Remnants Of A Forgotten Age

[Esterlen 4499]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IeXnjnxMshc

 

The haggard, ruinous fortress of Ard Kerrack still stood, although only barely. It was in a pitiful state. Bricks and stones were dislodged and the entire spire of the citadel had been knocked down. Vines and roots crept over the fallen walls, their grasp a stifling reminder that the former stronghold of the White Rose had been returned to nature.

 

Ever since the foul Adunians had been driven out of the Realm of Man, the castle had been uninhabited. In the past few months, however, it had become a haven for the Southron slavers and rogue merchants who had set up shop in the cisterns and cavernous underbelly of the once-proud keep. Its halls lay dead and lifeless, the wailing wind projecting through them as a reminder of past times.

 

This ground was once the pride of the Empire, the seat of a kingdom and the symbol of humanity. Now, it was nothing but a rotting edifice, a maze of tunnels and secret passageways.

 

=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=

 

 

A clamor of swords hitting the ground, followed by that of twelve kneeling men, had resounded through the halls of the keep.

 

"Ave the King in the West! The King in the West!"

The proudest of lords, from the Lord of Sarkoz to the High Pontiff had humbled themselves before him that day. They had bent their knees as a sign of servitude to the great King in the West, old friends and comrades wishing to become part of his nascent kingdom. The bones of non-humans crunched beneath their sabatons as they subjugated the west in the name of Man - God and Saint Owyn's chosen warriors.

 

Their realm would extend further than the Empire had ever seen before. Their epoch would triumph over all others, undeterred and unfaltered by scheming Hightowers or rebellious Sariants.

 

Within what seemed like an instant, it was all gone. Years later, their triumph, their victory, would become nothing but ruins and dust.

 

 

A deluge of spectral voices echoed in that atrium, faintly ringing throughout the empty, lifeless corridors.

 

"The King in the West! To die for Kaedrin is to die a good death!"

 

At last, the dark and dead halls went quiet, returning to a deathly silence. But an unshakable feeling of being watched had remained, the ethereal eyes of a party of great men never faltering even in death.

 

=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=X=

 

The lone soldier swathed in sable stands in the atrium, the tip of his zweihander resting against the concrete ground, his red-painted barbute obscuring his facial features. His two hands grasp the pommel of his sword as he stares into the void, the stars of a forgotten age black and cold.

 

"Whatever they might say, I am happy to know that I have done my duty towards my people, my duty as a human, as a Kaedreni and as a loyal follower of my king.

 

I regret nothing.

 

If I were to begin all over again I would act just as I have acted, even if I knew that in the end I would meet a fiery death at the stake.

 

No matter what people may do, one day I shall stand before the judgement seat of God eternal.

 

I will answer to him, and I know that he will absolve me."

[Galendar 631]

((That literally was one of the best things I've ever read on this server.))

[Aislin 4354]

((I got chills my man.))

[Temp 2006]

Adeon Fablenight

Troen Venta

Bran Volsung

Hadrian de Sarkozy

Alexei Nicodemeus

Arthal Lowedge

Gilahad

Thomas Chivay

Edmond Brunswick

Velwyn Ashford

Hadrian "Philly" Fitzroy or Chuck Abu I forget

Jason Chlamydia

King Peter

 

gone but not forgotten :( only 3 people in that picture still here

((Philly.))

[tnoy23 202]

((    ))

[wealthypiano 394]

A lone man wanders the halls of the grand fortress from time to time. He does not take anything. He is no bandit running from the cities. He does not care for the tents set up in the courtyard. He does not care for dangers presented to him whilst running through such a long forgotten hall.

 

This man merely ponders. He views the paintings, the books, the artifacts. Relics of war. This man is a true Kaedreni, and a true Roseman. He has seen the organization rise since it's birth in the great barony of Rivia, and even it's temporary stay in fort boot. He has seen the wondrous Krak du Rhoswen, and when he sleeps that is an era that fills his head, never to leave until he may once again see the grand fortress in the Seven skies. He has served through the barren times of Elysium and Kalos. He has fought, and gloriously taken vengeance upon the manipulative elven race, and then see the crumbling of an empire.

 

He knows but to view one thing each visit.

The first mark of the success of the men.

 

Painting with no sign of date, estimated late-Asulon.

An early White Rose patrol in Ildon, artist unknown.

[Galendar 631]

Alexander stares forward at Ard Kerrack, feeling the age in his life where he would begin to tire coming on.

"I hated you when I knew you Thomas Chivay... But I never thought I'd miss you..."

He moves into the great ruins, uncloaked, as he stops in the throne room, blinking as he remembers the shear majesty that it used to be. He turns back around, looking into the feast hall at the Remnants of the mounted heads and the tables.

"All the toasts that went on here... " he rummages through his bag, taking out his old red dragon hilt to his old great sword, moving out of the keep.

He stands in the grass, suddenly slamming the hilt down into the grass in memorial of the great chapter.

"You will be remembered forever. Valois will not forget you."

He strides out of the keep, Lion armor scraping together under his tabard.

[3andD 1722]

Never forget Valois

[Pinsir99 526]

Vierna passes by the ruins of Ard Kerrack, blinking as she remembers the evil that used to rest there, she drops her head, continuing past "So glad they're gone..."

 

((This post. *Claps* Love it.))

[Wolf Druid Ouity 1461]

((Fantastic. This post is staggeringly awesome.))

[Warwick 12]

((#WhiteRose4Life))

[The Best Basileus 97]

((Remarkably poignant. A false history, mere 0's and 1's stored on many computers... Amazing it can produce so much emotion. Lord of the Craft is truly an amazing thing. So much life has been poured into the characters that I almost feel as if they exist... that is, that they should have existed. In a way, the collective memories of all their players is enough so that they really do exist. And... I'm not sure how I feel about that. Sad? Yes, in a small measure. But I also feel happiness that I, in my very, very small way, participated.))

[Altiak 1648]

Jason Clamedeus roams the lands of Kaedrin, shaping his body to hold its former physique and condition. He had served his duty to the White Rose, a true Kaedreni patriot and servant. Though, his obligations to the Creator had not concluded, and he wouldn't rest until they were all achieved.

[Cracker 4570]

((Remarkably poignant. A false history, mere 0's and 1's stored on many computers... Amazing it can produce so much emotion. Lord of the Craft is truly an amazing thing. So much life has been poured into the characters that I almost feel as if they exist... that is, that they should have existed. In a way, the collective memories of all their players is enough so that they really do exist. And... I'm not sure how I feel about that. Sad? Yes, in a small measure. But I also feel happiness that I, in my very, very small way, participated.))

 

( Eloquently said. Sums up why I play LotC in a few sentences, something I've found difficult to do at times with all of the tensions and conflicts which spark up. )

[Leric 1097]

The tall elf known as Leric, the only of his kind ever to wear a white rose tabard proudly traversed across the ruined lands of Kaedrin. With effort he managed to climb his way up the keep and into his ruined quarters. The small library he had on the side of it had been looted of it's valuable books and even the red and white carpet he had made seemed to be tattered on the ground, undoubtedly urined on countless times by those who hated the Rose. He made his way further up the ruined keep and even further up the mountains to the stone structure of a sparrow, a gift to the king from their great builder Chet. Upon arrival he sat at the edge of it and surveyed the surrounding area, the whole land seemed to be dead. Even the mountain the keep was built into seemed to have caved into itself and made a small crater. Sad, he still smirked as his mind came across memories of people flinching when patrols of roses walked by.

"We really made an impression on the people. If only we remained in our once powerful state."