RuneScape Forum Archive | Fall From Grace

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2020

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"You're correct," her brother agreed, his arm lowering back to his side. "I had tunnel-vision like theirs, felt and acted in a self-glorifying cause just as Momus and all his ilk. They put before all else the livelihood of their goals and aspirations, even those that they care for foremostly. There is no greater crime than to betray those that you love, and this is how I know that he should have nothing."

All of the crowd could feel the tension in the air as it took a life of its own, burning like the pyre which had consumed Momus' lifeless body. Gallows just wanted to cease this sadness, wanted to speak out. But he had to stay loyal to this silence, bound to this spot like a rabbit caught in a snare.

From within the heart of the crowd, the combo of Telvern and Elliott watched on. Like photographers patiently awaiting the perfect moment, their attention to detail was bar none. Their eyes dissecting each and every moment with a keenly sharp knife, being sure not to miss a thing.

The vivid image Lucia's face contorting painful was quite telling, turning away from her brother. She submitted to Balor's argument, at least for now. He appeared grievous for having to inflict more pain upon his sibling, but he knew he had to rekindle his focus.

His proclamation having left the crowd suspended like teetering off the edge of a massive cliff, they hung on eagerly and desperately for this eye-opening truth. He stepped forward, being in the shine of the spotlight. Balor stood before his people, appearing stern and stone-faced just like the Hero King Dias himself. There was power in his eyes, a force moving.

"Lord Speaker Momus Bres Barn was a man who was stalwart in his goals," said Balor. "Correctly so, Momus was a man of principles. But while all of you blissfully sing his praises, you only further yourself from the truth. What none of you understand is that something lied behind that man, something I believe you'll not find quite so appealing."
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27-Aug-2015 23:38:35

Jul

2020

Serene End

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Balor folded his hands behind his back, holding them together in a relaxed, loose grip. "I must confess my curiosity," calmly admitted the coal-headed king. "How many of you are familiar with names like Pelias and Fionnlagh? Do indulge me."

The crowd began to shuffle, completely bemused by their king's words. Some had absolutely no idea of what he was talking about, turning to each other and scratching their heads in confusion. Those that did know at least one of the names were easy to pick out from the crowd, trembling in fear and anger.

Balor could hear their disgusted scoffs and agonized groans, his eyes having a front row view of their body language squirming around as if they were uncomfortable in their own skin. Behind Balor, Drakon was among the oblivious. He then turned to his fellow clansman, seeking comfort in not being alone in this puzzlement.

But he would not receive it, seeing the almost ached look in Caerus' eyes. The young Orderer of the Loyal Knights couldn't quite understand what it was, but something truly bothered Caerus now that the names had been cast out into the air. From beside his queen Lucia, Gallows simply crossed his arms and sighed rather heavily.

Caerus then slowly crawled over to his black-haired king, getting just close enough to whisper to him. "My lord, you know we're not supposed to mention them ..." the speaker was quick to remind Balor.

"From what I gather, most of you lack the knowledge of these names I made mention of," the black-haired king believed, willfully deaf to Caerus' words. "Brothers and sisters, these names belong to two of the many cowards in our race's entire history. They were traitors, just like Momus, beings who sought power at the cost of all else."

"My lord, please!" Caerus desperately pleaded. "I'm begging you, do not do this! It is against our—!"

"—I am aware," Balor callously replied, interrupting the speaker.

"Then surely you are aware of the consequences of your actions!"
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27-Aug-2015 23:43:24 - Last edited on 27-Aug-2015 23:45:28 by Serene End

Jul

2020

Serene End

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His deep blue, glowing eyes then found Caerus, one that had slowly grew as white as a sheet. "Isn't it a bit curious how my sister and I have come to know of these names?" the king proceeded to ask. "We were the first of the Barn bloodline to be conceived and birthed upon this plane, we should be among those with their eyebrows raised and minds confounded. And yet, our knowledge of them equal to yours -- perhaps even superior. Now, why is that, Caerus?"

"I... don't know..." he reluctantly muttered in his daze, confusion befalling him.

"Why keep the ignorant in their perpetual state of infancy? Why not open their eyes to the truth of our little society?" Balor then explained. "That was the logic of our scholars, even if such education was considered unlawful. They desired us to have knowledge of their crimes, to recognize that such schemes will be plotted behind our backs as well."

Balor had left the speaker speechless, forcing him to humbly accept defeat. The king then recoiled his face upon his confused people, trying to reclaim their attention. "Pelias Elcmar Barn and Fionnlagh Avalos..." he addressed the two in full. "They were both turncoats, betrayers of their respective rulers. Pelias... He was a deranged zealot of the humans, one who attempted to assassinate his brother Lord Nomos and cease the entire Barn bloodline. The reason you were not taught of him is because he is no longer recognized as a member of the royal family."

Those standing amongst the crowd grew more weary by the second, restless like a herd of white sheep under the eyes of a pack of wolves. "Fionnlagh Avalos," the king continued with his tirade. "He was the leader of a branch of the Resistance which had wrapped its disease-ridden hand around the heart of this city, our beloved Governanti. His was a self-serving notion, fueled by a meaningless vendetta he held against his very own kinsmen. Even as I offered him a chance to repent, he defiantly spat in my eye and chose death."
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27-Aug-2015 23:54:37

Jul

2020

Serene End

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Balor then appeared almost like he were bracing himself, readying for a very brutal battle. "Then there's perhaps the most infamous of all of our kind's traitors," Balor reluctantly mentioned. "His is a name which bodes an overwhelming sense of fear and hatred, it stills the tongues of everyone as though speaking it will tempt lightning from the sky. He was a traitor so despised that we erased him entirely from existence, claimed his name a curse and made it law to never utter it. We destroyed anything with even the thinnest thread to him, we ruthlessly slaughtered any and all whose unfortunate fate would lead them to having any relation with him, blood-bound or not."

"...My lord, please!" painfully cried Caerus from behind.

"And that name, that worldly resented name..." Balor went on, spanning his arms out to his sides as his voice overlapped Caerus' beseeching whimpers. "...That name is Koios, my brothers and sisters."

The atmosphere went vacant, an absolutely dead quiet in the aftermath of Balor's voice. The reaction to his words was extremely slow yet painful like dying from a flesh wound, nothing but stunned, horrified, fractured mutters which occupied the air. But when that reaction came, the king could hear a variety of different things being said.

In this very angstful crowd, Telvern and Elliott too could hear these things. In summary, they sincerely and wholeheartedly wished to rip off their own ears as punishment for having heard such horrible, treasonous things. They didn't want to have to remember his name, since in law it was forbidden to speak or listen to it.

Under the long, white veil over his face, Telvern laid still in body and in his own mind. But his face couldn't help itself, reflecting a bit of confusion. "What purpose does this serve?" pondered Telvern to himself. "It's clear Balor is aware of Momus' support of the Resistance... But why does he shock his people by telling them all of this miscellaneous information?"
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28-Aug-2015 00:02:24 - Last edited on 28-Aug-2015 00:03:31 by Serene End

Jul

2020

Serene End

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"Koios was once a highly decorated, universally respected general," the coal-headed king explained. "So well-received was he that Lord Dias saw him as his equal, having him stand and fight beside him through his years. But Koios was a bleeding heart, a fanatical sympathizer of the human's plight and anything akin to it. Much like Fionnlagh, Koios sought rebellion, shaking his fist even at the Hero King himself."

Telvern, Elliott, and everyone watched Balor as if he had become something like a beautiful train wreck. They were revolted and horrified by what he had said, and yet... their eyes remained unblinking upon him. Balor quickly spun around, his sapphire blue eyes glaring menacingly forward.

They pushed by all the bodies in their way, fixated tightly upon the sole thing they hated and loathed more than anything in this world. His body then sprung to life, moving forward. Balor stood just before Caerus, extending his left hand out towards the speaker.

"Give me the urn," he ordered in a bitter tone. Having held the urn since the beginning of the funeral session, Caerus handed it over as commanded. Now with the urn in possession, the king kept on walking. Balor passed by his weeping, sorrowful sister, her eyes upon him as he approached her.

"...Brother, what are you doing?" she asked him quietly as he came to her.

Lucia was able to see that mask of malice carved into Balor's face like stone, seeing his adamas armoured body brushed right by her. He spoke not a word as he passed her by, leaving her perplexed. Keeping her eyes to him, she watched as he arrived beside the funeral pyre. The fire was well on its way to dying, a mere shadow of its former, powerful self.

Balor's eyes leered down into the opened casket, seeing nothing but ash and a few random shards of bone. The once-glistering body of Momus' adamas gladius spoiled, buried in the gray, powdery soil. No surprise to Balor that his blade only remained, adamas was extremely endurable.
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28-Aug-2015 00:08:09 - Last edited on 28-Aug-2015 00:13:58 by Serene End

Jul

2020

Serene End

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Such an object was one his eyes found so attractive, drawing his hand forward to reach and grasp it. Balor just kept on staring down at the gladius, his face apathetic and his hands trembling. "My lord?" Balor could hear the voice of his general speak in concern.

There was then a moment of silence between Gallows' words and Balor's inevitable reply, whenever that might be. An overcast as bleak and as gray as the ashes he stared upon obscured any sense of reality Balor could feel right now, mortified yet absolutely driven to do what his mind had planned.

This presence his king emitted was more than enough to warrant a reaction, Gallows stepping over to him. Standing abreast Balor, the scar-faced general looked to him with great worry. "My lord," he softly said to him. "If you don't wish to be here anymore, then do not force yourself to. You needn't go on with this anymore."

"Take his sword, Sergius..." Balor then abruptly ordered his general with a silent tone and a slight crackle in his voice. "...Take his sword and break it."

Balor's words funneling into his head, a command that was completely against his ways. Gallows' face benighted, his head hanging down in defeat. But it didn't long for Gallows to recompose himself, standing straight as a palm tree and saluting his lord. "As you desire, my lord," Gallows acknowledged with a waver of confrontation, fighting his jaw which wished to dangle still as a branch upon a windless night.

"Thank you," his black-haired, tan-skinned king softly expressed his gratitude. "...It's reassuring to know that I have your loyalty always at my side, Sergius."

"...Of course, sire," the scar-faced general affirmed, his voice sounding very reinforcing. But inside his helmet laid a different scene, his face contorting in a tight grimace as though he were burdened by a gruesome battle wound.
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28-Aug-2015 00:18:45

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2020

Serene End

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That wound was not one to be seen, but one felt. Mentally pained by this command given to him, Gallows forced himself onward. Balor looked down upon Gallows, bestowing the adamas gladius unto him. Balor turned back to the ashes the moment he gave the blade to Gallows, who walked over to that odd, out-of-place anvil at the left side of the slab.

Taking that urn he repossessed from Caerus, Balor dunked it into the pile of ashes. He began to scoop up the gray powdery remains of his uncle, placing it in the highly ornate urn. He maniacally cleaned out the casket, leaving barely a speck remaining.

With the gladius in hand, Gallows laid it out upon the anvil. He lifted that hammer, his eyes upon the sword full of confliction. With every ounce of his might, he brought thunder down upon that blade. The hammer crashed down heavily with the weight of the world at its back, but still the blade would not falter.

Lucia looked on in horror, watching as Gallows repeatedly swung the hammer upon the sword. She knew exactly what it was that her brother intended, unable to believe he would do that. He began to walk back, passing by Lucia as he did. "Stop this, Balor!" Lucia frantically shouted, ceasing him in his step. "You can't do this to him... Please!"

"It must be done," Balor replied, looking back at his sister with grief. "Forgive me, Lucia, but I cannot abide by the idea that I must feel sympathy for him because he is of my very own flesh and blood. He betrayed us, and worst of all, he hurt you... That is something I cannot simply just forgive."

"You can't do this," she outright rejected, swiftly shaking her head. "...Do you truly intend on casting out our own uncle!?"

"...I do," he responded somberly. "Allowing him to become one with the ashes of our fallen brothers and sisters would be a great betrayal in and of itself. It would be an absolute disgrace of those who worked in honesty for the benefit of our race."
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28-Aug-2015 00:29:02

Jul

2020

Serene End

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Lucia then pushed out a heavyhearted sigh, her face becoming doleful. There was a brief silence, one that felt as if it could last an eternity. "...Do what you must," Lucia finally spoke, her voice very hushed and fraught of melancholy. "I will not stop you, but neither will I stand here and watch as you deface him like this."

"I know," her brother returned. "I'm not forcing you to do anything, sister. I never have."

Refusing the idea of this future, she turned away from her brother and proceeded forward. With tears running down her eyes and agony clinching her heart, she left her brother and all others behind her. Watching her leave, Balor let out a deep, grievous sigh, trying to recompose himself.

He turned away from her back, looking towards the crowd which awaited him in disturbed eagerness. "...These betrayers I've named, they all share a similarity," he informed them, his voice a clear show that he was fighting back emotion. "Like all of us, they solemnly believed their goals just and correct. Koios believed his king a tyrant and wished to stop him, Pelias believed it was his mission to save the humans, and Fionnlagh thought it better that the humans reign over us. These notions of theirs were to them like the heart in their chests, constantly driving them, the sole thing which kept them alive..."
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28-Aug-2015 00:31:58

Jul

2020

Serene End

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Balor stood there, returning to finish up what he had started. "And just as their hearts, the moment their beliefs ceased, it proved to be their end," the king went on, anger slowly creeping up in his voice. "Koios, Pelias, Fionnlagh, Raphael, the entire Resistance, even my beloved uncle... They lived by their notions, defiantly rose up and fought for their beliefs. They arrogantly believed that their self-righteous cause worthy of all the blood that they spilt. They ruthlessly slaughtered so many of our kind, thoughtlessly tearing from us our wives and husbands, our sons and daughters, our mothers and fathers, our brothers and sisters. But the sacrifices were not just upon our side, but theirs as well. The lives of their families and friends too were carelessly tossed away like common trash, all in the forsaken names of "equality" and "revolution.""

The king's right hand then drew upwards from his side, crawling into the neck of the urn. It was a tight fit, just barely able to fit his hand in. His hand burrowed into the gray dirt, carrying out some ash like a shovel. "And time ..." he furiously, righteously shouted, thunderously throwing the ashes down at his feet. "After time ... after time ... after time ... after time ... after time! "

With each repeat of his words, he would go back into the urn and pull more ash out. And every time they met the same end, being slammed into the ground with such rancor, such ire, such wrath. The onlookers watched with widened eyes, seeing as Balor dishonored Momus in perhaps the greatest way a Solasúian could be.

Most of the Loyal Knights simply looked on as everyone else did, unable to fathom this unexpected situation. Telvern was even a little taken back by this display, viewing on as Balor appeared as an angel with broken wings. Elliott was quietly disgusted, anger silently awakening in him.
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28-Aug-2015 00:35:04

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2020

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"Each and every single one of them ended in FAILURE," Balor indignantly, vigorously bellowed with sorrowful rage in his eyes, tears flowing from his eyes and choking up his voice. "My uncle was no different, everything he ever strived for, all of his work, every word he ever spoke was all a cleverly disguised deception. His goals were not for your benefit, my brothers and sisters, but for his own. He was a liar, a hypocrite! And just like all other impostors before him, he was CUT DOWN!"

His actions truly eye-opening, the genius certainly didn't count on seeing this today. Though he couldn't make out his face, Telvern could just hear the frustration coming from Elliott beside him. "All of you here, be you male or female, are holders of power," Balor continued on, speaking now in a harsh tone. "You are the nobility of our country, those of whom plebeians look to with jealousy. You've a title, a famous surname, endless wealth, influence... It's that very reason why I've arranged this funeral to be held in privacy, and why only the nobility were allowed to attend. Koios, Pelias, Fionnlagh, Momus, every traitor in the past one-hundred-years..."

Balor then lunged his right hand forward, pointing his index finger towards the speechless crowd. "...They were all nobility," the king declared, widening eyes. "All of them had the means and motivation to betray, and that was the humans. Think not that a member of our kind sympathizing with the humans as a freak occurrence, it is not an impossibility. There are many of us who'd rather the humans prosper, masquerading as members of your family, as your acquaintances and allies, as the everyday people you pass by on the streets. Even some of you here are among that fold, plotting where to aim the knife. This is the exact purpose for this funeral, not to celebrate a traitor's success, but to prevent another's. All of you must know what happens to traitors, and I wish to impart a message to those who desire to betray."
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28-Aug-2015 00:43:50

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