Entrance Post

[Guest Ringmaster]

*The night had fallen over the long forgotten land of Kunark. From the walls of the Tier'Dal outpost on the shores of a place, known only to the world as Overthere, a group of twenty dark shadows could be seen moving swiftly over the wind-tormented plains. They ran in a long line as to hide their numbers from anyone foolish enough to follow them.

 

They moved boldly over the plains until they reached the enormous statue of an Iksar warrior, nerby the entrance to the Warslik Woods and then suddenly came to a halt. On a large rock nearby, a small figure was sitting, deeply in meditation. Alyona Staljenko, the warrior princess of Innoruuk slowly and respectfully approached the rock. About thirty meters away from it, she halted and spoke with a powerful voice:

 

- I hail thee, Elenyende. Priestess of Innoruuk and sister of the Tier'Dal. Innoruuk has led us here to do his bidding.

 

The small figure on the rock shivered somewhat as she woke from her meditation and looked straight at Alyona with a respectful nod. She stood up, and kneeled in front of Alyona as she returned the greeting.

 

- I see thee and hail thee, Alyona. Warrior Princess of the Tier'Dal and hand and steel of Innoruuk.

 

The Tier'Dal who had accompanied Alyona murmured somewhat at the bold words of the young cleric.

 

- Who does she think she is? I am more seasoned than she will ever be. She is merely a cleric. Mayhap a powerful one, but she is still no warrior to speak of.

 

The wind carried their words to the cleric on the rock, but she showed no sight of taking notice of it.

 

- I thank thee all for joining me in this forsaken place. For too long, the Tier'Dal has been silent, only to rattle our swords when the infidel elves and humans come to close to our beloved city of Neriak. We have perfected our bodies and our powers, but forsaken the master. The Prince of Hate. Outside the walls of Neriak, I have never seen a Tier'Dal publicly preached his words, and I have never heard a Tier'Dal sing the ancient hymns of Innoruuk.

 

She paused for a moment and looked at the crowd below her.

 

- Those days will be coming to an end. Innoruuk has led you here to partake in a ceremony to honour his name, and claim this continent in the name of the Tier'Dal. The battle will not stand today.. Nor will it stand tomorrow. We are here to celebrate the glory of Innoruuk, and marvel at the power he grants his disciples.

 

- I have heard, that amongst the humans and other races there are beeings who actually think they can know Innoruuk the way we do. To hear what we hear and see what we see. Now all of you know it is not so. We are the Tier'Dal. The Chosen. The Gifted. The Powerful. How can any human or elf understand what we are? How do they even dare to speak the holy name of Innoruuk?

 

- This will not be tolerated any longer. I hear what Innoruuk says to me. He speaks into my ear every day and every night. And he says to me: Slay them. Slay the infidels. I have claimed the ogres and the trolls as my own, and no man or God will be able to resist me. They are my muscles, and you, the proud Tier'Dal, are my soul. I fill your bodies with the power of hate, and you channel it through your swords and axes, and through the channeling powers I have bestowed upon you. Know that every part of your body and soul are imbued with my spirit. You are the future, Tier'Dal. The Age of Hate is about to begin. Stay ready. Stay alert!

 

As if returning from a dark corner of her own mind, Elenyende shivers as the spirit of Innoruuk leaves her conscious mind, and she looks at the crowd below the rock. The murmuring had stopped now, and twenty pairs of eyes looked at her. With a motion of her hand, two gigantic trolls emerged from the shadows beneath the statue, and they dragged to elven women, stripped naked and with their hands securely tied behind their backs.

 

A faint grin could be seen on Elenyendes face as her cold eyes turned towards the ogres. They grinned back at her, and threw the doomed elves to the ground infront of the rock.

 

- Kneel, elfies, for dose dat are sruperi.. supr.. BETTER dan yo.

 

As the ogre spoke, the elven women with tears in their eyes slowly came to their feet and kneeled in front of the rock. A smile played on Elenyendes lips as she looked at them.

 

- You stand before the Tier'Dal, accused of having violated our lands with your presence. You were found and defeated outside the gates of Neriak. What were you doing there, Fier'Dal? Spying on us? Staring in amazement at the glory that is the first city?

 

Answer me, Fier'Dal.

 

- One of the elven women shivered at the clerics words and raised her glance to look at the figure speaking. Immediately, one of the ogres hit her across the back of her head, and pulled her hair down to force her to stare into the ground.

 

- We did.. Did not mean to.. I am sorry.. We were lost.. Please. Please, in the name of Tunare.. Have mercy on us.

 

Alyona glared directly at the elf, and a fire burned in her eyes.

 

- Tunare? Mercy? There is only one God, infidel, and He knows no mercy. Bow down to the power of Innoruuk, and he may perfect you and turn you into one of us.

 

Elenyende nodded appreciatevly at Alyona.

 

- You speak wisely and truthfully, sister Alyona. Even if the other gods exist, they are inferiour to the power that is Innoruuk. And he knows no mercy.

 

She turned her eyes towards the elves kneeling in front of her.

 

- Renounce the name of Tunare, Fier'Dal, and Innoruuk will perfect you. Imbue you with the Spirit of Hate. Take you. Reform you. Turn you into a Tier'Dal. Bow down to him, infidel, and you will see the sun come up tomorrow.

 

- The elven woman who had spoken seemed to struggle with herself to keep herself together. Her sanity was slowly slipping away to be replaced by a fear no words can describe. She lifted her face towards Elenyende after a short while, and fire danced in her eyes.

 

- Never, Tier'Dal. Innoruuk is dead, and so will thou be soon. I spit on thee, and thy people. Let me go or kill me, but do not insult me by thinking I will bow down before a dead god and anctient beliefs.

 

Elenyende smiled faintly as the elven woman gathered her courage to speak, then chuckled as she silenced.

 

- So there is a bit of courage in your people after all? Perhaps this may convince you otherwise..

 

She lifted her hands, and slowly, very softly, she started praying. Her words, even if she spoke silently could be heard by everybody in her vincinity. Her voice echoed through their minds, spoke the well known tounge of the Tier'Dal as a red fire started to burn on her hands. The Tier'Dal around the rock who had been gifted with the power to channel followed in her words and soon their voices were carried by the wind, echoing over the plains of The Overthere. As one man, they released their wills, and the younger elven woman, who had still not spoken started to tremble with pain. As the prayer continued, she dropped to the ground as the blood in her vein began to boil. Within seconds, she seemed to combust from the inside, leaving only a smoking pile of bones as her skin and flesh vaporized.

 

Then, a young Tier'Dal stepped forward, raising his staff towards the sky and spoke the powerful spells of a necromancer. The pile of bones started to shimmer in a green, faint light and suddenly, the skeleton rised to it's feet. It turned towards the elf kneeling in terror beside it and the same green light lit up in it's eyes.

 

Elenyende smiled at the dramatic talents of the necromancer, and turned to the elf again.

 

- Thou see, Fier'Dal, that alive or dead makes no difference to our people. Thou will serve Innoruuk one way of the other. Thou have been caught violating our holy lands, and thy punishment shall be eternal servitude to the ones thy hate. Death, Fier'Dal, is not a punishment amongst our people. It is a relief. One relief thy have not and will never earn.

 

As the ability to logical reason left the mind of the elven woman to be replaced by a burning hate and a desperate wish to save herself, she lifted her face towards the sky and cried:

 

- TAKE ME, INNORUUK. PRINCE OF HATE AND LORD OF ALL CREATION! I RENOUNCE THE FIER'DAL! I RENOUNCE TANURA! I RENOUNCE IT ALL FOR THEE! MY LOVER! MY MASTER! MY LIFE! I AM THINE TO COMMAND! I WILL FOLLOW YOUR BIDDING!

 

Elenyende smiled to herself as she saw the skin of the young elven woman slowly turn black. Her hair turned all white and the fire of the hate raging inside her was lit in her eyes. The woman, petrified with terror of the change screamed out her agony and within minutes, the transformation had come to an end. Where the elven woman had recently sat, a young, beautiful Tier'Dal could now be seen. The ogres behind her, terrified of what they had witnessed quickly released her from her bonds and she slowly and very gracefully rose to her feet. She kneeled before Elenyende and turned towards the people looking at her, totally oblivious of her own nudity.

 

- I hail thee, brothers and sisters of the Tier'Dal. You have heard my vowes, and I will live by them. All hail Innoruuk, and his young priestess. Hail the Tier'Dal. Hail the servants of Hate!

 

Without a word, Elenyenede channeled the powers Innoruuk had imbued her with, opened a Gate and stepped through it. The first step was taken. Many more would follow.

[Wyvern]

Ringmaster taps his foot on the ground impatiently, checking the grandfather clock in the far corner of the office and grumbling curses silently underneath his breath. He had been standing in the center of the applicant office for the last 4 days, and hadn't had a wink of sleep for the past 96 hours. The poor applicant had decided to stay up in fear that if he were to doze off, Wyvern would come and go from his office while he slept...

 

Letting out a deep sigh, Ringmaster begins serving himself yet another cup of expresso and pauses for a moment as he suddely hears singing coming from down the central hall of the Pen and approaching the office...

 

"Hi ho! Hi ho!

Responding to apps is slow

Since it's unfair, we've come prepared

Hi ho! Hi ho, hi ho, hi ho..."

 

Suddenly, the Seven Elder Dwarves of the Pen (replacement recruiters that ressembled the various Elders of the guild) come barging into the entrance of the office and begin merrily dancing in circles around the confused and now rather annoyed applicant. The dwarves then each greet Melba with a special 'hi ho!' before getting down to business and going over Ringmaster's story application...

 

"Ah!" exclaims the first dwarf, Greedy "This Elenyende person appears to be the influential type... definatly a potential geld magnet!"

 

"Well, I think that the elves of the story act with an unbearable grouchiness before they finally accept Innoruuk as their Lord and savior" grumbles Grouchy "So you have my vote..."

 

"Can't you see?!! It's obvious!!!" cries the third dwarf, Wacky, from his current position hanging from the ceiling "Those fools in the story think that they have a God, when in reality, they're all Gods and are being worshiped by Innoruuk!!!"

 

"The Tier'Dal in this story have a level of sleaziness rarely captured in any story..." hisses Sleazy contently "Plus, the pale skin was another nice sleazy touch..."

 

"There are very few shiny objects..." mutters the dwarf Shiny glumly "... although the illumination of the skeletons eyes hint towards promising shininess in the future."

 

"This is undoubtedly one of the best posts I've ever read..." manages Sexy while wiping a tear of joy from his eyes "It has been a long while since I read a post that featured so many beautifull naked women!"

 

Finally, the seventh dwarf, Courteousy, speaks up and politely says "My response remains the same as always... it would simply be rude not to accept it."

 

After discussing the various points for several hours, the Seven Elder Dwarves come to a concensus and stamp Ringmaster's application ACCEPTED. They then hand the sheet back to him and begin marching joyfully out of the room, once again singing as they do so...

 

OOC: Great beginning of a story, Ringmaster. An ACCEPTED application, welcome to the Pen! Please post your e-mail address here or send me an e-mail at elitwack90@hotmail.com so that I can send you the passwords.

 

 

Edited by: Wyvern00  at: 3/1/02 6:39:08 pm

[Guest Minta Rose]

There was, spraypainted onto the wall of Nektulos Forest, in pixie dust colored paint--

 

DOWN WITH THE INDIGO BROTHERHOOD

BERTOXX ROXX! -- GNOME POWER!

 

--and, if one cast See Invisibility, a childish gnome wreathed in shadows, fleeing towards the relative safety of the East Commonlands, hand-tinkered paint sprayer leaking telltale drops.

 

 

Edited by: Minta Rose at: 3/1/02 10:07:54 pm

[Guest Ringmaster]

ringmaster@aftm.net

 

BTW Ack to Mintas post...Gnomes are icky

[Guest Minta Rose]

Am NOT icky.

[Guest Ringmaster]

Well maybe your the only cute one but all teh otehr gnomes are icky...

[Guest Ringmaster]

The demandng sun over the lands of Kunark was close to set when their long travels had ended. They had not spoken much while on the road, but their eyes had met several times, searching for a cause to talk. They had travelled here to the legendary domains and mines of lord Gorelik.

 

The Warlord of the Conclave, Gmog Dalush, and the warrior princess, Alyona Staljenko, sat down at a safe distance from the tunnel entrance, resting their tired legs if only for a few minutes. Alyona sighed ever so lightly and spoke with a low, yet angry, voice.

 

- They are not here, warlord. We are alone.

 

The Warlord lifted his face towards Alyona that now had crawled up on the top of the small hill that served as their cover from the guards outside the mines.

 

- Dey well be ere, cuz they sad so.

 

Alyona sighed again and tried to scout the surroundings for the others. Her eyes met only the foul appearances of the second grade guards that had been carelessly places outside the cavern.

 

- There are only two guards outside the entrance, warlord. I think that we could take them down without alerting the others.

 

- Den we bash dem down und mak em bleed god. Me tired ub waitin.

 

Without another word the two started to move, slowly, around the hill. While sneaking down along the cliffside Gmog unsheeted the rune inlaid blade he carried. Their slow steps made little noice on the grass as they closed in on the guards from the side. The shadows on the dropside of the hill covered their moves. Alyona pointed down on the grass behind her, to make Gmog aware of the branch that she had stepped over. It was about then that she remembered that she didn´t lead her kinsmen, but a single ogre - that do not share the superior eyesight of the Tier´dals.

 

*snap*

 

- Uubs...

 

Alyona cursed and spun around as the two guards cried out their gutterish words. Second grade or not, they readied their weapons in just a blink of an eye. The battle was on and this had to be a quick one. Or more guards would be alerted.

 

The first guards crude blade was headed for Alyonas head, but a quick spin with the staff struck the blade off it´s present course - and almost immediately after, the other side of the staff cracked the goblins head. She quickly turned to the warlord and saw him land the runed blade deep into the shoulder of the second guard, cutting deep enough to cleave it´s goblin heart.

 

The corpses of the guards fell to the ground when Alyona realized that the blade of the second guard had not missed it´s target. Gmog looked down on his left leg where the dirty blade sat right through the flesh, next to his bone. He made a little face when grabbing onto it and janking it out of his body, but little sound. They both stared a second or two at the wound, and Alyona reached down for a bandage in her side bag. When she had found it, she noticed that the wound already had begun to heal up. Looking up at Gmog´s face met her with an ill grinned smile.

 

She put the bandage back and said:

 

- We need to drag these bodies away from the tunnel entrance or patrolling guards will notice our arrival here.

 

- If dey fail to see all da blood ere, dey are ´tupid.

 

- They are...

 

Alyona started to drag one of the bodies away from the entrance and into the shadows nearby. Gmog sighed heavily and grabbed the other one by the leg and started to drag it.

 

It was just about when the two of them was to enter the mines when they noticed the sounds of a moving battle party. They loosened the grip on their weapons when they realized that the ones that approached was the ones that they had waited for.

 

Kruncha was accompanied by three of the scaled ones. As they approached their cold eyes gazed upon the ground where they saw the blood. They propably expected their first fight here, but lowered now their weapons instead.

 

Kruncha was the first to speak:

 

- Gmog... Aly... god tu zee yu.

 

Gmog laid his free hand on Krunchas shoulder and answered:

 

- Gud tu zee yu as well, Krunch. Now let´s go duwn und get ya things.

 

- Ssssss... you pale sssskinzzz are here to help usss help youzzzz, one of the Iksars said with an asking voice.

 

- Aye, scaled ones. Me and my warlord is here to fight the guards of these mines, to reconquer the belongings of our guild brother Kruncha here. Your help in this matter are appreciated. Know this though, I am used to lead Tier´dals in battle and have less then adequate information about these mines.

 

- I can leed diz mithy groop down to where I tink da gobbos has stashed my belongunz, Kruncha said.

 

Gazes was exchanged for a while before the warlord said:

 

- Berry gud, you leed Krunch.

 

Kruncha, that was armed only with a great cleaver that he had conquered some time ago, took the lead down the caverns. There they were, side by side. A few chosen members of the Conclave of the Damned, right beside an equal number of Iksars from their Order of Chaos. Dispite the conflicts that had been likely to arise, they now fought side by side.

 

As they moved deeper and deeper into the mines, the fights grew heavier and heavier. All the time they had to make sure that none of the ones that they confronted was allowed to get away. The warrior princess had already realized that they where moving down into uncharted territory, without the assistance of clerics or other healers. One glance back over her shoulders, her eyes met the eyes of Gmog. She knew in that very instant that the warlord was aware of the exact same thing. She also noticed that the wounds on the warlords body was not only one anymore, but many. In fact, they had all recieved a few wounds.

 

They came to a hallway in the caverns where Kruncha stopped, raising his hand as a sign for the others to stop behind him.

 

- Krunch tinks we are close now, he whispered.

 

Alyona noded from the second position in the line, still focusing her gaze down the hallway. The few things that had been said during the short decend to the inner halls of the mines had been the Iksars talking about the lord himself. Although using their own speech, the warrior princess could understand enough to realize that they where actaully interested in challanging the lord if we did meet him. Kruncha had hardly time to lower his hand before one of the Iksars whispered to another:

 

- Sssse? Our new alliessss are powerful, and the lord isss a rich one, no doubt. We sssshould...

 

- We should what, Alyona interrupted with eyes glowing of hate?

 

The Iksars stared at her for a short while and then exchanged a few short, silent and very complex words. One of them said after a few seconds:

 

- We ssshould ssseek out Garelik and sssslay him. We are many and he issss jussst one. We WILL win. His wealth makessss the risssssksss...

 

- Listen to me now, lizard, and listen good. We are here to help Kruncha get his things back, not to engage in any foolish task.

 

- But we are sssso powerful. We could...

 

The warlord sighed heavily, and the warrior princess was almost tempted to slay the Iksar at the spot, for his foolishness. Her voice was raised now.

 

- We could do NOTHING! I may be brave but I am not foolish, stupid lizard. The lord is a magic user himself, wich is more than I could say about us. All of us, save our two knights of the shadows here. Still, their powers would be easily outmatched by the lords. If this is not enough for you then know, that the lord is likely to have raised a servant. The servant alone is powerful enough to meet my weapons and stay in one piece. Do you want to challange me here and now to see, if you would be able to face the servant?

 

All three Iksars showed their teeth and started to hiss in a threatingly manner, but although the situation was a bit tense... noone moved. The Iksar that had spoken lowered his weapon and gave off a low clicking sound, indicating that he had dropped the idea. Or at least, so it seemed.

 

Kruncha started to move again and the spirit in the group seemed a little damp. Gmog that was right behind the warrior princess leaned forward and whispered in her ear:

 

- Me had a bad feelun ´bout diz.

 

Alyona didn´t answer with more than a nod in return. They both knew that if the situation hadn´t been bad before, it was now. The group closed in on the corner where the belonings of Kruncha was spread all across the ground. He started to collect them while the rest of the group spread out a little to guard. Nothing happend.

 

It was a little too quiet...

 

...and just as they realized that, the lord himself breaked free from the illusion that was covering him. He laugher loudly as he slammed his powerful staff into the back of the warlord. Panic broke out among the ranks of the Iksars and the warrior princess tried fanatically to strike the lord from behind. A skeleton hand reached blindingly fast out of nowhere and grabbed the staff in the blow.

 

While she watched the lord repeatedly landed blow after blow in the back of her warlord, the full form of the skeleton comanion broke free from it´s illusion. It´s grinning face appeared in her vision and blocked her view towards Gmog and the others. It was still holding on to one side of her staff, laughing in the hysterical way that only a servant of the underworld could.

 

She quickly came to her sences and kicked the laughing skeleton hard across the face. It´s grip let go of the staff but it´s skull just turned back to her - still intact.

 

She used all her skills in the handling of her staff in that moment, trying to land so many blows that one of them would slip past the servant and into the back of the lord, just to give the warlord a chance at least to regain control of the situation. But no chance was given. Each blow of the swirling staff was parried by the servants limbs and the ones not busy deflecting her efforts was clawing deep wounds into her Tier´dal body.

 

Gmog fell to the ground and the huge Ogre gave off his last breath. Her sensitive Tier´dal hearing could hear it through all other sounds from the chaotic battle and she realized - she had failed. Lord Garelik turned around towards her and said:

 

- Now, it´s your time, Tier´dal! DIE!

 

The lord had finally turned his attention towards the warrior princess, but little good was it now. She ran through the hallways and caverns as quickly as she could, but the many wounds slowed her down. Although she managed to dodge most of them, the growing number of blows from behind begun to gather up to the point...

 

...where she couldn´t take more.

 

She staggled out through the gap of the mines and managed to take a few, unbalanced step onto the grass. Without strength to raise her staff to defence, she turned around to face her fate. There he was, out in the soft light of the almost fully set sun. The lord did not have to run in order to catch up with her and he didn´t. He walked. With his suprisingly good speech, he smiled his wicked grin and said:

 

- This is where it ends, Tier´dal. You have managed to escape all the ways through my guards and my mines, but you will now learn the price for your insolence.

 

Alyona sank down to her knees in a last attempt to spit blood on her enemy.

 

- Bastard... she managed to squeze out, gathering the final strength and hate in her.

 

The lord chuckled and raised his staff above his head. The last ray of sunlight that day reflected from it´s mithril platings down upon her face, the second before the killing blow was landed, crushing her skull.

 

Darkness.

 

Time was irrelevant now.

 

Only darkness... and a voice. A voice of thousand other voices coming from all and nothing. In her head... around her... through her body. Although all voices was like whispers individually, the pure force of this one voice could have tossed her across the room. If there had been a room... and if there had been a body. There was only darkness.

 

- CHILD... YOU HAVE NOT SERVED ME DONE...

 

In the darkness her thoughts gathered from all around, forming a meaning that could not be spoken. Yet, somehow she though...

 

" My Prince, I am so tired... "

 

- SILENCE CHILD! SHOULD I EVER WANT YOUR OPINION ABOUT ANYTHING I WILL GIVE IT TO YOU! NOW YOU ARE TO RETURN TO NORRATH. I HAVE PLANS FOR YOU...

 

" ... "

 

What could have been a moment or a decade passed, but her thoughts could not gather any reasonable meaning anymore. Not until the light finally cut as bades into her eyes. Her reborn eyes...

 

She was standing on the grass again and immediately covered her hurting eyes from the bright sunlight. The moist from the ground felt once again cold to her naked feet and the air swept around her naked body. As naked as the day she was put to this world by her creators.

 

Once she regained her ability to see clearly, she realized that on the same grassy area, not to far away, the huge body mass of an Ogre that she knew very well had just got up on his feet. He too, was trying to shield his eyes from the Norrath sun. But at that moment, she did not feel any desire to spoil the feeling of her new, pure, fully vibrating body by talking about things that was now history.

 

- My Prince, my Lover, my Master, My LIFE! Once again I will spread your hate to the ones that deserve it! Once again I am, the hands and steel of Innoruuk! I praise thee.