Pantheon - The Third Age - Game Thread

[Madadeva]

I am proud that the Master of Sunset sees the wisdom in joining forces to rid Eiran of the World Breaker.

And the AllFather

[Dagon]

Hail my fellow dieties! It would appear Eiran has entered troubling times. I admit I know little of this world-breaker; only his intentions in fact. To help combat this evil I pledge my services and all the power of the mighty seas. Once Leviathan emerges victorious over this wyrm expect to see him on the frontlines of the battlefield.

[uKulwa]

I am the Master of the Eclipse Court.

The Master of the Eclipse Court has spoken.

All things serve the balance. Good must be met with evil, and evil with good. No power shall wax, that must not again wane. The universe struggles in eternal conflict between creation and destruction and neither may remain victorious for too long.

Between them stand the Eclipse, to weight the scales at need.

As my faithful say, Unyok’ umnyama, unyok’ umhlope, nyok’ umnyama, unyok’ umhlope…

You are a white snake, then suddenly a black snake, then suddenly a white snake, then suddenly a black snake…

And so we are, as the balance demands.

[Madadeva]

You words make sense ... as in Eclipse ... also in Sunset we meld different domains in common interest and balance.

But where is Sunrise? Hiding? Struck cowardly by the demands of the time? Why does their Master cower and hide? Why do they not speak of joining in the Great work to come? Why do they not share freely what that know ... as Sunset has led and Eclipse courageously followed!

[Zephyr]

They are wakened.

The burning darkness and the grinding flesh,
Arising from the shadowed past,
They wreak the world by divine decree,
The end is nigh! The end is nigh!

One who stood against the coming tide
Is ended;
One who stood against the rising dark
Is come.

Souls unnumbered cry for deliverance,
From the fickle whims of men and gods;
Hubris and folly have call'd down from high
What has begun and must perforce end.

One path now stands before the High Ones;
Sacrifice.
One path now stands before the Low Ones;
Destruction.

And all that has been said and done,
All the deeds of gods and powers,
Stands on the edge of precipice,
Judgment has nigh begun.

And those who stand in eclipsed dark
Must guide.
And those whose suns both rise and fall
Must hear.

The plea has been heard, the challenge spoken.

The Mists conceal the weeping god,
The heartfelt plea for world's salvation;
Son of the spirit if not through blood,
He asks the boon that ends the world.

A promise made is not forgotten
As neither dark nor light prevail;
A prison found shall soon be broken,
World torn asunder by one god's words.

Below the sea, behold, it wakens,
The son of earth and devastation,
Called to challenge, lured to battle,
Blood stains the waters, destroys the land.

There is no stemming the tide of blood,
There is no halting the judgment of gods;
For only he who twice faces his fate
Can hold the ground and call on high;

Break the chains or seal the Book,
Who shall mold the coming night?
A promise made is now fulfill'd,
Released is the darkness bright.

But ever darkness comes after light,
Thrice befouled by power's greed,
When misty gaze turns to the world,
Shall ne'er more the Gates be open'd.

I answer your call, Master of Dusk,
For gathering dark is dimming the light.
Twisting paths now lay before you,
Trod in time past or ne'er before.

Brethren have woven this world's grim fate,
Chosen to summon the death of ages,
Challenged the Ancient into new struggle,
Brought back the dead, seeking their Master.

One path alone stands for salvation;
All must unite against the final judgment,
All must abide by one deity's guidance,
Standing before the Eclipsing Gods.

Else the world dies, and with it the hopes
Of mortals which helplessly pray to the sky
Unless lesser paths be chosen in troth
Escape and forsake this doomed world.

Brainstorming, anyone? Does anyone have thoughts they'd like to share? I will try to collect mine, but I'm not sure I have anything particularly brilliant to say.

[Madadeva]

Several thoughts come to mind, but we need to see the words of Sunrise's Oracle to have a complete picture. That, combined with the turn of this season may suggest some options.

[The Numen]

Sunrise's Oracle does not speak to them any more.

Oracles
The only constant of each Court are the eternal Oracles. Each Court has an Oracle, a collection of wisdom and knowledge which takes different forms for the two Courts, and can be consulted by the leaders of the Courts alone. The Oracles are cryptic, and they don't always answer when consulted; at other times, they may offer unsolicited information, although most often in the way of riddles.

The more an Oracle is consulted, the less likely it is that it will answer further.

[Moxinomal]

Surprise surprise...

[The Numen]

Remember also this parchment:

In the Beginning, the High Throne
that sits in the Heart of the Howling
Dark was Shattered. From the
Shattering, the Worlds were Born.
And through the Howling Dark there
came Shards of the High Throne,
Soaring through the Void in Silence
And when a Shard would Fall upon
a World, there It would Bring glory,
and Life, and Struggle. Its Song
would Awaken, and Call to the Gods.
For what Purpose do the Gods have,
if not to Create? And the Song of the
Shard is a Promise of Power.
And the Gods Came upon the Worlds
and Saw that Much was to be Done;
and by Virtue of their Godhood, they
Cast their Hands about the Worlds,
and Made Them anew.

There is not much mystery to this, though we believe it indicates that Starmetal gives strength to the Gods.

They are wakened.

The burning darkness and the grinding flesh,

Grinding flesh is almost certainly a reference to the wyrm. Burning darkness seems to be the Midnight Army, though perhaps might be the World Breaker. The latter was not sleeping, merely sealed, so it is more likly the burning darkness is the Midnight Army.

Arising from the shadowed past,
They wreak the world by divine decree,
The end is nigh! The end is nigh!

One who stood against the coming tide
Is ended;
One who stood against the rising dark
Is come.

Could this be Simjen?

Souls unnumbered cry for deliverance,
From the fickle whims of men and gods;

Again, the undead in the Midnight Army. This seems to imply they are against both mortals and gods.

Hubris and folly have call'd down from high
What has begun and must perforce end.

One path now stands before the High Ones;
Sacrifice.
One path now stands before the Low Ones;
Destruction.

Who are the High Ones? Who are the Low Ones?

And all that has been said and done,
All the deeds of gods and powers,
Stands on the edge of precipice,
Judgment has nigh begun.

And those who stand in eclipsed dark
Must guide.
And those whose suns both rise and fall
Must hear.

It seems clear that Zephyr's interpretation is correct. One of Eclipse must lead, and both Sunrise and Sunset must follow.

The plea has been heard, the challenge spoken.

The Mists conceal the weeping god,
The heartfelt plea for world's salvation;
Son of the spirit if not through blood,
He asks the boon that ends the world.

Mox? Pleading for the world's salvation, but asking to end the world? That makes sense in a Mox sort of way, We suppose.

A promise made is not forgotten
As neither dark nor light prevail;

Can the Eclipse Court Wane? So that both Sunrise and Sunset are waxing? We notice that there is no indication of either Sunrise or Sunset waxing or waning, this year. Both are of equal power, so it seems that neither dark nor light prevail at the moment.

A prison found shall soon be broken,
World torn asunder by one god's words.

The seal found in the Imray deserts, containing the World Breaker?

Below the sea, behold, it wakens,
The son of earth and devastation,
Called to challenge, lured to battle,
Blood stains the waters, destroys the land.

There is no stemming the tide of blood,

This is clearly the wyrm, child of Nor Yekith and the earth Goddess from the second age.

There is no halting the judgment of gods;
For only he who twice faces his fate
Can hold the ground and call on high;

Again, this seems to be indicating that Simjen is the only one who can save us.

Break the chains or seal the Book,
Who shall mold the coming night?
A promise made is now fulfill'd,
Released is the darkness bright.

This seems similar to the Burning Darkness mentioned by The Nameless.

But ever darkness comes after light,
Thrice befouled by power's greed,
When misty gaze turns to the world,
Shall ne'er more the Gates be open'd.

There have been three ages on Eiran. Kholtanos seems to think that the presence of Gods befouls this world. But it seems clear that there shall be no fourth age here.

I answer your call, Master of Dusk,
For gathering dark is dimming the light.
Twisting paths now lay before you,
Trod in time past or ne'er before.

Could this mean that perhaps the solution is to be found within one of the time disturbances?

Brethren have woven this world's grim fate,
Chosen to summon the death of ages,
Challenged the Ancient into new struggle,

World Breaker?

Brought back the dead, seeking their Master.

The Midnight Army. We have a hunch that their Master is really Argothoth. That these are the source of the ever-growing cry in that one's name for the past two years.

• The Entombed Armies
  
  "A curious and old legend from disparate areas of the world, but slightly more prevalent in the Shattered Lands, speaks of the so-called "Entombed Armies", whole armies of beings with the strength of stone and the patience of ages, endlessly waiting in the darkness, beneath the ground, immortal yet unliving, for the time when the command will be given and they will come to the surface, bringing forth the vengeance of their wrathful lord. The legend goes that when the time comes, the Entombed Armies shall destroy all things, and none shall stand against their might, till smoke will blacken the sun and blood will flow like rivers."
  -From "Legends of the Old World", by Lemnur Plizir

The above quote does NOT mention that they are undead, though "immortal yet unliving" doesn't preclude that state.

One path alone stands for salvation;
All must unite against the final judgment,
All must abide by one deity's guidance,
Standing before the Eclipsing Gods.

Again, this seems clear: all the gods of Eiran must unite under one of the Eclipse Court. Zephyr conjectures that this should be him, as the Master of that Court. Given the other references hinting at Simjen's key place in saving the world, there might be doubt as to which member of the Court is to be followed.

Else the world dies, and with it the hopes
Of mortals which helplessly pray to the sky
Unless lesser paths be chosen in troth
Escape and forsake this doomed world.

Simjen also suggests taking his followers off the world by using Starmetal. If the stuff really does strengthen Gods, this seems to be a wise backup plan. We hope that by choosing this path Simjen doesn't rob the rest of us of the chance to save our world, however.

[Simjen]

"A curious and old legend from disparate areas of the world, but slightly more prevalent in the Shattered Lands, speaks of the so-called "Entombed Armies", whole armies of beings with the strength of stone and the patience of ages, endlessly waiting in the darkness, beneath the ground, immortal yet unliving, for the time when the command will be given and they will come to the surface, bringing forth the vengeance of their wrathful lord. The legend goes that when the time comes, the Entombed Armies shall destroy all things, and none shall stand against their might, till smoke will blacken the sun and blood will flow like rivers."
-From "Legends of the Old World", by Lemnur Plizir

The above quote does NOT mention that they are undead, though "immortal yet unliving" doesn't preclude that state.

Those are mine. They are the dwarrow who chose to become S'en Golem, retaining their souls but taking immortal bodies.

I believe Zephyr is a god worthy of his father's name. He has my support. I will also do whatever is asked of me. But leadership is a role I would rather not take. I am old, far older than most of you imagine. This is not my world, not my time anymore. I will see that my people are safe, but beyond that...

[The Numen]

Simjen, does it seem reasonable that Legends would have your golems rising up and destroying the world? Or could this be the blending of several myths?

Does anyone else have further information on the Midnight Army to share?

[O-gon-cho]

Sunrise's Oracle does not speak to them any more.

Oracles
The only constant of each Court are the eternal Oracles. Each Court has an Oracle, a collection of wisdom and knowledge which takes different forms for the two Courts, and can be consulted by the leaders of the Courts alone. The Oracles are cryptic, and they don't always answer when consulted; at other times, they may offer unsolicited information, although most often in the way of riddles.

The more an Oracle is consulted, the less likely it is that it will answer further.

Actually, it is my understanding Sunrise's oracle has been consulted far less often. But why she does not speak is a mystery.

When she has been asked, she has remained silent.
This has been the case for several years, not just turns.
Perhaps it is the Master. I do not know, but so far, none else have stepped forward to volunteer to replace the current Master.

Surprise surprise...

Mox...
Please speak, should you know of anything regarding this.
I suspect perhaps Brid may understand you more than I have recently...

One path now stands before the High Ones;
Sacrifice.
One path now stands before the Low Ones;
Destruction.

Who are the High Ones?

'risers.

Who are the Low Ones?

'setters.

Not to denote better or worse, but as a cryptic reference to the height of the Sun in the names of each Court.

Though what 'risers must sacrifice or 'setters destroy remains unknown. And we should all choose our own path, rather than blindly follow our oracles.

Merely a guess.
I have jumped to wrong conclusions before.

As for the following, if the same happened within the Sunset Court as within Sunrise, this came unasked. I know, because Aethris said the exact same words to Sunrise last season.

The Mists conceal the weeping god,
The heartfelt plea for world's salvation;
Son of the spirit if not through blood,
He asks the boon that ends the world.

Mox? Pleading for the world's salvation, but asking to end the world? That makes sense in a Mox sort of way, We suppose.

My initial thought as well, but I have rethought that.

When our divine sight showed us what happened this past season in the shylan desert, one of the things seen was:

Flicker... a man walked through gray plains, his face determined and ageless, his eyes unfocused, muttering beneath his breath, seeking something. Flicker... the same man knelt on featureless ground, tears streaming from his eyes, hand outstretched in a pleading gesture towards an unseen figure. Flicker... an indistinct figure stepped through a wall of mists. Flicker... amidst the chaos of battle, the shards of a spear clattered on the floor, but the light was too bright to observe what occurred. Flicker... something dark and ruined crawled out of a hellpit, crumbling into exhaustion on golden sand. Flicker... by a searing forge, a shadowy blacksmith forged a runed sword, each blow of his hammer leaving behind glowing green runes. Flicker... three indistinct figures stood side by side, two holding swords, one holding a mace. Flicker... flicker flicker flicker flicker flicker...

To my Second Age eye, these are events of the Second Age, backwards. At first I again thought the first figure mentioned was Mox, but as I began to realize these were Second Age events, I have determined the first figure mentioned is Vadhaka. I know not about the last three figures mentioned; if Second Age figures perhaps they occurred before I hatched on Immeril so long ago. But the ones inbetween, to my memory, are all Second Age deities.

So, the first stanza of both oracles of the rising and setting courts refers to Vahaka, in my mind. The boon asked that ended the World then was the interdiction.

A promise made is not forgotten
As neither dark nor light prevail;

Can the Eclipse Court Wane? So that both Sunrise and Sunset are waxing? We notice that there is no indication of either Sunrise or Sunset waxing or waning, this year. Both are of equal power, so it seems that neither dark nor light prevail at the moment.

A prison found shall soon be broken,
World torn asunder by one god's words.

The seal found in the Imray deserts, containing the World Breaker?

I agree with both of these, though I believe the "promise" referred to is the destruction of Eiran should any brave the Mists. And that only came to me as I was discussing some of this myself with Zephyr, as he insisted Mox entering the Mists was the reason the crystal was broken. A smart cookie, the son of my liege l-rd...

Below the sea, behold, it wakens,
The son of earth and devastation,
Called to challenge, lured to battle,
Blood stains the waters, destroys the land.

There is no stemming the tide of blood,

This is clearly the wyrm, child of Nor Yekith and the earth Goddess from the second age.

Agreed. For I know whence some of your knowledge of this originated.
I will tell you again, the earth g-ddess was Melirelle.
And she was Birth, now my domain, as well as Earth.

There is no halting the judgment of gods;
For only he who twice faces his fate
Can hold the ground and call on high;

Again, this seems to be indicating that Simjen is the only one who can save us.

I can not speak on this with any certainty.
My instinct says you are correct, but on this I do not know.

Break the chains or seal the Book,
Who shall mold the coming night?
A promise made is now fulfill'd,
Released is the darkness bright.

This seems similar to the Burning Darkness mentioned by The Nameless.

The minions of The World Breaker were constantly referred to as manifestations of "white-hot darkness." When I did journey within the Chastus portal, and returned only to bring ruin upon Eiran, darkness bright and Burning Darkness was burned within my being...

You free yourself of the trappings of power, and finally confront Chastus. The man looks at you with empty eyes, but you believe you see a shiver of fear in their back, and you take heart: perhaps this is exactly what he did not count on, to face a goddess who has no power in her. He takes a step back and you send out your tendril of power, snaking into the air until it finally touches him... and a terrible force grasps at you, pulling you strongly towards Chastus and inside him, even as he looks at you and - just before you are drawn into the unknown depths he leads to - suddenly grins with an evil darkness in him that causes you to feel more fear than you ever have in all your young life: you suddenly realize that he did not want your power - he wanted THIS! He wanted to draw a god inside himself - and as this realization dawns horribly upon you, you are swallowed by his essence and tumble through pain and terror, feeling your essence torn apart and seared with white-hot fire. An eternity of suffering passes by, and even your willpower cannot long withstand it, but your screams are lost in the white-hot void and you do not even receive the release of hearing them. Frantically, you attempt to claw away from the torment and the pain - your mind is confused, but you feel deep down that to stay there will not offer any insight in how to defeat Chastus - it will only mean your death and dissolution, and however strong you may be, you are still young, and the will to live is great within your breast. You vainly claw at the white-hot emptiness with scarred and torn hands, frantically sending out your cries, hoping to find your way in the void - until you suddenly feel it, faint beyond belief but still there - your link with Raucous hasn't been destroyed! New suffering blooms into your essence, as if the white-hot emptiness wished to blot out that feeling, to keep you here forever; you feel it draining you slowly, feeding off you, off your power; but despite the overwhelming, unendurable pain, you hold fast onto that link and slowly begin crawling towards it, as if it were a lifeline. Waves of white-hot pain wash over you, as if the emptiness were raging, but you hold on; your once-fair skin is burned and cracked, but you care not, for all your thoughts are focused on fleeing, past the haze of pain. Inch after inch, you feel you draw closer and closer, even as the emptiness rages more and more, attempting to break you; yet you realize that if it wants to stop you, then you have to continue.

Finally, you feel the world of Eiran close enough for you to extend your charred hand - and despite the terrible force trying to drag you back into torment, you grab a hold and slowly, excruciatingly, draw yourself out of the nothingness and into Eiran again. The soft breeze and cool air hurt your blistered skin, but they are as nothing if compared to the pain of the emptiness; your once-fair skin is black and charred, cracked by the pain and bleeding badly. You are almost completely out... when suddenly something grabs your leg and tries to pull you back in! You dig your broken nails into the ground, and pull with all your strength... Chastus has turned into little more than a door, and the emptiness is trying to drag you back through that door and into torment! You pull, and pull, and frantically try to withdraw your leg - and then, just when you are pulling with all your strength, the force stops trying to drag you into the void, and when you pull your leg towards you, you drag the FORCE into Eiran! It emerges from the portal, white-hot rage and emptiness, bright darkness and burning cold, flowing endlessly onto the land, its roar of triumph - TRIUMPH! - overwhelming Chastus's cries of unendurable pain. It towers over you, and slowly it resolves into a humanoid form, so bright and dark that your martyred eyes hurt just to look upon it, and your heart is clutched with fear; red slits open in the freezing fire, and a voice so chilling and full of rage as to make you tremble booms across the land and into your mind, threatening to burst it.
"AT LAST, I AM BACK!" A terrible laughter echoes, and the red slits look upon you, and you feel your flesh withering beneath their gaze. "LITTLE GODLING, YOU HAVE RELEASED ME... MY EXILE IS ENDED!" The thing extends its arms towards the sky and laughs terribly again. "LET THE WORLD BEWARE!" the creature shouts, "FOR THE WORLD BREAKER HAS RETURNED!"
Around the creature's impossibly immense form swarm lesser humanoids made of the same radiant darkness, of the same hunger and power; the red slits turn on your frightened, scorched form, a monstrous mirth shining through them. "I WAS EXILED, BUT I FOUND LIFE IN THE VOID!" It laughs, "I WAS EXILED, BUT I OBSERVED THEALL-FATHER TOILING OVER THIS WORLD, AND I LEARNED!" Suddenly, the air itself fills with menace and rage, to the point that you cringe in new pain at its violation. "I HAVE GROWN STRONG... BUT I WOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN ABLE TO RETURN. YOU HAVE BROUGHT BACK TERROR IN THIS WORLD, GODLING... DESPAIR, WHILE YOU STILL LIVE!" Laughter echoes again across the valley, until a flash of dark light stuns you; when you reopen your eyes, you are alone, and nothing is left of Chastus, but the land around you is barren and scorched, even as you are. It is only eternities later that Raucous, flying as fast as possible, reaches you with all his strength, sensing your torment, your fear and your need.

I wish not to dwell on days long gone, but perhaps they have returned and if so, we must prepare.

But ever darkness comes after light,
Thrice befouled by power's greed,
When misty gaze turns to the world,
Shall ne'er more the Gates be open'd.

There have been three ages on Eiran. Kholtanos seems to think that the presence of Gods befouls this world. But it seems clear that there shall be no fourth age here.

Again agreed.
"misty gaze" must surely refer to The AllFather.

I answer your call, Master of Dusk,
For gathering dark is dimming the light.
Twisting paths now lay before you,
Trod in time past or ne'er before.

Could this mean that perhaps the solution is to be found within one of the time disturbances?

Perhaps Koel will speak on this in the near future.

Brethren have woven this world's grim fate,
Chosen to summon the death of ages,

The World Breaker, IMO.
Remember, there are three threats facing us currently.

Challenged the Ancient into new struggle,

World Breaker?

Melirelle's worm.

Brought back the dead, seeking their Master.

The Midnight Army. We have a hunch that their Master is really Argothoth. That these are the source of the ever-growing cry in that one's name for the past two years.

• The Entombed Armies
  
  "A curious and old legend from disparate areas of the world, but slightly more prevalent in the Shattered Lands, speaks of the so-called "Entombed Armies", whole armies of beings with the strength of stone and the patience of ages, endlessly waiting in the darkness, beneath the ground, immortal yet unliving, for the time when the command will be given and they will come to the surface, bringing forth the vengeance of their wrathful lord. The legend goes that when the time comes, the Entombed Armies shall destroy all things, and none shall stand against their might, till smoke will blacken the sun and blood will flow like rivers."
  -From "Legends of the Old World", by Lemnur Plizir

The above quote does NOT mention that they are undead, though "immortal yet unliving" doesn't preclude that state.

It is good my tutoring of you in the history of the Second Age has led you to agree with what I told you this meant from the first.

Those are mine. They are the dwarrow who chose to become S'en Golem, retaining their souls but taking immortal bodies.

Brother, I agree with The Numen.
While your S'en Golem have the strength of stone and the patience of ages, you were seldom seen as "wrathful," nor would I imagine they would have remained entombed seeking to "destroy all things" when they awoke. Unless they have orders you have not shared. But that, I do not believe. And if these Midnight Armies in Virelle are the same as The Entombed Armies mentioned above, they definitely do not fit the description of your S'en Golem.

One path alone stands for salvation;
All must unite against the final judgment,
All must abide by one deity's guidance,
Standing before the Eclipsing Gods.

Again, this seems clear: all the gods of Eiran must unite under one of the Eclipse Court. Zephyr conjectures that this should be him, as the Master of that Court. Given the other references hinting at Simjen's key place in saving the world, there might be doubt as to which member of the Court is to be followed.

Again, we are in agreement here.
For myself, I would be happy to listen to the guidance of either, whenever they deign to speak.

I believe Zephyr is a god worthy of his father's name. He has my support. I will also do whatever is asked of me. But leadership is a role I would rather not take. I am old, far older than most of you imagine. This is not my world, not my time anymore. I will see that my people are safe, but beyond that...

*bows in acceptance*

Else the world dies, and with it the hopes
Of mortals which helplessly pray to the sky
Unless lesser paths be chosen in troth
Escape and forsake this doomed world.

Simjen also suggests taking his followers off the world by using Starmetal. If the stuff really does strengthen Gods, this seems to be a wise backup plan. We hope that by choosing this path Simjen doesn't rob the rest of us of the chance to save our world, however.

I will say Simjen is ever patience and generous. He works with those that approach him as best he can. Even those he has had caused to distrust in the past.

[Moxinomal]

Mox...
Please speak, should you know of anything regarding this.
I suspect perhaps Brid may understand you more than I have recently...

Why ruin all the fun of watching you all drool over the puzzle pieces that are in front of you? The final picture has already been presented: Eiran Will Fall. And yet, all of you still clamor over these fragments wondering what these pieces make. Too... powerful...

The AllFather has shared with me his wisdom. His prize creation, the planet and people, are forsook! Too long has he watched all of your bickering and squabbling... and he can watch no more. Seeking his guidance will only accelerate what is to come. Only one... can... help...

[Simjen]

Very well. If we are sharing, allow me to tell you all this. In what you gods see as a short time ago, I returned to Eiran in this age. Between then and now, I have lived eons, seen the history of Eiran.

Let me tell you the tale, making it as short as I can and putting you in my place - so that you may see as I have.

You Manifest inside your ancient Rav Golem, and ... you travel back in time to stand before your old self, shortly before the battle with Nephirthos. It is unsettling to see oneself as one was when one was younger, yet the fire burned then as it burns now, and the desire to battle Nephirthos for the sake of the world is almost palpable, as is the amount of power which is imbued within your younger version. Nevertheless, you and him are one, and you manage to persuade him to give you his power, as well as [your spear] and the Ring, in exchange for the shattered fragments of the spear you carried with you. Then, you gather power around you to hide your presence to other gods, and lurk on the edge of the Mists, watching as your younger self is defeated, as the gods of the Second Age continue squabbling until the World Breaker shatters Eiran, and the Interdiction begins, whereupon you withdraw further to avoid tampering with the timeline.

You watch as the shards created by the World Breaker start drifting off, and the highest mages of the Second Age gather together with the surviving Prophets, no longer in contact with their respective deities but still in command of impressive power. You realize that this is a part of Eiran's history which no one else knows about: you witness as they build marvelous crystal contraptions designed to capture the light of the sun and moon, transform it through magic, and project it as a tangible force. Through the power of the Prophets, they cut holes in the unbreakable Icewalls, bury these machines below ground, and activate them, forming the Moonbridges which hold the shards together. The world appears to be safe, for the moment, and Melirelle's Worm goes back to sleep deep beneath the earth.

Years pass. Even the powerful mages of the Second Age grow old and die, yet the Prophets and the Dactyls endure. In fact, the power of the Prophets continues growing, even though they are cut off from their erstwhile masters. In the meantime, Celmis takes care of Dante's continuing education, and Acmon raises little Simjenna. As the years go by, Simjenna grows into a beautiful young woman, and it is her who leads the dwarrows through these trying times. Under her direction, the Rav Golem is placed as King of the Mountain, and the Shaping Hammer and the shards of Aeshspar are brought there for safekeeping. She lives a long and eventful life, dying only centuries after the Interdiction and leaving behind a bloodline of dwarrows who bear within themselves a faint trace of your divine spark. As your two children no longer need them, the two Dactyls choose to devote themselves to protecting your line and Hedra's.

But other things brew beneath the surface. Damnameneus confers with Antovar and Ferax as to what they should do; subtly stimulated by you, it is Ferax who suggests that the world cannot remain entirely without protection, and that when the Interdiction ends, and new gods appear, the world will need help. Damnameneus agrees, and Ferax suggests that he may find a way to do this in a subtle fashion... Damnameneus accepts Ferax's suggestion and considers how best to succeed; meditating for days, his mind seeks inspiration from the patterns of thoughts you gave him when he was made. In an effort to mitigate the suffering of the people of Eiran in this time of transition, you subtly influence his mind to steer him towards a solution that may help the mortals; once he awakens from his meditating trance, he speaks excitedly with Ferax.

It is there that you watch in amazement as events escalate in a way you could not have predicted. Damnameneus's and Ferax's meeting is momentous: it is there that Damnameneus claims (mistakenly having taken your subtle guidance for theAllFather's, though he does not know it) that he heard the AllFather 's intentions for Eiran, and that he knows what he must do. "I will gather the Prophets and any other who remain in whom power was invested", he says, "and give them purpose anew. But", he adds, "I cannot do so as Damnameneus, the Dactyl. Too many Prophets, such as the King and Rothgarh, would question my allegiance and doubt that it was theAllFather 's voice, and not simply Simjen's, which I heard. Thus I shall veil my identity from all of them, and they will know me only from afar... if I succeed in swaying them, they shall be the defenders of Eiran's mortals, great Lords whose power will be mighty by the time the Interdiction ends. Who can say what they will be able to accomplish then, once such a thing happens?" ...

Damnameneus enacts his plan; wreathed in a shroud of power, he journeys to the floating city of Pelendra, through which he can travel throughout all of Eiran without being noticed. He sets the city's route and ensures that no one else can change this command, to ensure that he can do what he has to do without anyone knowing it is truly he who drives Pelendra's path... he hopes to ensure that Pelendra remain neutral even once the gods return. Then, he sends his thoughts through the ether, seeking all Prophets who survived; to each of them, he introduces himself... He coaxes them into cooperating with him, and tells them simply to work for Eiran's safety and the safety of its mortals. He warns them that someday they will be needed, especially when the gods return...

Centuries roll by. The actions of erstwhile Prophets contribute to forming myths around each of them; as there can be no gods, and the truth about what a Prophet is has long since been lost, they become distant, unknowable entities whose purpose is just as enigmatic. They are eventually dubbed the Lords of Eiran, since surely their power is such that they could rule the world if they chose...

When the gods come back... he calls upon the Lords of Eiran to be ready... The Shadow - alone among the Lords he is not a Prophet, and yet his power is great - is dispatched to deal with those mortals who would willfully destroy the world or harm it grievously; other Lords are sent to deal with different dangers. He knows that even the Lords of Eiran cannot completely prevent the damage caused by a god, let alone many, but they shall do as much as they can, as surreptitiously as possible when necessary. You watch as Ferax is awakened by Dante, and joins the Lords of Eiran at last, while Damnameneus contacts Anaya through the Beautiful One (once known as Iris, the Prophet of Norn) in order to enlist her help in preventing Eiran's destruction, after having witnessed Anaya's neutrality and desire to prevent divine manipulation of Fate.

Eventually, your time comes again, but you know by now where all your ancient allies are...

Then, finally, the moment is at hand. You call upon the Ring and upon the power you have held in Aeshspar and in yourself all these centuries, and you pull at the drifting worldshards, trying to draw them towards the main worldshard, diminishing the Abyss and the cracks in the world. It is a titanic undertaking, and terrible earthquakes shake the world as you do so, with giant waves smashing into the coasts and the earth itself groaning at the hurt, yet you know it must be done, lest Eiran itself dissolve in the Mists. But the first shard, the Malyth one, is too far gone; you soon realize you won't have the power to seal both, given the strength you require to move it. And so you are forced to make a decision: sacrifice Malyth to rejoin Imray, or attempt to pull on both and risk not being able to rejoin either. You pull, and you pull... but only Imray draws closer, and so eventually you must relinquish Malyth, hoping that if the Mists swallow it, it will not be an end but only a new beginning for its people, perhaps finally free of godly interference. And when Imray's shard is close enough, you raise the Shaping Hammer on high, and then deliver the first blow.

It rings throughout Eiran, a clap of thunder and the earth shakes more; molten lava, summoned by your will, erupts from the seams, and down the Hammer comes again, shaping it into a great mountain range, a seal to hold the worldshards together. The scars of Eiran's healing grow as the lava flows freely, as the Hammer thunders again and again, and the world once again finds a semblance of unity. The blows of the Hammer shatter the Icewalls along the seams, yet it no longer matters, for there is no longer a crack through which creatures from the Abyss may rise to plague the world: only in the south does the Abyss still linger, with the exception of two smaller cracks in the world, still limned by the Icewalls. Though the loss of life is massive during your undertaking, there is no other choice if Eiran is to endure. Finally, when all is done, you lay down the Shaping Hammer, even your arms aching from the great work you have done, and you behold Eiran Reforged.

As for the S'en Golem, that is another tale.

You cast your eye towards them, past layers of stone and earth, until you feel them, you see them - your ancient people, the golems and s'en golems forged in your time, still existing in large underground cities, forgotten by the world above but still remembering you and worshipping you and Hedra Iren. The Entombed Armies, they are called in the myths and legends of this new, ignorant Eiran.

[Zephyr]

Thank you, Simjen. Both for your confidence in me, and for sharing your information.

Truly, I wish Anaya was present. As I told all months ago, I was directed to her by the Just One.

The Numen and O-gon-cho have made what seem to me to be good guesses about the oracles' words. Alas, nothing seems particularly helpful yet. Perhaps something will be more clear to us when we see how events go this season.

It does seem, though, that Simjen is key. My thinking was the same as The Numen's, and I asked Simjen if he wanted to be the one we would attempt to rally all around. But, as he just said, he does not wish to lead. If Kholtanos' words are heeded, and it is agreed that I will be the one, rest assured Simjen will be as involved as we can convince him to be.

And if The Numen is correct again, the star metal is important. Mox's words seem to agree. Mox, however, is a difficult matter. His actions in two Ages speak for themselves: he wants Eiran's destruction. In the Second, he twisted the Song of Eiran, changing it from what should have been Eiran's salvation into its ruin. (One of my father's greatest creations, Kasih, was twisted, and causes horror to this day.) In our Age, he went into the Mists, which none have reason to believe will lead to anything but the destruction of Eiran. Still, it is said that those who wish to cause harm speak some truths, so their lies will be believed. Perhaps the star metal is, indeed, key. If Simjen got his hands on it all... He has already asked everyone for it, and I now add my voice to his. Even if you speak to him privately, please let him know what you have. It could be that, when gathered together, its best use will be clear to him.

[Madadeva]

Mox alone could not release the World Breaker. Indeed it is the AllFather who is turning his back on Eiran. Truly the AllFather and Mox are allied in causing the destruction of Eiran. Perhaps the AllFather himself has been touched by the Omega, for he seems to be doing Destruction's work and spreading Chaos!

Thank you for your sharing Simjen ... it is apparent that the guiding thoughts for the worlds protection have been yours and NOT the AllFather. If the starmetal could truly take some away from Eiran, might it also with our combined power imprison and nutralize both the AllFather and Mox? Might it be a source of weapons, imbued with our divine power, that could slay even the World Breaker?

As to following Zephyr; if only in the matter of saving Eiran - for Decandence withour the decadent is meaningless - I will follow his lead.

As to Sunrise:

Sunrise's Oracle does not speak to them any more.

[W]hy she does not speak is a mystery.

When she has been asked, she has remained silent. This has been the case for several years, not just turns. Perhaps it is the Master. I do not know...

Perhaps their Master has made them unworthy ... irreplaceably harmed the Power of Sunrise. Perhaps it is feared that any word given would be shaped into well intentioned action that causes even more harm! I offer this now, any Sunrise deity, except the Master, will be accepted by Sunset. Zephyr is generous, perhaps even some would be welcome in Eclipse.

What say you Gods of Sunrise? What say you Master of Eclipse?!

[O-gon-cho]

Mox...
Please speak, should you know of anything regarding this.
I suspect perhaps Brid may understand you more than I have recently...

Why ruin all the fun of watching you all drool over the puzzle pieces that are in front of you? The final picture has already been presented: Eiran Will Fall. And yet, all of you still clamor over these fragments wondering what these pieces make. Too... powerful...

The AllFather has shared with me his wisdom. His prize creation, the planet and people, are forsook! Too long has he watched all of your bickering and squabbling... and he can watch no more. Seeking his guidance will only accelerate what is to come. Only one... can... help...

Mox, however, is a difficult matter. His actions in two Ages speak for themselves: he wants Eiran's destruction.

Perhaps, though I believe he may be conflicted.
From the above, which is similar to recent communication between the Mad one and myself...

Only one... can... help...

Were you shown whom, Mox? If someone other than who the Oracles seem to be guiding us to? And what do you mean when you say "help?"

As to Sunrise:

Sunrise's Oracle does not speak to them any more.

[W]hy she does not speak is a mystery.

When she has been asked, she has remained silent. This has been the case for several years, not just turns. Perhaps it is the Master. I do not know...

Perhaps their Master has made them unworthy ... irreplaceably harmed the Power of Sunrise. Perhaps it is feared that any word given would be shaped into well intentioned action that causes even more harm! I offer this now, any Sunrise deity, except the Master, will be accepted by Sunset. Zephyr is generous, perhaps even some would be welcome in Eclipse.

What say you Gods of Sunrise? What say you Master of Eclipse?!

*bows head*

Sunrise has ever acted upon consensus, rarely as that occurs. The Master has never dictated to members whom they may help or ally with, unlike rumors which has been heard of Sunset in years past. We vote on what actions are to be taken, if any. The Master merely is the figure head who addresses the Oracle. If this is the wish of any of the members of Sunrise, they are free to do as they will. This is the way of the rising Sun.

[Zephyr]

It is very possible that Eclipse will not survive being revealed. It would take a major shift in thinking on the part of many deities from Sunset and Sunrise. Think of it...

When the Balance between Sunrise and Sunset is good, Eclipse is strong. When our efforts toward that goal were at their most successful, we had seven units of power. (Simjen used them to heal the crack, and keep the world together.) We currently have five units of power, which I have given to The Unknowable (others gave various amounts of power, also) to attempt to heal the barrier that keeps The World Breaker away.

Our power comes from Balance, and is used for Balance and/or the benefit of Eiran in general.

Where does Sunset's and Sunrise's power come from, and how is it used?

Now, there is a glorious possibility. But will it be accepted? All deities not currently in any court could join Sunrise or Sunset, in such a way that they are as close to equal as possible. Each has three units of power at the moment. How much would each have gotten with that kind of increased membership? And Eclipse's power would be greater than ever, as well.

And next time our courts' power is replenished, we all use it for agreed upon plans that benefit all of Eiran.

This is a way to gain greater power for Eiran's salvation. Of course, for this idea to work, we must survie until our courts' power is replenished. But if we try it, and do not survive, nothing is lost. On the other branch, if we do not try it, and we do survive, an opportunity for greater power will have been lost.

[Madadeva]

Sunset will accept all who apply with this plan in mind, and with agreed loyalty to each others ... the rules are simple ... we impinge on no deities domain. We do not judge goodness or evil only that we support each other in other in times of conflict - as the Storm God found to his detriment!

In fact, I would even accept Bel!! Tho he will probably NOT acknowledge my generousity!

[Zephyr]

Well, Bel is already in Sunrise, and I doubt there would be need for anyone to switch from one to the other in order to make this idea work.