Work In Progress: Under New Management

My name is Desert Wind. I am the Guardian Eternal: My sacred duty – guarding the hibernating oasis of Zaara – was bestowed upon me by the Lord of the Continuum himself.
To this date, I am the only Child of the Moon that immersed itself in the holy waters of the oasis and became one of the secretive Brotherhood of Time. I am also the last known active Child; it is suspected that all of the others have, long ago, succumbed to the ravages of time, or else were destroyed in the upheaval that ended the first age in the history of this still-nameless planet.

I have watched the oasis for many millennia, killing those who found their way there – whether by mistake or in order to rob the fabled oasis – for many foolish legends have sprang up about it after the upheaval – of its alluded treasures.

My watch was lonely, for the Elves of the oasis and their guests, the renegade pony Wind Leaf and the Egyptian tablet maker, Basher, were sleeping in the honeycomb-like system of catacombs buried inside the nearby cliff, waiting for their god, the Lord of the Continuum Labelas Enoreth, to deem the time right and awaken them.

While I stayed in the oasis's - and catacomb system's – immediate whereabouts, I was by no means isolated from the wider world. When my watch began, shortly after the upheaval, I constructed, with the help of a priest called Erestor, a pack of semi-autonomous spy-drones; throughout the millennia, I sent them out to the far reaches of the world.

They had reported the following things:
Most of the surviving intelligent ponies – those who followed the alleged tyrant, Celestia – migrated from their destroyed homeland to the faraway isles. There they have met the strange creatures that inhabit them and are now having a peaceful, symbiotic relationship with them; they have vanished from mankind's memory.

Those ponies who followed the Lady – save for the renegade, Wind Leaf – were last seen flying into the accursed domain of Czernaborg, the dark god. Their current whereabouts are unknown.

My fellow Children endured the upheaval, but succumbed to internal strife once Primus – our creator, currently orbiting the planet as its moon – stopped communicating with them. The two opposing factions, the Autobots and the Decepticons, destroyed each other in a series of wars – at the very least, I have no knowledge of any survivors. Today, of New Iacon, the once-proud capital of the Children, nothing save for ruins remains.

The Egyptians – our closest neighbours and allies – held out, too, but succumbed to a series of civil wars after their third Pharaoh, Amanra II, died without an heir. Due to the powerful magic of the Ka tablets they commanded, the warring factions destroyed each other.
Now the Egyptian Kingdom is covered by the sands of the deserts, mostly preserved; it still lures grave-robbers and the like to it from time to time.
The art of tablet-making is effectively dead, its sole surviving practitioner sleeping in the Zehir catacombs.
However, quite the number of tablets remain, buried beneath the sands; every once in a while, few reach the human civilisations out there.

Of the Egyptians' god – Horakhty, the Creator of Light – I have no concrete information. One of my drones, however, intercepted the rumour that he was separated into his three component gods – the Winged Dragon, the Sky Dragon, and the Tormentor – and sealed into three Ka tablets. The tablets were then spread over the land.

The gods' palace – the Sanctum – was destroyed by a large, meteorite-like object that hit it at the height of the upheaval; most of the surrounding area was demolished by the resulting explosion. Before he went to his timeless sleep, Erestor told me that the Lord of the Continuum told him – via a vision, it seemed - that that object was a piece of Primus's body.

The fabled monument that the gods' pact was inscribed upon was lost for the ages, perhaps even destroyed by the explosion.

It seems that the civilisation that worshipped Akatosh, the dragon god of time, disappeared at that time; I know not what happened to them, save for the fact that their region in the far north is completely covered in ice.

The dark god – Czernaborg – is still active. While no great armies of demons left his region after the upheaval, cults dedicated to his worship still spring up from time to time in the humans' midst.

The creator god – Arceus, the Zehir's sages told me – was petrified in the upheaval. His two loyal knights set out on a quest for his fabled Plates, for it is said that if all sixteen Plates are brought to his statue, he will be reborn.
The Plates have surfaced multiple times, but their current whereabouts are all unknown.

The major human civilisation of Rome was destroyed by the impostor god, Mars servant of Czernaborg, in the upheaval; Fujin's champions either died, were corrupted by the dark magic Czernaborg, or refused his call altogether.

Fujin himself sealed himself inside the Kamidogu, a mighty artefact. It is said that whoever possesses it shall gain great power, but only if they are worthy; I myself do not know of its whereabouts.

Of Alduin – the impostor, he who subverted Akatosh – not much is known. It is known that he was defeated by Czernaborg; since then, he disappeared, and did not resurface. I do believe, however, that he will reappear someday; I hope it will be in the far, far future...

-Record end-

---

Somewhere in the desert, a hooded man clutched a worn clay tablet. “At last,” he whispered, “I have found the Tormentor...”

---

Elsewhere, a power – much greater than any of the nameless world's gods – stirred. It did... Something, something that even the gods could not begin to understand...

edited 6th Jan '12 4:38:39 PM by desdendelle

The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground

Raiden, Elder God of Thunder, Protector of the Realm of Earth. You are chosen.

In the desolate realm, there was a sudden flash of lightning and a loud, booming thunder, its sonic boom spreading out in every direction. Dust flew everywhere, obscuring what was happening in the middle of it all. If there had been anyone to see it all, all they would have seen were specks of blue glows, but nothing else.

Finally, as the thunder subsided, a man in white and blue with a conical straw hat◊ walked out from the dust cloud, carrying a staff. He mostly appeared mortal, with the exception of his eyes, which were blank and glowed light blue. However, he was no mere mortal man. He was Lord Raiden, the God of Thunder, formerly an Elder God for two brief periods of time, and, until now, Protector of the Realm of Earth. He certainly had no idea that his second in command among his old pantheon, Fujin, was here, much less where he was.

Raiden was silent as he looked about in this sad place. Something told him that it was formerly a stable and prosperous realm, but then a cataclysm had happened, one capable of wiping out entire civilizations. Now, it was no better than the [http://mortalkombat.wikia.com/wiki/Wastelands wastes of Outworld]], where only savage nomads could possibly survive. The Thunder God then set out, looking for any other presence in this barren realm.

J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS!

Gaia, Mother of the Titans, Body of the Earth. You have been selected.

A pair of eyes flutter open, and dainty hands stroke the ground. Grasses spring forth from the woman, covering several feet of the seemingly infinite desert with a lush, green blanket. Flowers bloom, and trees begin to shoot from the ground, reaching to the sky. A single dove is borne from a flower, landing atop the woman's outstretched hand. She rises to her feet, using her other hand to prop herself up.

This is not my body. I... am no longer on Earth. Strange.

She begins a steady walk into the desert, covering the sands with her lush and trees. She could feel it - the presence of life on this lifeless world. But it was weak. It had been... struck down? Ended by some great and terrible force? She knew something had befallen the world, but she knew not what it was. The goddess strode through the desert with renewed purpose. She expanded her power, spreading her plants even farther. She hoped to find another on this barren world.

edited 6th Jan '12 6:03:00 PM by kagescorpionakki

What is so amusing about this? Why do you take lives? How can you forget?

Sheogorath, Prince of Madness. You have been found.

Not far away, there was a slight multicoloured ripple in the air another figure appeared; to all outward appearances an affable white-haired and bearded gentleman in strange mismatched clothing, leaning on a cane.◊ He was smiling, and did not appear confused or disturbed in the slightest by his new surroundings. The only giveaway to his true nature might be found by gazing into his eyes, and seeing a demon's madness staring back. The Daedra surveyed the area.

"Well well well, a new piece of phantasmagorical landscape carved from a dragon's tears and imbued with ancient mystery, arcane enchantment, fine cutlery and all manner of birds, beasts and cheeses?"

He considered for a moment, then shook his head.

"No, it's just a big empty boring desert. This is no fun at all! The Ashpit has more mirth and whimsy to be found than this dump, and even The Deadlands have far more originality. Looks like I've got a lot to do, ohhhhhh yes!"

He turned and walked off at a casual pace, the sand in the wake of his feet turning into blackcurrant jelly for no particular reason.

edited 7th Jan '12 2:35:59 PM by Vox

Raiden continued onward, and it wasn't long until he saw some plant life off in the distance. He immediately headed toward it, figuring that where there were plants, there was life.

He found, to his surprise, a goddess, one who seemed vaguely familiar. He immediately approached her.

"I am Raiden, God of Thunder," said Raiden. "What is your domain?"

J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS!

Gaia surveys the God of Thunder, noting his glowing eyes. She bows slightly, but keeps her eyes affixed on him.

"I am Gaia, Goddess of Nature. I take it you are not of this world, either?"

What is so amusing about this? Why do you take lives? How can you forget?

"No," said Raiden, "but I recognize you now. You were worshipped by the civilization of Greece, were you not?"

J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS!

"Yes, I was... and still am. I am worshiped now by the people of Atlantis." Gaia said. "Though I do not recognize you - the only God of Thunder that I recall was a Norse god named Thor..."

What is so amusing about this? Why do you take lives? How can you forget?

"In truth," said Raiden, "there was- at least as far as I know- originally my pantheon, but during my travels throughout the realm of Earth, I inspired other gods of thunder, ones mortals of differing regions created based on a synthesis of what they saw of me and their own culture, mixed in to fill in the gaps. However, my pantheon does not have a god of Nature, so I take it you are the original. Also, I wasn't aware Atlantis still lived on."

J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS!

"It does in my realm." Said Gaia. "I repaired the land, and banished my son Kronos back to Tartarus - by punching him, as it were - allowing New Atlantis to thrive." She paused, and looked around. "But I believe there are more pressing matters to attend to here than reminiscing. Where are we, and why?"

What is so amusing about this? Why do you take lives? How can you forget?

"Where and why, I cannot say," said Raiden. "But I have a feeling that something once prospered in this realm, but it is now long gone. Perhaps we have been summoned here to be part of a new pantheon and bring this world to life."

J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS!

"Perhaps we have." Said Gaia. "If such is the case, then there must be more gods than just us..."

What is so amusing about this? Why do you take lives? How can you forget?

"Interesting inferation!"

Sheogorath was sitting cross-legged on the sand near Gaia and Raiden, where he hadn't been the previous moment.

"Yes, that idea makes sense. A lot of sense. Too much sense! As a wise fellow once said, what fun is there in making sense?"

From his resting place high in the desert mountains, Labelas Enoreth, the god of time, longevity, history and the moment of choice, observed the desert around him. He sat, cross-legged, for many millennia, patiently waiting for something to require his attention and watching the flow of time in the meantime.

Thankfully, after the initial upheaval, the years have passed quietly, with nothing threatening the flow of time or his sleeping nation of the Zehir. So the god sat, and watched.

Finally, something happened - he sensed beings of immense power suddenly appearing. Feeling a strong sense of deja vu, he got up and made a mystical sign, teleporting to the new gods' location.

---

"Indeed," said a voice behind Gaia.
Should she turn, she would find an old Elf standing before her. His hair was long and silver and his face lined; he wore an eyepatch over his right eye. He was dressed simply - in a brown tunic, green pants, and knee-high leather boots. To his belt a small bag was attached by a cord, and soft, grey gloves covered his hands. He held a quarterstaff, and was currently leaning on it.

"Hail, ye foreign gods," said the Elf.

The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground

Raiden turned to see the Prince of Madness and the Elf.

"Who are you two?" said Raiden. "More members of the new pantheon, I expect?"

edited 6th Jan '12 7:40:04 PM by TestYourMight

J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS!

"You seem wise, old one." Gaia bowed once more, deeper this time. She still kept her eyes sharp, though on Sheogorath this time - the mad god was unnerving. "I am Gaia, goddesss of Nature. May I ask your name?"

What is so amusing about this? Why do you take lives? How can you forget?

Shegorath chuckled at Raiden's words.

"Pantheon?! What a novel concept! Well, I suppose my assorted unbrothers and nonsisters almost count. Well, in a way they completely count. But that's besides the point. Counting is boring. Peryite can count all the motes of dust in the world, but only I can make them write short essays on the real value of proper undergarments. Those ungrateful motes don't know how good they have it! ... Ah regardless, we aren't new, we've been around for quite a while. The entire while, as it where."

He turned to the Elf God.

"Indeed, hail and well met to ye and thee and forsooth to thy declaration-eths and suchlike, Mr fancy-Mer. Where is the cheese, did you steal it?"

edited 6th Jan '12 11:20:31 PM by Vox

Labelas Enoreth looked at Shegorath, or, rather, through him. After some time, the Elf sighed. "No, I did not steal the cheese," he finally said.
He turned to Gaia and Raiden. "I am called Labelas Enoreth, Lord of the Continuum, the Sage at Sunset, Gaia, the goddess of nature," he said. "As to your question," he said, turning to Raiden, "no, I am no member of any new pantheon. Rather, I am one of the remaining old gods of this world; I was brought here millennia ago, when this planet was naught but a barren ball of rock."

The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground

"It is an honor to meet you," said Raiden. "By any chance, did the old pantheon have a god of wind?"

Raiden asked this because, not too long after being appointed Protector of Earthrealm, Fujin, the God of Wind and Raiden's closest ally among the gods, had disappeared without a trace. Raiden now realized that perhaps Fujin had been taken here, much like himself.

J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS!

-In the dark realm of Uberwald, no birds sing this day. The beasts of the forest are wary, hiding in their dens in quiet terror of something undefined. In the deep caverns, lit only by the unblinking eyes of a thousand demons and other unspeakable creatures, all is silent, all gazes turned towards a single point. When the earthquake hits, there is almost a shared sigh of relief, before the generalized panic.-

So... it begins anew...

-The entire realm of Uberwald trembles. Millenial forests crash to the ground, mountains release tons of rock into valleys, and animals die screaming by the hundreds, all a fitting tribute to the awakening of Czernobog, the Black God.-

The dragon will not return. But I must know who these newcomers are...

-The tallest peak in the darkened realm unfolds its titanic wings. Eyes that have not seen for aeons turn this way and that, burning like twin lighthouses.-

-The Black God grins a ghastly grin, noting that little has changed. Even the unexplained shockwave from the Sanctum's demise that nearly awoke him has done little to alter the landscape.-

And now...

-The dark titan makes several complicated hand movements in silence. One of the caverns glows a deep blue, and extinguishes itself. Something moves within.-

A large, scarlet pillar burst up from the ground, causing a minor shockwave upon entry. A boy, seemingly fourteen, stepped out to gaze upon this new land. His eyes were half-opened, his body slouched, his hands in his pockets, he looked the definition of bored. "Huff..." he said, walking over to join the group of Gaia, Raiden and co. Yeah, he was pretty detatched from the situation.

"Hey you! Nano-something or other!"

Kriemhild Gretchen, Witch of Salvation... Would you like to make a contract?

In a shimmer of haze, she was there. At first glance, she looked like any regular girl of around thirteen or fourteen, the only thing strange about her being her prescence in this land to begin with. But as she began to slowly make her way towards the group, it became readily apparent that something was a bit... Off about her.

The way she moved was unnatural. It was jerky, mechanical, more like a stop-motion puppet than a human girl. As she walked her midnight-black twintails swayed in the wind in a similar fashion, and her black dress... The way it moved made it seem like it was made of several long strings rather than a single piece of cloth. And all the while she wore on her face a smile. Not of happiness, not of joy and hope, but the blank smile of someone trying and failing to hide their unending despair and sorrow.

And then... She giggled. A hollow, unnatural giggle, not composed of sorrow, or joy, or despair, or anything. A giggle completely devoid of emotion, an empty noise that rattled out from her blank, smiling, paper-white face. It was the only greeting she gave, if it even was a greeting; she didn't seem to be paying much attention to those around her.

As Oorah surveyed the world, he realized something.
He was bored.
Sure, there were ongoing wars across the globe, but nothing major since early 2000. Mostly insurgency.
Oorah! God of war and Logistics. It is time to go Above and Beyond the Call.
"Battlefield 3. How cute."
Oorah found himself in a desert, surrounded by weird beings.
And in a physical form. He had not taken physical form for years.
"... WHAT."

They do have medals for almost, and they're called silver!

Raiden looked up, surprised when he saw Oorah.

"Sylvester Stallone?" said the Thunder God. "When did you, of all mortals, ascend to godhood?"

J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS!

"I am OORAH! God of War! I take on this visage as it is considered the deadliest soldier to ever exist or have been created. This visage is of John Rambo, fictional character. Who do you be?"

They do have medals for almost, and they're called silver!