Comments:
It's obvious to me at least that we're going to have to be sneaky. Either that or we're going to have to be clever. As she speaks, the entire party, including herself, strides into the room from the various entrances and waves to the party already t ere...but they appear oddly unfocused and make no sounds, not even the clanking of armour...then they disappear into wisps of mist, and Arina looks slightly more tired. I don't suppose anyone else can do that? If someone increases my power so I don' collapse from exhaustion, I can multiply our defenses...

01/25/98 18:03:38

Name: Johan

Comments:
One hundred sixty thousand...my God...He takes a deep breath. And they're heading here. If their axis of attack was more northward, through the Worldspines and our reserves, we could take them...but on the plains of Gaultheria?

Okay, who is it that I have to talk to about moving Morrowind's army into Gaultheria without anyone getting antsy? Where's the Lady?

01/25/98 16:33:55

Name: Nein

Comments:
She turns to Gabriel and says what most accurately expresses her current emotions: "Oh, sh*t."

01/25/98 13:33:05

Name: Alex

State: Hybrid

Country: Strikehaven

Comments:
"I hate it when he does this! Gungadin, before you get too far to hear this, wait a second. You said I have never met Lady Poca? There you are incorrect. I have met her before, a few years ago in fact. It was well before I became the Emissary. A few years after you and I first met. I find it strange that I had never mentioned it to you. Now, go! Mobilize the 1st Infinity Corps!" Alex turns and promptly head upstairs to his room. A few minutes later, a much more human looking Alex comes back down from up tairs.

01/25/98 08:07:21

Name: Gungadin

Comments:
Gungadin addresses Nein and Gabriel. "I don't have the answers to either of your questions, I'm sorry. However, I doubt that you'd be any danger to us, Nein, unless the situation would turn grim. As long as Philo doesn't succeed, you should be s fe. However, once he gets here... there's no telling. Gungadin turns to Gabriel. "As far as WHO Lord Philo is... I do know that he came from across the sea. From where he hails, I have no clue. He landed in the Northern Wastes last summer befo e the path froze over. He had over 500 ships with him; enough to harbor an army of almost 160,000 men. In addition, they've rallied most of the mercenary groups in the area under their banner, along with any others that they've met in the wastes. They rought plenty of supplies, but most recent reports mention that they've probably run out by now. Chances are, the men who we fight will be starving and desperate. We've been watching them for quite a while, and feared that it would come to this. Howeve , we thought the attack would come through the Worldspine towards Morrowind. Never did we expect... Gungadin slowly shakes his head, then suddenly begins to laugh. "I'm sorry. I just don't know WHY I couldn't remember all of this before..! It's like a light suddenly came on when Alex mentioned it... I'm sorry." Gungadin's head jerks back as though another light suddenly came on. "Dear Lord! The First Infinity Corp! We've got to mobilize the First Infinity Corp!" Gungadin again das es off, mumbling expletives as he makes his way toward Malcontent...

01/25/98 08:03:19

Name: Lightfall caverns...

Comments:
Two more dragons join the ten already either in the caves or in the air...the formation then takes off, and wings its way back toward the sighting of the black dragons...

01/25/98 07:47:14

Name: Lord Philo

Comments:
Lord Philo's jaw quivers at the sight of Azarael, but he quickly regains his composure. "Ryath; shadow! Dragons; attack! Mages, counterspells and darkness, on my marks!" Ryath roars as she ascends into the air above the brilliant figure, pr venting the sunlight from reaching the battlefield. Philo stares the guardian in the eyes for a moment, then feels a burning sensation on the surface of his pupils. He quickly turns away and grasps his face. "Aagh! Counter, MARK!" Three of the mages comply by instantly weaving their most powerful counterspells, based upon their best guesses of their adversary's abilities. "Black magic, MARK!" The other three mages start to weave their black magic spells. Lord Philo recognises the tell ale signs of Dark Eternal and Dark Matter coming into play. Although incredibly powerful, both spells take some time to create. Philo grits his teeth. "Dragons; MARK!" Soon, the six other black dragons sweep in toward Azarael, spewing their trad mark acidic black breath upon him. Philo braces himself for the being's response...

01/25/98 06:57:47

Name: Zappo

City: Astral Plane

State: Disembodied

Comments:
Zappo shuddering at the possibility of being trapped in this place for an eternity, quickly falls into step with The Nameless One. "Hey, how do you know so much about this place, anyway?," Zappo inquires. Receiving only a confused, distant loo from The Nameless One, Zappo decides pursue a different subject. "Okay, even if we arrive at the location of your sword, what good is that going to do us? We can't even see our old world, no less interact with it, right?" Receiving another empt glare, Zappo decides to just abandon conversation altogether, following in silence instead.

01/25/98 05:04:27

Name: The Nameless One

Country: Astral Void

Comments:
He looks over his shoulder at Zappo. "Yeah, that and being randomly attacked by unfriendly things. Although, I suppose that's not uncommon for you. But then again, none of those things ever dragged your soul off into the darkness to be, for lack of a b tter term, consumed." He sort of shutters at the thought. "Anyway," he says continuing on his way, "Perhaps we can do something. If we can get to my sword, what's left of it anyway, maybe we can do something. Just what, I don't know. It has some weir properties that not even I fully understand. It's sorta got this thing about harboring the souls of great warriors, or something like that." He picks up his pace. Being in an astral plane, travel works differently and he could be at his destination in only a few moments. If Zappo does not follow, he may be lost soon and forever.

01/25/98 03:11:48

Name: Sir Mastermind

Comments:
That's all fine and good, this temporal shift nonsense...but then why do I appear in my dreams as a hardy and powerful warrior, when I'm so cut up already that I barely have the stamina for government some days? Unless the shift was baser than we think.. which means that since this deja vu is happening now, we're approaching the point of decision.

01/25/98 02:58:23

Name: Nein

Comments:
"Time, Gungadin?", Nein says with a look of horror on her face. "There is no end to what he could do with that...How does the thing work? And why is it in the basement of this castle? Can it send individuals in time, or does it control the flow of the te poral fabric? I'm afraid my presence could be endangering you all..."

01/25/98 01:32:19

Name: Azarael, The Guardian

City: The ruined temple where D.R. lays.

Comments:
As Philo and his entourage stood stunned, staring at the bright light, a tall figure formed within. He began as a swirling of small, bright, colored lights gradually gaining in velocity and size until a bright swirl of near solid illumination was created With a flash, a humanoid being resolved itself from the twirling lights. It was a tall, strong man clad in bright, golden armor. His long, ethereal blonde hair blew in a magical wind. A pure white glow surrounded him. He seemed to be light incarnate "Stop," he boomed in a low, but all too serious voice. "I am Azarael, The Guardian. Thou will not pass any further. This place is not meant for you or your kind. Leave... Now." Without saying another word, he drew a blade from his side. It looked a little like Deristative Repower, but whole and a little shorter. A simple, clean, efficient, unornamented blade except for one thing. It glowed in a way similar to him and was bathed in lights swirling like those from which he had formed. Behind him, the gate to the astral void from which he came remained ajar, letting him leak energy directly from that realm to give him strength. He swung his blade in a single motion, leaving a trail of light in its path... "If I must, I will make you leave."

01/25/98 01:09:43

Name: A Quasi-Editor

Comments:
Please, ignore that last post. Or, better yet, edit it out please, Great Editor. Geordi LaForge did not get beamed down to protect the sword, this is what really happened...

01/24/98 23:02:01

City: Cave of Deristative Repower

State: Not pleased...

Comments:
"Why am *I* always the one they send on these blasted missions?," the being thinks to himself before steeping onto the lighted pad. Suddenly, he is wisked away in a flash of glittering light, only to appear on the ground a couple of thousand miles away (Yeah, it is teleportation, but what can one do?). Suddenly, he's aware of another presence in the room, and he whirls around to see a small band of people, and their rather large mounts. "I'm sorry, but I can't let you have this artifact, it w sn't even meant to be on your world," he states to the shocked group of warriors. The ridge-headed being getting the feeling that the group will not so easily abandon their quest for the artifact, prepares to draw his weapon...

01/24/98 17:05:23

Name: Gabriel

Comments:
"Okay, Gungadin - but who exactly is this Lord Philo guy, anyways? I mean, what does he want? And can we stop him? He is mortal, right? There's nothing I hate quite as much as an immortal bad guy . . ."

01/24/98 15:56:08

Name: Lightfall's detached forces...

Comments:
They set up camp at the Morrowind-Gaultheria border, on the west side of Lake Riord, and set up a ranger picket line on the Gaultheria-Wastes border...the mages and cavalry are careful to stay well within the marked borders of Morrowind, and no one com s within forty yards of the Gaultheria border in any case...

01/24/98 15:53:31

Name: That blasted narrator...

Comments:
The carrier pigeons fly from Gaultheria this time, as Loranar leaves the castle, and is moderately surprised to see his dragon sitting there. What are YOU doing here?

I flew down with the pigeons a few hours ago.
Loranar shrugs and jumps aboard...they fly north...

Meanwhile, a new call passes through Morrowind..."War Warning" echos throughout the fortresses and garrisons of the nation, as all the armies issue their recall orders. The 5th army, being at the highest state of readiness anyway, is ready to march when oranar arrives, and they set off down the high-road from Kalinka to the Morrowind-Gaultheria border...And finally, the dragons not needed where they are begin to slowly converge on Lightfall...

01/24/98 05:49:49

Name: Lord Philo

Comments:
"MAGE! WHAT DO YOU SEE?" Philo shouts from the back of Ryath. Another, slightly larger black dragon soars up beside his own, its powerful wings beating furiously. A man on its back, a mage by the name of Hechambo, finishes weaving a spell of sig t. "Lord! I believe we've found another fragment!" The mage points to a small indentation in the mountains below, and the seven black dragons dive in that direction. Slowly, a small cave begins to form in the indentation, and the dragons stop to hover above it, the beating of their wings raising dust from the ledges below. Lord Philo leaps off of Ryath's back and approaches the cave. A faint glow can be seen deep within the cave, and Philo's eyes begin to shine with it. A deep grin covers his ace. "...Deristative Repower..." he mutters. "...The final piece..." The rest of his men dismount as Philo begins to enter the cave. Suddenly, a brillian flash erupts, and Philo is forced to shield his eyes. "What the HELL is that?" i>he shouts as a being begins to materialize...

01/24/98 05:35:03

Name: Gungadin

Comments:
Gungadin nods at all those around him. "Yes, I've experienced Deja Vu, too. I've also forgotten why I'm here, which may seem odd to those of you who know me. I rarely forget anything, no less something as important as a mission..." Gungadin s ratches the back of his head as the comment sinks in. "Essentially, I believe -- and this is just a theory, mind you-- that our histories have been erased.,, to an extent. For some reason, our subconscious minds have been able to recall some of the ast events. What that says about the mind, I don't know, nor do I care. That's more Kenshiro's area, if you ask me. What I DO know is that the source of it originated here... from Gaultheria... from that central prism. Gaultheria controls time itself. . Gungadin pauses again, watching the stunned expressions of those around him. "It does NOT, however, do so on command. If it did, I'm sure that we'd ALL fix this problem before it happened. No, the lore states that it needs a great power to con rol it. However, I think that the Lord Philo has somehow managed to breech the seal to this necessity..." Gungadin looks around once more. "And we must stop him."

01/24/98 04:20:52

Name: ...

City: Gaultheria

Comments:
Hmmm... Dragons, time travel, and F-14's. Interesting, very interesting indeed. The observer watches the situation quietly, and with mild perplexion. After the events conclude, he wanders to a quiet corner of Gaultheria, and starts talking, seemingl to himself. "It is true, the being we are looking for is here, but the extent of the damage isn't yet evident. I will attempt to gather more information, and report in later," the stranger says, before emmiting a chirping noise, and continuing o as if nothing has occured.

01/23/98 23:34:22

Name: Zappo

City: Astral Plane

State: Just swell

Comments:
Zappo mulls over The Nameless One's words, thinking about his new predicament. "Yeah, lets go float around looking at the pretty flowers and trees all day!," Zappo replies sarcastically, "Who do you think I am, Jerry? Damn treehuggers!" < >Zappo surveys the void with even more disdain, and decides that The Nameless One may actually be onto something. "Hey anything has to be better than spending an eternity enjoying the scenery," Zappo thinks before wheeling about to follow The Nam less One...

01/23/98 23:32:18

Name: Sir Mastermind aka dragonrider

Comments:
He gently grabs the lady's arm, and supports her...Of course. That was terribly thoughtless of me. Let's get you somewhere. He then turns to Johan: My friend, this thing you speak of, is it certain? Johan nods, and Mastermind thinks moment...Very well. Call a war warning. And hold off on further patrols until we can marshall enough of our dragons to drive off the interlopers. And send Loranar back to his 5th Army.

01/23/98 20:03:05
Name: Lady Poca
State: really unwell

Comments:
She begins to nod to the dragon rider, but her eyes glaze over and her knees buckle. She grips a nearby wall for support. "Milord... Perhaps we had best continue this discussion in a place where I can be seated... And it may be best to call Lucien."

01/23/98 19:45:53
Name: A Voice From The Future...
Comments:
Yeah, I'll give them something to mess with. They can meet Deristative Repower in person!

01/23/98 19:14:11 Name: Johan
Comments:

He stops and closes his eyes, and anyone telepathically sensitive can tell that he's recieving SOMETHING...his eyes suddenly snap open after a few seconds, and he runs to catch up to Mastermind...My Lord! Lightfall's advance scouts report no signs of the troops yet...but at least four black dragons, large ones, are now in the area of the battle site and possibly heading towards Lightfall... He pauses a moment...Is this serious enough to call a war warning?

01/23/98 19:10:21 Name: The dragonrider
Comments:
We may as well talk on the way. This will not take long. He takes a deep breath, and pulls off his helmet, revealing an older (late thirties/early forties) man, with several scars, short brown hair, and piercing blue eyes. You probably d n't know me. I'm Sir Joshua Meholick, better known as Sir Mastermind. The ambassador I sent was Johan for a reason. Many of my acolyte mages and paladins have been having....well, they seemed to think they were prophetic dreams. Involving this place, nd much chaos. So I sent one of my best mages, my best knight, and one of their close mutual friends--Johan, Loranar, and Arina. Since then, two things have transpired. First, I saw you in a dream myself...I was apparently trying to protect you from so ething, but...I...die in the attempt. That same morning, word came that you had been injured in a kidnap attempt on your niece. I came at once, to see what this place was about. Since then, troops have been spotted in the wastes--at the hardest border f mine to penetrate, but at your weakest border. Even more disturbingly, they managed to take out an entire platoon of border patrollers. And we believe they may be coming for this place. That said, I propose that since we hold apparently similar views on morality and the role of government, we should form a mutually benefitting alliance. The terms I propose are mutual defense and removal of border controls and tariffs between us.

01/23/98 17:44:01 Name: The Nameless One
City: City of the Dead
State: Sorta floating, but not exactly.
Country: Astral Space
Comments:

The Nameless One faces Zappo and becomes somewhat serious. "Well, um... I don't know. I mean, it's not that bad, being dead and all. You can kinda float around forever and look at the scenery on the temporal plane. But that's all you can do. Just lo k. And you have to stay away from other... Um... Less well tempered astral beings. They could drag you off to places I don't even want to talk about." Suddenly, he seems to gain an inward look of confusion. "How do I know that?" He scowls. "Well, suppose it doesn't matter how I know it, but the fact that I do know it changes something. I don't want to stay here." He pauses for a moment. "Hmm... C'mon. I have an idea..." He floats/walks off in the general direction of where the Worldspine Mo ntains would be in the plane of the living.

01/23/98 17:32:12
Name: Lady Poca
State: tired
Comments:

She looks wearily at the dragon rider, then nods. "If it's urgent, I suppose I can make the time to speak with you. There's a room in the north tower, just below my room, in which I can hold private meetings. We will go there." She sags against Kenshiro for a moment, then forces herself to straighten and once again start walking toward the north tower.