Atlantic and Mr Clean...

[MR_CLEAN]

I found myself in Trinsic. I was invited by Morgana LeFay. The guards were everywhere, but I didn't mind, as I found myself surrounded by murderers and theives.

I strode from the inn to the bank, where I met Morgana. She provided me with armor, weapons, reagents, and other items. She explained to me that there were dangerous people in the land that would not only kill me, but that they would take advantage of me.

We rode north, toward Britain, and near the stone structure near Trinsic, we found our first opposition. Coudrac was his name (and I would later know him well), and he was dressed as a wandering healer. Moving as they do, and speaking in their tounge, he had managed to collect a fortune in stolen goods. We thanked him, for he provided for us, as we rode toward Brittain.

We were armored, and armed. We were feeling confident, as most of the other citizens of Sosaria around us had little...it was only day 2 of her existance.

We approached the bridge...and there we saw bodies.

The dead were on display like a slaughter house...

...we proceeded.

Suddenly, from no where, appeared 4 murderers...although they were not known as such as of yet.

Morgana, who was an archer, let loose an arrow that found the heart of one of the killers immediately, and he died. My pulse was racing as I drew my sword.

Suddenly, I was paralyzed. I could not move. My limbs were frozen as two of the killers approached. With their weapons, they slayed me, and stole my armor and weapons.

Morgana was swift however, and she managed to kill another of our assailants.

She ran to the south, and the remaining two followed her.

I found a wandering healer.

He revived me before I succumbed to permanent death.

I quickly gathered my wits, and rushed to help Morgana.

When I arrived, I saw a scene I will never forget. There were glorious warriors, and the mage, Coudrac, standing over the bodies of the fallen murderers. And Morgana LeFay was alive and well.

She healed my wounds, and introduced me to Coudrac, and the others...including Silverthorne...a great politician at the time.

We talked briefly, and I was given something that I hold to this day...a sword of Vanquishing. Since that time, the Gods have rendered it useless...but then, it was glorious!

As we stood in the path between Trinsic and Britain, a wonderous thing happened...we became the Regulators.

Our enemies trembled, and our friends rejoiced!

We found ourselves protected...but wanting...

More later.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

...some days later, the Regulators and I were riding to Vesper. We were attacked by a band of murderers. Dr Deth was their leader. They managed to kill the Regulators, but we learned much about them.

We learned their patterns, their geography..and their tactics.

Our next encounter would not go as well for them, as our guildmate Coudrac summoned an Energy Vortex to kill their leader, Dr Deth.

As we stood around his corpse...I wondered...what would become of our land if more and more murderers found refuge there.

I would find out...

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Covetous was a place like no other. It presented great challenge, and great opportunity for a warrior such as myself. As we approached the entrace, Morgana whispered to me...'the Covetous Crew sometimes haunts these hills'.

We entered.

Immediately, our guildmate, Coudrac, was slain by a murderer. I do not know his name. I drew my sword, and between my guildmates and I, he was dispatched. We sorted through his belongings to find little. And we knew that this dungeon would hold many surprises.

We proceeded.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

...As we moved deeper into the depths, we discovered Water Elementals.

It seems like a lifetime ago, but I still remember it clearly. Those watery devils seemed to hit much harder back then! But I was but a whelp, and it seems they are not so difficult these days. Funny how things change.

After many hours of slaying the elementals as fast as they came, we decided it was time to return to town. Back then, none of us had the ability to cast gate, so we were all hoofing it...literally!

Just as we turned to exit the caverns, we saw the first of the murderous bastards! They were fast, and upon us before we could react. There would be no happy ending for the Regulators that day...as we gathered outside of Covetous...in the ethers...and quickly ran to find healers.

That feeling never changes.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

The Regulators assembled in Britain. I have never been fond of Britain. It was always too crowded, and invariably, I would find myself the victim of some petty theft! Thieves in Britain were often met by the justice of the over zealous guards...but almost as often, they would disappear into the crowds...and would succeed in their endevorous.

After a short discussion, we rode north. I never really knew exactly where we were going...I rarely did! Morgana and I rode near the back, so we rarely were consulted on matters such as destination or plans for activities.

I had been practicing magery, and was becoming quite adept...but I had made a fatal error that day. As we rode forward, I noticed something moving behind us...first I saw one, then another. Arrows began to fly, and we knew we had been ambushed. Rather than draw my sword, I decided that I would dispatch these thugs with my newly learned lightning spell! As I chanted the words, I noticed that nothing was happening! Just as I realized my reagent bag was empty, I was struck down.

I watched as the Regulators fought to the last man.

We did win the day...but I learned a painful lesson!

 

[MR_CLEAN]

We were headed to Trinsic to meet Coudrac. He had resigned from the Regulators over some sort of disagreement between himself and Hawthorne.

Morgana and I were going to try and smooth things over.

As we crossed the bridge, she gave me a look. I knew what it meant. This time, we would not be caught off guard. Quickly, I drew my sword, and turned to face three murderers on the road.

These particular three were very good at what they did. And we would face them many times over the next years.

The first of them was known as Dr Deth. He was becoming quite well known around the Trinsic/Britain area. He was a mage at the time.

The next was Autumner. He was Dr Deth's right hand man, at least that is what I heard back then. Autumner was a warrior/mage...like myself.

And lastly there was Brolly. Brolly seemed to be the dimmest witted of the bunch to me...and the easiest to get the drop on. He was more inclined to fight with a halberd than with magick.

Deth was the first to attack. As always, he would cast paralyze so that his cronnies could attack up close. I had a surprise for him that day. The spell reflected back on him! The look on his face was priceless! This effectively removed him from the fight.

Morgana was becoming a very skilled archer back then, and she dropped Brolly before he could even reach her.

So it was down to Autumner and the two of us.

He shouted a curse toward us, and recalled away. This left Deth in a very awkward position, as he was still paralzed. With a couple of arrows from Morgana, and a lightning bolt from myself...he was done for.

We gathered up their belongings, and headed to Trinisic.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Once we arrived in Trinsic, we found Coudrac. He was, as always, plotting the theft of some items from a community chest in Trinsic. He was waiting for the right moment, when the guards were not watching.

We asked him what the matter was between himself and Hawthorne. He said that Hawthorne had decided to become a highway man, like Deth and his crew, and that he was having none of it.

This didn't sit right with me, as Hawthorne was not the murderous type.

I asked him if he was sure, and he swore to me that he had witnessed Hawthorne commit a murder.

We left Coudrac to his thieving.

I turned to Morgana, who already had a wry look on her face.

She agreed, Hawthorne was no murderer. We rode toward Yew. Hawthorne often hunted game outside of Yew.

We asked some of the town's people if they had seen Hawthorne, and they told us that he was to the east, hunting with someone from the Regulators. We proceeded.

As we approached, we saw Hawthorne fighting off some attackers. Naturally, we joined in the fight. Before we knew what had happened, we had killed 3 innocent people. Hawthorne was grinning from ear to ear, and his new buddy, Sturmfurher, was congratulating him on the kill.

He asked Morgana and I if we were here to do some hunting as well.

Morgana grabbed Hawthorne by the throat, and demanded he explain himself.

Hawthorne told us that he thought that the law of the land had failed, and that the time had come for the Regulators to find a new path.

This was a path that Morgana and I would not follow.

We left Hawthorne, Sturmfurher, and the Regulators behind that day...

 

[MR_CLEAN]

I was hunting alone near Yew, and secretly hoping to run into Hawthorne, when I saw a glimse of the Regulators colors through the trees ahead.

I pulled my sword and gave my steed a spur...as I raced forward, there was no one around. I looked around, the wind was blowing through the Yew trees, so I was having a hard time discerning footsteps.

Then I was struck from behind.

I got up, expected to see Hawthorne, or maybe even Sturmfurher...or one of Deth's thugs...but this was someone new...

...Vader.

I went looking for the healer again...

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Some time went by, and I remained guildless. Morgana and I, and her little sister Abigail, would meet in Britain from time to time. We would often discuss the lawlessness that plagued our land. Morgana had met a rather unique man, Bill Blas, that was teaching her the ways of tailoring. (Morgana LeFay...Grandmaster Tailor?? It couldn't be!)

I asked Morgana why she was tailoring, and she explained that she was saving up money to build a new house. I decided this was not a bad idea, and I started learning from Blas myself.

Before long, I had saved enough money from adventuring and tailoring (badly), that I was able to afford a small house. We knew of a great beach near Trinsic. Our friend and former guildmates Silverthorne and Gwendamere and small houses there. So I build my very first house there, as did Morgana.

One day, I was out chopping wood, or attempting to...and I came across this man doing the same. He was shirtless, and had amassed a huge heap of logs.

I introduced myself, and asked him what he was doing with all those logs. He explained that he was a carpenter, and that he had just build a house near there. I told him that I had just done the same, and he offered to help me furnish my house. It turned out, we were next door neighbors!

His name was Evets Namrezy...and a great friendship was born that day.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Evets turned out to be a very powerful mage, as well as an excellent carpenter.

Morgana, Evets, and I would often hunt the areas south of Trinsic...an area known as the point.

Morgana had become a powerful mage herself, and an excellent archer. I had grown into a skilled warrior and a pretty good mage myself. So together, we were pretty safe, except when faced with large numbers. We fought Dr Deth and his crew off and on, but we saw less and less of them at the point. A new group, led by Vader, had taken that area for its own.

We tangled with this band of thugs a few times...before we met her.

I will never forget her.

Moonlightmyst...a name that still haunts me to this day.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

I will not dwell on the story of MoonlightMyst...for that is a story for Morgana LeFay to tell, if she so chooses...but let me just say that this name would come up again, and again, and again in my long history in Sosaria.

Evets introduced me to Dalamar...a shady character, but somewhat trustworthy...and Lord Byron...a virtuous man.

By this time, Morgana and I, along with Bill Blas, had made a fortune in tailoring. (From time to time, in my travels, I still see the name Bill Blas stitched on fine armor and clothing through the land). We decided it was time to become a guild again.

Morgana was our Guildmistress, and still is to this day. Evets, Dalamar, Lord Byron, and I were dubbed ArchProtectors in our new guild...the Protectors of Virtue.

Morgana and Dalamar located a spot for our guild tower, and it was constructed...near the dungeon of Wrong. This would serve as our home and guild hall for many, many, years.

I still remember Morgana planting the Guildstone on the front steps of the tower. And at last, we were whole.

We then set about recruiting...

 

[MR_CLEAN]

A new member of PoV was recruited by Morgana. What a liability he was in the begining!

Sexecutioner was his name, and he knew NO fear whatsoever. Couple that with the most arrogant mouth in the land, and you had someone that could annoy a lich to death...his own death.

But, he was not entirely without worth...he recruited several new guild members, including Xabolix, and Kendrexil. It was Kendrexil that would later anger the gods themselves and cause PoV many problems...but that is a tale for later.

We convened our first guild meeting, and immediately, it became obvious to me that Dalamar and Morgana were going to clash.

Dalamar, while seated at the head of the guild room in one of the guild council thrones complained non-stop that he should be seated in the center...in the large throne. That throne was, of course, reserved for our Guildmistress.

I never understood why he made such a big deal out of this.

Eventually, he settled down about the seating arrangements...and the meeting was under way. There were probably 15 of us at the time, including the guild council. We decided on official colors, Royal blue and True black (alchemists...or maybe tailors...had just discovered how to create True black dye), and we decided on the days we would meet.

The PoV had only a few rules...

1 - No murdering the innocent.
2 - No stealing from guildmates.
3 - No one moved the chairs in the guild room! (it was before alchemists...or carpenters...had discovered a way to make furniture immovable)

The first thing Dalamar did at the end of the meeting was to mix up the chairs.

Morgana was furious!!

 

[Ahuaeyjnkxs]

Great stories ! Keep it up I am hooked ! :bowdown:

I'm glad we share a common interest in the events that shaped this world, this way you can understand why I feel the way I do about all this.

Noone has any idea how much I wanted to be part of a guild with the same kind of humane principles... I tought about it everyday.

I was very jealous of your camaradry, because for me it was all very dynamic, I would never settle because I was infuriated by many things only I could perceive with the insight of the darker arts or so I tought.

Dalamar, trustworthy ? That elf has backstabbed me in a figurative way I do not remember how many times. Oh and he had no reason to, he was powerful, he had many things I never even hoped to have... but he would not share. I remember when our group of berserk murderers failed due to the gods fury (I bet they like how we call them gods) I tried to introduce myself to your guild, the only answer I got was violence, anger and black magic chanelled in the horizontal way by Dalamar's hand.

Some of you stood there and watched, I tried to be heard again 2 more times but in vain, the last time I was terribly exhausted from dying and being ressurected so often.

Oh of course we had dealings that were less than pleasing, but I came to him without any hostility and I was beggining to be sick from the exposure to the abyss. This was obvious as my reaction time was bad and I could not hold the focus to summon anything worthy, so he had the upper hand on me easily, then he must have realised during a short moment that he casted the most evil curse of all on me. I am not even sure he remembers what he did, I should never have trusted this old elf with the spells of Fistandantilus... I figured power had eaten his soul since I met him again, as a leader of the OeS, he did not even recognize my face, or what he did to me.

I said me again , where are we now ?

 

[MR_CLEAN]

The moving of the chairs was the first of many instances that pitted Dalamar against Morgana...and later myself.

I recall one evening, Dalamar, Evets, Byron and I had pursued one of the thieves that plagued Trinsic, Lice ... of the Trinsic Borrowers, into the woods just outside the main gate on the road to Britain.

Once we were free of the watch of the guards, Lord Byron spotted the thief, who had stolen a valuable sword from Evets. We moved swiftly, and justice was done. Only something was not right. Dalamar, a powerful mage, seemed to hold back in the fight. It found it curious, but didn't say anything...at least, not on that night.

On another occassion, Morgana, Byron, Sexecutioner, Dalamar, and I encountered a man that would later become very famous...MastaKilla, the famed Lord of the Army of Darkness. He was coming out of Destard, with the blood of many on his hands...and he appeared to be in a hurry. Quickly, Lord Byron paralyzed him. At first, we just wanted to find out where he was going in such a hurry, but Dalamar quickly threw an energy vortex upon him before he could explain. Needless to say, he died quickly.

Morgana was angry again, but Sexecutioner talked her down (Sexecutioner had a particular hatred for all of the AoD). We rumaged through MastaKilla's belongings to discover why he was in such a hurry...he was ladden with rare and valuable loot...silver weapons, weapons of vanquishing, and best of all...he had no Mandrake Root! I suppose in his place, I would have been in a hurry as well.

Of course, Dalamar started pulling items off the fallen corpse with no consideration for the rest of us. This did not sit well with me, and I questioned him. He said that since he was the only one nerve enough to act, that he should get first choice. I explained to him that this was not how we conducted ourselves.

To make the story shorter, a fight broke out between us. I am not sure if it was because he felt badly for his behavior, or because he was recovering his mana...but he fell quickly to my blade.

This did not sit well with him...or me. It was one of the only times I ever drew the blood of a guildmate on purpose.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

After the fight between Dalamar and I, we started to see the first of the rest of AoD emerge from Destard. One by one, to their surprise, we killed them, one by one. A few even managed to find healers locally, and attempted to retrive items from their corpses.

We had no mercy on them.

The joy we took in slaying so many murderers seemed to smooth things over between Dalamar and I...and we all left Destard together to split up our loot.

Back at our tower, Lord Byron professed that killing and taking from the dead was weighing agaist his conscience...and said that he thought that it was somehow agaist the virtues. I said that it was Justice...but Morgana said that he was right. There was no Honesty in it...because even though we were on the side of Justice, the loot did not rightfully belong to us.

This was the first time that any of us really understood what the Virtues meant, and the guild council came to some decisions.

We would become a force that would Protect the innocent, through Valor, Honesty, Justice, and Honor. And we would earn our funds honestly.

It was back to tailoring...

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Our next outing was one of purpose.

Morgana, Evets and I were banking in Trinsic when a ghost ran by. Evets, knowing the language of spirit speak, hailed the ghost. He asked it what had been done. The ghost explained that several members of the Army of Darkness had attacked their guild in the old Orc Fort near Cove.

Morgana got a firey look in her eye, and I knew we were going to Cove.

The call went out, and the entire guild arrived.

There was Morgana, the archer/mage. Evetes the mage. Myself, the warrior/mage. Lord Byron the mage. Dalamar the mage. Sexecutioner, the annoyance. Bill Blas the mace fighter. Abigail LeFay, Morgana's little sister...the archer/bard. Xabalix the mage. Miria the mage. Silverthorne, who was no longer a guildmate...but often rode with us. Sir Robin, the archer/bard. Anasazi Volette, the warrior/mage. Kendrexil the great animal tamer with his pack of dragons. And Hewitt the animal tamer...with her...pack of wolves (she was new).

We opened several gates, and descended upon the Orc Fort. We spread out, killing AoD on sight. As they were slain, their belongings were taken and piled in the middle of the fort. Evets began resurrecting the ghosts of the fallen...and instructed them to take what they felt was theirs. (this became standard practice for us)

This went on for several minutes, until all AoD in the fort were dead. More showed up...but were not really prepared to fight a well prepared group in such a small space. But as time went on, we started losing the fight...as they began to outnumber us 3-1.

Kendrexil's pets were having a field day, cutting through AoD in large numbers...but even he was begining to not be able to keep up with their numbers.

The call was sent out to retreat.

This was a classic:

The call was sounded to retreat to our Tower, but in fact...our gates led to Nujel'm. Funny thing about Nujel'm, it was an island...that was completely under the protection of the guards, with no Moongate.

The guards were not kind to the AoD that pursued us through our gates, as they were whacked down immediately...and unable to resurrect in the presence of the guards...and unable to leave the island.

The Protectors of Virtue did feast that night!

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Morgana's Nujel'm idea was so popular, that all guild members were asked to carry a rune to Nujel'm labeled Guild Tower...and a copy of a key to a boat that none of us owned in his or her pack.

We also carried food that had been deadly poisoned by Xabolix.

I remember once, on the road leading west from Britain, being jumped by my old guild, the Regulators. I was killed quickly...as I was outnumbered 6 to 1 I think.

It made no difference.

They rejoiced at finding the key and the rune...and they laughed and laughed as they opened a gate from the rune I was carrying with hopes of Tower loot dancing in their heads. One by one they stepped through. I made certain to go last.

I arrived outside the blacksmith shop stand with several other ghosts. Being either criminals, or murders...they could do nothing as I walked to the healer, was resurrected...gathered my belongings, and theirs...and recalled away.

It's the little things in life that you truly treasure.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Sexecutioner came running up to me...dead of course...and spouting something in spirit speak. I had no understanding of it, so simply rode to the heal with him in tow...whining in spirit speak the entire way.

Once he was resurrected, he explained that he was jumped at the point.

I knew right away who it was. Vader's clan. He re-armed and re-equiped, and we recalled to the guild tower. No one was there, and we could not reach any of the other Protectors via communication crystals. I told him to let it go, but he swore he would not.

I knew if I didn't help him, that I would not hear the end of it...ever.

So we rode out to the point.

Not too long after arriving there and dispatching a couple of Ettins, we saw the killers. Vader, MoonlightMyst...and another whose name escapes me.

We attacked.

Vader was powerful. He was truly powerful. But MoonlightMyst was crafty...which was worse.

As their cohort fell, she interceded, and told us to stop. We did not. But she said that she was a friend of Morgana...so we paused. She explained that she knew Morgana, and was sorry for killing Sexecutioner...that she had no idea he was PoV.

This made some sense to me, as I am pretty sure that Sexecutioner was not with us on any of our encounters with their group. So she welcomed Sexecutioner to take a look at the items see was carrying, and pick out his belongings. She threw a wooden box to the ground. Meanwhile, Vader was resurrecting their fallen comrade. As Sexecutioner opened the box, he set off an explosion trap...a powerful one. He was killed. I cast Energy Bolt immediately, more of an instinct than anything else...only to have nothing happen. There was a split second of confusion on my part...as I peered into reagent bag to find no black pearls...before I died.

She had not only tricked Sexecutioner into suicide, but had stolen my pearls, and doomed me to a swift death.

Morgana had warned me early on that these kinds of things would happen.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Our clashes with AoD were becoming more and more frequent, and we were not making many friends amongst the community of murderers and thieves.

We now had the Regulators, the Trinsic Borrowers, the Army of Darkness, Covetous Crew, Vader's group (I never knew what they were called), and several freelance killers hunting us. One in particular comes to mind...his name was Zodiac. He and I fought around Yew many times. By this time, we were seeing less and less of Dr Deth's gang...I am not sure if they left Sosaria altogether, or if they merged with a larger guild...I didn't really have time to care. Our alliances were few. Coudrac, our old guildmate in the Regulators was still around...and he was leading the guild Holy Order. They were a small group of mages that operated out of Vesper. Coudrac had discovered the path of Virtue, and had given up on thievery. We had been friends with Silverthorne, and his wife, Gwendamere...and occassionally, they rode with us...but we were no match for AoD in numbers.

After some time, AoD actually sent an emmissary to our tower with a challenge.

We were called to battle in the large field outside Yew where no houses stood.

We accepted, knowing that we were likely to be defeated.

We had a short time to prepare...about a week.

Most of us began practicing up our combat arts, and mending our armor...but not Sexecutioner. This was when Sexecutioner proved his worth.

Sexecutioner traveled across the Great Shards. I am still not sure how he did it, but I think he had the help of Silverthorne, who was a Blue Servant of the Gods. Across all of the Great Shards, Sexecutioner recruited an army of conscripts. Once we knew of his plan, we began crafting weapons, and armor.

They came from all of the Great Shards...and we equiped them. Archers, Swordsmen, Mace Fighters, and Fencers. We equipped them all.

200 in count, it was a rag-tag army the likes of which had never been seen in our lands.

The day came, and Morgana assigned each ArchProtector a command of 40 conscripts. Evets and Dalamar began opening gates to the battle location. As I stepped through the gate, I could feel that something was not right.

We arrived to find AoD, at full strength...I am not sure how many strong they were, but we had the superiority of numbers.

Everything in the world seemed to slow down. There was no explaination for it! Had they cast an evil spell upon us? Had Sexecutioner broken some ancient law? Was the world coming apart at her seems??

The battle began...but no one could really move. This went on for some time, until Morgana finally made her way to MastaKilla...the head of the AoD. They decided that this battle was over, due to the supernatural phenomenon that both sides were experiencing.

And with that, our grand conscript army was no more.

But somehow, I think our showing made an impact upon MastaKilla and AoD, for it seemed that they showed us more respect after that day. It did not prevent them from killing our guildmates, but it did make them think twice about reinforcing against us.

Later, the large Syndicate would allied itself with us, and in times that the AoD became would rise against us, we could count on support from the Syndicate...Long Live the Syndicate!

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Morgana was always about the community.

Her father...Greyson 'Tidehawke' LeFay was the Warden of the Woods around Skara Brae. His young wife had died in child birth with his youngest daughter, Abigail.

Tidehawke was a kind man, but a stern man. Lord British had personally entrusted him with the keep of the Skara forest, and he took that duty seriously. He performed that duty, and was involved in the town council of Skara Brae for many years before the rise of the murderous horders. He was not a politician, but a ranger...and a good man. He raised his daughters the best he could, with no mother to take care of them. They learned to hunt, and fish, and to understand and command the animals of the forest. He instilled in them a since of pride, and duty to the land.

When he was killed, the LeFay sisters were seperated because Abigail was too young to fend for herself, and Morgana was not capable of taking care of her properly. Morgana was of age, so she was free to go as she wished. Abigail was made of a ward of the King...and sent to Britain, as a favor to the Warden Tidehawke, to study there. She was treated well, and became well educated...but I digress.

The Protectors of Virtue were always commited to returning as much to the community as we could. Early in our existance, we gathered a group of young warriors and mages in Trinsic, and traveled to Hythloth. We led our party to the depths of the demonic lairs there. Slaying demons, and orcs, and gargoyles.

To our knowledge, we were the first to uncover the dreaded Collector of Souls. And as our guide, Silverthorne explained to our group...the Ancient Demons that dwell deep, deep in Sosaria are not used to being disturbed. I have never seen a creature behave that way. He would teleport about, and speak to the group as though he were possessed!! Silverthorne explained that this was abnormal...but encouraged us to fight on.

Eventually, the Collector of Souls was slain...and since, I have seen several Ancient Demons...known as Balrons. But none have ever behaved like that.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

The Lost Lands:

By this time, we had learned that our world was not unique...and that there were multiple "Shards". We existed in the shattered remains of a Gem...the Gem of Immortality.

I had trouble really understanding it at first, but later I fully grasped the concept. Sexecutioner and Silverthorne had to explain to me where all the conscripts came from in our war against AoD many times...and my mind could not wrap around it.

But, as time went on, and we continued to fight evil that had almost completely overtaken our land...something incredible happened.

The Zog Cabal...a group dedicated to destroying Lord British, and the very people that inhabited Sosaria, had discovered the forgotten spell, Armageddon. I was informed of this by Lord Byron...and Morgana LeFay. They toiled for hours, pouring over ancient tomes and texts, attempting to discover the truth behind this menace.

I was not terribly concerned. I had heard rumors of Armageddon, Apocalypse, whatever for years. Religious fanatics and fairy tales didn't concern me...stopping murderers and killing liches and demons did! But Morgana, Lord Byron, Evets and Dalamar were greatly concerned.

Sexecutioner burst in one day, as he was prone to do (and I don't mean over big things, like this...but EVERYTHING) and proclaimed that Lord British himself had called upon the citizens of Sosaria to stop the Zog Cabal from casting the Armageddon spell.

An emergency guild meeting was called, and apparently Sosaria existed on multiple "shards"...the Great Shards...of the original Gem of Immortality. And this threat faced each and every one.

We immediately volunteered.

The Royal Guards had secured the scrolls that contained the spells in trunks in various parts of the land.

I was somewhat confused, and just did what was asked of me...but day and night, the Cabal (or the Followers of Armgeddon...I could never tell the difference between the two groups) would assault us. We took shifts, protecting the scrolls.

We did all that we could...and our great tamer, Kendrexil and Sexecutioner did such an outstanding job, that the Cabal had succeeded in reaching the scroll in every shard besides the one we resided in. However, the gods intervened. Apparently, it was the will of the gods that the Cabal reach the scroll.

We were banished. Outcasts. Our once Virtuous guild was accused of dishonesty...and worse, disloyalty to Lord British.

It was a dark time for the PoV.

The gods themselves removed our guild tower from the world, and banished Morgana LeFay from the Sosaria...along with everyone that was involved with fighting the agents of the Cabal.

Dalamar was disgusted, and believed that Morgana was a liar, and dishonest.

He and I met on the ground that once held our guild tower...and I took his head.

He resigned after being resurrected...and I have never seen him since that day.

I had to find a way to correct this injustice...and the only person I knew that could intercede with the gods was Silverthorne. By this time, Silverthorne's powers as a Blue Servant had waned. He was nothing more than an ordinary citizen...but still, he had access to the gods.

I was called before a god to testify on behalf of Morgana LeFay. Silverthorne and myself explained that Morgana and the PoV were not dishonest, that Sexecutioner and Kendrexil, as well as Xabolix...were not breaking the ancient laws...but merely dilligent. After some deliberation, it was decided that the PoV tower should be returned, and that Morgana LeFay should be allowed to return to Sosaria. However...she sadly declined.

I was pretty much alone as the guild more or less dissolved. Dalamar was disenchanted with me, the guild, and the gods. Evets was angry with the gods, and left Sosaria forever. Sexecutioner remained...but only for a short time. Lord Byron was so disappointed with Lord British and the gods...that he left Sosaria as well. The Protectors of Virtue fell...but were not dead.

And then Morgana LeFay met Lord British outside of Sosaria. And he made a promise to her. And she returned to the land. To this day, she waits for Lord British to return...even though I tell her that he will not...and honor his words to her. But it was that promise that brought her back to Sosaria, and to me...and that is all that mattered.

 

[Ahuaeyjnkxs]

Aye I remember those dark times... however I must admit that the power that filled me did not make me a hero, rather merely a witness to the orchestrated chaos that ensued.

I'd like to remind the readers that during this time we had reached the critical point in shard population, before the wisps weren't even interested in us. Now they looked forward to communicate as they found out the only way to achieve this feat was to create a mirror universe we called the time plane. The wisps realised that creating a shield-cup (kinda hard to explain but try to picture it) at the end of the candle which burned from both tips, they would not only keep the larger community capable shards to fracture, but they would also brighten the light of the virtues by multiplicating AND adding the blue fires from the perspective of the time lords.

So for the first time in the history of sosaria, we began travelling in time, and everyone did. This is a simple phenomenon that can explain why the collector of soul seemed to contain so much soul, that is the way those demons bargain, and they learned to be inconspicuous, whence given spirit by some of the darker mages.

I submit to you that it was Dalamar who gave spirit to the daemon that night, and it was very obvious to you mainly because of his great power that he hid from you.

The curse that is still weighting on me precludes me from clear memories, time for me is dodecahedral, not linear. When I met Dalamar before he joined your guild, we sure did travel back and remembered the way it was. I was his mentor and I am sure that now people will start to understand how those ancient tales have been merged in our community, however apart of it I might find myself.

I must still have the humanity in me, since you can still understand the way I speak my tongue mundane.

So he was happy to see me again, he showed me off his new tricks, his dark magic which honestly made me chuckle, because before we have seen the birth and the death of a world that was populated by what we figured out to be ignorants for the most part. But here, now, it was different... we met with many noble minds and dynamic leaders which not only were aware of our character and predisposition, but also of our grand ambition. So we had to change, we had to evolve, we had to be interested.

But I did not get a good impression from visiting Dalamar's alcove, he showed signs of feelings, human feelings. It was with exitation that he showed off to me magical artifacts he seemed to have manifested directly from Krynn. I was impressed but not illusioned since I had seen the marvels of the abyss with my own eyes.

I dismissed myself, unsuspecting that his empathy would discover my lack of interest in his "toys". I always had suspected that the shattering of the gem of immortality, which is another artifact originating from the land of Krynn, would bring about such chaos in the heart of the elves. I even watched my back as I walked away, feeling somewhat watched, having seen he had in his posession many artifacts of permanent invisibility.

He most likely did not mention this to you, did he ? And I was forced to watch him plan his deceitful idiom to infiltrate your guild... It gave me much pain to see such evil creep in a community of fair rivals whom I had much joy fighting from day to day. In my mind the whole master-plan was now much clearer, and I could see that the times of fun were over. The gods began to rule, and we were now only allowed one real death per day, it wasn't apparent, but truth be told ; everyone felt it.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

And the days went by...and new faces joined our ranks...and the situation in Sosaria got worse and worse.

These new lands provided some very hostile terrain. Ambushes were easy, and travel was slow. Moving in numbers was hampered by the phenomenon we experienced in the Conscript War. This was later dubbed "lag" by Lady Jade, as she said it made her feel very tired and "laggy". I never really got the reference.

As for me, I continued on, fighting evil were I could, making some money tailoring, and generally trying to keep the guild together. Morgana was becoming increasingly frustrated with Lord Brittish...and she kept referring to his promise of a coming Age of Enlightenment. I paid little mind to her rants, as she had started to consort with that woman again.

I never cared much for MoonlightMyst...I didn't really trust her. She was beautiful though...and deadly. But she and Morgana really seemed to have some kind of bond that I never really understood. Morgana's sister Abigail sensed something as well.

These days were filled with fighting the AoD, the Trinsic Borrowers, and a strange group of Orc. Most of the Orcs in the land seemed rather disorganized...pretty much no threat. Not these Orcs. These Orcs were crafty, and had leadership. I don't recall the name of their clan, but it was something like StormRiders, or StormWeavers. Anyway...

Our days were filled with adventure, and I had moved into a large 2 story house on the beach near Trinsic. Evets old house had fallen into disrepair. I kept it up for him for a while, hoping he would return...but he never did...so I let it fall, and burned the rubble on the beach with a couple of bottles of rum (1 for me, 1 for the fire).

Anazasi found a spot near there, but the area was not what it used to be. It wasn't just losing Evets in the neighborhood, but also Silverthorne and Gwendamere. Morgana was so busy at the guild tower that she never came around. I think losing Evets made her not want to go out there, because before that, she would spend hours on that beach, just watching the sea, and playing with the dolphins that are always around there. She always had a way with animals.

Some really unsavory types had taken over a house to the north, so there were always low lifes around. Gathering resources in that area became dangerous...and our friend Erika was slain just a short way from my house. The scum that did it picked the wrong day. She came to my house and Anazasi resurrected her. She told us where he was, so Anazasi, Bill Blas, and I rode out and found him. Bill is not normally a tempermental man...but he was outraged. He hit that mage so hard in the face with that war mace of Vanquishing he always carried, that I actually felt badly for the guy. Anazasi finished him off with a flamestrike spell. We took Erika's boards back to her, and we just tossed the murderers belongings into the sea.

The world was going to hell...and Lord British was no where to be found.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Things in Sosaria were not improving, and rumors were everywhere about a new land being discovered...and a couple of new races of people. Some kind of cat-like folk and something else...I didn't really know what to think, as I had my plate full of murderers and theives.

Trinsic had become a haven for the worst kinds of scum in Sosaria, and they always seemed to find their way up to my house. A few whacks from my sword, and a couple of energy bolts from Anasazi pretty much kept them out of our area, but our area was shrinking.

One day, these two punks actually managed to get into my house. That was a mistake on their part, because they didn't know about my "home defense plan".

Back then, the creatures that wonder our lands were not as smart as they are now, and they would follow you through Moongates that you would cast. I lured a Lich Lord back to my house one day, and basically allowed him to follow me into my house. He messed up the place a bit, but I eventually managed to lock him in the upstairs room using some old crates.

I can only imagine the look of horror on the faces of my home intruders as they opened the upstairs door to find my new pet Lich Lord waiting for them there.

When I arrived at the house that day, there were a couple of corpses upstairs...so I asked Bill and Anazasi if they knew anything about it. They didn't, so I assume my Lich Lord friend had a good time with these boys before they had to go find a healer.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

As time went on, the PoV continued our fight against evil. We saw many new faces come, and several more go. But it was around this time that we met the Lady Jade.

I was fishing behind my house one day, when I saw a two-bit murderer chasing someone across my front lawn. I dropped my fishing pole, threw on my helm and chased after them on foot. I got there just as the murderer finished off his victim. I was too slow. Well, I made quick work of the slime, and waited for the victim to return.

Sure enough, a few moments later, the victim came running up to me. I made sure he got all of his belongings back.

60 boards, some pants, and a broad axe.

I couldn't understand what would make a person want to kill someone to gain such meager possessions. The person thanked me, and was on his way.

I hadn't been that far to the north in that area in a while, so I continued my way up the beach. I noticed a new house, a log cabin in fact, perched on the beach. I decided to see if anyone was home, and went to the door. I figured it was a good idea to warn the new resident that a murderer was about.

Sure enough, a rather exotic looking lady answered the door. Her name was Jade. I was intrigued, and for some reason...without any thought...I invited her to join our guild. And so she did.

This turned out to be one of the best decisions I ever made. Jade brought with her Sheol...a powerful mage. Jade herself was a masterful archer, and quite the cunning foe. This was exactly the kind of new blood that PoV needed. Morgana was happy to have the new members, and she and Jade became very good friends.

The guild was starting to take on the feel it had in its early days, and our Guild Hall was full at our meetings.

The new Guild Council was Morgana, Myself, Jade, Sheol, Anasazi Valotte, and Abigail LeFay. Our membership had grown to over 20 members, and once again...we were finding ourselves at odds with the AoD. By this time, the AoD had a new guildmaster, and MastaKilla was no where to be found.

We also thought that we had seen the last of Vader's group...but we would soon discover that we were wrong.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

I had agreed to assist Sir Robin and Abigail LeFay in the slaying of an Ancient Wyrm. Ancient Wyrms for those that are not familiar with them are a rather nasty breed of dragon that, for a long while, could only be found in the deepest regions of Destard.

We set out for Destard on horseback. It was mid day and rainy. As we crossed the river, I got a strange feeling. It was an ambush. Before I knew it, we were surrounded by Vader, MoonlightMyst, and a handful of other assorted thugs.

I drew my sword, expecting the assault to begin...but when they recognized Abigail they stopped. MoonlightMyst told them to hold up, not to attack. She started to speak to Abigail as though she was a friend. Abi basically said something I will not repeat here, and put an arrow through her left eye. Then the fight started! With MoonlightMyst down, the rest of Vader's crew were pretty easy pickins...except Vader himself, who loosed a couple of Energy Vortexes on us. Sir Robin and Abigail were master bards though, they managed to turn the Vortexes on to the caster. He died before he could recall away.

We took their belongings with us to Destard...where we spread them out on the ground at the entrance to the dungeon for anyone that wanted them to take.

The fight to the bottom of Destard was not easy. And slaying the Ancient Wyrm was no easy task, but at the end of the day, it lay dead...and we recovered the coveted Wyrm's Heart.

It had been a good day!

 

[Ahuaeyjnkxs]

Aye I now remember pretty clearly what an important role you all played back then. I must admit indeed that I also resonated with Merlin, if I didn't become him in some turn of the holographic rememberance we trigered.

Morgana LeFay I was always suspicious of, and I now remember the mysterious lady. I did approach this Moonlight Myst, only to realise she had no interest in men, or the study of greater magic, all she had her eyes on was your guildmaster, she smelled strangely like mandrake, not like she dug up some... more like she sweated it.

So they both quite ignore me, probably the storylines at that point did not intercede, and we still had the emotional coherence of being suspicious about who the next bystander would be. I remember thinking, wait Morgana was a very evil persona with very selfish goals, I simply deducted this after being throughroughly ignored by her, then I remembered where my travels led me, how I tought her the "ultimate charm". As to why since then my own spirit manifested in many places at one time, being both Raistlin and Merlin, being Berenm before my humanity was robbed from me. We ought to remember the silimarillon of the elves predated the gem of immortailty, there is a chronology about our exploration, wether we beleive in it or not.

So yes it was the StormReaver orcs, right in the middle ! And these orcs were indeed very intelligent and started to grasp that they were being held in poverty by some very selfish individuals who profited many lives worth by their own avatar comfort. Baffled by Jenny's death they were led to the only mode of expression left to them, chaos, by some very proeminent mages who took their appearance to gain their trust.

Oh they were not black mages, as you will understand as the pattern becomes clearer, they were red clad mages following in the footsteps of Tiffric the wise.

You will all begin to see that this pattern of critical community mass repeats, but weakening after every virtuous group gets shattered like the gem itself. We had the AMT (which was at least 250 members wide), we then had LLTS (which was at least 1000 members wide), we had PoV (which overall was at least 100 members wide, spread through time). Everything seems to fall over in three-time echoes, Sosaria and its two moons, the mages and the paladins.

Each group was very precisely shattered by sudden disapearances. We could delve into the significance of dream and community when combined with each other, but that will derive the storyline from completion.

Each groups were infiltrated, many were swayed away by money and its cousin supernatural. And some even more intricate, even more organised groups like the Zog Cabal started to appear, manipulating everything from a very comfortable distance.

People you play with for months, even years, do not disapear all of a sudden without thinking about even sending you an e-mail, you their dear friend whom they spent more time with than anyone else. Them who knew you better than your own parents... it just couldn't happen.

Yet it did, and someone always seemed to show up, just like MoonlightMyst, or Virulord, or Dragons... to standardise the guild and temper the uncertainty of those times.

Some people were more inclined to follow the phenomenon into the future rather than the mythical past, but once again, I pass the pen...

 

[MR_CLEAN]

I was doing some repairs around the Guild Tower one afternoon...it had been quiet lately. It was a nice fall day, and the colors were changing on the trees.

The casting of the Armageddon spell had caused some changes to the land...new places were discovered, and one of my favorites was the new Ice Cave that had opened up near our Guild Tower. Many of the PoV would wander its caverns and fight the White Wyrms that lived there. Below it, there was a strange room that Ice Fiends inhabited (they still do today). This room always puzzled me. What strange things went on there before this place was uncovered?

I would never know, not even to this day...but what I did know, was that this place was a place of pure evil. It drew some of the worst Sosarians to it, and the PoV was having a hard time keeping up with clearing them out of there!

Anyway, I was doing some repairs when Morgana and Abigail approached. They had been in the Ice caves. Abigail was not looking so well, she had been poisoned. Morgana had attempted to cure her, but even her magic failed. Morgana told me we needed to either get Abi to an Alchemist...or we needed to find a healer.

Alchemists were not a common thing, and I really didn't want to see that poor young girl go through the pain of death...so I set forth to Britain to find an alchemist.

As I said before, I really hated Britain in those days. There were thieves at every step, and every other step there was some shill shouting about goods they wanted to sell you. Combine all of that with the "lag" phenomenon, which seemed to affect Britain more than anywhere else in the world, and you had a nigh intolerable experience.

After looking around for an alchemist, and failing to find one, I decided to try my luck in Moonglow. I cast my recall spell, only to have nothing happen. I looked down at my reagent bag...and it was gone! I looked around, and there I saw two thieves scurrying hastily through the crowd. I persued them, and I actually managed to catch up to one of them. He was an elderly man with white hair and a white beard...dark skin, like that of someone of the Tropical Regions. I grabbed him by the back of his shirt, but before I could say anything, one of Lord British's guards teleported in and whacked him. She didn't even notice me or say excuse me or anything, just WHAM!...dead. So I sorted through his belongings...he didn't have my reagent bag. I looked around for his friend, but couldn't find him. I didn't have the time for this.

So I ran over to the Mage shop. Of course, the mages there were busy, and paying little mind to me. And of course, there were no reagents to be bought there. Time was running out.

I made my way to the bank...hoping I had stored some extra reagents there. And there he was, the other thief. Now, I couldn't do anything to him, because the guards had not seen what occurred. If had drawn my weapon on him, I would have been cut down by the guards myself. So I did not approach him...I just watched from a distance. He was a short man, bald...no facial hair...and had a similar coloration as the other thief. I would learn his name that day...he was Ton Loc, and the other was Grady. And these two would eventually prove to be more annoying to me than Sexecutioner was on his worst day.

I eventually found my way back to the Guild Tower, and Abigail was feeling better. Morgana had been constantly healing her to keep her alive (this was before mages...or alchemist...discovered poisons that prevent you from healing).

I tried to explain what happened...but I just knew that I had failed.

From that day forth, I issued an edict to the guild...everyone must carry their reagents seperated in three pouches...or locked boxes.

Security was hard to come by in those days.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Morgana once told me that Lord British had promised her that an Age of Enlightenment was coming...a time when the citizens of Britainnia, and all of Sosaria, would be free from the scourge of the vermin that preyed upon the innocent. I never believed it. Lord British had been long absent from Sosaria, and his replacement, Dawn, was pretty much useless. Nothing had changed. The murderers were still free to roam about, and except for guilds such as ours, they went unchecked and unpunished for their deeds.

This was true until one day...

I woke up to a great noise. I wasn't sure where the noise was coming from, but hastily got dressed, grabbed my sword and my helm, and went outside. Now, my house was not far from the road between Trinsic and Britain...and sometimes, on clear night, I could faintly hear wagons or horses going down the road...but not like this. This was deafening. So I hurried over to see what was going on. When I reached the road, I was stunned. There was a huge caravan of people, with all of their belongings piled on pack horses and wagons, and even llamas. I stopped one man to ask him where they were all going...and he told me. To Trammel.

To what?

He told me that Lord British had returned, and had created a haven for all law abiding Britains.

Was I dreaming?

I just stood there and watched as countless travellers made their way up the road. I decided to head into Trinsic to see if I could find out what was going on. I took the woodland paths because the road was impassable. All along the way, I found house after house completely abandoned, emptied of all they once held.

I arrived in Trinsic...everything seemed normal, but there was no one around besides the shopkeepers and healers and such.

I made my way over to the tavern, only to find it empty.

Something strange was going on. I needed to find out what. So I recalled to the Guild Tower. Morgana was there and she was consulting with Lady Jade and Sheol. I asked her if she knew what was going on. She said she had some idea, but that Sheol was headed to Moonglow to find answers. I told her about what I seen in Trinsic, and Jade said that she had the same experience in Yew.

I volunteered to accompany Sheol to Moonglow...I wasn't sure if this was a safe journey.

What we discovered in Moonglow was a life changing event.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Moonglow was bustling. People were pouring out of the gates. Sheol was friends with the Archmage there...and he asked him what was happening.

Now, I am not a man of science...and I have never claimed to be a grand mage, so I will do my best to explain this, as I understood it.

The world we lived in, Sosaria, was actually one of many exactly like it that was contained in the shattered remains of a Gem...the Gem of Immortality. I knew that much already, and partly understood it. But each of the Great Shards had something called facets. Apparently, some Grandmaster Mage that worked for the king had discovered this after years of study...and had found a way to reach the other facets, without having to leave ones physical self behind, as one does when one leaves a shard.

Something had been discovered called a Moonstone. And if you planted one of these into the ground in just the right way, a moongate would open that would lead you to another facet. So...I asked the natural question, what is in the other facets? They told me know one really knew for sure...but that the one facet that had been partly explored, was being called Trammel...named after one of Sosarias moons...and that it was exactly like the facet we were in.

This is where I got confused. So I asked, why is everyone going there?

Apparently something big was about to happen. The gods themselves were about to split our citizens, those that were murderous and dishonest would be unable to enter Trammel, so everyone was going there.

A thought occurred to me...

What happens to this facet?

We headed back to the Guild Hall...I had so many questions still. And as we approached, we noticed the first of the changes. All of the leaves on the trees had died. You could feel it. An evil gripped the land. I have never felt anything like it before, or after. It was like an icy chill ran up my spine, and caused a part of my soul to die. The world I had known for so long was in peril.

We rushed to the Guild Tower, and Sheol explained to the council what we had been told.

Morgana didn't say a word, she stood up and left the guild room. I followed her, and found her on top the tower screaming and crying...she was shouting at the gods themselves. She turned to me said "They have destroyed our world, and they do not even know it"...and she fell into my arms sobbing.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

The lightning crashed, and it began to hail. Blood began to fall from the sky as well.

I urged Morgana to come inside, but she refused.

I went down to the guild room, and most everyone had gone except for the council.

Abigail went up to the roof to try and talk some sense into Morgana.

Sheol explained that after Morgana had left the meeting, that most of the guild had decided to go to Trammel...and that this included himself and the Lady Jade. I turned to Bill Blas and asked him what he was going to do. He told me that he would do whatever Morgana and I were doing. Anasazi said the same.

The tower shook as thunder crashed outside, and Abigail came back in with Morgana...they were both covered in blood.

I asked Abigail what was going on out there...she only replied with "it's bad".

I told her to take Morgana and have her lie down, but of course Morgana was having none of that. She was still crying softly, and I will never forget this...she said "This is what we have spent all these years working towards? This?"

I understood what she meant. We had been a part of that world for as long as we could remember, since our births...we had worked to shape the events and history of the land, we stood up to injustice, we helped those that were in need, and we didn't do it because we profited from it, but because it was the right thing to do...and now suddenly, it was all gone.

I looked at Morgana and told her, "You know we have to leave, right?"

She looked at the rest of the council and said "Is this how you all feel?"

Everyone was loath to answer, but Lady Jade spoke up, and said that she thought it was best if we all left together.

Just then, there was someone banging on the tower doors. I went down stairs to see who it was...and it was her. I couldn't believe she would show her murderous face on our doorstep.

"What could you possibly want?" I asked her.

"Just to see Morgana...I know she is in pain"...she replied.

I told her to wait there...and went upstairs to tell Morgana that MoonlighMyst was there, but Morgana was already on her way down the stairs. The two embraced, and held one another for a moment.

MoonlightMyst asked Morgana if she was going...and she said she didn't know.

There was another loud clap of thunder, and another sound...hoof beats. I went to the top of the tower, and peered out into the darkness. I could barely see, even under the power of a nightsight potion...but would I could make out, I would rather not have seen anyway.

The Army of Darkness was upon us, and there were at least 50 of them.

I rushed down stairs and told Morgana that we had to leave. She opened a gate...and one by one, the guild fled. I stepped in, and turned to Morgana and Moon and told them to hurry, the gate was closing.

Morgana kissed me on the cheek, and told me goodbye as the AoD battered down the front door to the tower. It was too late, because the gate closed, and I was in Nujel'm with the rest of the council.

Jade asked me where Morgana was...and I told her, "right where she wants to be".

Abigail demanded that we go back, but Sheol and Jade both told her it was pointless, and that if we were to make it to Trammel alive, we had to go.

And so we crossed into the pristine and shining facet of Trammel.

For me, it was like crossing the threshold into hell itself.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

We found Trammel to be pleasant, from an aesthetic perspective. There were green trees, flowers, sunshine...everything was just like it was in Felucca. The bank in Trinsic was where the bank in Trinsic always was.

But there was something wrong.

Everywhere I looked, there were people...many people. Some I knew, some I didn't. The guards were there, as always...but there was something, artificial about it all. Like a dream.

After some rest and collecting some supplies, Abigail and I set out to find a Moonstone. We had to get back to Felucca and at least check on Morgana.

In many ways, I was more angry with her at the time than anything else...but I was concerned for her.

A Moonstone was not something that was easy to come by in Trammel we discovered, and it took us some time to track one down.

Sir Robin, Abigail, Anasazi and I burried the Moonstone...and the gate appeared. We stepped through.

Immediately, the smell was noticible. It was like the smell of rot, or decay. We looked around...and everywhere were the bodies of anyone not lucky enough to escape that night. Houses burned to the ground, random objects and liter just strewn about as far as the eye could see...and the trees had withered and become like ash. We quickly opened a gate to the Guild Tower.

We arrived to find no one there. We entered, and there were signs that a stuggle had taken place, blood all around...but no corpses and no one there. I told the others to spread out, and gather supplies. Not much was left...but we gathered what we could. It was obvious that Morgana was not here...so we planted a Moonstone back to Trammel. The others went without me, and I recalled to Trinsic.

I had just materialized when I was immediately approached by the Trinsic Borrowers. I was in no mood. I asked if they had seen Morgana. They responded that my 'goodie two shoes girlfriend was dead, and that I was next'. I put no stock in the lies of Scar. I continued on my way, and made sure to guard my valuables. I asked around, but no one had seen Morgana or MoonlightMyst.

Venturing out of town alone was not advisable, because the majority of the people left in Felucca would just as likely slice you open for 60 logs and a pair of worn out pants as they were to look at you.

I had to assemble the PoV...we had to find Morgana.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

We searched high and low, in an extremely hostile environment for Morgana and MoonlightMyst. It was as though they had disappeared from the face of Sosaria.

Jade and Sir Robin began to theorize that she had left Felucca, and was indeed in Trammel. I didn't believe this because she would have contacted us.

We searched and searched, but as time went on, the guild began to grow weary of it. I sent them back to Trammel. We needed to find a space for a new Guild Hall...and the citizens of Trammel were hastily rebuilding their homes there.

They left, and only Abigail and I remained behind. I suddenly remembered that I had not been to my own house in quite some time. I thought, perhaps, Morgana had fled there...so we recalled there.

When I arrived, I found my house burned to the ground, and all of my possessions gone. Anasazi's house had suffered the same fate. This was a lot for me to take. I suddenly had nothing...and I would later discover that the thieves had even managed, using personal information in my house, to raid my box at the bank. The only thing I had left was my silver katana of Vanquishing...which was at the Lady Jade's house awaiting repair by our guild's blacksmith, John Henry.

I told Abi that we needed to head back to Trammel...or risk being stuck here, as I only had 1 Moonstone on my person.

So we returned to the sunny and blissful facet of Trammel.

After a short time, Bill Blas and I raised enough money to replace many of the the things I had lost...and I managed to find some extra Moonstones. We organized a search party, to go back and try and find out what happened to Morgana.

It didn't take long to find out.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

We were riding near Yew in Felucca, and we encountered an old "friend".

Ton Loc.

I hailed him, and secured my pack. He came up to us, and asked us if we could help him. We asked him what he needed, and he said he needed to get to Trammel.

I admit, I was shocked. Why would this thief want to go to Trammel?

I asked him why we should help him, and he said that he had some information that we might want. I asked him what information he could possibly have that we would be interested in, and he told us he knew what happened to Morgana LeFay.

I jumped off of my horse and grabbed him by the neck, screaming at him to tell me now. Abigail had to pull me off of him. Abigail, being a skilled bard, was a very persuasive girl...and before long, she had him telling us everything...although I didn't want to hear what he told me.

Apparently, after the PoV had left, AoD had sacked the Guild Tower, and killed Morgana LeFay and MoonlightMyst. This much, I had figured. After that, both Morgana and MoonlightMyst showed up in Trinsic, Ton Loc's home town. They were both freshly resurrected, and had nothing on them...they were on their way to Trinsic bank when Vader showed up. MoonlightMyst convinced Vader that Morgana was with her, and that she should not be harmed. Ton Loc said that Morgana seemed sad, and MoonlightMyst seemed...sort of arrogant, maybe a little suspecious. He said that he had moved in to try and steal something from Vader, when he overheard Vader telling MoonlightMyst to take her out to the beach. He said that they recalled somewhere...and then later, MoonlightMyst came back alone.

Upon hearing this, I knew that something was very wrong. I tossed the thief a Moonstone, and we rode off toward Trinsic.

Upon arriving in Trinsic, we ran into the Trinsic Borrowers again...Scar and Lice. Both were their usual selves. Lice came to me and told me that she heard what MoonlightMyst did to Morgana, and that she thought it was hilarious. I told her that I was just with Morgana, and that MoonlightMyst did nothing to her.

Lice laughed, and said "Nice try". At this, Abigail became extremely angry...and she grabbed Lice. Lice was perfectly happy to tell us the story...she truly enjoyed watching our reactions...

According to Lice, MoonlightMyst had professed her love for Morgana, and had convinced Morgana that she was giving up her murderous ways, and that as soon as she was forgiven for her sins, that she wanted to go to Trammel with Morgana. Morgana had believed her, and they went back to the PoV Guild Tower...where some of Vader's thugs were waiting. They captured Morgana, tortured her, beat her, ****d her, and took everything...even the clothes she was wearing. They burned the Guild Tower to the ground. MoonlightMyst had pretended to help Morgana escape...and told her that they needed shelter. MoonlightMyst convinced Morgana to take her to my house...at the beach. Once there, MoonlightMyst killed Morgana, took the keys to my house...and gated Vader's thugs there, where they proceeded to take everything, and burned my house to the ground as well...and then Anasazi's.

Lice said that Morgana watched, as a ghost, while they did all this...and that the rumor was, that she went to Trinsic, got resurrected, found a broken sword...and walked back to the beach, alone, several hours later...where she died the one death that you cannot be resurrected from...intentional suicide.

Guards or not, I didn't care...I killed Lice on the spot, and of course, I was whacked by the guards. I didn't care. I got resurrected, and Abigail had gathered my things. Once I had my wits about me, we headed back out to my house...and sure enough, on the beach, just north of the wreckage of my house, was the corpse of Morgana LeFay, impailed through the stomach on a rusted, broken kryss. Abigail and I took the body, and we planted a Moonstone, and we took it back to Trammel.

Wonderful, happy, Trammel.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

We buried Morgana's body near Skara Brae, in Felucca...near where she and Abigail grew up. It was a small funneral, as most of the PoV had disbanded. There was the Lady Jade, Sheol, Anasazi, Abigail, Bill Blas, John Henry, Erika, myself, and Sir Robin.

After it was over...we all just stood around for hours, talking about old times...and Morgana.

Abigail had taken too much for one day, and so had I. We returned to Trammel, where Anasazi and Jade each had built houses. I went to Anasazi's that night, and I sat outside that night, drinking a bottle of rum...the same kind of rum I had drank the night I had finally burned Evets' house. There were a million stars in the sky that night, and I was thinking about how beautiful they were...and how it was ironic that I was finally free to enjoy them, without fear of being murderered by some low life...but I didn't care. That broken kryss was sounding better and better to me as I drifted off to sleep in the outdoors for the first time in years.


I awoke the next morning with a stray dog licking my face...and a hang over that would kill a Balron. I just went inside, and sat there...I was lost. I had no desire to live.

Bill Blas showed up, and asked me if felt like gathering hides. I told him I would have to pass...and he gave me some advice. He told me that "life is a gift, and even if you do not enjoy the gift...it is not polite to show your displeasure in the face of such a precious thing". I kicked him in the crotch and slammed the door.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

So the days went by, and the people of Sosaria prospered in Trammel. I did not prosper.

I was inconsolable. Never in my life had I been so lost. I would travel to Felucca, and regardless of the smell, the sites, the horrors...this was my home. I would walk the beach, I would stand on the site of the Guild Tower, I would walk the caverns of Covetous. Sometimes alive...others as a ghost. I simply did not care.

I would visit the bridge between Trinsic and Britain, where we had been ambushed so many times, and where we had fought those that were ambushing others. I would visit the shrines. My soul was bound to Felucca...and to Morgana.

I never told her how I felt about her, and now, I would never have the chance.

As for the PoV, we stayed in contact, but really, we were no longer a guild. Our stone still lay in Felucca, broken, smashed...and I would visit that as well. The names of our alumni carved therein. Dalamar, Byron, even Sexecutioner...and of course, Evets and Morgana. My heart was heavy, and a huge part of me had died. I was a pale remnant of what I once was.

I began to drink. Heavily.

Bill and Abi tried to get me to stop...but I would have none of it. I retreated into my own little world. Anasazi allowed me to stay at his house...and now, in retrospect, I feel really awful about imposing on him, as he did support me for a long time. He always a true friend...and it took me a long time to realize that.

The others, Jade, Sheol, and Sir Robin, had begun to explore the new facet, Ilshenar. They were returning with stories of something called the Juka Lords...and a magical race called the Meer. I didn't care...at all.

I drank, and I wandered Felucca. Occassionally, I would kill a murderer, especially if I was having a bad day, or I was drinking more than usual. Sometimes, I would kill the murderer, and then follow him until he was resurrected, and I would kill him again, and again, and again.

Soon, killing became all I desired. If I was awake, I was killing...and it began not to matter who I killed to me.

Sir Robin invited me to come and see the Meer, in Ilshenar. I agreed. I had to get out of Felucca...I had to stop killing.

He and I arrived at the Meer town, and I saw their cat-like features, and they were kind to me...and repaid them with my blade. I could not kill enough of them. I cannot explain it. I killed, and I killed, and I killed. Sir Robin tried to stop me, but this was one of the only other times I drew the blood of a guild mate.

For a time, I would spend every possible hour killing these noble creatures, and drinking...until I was too drunk to kill anymore...and then I would be slain. I would pass out in the ethereal plane, and awaken the next day...to be resurrected, to repeat the same behavior again. Until one day, I was on my way out the door, and Anasazi stopped me...and told me I had to leave.

I asked him why, and he told me that I had become as bad as the murderers we used to fight...that I should go back to Felucca, and be with the other crazed killers. I took a look in a mirror, and I could see it. He was right. I had become the very thing that I used to abhor...and that day, I put down the bottle, and I hung up my sword.

It was time to let it all go.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

I was making one last trip to Felucca...not to kill, but to visit Morgana's grave...and I encountered a man that was dressed in a death shroud. He was doing something...unnatural...to some of the corpses that were lying about.

I spoke to him, and he looked at me with a gaze that burned into me...this man was not of this world.

I shouted at him, and asked him to explain what he was doing, but he did not answer me...he just kept walking...in silence.

Something about this experience stayed with me...and I felt so uneasy that I returned to Trammel before visiting Morgana's final resting place.

Later that night, we were gathered near Jade's cabin, having a meal outdoors, and I mentioned this experience to Sheol. He blanched...and asked me to step inside. Once we were inside, he told me of a legend...a legend of a group of people that could somehow commune with the dead. Not like Spirit Speak, it went further than that...they could speak to those that had gone...beyond. At first, I was just ... creeped out ... by it all. But that night as I slept, I began to dream of Morgana, and I know it was a dream, but she called to me...and I understood.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

I travelled back to Felucca...and I began searching out what Sheol had called a 'Necromancer'. I met with no luck.

I did visit the grave of Morgana LeFay. I could not help but weep, and left my sword on her grave. As I rose to leave, I heard a familiar voice...

...it was her.

I turned to face her, and she was alone. I reached for my sword, but it was too late...I was paralyzed. She approached me. I was shocked that I was not already dead. She spoke to me, with tears in her eyes. And she told me that she was sorry for what she had done. Of course, I could not respond...but I was envisioning her beautiful head rolling at my feet.

She began to tell me that what happened to Morgana was not her fault, and then, I think she realize what she was doing...because she collapsed, her face in her hands...sobbing. The paralysis wore off, and I could move, but for some reason, instead of reaching for my sword...I reached out to her. And for the first time ever, I could see what Morgana had seen. This raven haired temptress now reminded me of an innocent girl...and she wept and told me that she was sorry for what she had done. I held her in my arms, and I was torn. Part of me wanted to rip her to pieces with my bare hands...and part of me wanted to hold her tightly, and tell her that everything was okay. I didn't know what to feel. She looked at me, with her big brown eyes leaking tears, and told me that this was never what she wanted...and that she truly loved Morgana. I could not speak...I could not do anything. If I had moved, spoken, even breathed, I would have ripped her arms out of their sockets.

I asked her only one question...why?

She fell to her knees, and explained to me that she was...well... ...when all of it happened. I was not sure if this was a trick, or if this was sincere. Something told me I could trust her, and I knelt down, and caressed her cheek with my hand...wiping away her bitter tears. I could never forgive her for what she did...never. But if I could not understand, then I truly had become a monster, and nothing more. She asked me if I could forgive her...and I was honest with her. She reached down, and picked my sword up from Morgana's grave, and handed it to me...with the blade to her own throat...and told me to kill her.

I could not do it.

And this told me that I was human again...not just a monsterous killer.

I sheathed my sword, and I turned my back on her...and I walked away...and I would never see her again.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

I returned to Anasazi's house, and Abigail was waiting there. She gave me a strange look. I didn't understand it at the time. I went inside, and Jade was there, as well as Sheol and Bill Blas. I asked them what was going on.

Sheol explained that a new facet had been discovered...and that this facet was different. Malas, they were calling it.

But I was not nearly as interested in that, as I was in the rest of what Sheol had to tell me. Apparently, my spotting of a Necromancer was not unique. Others had been spotting them throughout the land, since the discovery of Malas. I knew that I had to travel to Malas myself.

Since Trammel had been discovered, mages had found a way to recall and gate into different facets...so Moonstones were no longer needed. In fact, they had become very rare, as they had no more use (it is amazing how much some people will pay for something that has absolutely no use whatsoever).

I met with a man called Anteres. He gave me a marked rune that would take me to a place called Umbra.

I recalled on that rune, and found a strange land, the like of which I had never seen.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Umbra was a dark and mysterious place. It was not as gruesome as my old home, Felucca, but somehow...it seemed more ominous. I made my way through the strange landscape, until I found what I had been seeking...a Necromancer.

He was a cold and somber man...but he was willing to talk with me. I explained to him that I had a loved one that had passed into the afterlife...and at first, he told me to find a wandering healer. I explained further that she had died by her own hand and that her spirit was no longer bound to Sosaria. He fixed me with a freezing stare, and told me that what I was asking was impossible. I told him that I had heard that Necormancers, ture Master Necromancers, could commune with those that had passed into afterlife.

He told me that a Necromancer could re-animate a dead corpse for some time, using residual spiritual energy, and that a Medium could speak with those that had passed into the ethereal plane...but that no one could reach those that had passed into the afterlife.

I could not accept this. The ancient text that Sheol had shown me clearly mentioned the Necromancers of old accomplishing that very feat. So I thanked him for his time...and I left.

Months would pass, and I studied...and practiced, and learned the blackest of the black arts...and then I discovered Doom. This place was filled with creatures that had once been trapped in the beyond...in the deepest parts of the abyss.

The PoV and I would try to make our way deeper, and deeper, into this vile place. Anasazi, Sir Robin, Jade, Sheol, Bill Blas and I would make steady progress, fighting our way through the strange and dangerous creatures...but this place was having a horrible affect on poor Abigail.

Abigail was tough (as she is to this day), but her spirit was pure...and Doom has a way of corrupting even the purest of hearts.

One day, as we were preparing to mount another assault on Doom, Abigail came to me, and told me that she was leaving. I asked her why, and she said that she did not like what we were becoming...especially me.

I had not really taken the time to consider what was happening, but as I looked around me, I did notice that the once virtuous Protectors of Virtue, had all become dark, twisted, and in many cases...greedy.

Our first thoughts in pushing our way into Doom was to find answers...and hopefully a way to find Morgana's spirit...but now, there seemed to be more desire to recover the rare artifacts that one could find in Doom...and those things, have the power to corrupt the souls of the pure.

I called a meeting of the council, and expressed my concerns. Some of the others...Jade, Sheol, and Anasazi...decided that Abigail was right...and that Doom was corrupting us. I gave them the choice. They could return to Trammel, or they could remain here in Malas with me...and I told them that I was going back to Doom because I knew that was where the answer lay hidden.

So it was decided...Abigail, Jade, Sheol, and Anasazi left for Trammel...while Sir Robin, Bill Blas, and I remained behind.

With only 3 of us, Doom was going to be nigh impossible.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

We were lucky on that fateful day...as we entered Doom, we saw the corpses of countless creatures strewn about. Someone else was here, and they had cleared a path for us. Sir Robin was skilled at calming creatures with his music, so we proceeded unhindered, deeper than we had been before.

And here we encountered Cyloth the Ferryman. He explained to us that he could provide us with passage across lake Mortis...and into the realm of the dead...but that he required payment.

I asked him what it was he required...and he told me that he required my soul.

I was in no mood for jests, so I simply asked him he what meant by that...and he explained. For me to pass into the realm of the dead, I must either die...and pass into the afterlife, with no chance of returning...or I must become something that did not have a soul. I asked him how I was to do this...and he told me that he could not answer that...that I would have to get that information from the Dark Father. I didn't know what that was. Cyloth offered to take us across the lake Mortis, but not into the realm of the dead, for the price of a golden skull. Here we would meet the Dark Father.

We left to find a golden skull.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

And so we presented the golden skull to Cyloth, and as promised, he took us to the other side of the lake.

After fighting our way through, we finally reached the Dark Father.

I asked him what Cyloth had meant, and he did not answer...instead, he attacked us. We fought fiercely, and eventually, he lay dead.

As I rumaged through his remains, I discovered something...a scroll.

This was a spell I had never seen before, and I could not make out the markings on it. So we quickly returned to Trammel, and I consulted Sheol.

Sheol was equally puzzled, but he had the resources to translate the ancient writtings, whereas I did not.

He worked for hours, until he finally emerged from his study, and he told me..

"Clean, you do not want to cast this spell".

I told him that if it meant finding Morgana, that I was willing to do whatever it would take.

He asked me if finding her was worth my own humanity.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

These days, Necormancy is common place. Many warriors and mages use the Necromantic arts to aid them in their quests. And one of the most common tools used is the Vampiric Embrace. I had even used it on occassion, in times of great need. But this thing that I had received from the Dark Father was something completely different.

Much like Vampiric Embrace, this spell would make me one of the walking dead...the undead. Now, in your average zombie, or lich, there is no spirit, only residual spiritual energy...the spirit is elsewhere, in the afterlife. Not so with what this spell would make me. I am not even sure what you would call it. I would technically be alive, but I would need to feed off the life forces, the spiritual energies, of those living...and those dead. Much like a vampire, but worse. And as I understood it, there was no way of going back.

I decided that Morgana meant that much to me...and Sheol and I prepared the ritual.

We ascended Sheol's tower...and there in the light of the moon, we began.

As I recited the ancient words, and carved the markings into my flesh...I noticed that I was no longer bleeding. Sheol was there when I died...and he removed my body from the tower, and buried it in a desecrated grave.

I watched it all, from the ethereal plane, as I had done many times...but something was different this time.

Before me, a black gate was opened, and through that gate stepped the Collector of Souls. I had fought this particular demon many times...but this time, I could tell, this was not going to be a battle. He merely pointed at me, and I followed him through the gate.

Before, I said that crossing into Trammel was like crossing the threshold into hell.

I was so wrong.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Once through the gate, the Collector grabbed me by thrusting his massive claws through my midsection. The pain was unbelievable...but I would soon discover that it was nothing at all.

As I tried to scream, he spoke to me. He said..."The Lord of the Abyss welcomes you". And he carried me into a darkness so black that I was completely blind.

I do not know how much time passed. He carried me like this until I saw a faint red glow up ahead.

Then he released me. And he flew back the way we had come.

I wasn't sure if I should remain there, or move ahead. It didn't matter...

I was grabbed by something I could not see, and dragged toward the red glow. I could not see, and the pain from my wound was blinding anyway. But I began to smell something, something familiar, and awful. It was the same smell that one notices in Felucca...the smell of decay...only this was a thousand fold stronger.

Suddenly, I was flung high into the air. And I began to fall, for what seemed like an eternity. I landed, and broke both my legs and my spine on the impact. A sharp rock had gone through my left thigh. And before I could even react, I was speared though the gut from behind, and lifted high, then thrown down again.

I managed to roll over, and standing above me was a huge demon...and I could suddenly hear screams...moans...and pleas for mercy...and demonic laughter. I tried to stand, but the pain was too great. Again the demon speared me, this time, through the shoulder. I was hoisted up, and carried. I could see others falling from above, like I had. I could not see what was below me.

The demon took me by the feet, and pulled me off the spear. Inverted my body, so that I was semi-standing upright. He looked at me, and then squeezed my legs so hard that every bone in them shattered. I was in so much pain, I could not even scream...all I could do was groan. But he fixed that for me.

Just behind me was a small fire pit. He fed me into it feet first, slowly.

I found that I was still able to scream.

 

[Ahuaeyjnkxs]

I also remember that dreaded day...

I had casted the Armageddon spell a while before we were split into trammel and feluuca, and everything had been forgotten about it already, most of the population tought it was a strange phenomenon, and all it took was another evil spell to send everyone back in time, then everyone that knew how we had been hi-jacked by industrial interests were or eliminated or brainwashed.

One day we were in a world of myths and legends, of lore and knowledge... the next moment we were in a world of convenience and loneliness.

Oh I was angry that day, and I was out of AoD already, my previous friends were all banned and the rest acted quite like children. You can well see both the "bad" and "good" communities were shattered equally.

I remember that night when they came knocking at your door and you gated out, I was there trying to tell them to go bother other people... I was with Nick and we both knew you guys weren't feeling good, at all... we met you again at your house but we saw there was nothing much we could do.

We kinda stood there watching Morgana crying, and I remember thinking, ok now something is terribly wrong. We were reduced to accepting that the "game" wasn't just a game in more ways that we thought.

I was there too when you refused to kill Moonlight Myst... I hope you can forgive my intrusion but at this time we all had artefacts of invisibility, and I now remember how intently I watched you all. The artefact was handed to me by seer Nikademus, and it was a golden ring that made me invisible, or put me in another plane of existance, much like the ring from Tolkien's story.

I did not remember this at all previously, so I owe you for those rememberances, and I realise I wronged you all by staying passive. But I still hope that I did not, sometimes I tell myself maybe since I did nothing but watch I allowed you to learn some lessons. I feel no regrets about this but I should have logically stepped up, I should have told everyone what I was witnessing. Maybe since I was so young I felt like I would treason both the trust of my mentor, and the light player-to-player relation we had. It was now more than that, and I wasn't ready to accept such large responsibilities as the most powerful mage on the server.

I became Brainbug, and was duely forgotten as the infamous character I had developped.

So you have visited the abyss, now this mystery is becoming deafening... I am all ears.

Time had once again dragged me at just the right speed to keep my wings behind my sight span, a true com-pain-ion.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Some smaller demons had taken notice of what was happening, and they began to claw at my face...the only part of me that was not in the fire at this point. It all becomes a blur here, because they pulled my eyes from thier sockets...and ripped my tounge from my mouth.

So I will move forward with the tale...


I am not sure how long I was tortured. Every second was an eternity.

But I remember this vividly.

I suddenly could not breathe, and it was dark, and cold. When I say I could not breathe, I don't mean the usual way I had grown so used to, because of pain, or crushing, or lack of oxygen due to the fires...but this was different. There was something in my mouth, and in my throat. It was dirt.

I could move, and I was suffocating...so I began to claw, and kick, and flail. And in a moment or two, I was grasping in the night air...it was cold, and there was rain.

I crawled upward, and out of the ground...and I began spitting the dirt from my mouth, and I lay there in the mud, coughing...and confused. I didn't move for hours...I just lay there...not in pain. I could not move, I could barely register where I was...I was shaking...and I heard footsteps.

I immediately stood, and I expected to see a demon, or a devourer, or a wander of the waste...come to rip me apart, but what I saw was the best sight I have ever beheld. It was Sheol and the Lady Jade.

Sheol cast a healing spell on me, and Jade reached out for my hand. I recoiled, and I do not know why exactly now, but I fell to my knees and began sobbing...and howling.


I blacked out.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

I awoke to the sound of waves gently crashing on the beach. I sat up in bed with a start...and took account of my surroundings.

I was at Anasazi's house.

Had it all been a dream? The years and years of torture, the horrible pain, the beating, the burning? All of it?

I tried to get out of bed, and Jade came in. She hugged me, and kissed my forehead...and told me not to get out of bed. She said that she would bring me anything I needed.

My voice was raspy, and my throat was so dry...but I managed to speak. I asked Jade how long I had been gone.

She looked at me and said "You and Sheol tried that ridiculous spell last night, and he burried you, like an idiot...as soon as he told me what he had done, I marched him out there to dig you back up...so I could resurrect you if you needed it...but it looks like you managed to climb out before you sufficated. The next time you two half-wits try something like that, I will bury both of you."

And she went out of the room.

It couldn't be. It just couldn't be.

I stared down at my forearms, and besides the scars from the carvings I done myself, there was not a mark on me. I slowly stood up, and I seemed to be okay.

I didn't feel the same though. Something had changed. I didn't know what it was yet, but I was about to find out.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

As I was coming down the stairs to the kitchen, I could hear voices...laughter...and I could smell something cooking, I wasn't sure what it was, I couldn't even remember what it was...but I lingered at the top of the stairs, just listening to them down there...my friends, the only family I had ever really known.

It was good to be among them again.

And I started to descend the stairs, when something rather odd happened...

Abigail was practicing some kind of fighting technique outside, and I heard her voice through the window...and as she said the words, it was like my ear drums had burst, my head reeled, and I fell down the stairs into the kitchen. The others rushed over, but I was in terrible pain...writhing on the floor...and this went on for several seconds. Then it was over, as quickly as it had begun.

Sheol cast a healing spell on me, but that didn't do anything.

I looked around at everyone, and they stared back at me. For me, it had been years since I had seen them...and I began to hug each of them, and they were ... well, creeped out by it.

About that time, Abigail came into the house...and she took one look at me, and drew her bow.

Jade and Anasazi jumped in front of me...and she yelled some words that I was not familiar with, and felt the very power of my existance being drained.

Sheol quickly paralyzed Abi, and asked her if she had lost her mind.

Jade helped me to my feet, and took me back upstairs...and said "I told you not to get out of bed."

 

[MR_CLEAN]

Sheol came in, and sat down on the edge of the bed.

He looked nervous.

He asked me how I felt, and I told him...exhausted. He said that he was not sure what happened last night, that I was performing the ritual, and I died...just as I was supposed to. And that according to the ritual, I was supposed to lie dead in the desecrated grave for 3 days...then I would be resurrected. He said that he told Jade what we had done, and she forced him to take her out there. He apologized that the spell had failed.

I told him about what I saw, the years I had spend in the Abyss...the Collector of Souls...all of it. He listened, and he said..."I think you may have bumped your head when you fell down the stairs just now. You were only out there in that grave for a few hours, and you managed to climb out on your own, so you couldn't have been dead".

Then he told me that Abigail was down there raving like a lunatic, that I was unholy, and had to be destroyed.

Welcome Home I thought to myself.

 

[MR_CLEAN]

There was only one way I knew to see if the spell had worked. So when no one was around, I went to the wash basin, and took my razor, and slit my wrist.

No blood came forth.

It was then that I knew it had not all been in vain.

I called to Sheol and Jade...and told them. They did not believe me at first. And so I showed them. Jade said that this explained Abigail's paladin techniques having such an effect on me, and her reaction.

Abigail, since her sister had passed away, and the rest of the guild had returned from Malas and Doom, had become a devout follower of the light. She felt that her soul needed cleansing after the corruption we had faced in Doom.

She was right. I know.

But the time had come to return to Doom, and to Cyloth.

So the entire guild entered Doom that day, including Abigail. She and I kept our distance from one another...I cannot explain it, but just being in the immediate presence of one another was somehow, painful, and irratating.

Sort of like being around Sexecutioner on one of his bad days.