TGOD - Ra Goes On A Killing Spree

[Narsil]

Narsil strolled through the corridors of Estrith's mansion, side-by-side with the Rose and the Doctor, admiring the architecture. The faerie noticed something odd about those too. The Doctor was much friendlier with Rose than he was with any of his other companions. He'd whisper into her ear occasionally, joke with her, he'd even cuddle her somewhat close to him; he had to suppress a chuckle at the thought of any envy that Sarah Jane Smith or any of the Doctor's other former companions might have felt.

He was suddenly drawn from his musings by a bleeping sound coming from his right pocket; the communicator. "Yes, what is it?"

Rose and the Doctor were drawn from their flirting instantly and remained quiet.

"Sir, we've detected, you won't believe it, a Death Star orbiting mars."

"Great," Narsil grimaced, "prepare gridfire, for when it presents itself as hostile."

"Shouldn't that be if it presents itself as hostile, sir?"

"Experience has taught me that if anyone goes to the trouble of building a Death Star, they mean to be hostile," Narsil grimaced, "on second thought, effectorize its superlaser so it doesn't work anymore, and have done with it."

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

OOC: Darzap, I'm living the Death Star (in person), but Irene will be aboard the station with the Strike Force, in case Detritus decided to join their investigation on Earth.

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Irene, Kreshna, Admiral McKenzie, and other officers gathered in the meeting room, doing the briefing necessary to land their small force on Earth. Irene wore her Stormtrooper armor again, as she previously said, 'it is nice to be a Stormie again'. She was, after all, the acting strike force commander.

"........so we will establish a makeshift base here, supporting Ra and Galadriel's party with necessary logistics, while Task Group Delta will catch up with them. It will consists of three squads of Stormtroopers, five LAAT Gunships, and four scout walkers. Six walkers and another five LAAT will be stationed on the base, while three Tyderian shuttles will be the 'workhorse'...."

Suddenly Kreshna cut in, "the superlaser has just been disabled." He said as if awaking from a dream.

"What?" Admiral McKenzie was caught in surprise, "but how did you know...."

"I just knew. Prepare diagnostic level three and you'll see. I have to leave."

"Where are you going?" Irene asked with concerned voice.

"I'm... not sure, but someone else has just interfered. Wish me luck."

Moments later, a man shrouded in gigantic, bird-shaped fire flew through the vacuum from the Death Star, heading to a certain direction based on instinct. Darth Kreshna was not sure where he was going to, there was something unknown that guided his direction.

He was heading towards Narsil's ship.


==============================================================

Yes, the Phoenix can survive vacuum, and can fly like Superman. Just take a look at this pic. Also, the Phoenix devoured a star at whim (X-Men: Dark Phoenix Saga), while even Galactus actually feared it (an Excalibur issue; don't quite remember which one).

Oh, and of course Darth Kreshna's bird-shaped aura was much bigger than that of Jean Grey. After all, he was the result of Palpatine's tampering with the Phoenix Force (as told in the original Phoenix War STGOD). Muahahaha!!!

[Narsil]

"Sir, we have incoming," the communicator chimed, "it's the phoenix force."

"Beam me aboard," Narsil grimaced, "I'm taking command."

Suddenly, via displacer, Narsil was stood on the bridge of his command ship, "Raise shields, and prepare weapons, just in case."

"We should be able to resist it, sir, it isn't much hotter than a star."

"Of course," Narsil said, sitting down and straightening out his jacket, "if he attacks, destroy the Death Star with gridfire, I'm not for playing games today."

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

"Of course," Narsil said, sitting down and straightening out his jacket, "if he attacks, destroy the Death Star with gridfire, I'm not for playing games today."

"You are not going to destroy my battlestation, alien."

Darth Kreshna's gestalted voice -the voice he always spoke with when the Phoenix manifested itself- suddenly appeared behind Narsil as the Phoenix Avatar materialized inside the ship. Without the help of transporter.

Before anyone could ask how did he get in, the Phoenix -as if capable to read their mind- spoke again, "I am the Primal Force of every living soul in all and every universe; everything that were, are, and will be. Even Galactus fears me, for I am the manifestation of all and every living energy throughout the multiverses. I can manipulate every atoms and molecules at my whim; it was not difficult to enter your ship. Now, alien, explain the reason why did you disable the primary weapon of my battlestation."

Darth Kreshna, shrouded in the fiery aura of the Phoenix, waited for their reply.

[Narsil]

"Because I don't like the Empire, and I seek to disarm it as soon as possible," Narsil said, "your battlestation, Lord Kreshna, is a scum-filled dirtpit designed only to inflict death and destruction, I disabled it for safety reasons, I'm sure you can be reasonable and understand that." He glared, "And you don't scare me, Phoenix Force, as you have no real power here," with that, Narsil raised a hand which absorbed the Phoenix Fire from Kreshna, dropping the Sith Lord to the floor, "you may have the Phoenix Force back once I deem you mature enough to wield it."

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

"And you don't scare me, Phoenix Force, as you have no real power here," with that, Narsil raised a hand which absorbed the Phoenix Fire from Kreshna, dropping the Sith Lord to the floor, "you may have the Phoenix Force back once I deem you mature enough to wield it."

"What... you- you can't possibly...." Darth Kreshna was paralized for a moment, helplessly lying on the floor as his power had been absorbed. It can't be, he thought, not even Galactus.....

But his eyes turned red again as he raised -no, levitated- from the floor while the Phoenix fire turned to live again. "Impressive. Even Galactus could not absorb energy that fast. But know this, alien, that my fire could not be permanently doused, since I am the manifestation of all that living in all and every multiverses you could imagine. Not even Eternity and Living Tribunal could steal my power, for I am the very force of nature itself."

The Phoenix continued, "I came here seeking for parley, but your aggression was simply uncalled for. You may be the one behind the disturbance during the Xizor Spacelines flight to A'millan Prime; the one who endangers the entire universe. Your threatening stance to the Empire may confirmed my suspicion. Very well, alien. You may be the greatest single threat to the universe since Thanos acquired the Infinity Gauntlet."

The camera panned to outside view as Narsil's ship was engulfed in a raging flame of Phoenix Fire, then Kreshna spoked again, "I merely disabled the power of your ship and moved it light years away from my battle station, leaving you stranded here to prevent you becoming a threat to the Empire, but before I leave, you shall answer my question: are you the one behind the various disturbances that threatening the very fabric of the universe?"


=============================================================

OOC: infinite minus one equals infinite. Infinite minus thousand still equals infinite.

[Narsil]

"No, I'm not," Narsil replied, "I was sent here to fix it, I assumed you were the one behind the disturbance, Lord Kreshna."

"And note that disabling Death Stars is in the rulebook, page 532, paragraph twelve," the Faerie added, throwing over a rulebook, "now could you please turn my ship back on."

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

"No, I'm not," Narsil replied, "I was sent here to fix it, I assumed you were the one behind the disturbance, Lord Kreshna."

"And note that disabling Death Stars is in the rulebook, page 532, paragraph twelve," the Faerie added, throwing over a rulebook, "now could you please turn my ship back on."

"My telepathy tells that your words ring true," now Darth Kreshna turned his fire off, "very well, I would do as you asked, provided you will not bring harm to both the Death Star and the Galactic Empire again. It is my country, for better or worse. Now, do we have agreement?"

[Narsil]

"Agreed," Narsil replied, "but any use of that Superlaser against any planet will result in a swift destruction of your Death Star, am I making myself clear?"

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

"Agreed," Narsil replied, "but any use of that Superlaser against any planet will result in a swift destruction of your Death Star, am I making myself clear?"

"The Death Star is the military instrument of the Empire. You are not dictating Imperial policy here, nor the foreign affairs of other nations. In fact, you have yet to introduce yourself. If you are not the one behind the threat to the universe, then who are you?"

Kreshna actually half-lied; the Death Star orbiting Mars was his private property according to the 87th Amandment -as well as his supporters in the Imperial Senate-, but he knew that his could be mobilized in case the Empire went to war, not to mention he did not like the idea an unknown alien dictating the policy of a sovereign nation -the Empire or not-, so he decided to stick to his end of the bargain. Besides, he wondered who the haughty alien actually was...

[Ra]

Meanwhile...

Galadriel and Ra were in a quiet room, discussing the matter at hand.

"I just don't see why we're still standing around in Elfland," Ra muttered. "We should be blowing something up."

Galadriel only stared.

"I mean, we've taken on universe-shattering threats before, right?" Ra continued. "We're like... the shit."

"I see you've taken to how these people talk," Galadriel snidely observed.

"Ellen," they both said.

As if on queue, the sorceress strode in, and snatched up the remote, turning on one of Estrith's manifold plasma TV's.

"Ever wondered what Kane was up to?" she asked. "Watch."

Ellen flipped through the channels, finally reaching a business news channel. Onscreen appeared Kane, flanked by Baal, both apparently at a news conference.

"...And our corporate strategy is simple. Introduce revolutionary technologies to the world at large," Kane announced. "Right now, the world is locked in a war with a civilization that abhors technology. But guided by the Technology of Peace, we can start a new era for the entire world."

"Mister Kane, your plan sounds rather ambitious," a female reporter said. "Could you go into greater detail about just... what this is?"

"Our company has many... technologies at our disposal," Baal smirked. "But the product we are most proud of is called naquada."

"Son of a bitch," Ra muttered.

"Though I won't go into many details, the unique properties of naquada may well solve the world energy crisis," Kane added.

"And with gas at nearly three dollars a gallon, that's certainly a good thing," another reporter droned. "Mister Kane, is it true the military has contacted you as well, for some of these... unique technologies?"

"I can't answer that," Kane smirked.

Ra looked over at Ellen and Galadriel. Their expressions said everything.

[Narsil]

Narsil smiled, "Why, I'm the official for the Holy British Imperium, and our laws are to annihilate any planet-destroying weapons if they are used, or we find that there is a distinct possibility that they would be used." He chuckled, "Your Empire is an insect compared to us, perhaps less."

He wasn't lying, the four-hundred metre battlecruiser was capable of instantly destroying the Culture within a minute. It was a comparatively long battle, to say that the Culture usually engaged entire confrontations in less than a second, but it wasn't important.

"We will allow your Death Star its existance, for now, but its superlaser will remain offline until further notice."

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

Narsil smiled, "Why, I'm the official for the Holy British Imperium...........

Darth Kreshna was suddely horrified hearing the name: from the Trolls, he had heard the rumors for dimension-faring British Imperium that was known for various atrocities like serving buns for breakfast, cooking with ginger, or playing an unspoken game of sport whose name was only whispered in the darkness as 'soccer'. The Sith tried to hide his trembling and fear as he tried to shake off the mental image. Even his blasphemeous, peculiar experience during the flight with Xizor Spacelines, or even a series of nightmare involving a mysterious dark figure who called himself 'Nyarlathotep', was nothing compared to this. O, the horror!

However, they needed to deal with more immiment threat at the moment. Besides, he saw no benefit of going hostile with this 'British Imperium'. So he tried the diplomatic approach he had learned during his boring job at Death Star Three.

"The Empire does not fall within the jurisdiction of the British Imperium; the superlaser would be repaired and brought operational at our own discretion.However," he paused for an effect, "we do acknowledge the sovereiginity of the nation of British Empire, and we wish no hostility. You have my words that the Empire would not fire upon your ships or planets, using Death Star or otherwise. We expect the British Imperium would do the same. And just for note; we the Empire do not usually use a planet-destroying machinery in an ordinary war."

Kreshna paused for a moment, contemplating his options. This dimension-faring British Imperium was more powerful than anything he had encountered before, and he realized that they could lay waste on the Galactic Empire, the Goa'ulds, the A'millans, the Trolls, the now-extinct Borg Collective, and even the Imperium of Man where Commissar Petrosjko served.

However, the Phoenix Force was not powerless either; it may not as powerful as the One Above All, but certainly more powerful than Galactus, and he could -if he was willing to risk his own sanity, as he and the Phoenix Entity was now a single being- travel accross dimensions and lay waste to their worlds either. Not to mention the Infinity Gauntlet, which was now safely locked within the realms of Dreamworld to keep it from being posessed by the likes of Thanos or Palpatine. Even the all-omnipotent Archmagus was unable to breach the seal to claim the Gauntlet.

It would be a mutually-assured destruction. And that's the least he would see to happen. They, after all, was trying to save the universe, not destroying it.

But wait, the Sith thought, who is Eternity? The Living Tribunal? And who is Thanos? And who is Doctor Doom? How could I ever know them? The Sith Inquisitor was still coping with the melding, as he was no longer a Sith nor a Jedi now, but simply the Phoenix; a man genetically engineered since birth to perfectly meld with the Phoenix Force to serve as energy vessel for the power-hungry Palpatine. And despite the melding process had completed now, the gestalted memory still disturbed him sometimes. Just like the Omnipotent Doctor Doom after he consumed the energy of the Beyonder during the event known as 'Secret Wars', his human psychology were still his biggest strain. The perceived need to sleep, for example, although he did not need it at all in his state of being as the Phoenix Force. And the fear, which was still part of every human being. And the feelings of love and hate....

He quickly shrugged it all and reminded himself that he was now -accidentally- in some delicate diplomatic circumstances.

Unfortunately, the series of dreams that haunted him started to crawl again, and the blasphemous, accursed dark man who called himself Nyarlathotep.

No, it was not a dream.

It was not a dream since Narsil ship was now shuddered and strained as if it was being bent by some unseen, destructive Chaos whose power seemed far exceeded even the cosmically-powerful British Imperium. And the piping noise. And the hint of subtle drums. And the endless, insane laughter of a tormented omnipotent being who called himself 'Q'. And the eternal suffering of the Anti-Monitor. And the extinction of powerful civilizations of the Culture and of the Organians. And the dark figure who called himself 'Nyarlathotep'.

And the Phoenix screamed.

The bird-shaped fiery aura flamed outward, reaching gigantic size in mere seconds until Narsil's ship -which was shrouded by it- was nothing but a small dot amidst the shrouding, protective flame.

And it all ended.

An officer aboard Narsil's ship reported, "Sir, the disturbance had ended. Many systems were damaged but the ship is stable now. But the Phoenix...."

He did not continue as everybody had seen Darth Kreshna was no longer aboard the ship.

========================================================

On Earth....

As Ra and Galadriel were watching the TV, they were suddenly disturbed by a shimmering appearance in their room; a pulsating light that appeared out of nowehere that peculiarly shaped like a standing human. The light kept pulsating like a malfunctioning transporter, until the human shape become clearer and more tangible.

Eventually, there stood a stumbling Darth Kreshna. His uniform was torn in many places and showed burn marks as if he just went through fire.

"...the Nuclear of Chaos.... ...Those of Unspeakable Names... must... stop... them... must.. stop... them... NOD Temple... stop... Kane... Earth.. is... ...nexus... must... stop..... Ia! Ia! Shub-Niggurath! Black Goat of the Woods!! The Goat With A Thousand Young!!"

With those words, the Phoenix fell unconsciously to the floor.





========================================================

[Narsil]

"Did he go to earth?"

"Yes sir."

"I'm starting to feel like a cosmic yo-yo, use the Speed of Dark to return to Earth, and uncloak us for god's sake, it's obviously not doing anything."

"Yes sir."

Within a flash of darkness(?) the Victory stationed itself in orbit around Earth, and Narsil returned to Estrith's palace, to see a rather burnt and wounded Darth Kreshna.

"Just keeps getting better and better, doesn't it." Narsil grimaced.

[Ra]

OOC: NOD and its economic shenanagins are not a threat here, whassup?!

=============================

Ellen could only say, "Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooookay..."

"I got from that..." Ra muttered... "That Kane had to be stopped, and the entity had to be stoppped. The rest, I dunno what the fuck that was about. But why Kane?"

"While it is true that Kane is... unwise for trying to use this Earth to his benefit..." Galadriel said, "Perhaps his working with Guardian technology is going to have a terrifying consequence. My sight is clouded on the matter."

Ellen began shaping magical energies, the wounds on Darth Kreshna beginning to heal. Estrith, meanwhile, burst in, wondering what had just happened.

"Oh, this kind of thing happens all the time," Ra said dismissively.

"He should be coming to soon," Ellen sighed. "Maybe he can shed some light on the matter."

Estrith stepped up beside Ellen, and said, "Whatever the case, time is short."

The group regarded the elf.

"The maelstrom of chaotic energy you saw..." Estrith said darkly, "Is very close now. Far too close."

"I knew indeed that time was short, but this is terrible news," Galadriel sighed. "We must do something quickly. Find answers."

"But we don't even know what to look for," Ra muttered.

"I suggest you return to New York," said Estrith. "I will remain here, and should you need my help, I will provide it."

"Why can't you come with us, elf?" Ra inquired.

"Because she's one of the Five Heirs," Ellen said.

"As one of the Five Heirs, I cannot leave the magical defenses of Gardsten unattended for any extended period of time. And with this threat hanging over us, that defense is more important than ever. I am sorry," Estrith said.

"We understand, Lady Estrith," Galadriel nodded.

Now, to figure out their next move.

[Narsil]

"Well," the faerie piped up, "we can find Ba'al and Kane with the Victory's scanner system, and possibly beat them up for information."

"I disagree," Vader spoke up from behind Ellen, having suddenly appeared almost out of nowhere, "the best strategy is a Base Delta Zero."

"You say that about every crisis."

"There isn't a crisis to worry about if it's turned into blackened ashes."

"Touché, but we're still not doing it."

[Ra]

"WHY do I get the feeling I'm going to be out of a home after all these aliens get through with it?" Ellen sighed.

"Well, you could always move to Romulus," Ra shrugged.

==============

Suddenly, aboard the Victory, a man in a suit appeared in a flash of light, babbling incoherently. With a wave of his hand, the sensor console turned into a gigantic flower bed. Before the crew could capture the man, he vanished as quickly as he appeared, still babbling insanely.

[Narsil]

"Sir," Narsil's commlink beeped, "some insane magic-user just fucked up our sensor console, we're on combat sensors only until we can repair it."

"What do you mean 'fucked up'?"

"Turned into a flower-bed."

"Alright, we'll track Kane and Ba'al down the old fashioned way then, send down an away team consisting of Redshirts to the continent they were last spotted, if the Redshirts don't return; we've found them."

[Destructionator XV]

Lord Adam signs a sheet of paper and puts it back in a folder, then looks up at the Lady with a satified countenance. Finally, all caught up.

She looks up at the clock, and suggests to him "well, it is not yet late; care to take a gander at the grounded shuttle?"

"Yes, let's take a look."

They travel to the spaceport, and go to the hangar where the shuttle that carried Darth Kreshna remains in isolation. Two Air Force guards check their credentials, and allow them to enter.

They board the shuttle, scanning for abnormal readings with tricorders at the same time sensing for disturbances in the magical plane.

"I'm not reading bloody anything out of the ordinary in this ship," the Lady remarked.

"I've got nothing too," Adam agreed, "maybe Kresh is playing a practial joke on us."

"He's not above it, but if it were a joke, he surely would have gotten his laughs by now."

"True. Perhaps something can be found in space; we can follow it's flight path."

"Sounds like a plan. Might as well release the ground order on this ship."

He nods to the airman who removes the lock on the hangar, and the Lord and Lady leave emptyhanded.

[Narsil]

Diess Aughato watched the holographic projection closely, remaining quiet as the assignment was given to him. This backwards planet was called Earth and it was populated by several forms of humanoid life, 'humans', 'elves' and 'dwarves' being the most common. He yawned tiredly and glanded a snap before asking, "So when will we arrive."

"Two standard days," the hovering drone, an extension of the consciousness of the Ship's AI itself, replied, "you might as well get some rest, Diess, this assignment isn't to be taken lightly."

"Of course not," he replied, "my assignment is to track down this Ba'al fellow, reason with him, and bring him into custody; that's a dangerous enough task... I'd think."

"You'll be accompanied by a knife missile, of course, so you have an advantage," it said cheerily, "now go get some R&R in the time you have before we get there."

"Very well."

====

OOC: Looks like we're attracting the attention of Special Circumstances.

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

OOC: I haven't got the complete thought on that, but I was thinking the following possibilities:
- either NOD temples are to open the gate for the Old Ones
- or there is an 'artifact of omnipotence' of sort that can repel the Old Ones (like Protoss' Khayadin Crystal in StarCraft)
- or both

==============================================================

The palace....

Darth Kreshna was healing rapidly, either because of Ellen's magic or due to the power of the Phoenix, or both. As soon as he was awaken, the first thing he did was telepathically contacting Irene at secret Imperial Military Base somewhere in Eritrea; the Eritrean government was easy to persuade, as the Empire had offered protection and technology in exchange. Now she was on the way to the palace using an ordinary passenger flight to prevent unecessary attention.

However, the Sith Lord himself was suffering some mild case of amnesia. The last thing he remembered was the encounter with the mysterious alien who damaged the Death Star's superlaser, but he did not remember anything happened during the trans-dimensional journey following the burst of his Phoenix flame. The flame that had repelled the mysterious appearance of the Nuclear of Chaos; the very same flame that had inadvertently protected Narsil's ship.

As Ra and Galadriel was preparing to leave the palace and heading to New York, they were quite surprised to see the healed and energetic Darth Kreshna approaching them. The Phoenix, after all, was supposed to stay unconscious in bed. He then explained his experience aboard the British Imperium ship that disabled the Death Star's superlaser, as well as the twirling mass of chaos that drove him to burst the Phoenix Aura. And the appearance of the mysterious dark figure who called himself 'Nyarlathotep'.

".........while the British Imperium could pose a threat to all of us, it did not seem that they were the one behind all what happened," he spoke, "in fact, there was another anomaly happening during our... diplomatic talks aboard the ship; the anomaly that threatened both of us. The last thing I remember is bursting out my Phoenix Aura in a desperate attempt to repel the blasphemeous abomination -and my own insanity- and then I found myself waking up here."

"you've mentioned strange things about Nuclear of Chaos and Those of Unspeakable Names before you collapsed."

"And something about Kane and NOD Temple," Ra added.

"Did I? I don't remember anything... no... wait..." He paused for a moment, then continued, "could someone with magical ability probe into my lost memories? To recall what I have missed between the events aboard the British Imperium ship and my awakening at this palace?"

He quickly added, "I have to warn you, though, that the memory I have lost was probably.... an unpleasant one. I'm not sure how, or why, but I just have bad feelings that the reason I lost that part of memory was because... because I have witnessed something that should never be seen. I think whoever casting the spell should be strong enough.... and prepared enough to see whatever I have forgotten back then."

He waited for their reaction.

[Ra]

"We could attempt to regain your lost memories, yes," Princess Estrith nodded. "Though the process is not something to be taken lightly."

"Couldn't we all work together? You have your powerful ring, I obviously have the one you gave me, and..." Ellen glanced over at Galadriel's hand, "She seems to have a ring of sorcery as well."

"Not precisely the term," Galadriel said, "But it can do what you ask."

"Ellen, you may be a skilled sorceress now, but this is an exacting ritual, and many things could go wrong," Estrith warned. "For your safety, and that of the man we're trying to help, I would advise against it."

"I understand..." Ellen nodded.

"I have over three hundred years' experience, dear, please do not take it the wrong way," Estrith said.

"And I have over eight thousand years' experience," Galadriel noted.

Estrith grinned, and said, "Then I bow to your wisdom, Elder."

"Agreed, though I have delved into the murk of Darth Kreshna's mind once too many," Galadriel said. "I shall oversee the ceremony, and stand by, should the inner horrors he may have seen overcome you."

"Elves," Ra grumbled.

Galadriel ignored Ra's disapproval, and stepped back, spreading her hands slightly. Likely some kind of magical warding. Estrith then approached Darth Kreshna, and froze in place, reaching her hands forward. Moving them in precise motions, she began to speak several odd, ancient-sounding words. The Princess' voice began to boom and echo with a supernatural, almost frightening tone.

* * *

The world vanished with a flash. Darth Kreshna found himself standing alone, on a vast, empty, Abyssal plane. Purple clouds moved overhead at a shockingly fast pace, but there was no wind to be felt.

"Why does his mind dwell in the Abyss?" Estrith inquired, slowly circling around him, almost as a ghostly image.

Suddenly, the Abyss was filled with thousands, if not tens of thousands, of elves in shimmering armor, charging at muscular, jade-skinned warriors. Various other events of the world flashed by, from the Elven Exile, to modern times. Estrith's own thoughts, it seemed, were more clear than his own.

The Abyss then cleared out once more, with only one figure appearing. That of a dark, swirling void of a man. The Archmagus. The enemy it seemed no one could defeat.

"I OCCUPY YOUR PAST, MORTAL. I AM YOUR PAST. I AM WHY YOU ARE HERE NOW. BUT WHAT POWER CAN POSSIBLY SURPASE *ME*, WHOM GODS FEARED?"

"What is the most destructive thing in the universe, but without which, the universe would simply atrophy into nothingness?" Estrith inquired.

"THE BEING OF CHAOS, SWIRLING AND DEVOURING ALL IN ITS PATH. NAMES UNSPEAKABLE, ANCIENT HORRORS TO BEHOLD. WHAT LIES BEYOND THE GATE, MORTAL? DO YOU EVEN *WANT* TO KNOW?" the Archmagus boomed.

"What is this?" the Sith Inquisitor asked.

"It is how the ritual works. Magic can only do so much. You must ask yourself the questions, see through the shadows that obscure your thoughts," Estrith explained.

"The answers are there," Ellen said, appearing out of nowhere, "You just need to find them."

"And resist," Estrith warned. "You are still affected, and if you are not careful, you may be consumed."

"I AM YOUR INSANITY. EMBRACE ME AND YOU EMBRACE DEATH!" the Archmagus rumbled.

"I am the guiding light," Estrith intoned. "Your logical and rational mind."

"And I am your instinct," said Ellen. "Even if you can't remember, just ask yourself the question, what would I have done in that instance?"

It was decision time. Memories were being nudged by the Princess witch, and many questions - and decisions - lay ahead.

[Narsil]

Narsil had left the strange ritual behind, having seen enough of spiritual and mental guidings, musings and navel-gazings to last an eternity. He now sipped tea and sat in the captain's seat of the Victory casting an occasional confused glance at the sensor system, "Have we had word from the Redshirts yet?"

"Yes, they stumbled onto Ba'al and Kane, and attempted to apprehend them."

"Let me guess; they're all dead."

"Aye sir."

"Fuck!"

[Ra]

Suddenly, the Abyss changed, becoming the interior of the Victoly.

"We return to the place," said Estrith's vision. "What do you remember? What did you experience, truly? Can you remember?"

Darth Kreshna shook his head.

"This was where the meddler had come, to interfere with your battle station," said the Ellen apparition. "It belongs to you, and he tampered with it... only to start meddling in his own ways, right?"

"Yes, that was precisely what happened..."

"Think deeper," Estrith said. "What happened, exactly? Tell me."

==========
OOC: Sorry for the confusing shit, I was trying to make things interesting. Hopefully this'll be easier for you to understand.

[Ra]

But something was terribly wrong. The memories no longer held themselves back; they flooded over Darth Kreshna like a wave. A destructive deluge of memories came, visions of incomprehensible and terrifying things no mortal mind could contain. The Sith Inquisitor began to convulse violently, babbling words no one could even try to understand.

"Release him!" Ellen shouted.

Estrith had already broken the spell, and all three tried using their magic to stabilize him. But it was already too late. Darth Kreshna's eyes flashed from the Phoenix force, and his mouth spewed fire, as the convulsing got worse. Elven healers and medics rushed to his aid, but nothing could stop it now. Nyarlathotep had touched him.

Madness followed, and then pain. Finally, the group was horrifed, as fire engulfed Darth Kreshna, and suddenly the Phoenix Force spread its wings, leaving him. There was no sign of his body, or even ash. There was nothing.

Ellen was speachless.

"May the Aesir guide him," Estrith trembled.

"There was nothing you could do," Galadriel said sadly. "It was not your fault, or anyone's. We... underestimated the risk."