Lords of Creation, The Second Age

[Gentleman Vaultboy]

Something strange was occurring in the swamp as the light flitted through the branches of the trees. The sound of rain echoed through the swamp, constant *drip* *drip* that could be heard only because the land was silent in the presence of the strange petal. This was no rainstorm, however. The flowers, the wonderfully purple flowers that had bloomed on the old trees, were weeping, leaking, dripping a golden nectar from their blossoms that splashed down into the water and floated in little globules on the surface. A sweet smell filled the entire swamp, defeating the normally putrid stench. A few curious Fish-Folk tasted of the strange nectar, and found it sweet and invigorating.

Some of the flowers, those that had been brushed by the Petal's long tail, suddenly fell apart, their own petals spiraling down into the water and onto the muddy earth. But not all of them reached the ground. Some gained an inner light, and joined with the first petals tails. Yet others bumped into one another on the way down. These suddenly and quickly came to life, morphing into beautiful lavender winged butterflies. Soon whole swarms of them were flapping daintily through the Isles, tasting of the dripping nectar and spreading the flowers pollen through the whole of the isles.

All the while, the roots of the trees traveled deeper into the mud, pushing outward. Soon it seemed that more swamp islands were beginning to spring up and grow on the outskirts of the archipelago. Indeed, they were. Whole new islands, supported by the roots of the invigorated swamp trees. The Five Isles was growing.

The strange petal took no notice of these events. It was concerned itself with following an absolutely fascinating frog.

(Miracle: Alter Terrain. Also non-miraculous use of Create Life.)

[Gentleman Vaultboy]

There was a cave, deep under Boquabia. A deep, dark cave, lit not even by the light of the beautiful gems and crystals that adorned it's walls. Of these crystals one in particular was quite large, a clear one that emerged from the floor at a crooked angel.

It wasn't one of Uburra-Namall's creations. This crystal was a remnant of something else, part of a network of crystals that ran under the world. Almost everywhere in the world, in fact, except under Alabastra. From this large crystal, itself only a fraction of something much larger, a figure slowly emerged in the dark to survey it's surroundings. It sniffed the air, and grinned.

There was a stink of ancient fear on this island. Old stories of creatures in caves, terrible glowing eyes, and the futility of trying to fight back on your own.

"I'd call that a good start." The figure said, it's voice that of a young girl. Just barely a woman, in fact.

[Marvelous Miscreant]

"Please, whatever you do. Don't underestimate him. The word ruthless doesn't even do him justice. He's a sick, twisted psychopath that will do anything to get what he wants and what he wants is never enough. If he'd risk coming here to the Home of the Watchman, it means he's after something very important and he'll be extremely deadly. That file has documentation on every job Stohlen Redd ever pulled in Alabastra as well as some profiles on him and his Lieutenants. I hope it helps you stop him."

Fotz paused for a moment to let his words sink in, then changed the subject, " If you have no more need of me, there's an certain message I must deliver to Watch Captain Gilgamesh."

[Gentleman Vaultboy]

"There is one thing." She says, leafing through the file. She waves her hand to one of the desk officers and asks him to bring a copy of Captain Shining's report, which she hand to Fotz. "Captain Shining reported an accomplice of his that doesn't match the description of any of his known associates here. Do you have any idea who this woman is?"

[Marvelous Miscreant]

"I can't say I recognize her. To the best of my knowledge she wasn't in contact with the Ravencloaks in Ah-Lomas. Maybe she's a Spectropolis agent they've recruited for whatever they're planning."

[Gentleman Vaultboy]

Kire furrowed her brow and sighed. More and more people stepped onto the wrong path every day. "Thank you sir. If you have something for captain Gilgamesh he should be-" she was cut off by a disturbing gurgling sound from her stomach. She wrapped both hands around it. "I mean.....ohhhhh.....big arena....tournament......host.....excuse me." She puts her hand over her mouth and sprints through the crowed toward the bathrooms, trying desperately to hold in her lunch.

[Philote]

Murozond's form flows out of his lamp as the figure approaches but it is quickly grabbed by the figure's spiritual form and slammed against one of the nearby walls of Spectropolis.

"Give me one reason why I should let you live, Abomination" the figure snarls as he holds his hand against Murozond's throat.

"Because, I can grant your wish" Murozond says, barely getting the words out as his throat is crushed.

The figure's expression changes rapidly once again. Gone is the fury and back is the air of pride. He lets go, letting Murozond sink down to the ground. "I will hold you to that. Your life is mine now."

The figure gives a glance over to the dragon and the figures on top of it dismount.

"Anima, it seems you get to live another day" he says with a smirk. "I have a meeting with the Watchman now. Its a shame he did not come out to greet me. I'll have to take a stroll through his city now."

[Gentleman Vaultboy]

100 years to piece herself together, another 100 spent growing her powers back, 53 lost and drifting in the network, 2 spent in mourning upon learning that the old woman was dead, another hundred deliberately wandering through the dreams and nightmares of all civilization, 44 trying to forcibly take a domain for herself.

1 spent psyching herself up and plotting revenge.

Now for the hardest part: Seeing if she could pull it off.

She set to work, drawing upon the nightmares of the Boquabians. The old stories, the ones their had parents told them as ancient legend. About the monster that stalked the island, the one that in the end had simply disappeared. It was incredibly fitting that the first thing she raised up would be a tribute to the old woman.

The shadows condensed, warping, becoming a solid mass of black. It had fangs and claws and was made in the image of nightmares.

She smiled at the thing and, in deference to the work she was doing, let out a wild cackling laugh that echoed through the cave system. That complete bitch was going to pay for what she'd done, her and everything she held dear, starting right now.

------

A young Boquabian boy kicked his legs in a stream outside his village, while behind him his parents sat laughing together on a blanket and eating. It was all stupid. He hadn't wanted to come on this dumb picnic anyway. His friends were all back in the village having fun while he was stuck here. The little boy angrily threw a rock into a steam and wished that he didn't even have stupid parents.

The laughter stopped, suddenly in the middles of it all. The boy turned around, curious.

There was no one there. The blanket was torn right down the middle, shredded nearly in half with food scattered everywhere, and a red trail traced its way into the brush away from it. The boy stood up and looked around frantically. The forest had gone completely silent. Tentatively, he called out. "Mommy?" No response. "Daddy?"

Nothing.

(Create Greater Mythos.)

????
Move Silently (3)
Hide (3)
Nimble (2)
Sense Ungratefulness (1)  

[Marvelous Miscreant]

Fotz watched Kirie sprint away, shrugged, then turned on his heel and quietly left the building. He lifted a hand to his forehead to shield his eyes from the glare of the sun that hung just about the building’s tops. It was getting on in the day and he still had one more matter to attend to. Fotz wondered, as he glanced at the letter in his bag, what could possibly be so important about this letter the strange old Milteo had given him.

Suddenly remembering he still had to deliver it, he shook his head and scanned his surrounding for the Arena. Turning almost entirely around, he spotted it just beyond the frame of some shops. Fotz tightened his bag about his shoulder and set off towards the Arena, pushing through the thick crowds of people.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Several minutes later, the now disheveled Private Fotz strolled into the halls of the Arena and began searching for Watch Captain Gilgamesh with all the guile and skill  acquired in his service to the Ah-Lomas Investigators.

“Er, hello? Does anybody here know where I might find Watch Captain Gilgamesh?”

[Marvelous Miscreant]

Riddius Smock was not liked by his neighbors. Considering that his neighbors were mostly criminals, beggars and thieves, this was saying something. He’d earned this reputation by being perhaps the most obnoxious, narcissistic, self-centered person he could manage. He bragged constantly and about everything he’d accomplished. Of course, being that most of what he’d accomplished was in the field of enchantment and spellbinding, an occupation not commonly understood by criminals, his bragging was not only condescending, but boring too boot.

But the most irritating of all his boasts, was his claim that he was the only Durhian to quit his service to the infamous Stohlen Redd, and live to tell of it. Not only that, but that he’d managed to steal something important from the murderous gang leader. Nobody believed him.

This didn’t stop him from telling the story, as he was that very night. In his home, around a battered and stained table, Riddius recounted his version of how he stole from Stohlen Redd to two very bored looking men who had only bothered to come because Riddius had promised them ale.

“It was then that I decided that I had had enough. I was going to leave the Ravencloacks, but not without screwing over that scoundrel Stohlen. So, I waited till dusk. And in the dark of night, I snuck into his bedchamber crawling mere inches from where he slept,” said Riddius, oblivious to his guest’s boredom.

“As I recall, it was in the middle of the day actually…”, a voice chimed in from the gloom in the back of the room.

Riddius choked on his words and sputtered as the two men, now alert and interested, turned to face the last man Riddius Smock ever wanted to see.

Stohlen Redd, strolled cheerily across the room and came to rest his arms on the shoulders of the two men opposite Riddius. He smiled amiably at them and continued to speak.

“… and if memory serves, I wasn’t around when you decided to steal from me. Oh, no…I was nowhere near you when you made your little coup. In fact I’m sure that why you decided it was safe to steal from me. Eh, Smock? What you boys think, huh?” Stohlen asked as he shook the two men playfully.

Riddius finally managed to stutter a few fearful words, “S-Stohlen…how…how did you find me?”

 Stohlen clicked his tongue chidingly, “Oh, Smocky buddy, you really should have known I’d find you. Nobody hides from Stohlen Redd.” Then, he laughed, a light bubbly laughter, which was terrifying given the context. The two men under Stohlen’s arms joined in laughing nervously as they tried their best not to look threatening. Stohlen sighed as his laughter halted and he looked down at the table wistfully.

His arms slid further around the men’s necks and his hands grasped their chins as he quietly whispered, “Nobody…”

It one swift movement, Stohlen pulled his hands in, snapping the men’s heads sideways and breaking their necks with a sickening crack. They fell to either side, dead before they hit the ground. Riddius, squealed in terror at the sudden violence and sank back into his seat. Stohlen winked at him.

“Ah, those poor bastards sure picked a bad night to visit you huh? Oh, quit your whimpering. I’m not mad at you. No, no quite the contrary actually,” Stohlen remarked as he slowly stalked along the edge of the table towards Riddius. “You see Smock, when you stole that little item from me; you took it right where I wanted it to go. I had always intended to bring it to Spectropolis, you simply saved me the risk of bringing it myself. So really, I should be thanking you.”

Riddius, relaxed slightly and looked up at Stohlen as he approached his chair.  “R-really…you’re not mad?”

“Of course not silly, as long as you still have what you stole. You do still have it yes?”

“Absolutely, I’d never sell such a thing. I keep in my safe, over there behind the painting,” Riddius added enthusiastically, indicating a rather dreadful painting of an less than beautiful women.

“Wonderful, Smock, just wonderful work…”

“So….uh….so does that mean you’re not going to kill me afterall?”

Stohlen chuckled warmly, laid a hand on Riddius’ shoulder, looked him in the eye and stated simply

“No”

Quicker than the blink of an eye, Stohlen’s hand shot out from behind his back with a flash of silver, immediately followed by a wet smack as his blade pierced Smock’s stomach. Riddius blinked once and fell to the ground, shivering and gasping in pain. Stohlan grinned like a maniac and wiped his blade off on the table.

“Don’t worry friend, it’s not a lethal wound. Unfortunately though, the poison now coursing through your veins is. It’s a special mixture I created just for you. Now don’t you feel honored? It’ll each away at your organs and nerves. It’ll be more pain than you’ve ever felt before. And the best part is that it leaves your brain intact, so you’ll be trapped in your own little world of pain until your die. So, have fun with that little buddy. I’ll just help myself to your safe and be on my way. Chao!”

The last thing Riddius heard was Stohlen’s insane giggling as he pilfered the safe and left with the contents.

[Tsubasa & Wen Tien]

Magnas and Gravas left quietly from Crav's forges and made their way to the dome where the tournament had started. They would search for the Babysitter and hopefully the Veteran or the Spymaster.

==============

Mina sat on top of the Core Temple, looking at the festivities spread out before her in the sprawling city of Illusia. So much had happened since the time of the Nightmare Invasion. And even now she had to check Antilaw to make sure it was fine and receiving power properly. Back then, she'd come across a few irregularities... and well... taking them out would have required destroying and remaking the entirety of Antilaw again, but letting them spread or become bigger than they were was also not an option.

And so, she'd trapped herself in Môsôoriku with keeping maintenance on the Incarnate for the rest of her time in Gammara.

[Philote]

The three figures make their way inwards towards the heart of the city, the meeting hall of the Spirits, as Anima and Murozond are left on the outskirts of the city. The two spirits of power were not quite ready to leave the city's protective barrier until these visitors were done with their business.

The red figure cuts a path through Spectropolis, intimidating his way through the crowds as VoH brings up the rear of the group, carrying a load taken of the dragon that was now waiting outside the city.

[Gentleman Vaultboy]

The Gill was young, barely even a teenager by their metric. He was withered, not even a tremble or a twitch to be seen in his emaciated form and his eyes showed no sight of thought as they stared blankly into the distance. Indeed, instead of reflecting the scant light that allowed them to see deep in the depths of the Blue District they seemed to take it in. It was as though they were holes, empty and wanting.

Apathy Disease. Falling into the hole. Wasting. The eyes were the window to the soul and by the look of it his was circling the drain.

His mother was stroking his head, talking to him constantly of dreams and what he was capable of. It wouldn't work, not at this stage, but The Reasonable enjoyed hearing it anyway. Someone had done this same thing for him once, surrounded him with softness and just talked about anything that came to her mind, trying to pull him back. This boy, the entire Gill race, and he, were kindred souls.

The Gills tried everything to fill the void in their aspect. The Reasonable had filled part of his own void with them.

The mother couldn't see him, but felt a strange clarity enter her mind as he knelt down beside boys ear. He whispered, the words of the god reaching into the boys dreams.

You are not alone.

You have a purpose.

If you have nothing left to fill the void, the let me in.

We will live together. We will keep each other whole.

He moved away as the boys breath became less shallow, as his eyes became just a little lighter. The mother screamed with relief, calling in the rest of the family and almost smothering the boy with her embrace.

The Reasonable was already gone as the rest of them arrived, uncomfortable viewing the family in celebration. The boy wasn't safe yet, but he'd been pulled back from the brink. The rest was up to him. If he lived the Reasonable would see him again as one of his priests.

He hated today. 400 years ago, to the day, he'd been violated in one of the worst ways imaginable and left with a scar he didn't think would ever heal. Normally, he woul'nt even be up right now, but the boy had needed help. He'd seen the state the Gills entered after falling completely into the hole and it brought up hazy, awful memories.

He'd started shepherding them the moment he had noticed what was happening. Unlike the other gods in his pantheon the Reasonable was, well, reasonable when it came to the concept of followers. While most of the others cited various ideological reasons why they would not have them (and BSs attempt at founding a child priesthood had been both poorly conceived and executed) The Reasonable understood that a gods influence and agenda was most effectively spread by an organized religion. He knew the The Watchman disagreed with anything resembling worship of his pantheon he also walked on eggshells when it came to The Reasonable and The Reasonable wasn't so nice that he wouldn't use it to his advantage every now and again.

So it came that the Reasonable was the most worshiped member of the pantheon while the Watchman was relegated to a bit of a joke in the eyes of the world population.

"Sir?" came a voice, completely unaffected by the fact that it as underwater. He turned slightly just slightly enough to acknowledge the watchers presence, so it continued. "Ma'am says there are several powerful gods headed to the city that she'd like you to handle."

"You know about today. I don't work."

"It's just that The Watchman would normally handle this sort of thing but he's off doing your job...."

"Get The Babysitter to handle it. This is her day, let her wine and dine these guys. She loves showing off the city."

He started to float away, but the watcher moved in front of him. "Sir, it's the Gilgamesh Pantheon."

His eyes widened behind his glasses. There was one secret that the rest of the Pantheon kept from her. Mostly out of fear of what she would do if she found out who had really unleashed that conflict wave 400 years ago.

------------------------

They arrive to find The Reasonable sitting at the meeting table, hands carefully folded in front of his mouth. The seat he was in had taken the form of a large backed judges chair, a pair of gavels carved into the wood of the high back.

"Good afternoon." his voice echoed coldly.

(Retroactively founding a religion: The Monks of Order.)

[Gentleman Vaultboy]

The sun was just starting to set. That was good. Oh yes, she thought, rubbing her hands together in satisfaction. The boy had spread his story around his hometown and now search parties were coming the area. Not for the bodies, they'd found those. Well, pieces. If they found a whole body they could identify how hey were killed. Take away some of the mystery, shine a light in the dark. That was bad, things were more frightening when you didn't know what they were.

She watched men with weapons stalk about through the eyes of the creature. It could take any of them, but she held it back. This creature was not meant to torment adults. Instead, she initiated phase two.

She extended two of her fingers and thrust them forward into thin air. When she pulled it back, however, it was as though she had poked a pair of holes in space through which a sickly emerald light streamed. They looked almost like a pair of eyes...

-----

A cacophony of screams erupted from the forest, drawing a group of hunters of their fellows. They discovered the sight of a massacre, Boquabian bodies lying broken and scattered on the blood soaked ground. a single man remained, burying his head in the grass and moaning something over and over. As they went to him, one of them shouted.

All around them, in the trees and bushes, where shining dots of green light. This close, they could finally hear what the poor man was saying.

"Balasar. Balasar."

A cacophony of screams erupted from the forest.

(Create Lesser Mythos: Balasar)

[Philote]

The three stride into the meeting dome and are answered by the Reasonable's voice. The red figure smirks and ignores the greeting, leading his party to the section of the table last greeted by Gilgamesh the Second. The leader takes a seats, warping the chair into the likeness of a multi-headed dragon adorned with bloody scales. The two black figures take up guard behind him, swords sheathed.

After settling in, the red figure replies "So you're the Watchman's next greeter? Should I marvel at the business keeping him from greeting an old acquaintance or should I assume that he is now avoiding me? I did come all this way just to meet him after all. Important business, I'm sure you understand."

[Gentleman Vaultboy]

The boy raises an eyebrow. "Good order, you don't even bother introducing yourself. I certainly hope that's not the tone you took with The Veteran." he says in honest surprise. "Not because it was thoroughly disrespectful, you understand, but because it assures that he's not going to tell The Watchman you're here out of spite. Which leaves you in a pickle, because The Veteran is the only one who knows where he is right now."

"I'm not sure he would come even if he knew. He's off dong something 'important'", he continues, finger quoting, "which means sorting out some mortal business and ignoring everything of actual importance, like an idiot. If you have important business than you're better off taking it to literally any other god than him because at least then it has a chance of actually geting done."

[Philote]

"Then I shall take my business to you if the Watchman is no longer suitable for important matters" he says with a grin growing on his ghostly face "And I shall know who to take up complain with if the matter is not handled well."

He raises his hand a VoH moves forward to the table and sets down the load he was carrying, a figure only barely visible even at the distance they are sitting. The faint outline of a feminine shape can be made out.

"I plan to move off world again to find those who are missing. If she dies while I am off world then her domain will die with her, instead of being simply strained as it is now. I doubt the Watchman or any he has left in charge would be willing to let that happen."

[Gentleman Vaultboy]

The Reasonable stands up and, instead of walking around, simply gets up on the table and walks across that to get a better look at what it was this man was charging him with.

[Philote]

The feminine outline only becomes marginally more clear as the Reasonable draws closer, as if the clear body laying on the table only had a sliver of life left in it. The girl lays passed out on the table where VoH had placed her.

"Her name's Nova" he says still sitting in his seat "Make sure you treat her well"

[Gentleman Vaultboy]

"Of course, we can't have any domains dying anymore. What is hers?" He asks pointedly.