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Darkness
Chronicles: Part 1
Two Soldiers of Darkness, lost after a return
from a Dungeon where they had just recently slain the remainder
of the Ogre infestation of a nearby town stumble towards a run-down
farm. Laying next to one of the fields was a small dilapidated
cottage. Although this cottage did not look the safest of places,
it was getting dark, and the two men decided there would be the
safest of places nearby to rest for the night and get their bearings
in the morning when the visibility was better. The two Soldiers,
Darius and Azhemin, bearing the symbol of the Dragon and the Moon
on their chests walked into this cottage to surprisingly see an
Old Man in a rocking chair, his hands clasped together, almost
awaiting their arrival.
Darius and Azhemin looked to each other with a puzzled look on
their faces, and then back to the Old Man to greet him. "Good
Evening Sir, we mean you no harm. We expected this place to be
abandoned", stated Azhemin.
The Old man replied, "Oh no, as you see it isn't… please
come in, rest your weary bones, and give this Old Man some company
tonight". "Much appreciated," as Darius nodded,
and began to lay his equipment on the flood and take a seat.
Azhemin followed as the Old Man began once more, "Those symbols
on your chests… I've seen them before, but not for a very
long time." "We are Lost Soldiers of Darkness!"
exclaimed Darius with some pride gleaming from him.
The Old Man began to chuckle and Darius quickly replied, "Do
you find humor in this!?!" as he rose from his chair, obviously
very insulted by the remark.
"No no, sit sit… I mean you no insult," he stated
as the Old Man continued to chuckle, even with Darius, a large
sized fellow, geared up from head to toe in full-plate and looking
quite menacing. "A new recruit I take it?"
"I'm not new, I've been a member for 4 months!" he replied.
"That's pretty new in my books…" Darius sat back
down and scoffed.
Azhemin turned to Darius and said, "Darius, do not shame
our guild by not showing to be a good guest to our host here."
Darius soon wised up, as he knew Azhemin to be right.
"Well then, as I was saying, it has been far too long since
I've see the Dragon and the Moon together in harmony anywhere
in these lands. I have known of your guild far before even the
Golden Age, to the formation of your fine guild."
"Everyone knows how it was formed", Azhemin replied.
"It's imperative that all Soldiers know our fable history".
"Ahh, yes but do they know they period of the guild's Banishment?"
retorted the Old Man.
"You mean of Lord Nasher's ancestors curse on the Lord Avatar
to the Abyssal Plane?" replied Azhemin.
"Yes… the 100 years of torture those poor souls went
through. It was terrible," spoke the Old Man. "No one
knows of that era, not even Lothar!" blurted Darius. "Only
the Founding 5 know," Azhemin interjected, "and they
have long since disappeared".
"That's because Lothar never went through that portal, he
remained in Neverwinter while his brother Darkness and the others
disappeared".
"How do you know all this old man?" asked Azhemin…
The Old Man quickly cut Azhemin short, not even answering his
question and continued talking…
"To understand what happened, you have to understand the
Abyssal Plane. It's a place unknown to most, you have to be there
to fully comprehend it, but I'll try to explain it to you. Every
second of your existence… there's war. From the moment you
enter, till your last breath."
The Old Man looked down at the floor as he was speaking, with
a certain look on pain in his face…
"The moment they entered they were under siege. It was impossible
to avoid it. It seemed they stumbled upon a battlefield of rival
kingdoms, and they joined to eliminate the newest threat"
The old man closed his eyes and a visible shudder overtook him.
The images were so fresh in his memory, almost like a reoccurring
nightmare…
"In the first few moments, many died. Some men and women
of incredible power, it was all for naught. No matter how many
they killed the Horde kept rushing on."
The old man was sweating profusely, his fists gripping onto the
arms of the chair, visibly shaken from the retelling of this story.
Darius and Azhemin looked at each other, and then back at the
old man, skeptical that this was the true history of their guild.
Then again, they were intrigued and allowed him to continue uninterrupted.
"There was Tyglacerin, the Strong, whose mighty sweeps with
his halberd kept the hordes at bay, until the soldiers could find
their bearings and organize an effective counterattack. Lady Eramus,
who fell to the ground, going beyond her physical means to launch
barrage after barrage of magic. Lady Anduisua and Lady Bartolea,
two of the highest noblewomen of old Neverwinter, picking up the
arms of fallen soldiers and charging into combat, alongside the
common soldiers. Karnnon, the Quick danced along battle lines,
his daggers silencing the voices of the Horde commanders, even
before they knew he was alongside them.
"As you know, the Lost Soldiers of Darkness are trained
excellently, but they derived their strength from their leader…
the King Abyss, who at this point was still weak and unable to
stand due to The Curse that was placed upon him"
The old man sighed and continued...
"It took them the better half of an hour to find a defensible
position, an abandoned castle, and it was then that they started
to hold back the enemy. It was a great sight to see, the soldiers
of darkness at their best, the full glory of battle spread out
before them. The only regret these soldiers had is that none of
the daring exploits of their fellow warriors would ever be known
to the sages and the bards of the time.
In the minutes that followed, one by one, the heroes of the army
were struck down…
Tyglacerin was overwhelmed when he charged the first wave by
himself, ordering his men to stay and protect the Fallen King.
Even after taking more than twenty arrows to the chest, he still
managed to continue fighting, when his halberd broke, he used
the bodies of the fallen to continue to battle. It took the better
half of a hundred men to bring him to his knees, and eventually
behead him.
Lady Eramus awoke in time to launch one final barrage of magic
into the horde. Hundreds of men and beasts died in those seconds,
but her assault left her lying lifeless on the floor, her body
drained by the magic that had coursed through her body.
Karnnon led the first group to secure the castle, the resident
of the castle, a great wyrm, and him battled to a stalemate until
he let the wyrm swallow him, just to kill the beast from within.
Karnnon's body was never found…
Lady Andrusia and Lady Bartolea volunteered for the rear guard
as the army withdrew to the castle, as the main group left, they
were seen to be overwhelmed. They, along with a hundred of the
army's bravest died in that glorious battle, so as to distract
the horde for the King's body to be moved into the castle to be
revived."
The Old Man stopped talking for awhile, and stared blankly into
the fireplace. Azhemin glanced over at Darius once again and knew
they were thinking the same thing… This man talks of this
like he was there. Yet none of the people he's mentioned was in
the lore of the guild. Obviously there was more to this old man
than your common farmer. Either that or he was extremely senile
and took a clever turn to the history of their guild. Before either
of them could place their thoughts to words, the old man continued…
"It was in the final moments when it happened. The King
awoke from his brush with death and with a roar, stood up, in
the courtyard of his new castle. His soldiers around him…
many nursing injuries; but none of them would stop fighting. He
glanced around him to see many of his best men defeated. There
were only four left, Eclips, The Holy, Pyscho, the Dark, and Dragon,
the Shadow. Those three were the Commanders of each division in
the army; their worth was proven to him time and time again. The
last one was a brash young knight, who had not yet proven himself
to the king, but showed enormous potentional. He came to be the
last of the Founding 5, Lord Darkness.
The King grabbed his sword from his scabbard and raised it into
the air, his soldiers rallied around him and at that most inopportune
moment, the gates crashed down as the horde streamed in. With
the king back among his soldiers and leading each charge, the
horde was driven back to whence they came."
The old man stopped there and leaned against the chair, thick
beads of sweat could be seen on his forehead, as if the recounting
of this story took something out of him.
Darius leaned forward and stared at the old man…
"Who are you??"
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Darkness
Chronicles: Part 2
Coming Soon...
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Part
I:
A hundred years ago, Lord
Nasher's ancestor beat back a great horde of men, in a titanic
battle, the Lord Avatar slew Nasher's ancestor, but was driven
back by his Army. The
dark army fought valiantly, but was defeated. Many were killed,
but none of them deserted. Using every last ounce of magic he
had left, Nasher's ancestor cast the Lord Avatar and his army
into the abyss. Then, before Nasher's ancestor could finish
Sealing the portal, and finishing
his curse, he died. Until a couple of Moons ago,
a hurt, but Mighty Dragon stumbled onto a Tablet...
On it was scribed:
"The Strong, Made Weak,
But Will Return;
By Fault of A Dying King,
For His Curse Was Deterred,"
In the background of the tablet,
was an insignia of a Dragon flying in the air with the Moon behind
him. The Dragon, seeing no harm, flew up to the reflection of
the full moon, and assumed the pose in the tablet. Then, the tablet
grew, and locked itself into a wall. It slowly grew into a portal,
and out stepped the Lord Avatar. The Dragon Flew Down, and instantly,
felt healed, just being in the presence of this man. The Lord
Avatar looked at the Dragon, and claimed "DeathWing, Our Savior!"
as he raised a sword into the air. The Dragon Roared out its approval.
The Lord Avatar then said. "100 years have passed since
our exile into the abyss.
Freed by the power of the
Moon and the Dark Dragon ... we are finally back. Now we have
made our way back to NeverWinter. Now we wait for the day where we can reclaim
our lost positions as rulers of NeverWinter and spread our power.
Then the throne of Lord Nasher will once again be in the hands
of the Lord Avatar!!" The Soldiers who stepped out of the portal
yelled out their encouragement.
------------------------------------------------1
year later------------------------------------------------
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(During the next year LSD grew and prospered, but the Lord
Avatar did not look as strong as he once looked.
It seemed that the Lord Avatar had grown ill and could
no longer support his own guild.
It was said when the Ancestor of Nasher cast the Lord Avatar
into the Abyss; he also put a curse on him that would one-day
kill him. Because
the Lord Avatar was sick there was not a true leader to look to,
The High Council Members had all been putting in their best to
deal with the responsibilities of GM.
No ordinary person could run this job, though the Lord
Avatar was no person, he himself was a Deity.
LSD started to lose spirit.
A war started, but it was not with another guild; it was
us).
The Remaining Soldiers Sauntered
into the new found Guild Hall. There was destruction everywhere.
The only thing that remained unscathed was the Dragon Insignia
painted on the floor of the High Council room where many members
knelt while they asked questions and thanked them for their promotions.
Many of their fellow soldiers now lay dead on the ground. Slowly,
they moved around and tried to figure out what went wrong. The
memories came back to them, as a nightmare always reoccurs.
The enemies of LSD Poured into the Courtyard, and Many
Brave soldiers rushed head on, to slow their advance. Many a Brave
soldier died that hour. They made their advance into the Base
of LSD, and into the Grand Hall. There, the weakened Lord Avatar,
and his most trusted companions waited for the enemy. A great
battle raged, but in the end, the weakened Lord Avatar was slain,
and so were most of his members.
This man may have not won if the Lord Avatar was at his
full strength. Then someone spoke; " It was all the Lord
Avatar's Fault!" yelled one rebellious soldier. " It was..."
A Bolt of Lightning stole
his next Word. He looked down Stupidly, and saw the Hole in his
chest. He fell onto his knees, and dropped dead. All eyes went
to the door. Standing there, was a man, Dressed in all black,
with the Dragon Insignia on his Platemail. His Gauntlet glowed;
Blue from the Lightning Bolt.
All was silent when he walked to the center of the room.
" Our Lord Avatar, is Dead, and we, the remaining faithful, have
come back, to fulfill his Dying Wish. We Lost that War, not because
of our Lord Avatar, But because of our Own Weakness.
We were once the Lost Soldiers, but we are no more. We
have found a place in NeverWinter. We have found a purpose in
our meager lives. We will avenge our Lord Avatar, and fulfill
his Wish. We will become the guild, which all will fear. The simple
mentioning of our name, will strike fear into people's hearts."
The Lord Avatar's powers left his body and took the form
of DeathWing, it then spoke, "Though my body is dead my power
remains, and I can carry it in one of you, though this may not
be anybody, it must be one of leadership and commitment.
You, you are the one." As the Lord Avatar pointed to a
man dripped in blood from the fight in the back of the crowd.
Bent over taking huge breathes the man stepped forward
to reveal his face. It was Lothar, Holy Knight of the First
Knights and High Council member.
Lothar walked towards the Dragon.
He then got down on one knee and bowed his head to the
mighty beast. "Lothar, you have shown yourself worthy
of Being a true leader and spent hours on end to satisfy the needs
of our members weather they be Dragon Knight or Squire. That is what a real leader is about, suiting
the needs of thy members.
You shall now behold the powers of the Dragon and the Moon;
you shall decide weather the Darkness reigns over the sun covered
by the Moon. Though your powers may be weakened at
first, you'll soon be at full power in no time. If you are to venture outside this Plane,
you shall experience the same thing, though your powers will come
back slower, you are no longer a man, you are now a God, a Deity,
an Avatar!
-------------------------------------------Many
Months Later-------------------------------------------
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As the New Lord Avatar stepped
in as the new Guild Master, and sat in the royal throne, he thought
how the old Lord Avatar left him with much work to be done.
He said, "I cannot take this sitting down."
He stood up and quickly ran to his quarters. For days and nights he say at his desk
writing new ideas for the guild.
He only hoped the guild could support itself while he tried
to turn the guild around.
After weeks of work at his table, Lothar noticed change
in the guild. Though
many did not see the improvements because things were not good,
they were just better. Lothar
chose a new Ranking system which many objected to, but was harder
for members to attain the positions sitting below High Council,
instead members had less quests to do and more leadership skills
to show. After two
weeks Lothar had worked at his new job well but there wasn't enough
time and members were getting impatient. One night he went walking through the
halls of the Head Quarters and glanced at the Bulletin Board and
noticed a new post. It
read, "NeverWinter has been attack by a powerful wizard."
Lothar thought it was a joke, he thought how one human
could conquer all of the NWs and all the guilds including the
Soldiers of Darkness be destroyed.
Although; if it was true, not even he could stop it because
his powers were not at full power yet.
He woke the next day walking down the same hall and noticed
it was covered with new posts from every single member in LSD.
Lothar's heart started to beat faster.
As he read the unbelievable letters he thought to himself,
"Why now?" He started to pace back and forth in his
quarters. He then
sat back at his table and began to write his own letter, actually
they were not letters, they were more like speeches.
He was finally ready to make his speech, he told a private
to gather a meeting in the Guild Hall.
As he stepped to the stand, many members were puzzled what
this was about. He then spoke, "Loyal Members of
LSD, we have faced everything imaginable that could go wrong in
a guild and have overcome them.
If we joined with our allies and enemies we can easily
destroy any Wizard weather he be Elminster himself!
The time has come where every single guild in NeverWinter
has a common enemy and we shall lead this fight to victory."
Although the Lord Avatar had no idea how powerful this
man was, his members took it well, as they all charged at the
assault. The Wizard
barely moved as he cast wishes upon wishes of death and decay.
This war of NeverWinter versus one Man went on for almost
2 months. Finally someone fell, though it was not
the Wizard, the walls of NeverWinter collapsed and soon the Lost
Soldiers of Darkness no longer had a headquarters to go back to. Lothar motioned his men to retreat to
LongSaddle, which still stood.
Their LSD made camp and Lothar said, "I need Scouts on
the Double…who shall volunteer?"
Every single member rose their hands, "good then, lets
get to work!" For the next few weeks members were cast
into other realms: Through the teleporters, to other planes in
LongSaddle Under. The
first Realm to be discovered was the land of Britannia.
Although this land was new, and huge, it was also blocked
from getting to as of yet.
Only through the pools of guidance, could you see the land
that showed much to stare about, though it would have to wait,
and LSD kept looking.
The next place to be found
was plainly called The Realm.
A name used by a lot of people for the city of NeverWinter
and its surroundings. Dough, the new AGM of LSD and Ace, the
Captain of the Darkness Elite both journeyed there and had settled
down. They sent word that weather or not LSD
went here, this is where they would be.
This put the Guild in a problem….
We later moved to The Realm,
but our stay there wasn't too long, the mist soon rose and the
world was mostly destroyed as well as our strengths, the mists
made us weaker, and we quickly retreated to another land we had
heard of which was called Britannia.
This world was much larger, a most powerful goal to try
and accomplish. The
Soldiers were up to the job.
It shall be our home, now and forever, and if anything
ever comes to attack it again, we will be ready for it, because…
"We are Soldiers, and we do what is expected of
us."
---------------------------------------Another
Year Later---------------------------------------
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After the Lost Soldiers of
Darkness members settled into their new land
of Britannia
,
some members lost interest in their current homes. They wished
to seek new lands and hopefully find some of their friends and
members that had disappeared after the destruction of NeverWinter.
While this was happening, the Lord Avatar encountered some internal
problems. He felt weary from the overwork he was doing for the
guild. His solution was to step down as Lord Avatar and hand the
powers over to Taran, the current Baron of LSD. Taran was disappointed
that Lothar was joining the Elder Council and leaving Britannia,
although honored to be crowned Lord Avatar and sit on the royal
throne in the Head Quarters of the Lost Soldiers of Darkness Camp.
Many members were feeling down for Lothar leaving, but Lothar
told them even though he would no longer be Lord Avatar, he would
be there for anybody needing aid. The members took note of his
words and continued to work at our goal and not give up faith
that one-day, the destiny of the Lost Soldiers of Darkness would
come true and they would be the strongest and largest guild the
realms had ever seen. Both good and evil would fear them, for
they show the dedication to achieve immortality and supremeness!
Unfortunately, things did
not turn out the way everyone wanted it to go. Members spent little
time going out of their homes and continuing the legacy that is
and was LSD. Lothar remained Dormant himself while Taran worked
hard to keeps things alive. He himself, regretfully, did not have
much time to do his duties. The guild suffered terribly, but there
was nothing he could do for LSD. LSD still had not reached its
golden age once again, and members wondered if it would ever get
to the size it once was. Lothar reappeared once in awhile to see
how things were going, he felt sad that things weren't in the
best of shape, but it was no longer his duties. He was now just
another elder, there to watch and give guidance to those who needed
it. Members started to get upset with what was happening, and
a little power struggle arose which was quickly extinguished by
the Lord Avatar and the Elders. People started talking about wanting
to change the whole system of things because they weren't working
for the guild in its current size. The High Council agreed as
well.
One day Taran met up with
Lothar and Dough, who was once the other Baron and now another
Elder. They met up in Britannia and sat down to discuss the fate
of LSD. They spoke of how and what would be done to restructure
the charter and then the guild. Taran said if he had some work
lifted off his back, he would be able to do what he's been trying
to do for a year, and that was to summon forth the power of the
"web" to create a "Lost Soldiers of Darkness Home Page." This
would surely aid us in making new recruits join the guild. The
only problem is that he wouldn't be able to do this while being
Lord Avatar for the other problems he has to deal with. Lothar
knew what Taran was getting at, but he wasn't at leisure to take
up the responsibility with that power again. Taran just came out
with the question asking if Lothar would return as Lord Avatar
and lead them to their Golden Age again. Lothar agreed and once
again, the powers of the Deity, the Lord Avatar were passed back
to him. His elderly age regressed back to an immortal with the
power of DeathWing, and the Essence of the Moon. Thus the renewing
of the Lost Soldiers of Darkness begins….
------------------------------------A
Year And A Half Later-------------------------------------
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The first step the Lord Avatar
took once he came back was from the advice and knowledge of a
new land. Norrath, a place that had been discovered by several
people. Many old members who had left Britannia and ones who have
been waiting patiently for a place they could call home were to
move here. The Lord Avatar took up the opportunity to gain a foothold
in these new lands with many other members. Over the next few
months, our numbers grew rapidly there. While Lothar maintained
both the rank of Abyssal Lord and Lord Avatar for the infancy
of this Division, he finally thought it time for his second in
command, Ace, now known to all as Azrael to be given the powers
to command the legions of the division.
Lothar returned to Britannia
to find it doing quite well under the command of Abyssal Lord
Belzadar and Baron Gorath. Numbers had risen to new highs here,
and we had hit a short Golden Age. Anywhere you would go, you’d
see a Soldier of Darkness. Unfortunately, history repeated itself
once more for LSD. Just like the great influx in Neverwinter,
where in a few months, we went from the 5 founding members, to
100 strong, LSD shook at its peak, and the numbers came crumbling
down, things went bad for awhile. Belzadar and Gorath were having
less time to share with the guildmates, and so did the Lord Avatar.
This caused a drop in activity.
Meanwhile, in Norrath, Azrael
had worked his magic in raising LSD’s numbers in the now over-populated
lands. Azrael would soon command a size larger than LSD had ever
had, in Britannia or Neverwinter. Lothar was extremely happy to
see this. He then started turning his attention to the expansion
of the Lost Soldiers of Darkness into farther lands. He searched
the waters and lands. To his great surprise more than a handful
of lands were found. Unfortunately, only one of these lands could
be reached. It seemed no one wanted to move these lands though,
so Lothar looked towards other lands. He saw something in the
corner of his eye…
Neverwinter!?! Impossible!
He rubbed his eyes, to see if he was seeing some sort of magical
illusion. NO! It was true, it was there. A sudden emotion came
over the Lord Avatar. Lothar’s birthplace, the birthplace of the
Lost Soldiers of Darkness, and the lands the Lord Avatar had once
controlled was once again there, and not in Ruins, it was almost
like when he had left. Something was different though. He wanted
to check further, but he could not, it was not reachable yet.
Lothar pushed the awesome powers he had gained while in the abyssal
plain, but to no avail, the barrier would not budge. He was shocked,
and furious with this, but he decided to sit and wait and watch.
He spread the word to all of the 12 members that had come with
Lothar out of Neverwinter of the reappearance, and they too felt
a great longing to return, weather or not it may be a different
reality of the original, it was home, their home.
Belzadar’s Division in Britannia
had gone up once more, and regained its foothold, only to have
it fall apart after the betrayal and deception of several members.
The Shadow Guard went into full action once more, after being
dormant for so long, and learned of some interesting things. We
had been scarred, but all was better; or was it? No, we didn’t
regain our numbers, we continued to drop, we had hit an all time
low in Britannia. Why was this? Perhaps the own aging of the lands,
and the appearance of all these new lands, took the good people
from Britannia. The Lord Avatar noticed this to be partially true.
But LSD was at fault also; it had lacked a full High Council for
a long time. It is something he realized needed to be fixed.
Azrael’s Division in Norrath
had hit a peak of 160 members, almost the combined numbers of
the peak
of Neverwinter
and
Britannia combined. New things were happening though, the numbers
went down a bit, but nothing to even fear, and we had become one
of the strongest in the lands. We had also gained great allies.
One that we would soon absorb into our own, nearly doubling our
size. A guild known as Age of Wisdom would soon be known as Lost
Soldiers of Darkness, we would welcome these friends and family
now, and fortify our numbers, and become the largest and most
powerful guild in Norrath!
Unfortunately, Azrael’s time
in Norrath was decreasing fast. He was rarely seen in the lands.
The High Council pleaded for him to do something. He did not respond.
Finally, one member of the High Council, Wistie took a stand,
started pushing to keep Guild Activity going, she had stabilized
a crumbling Division, she also contacted the Lord Avatar for his
advice. Azrael finally returned and saw the wonders Wistie had
done. When Azrael finally stepped down, Lothar had to choose a
New Abyssal Lord, and it came no supprise that Wistie was the
one. She had become our first female Abyssal Lady and helped push
the guild back up on its feet. Finally a sadness came over the
Division held in Norrath. A plague swept over the Soldiers of
Darkness. Several started leaving for new lands, like they were
starting to do in Britannia. Nothing seems to have replaced Neverwinter
as a good home to its most loyal of citizens, the Lost Soldiers
of Darkness. Again the Search was on…
The lands Lothar had found,
were finally almost ready to open their portals to us, and let
up their barriers so that we could traverse to them. Neverwinter
as well as a newer land called Hibernia
awaited
to be populated. This new world, one of great fame, where a king
known as Arthur had pulled a mighty sword called Excalibur out
of a stone once lived in this world. He had passed, and the world
was in a Dark Age, the Neighbors of Albion’s border, the home
from which King Arthur had lived in had declared war on their
lands, and. The Lost Soldiers of Darkness Settled into the mystic
lands of Hibernia
, lands
of the Celts and Elves to fight in this ongoing war. It seemed
fit for us to be in these lands, as it was our fighting nature
as Soldiers.
Gorath who had recently been
appointed to Abyssal Lord after Belzadar had left the lands of
Britannia finally had expressed great interest with several older
member from our days in Neverwinter with also members who had
left Britannia and Norrath to all meet in this new lands. We soon
had easily 30 current members living there within a Moon’s cycle.
We hadn’t even started to recruit and we already had a excellent
number to start a new Division. The best chance yet for LSD. Gorath
took charge in Hibernia
and
worked hard to put things together. Lothar, the Lord Avatar came
to see these new lands as well, not liking them, and quickly going
back to him house in Britannia left the Division up to Gorath,
who he knew it would be in great hands. Gorath was appointed the
new Abyssal Lord of Hibernia. And as the next days came, The Lost
Soldiers were proving they were already one of the greatest guilds
in the lands.
There was yet one last land
to be discovered though. It had been spotted very early on, but
the powers that blocked its entrance were very strong, and would
not let us in. It was a world in total devistation. This new Realm,
although the looks of it at first, with its Black Sun, and blood
soaked soil may not look like somewhere LSD might want to Settle,
it has shown great potential. Unlike the three lands of Hibernia
, Albion
and
Midgard, the land
of Aerynth
is
but one large continent in total anarchy. Guilds fighting against
each other, trying to keep a foothold on their cities, and trying
to gain control of the lands in their name. Lothar thought this
would be yet another excellent chance for the Soldiers to prove
themselves in battle and he saw they were eager to do so. Kael,
who had gone by other such names in the past as Kwargh in Norrath,
and Famine in Neverwinter had taken up the task of running the
Division. He worked hard to assemble the men, and get things set
up early on, which Lothar was very pleased to see. Chaos, now
known as Zilis also was following his long time friend to these
lands with many other older members. It seems the Lost Soldiers
are only getting bigger and better.
While Britannia and Norrath’s
Divisions may be weary, they still persevere. Hibernia
has
proved its potential and soon Aerynth will too and we still wait
for NeverWinter to open its portals where we definitely know LSD
will be rulers once more. We shall see the Lost Soldiers of Darkness
become that of Legends. Are you ready Soldiers?
------------------------------------Almost
Two Years Later--------------------------------------
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The Lost Soldiers of Darkness expaneded, though the occupation
in the lands of Norrath had been given up, the guild still pushed
on. It had been the first time LSD had disbanded a Division,
but it will hopefully be the last. Time passed slowly in
the lands of Britannia, LSD had been there for going on 5 years
now. It had been a home to many for years, including Lothar's.
Even with all the new lands, he still could not give up on the
2nd home he found away from his true home, Neverwinter.
And there was the thing, for the gates to Neverwinter had once
again opened, and what the Soldiers of Darkness had seen was not
of their home at all. It was extremely different and hard
to accept, but try they would for we gave up on Norrath, but we
would not give up on our birthplace. Taran, Lothar's right
hand from when he first took up the arms to lead the guild had
come back, with promises of reclaiming these lands. He more
than anyone wanted it back, and he would win the favor of Lothar
to take command of it, as Abyssal Lord of Neverwinter. The
troops that now existed in the army knew not of our birthplace,
and many were becoming settled in other lands, so it was hard
for the members to flock to this dream-like Neverwinter.
Strength came quickly, almost too quickly. We wondered if
we were really asleep, but it was not a dream, nor a nightmare.
It was a different Neverwinter, a different Faerun.
Gorath had done well as Abyssal Lord of Hibernia. He had
fought valiantly to protect the lands against Midgard and Albion,
their enemies, and formed a great alliance of a dozen so guilds
to group together to eliminate these foes. Lothar had accompanied
Gorath there for the first month of settlement. His patience
with it was not sturdy though, as it was not to his liking.
He felt at odd in the lands, even though so many of his friends
were there. He wished he had given it another chance, but
he kept having the passion going back to Britannia in him.
He unfortunately had other problems as well. For some reason,
the strength he once possesed, as Lord Avatar wasn't there like
it once was. The passion, the driving force to lead had
all but escaped his essence. He wondered for awhile, had
his time come, and why was it so? He never meant to be Guild
Master, he had always admitted it, yet he always felt if he did
not, things would have fallen long ago, and others had agreed,
but who would replace him? The thought of his 2nd in Command
had been an idea. He had done well in his duties in bringing
the guild's numbers up in Britannia while he was resting from
his continual exhaustion. Some had become to know this man
as the only leader of LSD. And thusly so, when Lothar returned,
he felt a power struggle. It would not have been so, if
it were not for his 2nd in Command's refusal to accept that Lothar
was not going anywhere soon, and that for him to ever become Abyssal
Lord, he would have to learn to obey the orders of the Lord Avatar.
Unfortunately, this would not come to pass, and the lies and deciet
would soon unveil itself to the Lord Avatar. His very own
2nd in Command, had betrayed him, taking with him close to half
of the armies of that division with him. He preached, that
LSD was his to care for, and that the current Lord Avatar did
not care for them the way he did. It was obvious those who
left were fooled badly into believing him. He took up arms
against us in an attempt to rouse us to better his cause.
For he knew that the guild that he formed, with the turncoats
of LSD had no cause, and was but a poor clone of the true Soldiers
of Darkness. It is this reason it failed, and it is that
reason why so many of them wished to come back, but were denied.
For they had all done the worst of betrayals, they have committed
Treason against the Lost Soldiers of Darkness and its Leaders.
Those that remained proved their loyalties, and took the Lost
Soldires of Darkness on, into the history books, as it completed
its 5th Anniversary.
Unfortunately, it had seemed that there was something wrong with
Lothar, his powers still growed weak, as if the curse of the Avatar
had still remained with him, even though it had been casted on
and died from. How could he have been affected by this unless
the curse was in fact cast upon the soul of the Lord Avatar, and
not Abyss, the man. For when the powers of the Lord Avatar
passed to Lothar, so too did this curse. He was uncertain
that this was the case, but it had made him much too ill to try
and lead. He did not have the energy for it anymore, and
so, nearly 5 years after leading his troops, Lothar would once
again step down as Lord Avatar. He was certain it was for
good, and he knew that his successor would be able to bear the
burden of the awesome powers that is the Lord Avatar! It
was no supprise to most that Gorath, former Abyssal Lord of Britannia,
and current Abyssal Lord of Hibernia was to become the new Lord
Avatar. As Lothar relenquished the powers of Deathwing over
to Gorath, his body once more shriveled up. His hair grew
increasingly longer, turning a light gray, nearly white.
His strength wavered, with all but a shimmer of strength remaining
in his body. Deathwing's essence once again took shape,
flew into the air and came back down directly in front of Gorath.
"Gorath", he spoke. "You have been chosen among all else
to be the embodyment of what it is to be a leader and you shall
lead the greatest of armies with which to lead. It is this
greatness that I give to you, the new Lord Avatar." And
so Gorath's body filled with the powers of the Moon and the Dragon,
and took his seat on the throne as Lord Avatar. Lothar walked
over to his side, placed his hand on his shoulder and said, "Lead
them well my friend" as he stepped down the stairs that lead to
the throne and stood next to the Elder Council joining them for
a 2nd time. Lothar felt at ease being there. He felt
his position as Elder could do good to the new leader, and to
the new High Council of Britannia. It had been nearly replaced
with many people, due to the losses of the betrayal, for it had
been the worst blow ever to the Lost Soldiers of Darkness.
We had a long list of enemies, the strongest of them all always
being former members, but for one to come so high up as this,
it had never happened before. It indeed shook the foundation
of the guild, but never could it break the foundation. Those
that had been with us for years. Almost as a calling, many
Elders had returned to Britannia to join the ranks again in Britannia.
Among them were Elder Dough, who had been with the Lost Soldiers
of Darkness since the begining, Elder Kuriel, who had done great
things for the Division of Britannia and Elder Swywalker, who
had been in and out of activity, but always been there when it
counted. It was with their help and the many other members
who stayed that saw through the lies that kept the Division together.
Gorath had continued to keep his previous rank of Abyssal Lord
of Hibernia, in wait of someone who would replace him, and he
felt it might take awhile with the coming and going of several
members in that Division. It was the Division of Britannia
that was to be finally given a new Abyssal Lord after over a year
without one. One of the final acts Lothar had done before
stepping down was to appoint long time supporter of LSD, Baron
Barnes with the position of Abyssal Lord. He was quite shocked,
and uncertain of fufilling this deed, but he took it none the
less, knowing that Lothar had faith in his potential, and that
Barnes would never give up on them, just like he.
After another 2 years the gates to Aerynth had still not become
open, and the soldiers who had signed up to migrate there had
become extremely upset at its delays. Gorath purged his
newfoound powers to reasons why they could not enter. He
could not understand why, but the Lost Soldiers of Darkness would
wait, and wait we did. In the meantime, the lands of Hibernia
grew, and so did those of Britannia. It was slow and hard
for Britannia to get back to its duties. It was struck hard
back all the drama, and it just seemed in a state of hibernation.
Lothar visited occationally, after a couple months away.
He wondered what could be the problem that plagued the guild.
It was not just the realm of Britannia, the Neverwinter Divsiion
had problems getting off the ground as well, and with the anxiety
of Aerynth, things were looking grim. Lothar started to
frequent High Council Meetings in Britannia, helping to bring
together a full High Council, and get them mobilized. He
felt at times restricted in his abilities to motivate them, and
still felt the lack of passion to do. His attempts failed,
and the Division staggered for many months. It had been
nearly 8 months since he had resigned, and their was no resolve
in the problems of Britannia. It was these problems that
started digging into Lothar's heart. He was unearthing that
willpower he had had so long ago. He felt an almost uplifting
feeling come over him one day. He felt he could not stay
an Elder, sitting on the sidelines any longer. His destiny
was to be an active hand, not a passive one. His abilities
were best used through direct orders, not suggestions as he had
been doing so. It it been that reason why he had contacted
Gorath. It was extremely hard to, as he was sending a psychic
message through different realms, for he did not know the road
back to Hibernia, perhaps due to his old age. He waited
and waited for a reply, and a very long week had gone by, and
Gorath had agreed. He would allow Lothar to assume the rank
of Elder Lord, formerly called Abyssal King. He would be
the Lord Avatar's aide, to assist him in maintaining the now 4
Divisions running. It had been no supprise to many that
Lothar would return. Some could never picture him not there,
it was Lothar himself who was the most supprised to be honest.
Sadly, his love for the success of his mates is what brought him
back, even during busy times in his own life.
It was at this time that Wistie, former Abyssal Lady of Norrath
had approached Lothar one day. She had spoken to him very
casually, asking him how he was. He knew Wistie better for
this to just be a catching up of time. She asked then, if
he would help her with what she had come for, and Lothar said
he would. For she wished to see the first disbanded Division
to rise from the ashes. She wished to ressurect the Division
of Norrath. Unfortunately, she could not do it alone, and
Lothar was more than happy to help her do it. With his regained
strength from the Lord Avatar, he traveled through realms to the
world of Norrath, and gathered the Troops. He would stay
there a few days attempting a restructure. It would not
be easy, for the Gods of that world needed to recognize Lothar
as the former leader for them to restart, and the Gods were rarely
seen in Norrath.
The 6th year of the existance of the Lost Soldiers of Darnkness
was almost upon us, and with 5 Divisions now in service, the Lost
Soldiers of Darkness had been present in more worlds at one time
than it had ever been. It would look into the coming months
with pride, for the doors of Aernyth were soon to open, and with
the strong Alliance with the Elves there, they would be one of
hte strongest forces upon the lands. Britannia which had
been thought to be dead long ago still had much more life than
could ever been expected. Hibernia had proved more than
just a world to pass the time by while they waited for other lands
to open. It had become a permanent home for us. Norrath
had once again started up, and although it may have few troops
remaining, our name is mightier than any in the land, and there
are few who do not remember the power of the Lost Soldiers of
Darkness. Neverwinter is becoming a reality, as interesting
events are starting to unfold, and dozens of other lands are starting
to appear upon the horizon. Far distant lands, so extremely
different than anything we've experenced, with spaceships, and
exotic alien races. Others which many seem much too familar,
but we cannot place our finger on. All these lands and more
are at the grasp of the growing armies of the Lost Soldiers of
Darkness. We may not be Lost anymore, for the world is ripe
for the taking, and those who stand in our way shall face the
reality of our Dominance in all that we touch... Hail The Lost
Soldiers of Darkness!
------------------------------------Aerynth
Opens Its Portal--------------------------------------
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Part
VII:
When the time came for Aeyenth to open its portals
to permit our members to enter, the intended leadership found
themselves at a great disadvantage. Although much preparation
had been made to ensure that passage to this realm would be successful
and fruitful for our guild, it came at a time when the intended
DGM was no longer available to fill his role. A new DGM was quickly
chosen, and Gorath himself left the realm of Hibernia to aid him
in his newly appointed duties. This newly appointed DGM, Etheric,
was only able to perform the duties of DGM for less than 2 weeks
after the portal was opened. This left Gorath with a division
that had little in the way of leadership, but much in the potential
of the guild acquiring a reputation in the lands as an equal member
of one of the largest Tri-guild alliances the realm would know.
As time passed in this realm, our guild became strong, and our
reputation grew as an honorable guild, even to our enemies.
Our mission in Aerynth was successful, dispite the fact that
our city was temporarily occupied by the enemy that nearly every
guild on the server fought to destroy. Even when our own city
was threatened as a result, we showed honor in helping to defend
those that had either helped us, or coordinated their efforts
with those of the new alliance that Gorath had set out to build.
That alliance, although not led by Gorath in the end, continued
and succeeded in removing those that had intended on ruling the
server.
It was soon realized, however, that the realm of Shadowbane would
not be one that the Lost Soldiers of Darkness would remain in.
After taking the steps required to ensure that the land that we
occupied would be left in good hands, and that the threat of anhialation
of our neighbors was removed, Gorath decided to officially close
the division. Some members, faithful to the realm in which they
lived chose to remain on other planes of the realm after the one
on which our first true city was built was destroyed by the Gods
of the Realm.
While Britannia’s Division may be weary, it still perseveres.
Hibernia has proved its potential as did Aerynth and we still
wait for NeverWinter to open its portals where we definitely know
LSD will be rulers once more. We shall see the Lost Soldiers of
Darkness become that of Legends. Are you ready Soldiers?
------------------------------------3
Years Pass--------------------------------------
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Part
VIII:
It has been an amazing ride the Lost Soldiers of Darkness have
gone through. Who could have ever imagined this guild would last
as long as it has. I will tell you who knew…, I did. I, Gorath,
am the 4th Lord Avatar to have claimed the title. Even before
I came to lead this guild I could see it. Now with the guild at
is largest ever, 5 entire divisions at once, it had reached a
history high. It would be unfortunate, not due to LSD, but the
worlds we inhabited that this would not always be so, but I am
getting ahead of myself. I have been Lord Avatar now for 3 years,
we are approaching our 9th Anniversary, and even I cannot believe
it.
The 5 Divisions, Britannia, Aerynth, Hibernia, Neverwinter, and
Norrath have dwindled down to just 3, Britannia, Norrath, and
a new world called Azeroth. The Hibernia Division continued after
the fall of Aerynth, and I returned there after appointing Beauty,
now known as Angela, as 2nd Abyssal Lady in LSD history. She had
been with us since the begining, and had been a DAGM in Britannia,
so it was a sound move with that kind of background. The division
did go through its own struggles like every division before it
has, but this time, it cause the collapse of the Hibernia Division.
New lands had been opened, and with it, a rift in opinions amongst
Soldiers. The sides were fairly evenly split, and with it, many
members decided to leave. I had not yet returned from the lands
of Aerynth for the start of the turmoil, but I was also too preoccupied
with personal matters to devote the time needed to help Beauty
save it. In the end, the Hibernia division fell, and it sadened
me, even thought LSD had not carved out its name as grandly as
we had in other Divisions before it, I still consider it to have
been a sucessful Division, but more of a stepping stone for those
surviving members, who were mostly also survivors of the original
Norrath division, to wait for new lands to open with more promise.
With that though, the reborn lands of Norrath had opened again.
It has rekindled much of the brethren who once first lived there
to return. I myself, decided to lead this Division, and restore
it to its former glory. Afterall, Britannia may have been our
oldest guild, and some say our greatest, but it was the Norrath
Division that grew to be the largest. The guild continues to do
well in the new lands of Norrath, as many old members came to
my aide and assisted the guild during its infancy. Unfortunately,
my duties were bound between two worlds. That of Norrath, and
the other being Azeroth. This world, although ever so familiar
to myself and others had opened its portals to us at almost the
same time as Norrath reopened its own. This caused a rift in many
guildmates in where to settle. Myself, Wistie, Caethiel, Kyrs,
Molokan, and others from Hibernia and the old Norrath. Clron,
Belzadar, Rekoj, Arrna and others were the first to travel to
Azeroth.
It would be Clron's enthusiasm that would win him the role of
Abyssal Lord of Azeroth. Clron had been an old timer since the
original times of Norrath, but for some reason decided to travel
to Azeroth instead. Norrath had changed too much perhaps for him
to accept. As always, many old members sprang from the shadows
as they always tend to, to join the new worlds in its infancy.
Azeroth had brought the likes of Elder Lord Lothar, Elder Swywalker,
Elder Dough, Savannah, and more to its lands. Some came to be
known as other names in Azeroth. Belzadar would name himself Feeber,
Rekoj was now Xahar, and Swywalker was called Razziel. It seemed
those three Elders who changed their names also changed the world
with it. It was those three who would take LSD into a quickly
rising power in Azeroth. Clron had been an active leader for the
first few months, but unlike Etheric who quickly disappeared as
soon as the Division started, slowly started to fade from his
role. Belzadar and others would quickly take the reins to take
control of a world which was entirely showing that it was teeming
with riches to be had. I knew what had to be done in regards to
leadership, the obvious choice of Belzadar. Afterall, he had already
been an Abyssal Lord once before. I knew his capabilities were
more than able, as there had been a time when I had once served
him in Britannia before I too become Abyssal Lord. Belzadar quickly
chose his left and right arms to grab the Division by the horns.
Xahar and Razziel were chosen. Both former High Council members
of Britannia, it had almost seemed like a reunion of old in new
lands. So many had come from old realms.
Sadly, as the members came in droves to bring glory to a new
and prospering Division, Lothar was headed in another direction.
He had returned to Britannia, much to the upset of many old friends
who had been enjoying fighting along him once more, but Britannia
called for him. Britannia had been his new home since Neverwinter
fell from vision again. I myself was happy to know that the Division
always had someone like Lothar there to help if there was ever
a need for I myself, despite my years in Britannia had become
so distant from the lands, it had changed so much I could not
find the will to return. I do not know why, and it saddened me,
for it had been Britannia where I had first joined this grand
guild, but I just could not return despite the requests. Besides,
I knew with Lothar there, I could focus my attention to the new
Divisions which needed much more care than Britannia's years of
temperance.
As Lothar returned, it was obvious that Barnes, the current reigning
Abyssal Lord, like so many before him had been worn weary and
was rarely seen. Under his rule though, the guild had completely
returned from its devastation a few years before to see a guild
of many. We had returned to the Top 10 guilds in our lands and
would remain there for 3 solid years. Acacia, Baroness and right
hand lady to Barnes would be his successor as the only 3rd Abyssal
Lady in the history of LSD. Her rule would continue the work Barnes
had done for the Division to continue. Acacia was very pleased
to have Lothar back, but she could tell he was not the same. It
had been so for many years afterall. She had always been happy
to have him there for advice when needed. Afterall, it was Lothar's
pleasure in life to give guidance to those who came to lead after
him. It was during this time too that Lothar's old apprentice
had returned from far distant lands and his haunted past would
bring joy and fear into many in the guild. His name was Cadmus
Fane, and this holy knight who worshiped an unknown goddess to
most named Luna had a villain who seemed to never stop following
him, even beyond the grave. The Soul Seeker as he was called would
cause much misery to the Soldiers of Darkness and Cadmus. He would
be killed and resurrected, but what Cadmus would also bring to
LSD is one of LSD's first unions. Acacia would soon be known as
Acacia Fane, and twin children would soon join the family of LSD.
The Soul Seeker too would seek interest in anything named Fane
it seems and would always lurk nearby. Many guildmates would battle
the Soul Seeker and his minions through the years. As the years
weighted on Britannia though the soldiers living in those lands
slowly started to disappear. Some moved to greener lands like
Azeroth, other vanished from the world all together. It was sad
days.
I myself had stopped frequenting Norrath also, and appointed
Kyrs my successor as the 4th Abyssal Lady in LSD history. She
would do well with the help of many Elders. I too seemed to be
experiencing some sort of energy drain from the powers of Lord
Avatar. Had my time come now too? 3 years had gone by, and before
taking it as far as Lothar had in his dangerous condition, I decided
it be best for a new man to be put in charge. Thankfully such
a person was already present, and I would pick from a good selection,
for the Grand Council was summoned to get a feeling who would
even consider taking on the great powers of the guild. I turned
to Lothar asking if he for 3rd time would like to rule, but he
refused. Acacia of Britannia too shook her head. Was there a true
fear of the curse of the Lord Avatar? The obvious choice due to
his success in Azeroth and his high activity there, the best choice
was Belzadar. Belzdar had been with LSD since its beginning afterall,
and had taken over the Britannia Division while Lothar and Azreal
had gone to start the first Division in Norrath and done an excellent
job. Now he would be Lord Avatar of LSD and Abyssal Lord of Azeroth.
Would the combined duties be too much for this humble man? I doubted
it, but even Belzadar knows the burden of Lord Avatar… and
with a shakey voice, agreed to become the 5th Lord Avatar of LSD.
Gorath's convulsed in spasms as as bright flash of light flew
into the air and took the shape of a dragon, flying into the air
to materialized in front of the Moon assuming the pose that was
the LSD emblem. Deathwing flew down and landed near the gathered
Grand Council and once more spoke to a new leader.
"Ahhh… an old face I see here." Belzadar bowed
his head and knelt as he knew he should in front of the beast.
The dragon began to speak, "You have been chosen, not only
by Gorath, the Current Lord Avatar, but by Lothar and the other
leaders of LSD. You are obvious to be the host of my powers. Do
you accept the responsibilities put forth to you?" Belzadar
raised his head, still kneeling, and looked up to the Dark Dragon,
"Yes my Lord, I do!" With a roar of acknowledgement,
Deathwing said, "Good, then know that the 9th year is now
upon us, you have a long line of leaders to have bore by weight
before you, let their strengths guide you into the years laid
before us." Belzadar rose, and clenched his right first together,
and placed it upon his heart, saluting the great beast and spoke,
"May The Moon Shine Forever And The Dragon Never Die!!!"
And So, a 9th year comes, and though the Division of Britannia
lays in uncertain turmoil, the leaders of that Division have made
a pact to never let it fall until the lands themselves are destroyed.
Norrath continues its own history, and though its numbers have
wavered, shows it is not going anywhere anytime soon. The true
future lies with our Azeroth Division and the new lands just around
the corner. Many show great promise, and soldiers are already
eager for the embrace of these new worlds to conquer. What lies
next, the Dragon only knows… I myself, an Elder look towards
a bright future as another guiding light to those who take up
the Dragon and the Moon…
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