadra, “You speak as if you have first hand knowledge of some other threat.”

“Threat?” questioned Sliske, “Oh, it is so much more than that. I assume you all are aware of the situation in Morytania? A small, but powerful group of rebels, led by a half-Icyene have been meddling in the affairs of the vampyres. Ravis is dead, and Lowerniel, Zamorak's loyal ally ignores the growing crisis in his region. Meanwhile, his sister, Vanescula, is slowly consolidating power.”

“Yes, we are aware,” said Zaros, “We extended an offer to her; that she could join with us. Which, she will most likely accept, Saradomin has little love for creatures of the night.” "He appears in the Form of a Man with many Countenances; and he hath a Book in his right hand. His Office is to teach all Arts and Sciences unto any; and to declare the Secret Counsel of any one."

29-Dec-2011 03:33:27

Dantalian

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“True, my lord,” said Sliske, “And indeed, she most likely would have joined us; after all, she is working to overthrow Zamorak's favored ally. However... that was before; when her options were us, Zamorak, or going alone. The options have changed.”

Everyone in the room, even the seemingly ever-composed Amatsu seemed concerned at this.

“Continue,” said Zaros.

“Master,” continued Sliske, “As you ordered, I kept a close watch on the Sanguisti region, looking to endear ourselves with Vanescula. A complication arose... she has a guest, who could turn her against us.”

“I assume this guest has been... disposed of,” said Zaros.

Sliske shivered and shook his head. “I never stood a chance,” he said softly, “It was an odd night that she arrived... unseasonably cold; sending the frail humans indoors to huddle amongst their meager fires. The night caught my curiosity, so I took the form of a juvinate and walked out amongst the town. Oddly, I noticed the moon seem bigger, and I could almost swear it gave off a violet glow. While I tried to decipher the meaning of this, a mist rolled in from the sea. Whether it was a trick of my mind, the moon, or something else, I'm not sure, but the mist had a red hue, and the scent of blood. Then before I knew it, I felt a presence behind me... I turned and found myself facing a young women. She was oddly dressed, in an expensive looking lavender-colored dress, wearing a mob cap and with a parasol in hand.

Even more odd than her clothes were her features; pale, translucent skin, and short midnight blue hair... but what most caught my attention were her eyes; blood red, shining with intelligence... and power. "He appears in the Form of a Man with many Countenances; and he hath a Book in his right hand. His Office is to teach all Arts and Sciences unto any; and to declare the Secret Counsel of any one."

29-Dec-2011 03:34:14

Dantalian

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For the first time in my long life, I panicked. I had recognized her for what she was, of course; a vampyre, one of such immense power that even the mighty Drakan seemed like a child compared to her. More importantly, she recognized me for what I was, and it amused her. She gave me a smirk, showing her fangs for a brief moment, then continued on her way... I wanted to strike her down, but knew that should I try, my life would be forfeit.”

The room went silent, Sliske was not known for exaggerating, and yet, if what he said was true, then a vampyre more powerful than any yet seen in Gielinor had appeared.

“Sliske,” said Amatsu, his voice so soft that the others had to strain to hear him. “Did your spies happen to catch this vampyre's name?”

“Not the whole name,” answered Sliske, “She apparently is referred to as Lady Tepes.”

Amatsu went as pale as a ghost, and he let himself slide back into his chair.

“Another person you know?* asked Zaros.

Amatsu nodded and said, “It seems I underestimated Mephos; I had anticipated the slight possibility of him sending the six... but to think... the Tepes family...

Tell me, what does anyone here know of the Skotun or their society?”

“Skotun are creatures of darkness, the beloved creations of an ancient god,” volunteered Azzanadra, “They are known for their impressive control of magic and their secrecy. They are, just like us mahjarrat, often mistaken for demons, due no doubt in part to preaching from their sworn enemies, the Luxiarch. They are humanoid in appearance, save for unusual eye and hair colors, a leathery tail, and bat-like wings.”

“A good overview,” said Amatsu, “However, it only scratches the surface... may I venture to guess you have this knowledge from recorded encounters between the Skotun and your race, the mahjarrat?”

“Yes,” answered Azzanadra, “Our kinds have crossed paths before, sometime as enemies, other times as allies.” "He appears in the Form of a Man with many Countenances; and he hath a Book in his right hand. His Office is to teach all Arts and Sciences unto any; and to declare the Secret Counsel of any one."

29-Dec-2011 03:34:46

Dantalian

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“But,” said Amatsu, “I am going to guess your primary encounters have been with outer land Skotun... there are two societies in Niflheim, the Outer Lands, ruled by Apis, the serpent queen, and the Inner Lands, ruled by the Night Lords and the Dark Mother. While the two types of Skotun are very similar, there are some major differences you should be aware of...

The inner land of Niflheim is ruled... in a sense, by twelve people known as the Night Lords, and a final ruler referred to as the Dark Mother. Among the night lords, the most important are the dark mother and the four called the Dark Emperors, or, in their language, the Ryning. You may be aware of the Ryning already; Seima, also called the Black Sun, Mephos, the Shadow Mist, Kutheostra, the Ebon Fortress, and Nepthys, the Tenebrous Watcher... In Niflheim, the Ryning control the flow of magic via the five moons. The moons of Niflheim act as conduits for mystical power, and by controlling them, the Ryning can increase or decrease the amount of magic in Niflheim. The actual method of doing this is complex, and would take too long to explain in detail here, so I will stick to a somewhat simplified version. "He appears in the Form of a Man with many Countenances; and he hath a Book in his right hand. His Office is to teach all Arts and Sciences unto any; and to declare the Secret Counsel of any one."

29-Dec-2011 03:35:27 - Last edited on 31-Dec-2011 00:24:30 by Dantalian

Dantalian

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The control of the moons grants each of the Ryning immense amounts of mystical energy... provided they are on Niflheim. However, as you might imagine, there is a potential problem caused by allowing a single person so much control over what is essentially a gateway for the magic of the world. Specifically, you might recall that Mephos was essentially missing for some time now, which would imply that the violet moon he controls was not allowing magic into Niflheim, which of course would greatly weaken the magicians and enchantments relying on the violet moon for energy. To handle this possibility, that of a Ryning being unable to control her or his moon, the Dark Mother instituted certain fail-safes; each Ryning is required to choose lieutenants who receive a portion of the power the Ryning gets from controlling one of the moons. This allows the lieutenants to ensure that the flow of magic continues so long as their Ryning survives, and confers upon them the benefit of boosting their own powers significantly.

The Dark Mother chose five lieutenants, and gave each access to a fifth of her moon's power, since then, it became standard for the other Ryning to select five lieutenants. The Tenebrous Watcher, Nepthys, was the first to break this tradition; she selected eight lieutenants, choosing to have more, but weaker subordinates, which she believed would give her an edge via allowing her to spread her power over a greater area.

When Mephos later ascended to power, he chose the opposite route, he bestowed the power of the violet moon onto three lieutenants, the result was that each of his lieutenants became immensely powerful.”

“Thank you for the long explanation,” sighed Sliske, “Is their a point to it?” "He appears in the Form of a Man with many Countenances; and he hath a Book in his right hand. His Office is to teach all Arts and Sciences unto any; and to declare the Secret Counsel of any one."

29-Dec-2011 03:36:04 - Last edited on 31-Dec-2011 00:24:43 by Dantalian

Dantalian

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*I was getting to that,” replied Amatsu, “You may not be aware of this, but the most powerful vampyres are the descendants of a certain Vlad Tepes, one of those descendants, Camellia Tepes, is the current Night Lord of Blood, Ruler of the vampyres of Niflheim. Camellia has a pair of cousins; Ramona and Floran Tepes. Ramona and her younger brother, Floran were selected by Mephos to be two of his lieutenants, and the vampyress you met fits the description of Ramona Tepes.”

“If I understand you correctly,” said Azzandra, turning pale as he did so, “Mephos, unable to do anything personally due to his injuries, has sent six elite soldiers, and one of his lieutenants; his strongest subordinates, to handle things in his stead.”

“At least one of his lieutenants,” corrected Amatsu.

“It almost sounds as if you expect that he sent another lieutenant,” commented Orcris.

“Let's just say his choice of lieutenants strikes me as odd, if he were only sending one” said Amatsu.

He might have been about to elaborate on this comment, but the Zarosian lords would never know, for at that moment, a breathless Zarosian ran into the room, and bowed, waiting for permission to speak, permission that was hastily granted as no one would dare interrupt one of these meeting without an utmost emergency.

“My lords,” said the Zarosian, “A grave situation has arrived. The leaders of the cult of darkness have been annihilated.”

“How is that possible?” demanded Zaros, “Those elders were more powerful than most of the archmagi in Gielinor!”

“There's more,” said the Zarosian, “We received this information from one of our troops who was stationed there to keep an eye on them... that spy has since been killed, and it seems my lord, that we are under attack... we've already lost near a hundred troops.” "He appears in the Form of a Man with many Countenances; and he hath a Book in his right hand. His Office is to teach all Arts and Sciences unto any; and to declare the Secret Counsel of any one."

29-Dec-2011 03:36:31 - Last edited on 31-Dec-2011 00:24:59 by Dantalian

Dantalian

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“Well played,” muttered Amatsu, louder, he said, “Let me guess, you saw some of them get cut down, but didn't see how, and only came here when a superior ordered you to inform us?*

*That is correct my lord...” said the Zarosian, “How did you know?”

Facing the Zarosian lords, the messenger didn't notice the small bat flying through the tunnels of the temple beside him. Nor would he have likely thought much of it, bats had taken over parts of the temple while it was in ruins and occasionally one or two would find their way into inhabited parts of the temple.

Amatsu, however, noted the bat with incredible interest and raised his hands, bringing up a protective barrier, just as an vibrant blast filled the hall.

The Zarosian lords stared in shock as bits of gore smacked against the floor and Amatsu's barrier, the messenger's arms and legs had fallen to the floor, but his body and head were nowhere to be seen.

“Ah, you went and ruined my fun,” said the bat, shifting it's form as it spoke.

The more intelligent Zarosian lords quickly realized the situation and reached for their weapons, even as the bat finished changing into a young man, one with blond hair and crazed red eyes, dressed in archaic red and white clothes.

Picking up one of the severed arm lying on the floor, the young man took a bite out of it, and then, speaking with his mouth full (to the effect of spraying bits of gore with every word) he said, “I heard you talking about me from above ground... must admit, was kind of amusing.”

“If you could hear us, I assume you could find us as well,” said Orcris, “Why did you kill off so many of our troops?”

“Oh, figured out my plan then?”

Orcris flinched. The voice was coming behind him, even though the young man was still standing in front of him. Turning, Orcris found an identical young man standing behind him. "He appears in the Form of a Man with many Countenances; and he hath a Book in his right hand. His Office is to teach all Arts and Sciences unto any; and to declare the Secret Counsel of any one."

29-Dec-2011 03:37:02

Dantalian

Posts: 3,434 Adamant Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“Surprised, sir?* the young man asked, smirking, “Have you ever thought 'if only I could be in two places at once?' well, I can. It's an interesting bit of magic called bi-location. I'm not teaching you how to do it though.”

“I suppose you may have already guessed,* sighed Amatsu, “But this young, psychotic 'gentleman' is Floran Tepes.”

“Nice to meet you,” said the young man, bowing slightly, “Now down to business. I bear a message for Mephos.”

“Which is?” questioned Zaros, noting in satisfaction that his followers all had their weapons at the ready.

“He wants to offer an alliance,” Floran said nonchalantly.

The Zarosian lords had expected a number of things, mostly ranging from threats to taunts, but a proposed alliance caught them completely off guard. Most of the Zarosians nearly dropped their weapons and Ruko actually did, letting his staff fall to the floor with a thud.

Floran apparently didn't notice any of this, he was back to being one person and was currently taking extreme interest in filing his nails.

“Your lord wants an alliance?” Zaros confirmed.

“Indeed,” answered Floran, not bothering to look up from his nails.

“And you just killed about one hundred of my faithful?” continued Zaros.

“Yep, their blood is making a lovely red pool on your lawn,” answered Floran, “Too bad it's going to waste, but I just ate.”

The Zarosian lords exchanged uneasy looks, wondering what to make of the situation, thankfully Amatsu intervened.

“I think that Mephos is serious about his offer,” he said.

“His lieutenant just massacred our troops!” exclaimed Ruko.

“Yes, and sees no dissonance between his actions and requesting an alliance,” said Amatus, “Perhaps you are familiar with the term 'bat crazy' and variants of such? I am entirely convinced that the person who coined the phrase had met Floran in bat form before he did so.

There is just one thing that perplexes me; Floran, since when does Mephos send you on diplomatic missions?” "He appears in the Form of a Man with many Countenances; and he hath a Book in his right hand. His Office is to teach all Arts and Sciences unto any; and to declare the Secret Counsel of any one."

29-Dec-2011 03:37:34 - Last edited on 29-Dec-2011 03:38:53 by Dantalian

Dantalian

Posts: 3,434 Adamant Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“Oh that?” said Floran, who had finished filing his nails and was now looking around at the Zarosian lords with a slightly hungry expression. “He didn't. He wanted sis to give the message through “proper channels” which normally takes a really long time, I was just supposed to deal with the cult of darkness... but I saw someone running away, and I do love a good hunt, so I chased him here. Incidentally, he wasn't a ******, his blood tasted like swamp muck, and he's lucky I was hungry or I probably wouldn't have drank it all... now where was I? Oh yeah...

Well, when I realized I was already here, I decided it would be faster to just deliver the message myself. But I didn't know where you guys were, so I went ahead and killed some people, figuring they would go and get you. Of course, I was having so much fun that I almost missed the guy running to you. And then I came here.”

Ignoring the incredulous stares, Floran turned to Orcris and said, “Your blood has a nice smell, mind if I have a sip?”

Intervening quickly Zaros said, “Tell your master that we will consider his proposition carefully. For now you should... go wherever you are supposed to be.”

“Aw, no blood?” asked Floran.

“No,* Zaros said hastily. “Now please.”

Floran shrugged, and turning back into a bat flew out of the room. A few screams, a ripping sound, and an explosion could be heard coming from the hall a bit later, but then all was silent.

“My lord, are you serious?” questioned Weva, “He killed many of our skilled troops.”

“And thus, better to have his power with us than against us,” said Nex.

“Does he even understand the difference between allies and enemies?” asked Orcris.

“He does... provided he doesn't get bored,” answered Amatsu.

Orcris noted that, although it was well hidden, Amatsu seemed slightly shaken and perhaps even angry by Floran's appearance and offer.

On his part, Zaros remained silent, apparently deep in thought. "He appears in the Form of a Man with many Countenances; and he hath a Book in his right hand. His Office is to teach all Arts and Sciences unto any; and to declare the Secret Counsel of any one."

29-Dec-2011 03:38:29

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The Weapons of Destiny