"Oh, so yah can heal, now, lassie?" Abel inquired to Vanessa. "No wonder da big 'un keeps ya 'round. Well, aside from the obvious." He winked suggestively. "So, if ya can heal dis wound up, I'll go let ya destroy dem eggs. 'Tis da chivalrous thing ta do, for a lady."

Abel sat down on a large shard of Dwemer scrap metal and removed his bandage so that Vanessa could cure the ant bite beneath it. The skin around the Breton's arm was slightly inflamed from the ant's poison, and there were two small but deep puncture wounds. It was a good thing that Abel had managed to get the wound wrapped up in time, because the bite marks were deep enough to become probable for infection.

"And a-when your done with dat, how's about we go try 'n find da big guy ya were with before, eh?" Abel suggested as Vanessa looked over his injuries.

Vanessa smiled and after a few moments had closed the wound and decreased the swelling in his arm. Makeing sure Abel was able to more all his fingers she led him to the entrance where he would be safer as she started sending large shockballs into the room. After about two shocks the eggs would pop and crack from the charge and soon with nearly all her Magicka depleted she finished the task. Not a moment to soon as she heard Danars voice coming down the other hallway. She allowed herself a smile at his voice as clearly he had been sucesfull in defeating the queen. Grabing Abel by the arm she set him strait and handhing him his makeshift seat beconed for him to follow her out the chamber.
"Danar!" Vanessa shouted as she saw her leader "We were sucesfull in destroying the eggs. Luckly for me Abel knows how to heft a mean boulder and lucky for him I know how to mend a wound." However as she was filling Danar in on what had happend she noticed the expression on his face
"Something wrong? You seem deep in tought."

Danar removed his helmet and ran his hand over his smooth head, then placed his fingers under his chin in a thoughtful pose, staring off into the distance, even though they were in a cramped room underground. His eyes seemed to be far off in the heavens regardless.

"I have received...a vision. A prayer-vision. But it's not important right now, to what we're doing. Is he bandaged?"

He pointed to Abel's arm. "Did you manage to heal him? Some of the ants are diseased...here...we can't be too careful." Danar removed his right gauntlet and laid his bare hand over Abel's wound, surging beneficial blue materia into it, into his veins, purging his body of any potential disease."

"There we go." He replaced the gauntlet and cleaned his mace with a cloth. "Let's return to Ghostgate, the three of us, and formulate strategy on the next phase of the operation with the Grandmaster." He beckoned them with a wave of his hand, still staring somewhat off into the distance.

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ooc: Awaiting the response from Durza's other character near Ald-Ruhn.

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Dark Fissure

The Sorcerer laid the corpse of the Udyrfrykte Matron on the altar, backing away and kneeling reverently. Mannimarco spoke. "You've done exceptionally well, my servant. This creature shall help to sew discord and chaos among the citizens of Cyrodill, by night. The roads near Imperial City will know no respite from its assault. This shall distract the Imperials from our covert operations."

Dark, pulsing energy shot into the corpse from the sky, and suddenly it rose, its eyes emitting an eerie dark purple glow. Howling, it ran off into the woods, past the Nord. "Worry not, my servant. It will not attack members of my Order. Now on to business. Several powerful champions of chaos were defeated soundly by Bendu Olo, the man known as the Champion of Cyrodill, during his campaigns on the Mundus. He has since ascended to another plane of existence and will bother us no more. My task for you is to retrieve the bodies of some of his more powerful foes. They shall serve me in undeath as Worm Thralls. The first of these is a Redguard man by the name of Azani Blackheart. His corpse lies decomposed in the Ayleid ruin of Atatar, between Bravil and Leyawinn. He will serve me as a powerful Skeleton Champion, among the finest in my Order. Go now. You have your orders."

ooc: What? Other character near Ald-Ruhn? I don't have any other characters! Do you mean Orcbrother's?
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"Ay, da Grandmaster, eh?" Abel inquired. "Ya never a-told me 'bout him! Well, ah s'pose he'd be well ta treat a Lord wit' respect." Abel opened the door for the two warriors to pass through. "After you, sir." he said to Danar as he walked out. "And after you, m'lady..." he told Vanessa.

Danar and Vanessa walked out in front, and Abel followed behind. Abel decided to entertain the two during their walk by telling them his life story. Of course, Abel being Abel, it wasn't his life story but that of the long-deceased lord of Lainlyn.

"I'm the great Lord Kain, lord of the city of Lainlyn in Hammerfell. Baron Shrike's m'big brother. Da Baron's not a very good ruler in m' book. I'd reckon here dat his authoritarian reign needs ta end, so I was a-wait'n for a good chance ta take dat throne. Pretty sure ol' Shrike's a-festerin' in his tomb now, but da next thing I know I'm here in Vvardenfell instead. Them Host of the Horn must've been a-plottin' against me and sent m' over here. Guess dat's a better thing than dyin', but I can't believe still dat m' Host of the True Horn wasn't dere to keep m' safe. Ah well, I'd a-say dat I'm having me a pretty damn good time here killin' dem buggies. When dis fightin's all done I'm goin' back to Lainlyn ta take me rightful throne."

OOC: Yea i was the one with the other charicter. I dident reply because the men who were heading out of Ald-ruhn dident respond to his inqury. Anyway I think I'll toss him back in as well as the other.
~~~~
Vanessa listend patiently to Abel's story takeing in about half of it. She herself was somewhat in thought though she dident recive any visions. Ocasionaly she nodded and made a comment on Abel's story but aside from that her responce was limited. It wasent that she dident like him, because while somewhat out of his mind he was still polite and somewhat a gengleman and dident mind his company, though what Danar intended to do with him at the Ghostgate he couldent say.
~~~
Having recived little information concerning the warriors activites Josua Lowry decided to follow them. Being unemcumbered and with his lifes experience as a monk it was easy for him to keep up with the marching band while avoiding detection. He was sure that he would be little benefit in such a large melee as they might engage in but one never knows where they might find a place in action.
~~~
Cleaning her blades off after having slaugtered all the ants in the tomb Dar-ahet nodded in aproval of her activities. It felt good to finaly be finished with that chore. she was extremly upset with this invasion of uniteligent n-wah and was determined to stop it and her master had provided the key. Knowing she needed guidance she headed towards Red mountain. sence the fall of the ghostgate she could take any route she wished but figured she would pass thorugh the ghostgate's old barrier. She wouldent be bothered by ordinators unless they distinctly searched her posessions and even then she could sneak past or fight her way torugh if needs be.

The road to Ghostgate

Danar patiently and respectfully nodded at the appropriate moments of "Lord Kain's" story. After it was apparent that he was finished, he cleared his throat. "Ah, well...your excellency. We are honored to have a great Lord of your talents and prestige in our midst." He elbowed Vanessa as if to send a signal to her to keep her mouth shut and not tell him he isn't really Lord Kain.

"In any event, you wish to know of my Grandmaster? He is a powerful Mystic by the name of Galdal Omayn. His official title is Grand Marshal. He was personally trained by out god-king Vivec in all the arts of stealth, casting and war, as were we all, but he received special training in a pocket dimension at a level far beyond the rest of us. I suppose he is of about the same skill as the one the Imperials refer to as Ocato, although since our Lord Omayn was touched by a real god and that Altmer was not, I'd say my Grandmaster has more casting proficiency, though not more political clout."

They walked onward for another ten or twenty meters, silently, when suddenly a large black Raven swooped in from the sky.

"What the?" Danar said in surprise, but before he could draw his weapon or react the beast had charged him with its talons, knocking him off balance. It landed on the ground and black smoke swirled around it as it stood up and changed forms - a Dunmer dressed in black robes, with a hood obscuring part of his face. He wore the red symbol of the Necromancers upon his briast.

"It's time for you meddlers to die." the Necromancer sneered, as he raised his hand and mumbled a spell under his breath. The ground beneath him cracked and a Skeleton Champion clawed its way up, zapped in from somewhere else in the world. The monster wielded a fierce looking steel claymore and immediately charged towards Abel, whom appeared to be the weakest and least armored foe.

"Vanessa..protect him!" Danar tried charging the Necromancer but he fired off another spell, causing Danar's body to feel heavier than normal. He was still able to move but his feet and hands felt like lead, and it was a struggle.

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Near Ald-Ruhn

Imsin the Dreamer looked back over her shoulder and saw the monk following them. "Company, halt." she called. Her Legionnaires stopped in their tracks, and the Redoran and Fighters Guild members also stopped. "Civilian, do you wish to join us? I had attempted to warn you away at first but we do accept mercenaries, though you hardly appear dressed for combat. Are you sure you want to accompany us? We have armor and weapons if you'd like to borrow a short sword or a chainmail cuirass or anything..."

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On the road to Vivec

The agile young Bosmer scout sent by Darius ran along at a fast gait, almost as fast as a horse could gallop. The Scout was only very lightly armored, with a thin imperial newtscale cuirass. The scroll he held in his left hand contained a message for Percius Mercius, the esteemed Master of the Fighters Guild in Vivec. A Nix Hound decided to ambush the young scout from behind a group of rocks, but barely blinking the scout whipped out his Jinkblade and paralyzed the beast, continuing to run at a fast gait as if nothing had happened. He was built for speed and stealth, and to escape combat. He could fight if need be but his delivery was of the utmost urgency, and he had no time or patience for nix hounds.

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Somewhere near Bravil

The Sorcerer walked slowly down the road, scanning left and right for signs of Ayleid ruins. He spotted another ruined Oblivion gate nearby and performed his usual ritual of collecting Bloodgrass, Harrada and Spiddal Sticks, and drawing the remaining creatia around the crater into special gems. "These should help with the next manifestation of my Master..stronger than even Black Souls." he muttered. An Imperial Legionnaire forester happened to be passing through, and approached him. "Sir? May I ask what you're doing near this place? It's not safe and I'll ask you to step away for your own protection."

The Nord turned around and spoke softly. "I'm only an old herbalist, laddie. I beg your pardon if I've done anything wrong."

The forester considered this. "Very well, citizen..I'll look the other way for now. You have a good d-" his sentence was cut short by the powerful lightning bolt the Nord hit him with, stopping his heart cold. The minor soultrap spell mingled in with it drew the remaining energy of the Legionnaire's body directly into one of the Sorcerer's black soul gems. The evil old nord grinned through his red beard. "Fool. One more toy for Mannimarco." He waved his hand and Reanimated the dead warrior, a move taught to elite Worm Anchorites. The undead soldier followed the Nord as he continued searching for Atatar.

Naturally, Abel, in his madness-addled delusions, did the exact opposite of what he was expected to do and ran head-on at the necromancer. "Ya foul devil! Ya don't know what ye's gotten inta here! Feel of wrath of Lord Kain of Lainlyn!" Abel drew his dagger and jumped at the necromancer, aiming the dagger at his heart. "VAE VICTUS!*" Abel cried, and thrust down his dagger. The skeleton shambled in front of its summoner, absorbing the blow and emerging unharmed.

..."On second a-thought...RUN!" the Breton cried out, sheathing his dagger and fleeing into the wilderness behind him, dropping his bag of stones behind him to prevent their weight from slowing him down.
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OOC: *Yes, that was an Easter egg, if anyone got it. Abel's quoting a....different Lord Kain.

Vanessa with her protection work taken care for her takes where Abel left off and locks steel with the skeleton. As most skeletal champions prove a good hand in sword play she used a combination of spells and swordplay to keep the undead at bay.

Someway off Dar-ahet alerted to the sounds of combat cautiously makes her own way to the battle. Noticing it in array she reconizes the necromancer for what he is and drawing her dagger stealtly makes her way towards him, her progress aided by the distraction of battle. Finaly behind the woshiper of death she shifts her dagger and makes to stab his heart from behind.
~~~~
Somewhat embarrassed that he was spoted Josua Lowry stands and bows
"Forgive my trespass, I was curious. I am gratefull for your invite but I do not work for money and I am more prepared for battle as my humble self than perhaps half these men in their swords and armor. However if there is good that can be done in assisting in any way I can I would be gracious to give it."

Near Ghostgate

Danar raised his mace to attack the Necromancer, who had thrown up a Shield spell to harden his skin, but as he was preparing another spell to dissolve Danar's weapon, the Necromancer suddenly lurched forward, blood pouring from his mouth, a dagger planted between his shoulder blades and piercing his heart. The Skeleton whom was battling Vanessa vanished in thin air as the spell broke, the Necromancer dying. He collapsed to the ground , but before he hit, he clutched the ruby amulet around his throat and his entire body burst into flames, burning fast until it was just ashes. If he had any note or other clues on his body as to who sent him, it was gone now.

Danar blinked at the person standing behind the corpse of the Necromancer, wielding a dagger. "Who...who are you?"

He looked around for "Lord Kain".

"Your excellency? Lord Kain? It's safe to come out now, sir."

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Near Ald-ruhn

Imsin considered Joshua's offer momentarily. "Very well then..you may accompany us unarmored and unarmed if you really desire. I've seen men fight that way before. I'd personally prefer you at least put on a chainmail shirt but if you insist, I can't stop you. Stick close to use and keep up the pace. COMPANY..MARCH."

All the men started marching again, including the Redoran, lead by Athyn Sarethi, whom had ceded control of this mission to Imsin and her men since he was more of a pen pusher than a military man - although his combat skill was considerable. He jogged along comfortably in his own House Redoran bonemold suit, not the least bit out of breath, brandishing a fine Ebony shortsword at his hip. "This little operation should go smoothly enough, and will be good propaganda for the strength of House Redoran. Perhaps it will frighten our Nord enemies into believing we're holding up better than we really are..."

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Atatar

Lots of old ruins in Cyrodill were haunted by ghosts, especially those bandit and marauder bases which had recently been cleared out by Bendu Olo, the Champion of Cyrodill. This place was no different. The wraiths and ghosts of the departed haunted the hallways, and many tried descending upon the old Nord Sorcerer with their claws, their swords and their damaging spells, but his powerful voice stopped many in their tracks, and he convinced them to fight for him and the King of Worms.

One powerful Wraith, however, would not concede, and made combat with the Sorcerer, who summoned a Daedric Longsword and duelled him on equal footing, until the Nord's obvious superiority in single combat became apparent. He sliced the wraith's hand off and held it at threat with a powerful Fire spell, charged in his right gauntlet. "Where is the body of Blackheart" the Sorcerer snarled, and the Wraith pointed down a dark hallway with its remaining hand. The Nord destroyed the Wraith anyway for its insolence and refusal to bow to his power, svcking its essence into a Soul Gem. He took heavy but agile footsteps down the dark corridor, his eyes glowing blue from a Nighteye spell. Moments later he stood over the decayed corpse of Azani Blackheart. Almost nothing remained of it but bones, although it wore a full suit of Elven armor, sans helmet, and held a powerful enchanted Elven claymore in its hand. The Sorcerer carefully gathered the remains into a large burlap sack, and cast a Recall spell on himself, returning to the Dark Altar...

Abel was hiding in the forest that moment when he heard Danar calling out to him. He rose from the ground, shaking the dirt out of his hair, and wandered back out to regroup with his party, picking up his bag.

"So, how'd da fightin' go with ya?" He then turned his head to Dar-Ahet "And who'r you? I'm Lord Kain of Lainlyn, rightful heir to the throne of Lainlyn Region in Hammerfell and master of the Host of the True Horn. Ya one o' dem 'gonians? Don't see too many o' dem 'round Hammerfell. Da big one, da lady, and I'r all goin' ta Ghostgate. We're fightin' dose big buggies round here, if ya know what kinda beasties I mean. Ay, ya wanna come wit' us? Dere's plenty a-room."

Vanessa as well was suprised by the apperance of the newcomer.
"Well I guess thanks are in order."
Vanessa walked up extending a hand but the Dunmer steped back as if she had been offered a severd orcs head
"Keep your filthy hands away from me S'wit! I only killed him because he was a foul necromancer. I could care less if he finshed you off but the moment was to good to pass."
Ingoreing Abel and shoving past Vanessa she turend to Danar, and her expression softend slightly but not much
"Mind keeping your fetchers to themselves? I do see why they take lead from someone like yourself but I suppose in these desperate times one cant be to picky on their lackies. Anyway if youll excuse me I have a sacred mission to purge my land of these ants and cant be held back any longer."
~~~
Joshua Lowry followed but took no curias or weapon and kept easy pace with the others.
"Ah, so you battle for honor? that is noble. I battle for much the same cause, but within this company I feel out of place. Perhaps I can better assist by scouting ahead..."

ooc: Sorry. Been away a few days. Hope you guys haven't completely lost interest in the story.

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Near Ghostgate

Danar regarded the newcomer, Dar-Ahet, with some interest. "You've some skill with a blade, and the arts of stealth. I admire your abilities. But please, do regard my road companions with a little more respect. This Altmer has proven herself an able and sound worker, and the Breton...I sense he may have hidden abilities and depths of character not yet revealed."

He extended his hand in a gesture of friendship. "I am Danar Saren, by the way. I am blessed by the Gods and the Government to serve as a captain of the Buoyant Armigers, an occupation I do not take lightly. What might your name be?"

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Near Ald-Ruhn

Imsin tilted her head slightly. "Do as you please, Joshua Lowry. But I do ask that you not get killed. I don't need your blood on my conscience. At the first sign of trouble you fall back."

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Vivec, Foreign Quarter

The Bosmer sprinted full speed up the steep incline leading towards the commons. He was only stopped a time or two by Ordinators, but upon flashing his Legion badge and parchment, it was clear he was not a thief or a rogue and he was allowed to pass. He burst through the front doors of the Fighters Guild hall and then assumed a walking pace. The first person he met was a rugged looking Redguard in netch armor . "Hile, my good man. I have an important message for your Master. May I speak to Percius Mercius?"

"You may. But allow me to escort you." was the gruff reply. The made their way downstairs. Into a dimly lit office they went, and found Percius dressed in upper-middle class attire, his famous Netch armor and weapons laid asside as he assumed the more formal duties of the Fighters Guild, reviewing new rules and regulations as well as news from Cyrodill's own guildmaster, Modryn Oreyn. He glanced up as Raig led the Bosmer into the room. "Yes? May I help you?"

The Bosmer handed him the parchment and he began to read, his eyes darkening. "So.. the situation is getting worse. I understand..the Legion needs the help of my Guild in clearing out these Ant colonies. Perhaps it's best if I assemble the other Guild Hall leaders as well as the Arch Mage and his assistants as well, and organize a planned assault. We may even employ the Thieves Guild, for I know for a fact that Crazy-Legs Arantamo is an honorable man, who would be willing to lend me a few skilled Nightblades and Acrobats for this mission. I thank you for this information, my good man. Please rest yourself in this guild hall before returning to your superior officer. You may use our food and sleep in one of our beds. Now Raig, come with me. It's time we visited Skink at the Mage's guild."

ooc: oh good, your still around. I was anxious to continue
~~~
She Dunmer gave them all a scanning look but figured to address Danar
"I am Dar-ahet. My profession isent something important or at least if it was its not something I'd share likely. What might I ask is bringing the attention of necromancers to you in any case?"

Vanessa "probably just a ...then again necromancers are rearely random."
~~~
Joshua lowly nods in understanding and with great speed and agility sprints up ahead

"Ay, dat true. When one o' dem practitioners o' da necromancies is around, dere's gotta be a reason." Abel mused, as he haughtily marched along with the group. "I remember da last time dere were necromancers makin' a fuss 'round Hammerfell. Dey say dat the King of Worms wanted da Mantella for some reason. But dat can't be true...the Champion would never leave something that powerful in the hands of such a wicked man like that!" The rest of the group were surprised that Abel had managed to say something rather enlightened and in correct grammar, but said nothing. Abel then continued to blabber about his delusions of grandeur.
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ooc: Is there any background information that says if someone that's already been revived can be brought back again? Because if you haven't found him yet, Lord Kain's undead keleton is hidden in Battlehorn Castle, so one could assume that Bendu re-killed him when he took the Castle, and I think it would be fun if by some coincidence, Mannimarco picked Lord Kain as one of the agents to be revived, and then Abel would happen to run into the skeleton of the very same man he thinks he is.

ooc: I think thats a clever idea we should go with it. er.. I'll post after Harido does.

ooc: Brilliant idea...we'll get to the Cyrodill part of the story soon enough. We'll encounter the castle during that stage, which will be the main stretch of the Silver Hand saga, as I'm planning it. I have only a vague outline. Mannimarco will probably throw as many champions at our heroes as Rita Repulsa did to the Power Rangers. It's easy when you're a God of Undeath, afterall..just find a nasty baddie who's already dead and reanimate him. I assume any dead body or wraith can be resurrected multiple times. After all, in the game you can reanimate the same corpse with Reanimate infinite times.

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Near Ghostgate


Danar frumpled his brow in thought, pondering at the presence of the Necromancer for some moments, and spoke.

"There are a few possible reasons a Necromancer would attack us. I'll have to consult my Master with the information about the attack. He probably knows more about them than I do, since he's the head of our order and has studied Necromancers extensively. My personal theory is that they're desperate and disorganized due to the death of Mannimarco at the hands of Bendu Olo. What a mighty Champion that man was! A shame he had to depart this dimension .. in any regard, as I was saying, without a leader it's possible the Necromancers are scattered and delusional, attacking people like common bandits."

He noticed the skeptical looks of his companions, and hesitantly spoke again. "There is...of course, another possibility. It's possible they've got something to do with this ant colony thing, and perhaps they're pissed off that we're killing their pets off. I don't like the implications of that line of thought, though. Like I said, I'll have to report it to the Master. Nothing we need concern ourselves with at this very moment. Let's all get back to Ghostgate and rest ourselves. Dar-Ahet is welcome to tag along too, if she wishes."

He sheathed his weapon and calmly resumed his march back home, waving his companions with a hand.

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Near The Cavern of Milk

The combined forces of the Redoran and Imperial Legion approached the cavern near Ald-Ruhn. Imsin halted the company again and the men hid behind some boulders, as Joshua Lowry sprinted ahead stealthily, flanked by a few other scouts at a distance. A few ants stirred around outside the entrance, but the forces were not ready to charge in yet. They needed to know how best to assess the situation.

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Mages Guild headquarters, Foreign Quarter, Vivec


"Honored guest..what is it?" asked Skink-In-Tree's-Shade, the Arch Mage of Vvardenfel, turning in his rotating chair, his fine red robes hanging off his thin but athletic limbs.

Percius Mercius greeted him with a curt handshake and sat down across from him. "My friend, it would appear that the Legions are calling for all guilds loyal to the Empire to send reinforcements to Red Mountain soon to assault the main ant colony there. Things could get dicey, so I'm asking you if I can rely on a batallion of trained Battlemages and Spellswords to help in the offensive."

Skink stroked his reptillian beard thoughtfully, his fingernails stroking the loose flap of skin under his neck. "Hmmmm....I do suppose that it is my duty as Archmage to help my fellow guilds of the Empire. I have a few skilled Battlemages here in Vivec city, and I am confident that I can summon more from the other guild halls."

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The Revenant, waters of Oblivion

The massive God-planet rotated slowly around the Mundus, through the infinite and black waters of Oblivion. It was the Sphere of Mannimarco, its own twisted version of a Prince. On the highest mountain of this barren, desolate world sat a twisted city of black stone, from which rose a massive thorny castle. In the uppermost terrace was a massive throneroom, filled with hooded dancing female ghouls, and on a throne of black stone, twenty feet high, sat the twisted visage of the God of Worms, a massive Lich whose attire was a mixture of flowing red robes and armor which appeared to be made from the bones of ogres or some other large humanoids. The only face visible underneath his massive hood was two glowing red eyes, intense as rubies. He glared into a massive portal, at the image of a mortal Nord sorcerer, at the Altar of Worms. Mannimarco raised a finger and sent a shaft of pure energy through the portal down into Mundus, to reanimate the corpse of Azani Blackheart. His Champion arose.

"Azani Blackheart..you now serve Mannimarco, King of Worms. Your task shall be to guard this temple. Do not fail me."

King of Worms turned his dark gaze upon his faithful Nord. "As for you...I need to you collect me a Daedric Artifact - the Skull of Corruption. It was won by Bendu Olo before his...Apotheosis into Sheogorath. But before he left this plane, he gave it to one of his companions, whom was turned into a vampire and now leads a small clan in an abandoned Imperial fort known as Forth Hastrel. He is the Patriarch of this group, a powerful Khajiit Acrobat in life, now a servant of Molag Bal. However, he has some influence as a Vampire Lord in his section of Cyrodill. If you could persuade the Vampires to join me you could avoid killing them. If they won't join me, kill every vampire in the fort, burn their remains and bring their ashes to me along with the Skull."

The Nord bowed deeply, and wordlessly turned to do the will of his master.

Dar-ahet considered her options carefully but finaly spoke
"very well. As we share a common foe I suppose it would be fitting to join you. I cannot work myself to hard ither and need rest. Very well I shall accomapny you."

Vanessa wispers to Abel "Yea, just make sure to keep an eye on this one. Somethings fishy about her."
~~~
Joshua lowly looked about and searched the land carefully. finaly sure of the area and the ants about he turned to head back to the others to report.

ooc: I'm going to allow some time for the main group to travel to Ghostgate, so I'll skip that little group for this post, so as to focus on narrative and larger world events.

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Near The Cavern of Milk

The white-haired Nord commander, Imsin the Dreamer, turned her head. She had been well trained to detect the subtle sounds of a returning scout. She was one Nord whom it would be very hard to ever assassinate. "Report, Joshua. Are there many?"

Meanwhile..inside the cave...away from the eyes of the scouts...

The Worm Anchorite, a Dunmer female in black Necromancer robes with her face obscured by a hood, was finalizing a dark ritual deep within the chamber. All around her in a circle lay the skeletal remains of Dunmer, recently dug up from their graves. These were Redoran soldiers who died fighting the Daedra invasion, and now their corpses would serve the King of Worms in defending the cavern. Little did the foolish Imperials and Redoran know that this was not going to be any simple bug hunt. The Queen regarded all this with disinterest. She had been bred and trained to ignore and not attack the Necromancers or their allies. The Anchorite smirked. "The fools will all die..fresh corpses for my Lord."

---------------------------------------------

The Revenant

Mannimarco drummed his bony fingers on his chair arm, considering the Artifacts spread across Tamriel his minions would have to collect for him to make his physical return easier. "I can not cross the borders into the Mundus in my full glory. That ignoramus Martin Septim has ensured that. However, with enough artifacts and a suitable body..."

His dark eyes scanned the massive viewing globe before him. He could not see the past, present and future like Hermeus Mora could, but he could see every dead thing that ever gasped its last breath. He could locate a powerful body to inhabit. The last Avatar he'd created had been identical to the body he'd been born in many centuries earlier. It was completely beyond his power to clone or recreate his original body now that the barriers between worlds were closed, so he'd have to settle for another body with a large capacity to hold power.

"I suppose I should begin by feeling for the bodies of creatures or people the more recent do-gooders of Tamriel have slain. The Nerevarine and Bendu Olo probably slew some beings of magical potency."

He crossed his fingers and stared into the globe for long periods of time. "Hmph...two Umbras dead within a ten year period. Pathetic...their bodies were not made for magic anyway. Powerful fighters, yes. I'll have to remind some of my Worm Anchorites to resurrect the corpses of that Orc and Bosmer for my army. Naturally without the sword they won't be near as effective but...still, impressive warriors."

His eyes shifted a bit to the left. "A Unicorn was slain recently. Amusing. A magical creature indeed, but I'd prefer a body in which I could communicate with my followers, or red and write. Heh...a novel concept but I'll pass. Still...it may make me a fine steed if I can properly corrupt it. Yes...I'll keep that in mind."

Finally, his eyes widened as he gazed upon just the right body. If skulls could smirk, an evil smile would have been upon his face. In an ancient Ayleid ruin, a huge, armored Elf lay dead. Umaril the Unfeathered no longer had any soul at all. He was completely dead in all planes of existence and would never return. However, he left behind a Necromancer's dream - a divine body, which could not decompose - part Elf, part Daedra, part Divine. A vessel large enough and powerful enough to hold the King of Worms. Mannimarco's evil laugh filled his castle at this epiphany. "Excellent..EXCELLENT...and a full blooded Elf no less! Oh, won't they tremble before me when I inhabit THAT body!"

But he knew that time was not yet come. Many artifacts must be sacrificed beforehand, to make way for the soul transfer. He growled deep within his hood and smashed his bony fist against the stone chair arm, grumbling at the limitations of his mortal underlings, and their insistence upon performing every task with tedious slowness...

Josua lowry nodded and gave his report in every detail that he could discribe. He listed the placement of the ants in general, the outlaying land with its high and lower land and everything else that he witnessed.

The Cavern of Milk

Athyn Sarethi had overheard the reports as well, and stepped forward in his fine Redoran Grandmaster's armor, wielding his ebony blade. "Imsin, I am going to personally lead some of Redoran's elite crusaders inside there as well, for the honor of my people. Don't try to talk me out of it."

The Nord captain looked him over and nodded. "As you wish, Lord Sarethi. You have as much stake in this as we do. It's your town, afterall, and that man whom was killed worked for you. I won't try to stop you, but I must warn you to pull out if things get dicey. You're a noble..there's no need to risk your life. You're worth more to the Empire and to your own people alive than dead."

Sarethi nodded, and motioned for two of his bodyguards to come forward. Elite Redoran Watchmen, one wearing full bonemold except for the trademark mushroom helmet, and wielding a glass spear. The other wore Netch Leather and wore gauntlets with knives attached to the knuckles. Sarethi reached back and untied the ceremonial cape attached to his own armor, knowing it could be a liability in a combat situation, and handed it off to an aide. He regarded Joshua. "You want to come with my group, young man, or with the Imperials?"

Meanwhile, all around them in the makeshift camp, fighters guild mercenaries were suiting up, and the Legionaires were sharpening their blades in anticipation.

ooc: Short post...not gonna progress the larger story much until this little loose end is tied up. Accounting for the time it takes for our heroes to travel to Ghostgate on foot anyway, and for the time it takes the Nord to collect the daedric artifact.

Joshua responded with a deep bow
"I feel honred to be invited and will glady accompany you in such a noble cause."

OOC: yea, I cant make much a large post now anyway untill we resume work on the ghostgate. but you gotta consider that Druza cant do anything untill that happens because he's using only one charicter and i dont want him to feel left out.

ooc: Fair point. Durza, if you're keeping tabs, I'm not trying to snub you - just keep all the simultaneous events at a realistic comparative scale. After the next post by myself and Orcbrother I'll zoom back to Ghostgate.

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Milk

Lord Sarethi kicked in the door to the cavern himself, and thrust his sword forward. "REDORAN, CHARGE!"

The Redoran warriors rushed in first. It was their town and their battle, after all. Legionaire footmen followed hot on their heels, flanked by Battlemages and mercenary Fighters, mostly dressed in Netch leather wielding crude but effective weapons.

Imsin charged in on the rear with several of the support units and healers. She was a Dreamer, an adept in Mysticism, and used her abilities to Soulseek. Her eyes were weak in the opening chamber of the cavern but her mind could detect the living presence of the ants, and she directed different groups of soldiers to different corners of the cavern. She turned her attention to Joshua "Be careful. If you are injured, fall back to my position. My personal Healer will take care of you." She pointed to the tall Altmer gentleman to her right, in brown Monk robes.

Suddenly, an Ant jumped from the shadows, its maw open, but Imsin spun around much faster than her appearances and heavy armor would make it seem she was able, and sliced its head off with her standard issue Broadsword. "Little bastard." she snarled in a thick Nord accent, spitting on the corpse.

Up ahead, Lord Sarethi and his elite fighters were pressing deeper and deeper into the cavern. No casualties yet. Plenty of dead ants lay on either side of the main attack force. The Watchman with the claws ripped an ant in two pieces, while Lord Sarethi himself performed a fancy spinning move with his Ebon blade, decapitating a worker ant.

"Company, halt momentarily. Everyone see a healer if you have burns or other wounds. Up ahead is a fork, one side leading to the egg chamber presumably. The other to the Queen. We should rest and formulate a strategy...what the HELL?"

A large Skeleton champion dressed in Bonemold armor appeared from nowhere, hitting Sarethi across the chest with his claymore and wounding him. He bled through the gash in his armor, and his two bodyguards dragged him away to a healer. "His Lordship is injured..please help him!"

The Altmer knelt by his side and used a spell, attempting to slow the bleeding. Sarethi's wounds were pretty serious and it wasn't clear if he was going to survive. The room was flooded with Skeletons suddenly, all of them powerful and wielding two handed weapons. The melee began to turn in the other direction. Redoran soldiers and Legionaires began falling dead, as the Warrior Ants entered the room as well, tearing through the ranks with powerful fire spells and melee attacks.

"This doesn't look good..." Imsin said "Battlemages, try to beat them back with Destruction spells. Sorcerers, conjure some Daedra... we need more allies quickly. Healers, attend to the fallen. Archers, support fire now!"

Soldiers scrambled into position as another man was killed, an Orc mercenary. His leather armor did little to protect his vital organs when one of the Warrior ants clamped his jaws onto the man's midsection, cutting him in half.

Things were looking bad.

No, it's all right. I'm fine waiting. We're just walking right now so there's no need for any role playing. When we get an opportunity, I'll come back in.

Dispite Lowrys lack of arms and armor he was proving himself to be a great asset. He palmed one skeletal champion sending its head off and roundhouse kicked another caveing in its ribs. The heaver two handed weapons the skeletons weilded proved to be less effective agisnt him as he would evade there attack then counter with one of his own. Takeing a sword from one of the fallen undead he thrust it through anothers ribcage into an ant pining both to the ground. every spare second he got he cast a short restoration or shild spell on himself but he knew things were turning for the worse. Even though his hands were leathal wepaons he started helping using his agility to help those who were overcome and disloge one or more of there attackers. Ocasionaly he would cast a touching heal spell on another comrade but even his stanima and Magicka were not limitless

Milk

In a blinding flash of light followed by black smoke, the female Dunmer Necromancer appeared in the middle of the room. With a wave of her hand the defeated skeletons and dead ants began to reanimate. Even worse, the dead Imperials and Redoran soldiers also reanimated and began attacking their former allies. Sarethi exhanged a glance with the Orc fighter captain and Imsin the dreamer. He called out "Retreat, everybody, now! We can not win this battle."

The healed but still wounded and weak Lord Sarethi personally pulled a young injured Khajiit archer out of the path of a charging skeleton, and he decapitated the thing with his blade, stomping the skull to make it harder to reanimate. "Joshua...come with me. No use fighting here. The Necromancer is too powerful. Must fall back to Ald 'Ruhn and barricade the city..think of a new plan. Come on!"

He waved Joshua away from combat as the troops began an orderly retreat out of the area, lesser armored and weaker fighters falling back first as heavily armored footmen held the line as best they could.