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Solivar
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re: [Vortex] The Shadow Vault

Dharkoth waited for Solivar and the others to leave, then slowly looked at Haashok. "I can not allow Solivar to be the spy. He will not be able to withstand the urge to become what he was, which means that it is up to us to do this. I do not want to go back to what I was, but I know that I am the only one among our small group that is expendable. Everyone else is far more important than I am. It will be up to you to keep me safe and to bring me back, if it is possible, if not then I am back to where I started. What do you say to this Haashok?"


The Fel guard looked at him his demonic eyes showing a sympathetic reflection of the pain he knows that Dharkoth must be feeling knowing what he had to do. He laid a large taloned hand on the shoulder of Dharkoth. "We will do what we must to save those children and to stop this madness from happening. I will do what I can for you when the time comes and when this is over I will also help however I can to bring you back. Remember this Dharkoth; I hold memories of your past life and once this is done you shall know them too. We have a Baron we must talk to, so I suggest we get to it."


He gave the shoulder a slight squeeze and then nodded to Dharkoth. Dharkoth half smiled and nodded back to Haashok slowly making his way out to see Baron Silver. He stopped a hand full of steps from the Baron looking him over trying to judge his demeanor, but there was not much there for him to grasp at. He took a ragged deep breath and stepped up to Baron Silver. “Excuse me Baron Silver, but I need to speak to you. You told Solivar that you could hide the mind of someone, so they could become a spy. Well, we of Steadfast are in dire need of getting information and since you have already proven that it can be done. I am here to become that spy. What must we do?” Dharkoth stood there with Haashok close by his side waiting for his response.


The Baron's coolly glowing eyes swept both Dharkoth and Haashok -- a level, assessing gaze, not a dismissive one. "Come with me. It is better to not discuss such things out in the open -- we haven't put out all of His Majesty's eyes yet."


The Shadow Vault was well-named: even in the hands of the Ebon Blade, its halls were cold and gloomy, the highly vaulted ceiling vanishing into darkness, the bone-fires and sconces of ghostflame casting no heat and only slight illumination. The particular corner that the Baron had selected for his own was no exception and, in fact, the shadows seemed linger there, the darkness deepened rather than dispelled by the ghost-lights, the walls and floor crawling with flickers and fragments cut from the fabric of starless, moonless night, their movements of pattern meant to draw and redirect unfriendly eyes. The space is almost entirely utilitarian in nature: a long, waist-high basalt table, large enough for a troll to stretch out full length, if not comfortably, took up the majority of the floor, its sides and surface carved in the runic symbols by which necromantic forces are focused, a handful of simple, ironbound document chests stacked neatly, a heavy ledger and pen atop them, and, in the furthest corner, a small pavilion and a brazier burning real coals, around which three hooded figures huddled, eking what warmth they could from it and each other.


"For what it's worth, I think you've made the right choice." A surprising degree of sympathy in the Baron's voice. "The process is not without its risks -- but if what Mercy told me about you, and your relationship to your guardian, is at all true, it's far less dangerous to you than it would be for him. Please, sit and I will explain..." The Baron gestured toward the trio of robed figures and, reluctantly, one detached itself from the company of its fellows, cadaverously thin, its robes hanging from its shoulders like a funeral shroud. "The simplest explanation is that the process 'hides' the mind of the subject from observation by the Scourge and, most importantly, by the Lich King. We accomplish this by creating a shadow-mask built of the subject's own memories of their time under the Lich King's domination -- you perceive that this process would only work on such as we, the Forsaken, the Knights of the Ebon Blade, certain living members of the Cult of the Damned, for that reason. The mask overlays the true mind of the subject, both concealing and protecting it, and allowing for the insertion of...directives...that the subject will undertake without conscious knowledge, the memory of the acts concealed beneath the mask. In your case specifically, the directive to uncover the identities and location of the children used as the foci of the vortex weapon and to transmit that information back to your comrades."


The Baron glanced at Haashok. "You are a somewhat better candidate for this procedure than any of the other possibilities because of him. The main danger in the procedure is becoming the mask -- it is entirely possible to become so lost in who and what you used to be that the distinction between the mask and your own mind ceases to exist...a risk alleviated somewhat by the fact that your mind is already divided, and you will have an exterior anchor in your servant, a bond to draw you back. Do you understand?"


Dharkoth made himself comfortable and listened intently to the Baron and was surprised when he agree that he should be the one to do this. He let all of his words sink in and took a moment or two of thinking on this. Dharkoth then looked at Haashok, who in turn gave him a nod, which told Dharkoth he too understood and was ready for this.


He looked finally at the Baron. “Yes, we understand. I do have some questions though, before we move on. What I wish to know is how do you plan to make me what I was before, when the Shadow fiend is no longer inside of me, making me susceptible to the voice? Simply making this shadow-mask will not give me that power again will it? What if someone wishes to examine me? How will this mask deceive them?” Dharkoth once again looked at the Baron trying to gage his demeanor, but he could not, so all he could do was wait for his response.

"We will have to make an examination of both you and your guardian in order to fully ascertain that," The Baron admitted, easily enough. "But our theory is that the Shadow parasite was not the source of your ability to channel the forces of the vortex weapon -- if you were an arcanist of any sort in life, you likely always possessed the natural proclivity for it, or else developed it as a learned skill, through training and practice. Rather, we believe the Shadow parasite was the control mechanism and, as such, our shadow-mask can mimic its effects -- you will, for example, hear Him again. The Scourge will sense the echo of Him in your mind, and will not attack you, believing you to be one of their own. In effect, you will be." A grim smile. "Even if a necrolyte controller examines you, they will perceive you as a will-less tool and nothing more -- in many ways, the mask functions by allowing the mindless Scourge to see themselves in you, and the more intelligent species to see only what they expect to find."

Dharkoth nodded nervously, then gave Haashok a quick look. Haashok gave him a nod trying to reassure him, but the thought of being the mindless tool did not help. Dharkoth looked at the Baron nervously. “When you say a mindless tool, do you mean I will be like I was when I was his or will I be as I was when The Lady freed me? I do not want to be that mindless tool, unless it is how it must be.”

"I cannot say for certain at this point -- it will depend on what we learn during the examination." The Baron's tone was entirely neutral. "All things being equal, I would prefer a post-mindless state, but the ultimate deciding factor will be which state your mind must be in for the mask to fully conceal your true personality. Shall we begin?"

Dharkoth took a deep breath and nodded. "I guess now is as good as anytime to get this going and see what we find out."


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Solivar
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re: [OOC]

Bumping this post for the purposes of promoting IC engagement in the Forums on this topic: Dharkoth is about to infiltrate the inner workings of the Vortex of Souls. When Steadfast returns to the Shadow Vault, they will find him in a shadow-masked state, very different from his now-normal state of mind.


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Meton08
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re: [Vortex] The Shadow Vault

Alrighty. Good to know and all, oh and I looked at this new Frost DK spec and now am suddenly not angry with my class anymore.
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