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The Cardinal
Senior Scribe
Canada
647 Posts |
 Posted - 20 Sep 2003 : 17:53:32
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Lo, I welcome you and bid you sit a time,
I will try to say as much as I can in such short intervals, for my time is limited. I am the one known to the Cardinal As The Bard, though I once went by the name Zog the Mad. I will tell you a tale of Honor, duty, and betrayal. It is the Creation of Us, of the entity known here as Cardinal Deimos but upon other realms as either Lord Deimos, Cardinal Zog, and/or Grand Lich Lejes.
Our Tale starts with death, not the death of some beast but our own..
Long ago, We were one, known only as Deimos. Our father was but a poor woodcutter while our mother had passed away when we were young. Though we helped our father as much as we could at the edge of the forest, we dreamed of more, of adventure. And so when adventure finally called, we took it up... how wrong we were.
She was a stranger in our village and was bearing armor and weapons unknown to us. She was rather striking and, to our surprise, took a liking to us. Telling us that she would show us adventure. True adventure, though not what some might think. Eager for this chance to be more than a woodcutter, we sought the local blacksmith and with what money we could mustter bought some feeble armor and a sword that would have seen better use as a butter knife.
For days we treked into the wilds until we came upon the ruins of some ancient church. She promised us rewards and fame should we help her clear it out... we should have known... ^Deimos you take over,^
+ Deimos: very well+ I crept into the depths of that loathsome place. My eyes glancing this way and that looking for the foul beasts that we were to help kill. My 'guide' and employer was not at my back, she had ran forward to scout out the dungeon. She called to me and as I ran to meet her I saw a great many bodies of the foul beasts we had come to kill. Although she said one was still behind this last door and she was too wounded to open it and face it head on. Being the honorable and chivalrous thing to do I steped forward to confront the beast. To my amazement it was already dead...and soon after my astonishment increased as there was now a sword sticking though my chest. So now so was I...
Death is a funny thing. You see I thought it would be a release, instead I found myself gazing up at the roof of the cavern and her angelic face twisted into a cruel smirk as she plundered my body. So here I was, now rotting beside some wretched beast, stuck within my corpse. This would be then rathe dull end to a rather dull tale had we not encountered Sir Bodybag.
A rather gruesome name but he seemed to have seen this type of thing before and lugged my corpse many miles until I was not looking into the eyes of some wizened sage. I was thankful when he had returned me to life.
He told me that such banditry was common amoung the realms and this small order of Paladins was just trying to make a diffrence by ending it or restoring those poor lost souls who had become victims of it.
I felt rather stupid as they smiled and mentioned that such banditry was common against young lads who yearned for more and were untested. I learned that this was the Cathedral Fortress of the Angelic Knights, an order of Paladins who not only fought against the forces of evil but also trained others to take up the sword against those who would harm other innocent people.
I felt a small bit of guilt as I signed on with the Angelic Knights, mostly with thoughts of vengence. Of course such thoughts fled as I found that he who I would be squire to was the very man you raised me from the dead, Lord Valgar, One of the High Councilors.
I had rather foolishly thought Lord Valgar, the wise and aged knight that he was, was the leader of the order. When I had asked him, he smiled and and said no, that the founder and leader of the Angelic Knights was a Half-Celestial Half-human man named Cosmos, and that the Second in Command was a male Aasimar with just a hint of Yuan-ti blood named Cobra.
And so things conintued. Under Lord Valgar, I was taught honor, loyalty, humility, faith, duty, all the things a Paladin should know when he is the righteous and goodman that walketh in the light. the need for vengence left my heart when I saw the common people around our cathedral, happy that the banditry had stopped in the surrounding area.
I myself had not been in real combat yet but I was proud to even be a member of such a well respected order. *You were a fool...* + Hmm..?+ Anyways one of my brothers was not so happy. His name was Cloud and he had grown anxious to not only be a Lord Knight but to see real battle. He left the Order and vetured into the woods were he formed the Fearsome Fiends Guild. An odd name for a guild but we let him go. Not all are destined for the path of goodness. A short time later he and his guild would return to haunt us. He and his allies the Council of Evil then made war upon our lands. He Striking with assasins from the south-eastern woods at night and the council's Legions of Undead from the north-eastern mountains during dusk and dawn. During the reprieve of the day we tended to the wounded and helped the sick... I was then that I met 'Them'.
* That is quite enough out of the both of you for now. Yo simply don't realize than no one cares about 'our' beginning. Simply be silent and be glad that I don't push you both out of existence right now.*
^ This is Zog, let me know what you think so far and I will clarify as much as I can when I can break free again... GGGWWWWAAAA!^
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It has to be Certain, the Gods Hate Me. For whatever irrevokable Fate, I have been made the walking Joke. Either that, or Beshaba is overlyfond Of Me.
-Unknown |
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William of Waterdeep
Senior Scribe
USA
829 Posts |
Posted - 21 Sep 2003 : 04:15:47
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I like it! I am actually surprized,I would have guessed you were a Zhent.
mad mage.Yets have more before I get a priest to exorcise one of you.
From my spelling,I was more asleep than surprized... |
Courage isn't the lack of fear but rather believing in and doing what you know is right even though fear is present.
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Edited by - William of Waterdeep on 30 Sep 2003 20:58:30 |
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Cyric
Senior Scribe
Norway
388 Posts |
Posted - 30 Sep 2003 : 20:34:26
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| i like it to |
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The Cardinal
Senior Scribe
Canada
647 Posts |
Posted - 01 Oct 2003 : 07:32:34
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I am sorry my friends, for I have avoid the tale for too long now where was I? * Shifts the the Warrior*
I was talking about 'them'. * ahem*
The Entire order was summoned for a unexpected inspection. We all were to dress in our finest armor and have our weapons at the ready. None of us recruits knew what was going on, but an excited buzz was rippling through the elder members. Then for the first time Lord Cosmos and Lord Cobra graced us with their presence.
This was the first time any of us new members had actually ever laid eyes upon the two leaders of the Angelic Knights. Lord Cosmos, in all his radiant goodness stood atleast eight feet tall, his hair a great cascade of golden blonde, a fitting crown for any great lord and his wings were folded against his back like an angel had come to personally lead us.
Lord Cobra was dwarfed by the Half-Celestial Cosmos, but he too shone with an inner goodness. As I looked at him I could see why he was second in command of our forces. He was fine featured but held an aura of humility and simplicity that Lord Cosmos seemed to lack. While Cosmos stood out Cobra was simply a face in the background. Oldly he wore not shining plate mail like the rest of us but a set of dull studded leather.
I remember when Cosmos spoke, his voice was like waves of the sea. A sound that crashed upon you like the waves upon the sand. The entire assembly immediatly fell to our knees as he spoke.
" My Brothers and Sisters, " He had begun, " While we toil endlessly to free the realms from the grip of banditry, some of us turn from the fold. This is to be expected. Now though, one of our fallen Brothers as turn against us and sided with the forces of Darkness and Evil. Brother Cloud was allowed to go his own way, but now he has become a mockery of everything he once was, of every Oath that was sworn in our order! We cannot overlook his tyranny nor his butchery of the common folk! What is the First Duty of the Order?"
The roar of reply came all at once from us in the assembly, " Thou Shalt not let a Murderer Survive!"
" Then My Brethren, What do we Do?" He asked us, as if there was any doubt in his mind.
" KILL THE TRAITOR!" Was the deafening roar that I would say resounded in the Heavens themselves.
The Drums of War had begun to beat. Instead of returning to our duties we about-faced and When Lord Cosmos flew over our heads to take his place at the Vanguard, we marched to the forested area that Cloud's assasins stemmed from. Perhaps this was to be the final challenge, or some foul magik, but as we approached the Wood of Deadmen, it began to rain. An endless downpour that turned the ground to ankle-deep mud. We were cold, wet and bogged down, but our resolve pushed us onward.
About every hundred feet or so we would encounter either a pitfall or another ambush. While some did fall, we were determined to bring an end to the traitor's life, or die trying. We swore an oath of un wavering loyalty to Lord Cosmos, and we intended to complete it.
After five days of Marching and fighting we set up camp at the edge of a unknown clearing in the forest. On the far side of this clearing, was an ancient ruin of a temple and a rocky bluff stood over it in the background. Our exhaused shock melted away as we saw two banners flying; 'The Fearsome Fiends Guild' and that of the 'Council of Evil'. Our Real test, the one that would decide the fate of our fledgling order was now upon us. So Less than two hundred feet from our enemies fort, we set up camp for the night and began to prepare for the horrific battle of war. |
It has to be Certain, the Gods Hate Me. For whatever irrevokable Fate, I have been made the walking Joke. Either that, or Beshaba is overlyfond Of Me.
-Unknown |
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William of Waterdeep
Senior Scribe
USA
829 Posts |
Posted - 02 Oct 2003 : 01:28:50
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Good so far...I have a bad feeling that this one may not end with,
"And they lived happily ever after." |
Courage isn't the lack of fear but rather believing in and doing what you know is right even though fear is present.
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Lina
Senior Scribe
Australia
469 Posts |
Posted - 02 Oct 2003 : 15:04:52
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| Very good so far |
“Darkness beyond twilight, crimson beyond blood that flows! Buried in the flow of time. In thy great name. I pledge myself to darkness. All the fools who stand in our way shall be destroyed…by the power you and I possess! DRAGON SLAVE!!!”
"Thieves? Ah, such an ugly word... look upon them as the most honest sort of merchant."
-Oglar the Thieflord |
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Vallandar
Acolyte
United Kingdom
46 Posts |
Posted - 02 Oct 2003 : 21:39:45
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| A fine tale, Cardinal Deimos, mayhap you would have made a fine Zhent had you chosen another route. |
'The sinews of war, unlimited money'
- Cicero |
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William of Waterdeep
Senior Scribe
USA
829 Posts |
Posted - 04 Oct 2003 : 18:19:19
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| Or you could have walked with those that Harp had your path been different also.But for good or evil,A fine tale indeed my friend. |
Courage isn't the lack of fear but rather believing in and doing what you know is right even though fear is present.
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The Cardinal
Senior Scribe
Canada
647 Posts |
Posted - 09 Oct 2003 : 20:09:00
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We set up camp and prepared to attack a dawn, the light of morning would be our blazing banner and the midday sun a crown for our victory. The night was blissfully silent...perhaps too silent for we found one of our sentries 'tacked' to a near-by tree. His hands and feet removed, as well as his tongue, eyes and most of the flesh from his head. This however did not deter us, infact it only strengthened out resolve. As the morning mists begun to retreat into the the shade of the forest we saw something we didn not expect. An army of the dead was now silently lumbering towards us, as wells as several well armed knights and thieves, dressed in the blackest of clothing and armor. The alarm went up and we fell into formation. We were already divided into diffrent Sub-Orders, Knights of the Stars, The Moon, The Sun, and the Sky. I was put into the Knights of the Moon, under the Command of Lord Zordak. Lord Zordak was not what I had pictured as a knight. He wore no armor and carried no weapons. Although he seemed to be a hulking and lumbering brute he moved with quickness and grace... infact... I was the only one really wearing my shimmering Chainmail to battle.
" Lord Zordak?" I inquired,
" Just call me Z, everyone eles does. Anyways what is it, brother?" Zordak replied.
" Do I not wear my armor into battle? I see everyone else wears none, have I commited some wrong?" I asked puzzled by the state of the troops.
" No, wear your armor. You are not yet ready for this.. The rest of the Troops have been under my command for quite some time so we don't wear armor... just gets in the way. " Z said kindly, " We are not call the Knights of the Moon for nothing... You'll see."
'ATTACK!'
And we all charged the incoming forces. My unit actually was the first into the fray, mostly because of their light weight. At first I thought that we were a hit and run group, however upon engaging the enemy I found out how wrong I was.
Lord Zordak, or Z was the first to strike the enemy, a blow from his fist would have crushed a man's skull but no fist struck the first Zombie who immediatly was shreded to pieces. Z had grown even larger, and was now sporting a orange and black pelt. I then Realized that the entire battalion had sported their own pelts, from a bear's hide, to a fine wolf's pelt. The enitire battalion was composed of Lycanthropes! I fell to my knees in shock, and some awe. How had I been put into a lycanthrope battalion unless...
I had no time for further reflection as a skeleton exploded to my right, and there stood Z, bits of gore and some fresh blood smeared across his features.
" Brother no time for kneeling in thanks for this battle! Seek Glory on the Battlefield!" He roared, then leaped into the fray again.
I stood taking up my Axe and charged the nearest zombie. I felled that one and turned to another, then another and another... I became numb, like a clockwork machine of some sort, hacking and then moving on. Once in awhile a living foe attempted to attack me but was torn to shreds by the various werewolves, werebears and weretigers. Others of my Brethren had fallen in behind us as we formed a spearhead to the heart of the army where Cloud would likely be waiting.
I was thankful for the battle, the screams, the battle cires, and roars around me, but I wondered where Lord Cosmos was. Glancing up as a Shadow passed overhead I saw Lord Cosmos hurling himself through the sky. He picked up random zombies and skeletons only to fling them into the ground until something caught our attention. It call all of our attentions. There was fell magic in the air. So thick that even breathing became laboured.
I glanced at the cliff to see a circle of foul mages casting their evil rites. The were opening a door. To where I did not know, but I feared that it was to the abyss. Cosmos must have knew or had the same fear as I, as he then ignored the battle and flew towards the cliff. Lord Cobra also showed up, riding a pegasus he fired arrows into the melee below him, before taking aim at some of the figures on the cliff.
I snapped back to the battle as a zombies arm almost snapped my neck. It had torn it's arm off to use as a crude weapon. Praying that Cosmos and Cobra would succeed I engaged the Zombie and became lost in the heat of battle once more...
The Sun did not crown our victory that day... The Setting sun bid us fare well as we finished the last of the Undead and brought Cloud before Cosmos in chains.
" You have been defeated Cloud. Your evil ambitions have died with your guild. Renounce your evil ways and I will forgive you. Walk into the light, fallen brother." Cosmos said atlast to the bloodied form that was once our brother.
" You Pigs make me sick!" He shouted to the rest of us, " Do you follow him blindly? Like sheep? He will cause you more pain than you can know! He seeks only those that are pure and good! He seeks things that are not mortal. How long till he abandons you?! He will leave you to die!"
" Lord Cosmos has brought us together!" Said one member,
" Indeed, and His Celestial Glory has led us to victory this day! How dare you speak these lies. Even after he has offered to forgive you, you spit in his face. It is you who should die! We shall live eternal with his glory!" Z roared, still in his hybrid form.
I will not say how Cloud was executed... Many of us felt it not punishing enough at the time... looking back, it might have been we who were the true monsters and traitors. Still, we left that field as a new forest grove but the pike trees there sported no green leaves but the bodies of those who had done evil and walked in Darkness.
Upon our return, a great feast was thrown and it was discoverd that it was Cobra who killed the greatest number of enemies, and slew most of the Mages on the cliff top. My own number of kills was halved due to them all already being dead. The feast lasted days, Cosmos returned to wandering the Realms of Celestia and the guild went about it's work destroying bandits. I myself made myself busy aiding the local peasantry with rebuilding, and servered as an ambassador and host to diplomats and royalty from other orders from other Kingdoms. All went well for the guild, some nights I'd slip away under the guise of a humble Bard and entertain people in the local tavern. Infact life was now good.. I wish it had remained that way but then I met 'her'... |
It has to be Certain, the Gods Hate Me. For whatever irrevokable Fate, I have been made the walking Joke. Either that, or Beshaba is overlyfond Of Me.
-Unknown |
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William of Waterdeep
Senior Scribe
USA
829 Posts |
Posted - 10 Oct 2003 : 02:10:30
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I like!!! May I ask you a stupid question? Are the Knights of the Moon
the same as Moon Knights? I also have a character like your Cosmos.
Keep it up,I enjoy reading this and the similar things to my own story
only makes it more enjoyable and gives me ideas. |
Courage isn't the lack of fear but rather believing in and doing what you know is right even though fear is present.
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Tale of The Lich, the Bard and the Paladin
