Lethal Reword 5: True Mirage

It had been just another day. The dishes were done, parents were asleep, and Chaz was busy playing video games, namely Mount & Blade, his latest addiction. Then things went to shit. Not sure quite what was happening, all that Chaz could see was white, and then nothing. When he next opened his eyes, there were strange people in armor, and a few others who looked like somthing out of a fantasy game. They all seemed to be resting in the grass at his feet. Wait, why were they at his feet, and since when were his feet, legs, and rest of him covered in bark? Feeling a bit stiff, the tree, who could only remember the name Dossan for some reason, decided to stretch, which was of course, accompanied by a loud yawn.
 
"Bit of an sere-en-dipi-duss conclusion, yah?" The snake-man said, utterly mangling the word 'serendipitous'. "Though... I guess they do tend to play an active part in this sort of thing. I always imagined it to be a lot less... extravagant. Like some little man hiding behind a curtain."

"Or maybe I'm getting reality and Wizard of Oz mixed-up again. All things considered..." He gestured around with a slight chuckle, raising his arms over his head and stretching them out.

As more and more constellations evolved, his expression went from interest, to exasperation. "Gracious, there's a lot of them, huh...?" As his arms fell from his stretch, they rested against a quiver and bow. Cobalt took a look down... taking a gaze at the black-wood bow, decorated with... what seemed to be feathers from his own wings. "...Huh."

Taking the bow off of his hip, he attempted to examine it... not really having a good light source, he held it up closer to the stars in his palms, attempting to get a better look. "Nice bow." He commented.

Spot Check, DC 10.
If you make the spot check, you notice that the Bow constellation lit up brighter as the bow is raised.
 
"Huh, that's strange.." Adra glanced from the bow to the corresponding constellation, noticing the stars light up as the bow was lifted.
"That constellation right there, the bow? It just lit up.." She pointed, noticing the Jackal lighting up as she raised her arm. A quick glance made it clear that the bracers along her arms had the symbol of the jackal-just like the constellation that lit up as she raised them.
"..Huh. I guess it likes me, too."
 
Sven looked up at the stars, particularly the Sword constellation and felt something rise within him, like a sudden surge of power radiating from within his heart. He felt...more complete, than he had before. Like an invisible hand was guiding his.

"it must be, for what else holds sky over the sky like that." He held the pommel of his sword to his forehead in reverence. It's blade glittering in the starlight.
 
Sanar continued to look at the stars And noticed the bow glow brighter, raising her taking her own she held it up though it didn't do anything "Well this is interesting." the said thoughtfully, turning her bow over she felt that the stars were trying to tell them something or at least reassure them about their new world, their new purpose. 'This is starting to feel like a B-grade movie, except we don't instantly know that the stars mean and I'm not half naked' she thought.
 
Chris... No, Ordo. He kept thinking of himself as Ordo. He was still Chris, but that name... For some reason, the name was significant. It was his name too. Ordo.

Ordo stared into the sky along with the others, entranced by the magical show they were given by the streaking stars. They formed images that everyone quickly grasped onto, especially towards the significance: deity. They were the raw symbols of ancient deities. Lightning bolt for Zeus, or Thor. Sword for Ares, or Tyr. Bow and arrow for Artemis, perhaps? Or some other deity of the hunt. A jackal for Anubis, someone pointed out.

"What the hell is goin' on..." he whispered with marvel and reverence. While still amazed, things were settling quite easily into his mind. He was becoming accepting of the situation, as if in the universe, things were right. Or at least, steerings towards a state of 'right.'

"Ordo, by the way. My name is Ordo." He said loudly, enough for all to hear.
 
Heldred was standing upon a cliff, high above the ocean on a sunny day. There were birds flying overhead, and the wind kissed his face free of moisture. Was he dreaming? The sound of the crashing waves rhythmically lapped at the rocks below... and inexplicably, he took a step off the cliff.

Heldred woke up with a start, gasping for breath as an involuntary muscle spasm shook his entire body, causing him to flail slightly. Shaking the cobwebs from his head, he was relieved to find out that he wasn't falling anymore. But had he fallen to begin with? He was tangled. In a bush. There wasn't any bushes at the bottom of the cliff, were there? It was night now. How long had he been unconscious?

These thoughts raced through Heldred's head, almost missing the most important thing of all. Why was his name Heldred? Wasn't he someone else? He gave a shake of his head, starting to feel more and more alarmed as he clawed at the bush, hoisting himself above the leaves and twigs and breaking off many of them into his long black hair. He looked for all the world like a wildman bursting from a carefully picked hiding place that had gone sour. He found his voice now, it was familiar but not... huskier... how did it sound before?

"Augh, ugh...!" It was the only thing he was able to manage at the moment. He saw everyone else not far in front of him. The image was surreal, for lack of a better word. Why did they all look like they were pointing at something in the sky? He could barely make it out...

Then he saw it. The sky was rife with constellations. You could almost see the lines, they were so clear. A few were glowing more brightly than the others, and he suddenly felt compelled to reach a hand out... and reached back in surprise when he saw the visage of a laughing mask ignite the night sky, causing it to dim accordingly. He cautiously reached out again, watching as the stars grew brighter.

"What the ---- is that."

He couldn't really think of anything to say.
 
"M'tired o' waitin'." An echo rang out from the heavens. It was a deep, accented voice. It's reply was a lot softer, "You were never one for patience. Let us go, then."

With a quiver, the four constellations moved, all the stars combining within and becoming four great lights, which quickly floated down to the surface of the lake... out of the lights stepped four figures.

The first, a muscular man with a hammer as mighty as he is in one hand, sporting one of the grandest beards one could ever lay eyes upon. Next to him, second, stepped a much calmer-looking individual garbed in thick armor and a bear's skin. The one hand this man has holds a longsword.

Silent as the grave, a tall, dark-skinned man walks through, garbed in white robes. His head is that of a jackal's, and he stares in a cool manner upon the scene. The final, a tall, white-skinned man in a white toga. In one of his hands is a bow - the other, a lyre.

The first one to exit offers a laugh. "Hey! 'Ands up if yoo saw this comin'. Sure yoo know who I am, righ'?"

The last one sighs softly, shaking his head. "Please." Taking a look to the mortals, he smiles, "It is a pleasure. My name is Apollo, according to your world... this is Thor... Tyr... and Anubis." He pointed each out.

Thor frowns, "Takin' the fun oot o' it."

"I'll leave the fun to your brother."

"Good pint."

"Speaking of which..."

"Not our probbem fer the momen'."

"Good point. Anyway." He looked upon the others, "I would... like to tell you why you're here... once you all pull your jaws off the floor. So to speak."

Anubis observes. Tyr watches with a far less-stoic smile.

----------------------

Nearby, before anyone could notice, the constellation of a mask smiles - and vanishes... equally fast, a hand wraps around Heldred's mouth, pulling him back... and turning him around to face a man with a finger to his grinning lips in a 'shush' motion. Black hair slicked back on his head (and yet, he remained stealthy despite the red-flame motif he sported... must be a god thing). "Aren't you a lucky thing?" The man whispered, grinning in a very mischievous manner, somewhat obscured by his 'Phantom of the Opera' mask.
 
Confusion, a pang of brief terror, utter shock... and somewhere in the back of his mind, a complete lack of surprise. All of these ran through Heldred the moment the hand had closed over his mouth and hoisted him back. It wasn't violent, but most certainly unyielding. He spun as he was turned, overcompensating slightly. Something in him prevented him from reacting further... he didn't feel as though he was in danger, yet.

"Aren't you a lucky thing?" The man whispered, grinning in a very mischievous manner, somewhat obscured by his 'Phantom of the Opera' mask.

"I uh... lucky? What're you talking about? I mean, I am lucky. I mean..." Heldred squinted slightly, betraying the suspicion and resignation he felt at the moment. "I'm... uh, I'm not like 'that'. Please don't rape me."

He shook his head slightly, coming to his senses slowly. This man was on fire.

"... That doesn't hurt? Who are you?"
 
The fiery man gives Heldred an exasperated look, "Listen, I don't know what you've heard about me and Svaðilfari, but I was bullied into that, alright? I couldn't let them back-talk my skills as a trickster." He nodded, as if that settled that.

"If you have to ask, I don't think you need to know." The man shrugs, turning around and placing a hand to his cheek. Letting out a long sigh, he shakes his head. "I really had hoped you were cleverer than that. Maybe I should have done with that busty dame instead. Least then I could have had a little fun watching her... well, enough of that."

He shrugs, turning back around. "I'm Loki. Brother to the hammer-happy nutjob who's champion you'll be tagging along with. I don't like the Olympians much... well, except Dionysus. I don't think a single Asgardian would turn down a party invite from Dionysus. Ah... rambling." He sighs wistfully, before letting off three small laughs and looking to Heldred, holding out a hand. "I'm your Godly Patron."
 
It was too much.

As the figures appeared Sanar turned and fled her breathing wild. Her bag and bow fell to the ground in her rush out into the dim light, through trees and over a small stream. She looked back and saw no one following. "Oh my god. Oh my god, that are those things." she asked panting as she ran. SHe rushed blindly ducking under branches and jumping over bushes. She didn't even notice it when she ran off the face of the world.

"Oh shhiiiii......"

She fell though empty space screaming, arms and legs flailing as she looked down to see.... nothing.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH............."

SPLOSH

It echoed throughout the lake as Sanar landed in the center sending up spray and ripples as she sunk down and broke the surface in a panic.

"Help me." he said though gulps of water before she noticed the figures floating nearby.

Pushing back in the water she settled into a bad breast stroke until she was in shallow enough water to stand.

Dripping and defeated she walked out onto the lake shore right near where she had just been standing. "So I'm stuck here." she said squelching into a sitting position on the lake shore next to her bag.
 
"L..." Heldred's memory flooded back to him in snippets of school classrooms, literature... that one Jim Carrey movie. He almost forgot to suppress his voice. "Loki. I know you... I mean, I know of you. But now I know you. My God..."

Heldred glanced down at Loki's hand for a moment in confusion, before rapidly collecting himself and seizing it in his own quickly. "I mean, I guess that's you. Right. It's not my fault I didn't recognize you at first, I mean... this is all kind of... strange. I just woke up in a bush."

The silence that followed was almost deafening. Heldred shifted uncomfortably before continuing.

"So, you're my Godly Patron... I get it, but I don't. What does that mean? Should I... you know, bow and burn incense in your honor or something? I mean I have no idea. I don't remember going, 'Loki, I choose you' or anything."

"Not that I'm complaining mind you!" He added hastily. "You seem pretty... metal. What with the fire and all."
 
Sven looked at his sword a second time. then back up to the person who refereed to himself as Apollo, almost as if in disbelief.
But then he thought How would else could someone explain all this?
"You have my attention," He stated "I'm curious to hear an explanation"
 
Dossan watched as the constellations came down from the sky. When they announced their names, the tree-man almost did a spit-take. What the hell? Was he in some kind of real-life Age of Mythology game? The next thing he realized, was that the gods, or whatever, were talking to the people and creatures in front of him. "These deities and whatnot aren't talking to me...which is odd cause I've never heard of a dream where you aren't the focus. And I wasn't asleep when all that crazy-ass shit went down, so I doubt this is actually a dream. But whatever it is, or wherever I am, it seems these...people, are also from Earth." Seeing that none of the others had noticed him yet, Dossan decided to simply remain silent and watch.
 
Adra sat up as the people from the lake started talking, crossing her legs.
"Huh. This is really going to screw up my belief system...do go on, though. Some explanation will be greatly appreciated."
 
Seeing the constellations fall and form into the anthropomorphic personifications of what the symbols had represented-- yeah, Ordo saw it coming a mile away. If it didn't happen now, it was going to happen at some point on their adventure at some pinnacle moment, or one by one, as they all received power-ups at temples of varying difficulty that each represented a chosen deity.

That's how it works in all those damn video games, anyways.

Ordo's mental train was interrupted as Sanar fell into the lake. He started to help her, then shrugged and just watched, not wanting to miss her flail about in the water and not really wanting to get all that wet himself. He didn't see a towel in that fancy pile that was supposed to be his.

"Ah, crap. If I don't have a towel I'm fucked!" He mumbled to himself.

Crossing his arms, instead he just stared at Sanar for a moment as she came out soaking wet, her shirt as sheer as sheer could get.

"Nice tits," he said, thumbs-upping her before turning back to the gods.

"So, what you going to tell us? I know you're supposed to be gods and all, but sheeit. I ain't seen you do nothin' but make a fancy laser show!" Not to mention, while all of these others might feel some mystical tie to one or more of you, I don't feel jack or shit.
 
"Good. Now that we have all six of you here... again... we can begin." Apollo states, nodding to Anubis, who silently kneels down to touch the lake. With a shimmer, it revealed a huge force dressed in white, gold, and red outfits - flags waving in the air, showing a picture of an upward-pointing dagger with a snake wrapped around it.

"These..." Tyr speaks up, gruffly. "Are tha servants o' tha One. Or zat's what 'e or she calls... whatever it is. It was tha One that blocked us from tha world a few years back... our followers could access our power, bu' we could no longah influence our world. It is now za One that marches it's followers across tha world... converting or massacring all in dere way."

"We can' even go down an' rough'm up, eh?" Thor said with a scowl. "So we wen' out an' searched for a world filled with war an' sufferin'... fer people hardened enuff ta take on za One and finally kill it."

Apollo smiles, "Well, the first few worlds we came across didn't really work... either all insane, or beastial, or completely oblivious... then we found your world. It was already on the brink of destruction... slowly fading. We had forgotten it, it had been so long since we were there. Rather than take the most powerful creatures and people there, we took the most willing, and the most capable of evolution."

"How flattering," Cobalt states.

"Quite."

Thor chuckles, "Tha' an yer 'john-Ra salvo'."

"Genre savvy, Thor."

"Whatever."

"Anyway," Apollo continues, "Were it just the followers of the One, it would be a simple task. However... they've received help."

The images in the lake split to three images... one, a furious-looking, huge man with a grand hole where his heart should be, surrounded by vultures. "This," Apollo states, "Is the titan, Prometheus. Accredited with stealing the god's fire and giving it to the mortals. While his intentions were good, he was punished for it... to be chained to a rock in the middle of the ocean and have his heart eaten out daily by vultures. Somehow, the followers of the One have released him, and persuaded him to fight for their cause."

Tyr points with his sword at an image of snarling teeth, which pans back to reveal the image of a wolf - purely rippling with muscle, feet shattering the earth it treads upon, garbed in chains - even muzzled with said chains. "Fenrir. Loki's little spawn. Dey've brought 'im into their mist, too. Bodes ill."

Anubis points to the final, an image of a huge, fiery snake... he says nothing, though he looks up at the group with a worried look, shaking his head.

Apollo continues, "This... is why we've brought you here, and given you... what power we can. A direct assault would be suicide. All we ask for you to do now... is commit good acts... in the name of the gods. Which will spread our faith further, allowing us the power to bestow you with even greater powers... though we won't be able to spread it out among two each... the rest of you will need a patron."

--------------------

Nearby, Loki gives a lot of the same information, just faster. "Listen, after all that mumbo-jumbo about the world ending, I'm slightly peeved that all this chaos and I'm not responsible. That's where you come in. You're going to go along with the other deities' champions, and do the goodie-two-shoes little acts to save the world. Doing this will get me back in their good graces to cause some real mischief, and allow me the power to boost your own power a bit."

He grins, "Of course, if you managed to cause some Loki-brand catastrophe along the way, so much the better."
 
Heldred nodded slowly, his expression slowly switching from caution to interest. When Loki finished, he gave a wayward glance past the bushes behind him at the group assembled on the beach before returning his gaze to his patron deity.

He grins, "Of course, if you managed to cause some Loki-brand catastrophe along the way, so much the better."

Heldred studied the ground at his feet for a moment curiously. He felt a short, wayward pang of longing. He had things he had wanted to do back in his world, but...

"I don't suppose it's possible to go back..." Loki's wistful half-smirk told him everything he needed to know before he even managed to turn the probe into a question.

After a moment, Heldred lowered his eyelids at this a bit, a coy smile entering into his expression uncontrollably. "That being the case then, I can promise to be myself on this... whatever it is. Journey of weirdness, I suppose. Does that work for you, o trickster lord?"

'Scared money don't make money,' A vaguely recognizable voice in the back of his head chimed in. He was a sucker for beating odds... which coincidentally is what got him into debt a couple of times.
 
Sanar was wringing her hair dry when when the 'gods' spoke again. She had seen Ordo's gesture and had decided to ignore him for now rather than take it a sarcasm as her mind demanded. Instead she directed her eyes to the lake where the images formed and she paled at the sight of the wolf and felt an almost superstitious stir inside her. She had always liked wolves and respected both their power and loyalty to one another.

Her mouth felt dry despite having just drunk a large amount of lake water and by the feeling in her stomach a fish had been unlucky as well. "So we need to choose deities? Just like that." she rested her chin on her hand and thought. "Then I chose Forseti. I've always liked the germanic gods and justice is what this is all about." She stood.

"I choose Forseti as my deity."

She stood as if waiting feeling foolish.
 
Arms still crossed, Ordo nodded all the while, absorbing the knowledge like a dry sponge to water, sopping greedily at every little drop. He had a very keen mind, always had. He was always considered a clever child, if a bit lazy. His whole life had been full of laziness; he just never had a proper goal, a proper drive or motivation. Now though, he had something really exciting to do:

Fuck up religion on behalf of religion. Oh, yeah!

"So just... choose a deity, like that, huh? You guys aren't really picky, are you? 'Oh, well, they don't believe in me all that much, but hey, look! They do things in my name, works for me!'" Ordo shook his head and spun around, kicking at the grass.

"You know what? This is too much of a 'sausage party' for my taste, if you catch my drift. My god? Well, goddess I should say:

Artemis. I choose Artemis. Goddesses of the moon are hot."
 
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