RKMBs Forums .::Important::. Writer's Block Vanguard International [Issue 15] World of Darkness

"There he goes, stripping down naked again," Priest half-hearidly joked as Danny's form disappeared below the surface of the water.

"He does this often?" Adem asked.

"Just about every time you turn around," the large man answered.

"An expression, I'm sure," Adem said to himself. "Still, I understand its meaning." The two began to circle around the lake.


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As Erasmus and her riders faded into the portal, away from this strange realm, Ghaleon turned to Phil. "Now that your friends have embarked on their quests, so shall you." He sat across from the Vanguardian, the soles of his now naked feet touching together. "Allow your spirit to release itself from the physical anchor of this plane and drift among the ether that binds the universe. Only then can you project yourself into the astral plane and find the answers that you seek."

"What will I find?" Phil asked, his voice a little choked and worried. Since coming to this world, he'd been thrown deeper and deeper into a realm that he would never of previously believed to exist.

"Whatever it is you seek," Ghaleon answered in a whisper.

"How will I find it?"

"Only by looking can one see."

"Where should I look for it?"

"The destination is already known to your heart and spirit. By searching within oneself, the destination without shall become clear."

"Can you give me a straight answer for once without giving me the run around?" Phil's voice had moved into the frustration area. For a few moments, there was only silence.

"The path towards truth is not always straight, nor is it always marked," the mystic replied.

Though Phil could not see it, he was sure that a big smile hung on the man's face. The Vanguardian cursed under his breath.

"Your anger only anchors yourself to this plane. Release your emotions. Let them go. Then, you shall be free."

For several minutes, the two men sat facing each other in silence. Phil's skin began to tingle and go numb just as the moist sensation of a strange mist began to roll across his skin. He began to bob up and down, backwards and forwards, as though he sat in a boat in choppy waters. A sensation of movement, speed, began to overtake his senses. "I cant believe that done it," he proclaimed while his voice dropped and lowered in pitch as well as stop in mid echo, only to continue far within the next syllable.

"Do not doubt or even ponder the notion of doubt," Ghaleon voice rang through clear and steady. "This is only an impossibility when you dis-believe in its possiblity."

"Where are we?" Phil asked as his neck craned around to see what was not there too be seen by either him or any other eye. "I feel..... I feel.....," he searched for the word. "Knowledge. I feel knowledge all around me. Thought. Ideas. Facts. Possibilities."

"And that is what surrounds you, young Phil. That that courses around you is all that is written, and all that is being written. There lies the dawning of the Divine Age. Clerics of the forgiving gods build temples and congregations to spread peace throughout the lands. Empires grow and prosper until the vengeful gods invade and lay it to waste. And there flies your friends through the land of the Giants, Jotunheim. And two more wander through the walls of Godbolts dungeons, deep within the once proud and true Grayavale's castle."

Without the eyes he'd known since birth, Phil saw everything that Ghaleon described to him. "I only see Ozzy and one of those archers. Are you sure he's not being led to his death?"

"No, they seek not the executioner, but the gatekeeper," the sorcerer answered. "The surface does not display the truth, but hides it away within."

"Enough of the mystery act. We need to let Danny and the others know."

"We cannot. To leave this plane before the end of the journey is to ask for death, and this is merely a short stop for a much longer trip. There is still much for you to learn here in the mists of the Past and Present."

"The future! Let me see the future. That way we can stop Godbolt by already knowing what he's going to do."

Ghaleon laughed. "The ink of the Present has yet to dry, and already you wish to read the story's end. The words of the future have yet to be marked on paper. Your request cannot be fulfilled. Instead, let us concentrate on the Past, for it leads into the Future."

The gods fought in battle for eons. The creatures and peoples of the lands scattered and hid from their war. When all was done, but one god stood. For centuries, he buried his brother and enemy alike into the earth. As his final act he reformed the surface so that the inhabitants could once again build civilization. Nothing is ever again written of him.

With the blood of gods soaked into her, the soil became fertile. From it grew new life. Life created from the deaths of gods. The planet became a being herself with just the emotions you would expect from a woman. Also came forth the children of darkness and evil, fore both the blood of the vengefull as well as the forgiving gave this new life. Magiks were borne, and the world would never be the same.

Gaolvulte was a general among the Northern lands. His cruelty was reknowned throughout the nine kingdoms. Evil tempts some men, but not Gaolvulte. Evil needs not tempt those who are borne of itself. A young warlock with more ambition than wisdom set out to stop the general's rampage to win the hand of his kingdom's princess. Upon seeing Gaolvulte ride into the plains, the warlock cast a spell to strike the entire army dead. In his foolishness, he released the evil within Gaolvulte and connected it with the dark magiks of necromancy.

The general and his army were now unstoppable. His direct connection to the blood of the vengeful gods assured him eternal life. To show the young warlock his gratitude, Gaolvulte captured his soul and forced him to be his servant forever. On that day, Godbolt was borne. This is your enemy. Know him well.