Empire of Tau
11-07-2008, 06:04
It was always a nice place to think and relax, here in the Hall of the Fallen. It was here that so many heroes of the War of the Burn were laid to rest and remembered. Grandmaster Sumerisle, in his daring attack on the Hellgate at St. Paul's Cathedral in London to buy time for humanity, Lord Arphaun for calling off a disastrous attack by a foolish Lord and in helping to begin the end of the invasion. The boots of his power armor left off a soft tink with every step, as he moved down the hall past the many statues and crypt entrances, until he finally came to stop before the most reversed hero of the Knights Templar.
The Unknown Templar.
His name and identity were unknown, since any records of him were strangely lost in fires and attacks, and he vanished after successfully destroying one of the Eldest, Sydonai, who was leading the attack on London. With him went Emmera, one of the great Cabalist evokers of her time. She, too, was lost. It was a great day of mourning, but of celebration. It was shown that the demon could be beaten, that if sufficient faith and might were put into the equation, the demons could be forced back. And so it was, after several decades, they had finally closed the last Hellgate, in London no less, and set about reclaiming their world. As he turned, he could see the softly moving fields of grass outside the Hall of the Fallen, with the great white pillars holding up the building the sunlight glinting through the clear blue sky to reflect off the shining armor of the Seraphim guarding the Hall.
"Decades ago, this very scene is what we fought for; for a chance to see the Earth green and blossoming, to see a clear blue sky instead of a smoke-filled, hell-created sky." He turned to face the Unknown Templar one more time. "And thanks to him, it was made possible. We are all indebted to you. May you finally rest in the Long Oblivion our Lord has granted you." Turning, he exited the Hall and began to head for a large building some blocks away. He was greeted by a large, armored vehicle, a Panther-class APC, as he came down the steps. Getting inside, he set his helmet, the panels on the indents glowing blue and closed the door.
"Take me to the Council; we have matters of great importance to discuss."
The Templar driving the APC nodded. "As you wish, Grandmaster Dalphon." The APC growled as the driver shifted gears and then with a slight jerk, the vehicle began to move. He wondered what the other Council members would say about their latest find. He had been in the middle of his morning prayer when he had been interrupted by an urgent communique from the field. One of their scouting fleets had discovered something, a possible lead on the strange increase in Nether activity. Dalphon shook his head. It made no difference; God would see them through any trial and it was their divine duty to ensure that wherever the demon stepped into the mortal realm, they were there, ready to bring swift justice to their corruption and canker.
Setting his gaze on the blue sky again, the Grandmaster of the Templar Order, and the leader of the Seven Lords of the Seraphim, Dalphon once again lost himself in the depth of the blue sky, something which most had already taken for granted in the current generation.
***********
Jake Stevens sighed, running a hand through his black hair and shifting uneasily in his military dress uniform. He really hated the damn things; why did he ever agree to allow such a horrific thing to be shoved onto his soldiers? "Oh that's right, to stop the bitching between Kara and Dalphon. One wanted to go straight out nuts with it, the other wanted some religious monk BS. If I hadn't put forth my own idea that they'd approve, I could be wearing some scratchy wool thing or some flowing robe. Ugh. That's even worse." He shook his head. Those weren't the kind of thoughts he needed right now. Everyone, including himself, knew he was the glue that kept the Council together, and that the Hunters under his command were the glue that kept the entire nation together. Being a General was not easy, being part of the Council of Three leading the entire nation was even harder, and keeping the three factions working together...damn near impossible.
tink
Jake nodded. "Greetings, Lord Dalphon. I see you have chosen to wear you're customary attire this time around."
A chuckle sounded from behind him. "Indeed, General. I see your hearing is as apt as always." Jake glanced at him. He wore his personal set of Templar armor again, one handcrafted for the Grandmaster upon his ascension to that rank. It was superbly made and was quite capable of even fighting the higher demons in the Primus caste, as many occasions had shown. For him to wear this, it would have to be a serious situation. Then again, what Task Force 34 Beta had discovered warranted such a reaction. The reason the meeting was even being called was to decide what to do with what they had found.
There was the slightest whisper and Jake nodded. "Nether Sister, welcome." Dalphon grunted and turned to see the third and final member of their circle come from the shadows of a wall and sit down in her chair. Kara Harthin wore a concealing black robe and hood that kept all her features out of sight. She carefully let down her hood, showing her purple hair, reddish, feline-esque eyes, and Nether runes that glowed down her face. She nodded at Dalphon and Jake.
"Greetings. Shall we cut the formalities and get down to business?"
Dalphon raised an eyebrow. "You're very straight-forward today."
Kara glared at him. "I don't see why the situation doesn't warrant such a response."
Jake quickly stepped in before it could go any further. "Indeed, and why don't we look at the situation." He pressed a key on the pad in the table and a screen popped up showing the message from the task force. Data scrolled down the side. Steepling his fingers, he began to talk. "As of eight hours ago, Task Force 34 Beta found a strong signal indicating a large amount of demonic activity. They thought it was simply being diffused by the large amount of distance, as nothing of this magnitude had been felt before. Their arrival within the best detection range proved that wrong. There is a large nexus of Nether energy gathered around a large cluster of systems. The aura was so strong that the Cabalists in the fleet had to go into warded rooms to prevent themselves from fainting. It gets worse, however." He tapped a key and the screen changed to a planet and information on it scrolled.
"This is the planet Anagonia, once formerly part of a nation with the same known. It had been home to an advanced civilization whom had expanded and were fairly peaceful. We gave them a wide berth, to keep ourselves hidden in case a demonic invasion showed up. We were correct in that an invasion occurred, but not the one we imagined." He pressed again and an image of a Wanderjarian Chaos fleet laying waste to Anagonian ships above the planet. "This was taken three days ago; these...Wanderjarians appear to be humans whom have utterly embraced the power of the Nether and appear to worship four great demons. The Cabalists have indicated it is possible they are a few of the Eldest serving the First. They have laid waste to Anagonia and its surrounding systems, as well as corrupt large swathes of the world. It is obvious they are in league with the demons, if not part of the invasion itself." He turned the screen off and faced the Templar and Cabalist.
"Which leaves us with the question...What do we do about it?"
Dalphon snorted. "Do? Isn't it obvious? We need to organize another campaign to stomp out the demonic infestation!"
The Cabalist leader shook her head. "It will not be as easy as before. All the battles before we surprised the demons and they had not had much time to get entrenched. Here, they are well defended and growing in number every day. Not to mention that the demons they worship could quite possibly be on the planet. I do not know about you, but I am sure that there are few who could even hurt an Eldest, much more kill one."
Dalphon narrowed his eyes at her. "Do I sense fear in your tone, Nether Sister? Do I feel cowardice in your words?"
Kara's eyes flamed. "Speak not of which you do not understand, Templar! The forces of the Nether are far more powerful than you know! For them to be able to effect veteran Cabalists at such a range implies that we should be more careful about this!"
"She is right, Dalphon." The Templar turned to face Jake.
"And what is that, General?" His tone was dangerous and low.
"She is right in fearing them. This will be, if we choose to fight it, the first crusade that will test our might like never before. The armies of these traitors are massive and while I am sure we can overcome them, it will take many bodies, many battles, and many deaths before we can hope to drive them out. We cannot rely on the Anagonians for aid, they are scattered now. If we do this, we must do this expecting a long, drawn-out campaign and an exponentially high rate of deaths, even for the Templar."
He gazed at Dalphon. "We have to be utterly serious and careful here, Dalphon, we risk much if we intervene."
The Templar glared at him and grudgingly nodded. "I see...your point. Very well. General, what do you have assembled so far?" Jake smiled and winked at Kara, whom nodded with relief. It was obvious they intended to intervene but they had to head off the battle lust Dalphon had with his Templar. Lives would be lost but not as much as there would be in his plan of things.
"Well, we currently have two full battle fleets, 24 ships in all. We also have two full Seraphim Legions, the 2nd and 4th Armies, and an entire Cabalist Circle and entourage to aid our endeavors. By the end of the week, the fleets will be armed and fueled, we will have the 5th Army joining us, fully prepared, as well as Kara as ourselves and our bodyguards. Then, we will begin the initial pushes into their space. We have to find out how they will react to our skirmishes and then plan our attack plan off of that. For now, we must secure Anagonia and make it into our main base as we continue this attack into their own territory. Any questions?"
Kara nodded. "Yes, when do we begin?"
Dalphon smiled. "It has already begun."
The Unknown Templar.
His name and identity were unknown, since any records of him were strangely lost in fires and attacks, and he vanished after successfully destroying one of the Eldest, Sydonai, who was leading the attack on London. With him went Emmera, one of the great Cabalist evokers of her time. She, too, was lost. It was a great day of mourning, but of celebration. It was shown that the demon could be beaten, that if sufficient faith and might were put into the equation, the demons could be forced back. And so it was, after several decades, they had finally closed the last Hellgate, in London no less, and set about reclaiming their world. As he turned, he could see the softly moving fields of grass outside the Hall of the Fallen, with the great white pillars holding up the building the sunlight glinting through the clear blue sky to reflect off the shining armor of the Seraphim guarding the Hall.
"Decades ago, this very scene is what we fought for; for a chance to see the Earth green and blossoming, to see a clear blue sky instead of a smoke-filled, hell-created sky." He turned to face the Unknown Templar one more time. "And thanks to him, it was made possible. We are all indebted to you. May you finally rest in the Long Oblivion our Lord has granted you." Turning, he exited the Hall and began to head for a large building some blocks away. He was greeted by a large, armored vehicle, a Panther-class APC, as he came down the steps. Getting inside, he set his helmet, the panels on the indents glowing blue and closed the door.
"Take me to the Council; we have matters of great importance to discuss."
The Templar driving the APC nodded. "As you wish, Grandmaster Dalphon." The APC growled as the driver shifted gears and then with a slight jerk, the vehicle began to move. He wondered what the other Council members would say about their latest find. He had been in the middle of his morning prayer when he had been interrupted by an urgent communique from the field. One of their scouting fleets had discovered something, a possible lead on the strange increase in Nether activity. Dalphon shook his head. It made no difference; God would see them through any trial and it was their divine duty to ensure that wherever the demon stepped into the mortal realm, they were there, ready to bring swift justice to their corruption and canker.
Setting his gaze on the blue sky again, the Grandmaster of the Templar Order, and the leader of the Seven Lords of the Seraphim, Dalphon once again lost himself in the depth of the blue sky, something which most had already taken for granted in the current generation.
***********
Jake Stevens sighed, running a hand through his black hair and shifting uneasily in his military dress uniform. He really hated the damn things; why did he ever agree to allow such a horrific thing to be shoved onto his soldiers? "Oh that's right, to stop the bitching between Kara and Dalphon. One wanted to go straight out nuts with it, the other wanted some religious monk BS. If I hadn't put forth my own idea that they'd approve, I could be wearing some scratchy wool thing or some flowing robe. Ugh. That's even worse." He shook his head. Those weren't the kind of thoughts he needed right now. Everyone, including himself, knew he was the glue that kept the Council together, and that the Hunters under his command were the glue that kept the entire nation together. Being a General was not easy, being part of the Council of Three leading the entire nation was even harder, and keeping the three factions working together...damn near impossible.
tink
Jake nodded. "Greetings, Lord Dalphon. I see you have chosen to wear you're customary attire this time around."
A chuckle sounded from behind him. "Indeed, General. I see your hearing is as apt as always." Jake glanced at him. He wore his personal set of Templar armor again, one handcrafted for the Grandmaster upon his ascension to that rank. It was superbly made and was quite capable of even fighting the higher demons in the Primus caste, as many occasions had shown. For him to wear this, it would have to be a serious situation. Then again, what Task Force 34 Beta had discovered warranted such a reaction. The reason the meeting was even being called was to decide what to do with what they had found.
There was the slightest whisper and Jake nodded. "Nether Sister, welcome." Dalphon grunted and turned to see the third and final member of their circle come from the shadows of a wall and sit down in her chair. Kara Harthin wore a concealing black robe and hood that kept all her features out of sight. She carefully let down her hood, showing her purple hair, reddish, feline-esque eyes, and Nether runes that glowed down her face. She nodded at Dalphon and Jake.
"Greetings. Shall we cut the formalities and get down to business?"
Dalphon raised an eyebrow. "You're very straight-forward today."
Kara glared at him. "I don't see why the situation doesn't warrant such a response."
Jake quickly stepped in before it could go any further. "Indeed, and why don't we look at the situation." He pressed a key on the pad in the table and a screen popped up showing the message from the task force. Data scrolled down the side. Steepling his fingers, he began to talk. "As of eight hours ago, Task Force 34 Beta found a strong signal indicating a large amount of demonic activity. They thought it was simply being diffused by the large amount of distance, as nothing of this magnitude had been felt before. Their arrival within the best detection range proved that wrong. There is a large nexus of Nether energy gathered around a large cluster of systems. The aura was so strong that the Cabalists in the fleet had to go into warded rooms to prevent themselves from fainting. It gets worse, however." He tapped a key and the screen changed to a planet and information on it scrolled.
"This is the planet Anagonia, once formerly part of a nation with the same known. It had been home to an advanced civilization whom had expanded and were fairly peaceful. We gave them a wide berth, to keep ourselves hidden in case a demonic invasion showed up. We were correct in that an invasion occurred, but not the one we imagined." He pressed again and an image of a Wanderjarian Chaos fleet laying waste to Anagonian ships above the planet. "This was taken three days ago; these...Wanderjarians appear to be humans whom have utterly embraced the power of the Nether and appear to worship four great demons. The Cabalists have indicated it is possible they are a few of the Eldest serving the First. They have laid waste to Anagonia and its surrounding systems, as well as corrupt large swathes of the world. It is obvious they are in league with the demons, if not part of the invasion itself." He turned the screen off and faced the Templar and Cabalist.
"Which leaves us with the question...What do we do about it?"
Dalphon snorted. "Do? Isn't it obvious? We need to organize another campaign to stomp out the demonic infestation!"
The Cabalist leader shook her head. "It will not be as easy as before. All the battles before we surprised the demons and they had not had much time to get entrenched. Here, they are well defended and growing in number every day. Not to mention that the demons they worship could quite possibly be on the planet. I do not know about you, but I am sure that there are few who could even hurt an Eldest, much more kill one."
Dalphon narrowed his eyes at her. "Do I sense fear in your tone, Nether Sister? Do I feel cowardice in your words?"
Kara's eyes flamed. "Speak not of which you do not understand, Templar! The forces of the Nether are far more powerful than you know! For them to be able to effect veteran Cabalists at such a range implies that we should be more careful about this!"
"She is right, Dalphon." The Templar turned to face Jake.
"And what is that, General?" His tone was dangerous and low.
"She is right in fearing them. This will be, if we choose to fight it, the first crusade that will test our might like never before. The armies of these traitors are massive and while I am sure we can overcome them, it will take many bodies, many battles, and many deaths before we can hope to drive them out. We cannot rely on the Anagonians for aid, they are scattered now. If we do this, we must do this expecting a long, drawn-out campaign and an exponentially high rate of deaths, even for the Templar."
He gazed at Dalphon. "We have to be utterly serious and careful here, Dalphon, we risk much if we intervene."
The Templar glared at him and grudgingly nodded. "I see...your point. Very well. General, what do you have assembled so far?" Jake smiled and winked at Kara, whom nodded with relief. It was obvious they intended to intervene but they had to head off the battle lust Dalphon had with his Templar. Lives would be lost but not as much as there would be in his plan of things.
"Well, we currently have two full battle fleets, 24 ships in all. We also have two full Seraphim Legions, the 2nd and 4th Armies, and an entire Cabalist Circle and entourage to aid our endeavors. By the end of the week, the fleets will be armed and fueled, we will have the 5th Army joining us, fully prepared, as well as Kara as ourselves and our bodyguards. Then, we will begin the initial pushes into their space. We have to find out how they will react to our skirmishes and then plan our attack plan off of that. For now, we must secure Anagonia and make it into our main base as we continue this attack into their own territory. Any questions?"
Kara nodded. "Yes, when do we begin?"
Dalphon smiled. "It has already begun."