The Dark Ones: Chaos & madness
“The Seekers of the Lost sought out those who had become Lost and had succumbed to the Madness of the Forest. They always risked the Madness themselves. Eventually they too were Lost. To seek them now would involve a journey to the place of the Lost. Even though the Forest has been restored, the Madness lingers on in men’s minds.”
Rik the rumourmonger, to Akilia"The Dark Stag ran up the Hazel Tree,
The Wolf howled at the Sun,
The Rat it ate my Brain,
The Cat it got the Biscuit."
Mad Bob the beggar, of Grinen"I am Darkish Grey Wolf, Apostle of Accidental Change, and father of a number of TIPRE babies (I got lucky!). I will answer questions from the crowd, and turn drinks into random liquids for a small fee."
Bjark, Cleric of DALA, at a party in honour of the liberating forces of the Badlanders, at the Temple of DALA in Bjarmigen, 25 Oscow 2503“Powerful is our Mistress. Open the gateways. Free the imagination. Not responsible, oh no. People go their own ways. Oh yes they do. Still haunts the mind. Leads them back to Madness. Black and red, we remember. Oh yes. Oh yes indeed. Magic are the mushrooms. Open the doors. Let us in. Let things out. Remove them? Oh no. Divided, it multiplies. Daydream, Despair, Delirium, Hope, oh yes. Fire spreads in the forest. Hope banishes Despair banishes Hope brings Daydream brings Delirium banishes Despair brings Daydream brings Hope. From small nuts big hazels they grow. Oh yes they do."
A Daydream of a caterpillar, to Akilia"The Dark Badlands of the Soul are a physical manifestation of a state of Despair in which one believes one’s situation is hopeless, and there is no way out of it. However, there is always hope, and so there is always a way out. What traps one is simply the belief that there is no way out; the state of Despair. It can therefore be escaped by maintaining Faith in OPSOR, and believing there is a way out. One will then find one’s own way."
Advice of the Clerics of OPSOR at the Oasis of Pineapples and Coconuts"There are many means to use the Ways, but they all use the Power of Imagination."
Zsara, Wayfinder of the Host of ZAKEL, to Darion.“All the elves their blood will shed,
This summer Glersh’ll kill the stag.
Trees in circles all are dead,
Far from home we raise the flag!”
A vision of Gloob the orc, to Akilia"To make people understand that Nightmare is not something to be blindly feared, but a necessary outlet for darker imaginings, the bitterness that gives life its edge."
Desire of Zsara, Servant of KASHAT“To Speculate is to Appreciate.”
A Mist Warrior expression“The people fought, fell, and walked the Shifting Ways."
An Oread, to Adnab“It’s one thing to have an enemy who stands up and fights; but to fight Despair, you have to let yourself be corrupted and then win out against your other self; that’s too hard to bear, at least for one.”
Thoughts of Darion
Ephraim McOmechar pulled on the reins of his griffon, to make it rear up on its hind legs and beat its wings atop the rocky spike where they perched at the edge of the Bowl. It was a showy gesture, but he knew the Clan expected such things from a Shaman-Leader.
Beneath his airy vantage point the Warband of Omechar rode through a narrow pass, one of the traditional defensive points of their Territory. But today they took the offensive.
Omechar had been one of the two Clans (along with Yelleran) that had declined to follow Krell McAndar at the Clanmeet at Horning Crags 19 Destri. Ephraim had foreseen that no good would come of the Great Raid called by McAndar and his Evil allies, and had led the majority of his Clansmen back to the Bowl.
Subsequent events had confirmed the accuracy of his prophecy. Although the ChaosWalking of their supposed allies had given them some success born out of surprise, it had led the Clansmen into Dark Realms of Madness, and its very uncontrollability had fragmented them, scattering deranged groups of raiders at the mercy of their foes.
Nor did he need to be a Seer to have foreseen that such powerful and dangerous Evil Chaotics would fall out amongst themselves. Now there were three main surviving factions to contend with. Krell McAndar and the majority of the Clans that had originally followed him from the Crags were fighting their way back across Garf Lea and Caldrick Moor. But Ephraim foresaw an unpleasant end for them, without ChaosWalking, at the hands of the revenge-hungry Valdreans. Meanwhile Glersh the Dread and that devil-woman had turned upon their former allies, and were leading a warband of forest orcs on a raid across the heart of the Badlands. The Clan Mistresses of Darnamach and Bardo had even come to the Hold of Omechar to beg for assistance after their defeat at the hands of Glersh's berserkers. But Mirelle Shaman-Mistress and he had turned them down at first. For they had seen a greater threat approaching from the North. Instead they had allied Clan Omechar with that third force. In addition to the remnants of the Warbands of Clans Karno, Holeroy and Darnamach, it included the remaining Dark Ones, under the leadership of the Horned Rider Himself. Whilst Omechar had certain mystical defences, and might have stood against Them, Mirelle had correctly divined that Their real objective was Glersh.
Therefore it now suited Clan Omechar at last to go to war with the Dark Ones. But they rode against the orcs attacking their fellow Clans (who would be in their debt), and not against the Empire (which would long bear a grudge). Ephraim just hoped the Valdreans could distinguish Clan Omechar from those Badlanders who had committed the customary atrocities against them.
In an ornate reading room, high in a tower of the Bibliotecha Imperatoris Valdrensis, three men sat round a table on which various books lay open. One was reading from his notes on a sheet of parchment:
"I believe it is fair to trace these events back to the bungled expedition to the Altar of Toorm last Sarm", said Alador of Team Phoenix. "There were persistent rumours of a return of the so-called Chaotic Sending, and the involvement of the Pirates was at least confirmed by our Mission."
"But the waterfront raids turned up nothing that was clearly relevant," objected Lord Censor Glaryv, 2nd Champion of Gytrasan.
"True", acknowledged Alador, picking up another piece of paper, "but the ISS gave a high rating to the reliability of their information."
"The first events were in Hapral, a waterfront city," interjected Head Librarian Rolix, "and they closely resembled Xudar's Revolt, back in 2410." Here he stabbed a finger at one of the open books. "There are several reports of Xudar being amongst the leaders, from normally reliable sources. We also have accounts of a return of Xudar after the 2500 Altar of Toorm expedition."
"Bah!" exclaimed the Lord Censor. "There are always reports of a return of Xudar whenever Chaotics are revolting. They don't have to be too bright to work out that claiming to be Xudar is guaranteed to increase support. He wasn't like that maniac Namaja - abandoning his followers!"
"It is possible," mused Alador, "that this was more of Glersh's work. Yet the incidents documented in these reports have the hallmark of Chaos, not of Frenzy. I detect a Force of Chaos at work.
"The evidence is clearer in the betting scandals. Look at how the odds moved in the days leading up to the Kuntax Derby on 22 Jerem. Five joint favourites by the beginning of the race, then a dead heat not even separable by magic? Then several more unlikely sequences in other races; the Tehmor race on 6 Oscow for instance."
"Tandrys' analysis in his 'Of Law and Chaos' identifies unlikely patterns in gambling as one of the signs of a disturbance in the Balance," pointed out the Librarian.
"That man's books ought to be burnt!" exclaimed Glaryv. "I don't know how the Imperial Library can get away with holding banned works like that one", he said, pointing to a copy of Tandrys' translation into modern Valdrean of the infamous 'Chaotica', which lay open before Alador.
"My dear Lord Censor", replied the Man of Heaven smoothly. "Was it not Valder I himself who said 'Know Thy Enemies'? Much valuable insight has been gained by successive Imperial Governments from judicious study of such works."
"It is true", agreed Rolix. "We have a record that the Emperor Decus XXI of Mastrin consulted this very copy back in 2000. No doubt he used the knowledge gained to defeat Namaja."
"More likely it led to the downfall of House Mastrin!" snorted Glaryv.
"Alas, I fear you may well be right there, my friend", said Alador. "But, be that as it may, we have read the books, and they corroborate the theory. Now let us look at the collapse of the commodity markets in Oscow."
"All documented here," said Glaryv sadly. "House Gytrasan lost a small fortune in hides. Our monopoly of the Eralham market should have enabled us to push prices up bullishly, but instead they crashed."
"But what about the contracts with the Assassins' Guild?" queried the Librarian. "With the amounts the bookmakers are reputed to have spent, surely they must have got our man?"
"You assume it was a man", countered Alador. "The Guild may well have collected on those contracts, but I see a similar pattern in the commodity markets to that in the betting on the horse races. Tandrys gives some interesting comparisons."
"Nothing since though", pointed out Glaryv. "Estender was quiet, and so is Lastra. I have a stack of reports of Chaotic activity, but nothing on the same scale - unless you count the Badlanders?"
"I do not," stated Alador, "and that is what worries me..."
In the Jewelled City of Bhakanandra, capital of the Empire of Three Worlds, it was once again the Time of No Men. In that fabulous metropolis, amidst its confusion of domes and minarets, snakes and cats were partying. For it was their Time. There was no Empress, and the Legendary Orb of Iakweth lay dormant upon the cushion of her throne. For tonight at least, the snakes and cats were free of the tyranny of the Five Amulets.
Yet one Amulet remained lost, and the stability they had brought threatened to draw to a close. It was hissed in the dark alleys and purred up on the moonlit roofs that the laughter of men had been heard, at this Time when there should be No Men.
Your plots are requested for Autumn 2503. See How to submit your Plot for guidance.
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© P.R. Wild, 27 August 2001
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