I thought of the details I and the player had cooked up. His iron sword Ravenswing housed a humakti daemon, and he had won some wind powers in a duel from a Tarshite exile who had come to challenge him for the sword. The bracelet with the breath of a dead man was a cool detail, and showed that he had some flexibility, but it was the sword that I went with.
When riding back towards boldhome he met a strange traveller. An old kralori monk (think of an old kung-fu movie) walked up to him when he was letting his horse rest a while, and asked if he could see the sword. The monk was Hei-Chi, once Hengal Blackwing, a second age humakti from Ralios that had travelled to the EWF and become a powerful dragonmystic. Hengal had survived the blue moon assasins, the men and dragonewts on the night the EWF was betrayed. Eventually he had come face to face with the Inhuman King, and realizing he could not win had committed Utuma to escape destruction. He had reincarnated in Kralorela. As he grew up he remembered his life and was furious about the betrayal of the EWF. There was nobody to perform the mind-split for him so his EWF powers slumbered.
Hengal, now called Hei-Chi (black wing) became a martial arts sifu and a respected manifest mystic. He lived for centuries, turning towards more traditional mysticism. Eventually he was ready to let go of the world, but even as a near bodhisatwa, the betrayal of the EWF still preyed on his mind. Eventually he decided to travel to dragon pass, and ask the Inhuman King for an explanation, so he could have peace.
Hei-Chi was drawn to Gerlef, since the Ravenswing Daemon had also been the sword of Hengal Blackwing. Gerlef, having heard the story reluctantly let the frail looking old man hold his sword for a while. The sword flew through the air into the hand of the old man (think jedi & lightsaber). Hei-Chi held the sword for a long moment, then smiled and gave it back to Gerlef, having given up yet another obstacle for his enlightenment.
Hei-Chi told Gerlef about the Raven Banner the disciple had been seeking, and how it was guarded by a powerful dreamdragon near the lands of Cragspider. He also talked about the nature of the gods, and expressed sorrow at how Gerlef was letting himself become just a vessel for Humakt. In this way some very strange (mystic) ideas were given to Gerlef, and the seeds of doubt also sown.
As the sacred time went on, Gerlef quested for the Raven Banner. He saw the courage of a fellow humakti (an young initiate who gave his life to liberate an uncle's head from a headhanger), fought chaos, faced Tuskriders, was Voria dance in a forest, befriended elves and dragonewts and foiled a zorak-troll's heroquest against the Stinking Forest elves.
The elves sought to thank him by letting him lay down his sword for a while in their Taker's Circle, and dancing the dances of spring with him. Again, Gerlef got an experience that was very strange to the Dead child-man.
Eventually Gerlef faced the Black Dreamdragon of Death and gained possession of the Raven Banner of Humakt (to be the wyter of the Household), by this time he was already a pretty confused young man, in comparison to the singleminded iron blade that had left Boldhome before the sacred time.
Worse was to come. Hei-Chi didn't achieve enlightenment. The Inhuman King told the mystic that what he really sought was now the Green Dragon of Dragon Pass (having died and ascended to True Dragonhood). Hei-Chi travelled to the sleeping Green Dragon and asked for it's reason for betraying the EWF. The Green Dragon wasn't happy to be roused and confronted by this apparition from it's past. It tried to destroy the mystic, but Hei-Chi refused to be brushed aside and demanded the ansver more forcefully. As the dragon become more awake and more angry Hei-Chi was forced to use more and more of his vast mystic power (he was ready to achieve true liberation), eventually giving into his anger compleatly and becoming the most powerful fallen mystic since Sheng Seleris. HeiChi, now in the form of a very powerful black dreamdragon fought the surprised Green Dragon to submission and made it swear allegiance or be destroyed. He no longer cared for it's reasoning, nor for the foolishness of giving up the world. He still remembers the secrets of the EWF afterall!
When poor Gerlef was returning home triumphant he suddenly rode into a terrible snowstorm. The severe cold actually killed his horse, as he huddled against its flank from the howling wind. From the storm a Black Dragon flew to him, and on landing took human form. The form was of a handsome warrior in his prime, that he could still recognize as the wise old man he had talked to early in the sacred time.
Hei-Chi congratulated Gerlef of reclaiming the Raven Banner, and graciously let him keep his old sword. He also told him that these lands belonged to him, and he would come to collect them in due time. As a gift, he took Gerlef's eyes with a gesture, and replaced them with the iron gray orbs of the dragon Gerlef had killed, so that he could see the world as it is. He kept Gerlef's eyes for some future use and said he would go see what the fuss was about with this great enemy empire.
And with that he resurrected (or re-animated) the dead horse, turned into a black dragon and flew away. Gerlef slew the horse again with a clean thrust of his sword and started to walk towards Boldhome...
***
The point? Gerlef has now many, many problems he can't just deal with as a Disciple. "What Would Humakt Do?" doesn't ansver all the conflicts in his young mind anymore. He's a disciple of death with a spark of life inside him. Hei-Chi told him about the dangers of failed mystics, and then became one! In theory Hei-Chi can be a power to rival the Red Emperor, but is the price too great to pay...
And so on. Gerlef Ravenswing suddenly has a lot of choises to make. He now knows that the world is bigger than just the conflict between Sartar and lunar Tarsh. He knows Hei-Chi had/has a young student in Kralorela, who could be a valuable ally. He has made allies among the dragonewts and the elves of the stinking forest, despite being a Death-child.
So far it's been a very interesting game, and I have no idea where it's going to go.
-Adept
Powered by hypermail