A Prince's Redemption, an Angel's Love and the Curse of Malfred (FR.... ish)

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My dynamic duo in action, in PnP they have a +9 ECL between the two of them .

Arethir Maelis is a Yuan-Ti Pureblood Sorcerer/Fighter, his companion Aurora Heavenlight is unaware of his bloodline, the slips Arethir makes on occassion do not make Aurora suspicious of Arethir as she desperately wants him to be redeemable. Arethir, who was never born in Yuan-Ti society and spent his entire life in human society and rigidly adheres to laws, codes of honor, etc... desires his secret to remain hidden so he never comes against the laws he so loves and so Aurora will continue to travel with him.

Aurora Heavenlight is a Nephilim Paladin of Ilmater, her huge, beautiful, white wings are almost always transmuted by her father's magic to help her pass easier in human society. She's terrified of Arethir seeing her wings and will under but the rarest of circumstances drop the spell transmuting them.

I apologize for the dialogue "spill", I'm just not going to take the time as of now to cut down on it right now. The character stock that is Arethir plagued by speaking too much Irrationalist philosophy. Arethir has a starting INT score of 20 on PnP (+4 racial bonus) and is extremely narcissistic so talking so much sort of comes with the terrain.

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A massive mausoleum loomed within a clearing of the deep forest, stone gargoyles stood meancingly over the crypt door and a ring of dead earth stood around the mausoleum.

"Despoil.", said Arethir in disgust at the ring of lifeless earth.

"What?"

"The spell Despoil has been cast here, that is the cause of this ring of dead earth. Such a shame beauty suffers at the hands of creatures like the undead."

"I have never understood your willingness to protect nature, but indifference to your fellow man. Nature is not a lawful entity, nature's storms brim with chaos."

"Man and nature maybe equally chaotic, but the order of aesthetic beauty flows through nature with an abundance man will never have. Man's beauty lies within his laws and I would gladly lay my life down to uphold the beauty of those laws. The beauty however only lies within the laws man makes, not within man so I hold no responsibility to anyone who my honor does not require me to defend."

"Beauty lies within everything capable of good Arethir and therefore everything that is not beyond redemption we are honor bound to protect."

Arethir curled his lip.

"You sound like a Priest of Sune."

Aurora smiled, she was well aware of how much Arethir despised Sune, who Arethir saw as a beacon of lust and immorality.

"Would you perfer if I spoke in terms that where closer in relation to Ilmater? I had thought you by now would be tired of hearing about why we should act in accordance to Ilmater."

"Ilmater helps those born to suffer face their fates whether that is his intent or not, I have respect for your Crying God."

Aurora glared at Arethir.

"Sometimes... ugh... Let us do what we came here to do. I also expect you to act as a man who desires to change his ways, had you not claimed that you desired the evil that tainted your soul absolved? This I cannot do on my own Arethir, I know... you can cast light onto the darkness that shadows your soul, I can feel that hideous aura weakening."

Arethir signed and silently cursed his blood.

"I gladly go into the crypt, action such as this, taken against something so abhorrent as the undead, is a redeeming action I can easily undertake, it is that where only my soul is at risk that redemption becomes so difficult. One with blood as blessed as yours never knows the difficulty that comes with such small acts of benevolence."

A soft, warm smile spread over Aurora's face, covering the doubt she had as to why Arethir struggled so to change what he was.

(to be continued...)

[ March 06, 2006, 08:00: Message edited by: Ilmater's Suffering ]

 

The massive iron doors of the mausoleum where locked by an impressive padlock, which thwarted any attempt to force open the lock by either Aurora or Arethir.

"This appears to be time to gain assistance from the ravenous appetite of acid."

Arethir refrained from using any real magic, for there was no point in wasting a spell on a stationary object and he was certain Aurora assumed what he was about to do to be a spell. Arethir took the padlock firmly in both hands and began to let acid seep from from the pores in his hands. It was only a matter of time before the padlock had been eaten through. Arethir removed the metal loop, the sole remaining part of the padlock from the door, and opened the imposing iron doors. As Arethir opened those doors, he felt an outlet of unholy energy burst forth, he was struck with the spell Blasphemy. A horrified look came over Aurora's face until she realized Arethir was unharmed.

"I think I should continue to lead the way, I have a feeling we shall run into more dark and unholy magic like Blasphemy within this place."

A strange look settled over Aurora's face as if she did not know whether to be happy that Arethir had survived a spell as potentially dangerous as Blasphemy or whether to be unhappy that it was Arethir's darkened soul that had saved him.

"I would prefer the front all the same Arethir, my body is built to endure, the planetar blood of my father, who has ever served Ilmater, allows me to suffer well beyond any human."

"It would be a slight to my own honor to put you of all beings in danger when I could go instead Aurora. I would rather my death then any harm befall you."

"I strive to take the suffering of others, it is my duty and an honor. To not suffer for another when I can is a sin upon my soul and a stain on my honor, but not to suffer to keep you from pain is more then a sin and a dishonor, it speaks of irredeemably of my very soul if I allowed one who I... care for like you in danger for my own benefit."

Arethir and Aurora came to an understanding in each other's eyes and proceeded inside of the tomb.

(to be continued...)

[ February 18, 2006, 17:49: Message edited by: Ilmater's Suffering ]

 

As the two decended into the mausoleum, the colors began to fade from Aurora's vision, quickly being replaced with black and white as she reached the bottom of the stairs. A massive underground complex sprawled out to the limits of Aurora's vision, the walls of the tomb where lined with wooden coffins, with passages to side antechambers every fifteen feet or so.

"Can you see down here or do you have need of my eyes to see for you?", asked Aurora.

"My sight is as unhindered as it can be in this darkness, you need not concern yourself with my safety."

Both advanced cautiously, eyeing the coffins that lay within the walls on both sides. After passing three sets of antechambers and approaching a fourth set, a surge of necromatic magic raced in the coffins and antechambers of tomb. The coffins in the walls began to stir, some of them slammed to the floor as the zombies within pulled themselves free of their resting places. Arethir and Aurora both drew their longswords and advanced on the zombies on the left side of the hall. The putrid flesh of the zombies put little resitance to the sword strokes that fell on them, many of the zombies where cut down as soon and they rose up. As Arethir and Aurora dealt with the surplus of zombies, the moans and sighes of ancient crypt doors began to echo through the mausoleum, clamy, pallid hands pulled doors wide on their rusted hinges. The creatures that came from behind these doors while of rotting, pale flesh much like the zombies, but they moved like men and their eyes were not vacant of consciousness like zombies.

(to be continued...)

 

"Your lives for Malfred." uttered a wright coming to face Arethir and Aurora.

Malfred the Greatsword, the Church of Ilmater had called him a butcher of the innocent and a creature who suffered so greatly that only death could ease his pain. Arethir had known of Malfred before Aurora had been called upon by the Church of Ilmater to deal with him; Malfred was once a powerful noble and skilled warrior while fully alive, but as Arethir saw it, allowed sexual depravity seduce his twisted soul.

The Tale of Malfred the Greatsword spoke of the vast exploits Malfred had carving out a feudal domain for himself at the expense of other nobles, but it also told of Malfred's lust for women and how he took new women from every city he conquered. In the particular telling Arethir was familiar of, it spoke of a young woman named Lovora who turned out to be more then Malfred had expected. Malfred was said to have slowly gone mad after being bitten, watching his earthly domain disappear as his so called loyal troops abbandoned him in fear that he might feast on them.

Arethir knew this mausoleum had been built with the intent to be Malfred's final resting place while he was still human and as nature over took Malfred's tomb, it became a perfect capital for Malfred to further his desire to rebuild a horrific version of the lands he once ruled.

Arethir's mind began to mull over the circumstances in which he ended up here. The Church warned both Aurora and him of the extent of the danger they would be forced to face within this mausoleum, that Malfred was building an army of undead within his tomb and that villages near the tomb may suffer from vampirism. Arethir was not worried about the danger in which the Church had placed him, he was overconfident and rarely worried about his safety more then his honor, but he did not understand the reason he and Aurora where here alone.

In the past, the Church had gone to great lengths to protect Aurora; as a nephilim, the Church felt particularily honored to have her in their midst, she literally was a blessing from Ilmater. Why suddenly the Church left their prize, Arethir's prize, so vulnerable was beyond but his speculation. Arethir could but think that the Church was sending Aurora on a trial of faith or something similar.

Arethir's sword arched before falling through the head of a nearby wright, he had always found that his impressive cognitive abilities had allowed him to divide his focus and natural to his yuan-ti blood, keep himself one foot infront of the others. By now, the once impressive army of zombies was beginning to noticably thin and the only wrights within sight where lying motionless on the floor.

"What an utterly pathetic display of power, the time it took Malfred's necromancers to study the spells to raise such rubbish is now made clear to be an absolute waste my celestial dove."

"He may simply desire to wear us down, zombies are easy to raise and we still expend energy to break the unholy magic that binds them."

"He wants to see if we are worthy, I am sure of that. Maybe he desires to feed on vital blood or maybe his desires are for warriors he deems worthly to be in his company and listen to his tales of lives gone past. The minds of vampires and their ilk are rarely satisfied with simply slaughter, especially when their intended victims are specimens of such elegance as you and I my dear Aurora."

Arethir's lip began to curl as if he had been slighted.

"However if you wishes to have us prove our worth, he needs no more insult our honor with such unworthy foes! I hate the undead more then most, they violate laws on which man's own laws are constructed, but I will not stand to be made a mockery of by being forced to deal with that which is beneath me for the sake of a game of another, regardless of how much I despise the opponent."

 

*Klank* *Klank* *Klank*

The sound of steel shod shoes came from the direction in which the tomb's enterance was located. A figure clad in fullplate and face covered by a pot helmet became visible in the black and white of Arethir's vision. Arethir needed not see the man's face to recognize who he was, the two lions standing on their hind legs, arms outstretched and facing each other emblazoned as the man's signal upon his shield and surcoat made it clear enough who it was. Aurora instinctively moved herself between Arethir and the man, Sir Kalias De Malrois, a powerful Paladin of Tyr.

"Even in such a place as this, a monster as evil as your kind will not find shelter from Tyr's blind justice! Prepare yourself to meet the foul gods of your ancestors Arethir Maelis!"

Sir Kalias was aware of Arethir's lineage, but by some god send only indirectly referenced Arethir's bloodline in their past encounters.

"Kalias, set this aside, we seek to end the evil that dwells within this tomb. The actions you desire to take only will grant mercy to far greater evil that wells with here, Tyr cannot desire such."

"Silence! You who travels with this fiend, you will not tell me how to serve my god, it is mistifying as to why Ilmater still grants you the power of a paladin. Evil is a blight that never leaves the one it inhabits, it is our duty to bring justice upon evil where ever its corrupting touch can be felt."

"Such a course of action can only increase the level of suffering within this world, there are those who love an evil creature because of blood relation who suffer when that being they love is killed. I can only truly believe in Ilmater if I strive for a solution that is free from pain and free from suffering."

"The innocent will suffer when we leave what is evil to pray upon innocent. Let those who love what is evil suffer so those innocent do not."

"We must redeem those who have fallen, only then can we advert suffering."

"Do not be foolish, those who are evil can never truly be saved, they can pretend they are willing to change or even that they have been changed, but they cannot actually change. Evil it would seem is wearing down the wisdom of creature with your heavenly blood, to allow the serpent to lie in the very nest of the dove and bring it's poison to bear on all the dove shelters underwing."

"Arethir can be saved and I will go so far as to be a martyr to save him if I have to. Can you not feel the lessening of his aura? Men are not static, they are the change within the world."

"Men choose to be evil and once they have made that choice, they cannot turn back, but Arethir, he never was able to choose, him and his kind, they are born evil."

"What do you speak of?"

Arethir quickly reentered the conversation, determinded not to let it travel down the road it was headed.

"You came for my life Tyrian, draw your weapon and see if you can take it."

Sir Kalias drew his flail and charged at Arethir, Arethir moved his right foot back in order to place himself in a defensive stance. Something tugged at Arethir's right leg, looking back, Arethir realized it was the mutilated corpse of a zombie who grabbed him. Arethir found himself effectively immoblized as Sir Kathias swung his flail, without Arethir being free to use his naturally high dexerity, his lack of actual armor left him particularily vulnerable. At least he would die defending his pride he thought, until he felt Aurora dive into him, her breastplate taking the brunt of the flail bar. As Aurora and Arethir collided to the floor, they must have triggered yet another trap and the floor beneath them gave way. The two fell to the floor below; dazed amidst the rumble, they where unaware of the wrights assembling around them.

[ March 12, 2006, 01:31: Message edited by: Ilmater's Suffering ]

 

The antechambers on the second floor allowed for more wrights to come forth. These wrights where different then the zombie like wrights that surrounded Aurora and Arethir, these wrights could almost be mistaken for mummies, with their burial wrappings, shriveled brown skin and fleshless faces. These wrights where clearly warriors who had departed quite some time in the past; they still carried the weapons and armor they where buried with.

Aurora was the first to her feet, holding her symbol of Ilmater which hung around her neck firmly in hand.

"May the hate and suffering that plagues your existance find its end in the power of Ilmater."

Positive energy spread forth from Aurora's symbol, striking several of the wrights and making them flee in terror after contacting the divine energy.

Arethir pulled himself to his feet after Aurora's inital turning of the undead, casting aside his sword and large shield as Aurora continued to to call upon Ilmater to drive off the undead. Arethir caught a glimpse of blood running down Aurora's back as he was removing his shield and swore silently that Kathias would pay for harming Aurora. Arethir moved himself beside Aurora and began cast Lesser Acid Orb at the wrights that still advanced.

However by the time Aurora had exhausted her ability to turn undead and Arethir had exhausted his spells, there where still wrights advancing, some of the older wrights had managed to make it through so far unscathed. Arethir pulled his sword and shield from where he had left them, readying himself just in time for the wrights as they bore down on Aurora and him.

The sound of fullplate crashing into the floor echoed through the tomb as Sir Kalias jumped from the first level to the level below, casting his flail and shield aside during the fall and ripping his tabard off to reveal a truly impressive symbol of Tyr inlaid in gold in the center of the plate covering Kathias' breast.

"Even in undeath, justice will not escape evil men. In the name of Tyr justice will strike you down swiftly abominations."

Massive amounts of holy energy ushered forth like an army of crusaders from Kathias' symbol of Tyr, galloping across the battle field, not merely turning undead, but destorying the undead it encountered. As the holy energy subsided, a crypt door to a strange burial room, a burial room that looked as if the current mausoleum build through it, opened to reveal a wright encased in bronze armor and wielding a bronze great axe.

"What strange metals you wear intruder... why do you disturb my rest, the rest of the Warrior-King Athwulf Finehair."

The ancient wright looked around at his surrounded for sometime after speaking.

"What has happened, this is not the stone work of my people, how did my barrow ever come to be this far underground? Who has done such to my barrow? Who has done this to me, answer or fall to my axe blade you would distrub the the dead."

"Unholy abomination, return to the earth from which you came, the world of the living is not your place."

In standard fashion with any evil creature Sir Kalias encountered, violence was the only outcome of the interactions that came of the encounter.

[ March 12, 2006, 01:32: Message edited by: Ilmater's Suffering ]

 

As the animated corpse of an evil man pitted itself in combat against the inspired paladin, Arethir brushed aside long, soft, platinum blond hair that fell down Aurora's back to see the wound that Sir Kalias had left in Aurora's back.

"Arethir, there is no need to have concern for my being."

"You are clearly wounded, you need not be so stoic when others wish to tend to you."

"Arethir, I suffered in your place, there is no action I would take over bearing an injury for you. You need not worry about what I dedicate my existance to."

Aurora had always been durable and Arethir had seen her bear wounds that would have killed most humans without even wincing, but seeing her blood always made him worry, a byproduct of his love for her he liked to believe. The spikes that had covered the bar of the flail had managed to rip through Aurora's breastplate, natural armor her skin had provided, as well as the other natural protections her blood line provided, providing a wound that looked almost as if it had been made by tooth or claw.

Arethir frowned, he was becoming aware this healing potions had broken in the fall through the floor, meaning that Aurora's ability to channel divine power by laying her hands and her innate ability to cast Cure Serious Wounds where the extent of the two's healing powers, he was almost certain that her prepared paladin spells were two Lesser Restorations to deal with the necromantic magic that was bound to be within this mausoleum. With the lack of healing spells and supplies, Arethir knew that Aurora would reserve her healing powers for those other then herself, regardless ofthe condition she found herself in.

"I am concerned about you because your concern lies only for others. I become inclined to protect my own interests when they allow themselves to be... damaged."

"Are you intentionally so reptilian? I cannot except that you are as cold and self-centered as the man you speak as."

"You must except that it will never be possible for me to be as moral a creature as you, I was born of politics and raised to further the political ambitions of my mother. I will never be a creature of good nature."

"Do not speak in such a way! I do not expect your actions and ideology to mirror my own, half of my blood is planetar, but that does not mean I will tolerate you merely being indifferent to good and evil as I would if you were someone who had no relation with me. That I travel with one of your... nature, regardless of my intention, is seen by more then just Sir Kalias as a stain on my honor as a palain."

"A stain! How dare you insinuate such! Do not forget you speak to one of royal blood, you and any other in my company should be thankful to be in my presence!"

"Calm youself Arethir, I would have trouble seeing you in negative light even if you became a black guard, but I only see the world as one person. I need you to become a creature of good for more then just my personal beliefs, your redemption would go along way to prove to some in the Church that mercy is a better path then strength. Some of my fellow Ilmatari Paladins seem to have become too much like other paladins and forgotten our humble roots easing the suffering of others."

"Would you ever expect a Cambion to be a creature of good Aurora?"

"No, but a Cambion literally cannot be a good creature, even a drow like Phaera can be good if she chooses to be so."

Arethir's lip curled.

"Do not speak the name of that poisoned tongue succubus, not only does she speak fouly of you in an attempt to tarnish your honor, but she has the complete and utter lack of propriety and femininity to propose me with offers of intimacy! She is a disgustingly base creature."

"Arethir, what does your comment about the moral rationale of Cambions have to do with you? You are far to handsome to be my opposite."

The sound of shattering armor and bone filled Aurora and Arethir's ears as Sir Kalias' flail caved in the bronze helmet of the ancient wright. The Paladin of Tyr, as if driven by some otherworldy endurance did not even stop to take a breath before turning to Arethir.

"Justice awaits you fiend, let Tyr's will be served now."

"I can't allow you to do such Kalias, this young girl has something she has to do for her church and I'll be damned if I let ya interfere." said a voice with a thick dwarven accent, duergarian to be exact Arethir noted.

[ March 12, 2006, 01:35: Message edited by: Ilmater's Suffering ]

 

A broad figure jumped from the openning in the ceiling, encased in halfplate, wielding a warhammer and a heavy wooden shield.

"Again you seek to face me you gray skinned monster? I may not be able to detect evil within you, but I know your kin are evil by nature and therefore evil still dwells within the depths of your soul, never able to free itself from the corrupting effects of evil. Justice shall be dealt duergar and your cursed life ended for your own good."

"There ya go again with this strange notion of goodness paladin. Either you or your god be outdated, thinking people cannot be redeemed, that justice must always be dealt, foolishness if ya ask me. Just because I was born a duergar doesn't mean I don't have the choice not to be evil like many of my kin."

"*All* of your kin, duergar. Now move aside while I deal with this forked tongued monster, I will deal with you afterwards."

"Nay, I won't let ya kill the lad, the lad has his own choices to make. It's not a paladin's duty to extinguish unrealized evil, instead it is the duty of any good creature to stop an evil act when it happens. Every creature has the right to be internally evil so long as they don't act on it paladin."

"That is the talk of a fool... or an evil creature duergar. Any evil that is within our power to be destoryed must, no chance that the innocent maybe hurt can be taken."

"When we try to bring good with nothing but violence, the blood of the evil creatures despoils that land on which we wish to sow good... ach, why am I wasting my breath on ya paladin, Aurora continue on your quest, I'll keep this blowhard from follwing you."

"Thank you Barzid. May Ilmater prevent bloodshed, it surely must bring pain to the celestial realms to see two creatures of good draw arms against each other."

Aurora and Arethir let Barzid and Sir Kalias behind, travelling deeper into the tomb, the sounds of combat began to fill the two as the two powerful warriors went toe to toe.

"I beg of Helm that Barzid does not slay Kalias, my honor must see that it is my sword that takes his foul life for any harm that befalls you is an insult to me."

"You will not take vengence in my name Arethir, I strive to spread mercy, not hate and revenge, humility, not pride. No, I would much prefer that any action taken on my behalf be one of virtue."

"The actions I am taking are not on your behalf, it was my honor that was tarnished, my failing and I will redeem myself as a warrior of honor."

The two walked on for sometime, Arethir was clearly angry that Aurora was not happy with his desire to be her gentleman and defend her, Aurora tried to break the silence several times, but few things where more powerful then Arethir's pride and this pride refused to allow any amends to be made.

[ March 12, 2006, 01:37: Message edited by: Ilmater's Suffering ]

 

Aurora not use to Arethir interacting with her in such a fashion. She was use to his anger and pride, for it was impossible for anyone who knew Arethir not to experience one of the two, but Aurora had always experienced Arethir's wraith and pride as something that was always directed at something other then her. She was not entirely sure of what to do, she knew how to control Arethir's motivations when they came in conflicts with others, but that stemmed primarily from Arethir's desire to present a pleasing front to Aurora, she doubted he would that now. Realizing that trying to figure out how to approach Arethir was over thinking the situation, Aurora turned to her empathic qualities and let them guide her.

"Arethir, it is not that I do not appreciate your desire to avenge the wound inflicted upon me, I doubt any woman would be displeased at the intent to display affection, but I cannot be pleased with actions that violate my beliefs, regardless of the intent of the action."

Arethir snorted contpemtuously, but said nothing. Aurora as sure the comment about affection had managed to burrow beneath his skin, there was a reason besides Arethir's icy pride that he had an affinity with ice based magic, the ice represented his ideal expression of his own emotions, no expression. Because of that ideal, he tried to hide his feeling behind strength, something that was an expression of power rather then an expression of emotion.

Aurora smiled softly at Arethir, "I should have behaved differently in regards to your desire to be my champion, I should not have treated you as a lesser or child by telling you that you could not fight Sir Kalias. I should have made a request for you not to spill blood in my name as one does to an equal."

Aurora always willing to be the one who took a vulnerable position, Arethir was well aware of it from the time he had spent with her, he sometimes wondered if she was more comfortable in a position where she could be hurt, however Arethir had never managed to notice the power it gave her to end conflicts in the way she desired; Arethir no longer felt slighted by Aurora.

"Arethir, there has been a question I've been trying to ask you now for quite some time, but circumstances always seem to keep you from answering it.", Aurora laughed softly, "I some how doubt the circumstances here will be any better then the other times I've asked you this. What I have been wondering is why you ever left the lands you happen to be from? You are a prince, I cannot imagine there would be considerable reason to leave you home behind."

Arethir had always hated questions about his past for lying was beneath his honor, but to tell of his actual past was not something he could do and honestly expect not to find himself worse then a criminal by the standards of society. He could simply not answer, something he did to so many of those he considered beneath him, but simply refusing to answer Aurora would likely fail to go over well with Aurora on a multitude of levels.

"I suppose a prince leaving his homeland is quite perplexing, as few would leave such a life willingly; I certainly did not leave my father's lands willing. There was no revolt by the thralls nor coup by the nobility; my father still rules from this throne, but my mother, she is no longer by his side and the reason why she is longer by his side is why I was exiled."

"Oh... your mother cuckolded your-"

"No! My mother was as faithful as any wife could be, fidelity had nothing to do with her... leave. Her very being was why she left."

"What about her being forced her to leave?"

"She was a monster in the eyes of most humans."

"A monster?"

"Yes, a monster."