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The Three-Edged Sword: Rallying to War

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Veldanya Venalla:
"Understanding is a three-edged sword.  Your side....their side....and the truth." - Unknown
*Several years after the events surrounding the Eye of Terror*
"It is as we have feared isn't it?"

The large armored figure standing at the balcony, looking out over the city turns at the sound of the voice, his gaze coming to rest on a slender, winged woman a short distance away.  The Seraphim nods grimly.

"Yes.  Not only do the scouting reports clearly show an increase in the forces of Darkness all along their borders, as well as an escalation in raiding attacks...but I can even sense the growing strength of Darkness itself.  He...is returning."

The woman moves closer, joining Jharm at the balcony as they both overlook the sprawling shining city.

"Yet still She has not returned.  Your travels with those "Companions" failed to provide any leads as to her whereabouts, as well as weaken our forces when we joined in the assault upon that "Eye of Terror" hellscape."

Her words, while neither accusatory nor hostile do still bear a bit of a sting to them, demonstrated by the Seraphim looking off to the side and clenching a fist.

"Correct.  I believe we made the right choice though.  The Eye had to be dealt with, otherwise I'm sure eventually it would have spilt over into other universes.  We stand against the Darkness, not only here in our own universe but I feel, elsewhere as well when necessary."

"You know we agree with your decision...but that does not change that not only are we weaker in strength now then if we had not participated in that attack...we also now face the very real likelihood of facing Darkness himself without Her direct aid.  Never before has such a thing been done.  What if we should fail?  Darkness will no doubt overcome everything and then what?  Invade other realms?"

"Correct once again.  All is not lost.  There are the Companions.  All of them are powerful in their own ways, and I have no doubt that they would all offer their assistance to us should I ask."

"Even that psychotic...what did you call him?  Ork?"

"Yes...Gulgrim.  In truth Im sure if he is offered the possibility of untold carnage and violence...I don't think there would be any way to deny him from participating.  Plus his army would be serve as a very suitable..."vanguard" for our own troops."

"Bloodthirsty psychotic monsters, that's what they are Seraphim."

"Yes...but given the dire threat...I see few other options.  I should go speak with..."

Suddenly the doors of the room burst open and an armored Seraph rushes in.

"Seraphim!  The General is in need.  Something has happened to him!"

*Elsewhere in the Citadel*

An older looking Seraph sits cross-legged, candles burning in a circle around him.  A pure white blindfold is wrapped around his head, his chest barely rising and falling as he seems to be deep in a meditative state.  Two Seraphs stand a distance away, clad in simple white robes.  Suddenly, the seated figure begins to spasm and shake before his head rolls back and suddenly light begins to glow from within the empty eye sockets covered by the blindfold.  The priests look at each other before the one rushes towards the spasming figure and the other quickly slips through the doorway and dashes out of sight. After a few moments the blind Seraphs movements calm and he slumps against the attending priest, his breath ragged and tired.

"I....Im okay.  I'm...alright.  Help me up...I...I must speak with the Seraphim at once."


It is at that moment the other priest returns, followed by Jharm and the woman he was speaking with.

"Ah, I suppose I should have known you would show up without delay."

"Of course General Drayvon, your acolyte tells me you were meditating and then without warning started to spasm all about.  Naturally this is concerning.  Are you.."

"Alright?  Yes of course, a bit tired perhaps but I am alright.  That is not important though.  What IS important is that I have had a vision."

Jharm takes a step back, slight shock on his face.

"A vision?  Was it about.."

"Yes. A vision of what is to come...or what may be to come.  I can not say for certain."

Drayvon turns and moves over to Jharm, placing a hand upon the larger Seraphs shoulder.

"As before, flashes of images and voices.  I recognize some as your Companions thanks to our interactions with them previously...but there is one I do not recognize.  Steady yourself and I will share it with you.  I feel that we must move quickly."

Focusing, he lowers his head and squeezes the Seraphims shoulder as Jharms mind is suddenly overtaken by a barrage of images, sights, and sounds.  They are gone in a flash though as he gives a shake of his head and rubs a head over his forehead.

"Y...yes.  Those were certainly Lord Reaver and the others I saw.  That woman though I have never seen before.  I got a strange sense that she is important in some way, and that final image...it seems familiar in a way.  I recognized some of the signs.  I...I think it was the Imperial plane...where the Eye of Terror used to reside."

"You have never been there before though correct?  There must be some reason it was in the vision though.  You told me once before that you thought you felt the presence of the Light after the Eye closed, but that all of us had already returned home."

"Yes, it was very faint, as if it was either a great distance away or..."

"Concealed deep within someone."

"General, do you really think this woman could be somehow be connected to Her?."

"Seraphim, we know that during the last fight between herself and Darkness, she struck Him down while at the same time shattering her form and sending a fragment into the void.  That is how we are able to once more travel to other universes.  She said that she would return to us in our hour of need and I believe it is certainly safe to say that time is now.  I think it is important that we have least seek out this individual and try to ascertain if there is something to her.  The vision certainly has made it clear that the help of your Companions will be required in the battles ahead.

Jharm nods, looking between the General and the woman he was speaking to earlier.

"Drayvon, Nethanya...prepare our people for the End War.  I will return to the Imperial universe and do what I can to try and find this woman and contact the Companions.  There is little time to waste if we are to stand against the Darkness and obtain victory."

The two other Seraphs nod and move off, orders already being shouted as Jharm turns and manifests a portal in front of him and disappears.

Veldanya Venalla:
Location: The Lost Lady Saloon - Imperial Universe

The Lost Lady Saloon's exterior leaves no doubt that it is almost the dictionary definition of a rundown dive bar.  A few figures sit (or even lay) outside, overtaken by liquor or other likely substances. A figure clad in a dark brown trenchcoat and a wide brimmed hat, a pair of dark sunglasses over his eyes approaches the door and walks in.  The inside looks just as bad as the exterior, the furniture ramshackle and haphazardly bolted together (likely numerous times after bar fights).  The patrons cover the array of what one would imagine as thugs, ruffians, and general seedy underbelly denizens.  One single individual though sits in a back corner, shrouded heavily in darkness.  While one could say her general garb could mark her as someone affiliated with shady dealings, something about the way she holds herself almost denotes her as being "different" then the rest of the populace.  She reaches over and grabs a bottle near her, filled with what looks to be an almost icy blue liquid, pouring some into a shot glass and downing it as her gaze flits about the room.

Well here we are again...back once more searching for your needle in a haystack.  Its been years and still nothing.  Sometimes I wonder why I continue to entertain this idea.

Simple...there are few other options left open to us.  Your inquiries clearly indicated that a being I sensed some familiarity with had dealing in this universe.  Something involving an "Eye of Terror".  That was almost certainly who I sensed when we first visited this realm.  Hopefully this being will return at some point and we can try to track them down.  Otherwise we are back to wildly jumping into universes and hoping to get lucky again.

Fine...I just never really like visiting this universe.  We didn't exactly get the warmest welcome initially and ever since I swear they have been trying to find me.  More then once we have had to quickly depart.  What if when that happens we wound up...

Wait...quiet.  I sense something.  I believe he has returned and is near.  There, that figure that just entered.  I think that might be who we are looking for.

That guy?  Doesn't look like much, just some run of the mill bum.  Though...I do sense some power from him, seems like he is trying to hide it but there is certainly more there then if he was in fact some actual bum.

Her dark blue eyes gaze at the man as she downs another shot of the icy liquid.  Her hand instinctively slips down under her long black coat to the holster of one of her hand cannons.

Relax, I do not sense ill intent from him.

Doesn't mean much to me...besides, with the rest of these types in here, gotta be ready for anything.

It is at this point the man walks over to her table and grabs a nearby chair, pulling it over and sitting down.

"Beg you're pardon...may I join you?"


She looks across the table at him and pours herself another shot.

"Depends on your reasoning for wanting to join."

She sits up a bit more, draping one leg over the other as her one hand remains down at her side, a scant few inches from the grip of her gun even as she downs the shot with her other hand.  The man glances about a bit before leaning in slightly, his voice lowering a bit.

"I believe you are the one I have been searching for for quite some time.  It is imperative that we speak...preferably somewhere a bit more private then these surroundings offer."

One of her eyebrows raise slightly as her gaze moves over the other patrons, none visibly seeming to pay any attention to herself or the newcomer as of yet.  Her lips turn up into a slight smirk.

"Searching for some time?  Tell me, are there some sort of credits on the line for if you find me?"

"Credits?  No, I believe you misunderstand my meaning.  Listen..."

He leans a bit more

"I am not...from here.  I do not believe you are either.  Please, may we speak elsewhere before one of these unsavory types decides to become trouble."

Listen to him.  As I said, I sense no ill intent and we must find out more.  I know now that I sense something familiar to him.  Please.

The woman seems to think for a moment and then nods her head, raising the hand that was down by her hip to slide through her short dark hair. 

"Very well, lets head outside."

The two stand up and head for the door, the shot glass and bottle disappearing a moment after she leaves the table.  One of the nearby drunkards notices, their eyes getting a bit wider as they look down at their own drink.

"Mmm..I...I think I...I might be more drunk then I thought...."

The two exit the saloon, the man gesturing around the corner to an alleyway.  Hesitantly she follows him into it.  Once they have gone a short distance down it she stops and holds up a hand.

"Okay I think this is good enough.  Tell me what you gotta say and make it quick."

The mysterious man turns and looks at her, taking off the sunglasses to reveal two glowing white orbs in place of where his eyes would be.

"Well....that is one way to get my attention I must say."

He slips the shades back on and leans against the nearby wall.

"As I said, I come from a different place, a different universe.  This is not my normal appearance, I felt it much more..."appropriate" to don a disguise given the colorful surroundings and how my normal appearance would undoubtedly draw quite a lot of attention."

"Well with peepers like that I have little doubt that you wouldnt draw the attention of everyone around here in a split second."

"Yes, but as I was saying before, I have been searching for you for quite some time.  It is difficult to fully explain and I fear I do not have the time to explain it in detail but suffice to say, my people...my universe is in danger of being overwhelmed by great evil and I believe you are some how involved in regards to defeating it."

"A "great evil" you say?  Care to explain that a bit further at least?"

"I serve the Light, we fight against the Darkness and His forces."

"Well...that is certainly very...simple."

The man shrugs and continues.

"Long ago Darkness was defeated, but not destroyed.  It has become evident that He is finally returning.  Unfortunately the one I serve has not returned to us, her sacrifice being how we defeated the Darkness previously.  I seek to reunite some that I have fought alongside elsewhere, and enlist your help as well."

"And how exactly do I enter into all of this?  You say I am important somehow?"

"In truth, I do not know.  One of my people, a Seraph renowned for wisdom had a vision showing you fighting alongside myself and my friends and also showed this place.  That is how I found you.  If I knew more I would tell you but alas I do not.  Perhaps in time it will make more sense , but as I said, presently I fear we do not have much time available before the forces of Darkness begin to move once more.  Please, will you join with me and my people?"

She crosses her arms over her chest.

"You seem awfully trusting of someone you don't know.  That tells me you are either foolish, or desperate...or both."

She looks off to the side for a moment.

"That being said...I must say I am....intrigued.  Fine, I'll at least go with you for now.  We gotta head to the spaceport though, I'm not leaving my ship behind."

She turns and starts to head out of the alley and down the street, following some signs directing to the spaceport.  The stranger follows after briskly, moving in beside her.

"So...I suppose it would be appropriate for you to tell me your name, given you are so keen on me accompanying you."

"Oh...correct...my apologies.  I go by the name Jharm, and you are?"

"Oh, your seer only got my face and not my name I take it.  Very well, you can call me Veldanya...or more appropriately simply "Vee"."

"Vee it is then.  Is your vessel a large one?  Heavily armed or anything?"

"She is a very capable ship, has some guns on her but is not one might call a "warship" or anything like that."

Soon after they arrive at their destination, Vee gesturing at the ship in front of them with a hand.

"There she is, the Aisgeim, or "Frostgem."

The surface of the ship is a dark black, faint runes seem to be etched in various areas that seem to pulse a very soft blue.  As the woman approaches a ramp suddenly lowers from underneath the ship as if welcoming her onboard.  Her and Jharm head up the ramp and a few moments later the ship takes to the sky and flies off.

Veldanya Venalla:
All of the Companions (except for Gulgrim) receive the following telepathic message, the voice of Jharm entering each of their minds.

My friends, I have need of your assistance at once.  Darkness is returning and my people can not face it fully on their own.  Time is of the essence and there is much I must see to.  I can explain everything in full once you arrive if you so choose.  My people are prepared to open entryways for you should you choose to accept.

Meanwhile, a different message reaches Gulgrim, though the voice is still that of Jharm

Warboss Gulgrim.  I have need of you and your forces.  I know you have little interest in helping others, but I can offer the....opportunity for violence and bloodshed.  A "right and proper Waagh" as you might call it I believe.  My people can open a portal for you to join us at once where I can explain in more detail.  Then should you choose to continue, Im sure your "boyz" can be brought in afterwards.
 

Soul Reaver:
Hot, black blood spatters up Soul Reaver's arms as his sword falls yet again, cleaving another heavily-muscled form almost in half.  His entire body, from head toe, is utterly covered in it.

Over three days and nights he, Kitharsis and Phaerys have held the bridge.  Most of the bodies had fallen into the fast-moving river below, but those that remained were piled so high it was impossible for the maddened brutes to get anywhere near the defenders without first clawing their way over a veritable mountain of slick corpses.  Not that that stopped them from trying.

The king's army would have evacuated all the villages by this point and be prepared for their counterattack.  Soul Reaver has vowed they would have their three days, and as twilight began to fall, he was satisfied in the knowledge that he'd given them more than that.

As Blooddrinker continues its rhythmic, deadly work, Soul Reaver casts his mind back to the last few years.

After the Eye of Terror campaign, he had taken Phaerys and Kitharsis with him to the markets on Dinlete.  The bustling bazaars were a riot of colour, sight and sound.  Peddlars crouched on rugs or standing behind rickety wooden stalls sold everything imaginable under the innumerable suns.  It was a place where hulking reptilian humanoids rubbed shoulder-equivalents with environment suit-wearing masses of sentient tentacles.  Even warp travellers from distant dimensions would seek out this place.  Soul Reaver knew Kitharsis would find anything he wanted, and he hoped it would serve as both and education and a source of valuable information for Phaerys on the nature of the multiverse.

Once their business had concluded, Soul Reaver spent a brief time recuperating from the strains of his recent campaign, but he could not afford to rest too long.  The multiverse was infinite, and he was always needed somewhere.  From within the sanctuary of his Obsidian Island he consulted the Eye of Justice, and soon Soul Reaver and his entourage were travelling throughout the Planes once more.

Warlords and evil sorcerers fell.  Plagues were stopped.  Tyrants toppled and freedom was granted.  A world in its death-throes against an incursion from Inferno saw an unlikely saviour in a raven-haired, black-armoured warrior who forced the invading daemons to their knees with words alone, then cut them down with mechanical efficiency.

He had done good, he knew.  He had made a difference to the people he had saved.  As always, he tried hard not to think of all the suffering happening elsewhere, that he could have stopped, if he were there instead of here.

During these years, Kitharsis would have had an opportunity to test the new limits of his powers and adapt to his new way of being.  It must not have been easy for him to learn to live anew.

And Phaerys - he was an interesting one.  Though Soul Reaver had brought him along to help Phaerys learn about the multiverse and assist him on his quest to find his coven, it had also been an opportunity of Soul Reaver to study him in turn.  He was clearly an energy being of some kind, driven by logic and curiosity.  His desire to locate his coven was his current fundamental directive - morality, it seemed, did not feature largely within that equation, but at the same time he had no desire to cause harm or destruction for its own sake.  Soul Reaver couldn't help wondering how easily he might have been led astray had he met a less scrupulous band of warp travellers.

The sword falls, blood sprays, another brute gurgles its last.  The last rays of sunlight glint off Soul Reaver's brow as a sudden message reaches him.

My friends, I have need of your assistance at once.  Darkness is returning and my people can not face it fully on their own.  Time is of the essence and there is much I must see to.  I can explain everything in full once you arrive if you so choose.  My people are prepared to open entryways for you should you choose to accept.

Soul Reaver glances over to Phaerys and Kitharsis - from what he could tell, they had heard the message as well.

Jharm would not ask for help unless he needed it, and this was one companion he trusted to act in ways both honourable and just.

He had done enough here, the king's armies would be strong enough to finish things on their own.  He nods toward his two allies, and ensures they can hear the message he sends back to Jharm.

I will stand with you.

Fallen Templar:
As Soul Reaver battled amid the front lines, a sphere of plasma arced overhead, landing amidst the next wave who were hoping to flank him. The projectile burst on impact and showered those unfortunate enough to be nearby. The luminant, superheated substance clung to its victims like tar as it melted flesh and steel alike.

Their incessant attempts to cross this bridge had left Phaerys somewhat bemused at this point. Thanks in part to the fortifications he had constructed, the oncoming hordes found little hope of breaching the defensive line, further compounded by how many had already died trying. Those who weren't hacked apart by Soul Reaver and Kitharsis were disintegrated from afar with the power of a blazing sun. Phaerys idly pondered who or what was directing these creatures' efforts, for them to willingly charge into certain doom. Even as he continued to eradicate them with silent, unnatural efficiency.

It had been a curious time indeed these past few years...

Soul Reaver had been quick to make good on his promise when he, Kitharsis and Phaerys departed through the portal together. Indeed, Dinlete turned out to be something of a godsend. So much to see, discover, understand. While Soul Reaver and Kitharsis rested from the ordeal they had endured, the tireless Ataran busied himself with furthering his research. Not a day went by without Phaerys leaving their accommodation in search for a new contact, anything that might turn up a new lead on his old compatriots.

He even proved to be a surprisingly adept haggler when bartering off unwanted fragments of exotic matter in exchange for arcane devices and lore on the metaphysical. In that time, Phaerys had greatly improved his understanding of Warp navigation, and through information gleaned from a number of other plane travellers, he finally had an idea of where to search for one of his fellow coven members. It was by no means an exact location – more like a sizeable list of probable dimensions – but it was a start.

The duo Phaerys had been travelling with were most intriguing specimens in and of themselves. Occasionally he probed them with questions but for the most part he was content to observe, as he did with many things. He had his suspicions of them at first. A fateful alliance of convenience in mid-battle was what saw their paths meet, after all. But as time passed, and their behavioural patterns had proven consistent enough to be trustworthy, Phaerys reconsidered the emergency escape protocol he had on standby and began to accept his position as the newest of the Companions.

Soul Reaver was something of an imposing presence in person, at first - the man wielded weapons and powers commonly found in the hands of far more inimical entities. But what caught the Ataran's attention was how he was so duty-bound to helping the helpless. In its importance, it was not unlike Phaerys' service to Xel-Atar. In the end, Phaerys concluded that the two of them were in some way not so different than appearances might indicate.

Kitharsis seemed to have been the more approachable of the two by comparison. His current condition had been yet another phenomenon Phaerys expressed interest in studying, even volunteering to run tests as he got used to his new state of being. And that was not all...

During their time in Dinlete, Kitharsis also took Phaerys up on that offer of personally fashioning some new equipment. Kitharsis' request was a modest one. A sword, and a set of armour that allowed for freedom of movement. Simple armaments for a humble warrior. Phaerys readily took to the task, and what he produced would have been considered quite remarkable even on the streets of Dinlete.

The armour appeared to be a fine mesh of carbon-black scales, over which larger metal plates of bronze-coloured alloy had been fitted to cover the vital areas. This alloy seemed to be the same material Phaerys' own armour was composed of, for the whole thing was lightweight, durable... and capable of surviving extreme heat that would see its wearer turned to ash. Fairly typical materials by Ataran standards, so it seemed.

As for the sword, this too was made of that same alloy. It was proportioned so that Kitharsis could comfortably wield it with one hand or two, and finely balanced with a degree of precision that only molecular manipulation might muster. For the most part, it was a fairly normal sword, but Phaerys had integrated a mechanism into the blade's edge so that it would flare up with molten heat... but only during the moment it was actually swung. The Ataran artificer neglected to say whether this was a safety feature or an issue with whatever power supply was contained within, but the end result was remarkable nonetheless – a reliable weapon that could cauterise flesh as easily as it sliced through armour. All in all, Phaerys had been quite satisfied with his work. Moreover, it enkindled a sense of pride within him to see Kitharsis treasure both armour and blade so.

Alas, the trio could not stay in Dinlete for too long. They each had their duties elsewhere to fulfill. Beyond the Spans Between, as Phaerys kept referring to it. And so his adventures with the Companions truly began. Just as his studies continued, in a sense. Sorcerous artefacts were obtained for later analysis. Techniques and manoeuvres were devised for combat conditions. A rare few enemies had the dubious honour of being dissected at the molecular level for rare compounds, all while still in the midst of battle.

Such was Phaerys' devotion to the purpose he was given by Xel-Atar.

As their current battle drew to a close, Phaerys felt a faint buzzing of psychic interference that resolved itself into a signal. A message. More specifically a call for aid from another companion. Looking to the others, Phaerys surmised from their reactions that both Soul Reaver and Kitharsis had also received this transmission. There was no questioning how they would answer it. Phaerys sent his own reply in short order:

Open the way.

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