Three years after the sun had been restored to the surface world;
both factions of the yet unseen war had put their pawns into place. The game
that would decide the destiny of not only one world, but countless others was
at hand. In the darkness of the nights, a coven of the Order gathered. The
night was a moonlit one and it was when Qyxymenos reigned supreme, or so the
Order’s priests had been told.
The Darkest One, or so he was called, was amongst the
believers gathered. None of them knew of this and the gathering proceeded as
planned. Over the three years, the Order had gained strength, though precious
few of the new initiates had been truly sworn into service. Shame, he thought.
But he would have to make do with what he had. There was little time to
prepare.
He had cast a powerful magick over the entire world. Such
was his power. It hid from the sight of any creature, mortal or immortal, the
Grim Moon. He willed himself to see the moon as it was and true enough, it was
almost in its final position. Soon the heroes would be called back to the
plains of Fate. By then, the order would have done its work.
“Destroy the underground farms and torch their crops! That
should be our first move!” said one of the gathered. A feisty man whose hood
fell, drawing a collective gasp from those gathered. His face showed all the
characteristics of one of the Kindred. Perfectly shaped and fair.
“Idiot! Then they would simply replant and their mages are
capable of speeding up the germination” interjected another, gaining the assent
of many who had gathered.
“But don’t you s—“ started the man, before Qyxymenos drew him
to a corner of the room. The rest of them were interested in listening to
whatever the priests had to say. “Who do you think you—“ said the man, cut
short when Qyxymenos allowed his form to be seen. “My Lord!” he exclaimed.
Qyxymenos put his finger to the man’s lips hushing him, and
pushed a small disc-like object into the man’s hands. He placed his thumb on
the man’s forehead and pressed his nail into it, drawing a drop of blood. He
let the knowledge flow from his mind and into the man. The man drew in a sharp
breath and let out a soft moan of ecstasy.
When he withdrew his thumb, the man looked at him, tearful
and bowed. Qyxymenos drew his cloak to himself and vanished as the room
darkened. The man shoved his way to the front of the priests and addressed
them. “Qyxymenos, may he be praised forever, has shown me the answer!” he said
petulantly and the priests grimaced at him.
“And who might you b—“ the priest’s eyes wandered to the man’s
forehead and he stuttered and fell to his knees, head on the floor before the
man. The other priests followed suit. The one who had first spoken whispered “High
priest, we shall do as you ask!”
The man proceeded to relay what they had to do. The
followers listened closely and praised their God for sending them a way to
bring their enemies to their knees. The high-priest smiled and upon the many
who had gathered granted the same knowledge their God had given him. Many
sagged to the floor in a state similar to post-copulative euphoria.
The high-priest smiled to himself and silently praised
Qyxymenos. The endless night was near and he would usher it in. It was a
beautiful, beautiful conspiracy.
<3
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