Stormriders: Wrath of the Beholder

[Lansfirestar]

Revival of the "Unstarted Thread"

 

[Lansfirestar]

STORMRIDERS: WRATH OF THE BEHOLDER

ORIGIN
Almost a thousand years ago, there was once a talented warrior who served the greatest kingdom of Novus. During his time, the Novus was invaded by a horde of unimaginable creatures from the east, which the people of Novus had never seen before. As every kingdom of Novus rose up to fight against the horde, the warrior soon proved himself to his peers and was made into a general. As the years passed by with no end in sight for the war, he conceived a dangerous gambit, to mount a giant offensive against the main horde on Spire Plains while he lead a small squad of soldiers to lead an assault into the Algur Swamp, the possible location of the horde’s leader. As the soldiers of Novus went to fight against the horde, the general and his men went on to Algur Swamp. As they pushed their way deep into the heart of the swamps, they were attacked by fierce creatures the likes of which they had never seen before. Slowly, their numbers dwindled by the constant battling against the creatures, until it was only the general and his best friend who were left alive to reach the heart of the Swamps. There they beheld a giant monstrous creature, a giant floating ball of flesh with one gigantic eye with a small mouth at the bottom with vicious sharp teeth, watching over a dark portal from which the creatures with which they fought against were brought into their world. Suddenly, the creature spotted them as they were about to leave and attacked them. The general and his best friend were forced to run lest they be destroyed by such a creature. As they ran across the swamp, they were forced to separate when they were attacked by the other creatures within the swamp. As the general ran deeper into the swamp, he was able to hear the screams of his beloved friend as he was torn to shreds by the creatures. With his heart in despair, the general ran deeper into the swamps of which very few have emerged. The aftermath of the “Battle of Spire Plains” was a victory for Novus but at a high price, countless soldiers lay dead while the main horde was annihilated but still more creatures were appearing. As the months passed by, several eastern kingdoms of Novus were finally overrun by the creatures, with the refugees fleeing for the western kingdoms. Finally, the horde of creatures attacked the stronghold of the last great eastern Kingdom. The defenders of the stronghold fought against all odds but were slowly succumbing to the horde’s vast numbers. Just when the stronghold would be breached by the creatures, a man appeared wielding a great blade accompanied by a black robed man. As the creatures charged against the group, the robed man cast a spell which vanquished all the creatures surrounding the stronghold. Amidst the cheers for their saviors, the man introduced himself as Kahn, the general long thought to be dead in the Algur Swamps.

With the appearance of Kahn and his companion, the Novus army were given hope against beating the creatures and plans were made to assault the Algur Swamps with the entire might of the Novus army. The battles the Novus army fought against the vile horde as they pushed closer towards Algur Swamps. Finally, the Novus army was able to fight their way to the heart of the Swamps. There, Kahn battle the great creature which his companion told him to be a “Beholder” and defeated the creature. Upon the death of the Beholder, the remaining creatures escaped from the swamps while the portal suddenly closed. As the soldiers celebrated their victory, the robed man approached the corpse of the Beholder and filled a vial with its blood. From then on, Kahn begun calling himself as “The Beholder” in recognition of his victory over the assumed leader of the horde. That night, in the Spire Plains amidst the celebrations, the robed man approached Kahn alone and bade him drink the vial of liquid as price for his assistance. Upon drinking the vial, Kahn was stricken with a fever and was put to bed by the man. As the army went their way back to the stronghold, Kahn led the way, wearing a suit of armor with the emblem of the Beholder at the center with a horned helmet which covered his face.

Upon arriving at Spire Keep, the stronghold of his king, Kahn met his liege and the other kings in a great ceremony, in recognition of his great victory over the horde. As Kahn stood in front of his liege, he drew his sword and impaled his king. As his king fell beneath him, Kahn proclaimed himself as ruler of Novus, as his soldiers turned against their own comrades and killed them all.

Twenty years passed, and the Beholder, now a brutal warlord has taken control of Novus, ruling the planet through fear and destruction. The people of Novus were now enslaved by the Beholder and his dark army. Meanwhile the creatures brought into Novus escaped and formed their own societies as they were finally released from the control of their former master. Eventually, the Beholder set his sights upon those creatures who escaped and thought to add them to his growing strength. One by one, the creatures fell into his rule and every one was forced to serve him and his master. Eventually, the Beholder was able to kill his former master and ruled alone.

As time wore on, six individuals rose up to challenge the might of the Beholder. They were led by Jedrek Dax, the son of Kahn’s best friend and a competent soldier. Alex Storm, a master swordsman and best friend of Jedrek Dax. Ray Cross a veteran soldier and sole survivor of the Spire Keep massacre. Gregory Infantes, Archmage and founder of the Order of Twilight. Gutrencha, the leader of a vast tribe, one (Orc) of the creatures that invaded Novus. And Crystal, the sister of the fallen King of the Elves and now proclaimed as the Queen of the Elves. Together, they formed a covenant to stand together against the Beholder and his armies. With careful planning, a new army of Novus rose up to battle against the Beholder. Compromised primarily of Humans, Elves, and Orcs, the Army of Novus battled against the armies of the Beholder for control of Novus.

The fighting was long and hard, many sacrifices were made and lives were lost but still they fought on. They fought for the freedom in which they envisioned for Novus. As the armies of the Beholder were defeated at every corner of Novus, other races joined the fight against the Beholder. When it was clear that his armies were being decimated, the Beholder went into the chamber from which his former master practiced the black arts, to learn them for himself. As the armies of the free people marched towards the stronghold of the Beholder, the Beholder himself studied dark magic and bound himself deeper into the abyss of chaos. As the heroes of Novus entered the stronghold of the Beholder, they fought through many horrific creatures which the Beholder summoned in order to stop them. As they battled through the stronghold of the Beholder, they came upon the throne room where the Beholder waited for them. As the six heroes fought against the Beholder, he was able to cast a spell on one of the heroes before he succumbed to death. As he was about to die, he swore that he would return one day and bring death and destruction to those who fought against him upon his return.

Novus has changed drastically after the Beholder’s defeat. Over the years, new kingdoms have arisen and old hatred rekindled as most humans still view most of the other races as creatures to be killed as of old. But there exists a few bastions of true companionship, which were built by the heroes of Novus long ago.

A thousand years have passed, and the Beholder's name has become a mere bedtime story to scare the children, but unknown to all, the soul of Kahn, the Beholder has finally gathered enough strength to try and take over the soul of the descendant whose bloodline he cursed.

RACES:
Human
Elf
Orc
Dwarf
Draconian
Naga
Lycanthrope
Kobold
Drow
Undead

HEROES
LucianDevine (Might be unable)
Name: Emeric Dax
Age: 25
Profession: Mercenary and solider
Appearance: http://ui19.gamespot.com/1714/cecil_2.jpg
Background:

Emeric Dax had never been the largest of men, nor strongest, or even the fastest, but his was a voice of confidence. When he spoke others, tended to listen, for he always gave great care to his words. It was for that reason that Emeric had chosen the life of a solider and mercenary. The world was fraught with orcs, goblins, trolls, and giants, all a possible threat to mankind. If you looked at Emeric, you wouldn't be able to say right away what it was about him that drew others to him, but if you asked he'd gladly tell you that he was a far-off descendant of the great Jedrek Dax, the legendary leader of old who lead to the downfall of The Beholder. Emeric has acted as much in that heroes image as any, always seeking to unite the people against this cause or that, taking part in the few major battles that have occurred in his short life. Emeric rose quickly within any group he took part in, rising to officer with months, and quickly earning the trust and respect of his men. He knew not if he would ever be needed for a cause so great as the one his ancestor had fought, but he swore to himself, that if it be in his time that this threat rose, he would stand to fight it as Jedrek has a thousand years before him.

Lansfirestar
Name: Lans Storm
Age: 19
Profession: Militia & Swordsman
Background:

Lans never enjoyed killing nor did he enjoy fighting, but despite that he was rated by the militia he served under as the best swordsman in Lahan. Participating only in minor skirmishes in protecting Lahan and staying away from any major battles near the village, helped in preserving Lans identity, because although he lived in Lahan, he was never born there. As one of the descendants of group of heroes who vanquished the Beholder, he was destined for great things but unlike his ancestor, he chose a life of seclusion and anonymity, content in living in peace. He lived in Lahan, day by day, never striving for anything except for the happiness of his village friends, but fate wove a cruel fate for those whose bloodline sprung from the demise of the Beholder.

FireNymph (unknown)
Name: Maya Cross
Age: 18
Profession: Citizen
Background:

Maya was always the curious kind, always wandering around the little forest near her village pretending she was a great hero. Her foster parents always thought that she would grow out of it one day, but it never did. She frequently dreamed of becoming an adventurer, like one of the heroes of the old, she especially loved the one about how a band of heroes defeated the beholder, little did she know she had more in common with them than she thought. At night she usually locked the door to her room, and blew out the candles, she borrowed her foster-brothers breeches usually, for it was far easier to move in them. And with the candles blown out she would escape into the world of the night, where she found out she could do things normal girls could not, she learned she could easily scale buildings for she instinctively knew where all the good handholds are, and that she could move around so quietly that no one could spot her. Day by day, she went out, and found she got better and better. Then one day she sneaked into the sword fighting academy that her dad owned, and by peeking at how the best of the fighters fought, she quickly learned their moves, and though she wasn’t the strongest, nor the most strategic, she was able to best most of the boys her age. This went on for a while until she was caught by her father and banned from the academy, where instead she practiced with an old man, one of the veterans of some unknown war he always talked about, and unbeknownst to her he was one of the great heroes from the original fight against the beholder who came back from the dead to train, and watch over his one and only descendant, and when he sensed his blood flowing within her veins, he knew he had to prepare her for the beholder's wrath. Then the day came when she turned 18, and by that time she was a beautiful maiden, little did she know, it was also the day when great troubles will present themselves to her.

Bladesman (Unknown)
Name: Karas
Age: 250
Race: Elf
Height: 6'
Hair: Shoulder length black hair tied back in a pony tail
Eyes: Emerald
Profession: Swordsman's and Master Archer even though he is blind in his left eye.

History: Born 250 years ago, Karas was an only child of a Noble elven family. He was well educated till the age of fifty, then from the time he reached the age of fifty he was trained in the arts of war. He was trained in strategy, military affairs, and supply until he finally received his own command. It was during his first command that he lost his left eye from a crossbow bolt.

Ever since the loss of his eye, Karas has re-trained himself to use a bow and to fight with only one eye.

Lansfirestar
Mikhail Infantes aka The Beholder
Human
20
Magician

Mikhail was taught the art of magic by his parents, and was one of the descendants of the archmage, Gregory Infantes, one of the heroes who fought the Beholder, but unknown to all, Gregory Infantes, was the hero that was cursed by the Beholder. As Mikhail rose up the ranks of the Guild of Mages in the city of Arbrook... the consciousness of the Beholder is slowly awakening within him and will soon take over Mikhail...

 

[Lansfirestar]

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