[img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/dHRmLjE1OC5lMTA3MDcuVkdobElFWmhkR1ZrSUVacGRtVW5jeUJHYVc1aGJDQkdhV2RvZEEuMQ/sydhartta.regular.webp[/img] [indent][color=FF4500]“Ignis,”[/color] Eros shouted as he reached across the Obsidian hall with a hand stretched out trying to grab his friend. Yet, it was too little too late as Ignis was pulled across the hall and towards Malakith, and his symphony filled with heralds. Eros took a step back as the anger that filled his eyes slowly gave way to confusion before that too gave way to sadness. [color=FF4500]“Alaria what do we do?”[/color] Eros asked as he looked back. She was in the middle of her protection song, her fingers becoming raw from the sheer amount of music she’s had to play. Alaria did not respond as she continued playing. Eros looked back towards the front and his eyes settled on Ignis. He was on the ground now, his back pressed downward by the darkness of the maestro's hand. The Maestro opened its mouth and began to sing its incomprehensible song, causing the entire area to shake violently. The song continued for several seconds before the maestro rose back up. The chains that binded him had begun to fail, and it was only a matter of time very he ripped himself free of them. A second later, Ignis began to clap his hands and applaud. [color=FF4500]“ALARIA,”[/color] Eros shouted as he took a step back. Ignis began to stand up, turning around as he did, and faced the group. His red face bore the tell tale signs of corruption as black tendrils began to snake under his skin. [color=FF4500]“WHAT DO WE DO-,”[/color] Eros started but stopped as he turned and saw the Fates behind his friend. They were whispering in her ear, guiding her hand with a new song, and each had their eyes locked on Malakith. [color=FF4500]“Alaria..”[/color] Eros started as he lowered his guard. [color=7FFFD4]“It’s okay, my friend,”[/color] Alaria said as tears began to stream down her face, [color=7FFFD4]“we can still seal him. We can buy the fates more time”[/color] Alaria finished as she began to pluck the strings. [color=FF4500]“How much-“[/color] Eros paused as he looked back at Ignis. Ignis had retrieved his weapon and had begun to walk towards the remaining two fated. [color=FF4500]“I can hold him off for a bit, how long do the fates need?”[/color] [color=F0FFFF]“Years,”[/color] Veidia whispered to Eros, her voice in guts head alone. [color=F5F5DC]“Centuries,”[/color] Chrona responded with a sad tone. [color=FFE4C4]“More.”[/color] Eclipses finished as she pulled at invisible fate strings around them. [color=7FFFD4]“We’re going to lock him in here Eros,”[/color] Alaria spoke in a singsong tone, [color=7FFFD4]“we’re going to finish the mission.”[/color] Eros felt his mind grow cloudy, his strength begin to falter, and a deep desire to lay down and embrace the eternal sleep began to fill his waking thoughts. [color=FF4500]“I guess that means that I won’t be able to do my hero’s whoring then,”[/color] Eros joked as he turned to face Malakith. He knew what was happening. He never considered the possibility of it, nor did he know exactly what the fates were doing. But something in his mind told him that he and Alaria were about to die. And that this moment was Fated. [color=FF4500]“Oi, you’re a proper cunt for taking my friends.. You’ve lost to the fated five once,”[/color] Eros paused as he felt the strength fall away from his legs, [color=FF4500]“and you’ve lost to them again.”[/color] Eros fell to the ground and as he hit the ground he was gone. Alaria too began to slump over but she continued the song. Alaria rested her eyes on Eros before she shifted them to get corrupted friends and gave them one final smile. Eventually her music slowed as did her breathing before she too found herself on the ground next to Eros. Malakith chuckled in response. He looked out and saw only victory here today. Three of the fated five had joined his symphony, and the remaining two were about to be dead. What ploy were they working on, what did the fates whisper to them? A second later the chains that bound him pulled taught. He watched as stands of fate itself made its way into the metal itself, blessing them and making them fated. What’s more, these fated strands were powerful. The maestro began to feel weakened, tired, and ready to sleep as well. He couldn’t help but laugh. [color=8B0000]“A year, a century, or eons more time will free me forevermore,”[/color] he laughed as he commanded his heralds to sleep. The chains that bound him pulled themselves tighter, and tighter, and tighter until each of his limbs were locked into place. The dull red glow of the maestro went dark, bringing himself, the heralds, and the fated five into darkness. [/indent] [center][img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/dHRmLjEwNi5jNjA5NDUuVFdGc1lXdHBkR2cuMA/youre-nextdemo.regular.webp[/img][/center] [indent]Deep within the heart of the desolate mountain, The Maestro lay bound in chains. Its ancient and powerful form is bound by enchanted restraints. The cavernous chamber echoed with a low hum, the very essence of the mountain pulsating with latent magic. The air was thick with the weight of centuries, and the only light emanated from the glow of mystical runes etched into the walls. Various golden strands of fate wove their way up and across the metal of the chains that bound The Maestro, and these golden strands had begun to dull in intensity. As another tremor shook the cavern, The Maestro stirred from his seemingly eternal slumber. His eyes flickered with renewed vitality. The chains that bound him rattled with an echoing resonance as the mountain itself seemed to respond to his awakening. The Maestro shifted his vision to one chain in particular, and a rumbling laugh shook the area as a rock had fallen and broken a link. Without the enchantments of the fates, The Maestro was able to free the hand from its containment and he stretched it out in front of his face. A smile equal parts wicked and alluring spread across his face. He began to slowly raise the hand, palm open to the roof, and as he did The Maestros' music began to play once again. It was a silent symphony, with the music beyond the ability of our collective understanding but the power behind the composition was felt as the mountain rocked with another quake. It was a fraction of his power, but it was enough for him to begin his plot for freedom. The Maestro raised his hand further, causing a red glow to fill the area around him revealing seven statues kneeling in front of his form. As he raised his hand even further, several tendrils formed in his palm and they shot out across the cavern and impacted the stone figures, burrowing deep as they hit. The red glow that emanated from The Maestro raced down the tendrils and began to fill the stone figures from the inside out. In a moment, the figures began to move. The stone cracked, letting arms and legs move freely of their prison, and within a minute the seven figures stood up, each with a wicked smile on their face. [color=8B0000]“My most vocal heralds,”[/color] The Maestro spoke. His voice was somewhere between a thousand individual whispers and a full choir singing. [color=8B0000]“It is time to spread my music once more, you must return,”[/color] he paused as he raised his hand even higher, bringing the unheard music to a level that vibrated the entire area, shaking even more rocks free from above. As it reached its crescendo, two portals opened up behind the heralds. [color=8B0000]“Igai, Agor, venture forth. The realm yearns for our music, play it for them once more. Spread my influence, my whispers on the wind,"[/color] The Maestro commanded, his voice a sinister lullaby. [color=8B0000]"Let the Fates know that I have awoken."[/color] With that, the two heralds got up and vanished through the portal, leaving The Maestro and the remaining five heralds in his dark chamber. The echoes of their departure lingered, and as the last portal closed, The Maestro began to hum an eerie tune – a haunting melody that resonated within the very essence of the shadows. The cavern responded to his song, the stones humming in harmony with The Maestro's malevolent melody as he began to envision a world under his rule, a world where everyone listened to his symphony and a world where the fates were forced to. The remaining five heralds began to swing their weapons at the thousands of chains that bound him. Their magic was weakened by the broken link, and they weakened further with each subsequent blow. [/indent] [img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/dHRmLjE1OC5lMTA3MDcuVkdobElFTnZjbkoxY0hScGIyNGdVM0J5WldGa2N3LjE/sydhartta.regular.webp[/img] [indent]“Mom, I saw something I swear,” a young girl pleaded as she cuddled up next to her mother. “Honey, you can stay in bed with us tonight,” the mother smiled. This was a nightly occurrence for the small five year old child. The parents would put her to bed, they would turn out the lights, they would lay down, and then fifteen minutes later the child would come in because they saw a monster in the dark. “Eventually you will never see these monsters again, they are remnants of an old terror called Malakith,” the mother paused as she looked over to the husband and winked. The husband smiled, shook his head, and rolled over in the bed. “Malakith?” “The Maestro,” The mother responded. “What’s a maestro?” The child asked. The mother frowned as she thought for a second. Maybe she chose the wrong story to tell this night. “It’s a guy who composes music,” the mother guessed, “anyway, the maestro was an evil force that came to our world many years ago. His music was evil, and it filled the children with a fear of the darkness, made them see monsters in it that weren’t there. The monster was defeated, by a group of hero’s known as the five fated, and his monsters were banished from our world forever.” “In the shadows deep, where darkness creeps, Lurks Malakith, where the blackness seeps. But fear not, dear child, for he's not all bad, In the darkest corners, there's light to be had. He may wear a cloak of night so cold, But even evil has stories untold. For in the end, even darkness can spark, A glimmer of hope in the deepest dark.” The mother looked over to the father, who had decided to chime in with a rhyme. Everyone in this village knew the story of the maestro, though what they did not know was just how off they were. To the children, this story was meant to show them that the dark held no monsters while they were safe behind their walls, inside their homes, even though the story and rhyme were originally meant to tell the heroic tale of the fated five. Time has a funny way of changing things. “So, there’s no monsters in the dark?” “None,” the parents responded in unison. *knock* The sound of a fist delivering a singular knock at the door. The parents looked at each other, and the father reached down and grabbed his sword. *knock* The sound of an individual waiting for them outside. The father stood up and walked to the main room of the house. The mother looked at the daughter and smiled, though her eyes betrayed her worry. *creak* The sound of the front door opening, with the father asking who’s there. A quiet followed, but a low hum soon filled it. It was jovial, it was happy, but for some reason it was a sound that defied definition. Then the sound of footsteps approaching from the door. A second later the father returned, black tendrils of corruption snaking across his face. His smile was wide, pained but excited, and he motioned for an unseen guest to join them. “You have to hear this music, dears,” he said, before the screams of his wife and child filled the air for a moment before it was replaced by all three humming together, and the sound of footsteps back towards the door. [/indent] [img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/b3RmLjEwNi4wOThmYzYuVkdobElFWmhkR1Z6LjA,/black-bounars.regular.webp[/img] [indent]The fates huddled together in their realms. Around them was a frozen forest, with broken trees and snow-covered fields surrounding them. In the distance, a wolf howls at the moon. Throughout the area golden strands of fated thread run over and across the landscape. These fated threads represented much to the fates. Where they converged represented the centers of life, cities and forests and places of the sort, and where they did not cover was the deserts, the tundras, and the volcanic fields where life did not thrive. The three fates jerked their heads at once to the side. Two convergence points, one in the Empire of Man and a second in the Silvermoor realm, began to shift in color. The golden stands began to adopt a red hue. The fates scurried together and ran from one point to the next. The heralds had started their conquests, and the fates needed their champions to counter. Veidia reached out and began snatching the threads off to their sides before she channeled her magic into the threads. All across Eldoria people, creatures, and events began to make subtle changes. [color=F0FFFF]“The fated are ready,”[/color] Veidia spoke as she grabbed several fated stands and held them up to view. [color=F5F5DC]“They will face much trouble,”[/color] Chrona responded as she grabbed the fated stands, examining them closely. [color=FFE4C4]“The Maestro has been busy,”[/color] Eclipsis responded as she grabbed hold of the fated stands. [color=F0FFFF]“Several heralds have been sent,”[/color] Veidia spoke as she began to look over the stands of fate that dotted the path ahead of the new fated warriors. [color=F5F5DC]“Corruption spreads in their wake,”[/color] Chrona said as she examined them closely. The fate strands that she looked at were different than the ones away from the heralds. Instead of a pristine, golden glow, they had a more reddish hue. The Maestero's corruption ran deep, not only corrupting the victims' minds and bodies it also corrupting their fate. [color=F0FFFF]“His music,”[/color] Veidia said with a hiss. [color=F5F5DC] “His melodies,”[/color] Chrona said with a growl [color=FFE4C4]“His corruption,”[/color] Eclipsis spoke softly. Eclipsis used her fated magic to lift the fated strands into the air, and then used the magic as she started twisting the various strands together into a single rope. The end of the rope remained imperfect, with each fated strand still sticking out in its own, however from this point on the fated fellowship would be drawn to each other. Whether through luck, outside interference, or the actions of the fated they would be together before long. [color=FFE4C4]“They will fight,”[/color] Veidia said as she examined the corruption in the fate strands. [color=F5F5DC]“They will save,”[/color] Chrona responded as she examined them closer. [color=FFE4C4]“And they will purge this corruption,”[/color] Eclipsis said as she tried to cut the blighted strand, yet her blade could not cut through. [color=F0FFFF]“We need them together,”[/color] Veidia spoke with excitement. [color=F5F5DC]“After some time apart,”[/color] Chrona said with a neutral tone. [color=FFE4C4]“And after they meet,”[/color] Eclipsis responded with sadness. [color=F0FFFF] “They must finish what they started,”[/color] Veidia spoke with sadness [color=F5F5DC]“Our Fated Five,”[/color] Chrona continued with her neutral tone [color=FFE4C4]“Our departed friends,”[/color] Eclipsis finished sharply. Veidia resumed the process of pulling together various other threads of fate and began to use her magic to influence the world outside. Winds would blow, factions would fight, and despair would befall the lands. This plight will be like beacons in the dark for the new fated champions. They will be drawn to these areas of fated energy, and they will have many decisions to make as they traverse them. Will they save those in trouble, and begin the process of etching their names onto the legend of this reality? Or will they ignore it and simply try and face the heralds of Malakith on their terms? Regardless of how they go about these next few weeks, they will be drawn to two towns, Dalvinwood in the west, and Nightingale Thicket in the east. As each day passes, the Fates know that more monstrous creatures will await them as the Maestro's music spreads unchecked.[/indent]