NationStates Jolt Archive

Redemption

Pile the bodies high at Austerlitz and Waterloo.
Shovel them under and let me work--
I am the grass; I cover all.
And pile them high at Gettysburg
And pile them high at Ypres and Verdun.
Shovel them under and let me work.
Two years, ten years, and the passengers ask the conductor:
What place is this?
Where are we now?
I am the grass.
Let me work.
Grass - Carl Sandburg

It was a broken and shattered land. For fifty years it had been seemingly devoid of humanity and civility. Dark storms rolled over a mutilated earth spilling burning rain and black snow to the earth below. The wind raged between jagged crags, howling in eternal midnight. Shadows crept in unnatural ways, refusing former boundaries. The land itself was turned to chaos. Great and terrible mountains erupted from plains, and ravines cut cities in two. All of this, however, was not what forsaked that broken shattered land, The Infinite Crucible.

Among this bleeding hell, dark things walked. Terrible unnatural things with gnashing teeth and bloodied hide. Men that were hardly men walked with these beasts, skin scarred and engraved with symbols of pain and horror. These beasts and men light had forsaken. They had called the blasted lands their home for fifty years, but for all their immortality and hellish resolve, human emotions crept into there shadowy voids of hearts. Greed, ambition, betrayal. Factions arose among the united and pure evil, and wars that no words, sane or otherwise, could sing broke out across that blasted land. Once again the earth was torn asunder and old wounds just freshly healed were rent anew.

However, this war of demons would be the greatest boon for humanity in those dark fifty years. Territory war carved out by cannibalistic politicians and generals, feral beasts, drew battle lines. Where nothing, save chaos, had been for half a century order reappeared. However, as the land was carved up, dead spots remained. Places where no beasts walked, no shadow stalked, and the sun shown, if but a little, through the bleeding sky. Places where humanity emerged.

In these voids, what little remained of the broken people of that broken land began to claw out a society. Those people that had hidden in the deepest crevices of that land, in the most remote dark, where terrible eyes did not pass. From ash emerged tents, and from those tents huts and villages. It was a fleeting existence, where darkness threatened to crush them in a moments time, and always on the horizon the sounds of an unreal war echoed. However, these people, they were not united. So many factions emerged, so many ideals on which the future should be written. For the time, thought, the differences were put aside, for a greater foe still lingered.

The beasts and demonic men saw only one foe to destroy, the faction across that blasted city or forsaken forest, when in fact they had two. Humanity began a covert war on the beasts. Slowly it nibbled away at the already battered armies with guerrilla strikes and sabotage. It was to their supreme benefit that all this seemed to simple be the work of rival beasts. Crafty and brave men infiltrated the ranks of the feral men, and scarred themselves terribly. They climbed the political and military ladder. If one was caught, once again it seemed to only be the work of a rival evil.

Whole armies of beasts were ordered on suicide charges through lands mined by human guerillas, into the jaws of dug in rival faction. The land was soaked red with deceived blood. With this endless bloodshed the voids grew, and humanity with it. Soon small overt armies oh humanity roved the land and engaged the darkness, but still on limited terms. News of these threats reached the top levels of that dark hierarchy, but it was too late, they were too overcome with bloodlust towards the rival factions which had seemed to lay waste to so many of their “good men”. Still more shadows were sent to their blind deaths, now even by those truly evil, for they no longer saw reason or caution and desired only bloodied heads to pile high about their thrones. The voids grew.

From the scattered holdings of humanity civilization began to grow, cultures which had goals greater than survival for one more day emerged. Despite the growing differences between the clans and organizations of humanity, they remained united. The darkness was far worse than ideological difference. A combined army was raised, mighty enough to face the weakened legions of darkness, and it marched forth.

It was only now that the shadows of evil realized their folly and began to retreat. The few that maintained holdings were slain, crushed under the combined might of the human armies. The voids spread and spread until they were spread from coast to coast. Only a few scattered places remained in the grip of evil. There they were boxed in, two strong to fully root out, but too weak to pose a threat in the near future. Only the former capital, far north, and Ottoman province remained in the hands of darkness.

Now the clouds have begun to pull back, as hints of blue and gold are seen shining through. Green grass slowly creeps over ash, healing the wounds of so many battles. A new dawn is upon a land that has been too far from the light for too long. All about the nation the ancient banner of The Infinite Crucible has been raised. Though tattered and worn it waves none the less in the purest wind of a century. Do not let the peachy words comfort you, the country is still in ruins.

http://www.cgnetworks.com/gallerycrits/87297/87297_1094339936.jpg
http://www.cgnetworks.com/gallerycrits/87297/87297_1097322296.jpg
http://features.cgsociety.org/gallerycrits/29120/29120_1132958017.jpg
http://www.cgnetworks.com/gallerycrits/93039/93039_1094702510.jpg
http://features.cgsociety.org/galleryimages/57186/hell.jpg
http://www.cgnetworks.com/gallerycrits/142829/142829_1112281136.jpg
http://features.cgsociety.org/gallerycrits/40859/40859_1137654183.jpg
http://www.cgnetworks.com/gallerycrits/87297/87297_1112664375.jpg

Despite all the hope, there is reason to worry. The separate factions and clans remain, and with no common foe, war may not be too far removed.

The Syndicate, cold and machinating, sits firmly on the majority of the west coast. Its cold brooding figures played a vital roll in the internal sabotage of the darkness. However, they care little for human life and are content to see most reduced to the level of machines.

The Ottomans, returned refugees, have laid claim to a large portion of the south east interior and coast, boarding the former capital province. With there clean hands, provided by safety of half a century on foreign, soil seeks to regain what they lost so long ago, power. They are kind and humane, if a bit underhanded at times.

The Hearthens, environmentalists and liberals, have gained control the most of the central interior, and seek to promote a healthier and free future. They have played one of the largest rolls in the healing of the land, and over their capital city the clouds are often present rather than consistently.

The Proto clan, warlike promoters of individual freedom, now stand guard in the far north. A true warrior race, they played the largest roll in defeating the darkness on open ground. Despite their brutality on the field they value freedom and honor.

The Conglomerate, a combination of dozens of tribes and factions, stands ready to defend states rights, so to speak. They have recently come into conflict with the Syndicate, and this is where the first tensions may arise.

The Aegis, stalwart and conservative, inhabit the barrier isles to the east of the mainland. They hope to reach a safer and more secure future, even if it means a few liberties must be curtailed, however, they are not on the level of The Syndicate. There have been reports of limited fishing conflicts with various small independent clans, and even more disturbing infiltration by past evils.

Finally the Lifers, easy going and liberal, have made there home on the Outer Islands to the south and east. They hope to promote a corruption free future where each person is valued. For the moment they are the most far removed from the current issues, due to distance.

Perhaps war will break out, or merely political duels. For the moments, however, a central government has yet to be established and with so many conflicting views, it will not be easy going.

Rafael strode down the freshly refurbished hallway, the pain of an age washed away under gloss and varnish. The blasted hull of what remained of the former Crucible city were visible through the new windows. The cities former name had been forgotten years ago, but it now held the proud title of Osservatori, capital of the Ottomans. Rafael smiled, for the moment the Ottomans were by far the strongest of the factions due to their limited involvement in the trying events of the past half century. Sadly, as such, the rabble that inhabited the rest of the nation viewed them as unworthy, and in some cases not even citizens.

Rafael spit at the thought, it was his family that had broken the back of the Emperor with the help of Lucifuge and freed The Infinite Crucible from the past ages of tyranny. They had led the Crucible from darkness before, and they would do it again. It was his grandfather Jeffery Ottoman II that had sacrificed himself. Rafael conveniently left out the fact that it was his family and the other rich that had been the first evacuated in the final hours before darkness fell. The rest of the nation viewed them as cowards, returned to claim the rewards of the common people’s struggle.

Rafael reached the chipped door, it not yet been replaced, and pushed it to the side. His eldest brother, Marcus, sat at the head of a large table discussing plans of a central government with his numerous advisors. Marcus had been an infant at the time of the evacuations, and now he had returned to his homeland a man in his early fifties. His still thick hair was graying at the edges, and the creases of a refugees life were worn deeply on his face. He looked up, and a smile spread across his face, “Rafael, come sit, we have much to discuss.”

“I’m sorry for being late, but getting around...” Rafael stammered approaching the empty chair.

Marcus stopped him, “There is no need to worry, in the ravaged hell that is our city, I can expect a bit of delay.” He looked over at his advisors, “Alright, now we can get on to more important business.” He shifted his gaze to a clear window, “We need to know where we stand with these other factions, and prepare for a central government... if we stay divided we cant hope to last long in the world.”

A murmur of agreement went through the council. A rather small and shrewd man stood up, “Alright let me break down the... opposing factions.”

“Now as you all know, we are not on the best terms with the populous for... obvious reasons. For the moment we are not friendly with anyone, merely seen as a foe that can not yet be tackled. We would do best to make friends now. The Conglomerate, Aegis, and Lifers are those that seem to be the least extreme and similar to us in opinion. However, none of them want to see another Ottoman in power, and if we were to merge for an election, we would surely loose. In addition the factions themselves do not get along so we will have to be careful who we make friends with lest we make enemies. The Hearthens are next on the list of possible allies, but they take a far more liberal stance compared to us, and are not happy with the pre darkness industry. I doubt they would trust us. Finally the Protos and Syndicate will have to be destroyed before peace will ever be seen in this land. The Protos are simply to anarchic to be present in a civilized nation, and the Syndicate is already committing atrocities against humanity. Unfortunately those two factions pose the largest military might, fortunately they will never be allies.”

Marcus looked down at his hands for several seconds following the address. He than began to speak, “Alright, for the moment I believe we must be most wary of the Syndicate, is there any news on them?”

Another, larger man, piped up, “Uh yes there is sir, they have recently come into conflict with the Conglomerate, territorial dispute over a few independent clans.” He continued, “The Syndicate wishes to assimilate these clans, and the Consortium wishes to protect them, despite the fact that they are not under the Consortium umbrella, so to speak.”

Marcus shot out another question immediately, “Ok, where do we stand on this?”

“I don’t think we can risk taking a public stance this early, but internally we cant let the Syndicate gain any more strength.”

“Alright, sounds good to me,” Marcus responded. He nodded to his younger brother Rafael, “However, we must make effort to propose a central government of some sort.”

Rafael cracked his neck, “I am prepared to send out a proposal within the week, just to test the water.”

“Sounds great, everyone get cracking on that proposal... and keep an eye on the Syndicate.”

Bravo, good RP start.

Thanks!

A bump in disguise...

“You see that?”

“See what?” the young girl, Lisa, replied. She looked over at her scraggly brother’s sheepish grin.

He looked down at her from the cloudy dark sky, “I think... I think I just saw some blue... I think I saw the sky!”

“Nuh uh!” she exclaimed with a look of disbelief. These children had been born in the darkest cracks of a shattered land, hidden away, living the life of prey. Neither had ever seen the blue sky or felt the warmth of the sun on their face.

“Yea huh!” he smiled as he moved to tickle her. She let out a joyous shriek and ran up the ridge of debris, now covered in a faint layer of grass. As they crested the top, she stopped smiling. Out across the plains lay Syndicate territory. Billy, the boy, was just getting old enough to understand that they were a small clan, and the Syndicate were far from good neighbors. An array of massive smoke stacks dotted the horizon spilling out inky black, retarding the return of the sun.

“Why are they so dirty?” she asked with eyes wide.

“I don’t know, I guess they just don’t care about anything, I guess they just don’t care about... beauty... human beauty,” he responded in a rare moment of lucidity, wisdom of many years pouring from his young mouth.

Suddenly a black dot emerged from the smoke and moved towards the children. It grew larger and larger until it could be identified as a helicopter. It flew over the children with a dragon’s roar, deafening them and kicking up razor debris. The girl shrieked and her bother shielded her with his arms, sustaining a cut on the cheek. He shot a nasty glance at the dark machine as it pushed east.

A conference had been called by the Ottomans, and not even the aloof and inhuman Syndicate would deny audience.

OOC: Feel free to get involved in any way, but try to keep it peaceful.

bump

Interim President Burns, current leader of the Aegis, hunched over a stack of papers in the waiting room. The small chair threatened to buckle under his immense size. He weighed almost two hundred and sixty pounds, all muscle. And intimidating man, who certain detractors commentated came from Proto Clan stock, an untruth but he looked the part. His worn suit sat loosely on his body, it was no surprise he didn’t like to be constrained. His assistant, rather normal in dimension and size sat to his right commenting on each memo he came to.

The waiting room was one of many in the newly restored Amphion, a former museum located in the central most conflicted territory, which was about as close as it came to a neutral area these days. Burns looked up at the scuffed clock above him, and frowned. Still over an hour before the meeting would be formally called and the delegates from each faction would come together to discuss the future.

“So I know the polls, and no one wants to see us merge with another faction, but we cant go it alone, and this division will be the end of us,” he spoke up in the middle of a rather boring memo.

“Uh yes that is correct sir.”

“Hmmm... as far as policies go, we are the most similar to the... Ottomans... but I’ll be damned if I see them in power again, they fucked things up good last time through,” he spat.

“However sir, we could merge and our population is far greater than theirs, we would win an election.”

He thought for a moment, “That is true, I think we should align or even merge with them, but don’t make it our primary focus... we don’t want to seem desperate,” the hulking man decided. He looked back up at the clock. Damn only a minute has passed, how long will we be waiting?

bump

The thin lithe figure slowly moved down the hallways with a hollow grace. At her side stalked two equally graceful figures, who were ultimately terrifying. The woman’s face was absolute, her assurance in her and the Syndicate’s superiority supreme. Her eyes were a steely deep blue, seeming to pierce the very soul of whatever crossed her path. The three moved like wraiths, silent, seeming to hover across the ground rather than walk. Despite their thin frames the awe and fear they imposed was undeniable. The few neutral executives that witnessed their passing recoiled in terror.

Pride, does not even come close to the emotion the woman felt when thinking over her faction. It was an unconquerable will, something so intense and immense that even the will of God would be hard pressed to break it. It was the kind of nationalism that even with limbs flayed and body shattered they would fight, drowning their foes in their own blood. The world saw the Syndicate citizens as machines, and they would be correct, but they contained emotion and passion greater than any human. They were machines of pride and nationality.

The meeting would be convening in a few minutes, and all the parties were now making their way to the conference room. The three figures approached the door and were intercepted by a lightly armed guard.

“I’m sorry miss, but only you may enter.”

She turned her head with unnatural speed, “I am well aware of what I can and cannot do, these two will wait here with you, I am sure you can stomach such a task.”

The guard took a step back, “Uh... yes... yes I can.” The two figures in perfect unison moved to the side wall and became still as statues. After a moment the woman returned to her stride and entered the conference room. The far wall of the room was window, providing a panoramic view of the devastated city, currently in the process of reconstruction. She turned her gaze to the open chair with her... name on it. The meeting would begin shortly.

bump

The meeting had began, but nothing save the ailing air conditioning could be heard. The slow pained thrum shuddered for a second, then continued once again. The neutral official, a philosopher named Polo Incandus, sighed and looked down at his hands.

“Alright, the Ottomans called this meeting... so I think I should let them head it off.”


Raphael Ottoman looked up at his, “Fair enough, you all know this meeting’s primary focus is the establishment of a central government, something we can all agree is a necessity should we wish to survive.”

At this the Conglomerate official snorted, “I for one believe we have no need for a central government, perhaps a formal coalition between the fa...”

“That’s good of you to say, bringing more and more families under your umbrella, don’t want an umbrella above you,” smiled the Lifer representative with disgust.

The Conglomerate official enraged, “How dare you, so far removed from the events of the mainland, having a jolly time on your islands ”

“I don’t think we can disregard any faction, we have all suffered through the darkness,” spoke Raphael.

“All save you,” the President Burns snickered.

“The Ottomans were suffering a hundred years before the darkness fell, and do you think we were dancing the years away while you lay beneath darkness?” Raphael shot back.

The Proto Clan chief, Regrar, smashed his monstrous studded fist into the table, “You did not fight, no one save us slew so many, the skulls of many a dark beast cover our northern halls ”

The Syndicate Representative sighed, “Your military victories were grand, to be sure, but one can not disregard they would have come to failure had the darkness not received faulty orders.”

“You dare insult my honor ”

“Oh no, but do not claim you lifted this entire nation from darkness with no aid, all parties did their part... well most anyway,” she stated slowly shifting her gaze to Raphael.

With that Regrar turned to Raphael, “You whelp, carry yourself from our island ”

Raphael sighed once more and answered with silence. This was going to take a while.

A short recess had been called, to give the heated representatives a chance to cool their heads. The situation had only deteriorated from the first second. Each faction saw themselves as the rightful path for the future, and some were very vocal about it. The table around Regrar was now bruised and dented by his massive studded fists.

Raphael approached his assistants, “This is bad, look we knew we weren’t going to get support, but the Syndicate is being ignored.”

“Sir, why don’t you try to shift focus on to them?”

“What do you think I have been trying to do, we need to rally against the Syndicate, both to stop them and to gain the trust of the other factions,” he hissed. Raphael pressed his temples, “The problem is every time I try to shift focus to them, I am shouted down.”

“It will not be easy, but the Syndicate knows it has to lay low, I assume their official has said very little.”

Raphael paused for a second, “True, they are just going to kneel this one down... damnit.” For a moment it occurred to Raphael that the Syndicate official had never introduced herself. He thought over this for a moment, it was an odd move. Perhaps he could use it to his advantage.

The Hearthen official, Junus, entered on the opposite side of the room and averted his gaze away from Raphael. Junus quickly made his way to the water cooler, pouring himself a handy portion. The trickle echoed throughout the room. After a few moments the Hearthen official returned the way he had come, the door closed behind him with a heavy thud.

“I see what you mean sir, they hold no respect for us.”

Before Raphael could reply a hefty guard entered the room, “Sir, the meeting is reconvening, and we request that you be there within a few minutes.”

Raphael smiled, “Of course.” He turned to his aids, “If you will excuse me.”

Back in the meeting room the first officials were returning and taking their seats. The air was heavy with tension, no one really wanted to be there. After a moment Raphael and the few remaining delegates entered and took their seats.

Incandus looked over the delegates, “Alright, we all know where we left off, I think we can get back at it.”

“Of course,” piped Raphael, “but before we start I need to ask one thing of the Syndicate delegate.” Her eyes shot to meet Raphael’s and he shuddered for a moment. She knew he had and was trying to shift focus onto her factions policies. There was a general murmur of displeasure towards Raphael. He rebuked, “Oh its nothing, I am simply wondering what our distinguished guest’s name is.”

Her eyes narrowed, she had a new found respect for Raphael and internally rebuked herself for being so quiet, too quiet. She had needed to stay withdrawn in order to remain out of the collective cross-hairs of the other factions. It seemed as if Raphael had found a simple way to make her show up on their radar, she hadn’t stated her name. Well, nothing for it now, “My mistake, no one was really formally introduced, so the occasion never arrived.” She continued carefully, “Either way, my name is Juliet Violet.”

Raphael smiled, he had her, “Well thank you Ms. Violet, perhaps if you participated more such oversights would not happen.” He continued, “It really was dreadfully embarrassing to not know your name.” He slowly applauded himself internally, she was on the radar.

“Yes, Ms. Violet, its seems you have been incredibly quiet, it seems we have failed to discussed possible Syndicate issues,” spoke President Burns.

She smiled, “What would you like to discuss?”
Dozens of stories below numerous unmarked vans took up position around the main building. Had there been a working defense infrastructure it would have picked up an immense spike in radio transmissions.

OOC: Anyone feel free to get involved, I mean the RP can play out with me alone, but what fun is that?

bump

bump again :(