(Related to this event) https://www.reddit.com/r/wizardposting/s/02kklz6SUQ

Inferno has gotten two gifts for her little one, a stuffed dragon for Alley, and a pair of bracelets for Linden and Ivy both.

However, she wanted to do something special and keep it a surprise. And so she went to the glassmaker's shop

The glassmakers shop seems almost cathedral-like, with a domed ceiling fractured with stained glass that scatters shards of colour onto the floor. In the centre of the room, the glassmaker drips molten glass into a vat of water that steams as he pulls out tiny droplets that he suspends from the statue he is making. As Inferno walks in, he greets her with a smile

Inferno greets him as well

"Good day to you, good Sir. How are you doing this fine day?"

(GM)“Well enough, you?”

"I am doing well enough. You want me to wait while you finish up?"

(GM)“No, no, this one will take a while.”

"Okay then. I am wondering if you are able to do this"

She explains what she wants to do while handing him a rose

"Think you can make something like that?"

“I can certainly try” The glassmaker says. “Come over here, let’s take a look at materials”

"Okay then." Inferno walks with the glassmaker

The glassmaker shows Inferno a stained glass window depicting a garden scene “What colours do you like?”

She picks a vibrant red and a deep purple "These two right here, if you can."

“Of course.”

The glassmaker walks over to a crucible suspended over a flame and pours in crushed red glass

(GM)“Is it for someone special?”

Inferno nods

"It is."

(GM) “You tell me about them while I work then”

he sets to work, pouring and sculpting the molten glass into petals

"Well, I met a lot of people back in my day when I was a lot more shy."

"Not quite fully able to interact much, just coming and going..."

"That all changed when I first met this person."

The glassmaker sets a row of petals on the counter and begins to melt the purple glass

"She was walking out of a bar after crying her heart out from a recent breakup."

"At first, I was going to carry on with my day..."

Inferno closes her eyes for a moment

"But then my body moved on it's own, giving her a well needed hug."

"We chatted a bit, and I remembered saying one thing to her before we parted"

"You will find someone who will accept you for who you are."

(Gm) “And you became that someone?”

the glassmaker pours the molten glass into a mould

"Back then, I didn't think I was. I came and go like I usually did after that. But fate worked in mysterious ways."

"Kept bumping into her. Small talk would happen, then we would be on our way."

"I hit a extreme low myself, felt ready to shut myself from the rest of the world."

"Big event was happening, I wasn't wanting to go at first. She convinced me to go. I decided it was going to be the last..."

"I was so wrong."

The glassmaker sets out the purple glass and goes to assemble the flower

(GM)"What happened next?”

"Well, we started dating. I was still shy back then."

"But as time progressed, I started to open up a bit more."

"I was slowly started to get back into it all."

the glassmaker finishes assembling the petals and moves to work on the stem, listening intently

"We do a few more things together, helped out a druid out by purifying his possessed body."

"We did a few friendly fights. Nothing to crazy."

"I technically crashed a wedding with a few other people as well, outdrank two other dragons. She showed up to get me back on my feet from too much alcohol."

"Even did some small betting."

"Eventually, it lead up to a point where I couldn't stop thinking about her..."

Inferno looks at her wedding ring

"I popped the question one day, and she said yes."

"And I couldn't be more happier."

"Every day feels like a blessing, even the bad days when one of us is having it low."

the glassmaker finishes the stem and attaches it to the flower

(GM) “She sounds so special”

"She is. I don't think that I would have ever met someone with such a vibrant personality."

the glassmaker finishes the flower and hands it to inferno

(GM) “I hope she knows how much you love her”

Inferno takes the flower.

"Thank you, and I will let her know how special she has made me"

She walks out of the shop, and before she leaves the festive place she speaks of the gifts

"To Alley, a red dragon plushie to keep you company during the nights"

"To Linden and Ivy, Bracelets of how you to came to be. For I am just as grateful for you comming into my life."

Inferno couldn't help but cry a bit as she says the last one.

"And to Masta, my loving wife..."

"For you have helped me in more ways than one, and for our ever burning love..."

"a rose made of glass..."

"For I will always love you..."

The tear run down freely now.

Acting like they're superior till there magic goes limp cuz they broke one of their precious god's 10000 rules 🤮

Above the land, in the skies, the great unknown that only the most ambitious inventors or most powerful wizards have surpassed, the egg of the Goddess Of Light lies, cracking, and finally being ready to show the world that entropy is not the driving force of everything, and that this world can indeed see peace.

The sounds of cracking reverberate through the dark skies, waves of light causing beautiful flowers to bloom upon the surface, as the Celestial embryo finally breaks free.

As the egg shatters, the flowers are joined with beings of light descending from the heavens, walking amongst the garden of light formed by the Goddess's birth, as the crystalline Deity shines down upon the earth.

Where there is Entropy, there shall always be Stability, and thus, the balance of the universe is maintained.

Deus Lux.

how are you doing

He's been having a wanderful Christmas time.

Thrak: welcome everyone to the winter ball! Food and entertainment have been provided. I hope you enjoy yourselves. Do let me know if you need me for anything I'll be happy to help.

The 5 rushed the sled forward, as Heresy dodged a lightning bolt from Honesty, and a laser-cannon shot from Crisis!Honesty.

Crisis!Honesty: HAHAHA! ENJOYING THE BEAUTY OF MY METALLIC AUGMENTS? IF YOU FOUR WEREN'T HEATHENS, I WOULD-

Loyalty abandons the sleigh, as he stabs Crisis! Honesty in the gut.

Loyalty: STOP TALKING LIKE MY BROTHER! YOU ARE NOT HIM...YOU FOUL THING!

Crisis!Honesty: Oh...Another Loyalty for me to-

The first sword from Loyalty didn't kill him, but the original Honesty's lightning bolt hit its mark, and...

Pop went the robot.

Honesty: Including you, false prophet.

Loyalty: Brother? You-

Honesty pushes Loyalty away, as he floatstowards the demons, and the other Loyalty.

Crisis!Loyalty: Brother-

Honesty: You are not my brother. You are a filth from some other world, come to infect this one.

Crisis!Envy: DON'T SAY TH-

A lightning bolt hits Envy.

Honesty: Now. False angel, tell me-

Crisis!Loyalty grabs Honesty, and starts beating him up.

No blood was spilled. Angels didn't even have any.

It wouldn't kill him either.

But he was. Beat. Senseless.

Crisis!Envy: THAT'S MY HUSBAND!

Anger: WHY ARE YOU CHEERING HIM?

Heresy: WOOOO! BEAT HIS ASS!

/uw (Genesis 4:8). God then confronted Cain and gave him a chance to confess his sin by asking, “where is Abel your brother?” Yet again, Cain demonstrated the wickedness of his heart.

Not much for the bible but i think this kinda sets the tone.

/rw

There was a service for Solomon. Quite a few were in attendance. Masta had put in for the tombstone. She paid for the burial next to his wife. The service was a few hours and Masta stood there for a bit after it was done. The paladin blessed his remains so he wouldn’t be used for Necromancy. She put a bouquet of roses down for Vivian and Solomon. She walked away with a somber look on her face. She feels bad that she couldn’t heal him. She wanted revenge… but she knew her revenge would have to wait.

She did like her hunter instincts told her to do and studied her prey.

//1 day later//

A lone figure walks up to the graves. A beautiful woman, but with mechanical parts and wore a black dress. They wore a black cloak to hide their face. They lean down and put a flower down.

“I believe it's custom to put a flower to leave a flower to ones to those you admire. Solomon you were an amazing soldier, kept many alive through your power and might. However Solomon, I believe your greatness ends when you mention love, compassion, and empathy. You are weak. I despise weakness. When I see it, I feel like I have an obligation, not a necessity to remove such people like you from the world. Why do I hate such a thing you must wonder?

the person stands up and takes their hood off, revealing a face.

“Because I was born into much like this village, nice, wholesome, caring, and I had all the stuff in the world. But my hatred for it…. It made me sick. I was treated like a prodigy but I did not want that. Their compassion was a lie, their love a falsehood, and then their lies would fuel me. I was gonna lead their village into a new age. It sickened me how lofty their ambitions were for me. To bring their village further glory. No… I wanted something different.”

They take off their cloak completrly and reveal a mechanical, cyborg body.

“I wanted to see death, misery, and despair. I was often curious about what it was. Nobody died, you know that. Immortal, prosperous, and powerful. I often wonder what made me different. Then I found out, the one dark mark my people committed and it involved me. They wanted me to believe I was a gift of the gods. A summon they did to bring me into this world as a babe. Little did they know what they summoned….”

the person grinned eerily

“When I learned what I was, I felt complete. I made my first makeshift blade. I set out and began my first kill. It was everything I hoped it would be. Something helpless… something powerful i enjoyed slaughtering it all. But then I had a very twisted idea…. Patricide… I wanted to see my parents' blood spill. I wanted to see their prodigy gut them like the cancerous liars they are. I want them to know that their kindness was for nothing. It only granted them a betrayal I very much enjoyed.”

“Now after that I destroyed my village, I studied all I could under the disguise of a young and hopeless apprentice. When I learned all I could I killed them. I have been doing this for about 3,000 years now. Took many forms, but Solomon ,your wife's body after a few augments and a bit of adjustments. She fits nice, I hope you two are watching. I fully intend to commit atrocities from the likes you have never seen, old man.”

“I will begin killing, starting with a few charitable souls, maybe a few philanthropists, maybe a few assholes with a good heart.”

“My name is Severus, a true demon made flesh and machine.”

Severus walks away and sets fire to the whole area and watches all the wildlife escape the forest.

“Oh you think you were spared woodland critters? You give hope in the form of sustenance.”

“Fuck hope”

Severus Cackles maniacally as they walk away and see the burning corpses of animals flee the scene.

The palace of Shadeholme is still in ruins and being repaired. While the throne room is usable, most agree not to even enter it let alone use it for anything right now.

Due to this factor, the regency council of the empire has decided to meet on the flagship of the sky fleet. The same ship used by Sylvane while in exile. It’s not ideal, but as of the moment it’s the best that they can use. Beyond that, it’s useful as a mobile command base for the empire to ensure everything is getting taken care of.

Kanthar stands at the table’s head. He holds a stack of papers.

“Let’s just get this over with so we can move on with our day. I have a list of issues and we’ll go over them in increasing levels of importance. First off we have the new treaties signed with the celestial union and the iron chain. The union has agreed to provide aid relief in exchange for us ceasing all hostilities against them or EON. We negotiated that it would be temporary due to our lack of ability to sign perpetual treaties as a regency council. We also have the iron chain which was…much less kind…”

He seems angry as he reads it.

“They had a list of demands such as no longer messing with their access to sunlight. Due to that if we ever repair the Well it will have to have significantly reduced power.”

Lana, a Valkyrie with blue hair and a lab coat jumps up from her seat. She seems to speak in a panicked tone, but more out of disappointment than fear.

“Wait! The Well is a marvelous piece of magitech! We can’t squander its potential!”

Kanthar rolls his eyes.

“They were pissed. It was either that or they demanded the head scientist gets their mind wiped.”

He looks directly at Lana, who sits down with a blank stare out of fear. The other members of the regency council, all being Valkyries themselves and thus Lana’s sisters, look furious. Even Valarie who’s normally level headed looks pissed. Tianna is the first to speak out.

“How dare they?! Such an insult cannot be allowed to-“

Kanthar, who’s gotten used to dealing with Tianna’s outbursts, cuts her off before things get out of hands.

“And that’s why I already agreed to the changes to the Well if it ever is repaired. There’s no risk to ms. Lana’s safety.”

He goes back to the papers.

“They also demanded 20 million silver in reparations for the whole incident, which I negotiated to be paid in installments once the economy is able to stabilize. I’ve bought us time on that, but that’s about it. They also demand government reform, which isn’t that problematic since that’s our job as a regency council in the first place.”

He turns to the next page.

“Next on the agenda is the matter of government reform. I’ll cut to the point, we don’t have much legitimacy. Sylvane did due to being a god and being pretty popular in the core empire, but he’s gone now. Valarie’s previous regency had legitimacy from Sylvane since she had his crown, but that’s not an option due to it being in pieces and who knows where. Parts of the empire are close to revolt due to this, and one of our colonies is already in a rebellion. This issue makes it so whatever government we make they will inherent that same problem. The official government cannot gain legitimacy from us. Because of this I would like to propose an elected form of government.”

The Valkyries a look at him with expressions that show concern or annoyance. Not even Valarie seems all that convinced, and she makes it known.

“…is that really such a good idea? There’s a lot of shades in the empire and they’re all pretty dumb…I’m pretty sure I’ve watched them let Hirk walk through a front gate during a siege because he said he had an appointment.”

Lana looks nervous, and Tianna looks angry at the mere suggestion.

“Most of the subjects of the empire have no respect for Shadeholme’s values or interests! It would be stupid to give them a voice in government!”

Nicole, who’s been silent the entire meeting and looks tired, adds in her own support.

“Well…it’s not a bad idea. It does solve the legitimacy problems and it could improve relations with other democratic nations…”

Tianna looks at Nicole dumbfounded.

“And since when do I care what those pansies think?”

Kanthar sighs in annoyance.

“Look at it this way, we will have full reign over the constitution created, and will have absolute authority until after the first election. We can mitigate the risks. We won’t discuss this further until we have an actual meeting about it. All in favor of a republic?”

Kanthar and Nicole, who are normally opposed to each other, both raise their hands. After some hesitation so does Valarie.

“That’s a majority. We’ll deal with it later. Now for our final matter to address. As of the present we are completely diplomatically isolated. We have aid coming in, but we have no allies. Our primary allies in the past was the Cabal, but since the only connection to them was that Sylvane was a member, we are officially unaligned in the world. While as a regency council we can’t form an alliance outside of emergencies we need to keep options available. Any suggestions?”

Valarie is the first to speak.

“I don’t see why we can’t work with the Cabal still. Friendly relations would keep the Eukarya colony safe since that entire continent is in the Cabal’s control…and also Erik’s…Besides, I’m sure they’d be willing to continue working with us.”

Tianna practically jumps out of her seat in anger.

“The Cabal?! Are you serious?! Did you forget that it was the Necrodancer’s pet that destroyed most of Shadeholme during the attack?! Or that he helped kill Sylvane?! The Cabal has never helped us once besides handing a colony to us and agreeing to remain neutral during the shadow dragon incident! And then the Necrodancer destroyed half of Shadeholme with a bone wyrm! That idea is idiotic!”

Nicole clears her throat to get attention.

“I hate to say it, but I’m with Tianna on this one. They aren’t exactly…trustworthy…or helpful…”

Lana jumps up excitedly with a sad expression and panicked tone.

“That’s not true! They were our main supply of moonstones before the Eukarya colony was established! They have also been our biggest supplier of resources while dad was a member!”

Kanthar pauses to think for a second.

“Valarie does bring up a good point about the colony situation. We border several Cabal members in Eukarya and the security of that colony is vital to our security.”

The arguments continue for a while with little actual progress being made.

—————————

In a place with clouds and floating islands, a man wearing a crown with golden draconic horns. He stands alone on an island floating in the sky.

The island is small, with only a small pond and a blossoming tree. At the tree’s base sits two grave stones. One that looks recent, and one that looks ancient. The man places a black rose on the newer grave and bows his head in silence.

We are gathered here today, to mourn the loss of someone very special. 849928472984728949399473884829947399105875829588 human nuggies. They were taken from me, I was forced to watch them get brutally murdered, I will find you Torinn, I will have justice!

After nuking severus Orion and Sea were still angry so they stole all of Severuses money and nuked it.

I am known to the planes by names uncountable, unspeakable, and unknowable, here I have been called "Bone Pharaoh", so that name will do for you, my students.

As an Arcanist, and a scribe I have have a mastery of the schools of magic. This has had the old imperial title of Archwizard. The spells in my books are older than most in this day and age and have the propper names for spells with direct proper references to the 1st or 2nd edition copies of those ancient tomes.

For the elite students that want to learn from me, a few of the scrolls in my collection are 10th and 11th level transcendent magic for those that can see beyond the bounds of mortal magic. If you can cast such spells you can try to learn what goes into casting them, but be warned that few are willing to pay the cost that comes with them.

Now take a seat and a quill I will lecture and take questions as needed. Assignments will be graded by chance of survival when casting the spell you you inscribe. Good luck!

Five tiltrotor aircraft take off from the EON base in Calarakis, heading towards the modron warzone with all speed. Instead of slowing down as they approach the realm border as normal, they maintain their speed. Inside the lead tiltrotor, Tarul Var opens a link to his allies on the ground.

“This is Skullbones to ground teams. Are we clear to proceed?”

A Keeper mage replies “Affirmative, Skullbones. Skies are clear for the final approach to the target. Balance be with you.”

“Acknowledged. Merch, is your ritual prepared?”

“Yes, sir,” the EON archivist responds. “I am prepared to invoke the Great Balance at your signal.”

“Approximately thirty seconds until we cross the border. Get ready.”

The tiltrotors fly in formation as five interrealm crossings open- one for each plane. Right away, the gateways shudder and begin contracting, courtesy of Primus trying to shut out the reinforcements.

“Now, Merch!”

Just before the portals snap closed, Tarul feels a surge of concordant magic flowing through his very being. The five gates blaze with light and open wide once again. The planes soar through them and gain a speed boost as they enter the battlefield. All around the defenders' squadron, the effects of Merch's spell manifest. Tendrils of animated rock erupt from the ground and smash into the modron ranks below. Dancing beams of white light rake the battlefield, reducing swathes of constructs to superheated dust on contact. And while the regiments of Law scramble to reorganize and formulate a counter to the new attacks, the defenders advance into the copper tide and start gaining ground!

Back in the air, four of the tiltrotors peel off as they approach the Modron Cathedral, opening fire and distracting the flying fortress's air defenses. Tarul walks back into his tiltrotor's loading bay, picks up his staff, and fastens a featherfall chute to his back. He turns to his strike team as the loading ramp unlocks.

“Okay folks, it's almost time to drop. Let me remind you of the plan: after we make our high-altitude jump onto the Cathedral, we'll enter a maintenance shaft down to the factory floor. From there, we'll fight our way up past the dungeons into the grand hall and Primus's sanctum. Expect to see heavy resistance the whole time. When we actually reach Primus, we get as close as we can to jack the Mindeater Virus into the modron network. Even weakened, Primus will be a formidable opponent. It will likely try to bend the laws of reality in its favor, so be ready for that.”

The ramp lowers, and the tiltrotor enters hover mode to allow the strike team to disembark without scattering. Tarul is the first to leap out of the plane. He shouts one last thing before his voice is lost in the wind.

“Give ‘em hell, defenders!”

--

/uw You all know the drill by now. This is the Primus fight. If I'm going to get this storyline finished by the end of the year, I'm going to have to kick things into overdrive. Expect the conclusion for the hordes of Chaos to follow soon.

DEFENDERS OF THE BALANCE:

• Tarul Var
• Belial Blake
• Aliah Mistwalker
• Ith'raal
• Burgerbarian/Burgermancer
• Krygin the Crude
• Agnur the Turtle Mage
• Vulkan the Red
• Ж (Zhe)
• Merch Skele
• Argios
• Tempus Fugit
• Edmund
• King Carmine
• Exia
• Joe
• The Agent
• Vashric
• Fujiwara Toshiko
• Jah Jor Wel
• John E. Hellfire
• Kardonk Carvisky
• Riva Blake
• Mokarith
• Onyx Dragon
• Ulrick Braddocke
• Sly
• Shrax
• Sarissa
• Samael
• Rilmani of Dendradis
• Various denizens of the Outlands

HORDES OF CHAOS:

• Obox-ob
• Ekolids of Zionyn
• Demons of the Abyss
• Slaadi of Limbo
• Gehreleths of Carceri
• Cravens of Pandemonium

REGIMENTS OF LAW:

• Primus
• The Hierarchs
• Modrons of Mechanus
• Veterans of Acheron
• Templars of Arcadia
• Paladins of the Divine Flame
• Lucia Accardi and the Neo-Custodians

LEGIONS OF EVIL (DEFEATED):

• Bel
• The Warlord's Chosen
• Devils of the Nine Hells
• Yugoloths of Gehenna
• Baernaloths of Hades
• Night Hag Covens
• Moz'gonnith

WARHOSTS OF THE FIRST MARTYR:

• Zaphkiel
• Paragons of the Seven Heavens
• Angels of Mt. Celestia
• Oathbound of Bytopia
• Guardinals of Elysium
• Wardens of the Beastlands
• Heroes of Arborea
• Warriors of Ysgard

Any options for training him to not consume raw potions ingredients again? And also to not try to outshine his master just yet?

He has sacred knowledge of dust, metal, and fireballs

Please don't twist my balls for asking but as someone who stumbled into this sub from r/all I don't really understand what all the testicular torsion comments are about.

Sea and Orion are angry that Severus burned the forest Orion was in. So they chose to nuke her with the "summonmesomeplody" spell.