The Fated War

[Uvurith]

Filling in the time that passed for Uvurith

Uvurith was thoroughly confused; thoroughly afraid; thoroughly alone. Nothing made sense to him. The year that had come to pass was one of great strife. Most of the aquantances he had made among the mages of MANA were gone. All those loyal to Mana had been wisked away. He had never been loyal to MANA, and thus, he was alone. The only reason he was still alive was Lucifer. Once being one of the most powerful dark mages in Gralus, Lucifer was naturally not loyal to MANA, and was left in Gralus.

Lucifer had come to Uvurith's aid. They had returned to Relaram, to hide from the raging shadow armies. Relaram, being a part of Gralus was under the grasp of shadow armies, but, it was not part of the contiguous Gralus. It also held very little that was of consequence to the shadows, so their presence in Relaram was barely felt. The sky was less blue, the cities less vibrant, and the people less alive.

Lucifer and Uvurith had taken up refuge among the ruins around and below Nether. They had not announced their arrival to anyone. Being the Imperator of Relaram, a province of Gralus, the shadows would most likely be interested in removing him from his seat of power. They had been joined only by Ranis(Uvurith's advisor), and a select group of mages who had once been loyal to BONE. A year may be insignificant for a drow, but this may have been the most significant year in Uvurith's life.

The ruins under Nether were dark and cold, despite the blaring heat of the jungle above. Odd enchantments on the ruins protected those within against the threat of the shadows. The darkness of the ruins was oddly familiar to Uvurith. It was like being at home once again. Even the architecture of the ruins seemed familiar. Uvurith liked to pretend that he was in an ancient Drow city, long abandoned.

Lucifer had stepped up to the role of protecting the young imperator. He had delegated the mages to guard the known entrances to the ruins. He then had taken it upon himself to train the emperor. He had gathered his belongings that had once adorned his office at BONE, dusted them off, and set them to work once again. He'd also adorned the ruins with some more questionable decorations. He claimed they made him feel at home, as if he was at BONE once again. Despite this however, Uvurith never understood the point in hanging chains and other assorted torture devices from the ceilings.

Despite being overly concerned with the decor of the ruins and and making sure there was always liquor to drink, Lucifer kept Uvurith extremely busy with his training, and at times, extremely exhausted. Lucifer hadn't been involved in training anyone for a long time, his followers had all gone off and he hadn't seen them for ages. However, he hadn't lost an ounce of his cruel training nature. Uvurith was subjected to days of straight grueling physical, mental, and emotional abuse. The training techniques which Lucifer employed were old and rare among the current age. They were techniques that most would frown upon. Uvurith was only a child, yet, he was being subjected to workouts which lasted 24 hours. Then he'd be thrown into extended periods of psychological stress. Uvurith's magical training was progressing at a surprising rate. The foundation which had been left by the shamans who lived among the drow was better than Lucifer had expected. Sure it was rudimentary, but the raw power which he had instilled in Uvurith was outstanding. The problem was using it. Uvurith often was unable to access all of his power or use it in the correct manner. He was instructed to turn an animal into a flower and he would end up filling the entire room with 5 feet of flour, and then at times, nothing would happen.

Uvurith's training however was deeply effected by Lucifer's past. Lucifer was no longer the dark lord he once was, however, his past influenced him and his pupil more than either of them knew. Uvurith developed a dangerous obsession with necromancy. The source of which was unclear as Drow were often drawn to darker elements of magic.

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All of Gralus had been thrown under the oppression of the shadows. Their goals as of now were hidden from the average citizen of Gralus, all of which were under the proverbial steel fist of the shadows. Following the rise of the shadows and the arrival of Atropos, Gralus had changed drastically. Noone was happy. The sky was less blue. Music sounded less musical. The citizens of Gralus were subdued with surprising ease. They were being used, but, to what purpose?

Some of the citizens were at work in the many steel foundaries around Gralus. Some were working on converting other factories, into what, they had no idea. Some were commissioned by the shadows to explore magical ruins to recover power artifacts that may be hidden there.

The armies of Atropos were preparing. The armies of Atropos would be prepared. The armies of Atropos would dominate.

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When he wasn't training, Uvurith had taken to exploring the ruins during his free time, and still could not shake the undeniable feeling of familiarity. He found that there were a number of doors that would not open, which presumably went deeper into the ruins.

His existence drifted on uneventfully until one day, nearly a year after the disappearance of MANA, Uvurith was training with Lucifer and Ranis. There came a loud ruckus from the chamber next to the one where they were training. Without thinking, Uvurith charged into the room to find a group of men struggling to open one of the unopenable doors. As soon as he entered, they turned menacingly toward him. They were devoid of anything that made them human, as if they had been oppressed to the point where they had lost their identities.

Lucifer and Ranis came in after Uvurith in time to see him flourish out against the hostiles. His reach had grown over the past year as he had grown taller, as all growing children do. The flourish caught the hostile square in the face. The human shrieked falling to the ground, convulsing with pain as the wound seemed to drain him beyond any normal gash. Ranis and Lucifer were about to intervene, when Lucifer had an idea. He caught hold of Ranis, holding her back.

"Let him go!" he ordered her sternly. "Lets see what he makes of the situation. Let's see how much he had learned."

The 3 other hostiles began to advance on Uvurith. Uvurith rached towards the body of the one who he slain. The body began to twitch, and then finally rose, turning on the other hostiles. After a quick couple strokes, the other hostiles had fallen before Uvurith's raised warrior. However, then the warrior turned, and attacked Uvurith. Caught off guard, Uvurith took a sword slash to the side of his head. He shrieked as he fell backwards, clutching the side of his head. Lucifer and Ranis moved to react, but they were too slow. Uvurith threw his dagger at his creation. The dagger plunged deep into the face of his raised servant, which let out a blood curdling shriek, and then fell to the ground.

Lucifer and Ranis ran to Uvurith, who was no longer crying out in pain or holding the side of his head. Upon further examination, they found that Uvurith's ear was partially removed, but, there was no sign of bleeding. The piece of his ear that was missing was laying on the ground next to him, bloody. Yet the injury had already scarred over.

Ranis turned to Lucifer, a look of obvious discontent upon her face. "If you ever put your hands on me again, you won't lay them on anything else again." Lucifer chuckled, just realizing he had pinned the shapely Ranis to his body when he had grabbed her. He released her.

Summary (Uvurith): Uvurith has grown over the year which has passed in Gralus. He didn't go with MANA because he didn't have allegiance to MANA. He has taken up refuge in the ruins under Nether with Lucifer, Ranis, and a couple mages who were loyal to BONE.

Summary (The Shadows): The shadows have risen and put the entirety of Gralus under their oppressive control. They have set the people Gralus to tasks to achieve their own ends.

Summary (Uvurith): Uvurith gets involved in a fight with a group of hostile humans, supposedly under the command of the shadows. He has begun to master some powers of magic, but they are not fully useable yet, as is seen when his servant turns on him. His own minion eventually seperates part of his left ear from his head. Uvurith throws his dagger at the minion, slaying him. Upon examination, it is found that the wound on the ear has mysteriously scarred over, despite the fact that the bit of ear is laying bloody on the floor.

[Andreas the Wise]

As The Servant finished his chilling statement, a sound came from behind them, and Nicholas and Fides appeared, clutching a variety of magical and technological devices, including a transponder from Q, which Nicholas hastily pocketed at the sight of The Servant. Fides, meanwhile, dropped her devices and clutched her head, as if in pain.
"Oooh, this's a bad one," she said, still clutching her head. "This is almost as bad as the War of Shathunk."
"What's wrong, Fides?" Andreas asked, concerned.
"Major headache induced by a significant crisis of identities caused by divergent simultaneous timelines," Fides said. "Baal-Fides is still here, somewhere; and yet I'm his successor Fides and should have his memories, but they haven't been made yet; and hence ..."
"Major metaphysical crisis of identity," Andreas finished. "Can we do anything to help?"
Fides banged her head, screamed, and then looked calm. "There, that's better," she said, smiling. "Just blocked off that portion of my mind - a trick I learnt from the Mnemomonic Monks while I was in the War of Shathunk, the second time around."
"The War of Shathunk," Nicholas said, "wasn't that ..."
"The one where a Demon of Fides fought in all three armies? Yeah, that one," Fides said, licking her lips - there were a few drops of blood there - the headache must have been bad. "I've lost twice now, I'm looking forward to beating the bastards next time around ..."
"But aren't they you?" Nicholas asked.
"Yeah, but they'd do the same in my position," Fides replied nonchalantly. "Have done. Will do. Whatever ..."
"As touching as this insight into the Curse of Fides is," The Servant said, "we should probably be going. It will not be long before Atropos dispatches another wing of shadows to investigate, and it was not my intention, in driving the first one off, that you would get captured anyone because you were reminiscing ..."
Do we trust him? Nicholas asked Andreas, quickly.
For now, Andreas replied, and said out loud, "Alright then, lets go ..."

---

The Servant led them south, into the town of St Nova, and while he did, he began to tell them what had been happening in Gralus over the last year.
"Fate is not quite as my Master expected," he said, as they walked past the docks. The streets were deserted, but they had still cast an invisibility spell around themselves, to avoid obvious notice by Atropos' forces. "For a start, his level of control over this land is not as great as envisaged. While he still controls the fate of all mortals in this land, he does not control all their minds."
"What do you mean?" Nicholas asked.
"There are various, strong-willed people, who do not obey the orders of the Shadows and Reflections, as do the majority," The Servant explained. "My Master had feared we would all have no choice - but no, it merely takes effort to resist. However, your choices are the one thing Fate cannot control. What some might call chance, others luck, others destiny, though really, its all the same - Fate has control of that now. People can try to resist, but they are fated to fail, as surely as the sun no longer rises."
"So, the other Academies ..." Andreas began; but The Servant answered before he finished.
"Skoitomashu has fallen," The Servant said. "It disappeared soon after you condemned us to the void; though the mages remain in hiding, and launch occasional forays into Gralus. They have, without fail, failed to achieve anything." The others grimaced at this terrible pun, but The Servant did not seem to notice it. "Taonas appears to have had some sort of protection - the Shadows have tried to pierce it, but all efforts have failed. I do not know what it is - if my Master or Mistress have learnt, they haven't shared it with me."
"Where are your Master and Mistress?" Andreas asked.
"Busy elsewhere," he said, waving his hand dismissively. "There has been so much to do, and so few to do it in, we have all been working separately to maximise our effect. We have been able to disrupt some shadow missions, spreading discord; but always they return - we can only delay. Atropos is wily to our ways - she used to be chums with my Mistress, a long time ago. And we have never been able to get near the Dark Citadel."

"The Dark Citadel is Atropos' new capital, built on the cliff above where The Altar once stood, at the site where she summoned Fate," The Servant explained, in answer to their questioning looks.
"They have destroyed The Altar?" Andreas asked, amazed.
"Illumo Corealis fell early," The Servant replied. "If they have not destroyed The Altar, they may as well have - its defences were designed to fight enemies of the land; shadows and reflections are a part of the land, and so cannot be targeted. We haven't been able to enter the Dark Citadel to be sure, but my Master sees no reason for them to have kept The Altar."
"Surely The Servant-Whisperer team can get anywhere?" Fides asked, batting her eyelids sweetly.
"If we were willing to risk probable capture, yes," The Servant spat, "but my Master likes his freedom, it having been denied to him for so long. While dopplegangers can take the form of any living thing, the Shadows and Reflections know the signs too well to fail to notice me, if they try hard enough. And anyone who touched me would know the truth instantly. The Dark Citadel is constantly swarming with Shadows and Reflections - to attempt to enter it is futile. Besides, Fate is stationed there - and that close, his control is practically impossible for even us to resist."
"Surely a strong enough force could get in?" Nicholas mused.
"Oh yes," The Servant said, sarcastically, "if we had a powerful enough army we could get in anywhere." He rolled his eyes - he and his Master and Mistress much preferred words to strength of arms. "But unless you have brought an army with you," he continued, serious again, "you've got no hope. Attempts to raise an army here are, of course, destined for failure. You haven't brought an army with you, have you?" he asked suddenly.
"No," Andreas said, thinking hard about the number of mages in MANA; and decided it wouldn't be enough.

"Of course, there is one way we could weaken Atropos' forces, which would make it easier to get in," The Servant volunteered.
"Which is?" Nicholas asked suspiciously.
"Killing every mortal in such a way that would also kill their Reflection," The Servant suggested. "That, at least, would about halve her armies."
"Hang on," Andreas said, remembering his history, "doesn't she have Echoes too?"
"Echoes?" The Servant scoffed. "Perhaps a few, but nowhere near the numbers she has of Shadows or Reflections. Remember, she rose up the shadow of every living being before you condemned us to the void. But Echoes do not have hosts ..."
"Do you know what Echoes are, really?" Andreas asked.
"I do not like to speak of them," The Servant replied. "They are like the opposite of whispers - they echo the troubles of the past, rather than promising possible futures. They are truthful, in a way - they cannot echo that which was not said, or will not be said - unlike whispers which are half truths at best."
"For that matter," Nicholas said, "how do we know you're not whispering to us, buttering us up to dispose of Fate for you?"
"Of course I'm trying to get you to dispose of Fate, you impudent mortal!" The Servant replied, scathingly. "But we recognise the seriousness of this - and that we cannot turn this state of affairs to our advantage, alone, whatever happens. We need you to defeat Fate for us - and to that end, I will tell you as much truth as I can, in case you figure out something I can't! Of course, my Master seems to think you are the only one who can choose to defeat Fate, whatever that means," he said, looking at Andreas.
"You are not as sure?" Andreas replied, raising an eyebrow.
"I have seen you resist my Master; but other mortals have done the same. I do not set as much store by prophecies as my Master and Mistress," The Servant replied, coolly. Then he sighed. "But I cannot think what else to do, and if nothing else, you are very inventive; so I will do what I can to help you, and others with a similar chance of success. That is, a chance greater than none."
The Servant seemed to realise this was not an encouraging note to finish on; but did not seem to know what to say next, and fell silent as he stopped walking. The others took a moment to realise this, but when they did, stopped and walked back to him.

"Here, anyway, are some you might like to meet," The Servant said, indicating a door. "In here is a cell of The Resistance. You may find them of help." He made as if to leave.
"You're not coming with us?" Fides asked.
"I have other tasks to attend to," The Servant replied. "I will find you again when you need me." Then he walked away.
Andreas put his hand on the door. "Let's meet The Resistance," he said, pushing it open and stepping in.

OOC: Left it open for Prodigy or Longbow to post as The Resistance, if they see this. A general post from one of them about what The Resistance has been doing in the last year would be nice too, but an answer here would be a good start.

And for everyone - those of you not in the Fated Expedition (like Longbow, Prodigy, Tsunade, Roman) and those of you trapped in Gralus for a year (like Uvurith, Ukris, Nargoth) - feel free to post (or post more) about what you've been doing, and work out a good story way to meet up with us. Actually, that's a good goal:

Team Goal (Expedition and other good people): Meet up with eachother in a non-cliched manner.

Kathbad - still waiting on that continuation of your thread to get in via the Crystal Tree.

[Longbow]

Skiix shook his head slowly, in a futile attempt to shake the horrors from his mind. His dreams had been demented, ravaged by creatures not stored in his memory. Cride, his beloved homecity had suddenly been infested with darkness; shadows of those he had thought he had known flitting from rooftop to streets to doorways. Some of the population had disappeared, some had changed drastically, and some had fled. Dreams of those running into the cold night of the northernmost region brought shivers to Skiix's mind, shivers that had nothing to do with the temperature. "If only" he wished, "the dreams weren't real."
Even worse than the creatures was the silence. Normally every scalziin's mind was filled with the chatter of friends, but the eerie quietness had dominated them all. But now...
Skiix, you still there?
Don't worry sir, they haven't got me yet. I'm still up.
Kill the sir. We're all on the same playing field here.
I'd say this playing field is still FUBAR Longbow.
That's gotta change. Soon. Where's Karin?
Concentrating for a second, Skiix located her mind.
Two kliks north, coming our way. No hurry though, we're still safe.
For a year the three of them had been in hiding. The head of Cride and Chief Justice of Gralus, a former military conscript, and the local nurse trying to escape the regular patrols that searched for them.
Just be glad i could lock their brain-aids when they turned. Otherwise, we'd be in a much worse position.
Hey Longbow, Skiix, let's roll. Nothing's inbound. Yet. Karin: you could tell she hadn't been in the military. She was disciplined, but purposely forgot most of what Longbow had sent her. It had been 'too strict, and not flexible enough'. Fortunately for all three of them, she had kept most of the combat training, and practiced, but it would be some time before they could attempt anything risky.
We're going south.
Why's that?
We need to find Prodigy. He's likely to be pretty pissed off by now.

[Nargoth]

The wind howled by as Tecciztecatl flew low over the mountains of Archness Reach. The mountains like every where else the dragon had passed recently seemed dead.

It's worse than we had anticipated Nargoth.

Unfortunately it is. Tecc could feel the anger within Nargoth, not at the shadows, Atropos or even fate, but it seemed at himself. Tecc was about to respond when suddenly something moved below them.

Summary: Trying to get involved, who ever wants feel free to have at me.

[Ukris]

There he was again. That dragon rider.

Ukris and his small group had been moving as always about the land. Looking for opertunities, in whatever form they might take.

This was an opportunity. If a dragon would allow itself to carry a rider the rider must be one of importance. Then to make everything that much better the pair seemed to always fly low. This would be easy.

As the dragon crossed the designated location, the spells began to take effect. The dragons mighty wings tryed to keep it airborne but the force of the air down apon its back was simply increadible. Then tendrils of earth rose up to grab the dragon by the talons.

A bolt of lightning destroyed one of the tendrils but another began to wrap around its hind leg. Tecciztecatl began to struggle but against the well planned ambush it was little use. The power of Ukris and his mages was enough to hold the mighty dragon.

Then suddenly the next thing he knew he was flying through the air, he hit the ground but quickly got back on his feet. Before him stood a man he had seen on wanted posters. One of the so called Lords of magic. In the background he heard the dragon begin to break from the spells restraining it. Without his magical might his fellows could not keep it restrained. oh well they were better fighters than mages anyway. He would need his full concentration to contend with this lord.

This was quickly becoming the most fun he had had in centuries.

[Z-hin'il]

A white falcon suddenly burst upon the scene, emitting a sharp and ringing call so piercing that many of Ukris's mage's fell to the ground in pain, clutching their heads. A split second later a red and black spear whizzed past and sliced the few remaining roots holding Tecc to the ground. Tecc roared as she regained her freedom and spat a few bolts of lightning at her foes as she once more swiftly took to the air.

The spear, having embedded itself in the ground a good distance away, suddenly lifted itself up and flew to the top of a mountainside, where two hooded figures stood. After a moment more of the falcons terrifying peal, they and the bird quickly left, following in the direction the dragon and her lord went.

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

The campfire burned low, and four figures huddled around it. The two figures, whom Nargoth could still not make out, sat close together, occasionally whispering to each other under their breath. Besides these comments, nothing was said. A female gray draconian sat by Nargoth's side, eyeballing the two figures suspiciously.

The low light of the fire glinted off of the caves walls, casting an eerie orange glow about the cave. Tension filled the air as the two groups stared each other down, the two hooded figures evident stares piercing from beneath their dark hoods, and Tecc's fierce gaze relentlessly trying to perceive the shroud that hung about them. After a while, a white falcon swooped into the cave almost silently. Tecc attempted to snatch at the bird with her claws, but the bird seemed to phase through them.

Landing on the figure sitting to the rights shoulder, Nargoth saw that the bird had, not a dead animal in its claws, but fruit instead. Puzzled, he watched as the two took the fruit from the bird and began to eat it.

"Odd bird, you have there." Commented he, eyes narrowing as he looked at it.

Evidently a falcon, the birds eyes were a glistening blood red, striking in contrast to the well groomed and pure white feathers that seemed to flow about the birds beautifully proportioned body. Nargoth was sure he had seen the bird before. If his suspicions were correct, then these two in front of him were...

"Ah yes." Said the one with the bird on his shoulder "He is unbelievably valuable to me. I don't know what i would do without him."

Nargoth nodded. As he watched the two, the one on his left suddenly shifted, and he saw something shimmer. He nearly leaped up in recognition.

"I knew it." He exclaimed. "Z, Amara, what are you two doing here?"

In an instant, there was a spear pointed at Nargoth, Tecc was on her feet with lightning crackling about her fangs. The Z in question's hood, had fallen back, and there he was.

However, not was all that Nargoth recalled of him.

A nine-tipped star shaped scar covered the right side of his face, the center around his eye. His hair was much longer than before, its red color much deeper. There were also lines that showed on his face that evidenced the hardships he had faced over the past year. His grip was more steady on the long shafted spear that he held up to Nargoth, unfaltering and ready to strike.

Nargoth suddenly realized how bad of a time that Z had been dragged into this war, his new friendships and trust's just starting, only to be pulled out from under him by this fate changing event.

"Don't move." Warned Z, gesturing for Amara to stand. She too, removed her hood, and Nargoth saw that her beauty was unaffected by the war, but her eyes had instead grown softer, and gentler, if that were possible.

Nargoth raised his hands to show he wasn't casting any spells, and he ordered Tecc to calm herself. "Z," he said. "Its been too long. Ive been trying to find somone all these years without any success, where have you..."

"Quiet." Z growled. "First, I need you to come up with three good reasons why i should trust you, and that your not being controlled by fate right now."

Summary: Getting back into it! Decided to grizzle up my char, also, there are a few surprises i have in mind for later on. Just need Nargoths cooperation for it to happen (ie. respond!)

[Z-hin'il]

"I have but one reason. I am a wraith a dead man, my very existence cheats fate" As he spoke Nargoth lowered his hands. Hoping the spear would soon leave his throat.

Z still faced Nargoth, his face still filled with suspicion. The bird, who Nargoth remembered was called L, turned to Amara, who was looking at Z with worry. Without turning his head, Z asked her "Love, is it true? Are Wraiths truly cut from the bonds of fate once they have been created?"

She looked to Nargoth, then back to Z. "In theory..." She said softly, with an apologetic tone that was directed towards Nargoth. "As long as the wraith was created under such circumstances that went against all that was supposed to be, they are freed from the constraints that normal mortals face. They have utter and complete control over their destinies."

Z nodded. "Allright." He kept his spear leveled at Nargoth, however. "Give me one more moment. I need to confirm what she says with my eye."

Thoughts raced in Nargoth's mind at the statement, he could feel the confusion within Tecc's mind as well. Z was blind how would his eye help.

As the eye finally opened, Nargoth saw a vivid shape in place of where the pupil and iris should be. Three triangles, silver against Z's now black eye. Each triangle seamlessly overlapped each other in the center, not one point of another didn't touch the other two, and vice-versa. As the three shapes converged, the center point of them seemed to be an independent shape of its own, three equal lines branching gracefully out from it. These lines in turn formed the triangles that created them, giving a sense of never ending encirclement.

As it opened, the shape in his eye suddenly flared up, a soft silver light emanating from it. A soft wind rustled about him as the eye suddenly seemed to pierce through Nargoths very soul.

After a moment, Z's face relaxed. "Its OK. It seems we can trust him. I cant see any chains of fate binding his essence with my Eye of the Millennium."

Nargoths eyes narrowed into slits as he watched Z's eye close again. After a moment, Z fished out of his pack a slender white mask with a red stripe running down the side. Placing it on the side of his face with the scar, the mask all but obscured the right side of his face, leaving only a small bit of his scar showing. Shaking his dark red hair, the mask was then partially obscured by it, making it even more difficult to make out the details of the mask in the dark.

Then Nargoth spoke.

"So what has happened to you in the last year, Z?" The simple question hung in the night air for what seemed like a long moment before Amara broke the awkward silence.

"One year ago, we had just come back to the mainland, looking for adventure and to experience the world together. Before we knew it, we were caught up in a struggle that's ending up determining the rest of life as we know it on Gralus. After this Atropis returned to our world, bringing with her the behemoth known as Fate, a magical phenomena rocked the land, seemingly isolating us from the rest of the world. We assume this was an attempt to stop Fate from destroying the world."

Nargoths eyebrow raised. This was as much as he knew so far, save he knew one more fact....

"The place they called MANA, dissipated, along with many of our new compatriots. Not knowing their fate, Z and a retreated to our Haven. Almost immediately after we arrived, we were attacked by Atropis's minions. They boasted an incredible number, and we were forced to flee our home. During the attack, Z was hit by some kind of spell from amidst their ranks, which afflicted him so."

At this, Nargoth raised his other eyebrow. As far as he knew, reflections and shadows couldn't cast spells...

"After some time, he found that he could 'see' the chains of fate that were used to control people. Those with strong wills were able to resist them, and he could differentiate them by the strain of the chains attempting to control them. He can also see what Fate may decide for those not strong enough to resist him, and even those who can, he can see what Fate intends to do with them. Oddly enough, we are unaffected by the whims of fate, and his ability to control what comes to pass. Were not sure why, but we have used this, and have been on the run ever since."

"I wonder if the reason your unaffected has to do with your pasts..." Nargoth said to himself.

Both Z and Amara looked to each other at this. They had heard from the others that they had apparently had different lives, not to long ago. From what Z had been told, it was not something he should look back upon lightly.

Z's face darkened. "Tell me." He said, slowly. "What do our past live have to do with us not being affected by Fate?"

"Well..." Said Nargoth softly "Just that I think it was not your fate to become who you are now, and thus, by denying fate's course, you have become free of it."

There was a moment of silence. Z then stood, his tattered brown cloak swaying softly with the night breeze. Underneath the dark cloak, Nargoth could see a black coat with crimson and silver trimmings.

"Nargoth." Z said, suddenly, turning to him. "Can you tell me anything about my past? I know I have been warned about it, but I cant go on living in ignorance of who I was. This also gives me an opportunity to remember who you all are to me. Also, regardless of who I was before, I am strong enough now to not let that affect me in the present."

Naroth nodded, then said "What if there IS something in your past that disturbs you to the point of altering your psyche?"

Z then smiled. It was the smile Nargoth remembered from a year ago, before all of the tragedy.

He tapped the side of his head, his gloved finger clicking against the temple of his mask. "No problem, Ive got the best goddamn selective memory in Gralus."

Summary: Back-story stuffs, the usual. Also explains what me'an my wife were doing for the year. Im also a bit more bad 'a spry and healthy young donkey' now...
Nargoth and I went through this stuff on chat, so excuse for the double post

[Longbow]

The campfire burned low as Skiix and Karin went to sleep, leaving Longbow in the semi-darkness. His eyes adjusted easily enough, but his mind was elsewhere. The entire history of his still young race was filed into his memory, he could access any Scalziin's mind at will, but now...
There were only two minds he could access. It wasn't the inability to do it that bothered him, it was the fact that an entire race was cut off. The Scalziin functioned as a race, not as several individuals. This new threat somehow managed to break every single one of those bonds, and form a new, singular bond. A new bond only to a shadow, or reflection of themselves. And Longbow couldn't tap into them to learn anything. A sigh escaped his lips as he leaned back, feigning rest, and thought of the fight. This could last forever.

Note: there could be some Scalziin that I don't know about still free.

[Demon of Fides]

It had taken them a little under a year, but rebel forces had finaly established a foothold near what they considered to be thier strongest weapon, the gate. Lying in wait, more than 20 men, armed with an assortment of weapons from railguns to flashgrenades built out of disposable cameras. 52 weeks after MANA vanished, the scouts were amazed to see the gate lift into the sky and spread out. The bright blue energy that indicated the gates work was clearly visible but had not attracted the attension of any shadows.

Within ten minutes of the engagement of the gate, every rebel watched the probe make it's progress. It hadn't been shot down yet, so presumably the gate had not been noticed. Fides attempted to signal the probe with a laser pointer...

Continued in

http://bill3000.net/nelaga/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=390

[Andreas the Wise]

OOC @everyone - more participants, excellent!
@Fides - I assume the Fides in that post is Baal (who has then joined the rebels), not Lilith, who is with me and Nick about to enter a rebel meeting. Looking forward to hearing more about what he's been doing this past year, and incorporating him into the Nelagan entry.
Just for the course of this war, can you use Baal-Fides and Lilith-Fides (or just Baal and Lilith) to make it clear which is which?

Andreas pushed open the door to find that inside was a bar. In a way, it didn't surprise Andreas - bars were popular among a certain kind of Novatainian, and with the sudden, dramatic change in government, you'd expect some people might like to drink off their sorrows. But in another way, it seemed very odd - almost suspicious. Surely those controlled by Fate would not do anything so frivolous as drinking, they'd all be building weapons for shadows, or whatever it was that The Servant said they were doing. Wasn't being in a bar a dead giveaway that you were resisting?

But a second glance showed that this place was a lot quieter than a Novatainian bar normally was. There was no carousing. The bar appeared unattended. There were no mirrors to speak of, and the bar looked like it hadn't been polished for a while. The curtains were all drawn; but the place was well lit by a number of candles, instead of the normal half-light caused by cheap fluoro's. Plus, being pushed up against the wall as soon as they entered wasn't standard.

"Let's see what we have here," said one of the men holding Andreas up against the wall. He pushed his face close to Andreas', and Andreas could smell the alcohol very clearly. Out of the corner of his eye, Andreas noticed several others glancing surreptitiously at the floor around them
"Now what are two young lads and a little girly doing out at this time of morning?" asked another, holding Nicholas.
"Who are you calling a girl?" Lilith-Fides demanded, then looked down, and muttered, "Oh yeah."
Andreas saw an almost imperceptible nod from one of those who had looked up when the three entered; and then a voice called out lazily, "Calm down, Hugo. We wouldn't want our friends to feel ... ill at ease."

A man got up from the other side of the room, and walked over. He had a solid build, and a scar running down one side of his face. As he came over, those holding Nicholas and Lilith let go, though the guy holding Andreas kept doing so until the man reached them, and coughed. Reluctantly, he let go and stood back a few centimetres, eyeing the three visitors suspiciously.
"Going for a stroll, are we?" the man asked, raising an eyebrow as he noticed the amount of gear they were carrying between them. "Leaving town without Shadow order's a punishable offence, you know."
"We were just looking for ... a drink," Andreas said, though privately he wondered that nobody recognised him. He'd hardly been subtle as King or Lord of Magic, and it had only been a year ...
"Well, this might be the place you're looking for," the man said, tracing his feet lazily around the floor. He seemed to form a half circle in the dust.
"I was told it was," Andreas said, completely the circle, on the off chance it was some sort of signal.

It was. The man smiled. "Welcome to The Resistance," he said, offering his hand and shaking it warmly. "Name's Wally, and I'm the leader of the St Nova Cell. Sorry about the rough welcome, but we can never be too careful. It's only a matter of time before the Shadows figure us out, and try to get in to spy."
"You seem well set up," Nicholas said, motioning around the room.
"You mean the candles?" Wally said. "A useful little trick. We can black out the room in under 10 seconds; and the Shadows and Reflections both don't like that. But our real weapon is this." He motioned at one of the tables, and a man got up and went into the bar, pouring three pints.
"I know our beer is good, but I didn't think it was that strong ..." Andreas said, as he took one of the glasses.
"It's the alcohol, my friend," Wally said, as the three took sips. "Helps us think clearly. Punch through the fog."
Nicholas spluttered. "Alcohol helps you think clearly?"
"Against him," Wally said, apparently indicating Fate. "When you get good and drunk, nobody can mess with your mind, and its good for the despair too. Hugo here's a pro."
Hugo grinned at this, showing his blackened teeth, and pulled out a hip flask. Taking a swig, he went and sat back by the door, to watch for more intruders.

Wally, meanwhile, led them back to his table. "I haven't seen you around before," he said, as they walked.
"We've just got here," Andreas said.
"I thought as much. You're the second set of travellers we've had today, then," Wally said, as they sat down. "Max here's the first."
The only other person at the table, who wore a thick travelling cloak and a hood, nodded briefly, and then went back to his drink. "So what brings you here?" Wally asked. "Not many people risk the Shadow's wrath to travel around."
"Well, its kind of a long story," Nicholas said.
Wally's face darkened at this. Without waiting for Nicholas to elaborate, he said, "Lost someone, eh? You're not the only ones ... They just make me so ... angry!" he finished, thumping the table. Andreas wondered if this was the alcohol speaking, but as Wally continued, realised that this was why he was the leader of this cell. "These shadows and reflections. Insubstantial nothings who think they can appear and run the show. Him, going and trying to get inside our heads and twist our lives. But Novatainians are made of tougher stuff than they expected, eh? We're not all cushy slaves - plenty of us are fighting back!" He drew a full circle on the table, just like Andreas had completed at the door, and began to draw lines coming off it. "The sun - we're fighting to see a full sun again, and live free lives under it. There're cells in every city, and they say Tek is travelling the country, setting up his plan to crush the shadows and reflections once and for all! Until that day, we help resist how we can - stealing equipment from work camps, breaking stuff in factories ..." He reached for his glass, and found it to be empty. "I'm going to get another drink," he concluded, and got up.

That left the three mages alone with the other traveller. There was silence for a moment, and then the traveller looked up at them, from under his hood. "Wally worked at the docks," he said. "Lot of people here did. Spent years on and off ships, in different ports around Micras. Just happened to be docked in St Nova the day the sun stood still. They say the shadows came around, demanding the crew sail them out the Whirlpool. Most of them agreed, but Wally punched two shadows, dived straight through a third, thumped into the floor and found himself on the docks, with a roaring headache, and the ship, the SS Mandarin, sailing off into the distance. A couple of the other crew members had carried him off and stemmed his bleeding when the shadows had left him for dead. Together, they formed a small group who tried to hinder the shadows, and when The Resistance appeared over the coming months, they became the core cell in St Novas."
"Interesting," Lilith said, though her look suggested otherwise.
"I'm telling you this," Max said, quietly, "so you understand why he didn't recognise you. Most of the people here have spent far too long out of the country to have noticed that King Lachlan disappeared." The way he said 'disappeared', it sounded almost as if he were accusing Andreas of having organised it. "But I know who you are," he continued, "your majesty. And I've learnt something, as I've gone from cell to cell this past year, while you've been hiding somewhere. This is all your fault."

"My fault?" Andreas said, taken aback. "I assure you, this is the last thing I wanted to happen."
"Nevertheless, it's your fault - you and your kind," Max said, spitting. "Mages."
"You're not suggesting ..." Nicholas began, but Max interrupted him.
"There are six great dangers of our Age," he told Andreas. "By your arrogance and thirst for glory, you allowed one of them - the tragedies of international war and those criminals Extreme and Monty. If you had never pushed for war, they would never have bombed our soil." Andreas was about to protest at this harsh assessment, but Max continued. "You unleashed another four. The Whisperer and co; the Demons; the Dark Microns; and of course, the Dark Queen and him. The final evil of our age? You and your kind. You mages wield huge destructive power, and your anger and rage is legendary. Before the sun stopped, I'd expected to lose my life in a war between you and the necromancers."
"Alright, the last two are fair, but we're working on them, and remember, without us defeating them, the others could have done untold damage," Andreas protested.
"You unleashed each of them," Max replied. "By accident, maybe, but by your hand they could hurt us none-the-less. Stopping them doing so merely repairs some of the damage you have wrought. It gives you no credit on my part."
Nicholas looked about to say something, but again, Max continued before he could. He seemed to have waited a long time to be able to say this rant. "Noticed there are only humans in this bar? After the sun stopped, nobody's trusted you magic folk much. You're probably lucky nobody else recognised you. But I know you for who you are. You are the cause of great danger and suffering in our age. Novatainia would have been better off had you never brought magic to it." He glanced at Lilith, clearly not recognising her as the third member of the Arcane Quartet. "His brother doesn't have much choice, but if I were you, I'd get some new companions, girly." And before Lilith could protest at such a label, he had pushed across his glass, got up, and began to walk out of the bar.

OOC: Tek could be Prodigy - if Tekruah, the Machine Spirit got involved, he'd be good at dealing with reflections and shadows.

[Demon of Fides]

Lilith looked at Nick, who looked at Andreas, who looked at Lilith.
"Shoot for it?" asked Lilith weakly.
"Fides, you're the only one they'll trust, all we're asking is for you to chat him up a bit..."
"You could have put that better" interjected Nick
"and pump him for information."
"THAT'S WHAT SHE SAI... sorry..."
"Okay, fine" said Lilith, "I'll go get him drunk."

__________________________________________________________________

Nicholas and Andreas sat in the bar for a few hours, attracting only glances from the rest of its custom.
Lilith came back from upstairs, "I know three cells, there's this one, a pretty big one that looks after a lot of Glandurchy and a very disliked magic based one that seems to include our tokian friends. There used to be a small one around the bay, but they were raided and culled. What haave you lot got?"
"Magic is evidently good for something..." said Nick, "we know that you're in New Myzoria somewhere with a few Tokian & Relaram magi, Z-hnil is on the scene and Longbow is around somewhere..."
"Excellent..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"So, Fides, how did you get the information?"
"Tied him up and hitting him with a bar stool, why do you ask?"
"Just checking, also; some very angry people are standing behind you..."

[Demon of Fides]

Aa our three protagonists ran away from the bar, the resistance watched them in silence.

...

One man spoke, "I could probably still peg the girl from here..."
A very bruised man spoike up; "No, military action draws the reflections... I say we be good little servants and alert our great master to their presence..."

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

Back in MANA, Q and a small team of engineers prepared the teleport.
"Right," said Q, "Bring in the test!"
A small probe was lifted into the teleport.
"If she goes through unharmed, we need to send the team through, have them surface and make contact with the outside world, then try to help. Ready boys? One... Two... Better not sue!"
Q flipped the switch and the world when peppermint...







"Anyone else taste that?"
"Yep."
"I do."
"And me..."
"Good, so it isn't just me then?"
The greenish haze lifted and the engineers went back to work.
"IT WORKED!"
A slight cheer erupted, the kind of cheer you get from people who normally dont cheer, but felt it necessary on this occasion to.
"Okay, prep the team and everyone stand back."

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

Far away from the action we have focused on so far, a small relaram family cowered in their cellar. This was not, in fact, a particularly strange way to spend a night in the gang controlled cities, but this was different: Sometime in the night, most of the reflective surfaces in the city had been painted over, smashed or stolen. The few left were being used to bring more reflections through rappidly, just in case. An antique mirror in the familys attic was the only reflective surface left in their suburb, and the house was filled with reflections.

The family had not given up hope, for in the childs pocket was the note left by whoever had broken into their house and removed everything else; "We will come for you, -The Resistance"

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

On the slopes far up from the city, two shadows watched.
"I wonder, prehaps, if they have begun to develope some immunity to Fate's control?"
"That may seem evident, but it could just be that to brainwash something, it must have a brain to begin with."
"True, I say we watch and wait."

[Nicholas the Mad]

Still construction continued in that fortress up on the hill. It had started about a month after Atropos's summoning of Fate, and continued throughout the year since. None knew exactly what was being built, not even the majority of her servants. If her commanders knew, they had not made any sign. They merely ordered the slaves to build.

For it was fated to be. This was the power Atropos had. None could resist the inexorable pull to obey the commands of the Shadows and Reflections. Thrice the Resistance had attempted to free them. Thrice less than half of them had managed to escape. They were Fated to lose. For how could you fight an enemy that controls your own destiny?

Yet those still able to think freely clung to one bit of hope. That someone from outside this prison, where Micras was free and happy, would help them. Someone who would resist Fate's pull. Yet the rumour was, they said, that Atropos was building some kind of weapon; something that would amplify Fate's powers, crush the Resistance and quash those mages who had trapped her in this prison.

But it was just a rumour. Who knows for sure what goes on up there?

[Andreas the Wise]

With a little aid from "Animate Self", Nicholas the Mad, Andreas the Wise, and Lilith, Demon of Fides, soon escaped the members of The Resistance who were pursuing them out of St Novas. They headed south, curving around the coast, and away from where MANA once stood. It was a bit of bad luck that they ended up heading that way, away from any hope of support, but they weren't too worried. They were more interested in discussing what just happened.
"So, clearly Lilith, you've inherited the normal Fides-ish tendencies," Nicholas said, after their pursuers had disappeared from view over the horizon.
"Torture is such a harsh word," Fides replied. "I prefer the term ... physical encouragement."
They looked at her. Lilith did not have the body build of most Fides' - she was a she, for a start. Where other Fides were big and muscly, she was small and petite, and fairly beautiful. Her voice spoke of a cultured upbringing and an intelligent mind. The phrase 'physical encouragement', coming from her beautiful face, brought various images to mind, none of which involved torture. But the phrase 'physical encouragement', coming from a Fides, sadly meant little else.

"Anyway, our time was not entirely unproductive," Andreas said. "We've learnt that there are some people who have some resistance to Fate's influence. We don't yet know how or why, but that at least provides hope that our friends who remained in Gralus may be of help."
"Longbow, Prodigy," Nicholas recited, "Nargoth, Uvurith, Tsunade, Gerk, Baal." After a little thought, it was the list they had settled on of people most likely to be of help. Bayen's name was conspicuous by its absence, but he was beyond helping them now. Kathbad might also have been helpful; but he had not been sighted in Gralus for some time, and was unlikely to have been in the country at the time of the Fate Distortion.
"And we also know that at least some of The Resistance don't like magic anymore," Andreas continued. "Not that that should really surprise me - there were many Novatainians who were never fans of my actions in making magic public again."
"So The Servant was right - we don't have that army we apparently need," Nicholas said. "Here we are, The Emperor, a King and a High Ranking Identity Crisis, on the run in our own country, from our own people ... we need help."
"Hmm," Andreas said, a thought striking him. "I planted, with Q's help, a message in both Nelaga and Shireroth, to activate when Fate Distortion activated, and warn them that we're facing some unimaginable danger."
"Oh, they'll come and help then," Fides said matter-of-factly.
"I didn't actually ask for help," Andreas said. "And I'd have no idea how they'd get in. But its ... possible. If we get lucky."
"Hah, luck," came a voice from behind them. "You won't have any of that while Fate is around."

Normal people might have stopped. Normal people might have turned and looked at who was behind them. But normal people haven't had experience is escaping and defeating various magical evils. Nicholas, Andreas and Fides as one rose into the air, animating themselves away as fast as they could go.
The shadow behind them cursed, then spoke into a radio he'd stolen off some humans. "I've found them. But they're heading up ..."
"We've got them, then," came to the crackly reply. "We happen to have a true Shadow Wing just nearby."

From up in the air, Andreas started a scry spell to look below them. "Shadows," he said. "They're onto us."
"You don't think someone tipped them off?" Fides asked.
"If they did, it'll be your fault," Nicholas muttered darkly.
But then, from above them came a roar, and four huge shadow dragons came hurtling towards them. "Oh oh," Andreas said, swerving into a dive. The others followed him - but the shadow dragons were faster fliers, and gaining on them.
We may have to jettison some of our equipment, Nicholas said. Reduce the weight we're animating, to increase our speed.
Fides screamed suddenly, as he felt something hot tickle him, as a dragon behind roared with flame. Apparently shadowy fire still burnt. Sorry, she said, some reactions are too deeply engrained in gender ...
But there was no time for more small talk, as, below them, they saw shadows massing. Above them, the dragons were still gaining. Worse still, they could now see human shadows hopping up and down on the backs of the dragons, preparing to leap down on them.
We can't escape, we'll have to teleport! Nicholas said.
Follow me, Fides said, taking both their hands in mid air. Just as they were about to slam into the shadows on the ground, Fides teleported them away ...

They found themselves in the middle of an army of shadows on the march. You fool, Andreas said, You can't randomly pick somewhere - we're fated to fail ... but was stopped as the shadows they'd appeared in the middle of grabbed them and knocked them unconscious. A normal commander wouldn't have believed his luck. The shadow commander on duty merely smiled. This was fated ...

Summary: Andreas, Nicholas and Fides get found by the shadows. After a brief chase scene, they teleport randomly to the first place that came into Fides' head. Unfortunately, that put them straight in the middle of a shadow army. They've been captured.

OOC Fides - not at all trying to hit on you IC. Just thought it more fun for you to play an attractive female character, since you're a girl.

[Ukris]

Well perhaps i shall try once more.

Ukris had awoken with a splitting headache. The last thing he remembered was the roar as the dragon his minions had tried to capture pulled from their spell, and that mage, and his helpers.

A few moments later he could feel one of his servants, a shadow dragon speak to his mind. My Lord. The mages of MANA have returned once more, and they even have the Emperor with them.

Interesting. Where are they Imictis

Attempting to evade the shadow dragon wing i am with. Imictis was one of the shadow dragons who served Ukris. Though quite different from the true shadow dragons of Atrophis' army, it seemed her soldiers were unable to tell the difference only the queen herself could tell the difference when the dragons hid the truth.

With a quick gesture Ukris teleported himself to Imictis and sure enough there they were. There was no way out for them unless... know what was about to happen Ukris cast forth a thread of his magic it attached lightly to the back of the Female. As they teleported Ukris was drawn with them.

The shadows struck and down went MANAs defenders but Ukris had been ready. With a quick burst of light the shadows around him were repulsed, this gave him the time he needed to change into his true form.

Ukris only just managed to battle his way to his newest quarry. He cast fourth a new set of magic strands he felt them connect to one of the mages, and with a slight flash he was gone. As was his target.

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

The Room was dark lit only by a single candle. The impact to the head had left him groggy, but this didnt seem like a holding cell. I just seemed as though it was a room in any run of the mill home. Then a voice drifted from the darkness.

"Good evening Your Boldness."

Nicholas the Mad was now fully awake, Directly in front of him he could see to red eyes hovering in the darkness.

Summary: in yet another attempt to get involved and stirr things up, i have taken the emperor, Nicholas the Mad.

Now since i know escape is what you will now do/try nicholas. please just try to keep to my character not being a total pushover. for instance i have more raw power than even the lords, but IC i am not as crafty so be smart and make this fun.
please and thankyou.

[Demon of Fides]

OOC: Andreas, I laughed out loud... Please don't be offended any girls out there...

Fides woke up tied to a chair.
"Well, this is unexpected..."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fides glanced up at the gate, for some reason the shadows still hadn't noticed it, but the nelagans should be through any minute now... Time was running out!

[Nicholas the Mad]

Nicholas regained consciousness, and staring straight at him were two red eyes. But the Emperor of Gralus wasn't scared that easily. He sent out questing mental tendrils and scryed himself. Nothing. Whoever had him was definitely a strong mage. "I guess I'll ahve to chance opening my mouth," he thought.
"Who are you?" he asked

OOC: Sorry, i have to go now. I'm also not sure how much i can do without betraying yoru character who i knwo ntohing about. Can you give me a bti more to work with?

[Ukris]

The eyes before Nicholas closed then the one on his left, his captors right eye reopened. I was now green, the man then stepped into the light. He was average size thin but not overly so, he wore deep red robes and an eye patch over his left eye. "Me, well so kind of you to ask, my liege. I am Ukris-Sjach."

Nicholas took amoment to test this Ukris' mind. It strange, there was no barrier to protect the mages mind but at the same time it seemed there was nothing there. Nicholas tried to place a simple suggestion and nothing happened. "What do you want with me?"

"Want with you? Nothing really. I am tired of these shadows, they have made this world stagnant and in fact quite unpleasant for me."

"Well then perhaps we can work togeather. we could team up to beat Atropos."

Ukris sneered, "Based on the word going around this prison, the blame for all of this could easily be placed on your shoulders."

Summary: Because of certain aspects of his past, Ukris is immune to all forms of manipulation, this includes people entering his mind. More often than not he will go along with anything that changes the current statis quo. he loves to see those who feel safe and secure shaken, reviles in chaos and confusion. he has alot of raw power but often has trouble effectively channeling it. this sometimes leaves his magic similar to a club rather than a sword.

[Demon of Fides]

de ja vu...

[Andreas the Wise]

Andreas also woke tied up to a chair, next to Lilith. He felt very lethargic ... while he could move his head fine, he could barely move anything below his neck. In front of him was a large mirror. Lilith was reflected in it. His chair was empty. Lilith's reflection turned to look behind herself, and yelled, "They're awake." Andreas tried to look behind him, but couldn't turn his head enough against the ropes. He didn't feel able to do much magic - if he was, the ropes would have disappeared and he escaped in an instant. Lilith must have felt equally drained. She asked slowly, as if tired, "Er, why don't you have a reflection?"
"I'm a vampire," Andreas said, rolling the v. "Ve don't have reflections."
"I should have known that," Lilith said, "Baal was one. Is one. Will be one." She sighed. Major identity crises combined with strange lethargy weren't conducive to quick thinking.

A door behind them opened, and they heard someone enter. Atropos entered their field of vision. She seemed delighted. "How are you feeling?" she asked, grinning. "Tired? Delightful. Now you're starting to learn the fun of fighting your own shadows." She looked beyond them to where their shadows were evidently sitting. "Leave us," she said to them. "They will not try to escape while talking to me. They are too curious by nature. I will call you again when I need you." The shadows and Lilith's reflection left. Atropos' grin widened. The others weren't smiling.
"What have you done with my brother?" Andreas demanded.
"He wasn't captured," Atropos replied. "It doesn't matter. He is fated to be captured. It's only a matter of waiting."
Andreas and Lilith looked at one another. Nicholas was still out there. That was probably good.
"More interesting is that I now have you," Atropos continued, ignoring the look. "The famous Andreas the Wise. Last time we met we didn't get a chance to properly talk. But now we have plenty of time." She smiled. "And who is your lovely friend?"
"I'd do what I did when we last met, but I'm not gay," Lilith said. Atropos raised an eyebrow.
"Fides?"
"In the flesh."
"My, you have changed," Atropos said. "Coming back as someone else has taken years off you."
"How did you meet?" Andreas asked, interested in the Fides history.
"It was in a bar," Lilith said. "A very ... special bar. It was long before I ended up in Novatainia; before Novatainia even was founded. I was a different person then ..."
While with Fides this could mean a lot of things, Andreas guessed it to mean she wasn't as evil now as she was then.
"Well, now we all know eachother," Atropos said, "would you be so kind as to tell me how you've trapped me here, and how to break out?"
Andreas paused, looking like he was thinking, then stuck out his tongue. "No."
"No matter," Atropos said, waving this off. "You are fated to do so. You can run from your fate, but you cannot avoid it forever."
"I can die trying."

"And what will that achieve?" Atropos said, laughing at Andreas. "You and I both know you would never take that path."
"Talking of paths people would never take ... why are you doing this?" Andreas asked. "I read the CoD 2 Files. You may be evil, but you were channelling all your energies into defeating Fate ... or so they thought. Now we find you controlling a new Fate, and preparing to unleash it on the multiverse for your own deranged sense of power."
"Power?" Atropos said, her voice growing cold. "You think I'm doing this for power?"
"If not power, then what would possess you to recreate the being you worked so hard to destroy?" Andreas asked. "It can hardly be for revenge, since you haven't killed him yourself yet."
Atropos turned away from them. "You wouldn't understand."
"I'm a very understanding person," Andreas said, but Atropos remained silent.
Suddenly she turned around, wrinkling her nose, as if she smelt something funny. "Wait ... I catch a hint of ... Demzus."

"Oh, that'd be me," Lilith said spiritedly. "I was a Demzus two generations ago, and I've probably got some stuff I made then in my equipment."
"You were a demzus?" Atropos asked, amazed.
"You know them?" Andreas asked.
"Know them?" Atropos said. "I helped found them."
Andreas' eyes opened wide. "I thought the Dark Microns had made them up as a fake race."
"I thought they were zoo-ological time guardians," Lilith said.
"More like homocidal genocide enforcers," Andreas said.
"Hardly," interrupted Atropos. "The Demzus were founded as a department of the Time Distortionists. Their goal was to recover a breeding pair of every set of creatures, and return them to the Eternity Chamber. Only there would they be safe from Fate, and be able to repopulate should Fate wipe them out. If they had been founded earlier ..." she fell silent.
"That's certainly a bit different from the feelings I got," Lilith said, reviewing her memories as Necross.
"But Fate realised what the Demzus were doing early on," Atropos said. "He hunted them down, all the time I was the demi-goddess of shadow. The last one fell at the Battle of Cyronae, mere weeks before I was rudely assaulted in Eclipse. Every last one of them was wiped out of existence by Fate. It was as if they had never existed. So how," she said, turning to stare at Lilith, "did you become one; much less one with a highly corrupted sense of purpose."

"It's a bit of a long story," Lilith said, thinking back. "I'm pretty sure it was because I was killed at the wrong time, and so because they died at the wrong time too, I was able to come back as one ..."
"Don't forget that psycho master Demzus who decided everything would be easier if he killed off every living thing," Andreas added.
"Garbage, all garbage," Atropos said, sounding affronted. "That sounds a mere parody of what the Demzus once were, and as for coming back as one because they died at the wrong time ..." she shook her head, wearily. "Believe me when I say, I know better than most that Fate's victims do not return because of some sense of injustice in the time of their demise."
"Then how ..." Andreas began, but Atropos interrupted him.
"You said Dark Microns?" she said. "Where were you, at the time?"
"Visiting Ptia," Andreas said.
Atropos burst into mocking laughter. "Those Time Distortionists," she scoffed. "You blame me for creating a new Fate when I worked so hard to destroy the last one. Look at the Time Distortionists. Power corrupts, but power over time corrupts absolutely. The Time Distortionists were founded to destroy Fate, and then everyone would be able to live their life in peace. But the Time Distoritionists were prepared to achieve their ends by whatever means possible, including manipulating history in whatever way was necessary. Imagine that power. That's the power of gods. They didn't give that up when Fate was destroyed. Who knows what sick ends they aim at now."

OOC: The above could be a good reason Baal has escaped for so long.

Also: I have lots more to discuss with/as Atropos - Fides, you can make some comments as Lilith if you want, but don't escape or anything.