EverEpic

[Maharg67]

EverEpic One 35.2(73)

She continued on, with obvious reluctance, as dogs and cats clustered close to Samson to adore him. “The huge temple, where you rightfully killed all those demonic humans, is deeply beneath our feet. It was not in the central Darkjover United Kingdom because it was intended to be kept as a deeply buried secret. There took place the very darkest, foulest, of Darkjover religious magical ceremonies. The treacherous small minority of Brownlingoes fell under the influence of powerful, dark strangers. You were kidnapped, along with eleven other Estatefolk children your age, and taken to the temple to suffer a terrible form of sacrifice. Many dark fools were there of which the fallen Brownlingoes were only a small percentage of.”

Then she spoke after yet another pause. “We know very little of what happened in the temple, on that day. None have raced to give us any real information, which is no surprise considering that we are merely Brownlingoes. We only know the general story that you were found naked, covered in blood and gore, along with other details I will not go into. Messengers came to us to warn us, and to bring a bribe, for us to remain silent on what we knew about the location of the temple and its nature. For inside are thirteen great AAAs of unique nature for AAAs. All we know is that they are of very dreadful nature.”

Then she sighed and shook her head. “Oh, very well, there is more. The main way to first enter the temple is through the big Foremale Estate Maze. For Foremale Estatefolk, a minority of Foremales, have been part of what has taken place. They assisted in your kidnapping.”

For Samson the big surprise was that, somehow, it such news came as no surprise. A flash of memories went through his mind, showing sharp glimpses of Foremale Family members and followers of high status. He had seen some of the faces only in photographic albums or family portrait paintings but some he had known as being older folk including his own father, Samuel. Well, at least one of two biological fathers.

He spoke to Kiasha. “What do you know of Samuel, my biological father.”

She frowned hard. “That in truth he was the half brother of your mother, Salisha, and that he was only one of two men who were your biological fathers. Apart from Samuel, the other is a mystery to my people. I am a lifemage and CrystalMage of far less basic ability than is Patty Vandis the CrystalMage. I have only realised my true nature in the last few years when Patty came to me as she was drawn to my strengthening abilities. She asked me to be open, with you, about such matters.”

Incest was not common in Estatefolk marriages but not unheard of. It was one of their ways that Samson opposed for a range of reasons. Full siblings could not marry but half siblings could do under certain circumstances.

Samson had not known that Samuel was both his father and half-uncle. It was not shocking only because he found such events quite typical of Estatefolk society. Generally the Foremale Estate was less inclined to do such things than were more Traditionalist Estatefolk.

“All is forgiven!” Samson spoke to Kiasha. He did this because it was true but also to start making sure that there would be no reason for some sort of Estate feud or other Estatefolk stupidity to come into play.

[Maharg67]

EverEpic One 35.3(74)

Kiasha sighed heavily, as if letting go tension. “We thank you for your forgiveness, knowing what harm has come to you and your life. You have spent ten years in confinement while others of your age have been free to grow, to learn, to play, to explore the Estatelands.”

“I wanted to be there, to some extent.” Samson responded. “It was better to be in there rather than deal with what was going on outside in the Estatelands. Remember that I was not the only one to vanish but I was the only one, of the kidnapped, to be found. I even got accused of killing, and eating, the other kidnapped children.”

Kiasha nodded. “One of those was, is perhaps still, a Brownlingo.”

He felt a surge of survivor's guilt, of pain, as he had done in the past but it was not so bad as it had been. He continued to gain surges of memory, of clarity but it continued to be of a patchwork nature. To his frustration he could remember events more clearly of another 'Samson' in a distant past but not of his life back when there had been the trouble.

Kiasha smiled, hopefully. “We Brownlingoes have another secret but this one may be of help to you. Please follow me.”

The ancient metallic door was of superhuman design and build. It was inset into a gently sloping wall inside a cave chamber partly made of very old stone ruins. A 400, or so, year old luck statue lay half broken in the same space. There had been a robotic security turret there, thousands of years ago, but there was very little left of it.

Samson read the writing, and symbols, on the door that were still legible enough to understand. All he learned was that the heavily armoured power-door was to a large emergency shelter of some kind and that it had probably been constructed just a few years before the Breaking took place. It had been created by the United Nations Emergency Assistance Agency of the United Nations World Government. It had been built in a city called Edinburgh close to the Edinburgh Castle, which later became the Foremale Castle, which of course made sense.

Kiasha spoke some more. “For some reasons the entrance was lost and only found again some days ago thanks to work being done with resources provided by yourself. I could use my abilities, in union with yours, to open the door.”

Samson whirled and hurled a small silvery sphere at Kiasha. The sphere exploded and the fake Kiasha became Samvil. Samvil fell to the floor, gasping in pain, scowling in hateful agony at Samson. Then he spoke with a nasty grin in his voice. “The real Kiasha is dead by now!”

Samson shook his head. “Rosie Rhodes detected something was wrong, as did others on this estate, and the real Kiasha was tracked down before the poison could kill her and she was saved. What an arrogant fool you are to try such a trick in her home ground. Still, you never did pause to think plans through before acting on them.”

Samvil scowled some more and vanished with a sparkling shimmer. Samson knew that Samvil's
trickery was far from done, that he wanted Samson to go into the ancient emergency shelter but why?

[Maharg67]

EverEpic One 36.1(75)

The TripleEmpire went into martial law status across its territories. The news went out hard and fast, reaching even the fairly isolated Estatelands, of the Hopelands, with unexpected speed. The Hopelands TriImperial Governor gained much more authority backed up by the TriImperial military, paramilitary and security forces in the area. Class A Reservists were called up from the population, reporting to bases to prepare for trouble. Rationing of vital resources was begun in certain areas. Reserve bases were put back into active status.

Most people were taken completely by surprise though there had been an increasing impression that the empire was in some kind of trouble.

The TriImperial Purge began, at first, more lightly as demonic cultists, necromancers and others like them were hunted. Yet the purge was soon also going after AntiImperial rebel movements and even such as so called Hard Reformists. There were many, there number was increasing, who wanted more freedom for citizenry, more democracy and a strong constitution based on a Code of Rights. Yet there were also some odd factions being purged that did not seem to warrant such actions against them.

Then the action began to the west, again, as a new invasion force attacked from the Jagged Mountains. This time it was far more terrible than muties and abomibeasts for came the GlimmerMist and inside that glimmering greenish greyness quickly shambled hundreds of zombies, leathery corpses long gone naked, fewer zombaors that ran and zombie like reanibies in bizarre body-armour and with a range of hand-weapons and guns. There also came lumbering superzombies, fast running shrunken flesh skeletal like skelters with hand-weapons, vamprire beasts running or flying low and then the dreaded vampires, often like disturbingly beautiful humans who were somehow 'wrong' at a more subtle level of appearance.

Despite the protection of the GlimmerMist, from sunshine, the enemy dug in during daylight and attacked during times when sunlight was gone or just weaker.

It seemed, at first, that the defenders at least had the advantage of weapons and warmachines that the attackers did not use. Artillery thundered and volleys of rockets ripped through the air in the darkness. Battletanks rumbled along on thick tracks, firing of cannons or other weapons even as they moved. The infantry, in body-armour, had dug in and with them were the powerful, hard fighting muties and abomibeasts who were well experienced with fighting, and killing, the undead.

There had been a build up of fortifications in the Jagged High Hills, the reuse of old fortifications with many being enhanced. Flamethrowers spat flamed out into the night, burning away the GlimmerMist that strengthened the undead and weakened life. Xolaserguns sent pulsebeams stabbing out into the darkness and the unnatural mist. Animals kept coming out of the mist and were let alone to flee in peace.

Elite Bladeguards were joined by TriGuards and TriBorderguards. Proper driven aeroplanes flew strafing bombing runs against the mist while others fought dogfights in the sky against flying undead monsters. Metal biplanes were most agile in such dogfights, blazing away with heavy machineguns and autocannons along with xolaserguns. At first the enemy were being held back with out much difficulty but their number was growing and the GlimmerMist was thickening; the thickening meant it was more lethal and made the lesser undead so as well.

Edited July 4, 2013 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

EverEpic One 37.1(76)

The need for military gear was great and the stuff stored in Fortress Freedom was much needed. When the big main doors were opened there was a big, pleasant surprise waiting. The great big landships of multiple turreted battletanks, once hopelessly obsolete, had been transformed. Twenty of them shone brand new with enhanced tracks, suspension systems, armour, weapons, motors, targeting systems, crew protection, radio communications and much else. New weapons and other network-systems had been added. With the new Dreadnought Landships came blueprints, manuals, spare parts, special maintenance kits and other useful extras.

Other equipment had been transformed with old type mechanical machineguns, crankerguns, being turned into electric motor driven spinguns. There were improved field-cannons, heavy machineguns, mortars, hulking ten wheeled armoured guntrucks, xolaserguns, flakguns, bolt-action rifles, submachineguns, pistols and much else. There was ammunition, parts, tools, along with a whole lot of stuff that had all been neatly sorted out.

Indeed not had only had everything been sorted out and neatly labelled but there were catalogue books, ledgers and other such items to keep track of what was going on.

The Eternal Soldier stood there, in power armour, with twenty super elite soldiers in power armour being in neat ranks behind him. She spoke. “I am FieldMarshal Sonja Savata. We have come to assist in the fight against the Great Undeath that is trying to invade this world, driven by its insatiable hunger for life.”

Marshal Strongbow was there, looking perplexed and pleased at the same time. “I have heard legends of you. They say you assisted the TripleEmpire to invade the Darklands.”

“With reluctance, yes I did.” The tall figure had her armoured visor become transparent to show a mature, handsome woman's face. “Perhaps you do not know as much about the TripleEmpire as you assume that you do.”

Strongbow laughed softly and then spoke with an overtone of irony. “I am a Hopelander and I can tell you, with much conviction, that we Hopelanders know next to nothing about the true nature of the TripleEmpire. Even most of the elite people in the Hopelands are Hopelanders. We found that most other Regional TriImperials, like us, also know very little about the TripleEmpire at is core, in its Heartlands. Those who know more do not want to talk about such matters.”

“Normally they can not talk about such matters because they are under some kind of powerful, subtle, form of program-conditioning.” The Eternal Soldier nodded in some kind of general agreement. “I have been briefed on the situation in the TripleEmpire and that includes the TPMI-SIRIO Taskforce. There are factions, in the TripleEmpire, who are trying to sabotage your efforts, perhaps your very existence, because they fear what you might learn.”

The Marshal shrugged. “That would be quite normal.”

“No, these are not the more general, publicly known power factions you normally deal with.” The FieldMarshal responded. “I am speaking of highest level TriImperial Factions in NewImperiarna, the real functioning capital city of the empire. TriImperiarna has been a war zone for centuries though most of it is securely held by the empire.”

[Maharg67]

EverEpic One 37.2(77)

“It is a semi-open secret that NewImperiarna is now the real imperial capital city but not why it happens to be so.” Strongbow looked surprised. “Why doesn't the empire focus its elite forces and crush the invaders?”

The Eternal Soldier did not hesitate in responding. “Firstly because there are three big enemy transdimensional bridgeheads into the Known World, secondly the enemy is very powerful with special threats and, thirdly, the TripleEmpire has been having internal troubles for some centuries, making it less able to do with such a threat. The Great Undeath is invading the world, not just the Known World, and the TripleEmpire of the Known World.”

The Marshal frowned. “I do know that the TripleImperium has held back scientific, technological and industrial development in the Regional Lands such as here in the Hopelands.”

“Yes but not only because they fear regional succession wars and powerful pushes for greater regional representation. The TripleEmpire was created on a series of falsehoods.” FieldMarshal Sonja Savata went on. “Falsehoods that caused the empire to be fundamentally dysfunctional, and weak in some ways, from the start. I suggest we speak of this more at the first big meeting that I am going to call. For now we need to get these new resources into action for your people. My people, and I, will have our own special resources coming soon along with more of my people.”

Strongbow nodded as if realising that the 'first big meeting' would reveal very much.

Sampha had been there all along, in the background observing, but she said nothing.

So the new resources were soon being utilised with the new Landships being sent up rampways until they were in a big military chamber. In that place more preparations would be made before at least half of the landships were sent into action. Others would be studied by military, scientific and other people because of their enhancements along with the data that went with them.

Edited July 7, 2013 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

EverEpic One 38.1(78)

Drashina Thornburn played FateLaraza excellently, she knew, partly because Samson had spent a great deal of time practising it and getting up to a very high level of skill. She was linked with Samson and his imaginary character of the same name.

While the semilegal gaming club was seedy it had a good reputation when it came to its FateLaraza referees, good quality beers and the attractive waitresses that bustled around in skimpy clothes. The waitresses were fast, agile, enough to avoid groping hands and heavy set bouncers kept a protective eye on them.

Drashina played her thirteen cards quick, careful and provoked her enemy into assuming that she was just a rich young noble fool come to see the sights in the shadier part of Hopeville. The opponent was linked with the Temples of Holiest Truth or at least had been; TriImperial Forces were busy raiding and destroying the known temples while hunting down followers. Erik Amber was understandably very nervous and clearly saw Drashina as a victim he could fleece so as to gain enough cash to escape into deep hiding.

There was not much chance of that. Drashina had detected two TriImperial Security Intelligence Agency, TSIA, agents in the chamber not far from the card game. For the moment they were focused on eating, drinking and acting out the role of drunken working class fools. They could not disguise their true nature as deceptive killers, at least not from Drashina.

Scantily clad women dancers did their routines on small brightly lit stages. Drashina had not doubt that at least one of them was some kind of secret agent but not of the TSIA.

She closed the trap on the nasty fool and tricked him into taking a big gamble. The referee shifted some cards on her deck and then did the same for the fool. He showed no emotion on his hard smooth face.

Then, snap, she closed in on the fool and the referee was pushing to her a large pile of gaming chips being a mix of gold and silver. Copper chips were only using by the poorer gamblers or in common slot-machines.

Erik Amber looked shocked and then angry. He scowled heavily at Drashina. “You cheated, damn you, you cheated!”

The referee shook his head. “No, Drashina did not cheat. She tricked you, yes, but she did not cheat. I suggest heavily that you desist in your false claims before you get into trouble.”

Drashina had gambled that a destitute, and desperate, Erik Amber would dare to seek out dangerous contacts to try to get some cash. That was why she had tracked him down, set him up and then taken him for everything that he had.

She cashed in her chips, taking cash, and was soon heading out into the night time cityscape. To her amazement she 'sensed' Erik Amber close by, 'sensed' him staring at her as he clumsily tried to hide in a shadowy area. He was holding a short, heavy rubber club and had an expression of desperate fear. The fool was actually going to try to ambush her. Drashina had no time to mess around with the fool so she came up behind him and knocked him out.

[Maharg67]

EverEpic One 38.2(79)

When Erik Amber awoke he was chained to a brick wall in a largely bare brick chamber that was much like many such rooms found in Hopeville.

Drashina smiled at him but the smile was cool and her eyes were cold. “You have a special working relationship with the Temples of Holiest Truth or at least you did so. Do not try to deny it for I took a great deal of effort, and money, to find this out for certain.”

Erik shrugged and scowled at her. “It was just a common type illegal arrangement. I provided them with semilegal, and illegal, substances. I set them up to meet other people like myself, providers of special goods and services. The THT Followers paid me well for my services.”

“Your story is true to a large extent except you were overheard bragging, drunken in a seedy pub, that you had found out some very important secret by accident.” Drashina gave the man a look of sharp pity. “Stupid thing to do! Tell me the whole story, with out deception, and not only will I not kill you but I will give you $5,000 to make your escape with.”

The man stared into her eyes for a moment and then slumped a little for there 'was something about this woman' that scared him very much. “I was delivering some prepackaged items to a THT group hidden in an old farmhouse just north-east of Hopeville. I never want to know what is inside those packages just in case... well it is better not to know some things. My curiosity got the better once and I could not sleep for weeks.”

He went on after a brief pause. “I was trying to get out of their basement based base when I got lost in some tunnels. I heard some strange noises, as I went through cramped tunnels of the kind I truly hate. I tried to walk away from the sounds but then I found myself looking through the entrance into a chamber. He was there but it was not him. It was like a reversed version of him both mirror wise and it was impossible.... it was the TriEmperor himself standing there but it was not the TriEmperor at all. I do not think he saw me but I fled from there anyway.”

Drashina shook her head. “He not only saw you, he mesmerised you. Yes it was, and was not, the TriEmperor of the TripleEmpire. I have a headache. He wanted it to be known he was here, in this area, so drew you to himself and then programmed you to report his sighting to people in Hopeville with out you know what was happening. I am sorry but I have to kill you, for your own good because there is something undead inside you, something that will either take you over or feed off you from inside until you die a horrible death.”

Erik Amber went pale but then he was surprised, as Drashina was, when he sparkle shimmered and changed as he underwent a test-transformation. Enhanced, of mind-body-spirit, he was a different kind of person. Outwardly a test-transformation only took seconds but for the one going through a test-transformation it was a very different experience.

Erik shook his head as Drashina whipped his chain-cuffs off. “What a fool I have been. I have many bad acts to make amends for. I must go to my family and help them in their poverty, pay back honest folk that I have cheated and so much else.”

Which was when the air raid sirens began to sound.

[Maharg67]

EverEpic One 39.1(80)

The enemy struck with smaller, faster warmachines that drove on wheels or darted on twin running legs of double jointed nature along with others that flew high or low. There were also huge hulking warmachines on huge caterpillar tracks or which flew fairly low over the ground or quite high in the sky.

Somehow the TriImperial Forces were able to hold their ground though they were pounded terribly.

FieldMarshal Sonja Savata came with 1,000 power armoured soldiers along with 300 deadly military multiple purpose hoverjets that could fight as hovercraft or aircraft. There were others serving the FieldMarshal such as sappers, air-crew, techies, medics, scouts and others.

TriRangers assisted as one elite brigade using hit and run tactics against the enemy, harassing their flanks but staying as distant from the GlimmerMist as possible.

Long range enemy aircraft had struck Hopeville but, thanks to preparations made for trouble, had trouble with radar guided flakguns and clever designed antiaircraft rockets. Hopeville was damaged, buildings destroyed or damaged and fifteen people were killed. The building up of defences, of bomber shelters and other structures was sped up.

Three fangwing fighter-bombers were sweeping over the Foremale Estate when from it spat xolaser pulsebeams causing them to explode dramatically, the strange devices fragment-burning away as they were actually undead entities of some kind. All of the enemy warmachines were.

Samson had passed over one, of three newly gained estate properties, to the TriGuardia military forces and they had quickly turned it into a staging post, a secondary base and field hospital. The Estates kept up normal life as much as possible for the empire still needed their produce.

The last estate became a temporary refugee town with Samson passing over tents, blankets, food rations, rope, bandages, healing-serum, special burnable torches and other items to the increasing number of refugees coming from the west. The Order of Compassion ran the town with the assistance of other groups.

Military forces arrived from other parts of the Hopelands in the form of TriGuards and militia irregulars along with mercenaries. The newcomers numbered in the thousands but were far less in force than had been asked for since other areas were worried they would be attacked soon. In the past the TripleEmpire had deliberately suppressed regional military capacity and now parts of the Regional TripleEmpire were facing big problems. The TriImperium, operating from NewImperiarna, did not seem to be dealing with the situation well.

By big armoured trains and big thundering military trucks, they came in convoys sweeping along secondary highways to the war zone. They went around Hopeville, and other settlements, even as the sounds of distant battle could be heard as far as Hopeville itself and beyond. Even as this took place the Hopelanders were bringing out ancient, well known, forms of traditional weaponry to be used against the undead. For this was not the first time that the GlimmerMist, and its undead puppets, had threatened those lands; it had happened back when the Hopelands were the Darklands and there was no empire to assist but the Darklanders had won.

[Maharg67]

EverEpic One 39.2(81)

So archers, sword-fighters, spear-fighters and others came forth from the Estate Fight Games, the traditional way of keeping such people ready to fight. There they competed but in ways that could be used to fight the undead.

New types of fighters emerged who specialised in weapons that did more damage to the undead than they did to the living such as electric shock weapons, hand-flamers and silverglow-sprayers.

The CrystalMages came out in larger numbers, disguised but in body-armour instead of hooded robes and often with exotic crystal weapons. One of the reasons that the CrystalMages had come into existence was the threat of the undeath.

Even the Jagged Estates were forced to join in the fight and only a small minority of them refused out of selfishness stupidity. Savage Jaggaguards appeared in black-red armour and with both traditional and newer weapons. They came with their own warmachines and other vehicles. They were a people of dark secrets but not linked with the undeath. They hated, feared, the Great Undeath as did nearly all Hopelanders.

Across the area there were strange events taking place like demons appearing, with out being summoned, in places where much demonic summonings had been carried out in the past. Freshly dead corpses, of humans and some other lifeforms, were rising as clumsy zombies but most of those were non hostile, even friendly. People were mysteriously 'returning to life' as if they had never been dead and there were many ghostly events. Individuals were being test-transformed in increasing numbers but also becoming demoniacally possessed in greater numbers. It was all part of the great transdimensional imbalances that were taking place.

Edited July 12, 2013 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

EverEpic One 40.1(82)

Longbow archers rained silverwood tipped arrows upon the swarming hordes of the zombies, faster hand-weapon using zombaors and gun toting reanibies. Slamming down with brutal power, the arrows thudded into heads and even pierced helmets worn by some of the undead. Killed undead fragment-burned away as did fast running, shrunken leathery skeletal, skelters and the huge lumbering superzombies. The longbows were ancient weapons of the PreBreaking World but did well in killing many of the undead as they rained from the sky.

Samson stood there, yet another one, in power armour and with him were twelve other figures in power armour that might be called Samson Clones. Six were female and six were male. They were concealed by a cloaking field but it was not perfect in its functioning, especially so close to a battle where many energy weapons were being used.

A vamprire, a flying monster, shot through the air above Samson and he shot it with a pulselaser so that it fragment-burned away. Yet he was not there to assist in the battle but to meet and to talk with somebody in particular.

The Eternal Soldier, FieldMarshal Sonja Savata, saw right through the cloaking field as did his power armoured bodyguards. She had met Samson before, back when Samson was not Samson but went by other names and even shapeforms. They had reluctantly helped to invade the Darklands with the TriImperial Legions.

Samson was remembering now why there had been reluctance; the TripleEmpire was the cause of the very evils that were threatening it and its people. The TripleEmpire did not just mean empire of land, sea and air but also the empire of life, death and undeath. The TripleEmpire's hidden power, as focused in the TriImperiate, came from an unnatural relationship of life, death and undeath.

Samson spoke. “It is good to meet you again! The Undead TriEmperor was seen just close to Hopeville but only because he wanted to be seen and he wanted it to be known that he had been seen. Perhaps he wanted me to know that he is in the realm of the living.”

Sonja Savata, her current name, nodded. “The other aspect of the living TriEmperor, one of those who now suffers because of his greed for unearned immortality, power and knowledge. You were one of those kind but you have done much to redeem yourself, even when it has meant putting yourself in harm's way. You are very ancient, once being one of the AncientGods, being an evil one but as the AncientGods, and AncientLords, grew darker you were part of a large minority that began to reform, to shift towards the Light.”

Yes, Samson had been part of a group of AncientGods, and AncientLords, who had given up such identities to become something of greater good. They had waged war against evil but had also helped others in other ways. Along the way some had fallen back into the dark paths or had just left the main group to move with their own destinies of the soul. Most had continued on the path of redemption and illumination leading to enlightenment and ascension.

Why that ancient world? For it was the very home world that the AncientLords had arisen from as the AncientOnes. Only later had the AncientGods arisen from some of the AncientLords. AncientOnes had remained as powerful followers of the AncientLords.