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The problem with building shrines by hand is that it’s a lot harder when you haven’t eaten in a few days. That, Ayche thought to himself as he stepped back from the final shrine, and it’s a lot harder when you don’t have proper tools. Numerous tools and weapons were piled to the side. A warhammer, twisted longsword, a spear, broken crossbow bolts. Anything and everything that he’d stored with Translocation, any item of potential use that had been kept in his Void Pocket. Not that chipping away at stone with crossbow bolts or a sword had helped, really. It’d been an act of desperation and grief, at some point during day two. It’d been nearly three days since he was saved from certain death. Three days since the others hadn’t been. He stared at the stones marking his friends’ lives one last time, and turned to leave the valley. — It had been intended as a scouting mission. A quick trip to explore the Hollow and gather information that could help cleanse the land. They hadn’t expected the dwarves to charge into the epicenter of the entire Hollow. They hadn’t expected the ground to crumble beneath them as they stood on the edge of the crater to shout warnings, leaving them trapped as well. It wasn’t long before large, beating wings were visible through the clouds, and the chanting, featureless silhouettes appeared behind pillars of glassy mana. Their voices echoed through the hollow in a distorted, incomprehensible language. Ayche had realized then, with a sinking feeling, that they were all going to die. The figures grew closer and closer, expanding without expanding and shrinking the world around them. An unshakeable feeling of scrutiny filled his mind, as if eternity itself were looking him in the eye and trying to decide if he was worth the effort. The figures eventually spoke, a single word somehow comprehensible by Descendant minds. “̷̛̙͓̝̜̱̯̩̜̺̈́̈́̃͊͊̔̔̄̄L̶̳̖̥̍̚é̸̡̨̛͈̤̤͔͎̬̗̠͈̈͗̐̃̉́̀̕͠ä̴̢̛̤́̽͋̂̕͜v̵̙̭̲͎̮͇̼͈̫͍͕̋̏̚e̷̗̐͂̈̒͆̐͊͋͘̕͠͠ͅ.̸̡̡̛̪̗͕͈̙̮̠͖̳̬̻̜͛͑̎̿͛̌͛̃͜”̶̦̯͍̟̀̐̈́͜ ̷̧͓͈̗͈̗̺͇͉̦̤̝̃͆͋̓͆̓͗̔͆͗͛̏́̍̕ͅ The Ireheart - Balor, maybe? He hadn’t had the chance to learn names - replied with a single word. “No.” The Stormheart, Kronk, had a different response. He stared the horrors in their eyes - well, where their eyes should have been - and spoke. “Maybeh oi will leaveh, oi tink yer mum es seein' someoneh elseh at taeh moment anehways!” The grey-haired Archmage Scholarch kept staring, fascinated. “Perhaps it is they who seek to leave. Horrors… perhaps are not at comfort within this realm. It is anathema.” Eliza had always been too much of a scholar for her own good. Ayche positioned himself next to his old friend. “Elves, ye gonna shoot 'em or keep givin' us poems?” Another Ireheart called. Some name with a G, Ayche thought idly. Mystery’s grandson shouted to the Horrors. “Do you want us to leave, or do you want to leave?” “Why don’t we just start leaving and find out?” Ayche called. He grabbed the Archmage and turned around, dragging her behind him. There was a spot to the south where the crater’s walls were less steep. It was their only chance. Odysseus was next to react. “Llir, we should leave now. I don’t see them giving us another chance.” The other ‘ker sprinted up the rough landscape, scrambling for the top of the crater. It was already too late. The heavens shook and the ground trembled as lightning crackled around the glowing maws of the three-headed winged monstrosity above them. Then, like falling hammers from angry gods, three glowing pillars of voidal lightning slammed down onto the party, landing with deafening explosions and blinding those near. If the circumstances had been different, Ayche might have stopped to watch properly. He hadn’t thought it was possible anymore - but in the Hollow, anything was possible. It’d been so many centuries since he had last been able to throw lightning of his own. Ruina and Beranabus were launched like ants before a tornado. Balor wasn’t so lucky - his left arm was incinerated instantly, and the entire group around him were thrown onto the ground. Ayche and Eliza narrowly avoided the worst of a strike, but were sent tumbling deeper into the crater. He pulled the frail Archmage to himself as they fell, shielding her with his own body. It was, he thought, convenient timing that he’d been able to negate his voidal poisoning not many years before. His armor blunted the worst of the fall. Ruina, who’d had the same ritual performed, was also wearing armor. She pulled herself to her feet, though Beranabus was nowhere in sight. There wasn’t time to worry. Ruina could protect Beranabus. Ayche’s job was protecting the Archmage Scholarch. He dragged her to her feet. “Eliza, are you-” “The towers…” she muttered, barely coherent and gaze distant. “Mode of travel, perhaps… Betwixt realms.” Not the time for hypothesizing, Ayche thought, but he hadn’t the breath to voice it. The Uialben disappeared with a flash. He’d tried to cast a minor teleport, further up the edge of the crater to escape, but never arrived. He disappeared and was simply gone without a trace. As Ayche dragged Eliza along, he caught sight of Ruina’s armor. A small measure of relief filled him. The other Scion was half-pulling, half-carrying Beranabus along. “I said this was a bad idea,” Ayche muttered as they went. His old friend didn’t respond; she was still staring at their surroundings, utterly entranced. No doubt her ancient mind was working through magical theories and explanations for what they’d seen. Another blast of lightning sent Ruina and Beranabus flying, and this time, the two landed not far from a dozen of those shadowy silhouettes. It wasn’t long before they were dragged away. It was clear they weren’t getting out by climbing the sides of the crater. Shadowy horrors had surrounded the edge. “We’re out of options,” Ayche stated bluntly, and his eyes flared with a pale, nearly-white blue light. The ring on his hand - a focus he’d needed to wear ever since the ritual that had returned his strength - lit up in unison. His aura extended over the Archmage beside him as he prepared a group teleport, shrouding them both in pale blue. Air had the same idea, somewhere up the crater walls. The other mage cast his own shifting spell and promptly disappeared. For a moment, Ayche thought that Air simply wouldn't reappear, much like the Uialben. That probably would have been kinder. His gut churned as he saw where Air had landed. The other translocationist had reappeared inside a solid object, one of the nearby crystals. It'd filled all of the empty space in his friend’s body instantly. A gruesome, sickening death. There wasn’t time to mourn. Ayche met Eliza’s eyes. Finally, she seemed to have some measure of coherency again. The spell was nearly ready, and there was an unspoken question in his eyes. Do we try, like he did? Is it worth the risk? Her gaze was as steady as he’d ever seen it. Better to try than to give up, her eyes seemed to say. As the shifting spell neared completion, Eliza cast a stone wall to hold off the advancing horrors. But the spell, like all the others, grew wildly out of control. It trapped her within her own spell, a prison of quartz. Odysseus reached out for Ayche, perhaps hoping that he could be taken along too - And then the world went white. There hadn’t been time. Ayche reappeared alone nearly five hundred feet in the air, above the crater and the battle below. And in the split second before he started falling to his death, his life flashed before his eyes. He saw his first magic lessons in Anthos at the docks of Abresi, over four hundred years ago. He’d chosen lightning evocation as his first art, taught by Gauldrim Irongut. He still remembered the proud smile on the old Dwed’s face, the first time he’d been able to call a bolt of lightning from the sky. He saw his journey through the Fringe, then Thales. His life with the potato farmers. His first trip on a sailing ship. His first ship of his own. His shipping company. His fight against the Devourer on the open ocean. Athera, Vailor, Axios, Atlas, Arcas. He’d fought a thousand battles in a thousand places, evaded the law as a thief and a thug and a pirate - then centuries later, stood with the Crimson Edict and their goal of justice and unity. He still remembered when he and Eliza had both been novice magi, when the ancient Archmage Scholarch had yet to master even a single magic. Even then, she’d always had an air of dignity and self-assurance and poise. The images flashed faster and faster as he fell. A field of wheat, an endless sea. A city shrouded by trees. A battlefield covered in bodies, lightning coiled in his hand. A wave of falling arrows. A kiss on a snowy mountaintop. A feast in a stone hall, a funeral in an icy city. The swearing of an oath in a cavern beneath a keep. A wedding in that same keep. A shimmering portal. A broken mask. A thousand journeys. A thousand adventures. Enough for a dozen lifetimes. It seemed he’d never make it to a thousand and one. What must have been five seconds felt like an eternity, and in his final moments, Ayche found peace as he fell. He’d lived more than he’d ever had any right to, after all. He closed his eyes. And then a bolt of voidal lightning, one that far surpassed that first strike he’d called from the heavens all those centuries ago, struck him as he fell. The world went white once more. When he opened his eyes again, it was quiet, cool, and sunny. He’d landed on a floating white platform, high above a lake. A gentle breeze swept across his skin. He was on his back. Alive and untouched, but for a lightning-scar along his spine. He did nothing but stare upward for several minutes, and then the enormity of everyone he’d lost hit him all at once. And something inside him shattered. — He’d spent hours that first day simply sitting on the platform, unmoving. By the time he’d managed to pull himself together enough to find a way down, he’d decided. He would not leave until he’d made a shrine to each of his fallen friends. He would not use magic. This was something he had to do by hand, no matter how long it took.

Voidal Horrors This is a reclarification lore submission to truly outline the ambiguous and alien beings known as Voidal Horrors. These horrendous and arcane creatures originate from the void with almost no explanation for their creation, their various purposes or why they are the way they are. This mystery will likely remain such for a long time. However we can still understand what these creatures are. To note: Voidal Horrors overall are an almost purely event Race. Either playable by ET or used in events. You cannot run around roleplaying as a Voidal Horror. Disclaimer - The following is updated lore, editted into this post for clarification on the origin of voidal horrors: What is a Voidal Horror? Voidal Horror is the general term for any twisted and morphed creature, birthed and residing in the Void. They live and reside in the Void, wandering, warring, learning and otherwise doing whatever it is they please. They are a strange and incomprehensible form of being, having been twisted, scarred and morphed by the void into impossible beings of the abyss. Each more vastly different than the last, Voidal Horror’s are as infinitely different as the void from which they originate from, their traits and powers and physiology all alien. However, despite this, there are obvious similarities between all of them, not to mention the obvious similarities between various groups of them, allowing us to more or less generalise them and place them into vague categories. Classifications & Hierarchy Voidal Horrors are as chaotic as the void they originate from, their purpose very odd and alien and always different from another. However, despite these creatures having no form of social structure or civilization, there is a faint semblance of a pecking order amongst the horrors, much like there is in the animal kingdom. Lesser Horrors Greater Horrors Arch-Horrors Simply out of fear from one another, the Lesser horrors do not come between the Greater horrors and the greater horrors respect the wishes of the Arch-Horrors. It is out of a sense for survival, not a desire for order. Aside from this, there are certain similarities between the types of horrors that can bring some form of order amongst the chaos. The various horrors do not necessarily align alongside their type and they merely wander aimlessly in the void, seeking ways to complete their ambiguous and alien goals, should they even have any. Classifications Horrors Example of a possible Horror Voidal Horrors are the most well known form of void-based creature. They are generally far more sentient than their counterparts, very intelligent and analytical (if at all strange), oddly enough oftentimes having the ability to speak common. They are inquisitive and curious, though are as devious as any demon. They sometimes have the capability to wield magic, some magics that are completely alien to the descendant races, some that have not even been discovered yet. They are not necessarily violent or particularly strong, however their various features and differences may make them so. They are usually no bigger than your average man, taking on what could be considered humanoid forms. However, the differences between voidal horrors are vast. For example, the most famous voidal horror, Achan-Chatla, took on a human-like tentacley form, whereas others will look entirely different. However the basic premise is that all voidal horrors take on a humanoid form, regardless of the vast and chaotic differences between them. tl;dr Sentient, humanoid, people-like, very strange, magic-sensitive, huge variation in physical appearance, usually a fleshy form. Terrors Example of a possible Terror Voidal Terrors are the vicious and savage cousins of their Horror counterparts. They are generally mindless and animalistic, their forms reflecting such. They operate almost solely on an animal-like influence, almost immediately acting violently when come into contact with, be it within the Void and their voidal kin or with any living being in the world of the living. They cannot be reasoned with and they cannot communicate, they are mindless beasts with no capabilities or functions other than to slaughter and feed. They can come in various sizes, from the size of a small cat to the size of an elephant, with varying physical strength and traits. They are often found with numerous spines, spikes, fins or horns covering their bodies and heads, multiple eyes, more often than not moving around on four or more legs as opposed to two, however it is not unheard of. Like their voidal horror counterparts, they take on a fleshy appearance, oftentimes with a hardened exoskeleton (sometimes taking on a magical/elemental exoskeleton, such as the volcanic voidal terror of Adrallan, who’s exoskeleton was made of volcanic rock and consistently evoked fire). tl;dr Animalistic, savage, vicious, mindless creatures, can be large, no magic/intelligence/communication, feral beasts, fleshy forms, hardened exoskeleton, sometimes elemental exoskeleton. Abominations Example of a possible Abomination Voidal Abominations are the most alien out of all the voidal kin. They often come in elemental, primordial or ethereal forms, sometimes taking on humanoid shapes, other times no. They will often appear to be the embodiment of an element, an invokable element or sometimes even another force within the universe. These abominations are quite intelligent and often times can be quite tricksy. Most of them retain the ability to speak common, others have the ability to find ways to speak common. Most often than not, they are adept in the art of the arcane, their powers often strange and different to what the descendants are capable of doing, however boast an expansive arsenal of arcane power. Their bodies are vastly different from that of their kin, their fleshy forms taking on very strange and elemental forms. They are not necessarily physically strong, but their physical capabilities vary between each one. The Voidal Abominations are the most different out of all their voidal kin, even amongst one another, their differences are ridiculously stark. tl;dr Elemental, intelligent, primordial forms, magic-sensitive, physical appearances vastly different, physical strengths fairly low (varies). Behemoths Example of a possible Behemoth Voidal Behemoths are the kings of the void, the titanic voidal beasts that reside within the endless abyss. Behemoths are colossal beasts with savage appearances and incomprehensible minds, usually with an unbreakable fixation on a certain aspect of existence. For example, the “Mana-hunter” as described by Avar Telos the void wraith, it’s entire existence revolves around the draining and absorbing of all the mana around it. Behemoths, despite their savage appearance and brutal mindset, are rather intelligent and devious, though despite this they cannot be reasoned with. Their minds too focused on achieving their desires, their ambitions, it driving their every action until it is completed. Some behemoths do have some semblance of magical ability, generally that of standard arcane magics, sometimes having access to more strange and unfathomable powers. Their physical strength however is monstrous, usually being, at the very least, the size of house, some growing larger than that. Their appearance and forms are fleshy but hardened, more often than not covered in a hardened exoskeleton much like Voidal Terrors. Their physical appearances vary massively, however much resembling their lesser terror kin. tl;dr Colossal beasts, intelligent, irrational, fixate on singular aspect of existence, magically adept, physically strong, terrifying. Physiology Diet Voidal horrors do not rely on a diet to absorb nutrients but seem to have the desire to eat anyway. Their diets are extremely strange, more often than not preferring raw meats, fish and insects, however none are aware as to why. Blood All Horrors, regardless of their classification, all bleed the same way. They bleed an odd form of ichor, similar to that of the Itharel in concept but far different. Their blood is a strange pink, bismuth looking form of blood and is rich in genus (the energy of creation and catalyst of all magical energy), serving as nothing but a vessel for their mana, their power. Their blood is extremely volatile when used in rituals, for example with blood magic or contract magic, however does not preserve. Due to its volatility, it cannot be collected nor contained, dissipating and evaporating into the void within hours of it spilling. Life Unlike the descendants, voidal horror’s lives are entirely magical and based around the arcane. Strangely, they do not contain any life force and do not require it in order to sustain their bodies. They do however require mana in order to sustain themselves. Their mana pool being far larger than that of a descendant, voidal horrors tap into this pool, manipulate it’s energy in order to live. Body Voidal Horror’s bodies are all majorly different, as stated above, however there are some similarities between them all. Their bones are brittle but light, their skin rough and tough, their flesh strangely dry. They do not have organs like the rest of us, nor do they have the need to breath. However, at the centre of all voidal horrors is their “heart of horrors”, a singular orb, their lifesource and power battery. When voidal horrors absorb mana, it is transferred to the orb, acting as a battery for the being. Should the heart be destroyed or pierced, the voidal horror will immediately die. A voidal horror can be killed by normal means, enough damage and they will perish, however this is the quickest way. Power The majority of all voidal horrors have access to a wide range of arcane magical abilities, some of which seem entirely foreign to the descendants. Unlike the descendants, they are quick to adapt and learn new magics, evolving their abilities with uncanny ease. Some are far more powerful than others, thus creating a pseudo pecking order amongst them, outlined above. Generally, horrors take to their abilities very naturally, manipulating the void as if it were an extension of themselves. They generally are drawn towards magical schools that appeal to them, rather than choose them out of practicality, the magics and powers available to them more like a fingerprint than a tool. Death In death, voidal horrors don’t leave behind a mangled corpse like creatures of the earth. Much like an evoked element or a conjured being, voidal horrors will always return to the void. Their deaths are mildly explosive, releasing a burst of energy before dissipating and evaporating, their essence and energy returning to the void.

"Magic is the opiate of both of the practitioner and the plane; One suffers the addiction, the other suffers the sting." WANTED: "Nexus Stalker" DIFFICULTY: "High" DEPICTION: "An eye-witness depiction has been provided" LOCATION: "The horror has been reportedly roaming an area stricken by some form of voidal anomaly- caution is highly advised when treading in said zone. When following the road into the dwarven mountains, veer towards the left as they come into sight. Upon the hillside, the sight of the anomaly may be found - and therein, the stalker" ((PM mth_dew for a more detailed, event driven search.)) REWARD: "Upon the creature's proven demise, the yield of a caravan it victimized will be rewarded to the hunters, as well as a sum of minae" ((This bounty is the first of a chain of similar bounties. Happy hunting.))