Post by Li Tun-ye on Nov 11, 2006 3:32:13 GMT -5
The Impossible Adventures of The Starlites
Issue #0 Manifest’s Destiny
“And lo, from the seraphim’s song shall they sing. And their hearts shall conquer the cruelty wrought upon man by his brother.” ~ Unknown prophet
His name, all but forgotten in the recesses of history, is an echo transcending time and space; his intentions shook the very foundations of Babylon and countless civilizations before it. His origins shrouded in mystery, he is called many names by many people. The mythical Sirens mastered song and music that beguiled men to their doom, the Greek myth of Orpheus tells of a musician whose heartbreak turned his mystic musical skill into a song that drove women mad, Christian sects prophesized a horn player that would herald the apocalypse, even Americans have popularized the devil who brandishes a fiddle in his quest for souls. Only the most secretive and ancient cabal of mystics knows the connection held by these so called ‘myths and legends’: a sorcerer and enchanter known as Shrock-Gaar, The Sower of Discord.
His powers only limited by the imagination of his chaotic mind, Shrock-Gaar has worked time and time again to plunge the universe into anarchy: turning reason into insanity, reality into illusion, and harmony into discord. Only then can he take complete control over the universe, bending it to his whims and desires.
His power and very existence dismissed by scholars and scribes, mankind has gone unaware of his machinations to control all known reality. Only a cabal whose name is equally enigmatic has ever stepped to oppose his designs. The war, fought in shadow, held the fate of reality – and ultimately proved to be a losing war.
In 79 AD, Shrock-Gaar made his final plans to smite the cabal of mystics that had opposed him throughout the ages. Weaving his corrupt powers into physical form, Shrock-Gaar summoned forth a manifestation of his dark magic as only the mad sorcerer would make, an icon capable of taking whatever form it wished … if it took any form at all. Imbuing the manifest with a majority of his power, the Sower of Discord intended to deliver it into the hands of mortal men. With its near limitless power, the manifest would bestow its dark magic upon any mortal it chose, and ultimately corrupt and ruin him. In that way, the Sower of Discord would raise no finger in his final strike upon mortal men for it would be the mortals themselves that would plunge the world into discord, with Shrock-Gaar waiting to rule with the manifest as his scepter. It was for this reason, that he dubbed his creation The Cruelty. Giving The Cruelty the form of a lute, Shrock-Gaar cast it off into the hands of young man in a Roman city and watched as the city was covered in ash and ruin. This city of Pompeii was the first victim of The Cruelty, but would also be the last.
The mystics foresaw the creation of Shrock-Gaar’s Cruelty and made attempts to counteract the mad sorcerer’s scheme. Apprehending The Cruelty would only mean succumbing to the manifest’s power; the mystics could ill afford their cabal to become tainted and corrupted by the manifest. And should nothing be done, the manifest would surely fall into evil hands, or worse, return back to the Sower of Discord. The decision was made, then, to bestow its power upon those pure of heart; these virtuous souls would be tasked with guarding the manifest from the mad sorcerer throughout all time.
And so it was that the manifest named The Cruelty was divided into five separate entities, each a vile corruption of man’s soul.
The neck of the lute was a conduit of man’s desire for power and conquest. Light as a feather, it hovered in the breeze and tempted to fly higher than the clouds. Cold to the touch, it resembled the cold heart of a ruthless ruler. Those who touched it were filled with a feeling of superiority and the need to exercise power over the weak. And so it was that the first fragment of The Cruelty was named Tyrant.
The low strings of the lute were filled with lust and selfish desire. Burning red hot, the heat was more hellfire than passion. Of all the parts of The Cruelty the strings tempted the most, filling men’s minds with visions of all they could have at the expense of others and all of their darkest desires realized through its dark magic. For that, the strings were named Seduction.
Adorned with gold and jewels, the bridge of the lute held fast the strings with a shocking beauty. Whosoever touched it was overcome with pretension and a desire for physical beauty. But with it came a bedazzlement of beautiful, but terrible, lights. To hold it would mean immersing in the most beautiful and radiant light, but at the cost of unspeakable pain. Evoking awe and horror, the bridge was named Vanity.
Touching the head of the lute opened the mind to all the emotions of all the world, but mostly the despairing. The sorrow, pain, regret, and hate of countless people flooded into the mind, but along with it came a cold and unfeeling indifference to it all. To hold the head would open one’s eyes to all the troubles felt by all people, and yet give no desire to do anything about it. And so, the head was then named Apathy.
Lastly, the body of the lute remained. Its structure was hard and unbreakable, even by the most powerful of spells. Like the hardest elements of the earth, the body refused to break or submit. Merely touching the body filled one with audacity and arrogance, as if the body refused to give in to the spells and intentions of the cabal. Leaving the body as one final piece, the mystics named it Defiance.
But who would guard such awesome and terrible relics? Surely any mere mortal would succumb to the temptation of The Cruelty and spell man’s decent into discord. The cabal looked to the ancient prophesies and found one that foretold of an age many years later, a time when five young men, young to the world but old to the universe, would unite to follow their innocent dreams. These five young men held within them a true purity and sense of justice and were destined to inherit the darkness known as The Cruelty.
“And lo, from the seraphim’s song shall they sing. And their hearts shall conquer the cruelty wrought upon man by his brother.”
And so, the cabal of mystics made their final move and sent the fragments of the cursed manifest into the future. Transcending time and space and ultimately residing in what men would come to call a ‘pawn shop’ on the exact moment that five childhood friends came looking to start a boy band.
But what of the mad sorcerer who brought that scourge upon the earth? Centuries apart from his manifest, Shrock-Gaar waited in obscurity. Patiently planning for the time he could retake his manifest and regain his true power.
Issue #0 Manifest’s Destiny
“And lo, from the seraphim’s song shall they sing. And their hearts shall conquer the cruelty wrought upon man by his brother.” ~ Unknown prophet
His name, all but forgotten in the recesses of history, is an echo transcending time and space; his intentions shook the very foundations of Babylon and countless civilizations before it. His origins shrouded in mystery, he is called many names by many people. The mythical Sirens mastered song and music that beguiled men to their doom, the Greek myth of Orpheus tells of a musician whose heartbreak turned his mystic musical skill into a song that drove women mad, Christian sects prophesized a horn player that would herald the apocalypse, even Americans have popularized the devil who brandishes a fiddle in his quest for souls. Only the most secretive and ancient cabal of mystics knows the connection held by these so called ‘myths and legends’: a sorcerer and enchanter known as Shrock-Gaar, The Sower of Discord.
His powers only limited by the imagination of his chaotic mind, Shrock-Gaar has worked time and time again to plunge the universe into anarchy: turning reason into insanity, reality into illusion, and harmony into discord. Only then can he take complete control over the universe, bending it to his whims and desires.
His power and very existence dismissed by scholars and scribes, mankind has gone unaware of his machinations to control all known reality. Only a cabal whose name is equally enigmatic has ever stepped to oppose his designs. The war, fought in shadow, held the fate of reality – and ultimately proved to be a losing war.
In 79 AD, Shrock-Gaar made his final plans to smite the cabal of mystics that had opposed him throughout the ages. Weaving his corrupt powers into physical form, Shrock-Gaar summoned forth a manifestation of his dark magic as only the mad sorcerer would make, an icon capable of taking whatever form it wished … if it took any form at all. Imbuing the manifest with a majority of his power, the Sower of Discord intended to deliver it into the hands of mortal men. With its near limitless power, the manifest would bestow its dark magic upon any mortal it chose, and ultimately corrupt and ruin him. In that way, the Sower of Discord would raise no finger in his final strike upon mortal men for it would be the mortals themselves that would plunge the world into discord, with Shrock-Gaar waiting to rule with the manifest as his scepter. It was for this reason, that he dubbed his creation The Cruelty. Giving The Cruelty the form of a lute, Shrock-Gaar cast it off into the hands of young man in a Roman city and watched as the city was covered in ash and ruin. This city of Pompeii was the first victim of The Cruelty, but would also be the last.
The mystics foresaw the creation of Shrock-Gaar’s Cruelty and made attempts to counteract the mad sorcerer’s scheme. Apprehending The Cruelty would only mean succumbing to the manifest’s power; the mystics could ill afford their cabal to become tainted and corrupted by the manifest. And should nothing be done, the manifest would surely fall into evil hands, or worse, return back to the Sower of Discord. The decision was made, then, to bestow its power upon those pure of heart; these virtuous souls would be tasked with guarding the manifest from the mad sorcerer throughout all time.
And so it was that the manifest named The Cruelty was divided into five separate entities, each a vile corruption of man’s soul.
The neck of the lute was a conduit of man’s desire for power and conquest. Light as a feather, it hovered in the breeze and tempted to fly higher than the clouds. Cold to the touch, it resembled the cold heart of a ruthless ruler. Those who touched it were filled with a feeling of superiority and the need to exercise power over the weak. And so it was that the first fragment of The Cruelty was named Tyrant.
The low strings of the lute were filled with lust and selfish desire. Burning red hot, the heat was more hellfire than passion. Of all the parts of The Cruelty the strings tempted the most, filling men’s minds with visions of all they could have at the expense of others and all of their darkest desires realized through its dark magic. For that, the strings were named Seduction.
Adorned with gold and jewels, the bridge of the lute held fast the strings with a shocking beauty. Whosoever touched it was overcome with pretension and a desire for physical beauty. But with it came a bedazzlement of beautiful, but terrible, lights. To hold it would mean immersing in the most beautiful and radiant light, but at the cost of unspeakable pain. Evoking awe and horror, the bridge was named Vanity.
Touching the head of the lute opened the mind to all the emotions of all the world, but mostly the despairing. The sorrow, pain, regret, and hate of countless people flooded into the mind, but along with it came a cold and unfeeling indifference to it all. To hold the head would open one’s eyes to all the troubles felt by all people, and yet give no desire to do anything about it. And so, the head was then named Apathy.
Lastly, the body of the lute remained. Its structure was hard and unbreakable, even by the most powerful of spells. Like the hardest elements of the earth, the body refused to break or submit. Merely touching the body filled one with audacity and arrogance, as if the body refused to give in to the spells and intentions of the cabal. Leaving the body as one final piece, the mystics named it Defiance.
But who would guard such awesome and terrible relics? Surely any mere mortal would succumb to the temptation of The Cruelty and spell man’s decent into discord. The cabal looked to the ancient prophesies and found one that foretold of an age many years later, a time when five young men, young to the world but old to the universe, would unite to follow their innocent dreams. These five young men held within them a true purity and sense of justice and were destined to inherit the darkness known as The Cruelty.
“And lo, from the seraphim’s song shall they sing. And their hearts shall conquer the cruelty wrought upon man by his brother.”
And so, the cabal of mystics made their final move and sent the fragments of the cursed manifest into the future. Transcending time and space and ultimately residing in what men would come to call a ‘pawn shop’ on the exact moment that five childhood friends came looking to start a boy band.
But what of the mad sorcerer who brought that scourge upon the earth? Centuries apart from his manifest, Shrock-Gaar waited in obscurity. Patiently planning for the time he could retake his manifest and regain his true power.