Difference between revisions of "The Book Of Fire/Bottomless Voice"

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The Bottomless Voice Drowning in Sepulchral Depths

HISTORY: Proteus was a high-ranking Solar officer in the Deliberative's navy who, after being passed over for promotion, suddenly quit his posting, bid farewell to all his friends, and dove into the sea, vowing never to rise above the surface again. The exact cause of this pledge was one of the great mysteries of the Deliberative, although it doubtless had much to do with Proteus' well-known envy and hatred of Admirals Arkadi and Leviathan. Regardless, the next anyone heard from him was his claiming the entirety of the Western Ocean, and all Waters affiliated, as his Tributary...But only underwater. If he could not rule the western waves above, his message stated, then he would be master of the waters below.

Most of the the Deliberative simply rolled their collective eyes and got on with business; as their interests lay solely in the Western isles, they couldn't care less what he did beneath them. More fool they, for the ocean floor is at least as rich with magical and mundane resources as dry land, and any who could organize and develop an infrastructure to properly utilize it would have wealth and production capabilities that would dwarf those of the entire Deliberative itself...

But first, Proteus needed a base of operations. He found this in the form of Krustaceon, the Ur-Crab, whose enormous body flattened entire islands when sunning itself, and whose vast claws sundered even First Age vessels. The battle was not short or sure, but eventually, the howling seas grew calm as Proteus slew that which was only a little less immortal than its creators. Using an ingenious mix of Biotech and Sorcery, Proteus carved an entire Manse-city from the imperishable carcass, which he placed atop the most powerful seafloor Demesne he could find. This was known simply as the Palace of Proteus. From here, he set about ruling the Lands Submerged.

Since the Mandate of Heaven clearly gave any Exalt the right to do so, the Western Spirit Courts had no choice but to accede to his claims. Openly, Proteus got on well with the Ocean Father and his cohorts, although rumors persist that, late in his reign as his mind grew increasingly unstable, his were the hands that fashioned Black Depths Foretold...Most of Proteus' subjects were People of the Sea, mortals in Tiger Shark Armor and Armor of Aquatic Puissance, and even Wyld mutants such as Pelagothropes. Perhaps out of jealousy for their natural aquatic prowess, he really disdained Water-aspected Terrestrials, making no secret of his contempt for them. This snub would not be forgotten...

The western Fair Folk feared him, for he was never-ending in the fight to turn them back from his waters. The western Silver Pact loved him, especially the Sun King Senechal Faction, and his Lunar mate Nautila enjoyed great favor among them. Sparring with her, he created Deep Kraken Style, a Celestial Martial Art that he once used to wrestle the god of the deep Zhuxiao into submission.

Proteus was just beginning a full scale investigation into the Pelagials' kingdom when the Usurpation occurred. True to his word, he had not breathed air for centuries and so turned down the invitation to the final feast of the Solars. But the Sidereals had little trouble convincing the Water Terrestrials of the Navy of the need to see him exterminated, and so, after taking out most major threats in the west, the vast armada descended into the depths to face the master of the Sunken World...

He watched, calmly, as they slaughtered his subjects. Truthfully, he had been expecting something like this, and honestly believed that the corrupt Deliberative was acting against him alone. Finally, when most of his people were dead or fled, and the Terrestrials swarmed into his throne room, he rose quietly from his throne, took up the mighty Moonsilver and Black Jade Harpoon named Blood-Dimmed Tide that Nautila had forged for him, and leapt into the mass of the enemy. He was finally brought down, days later, after cutting through so many Terrestrials that that area of the sea was incarnadine for years later (indeed, it became a favorite recreational spot for Siakal, Goddess of Western War and Slaughter). His Exalted Essence stripped from him along with his life, his spirit wandered the ocean floor, loudly lamenting the loss of what should have been the greatest empire ever. Until deeper, more restless voices still came to him, promising the chance for all that and more, if he would only sell them his name and his soul......

The Bottomless Voice is now master of all things aquatic in the Underworld, and commands an armada occupying the Sea of Shadows far larger than any sailing the living seas. Only the thought of his fellow Deathlords opposing him prevents him from exercising his power along the river trade routes of the Underworld, as well. Only recently emerging into Creation, The Voice now prepares to challenge the Silver Prince's monopoly on the West...and to gain final vengence against Leviathan.

DESCRIPTION: The Bottomless Voice normally appears as an enormous, water-bloated man about 8-ft tall, grotesquely discolored and distended. His massive frame is draped by a moldy military greatcoat and he wears a tricornered admiral's hat. His long, bushy beard is filled with all manner of debris and sea life, and his sonorous, basso profundo voice crawls from his mouth like a desperate sailor reaching for his last breath. In combat, however, he shifts into a leaner, taller form, clad only in his own greenish-black scales, with clawed, webbed hands and feet, and a lamprey mouth on his helm-like head...

The Bottomless Voice's weapon of choice is a gigantic Soulsteel anchor which is chained to his leg, and that he must drag everywhere with him. In combat, however, he ignores its ponderous weight, and swings it about as easily as a Daiklave.Those struck by The Hundredweight, in addition to taking damage as from a Soulsteel Grand Goremaul, suffer mobility penalties from intense coldness and water resistance, as if they were in the ocean's depths. This effect is stackable and cancels any effect that resists water resistance, even the Water-aspected Terrestrial anima power.

GOALS: The Bottomless Voice's main goal is twofold. First, he intends to plunge the seafaring powers of the West into a massive war, one so bloody and prolonged, that Shadowseas may blossom throughout the Western Ocean. Then, he will work great necromantic miracles, joining them together until he can essentially bring the Sea of Shadows itself to Creation, that it may overflow and drown all the lands under an unending expanse of still, silent liquid obsidian.

He also seeks a way to murder both the Ocean Father and The Elemental Dragon of Water, for the sheer amount of natural devastation such acts would cause, although he will be satisfied with freeing one of the Greater Elemental Dragons, if need be.

Secondly, he has not forgotten Leviathan. He is aware of the sunken city of Luthe, but does not wish to attack it yet. Indeed, he wants Leviathan to rally and arm the Lunars of the West, so that he may prove himself superior in naval warcraft to his former lord once and for all...

CITADEL: Deep in the Northwestern Ocean, there is a shadowland, that is the only legacy of an incredibly savage battle early in the Primordial War. It extends from the surface all the way down to a massive trench in the ocean's floor. This Demense (NThe_Book_Of_Fire/Bottomless_Voice/A) is perhaps the first, and certainly the largest, Shadowland in Creation. An actual part of the Labyrinth, the Trench is rich in the ores that create Soulsteel. Along the walls of that trench lies The Grasping Reef, a blasphemous growth of black stone that channels the great Essence flow of the trench demense (Manse 5). Even this, however, is endangered by the unusually savage Hekatonhires that unpredicatably spawn and swim from the Underworld...

The Bottomless Voice rarely leaves his Citadel, but when he must, he does so in The Fathom Crawler, a squid-shaped undersea vessel larger than a First Age Heavy Battle Cruiser.

SERVANTS: First among his Deathknights is The Weaver of Felicitous Unions, a Moonshadow whose rebellious nature he quelled with the use of the Threefold Binding of the Heart spell. Now, the beauteous warrior-diplomat faithfully constructs a web of alliances among the factions of the West, with hidden clauses that will cause a seemingly minor incident to topple them all into war like dominos. All for just a glimpse of affection from her lord that she will never receive...

The Bottomless Voice also commands the vast Onyx Armada, consisting of everything from lesser plasmics such as Algal Dragons and Ebon Whales to summoned Hekatonkhire (even his fellow Deathlords fear that he may gain the allegiance of the Kraken). Zombies man the galleys of great battleships, crafted from the hardened bones of drowned sailors, crewed by their own purple-hued ghosts, and captained by fanatical Ghost-Blooded marines trained by Hardened Killer Training Techniques. He can use Sunken Admiral Technique to manifest this enormous force in Creation, and only awaits the right time to do so...

He also employs crack units of Nemissaries who inhabit Undead War Machines necrocrafted from Siaka, River Spiders, Sea Dragons and Giant Eels. He has one Class 4 War Machine, a collosal Great Sea Elk that multiple Nemissaries animate, alone capable of sinking entire fleets. But purportedly, he will not be satisfied until he has matched the Mask of Winters' feats, and so has turned his gaze to the Primordial Behemoth Tahamoku, the tortoise-like Island Beast, which he intends to be the fortress for his conquest of the West...

THE PALACE OF PROTEUS: The Palace of Proteus still resembles what it was in life: A giant scarlet crab, sitting on the ocean floor. It's interior mass has been hollowed out and contains rooms both cozy and cavernous, as well as a dizzying amount of corridors connecting them all. The eyestalks are still mobile, and can act as periscopes. The legs are still active, as well, and can provide defense from incoming intruders; while the giant claws are its most dangerous offense, for they are much faster than their ponderous size would suggest.

The Palace has Maintenance 5 and the following Powers: Comfort Zone (breathable, warm air), Well-Flavored Aspect, Central Control, Limited Mobility, Armored, Dragon's Nest (Water Only), Provider, and Rainbow Tabernacle. It creates a Gemstone of Solid Water and a Crystal of Seawalking.

For some unknown reason, the dead bodies of both Proteus' subjects and his Terrestrial assassins animated shortly after his death. They've been mulling about aimlessly ever since, giving the area the bad reputation that stopped any of the newly expanding undersea powers from attempting to claim the Palace once its lord was gone. The natural robustness of the powerful Demesne it rests on has been able to prevent a Shadowland from forming, but it is perhaps only a matter of time, unless something is done soon...

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