Different Site, Different Plot, Same Characters

Hey, so y'all have probably noticed my lack of updates recently. Well it's because I have been focusing all of my time on:

A: Work.
B: The RPG I'm making for the Fear Mythos.
C: this.

Yeah, that's right, I've moved on and decided to quit updating these blogs altogether. Instead, you get to see a more concise and better written version of the overall story of the Shadows Verse. Any crossovers that I've done will still appear in some form, and the plot will remain more or less the same with some major improvements. Plus, there's plenty of backstory for everything. The Deicide isn't just formed one day, there's a ton of buildup and plot involved in their formation this time around.

"But Phobos, the Anthology of Shadows is on Tumblr, which I don't have an account on! How could I possibly keep myself updated on your story?"

Glad you asked! On the left side your Blogger dashboard, right under the drop-down menu for your reading list, is a button that says "Add". This doesn't let you just follow blogs here on blogger though, it can subscribe to anything with an RSS feed (MSPA, Tumblr, Twitter, etc). All you have to do is paste the URL of the site and click follow.

That being said, I'll still stick around to read all of your blogs and sometimes even comment. There's a hell of a lot of potential in all of these stories, which seem to have gotten out of the cliches and more into original concepts.

I'm talkin' about you, "Out of the Forest." If I'm sticking around for any blogs, it's gonna be that one.

But anyway, I feel my time posting here has come to an end. If you're still interested in reading about these guys, head on over to the site linked above. Hell, if any of you want to have your "Not outright stated to be fiction" blogs crossover with a story that is clearly fiction, I'll see if I can work character interactions into the plot.

But for now, I bid you all adieu.

Goddamn Hiatus

Well hello there reader. It's been a while. Why? No clue, I just haven't had any motivation to write.

Maybe I'm depressed.

Maybe I'm just a lazy ass.

Either way, for you all, I'm gonna try and pull myself out of it. Seriously, f I had stuck to my schedule, we'd be midway through Act 3 and Zeke would have already met Elijah!

I won't promise anything, but I'll try my best to shell out something soon. I owe you that much. 

 

- Phobos

An Eye for an Eye

The Blind Man

Hmm. Now this seems rather unconventional. A Fear contributing to one of these Blogs. Although, taking into account the fact that STAB no longer considers me a Fear... Regardless, this may prove to be a rather unique scenario if any blogs maintained by fragments of the Dying Man aren't counted. All of my Archivists have been moving their data onto servers located at the Deicide's Bangkok headquarters. One such Archivist, Collector Gamma, has proven himself to be a highly valuable resource in regards to following orders. In a sense, he is the Nathan to my Elijah at this point in time.

I digress. The main reason I chose to seek out the Deicide is because I saw the others beginning to drift apart and form alliances after a certain attack on the Screaming Tower. As far as I know, only three such alliances exist, with no more than four of my former brothers and sisters in each. They've even begun to name themselves after certain elements of human culture, as ridiculous as it sounds. Regardless of their choices, they will cease to be a threat in due time. With my vast banks of knowledge combined with Elijah's ingenuity and pure determination, "A world free of Fear" may not be too grand of a goal after all.

Alas, a single reason would not be enough for me to join these men. What truly drove me to seek them was their creation of the Hybrids known as "Abominations".

...We're not all monsters, you know. I myself feel more like a human than anything. I once created an extension of myself, a daughter you could say. She went by the name of Diesis. She had youth and beauty eternal, and unparallelled kindness to match. Then, one day, one of her followers made a decision that caused her death. These past few months since then, I've been distraught and pained over the loss of her. But now... Elijah and Nathan have the means to create new beings similar to her. I realize that she won't be the same Diesis, but the attempt must be made. She must be brought back. She... She was my everything, and I lost her. I won't ever let that happen again.

Now, for the most satisfying reason I've joined Elijah. My daughter's servant, the one who indirectly murdered her, took very little time to grieve before joining the Archangel's forces. And from what I've seen, he's made quite the impression on his master. Enough that, in the event that there was a mass slaughter of Timberwolves in the Bangkok area, he would be deployed alongside his partner to investigate. And when I say partner, I do mean in the romantic aspect. Of course the feelings are unrequited, but that matters very little.

He too will know how it feels to have the thing you love most die.

Final meeting; A deal with the Devil

Nathan Umbra

Sorry for the period of silence, we've been settling into our new home here in Bangkok. That's right, the Deicide are in Bangkok; oriental setting and the city don't know what the city is getting. The creme de la creme of the STAB world in a show with everything with Yul Brinner.

(Elijah's note: We're not exactly short of people who will take the job of Lieutenant seriously, Nathan. Get it together.)

Alright, time to recap!

Elijah had gone to pick Knight up from wherever he had gone to, while I was tasked with picking up Cecilia and that other chick. They had allegedly gotten a tip regarding the Rake's location from some guy who calls himself "Jack of All", whom Cecilia had referred to as a completely reliable source. We drove to a forest just outside of New York City, referred to by the locals as "Wilhelm Wood". Noticing that Elijah and Knight were running a wee bit late, I began directing our APCs and Helicopters to surround the forest. Our troops, armed with flamethrowers, acid sprayers and Tesla coil based electric weapons seemed confident that we would kill a Fear that night.

I wish it were that simple.

After the last of the troops had driven away, the limo that Elijah and Knight were in pulled up. The chauffeur exited the driver's seat and held the door open, as Elijah stepped out and adjusted his tie. Knight followed after, albeit looking shaken and paranoid as per his usual meetings with Elijah. Elijah walked up to Cecilia and placed the tracking device in her hand. A sticker, no larger than a nicotine patch. He put his hand on her shoulder and told her that he was sorry, but she would have to go in alone lest the Rake become suspicious. She responded by saying that it probably already knew our plan and had a counter-plan ready, but she would gladly meet it alone regardless. Knight opened his mouth as if to protest, but immediately closed it when Elijah shot him a glare.

Cecilia looked at him and said "I've been meeting Fears since long before you were even born, Knight. I'm sure everything will be fine." She smiled at him, which seemed to reassure him slightly. Waving a goodbye to us, she took off into the murky darkness of the forest.

The four of us sat for what seemed like hours waiting for Cecilia to return, with Knight growing more and more anxious with each minute that passed. At one point I made eye contact with Cecilia's other friend, who just gave me a look of disgust and spit on the ground next to her. Seemed like conversation wasn't an option. Desperate for something to do, I called one of the helicopters back to pick Elijah and I up. The moment I set the radio back on my belt, Elijah pulled out his GPS and exclaimed "She did it. We have a signal." Internally patting myself on the back for calling in the chopper ahead of time, I signaled for them  to land just as Cecilia came running out of the forest. I pushed my way into the cockpit and grabbed the pilot's radio as Elijah boarded. 

Just as we began to take off I sent out the APB that would begin the assault; "All units, the crow has left the nest. I repeat, the crow has left the nest. Let's go kill ourselves a Fear, gentlemen."

Elijah Shepard

By the time out helicopter had made it to where the battle had started, the earth had already been scarred by the flames, acid and electricity that was flying about the area. The Rake, seemingly unfazed by the weapons that had caused Wendigo so much pain, was slaughtering out troops. Realizing that a ground assault was a pointless endeavor, the APCs loaded up our soldiers and fled as our helicopters and VTOLS unleashed armageddon on the clearing, courtesy of roughly fifty Hellfire ATS missiles. As the smoke dissipated, we saw the Rake, now visibly wounded, stand up in the center of the newly formed crater.

Yes, we had injured it gravely, but that had only served to make it angry. Letting out a feral cry, the Rake leaped into the air and divided one of the VTOLs into three different sections. It then disappeared into "The Godsway" and took out three more within the span of a second, startling the rest of the pilots into a mass retreat. Not willing to risk anyone's lives for no reason, I ordered the pilot to get us away from there.

And...

Well... 

The Rake peered out from behind the pilot's seat, holding his head in one hand, and with the other...

No word of a lie, the damn thing was giving us the middle finger. Or claw, whatever you prefer. The point is we were now short a pilot, and our helicopter was plummeting towards the earth. The last thing that went through my mind before the crash was a memory of my sons Zeke and Jack on a camping trip with me, years before they both disappeared.

...Pardon me for a moment, I need to regain my composure. You see,the disappearances of my sons is what caused my feelings of hatred towards the Fears. There is no doubt in my mind that they are responsible, and I will do everything in my power to ensure that they all pay for what they did.

...Even if it means allying myself with one of the more (and I use this word loosely) "benevolent" Fears. As I lay in the clearing, fighting with all of my strength to remain conscious, the pain of the crash slowly disappeared from my body. My eyes fully opened and I saw an elderly man with pitch black glasses kneeling above me, holding his hands to the sides of my head. The Blind Man was saving my life... And I had to feed my curiosity. He knew we were trying to kill the Fears, why would he help us?

"It's simple, Mr. Shepard. I also know how it feels to lose your child to... Let's just say a pair of monsters. I know your pain. I share your pain... Which is why I wish to devote all of myself and all of my resources to your cause."

I was caught off guard by the offer, and frankly didn't know what to say. I took a moment to consider the options, and came to the conclusion that the Blind Man's vast library of knowledge was far too great of an offer to pass up. A Fear of all things was willing to help us destroy it's brethren, so who were we to refuse? STAB command had mixed feelings on the matter, but in the end the council voted in favor of the alliance due to the Blind Man no longer being considered a "threat".

As Nathan mentioned earlier, we are using the site of the Archive's main base in Bangkok as our new headquarters. This newly formed Alliance is mutually beneficial, as it allows the Blind Man's influence to grow as the other Fears die, as well as allowing us access to all of his resources and even his Domain.

The Blind Man has officially become the secondary Commander of the Deicide.

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

Father chose the Harbinger to follow

Soon the End will make him hollow

Meeting #2: Briefing Knight

Elijah Shepard

Before we begin, I would like to address the people who are commenting on how "inhumane" our tests are. While it is not my place to tell you what to think, you have to see this from our perspective. There is an incredibly slim chance that we will ever find this "Phobos" person and Nate's journal with other methods of killing the Fears, so we need a backup plan. That is what the Abominations are; a contingency in the form of test subjects. And although we will continue to administer tests until a better, more "humane" method is found, I sincerely apologize to all of you, especially Lucia for any grief this has caused and will cause.

Now, on to the meeting. 

Nathaniel and I were sitting in my office, discussing new tests for Wendigo when Knight, Lucia and Cecilia arrived at the door. Calling down to security over the intercom, I ordered Nathan to escort Lucia and Cecilia to the conference room. I myself would be taking Knight to go see Wendigo in order to brief him on his testing duty. As we walked to the observation chamber, we discussed the Fears and our mission to destroy them.

"It's a pretty noble cause you people have taken up here, but be honest with me, how do you expect to kill a Fear of all things?" He said, making the only sound in the empty hallway besides the echo of our footsteps. 

"We're hoping it won't be this complicated. As I've previously mentioned, Nathaniel had a journal detailing a method of giving a Fear the power to become a God. This process could also be performed on a human, giving them the power required to destroy the Fears. Under normal circumstances this would be our plan, but the Journal was left in the care of a runner before Nathan's 'death'. Worse yet, Nathan is suffering from amnesia due to his revival, and can't remember any of his notes. And that is why we are here at square one, performing brutal tests on a creature that shouldn't exist."

"In that case, I can see why you're doing this. It still might not be a good enough explanation for Lucia, though." He replied. I looked at my feet for a moment in shame. "It truly is a shame, but it must be done. There's no real guarantee that we'll ever find this "Phobos" kid, so we have to have other options available." Knight opened his mouth as if to say something, but then just shook his head. After a few more steps, he once again struck up a conversation.

"I understand how you guys can attempt to harm the physical Fears like the Rake, but what about the more complicated ones. Say... The Dying Man?" I thought for a moment how to answer such a question. "That is a good question indeed. I'll admit it's one I haven't thought of yet, but I suppose we'll need to cross that bridge rather soon. Thank you for reminding me Knight, you may have just saved thousands of lives!" I chuckled as I patted his back. He smiled faintly before clearing his throat and asking yet another question.

"What about the Quiet?" I stopped walking.

"What do you mean, what about the Quiet?" I asked. He tensed and leaned against the wall. "I mean what do you plan on doing about it." I shifted uncomfortably, needing to quickly think up an answer. "The Quiet isn't really much of a threat. If anything, it's just another means of killing the Fears. Perhaps this is what could kill of the ones who are less physical! My goodness Knight, we could certainly use you here in the Deicide!" I said as I laughed again. "Sarcasm, I assume?" He muttered. "Not at all! I only wish we had innovators like yourself here rather than the war hungry rabble we call our troops. There are too few scientific minds in this world, and I fear that they may all be gone someday soon." As I started to walk down the hall again, he called out again.

"You say the Quiet's not a threat, but I... disagree. I've read reports about it - seen entire lives ruined. I watched as one kid's life was affected by this thing." Knight leaned forward. "He died because of its influence.

"And if my guess right... if the organization I'm looking for was destroyed by the Quiet, then that proves to me right there that it's not something we need to overlook, Elijah."

I grinned. "You have a point there Knight, but the Quiet's a bit of a wild card when it comes to dealing with it. There's the chance that you destroy it and save the universe, or you could end up causing it to spread, destroying the universe. And frankly, that would be counter productive." I pulled my card key from my pocket, and opened the observation room for Wendigo.

"Knight, meet AB-01. This is our hybrid of the Rake and the Smiling Man, which is convenient considering we'll be encountering the Rake itself if all goes well. That large steel door across from it leads to a warehouse that we've filled with every type of weapon or element you can imagine. You want to force feed it twenty kilograms of pure calcium? Go right ahead, there's plenty. The only thing is... We've discovered how it manages to regenerate so quickly, and you may find it  a bit morbid."

"I doubt it'll be the worst thing I've seen" he said as he shrugged. I sighed, and made the confession. "It's regeneration factor is fueled by the amount of organic matter it consumes, specifically flesh. And if we're going to be even more specific... Human flesh. We've tried feeding it animal carcasses, but it just refuses. At least we can be thankful that we're in New York, where the morgues fill up rather qui-"

"Wait a moment" He said. "You mean to tell me that you're taking bodies from the city's morgues?" I put my hands in my coat's pockets. "We're not stealing, we're purchasing. We pay off the city's hospitals to supply us with any deceased humans they have on hand, and they don't ask questions. It's a win win relationship."

"What about the families?" He asked. "The doctors tell them that the corpses are too mangled to see. Ignorance is bliss, after all." I said, not facing him out of shame.

"That's a pretty heartless philosophy, Elijah."

I let the comment slide as I led him into the testing chambers to associate himself with our equipment. As we learned from Cecilia later that night, he disappeared from his hotel room and still has not been located. And while this may sound heartless... I'm certainly glad it wasn't Cecilia. After all, she's the only one who really brings anything to the table in this alliance.

Meeting Knight and Cecilia and that other chick

Nathan Umbra

We arrived at the Moon Hotel in NYC earlier today. Conveniently enough, it's the same city the Deicide set up our home base in. Couple of mad scientists running experiments on monsters in New York. Such a cliche'd scenario, and yet Wendigo's completely secure and, to a degree, safe in our testing chambers.

I'm rambling. So, as we pulled into the valet area in front of the hotel, a blue pickup truck rounds the corner at a high speed, crumpling the first foot of the car like a beer can. As I began to flip the fuck out on the pickup's driver, Elijah told me to leave it be and motioned for me to follow him. We climbed the stone steps only to be greeted at the top by our new temporary allies. Knight seemed rather startled by the accident moments prior, and looked around cautiously, as if paranoid. 

He has to have had a reason. I'd say Fear involvement, but I've never heard of anything that causes accidents.

Anyways, we all sat down in the hotel's lobby and began discussing what we needed from one another. We didn't need to worry about being overheard, as everyone else had gone outside to check out the crash. Elijah suggested everyone lay out their expectations for this alliance, and we would work around them to find a middle ground.

Cecilia and her friend wanted a meeting with the Rake. We told them that we would arrange it somehow, as long as they would lead the Rake into an ambush in which we would attempt to (and hopefully succeed) kill it.

They politely declined.

As I reached under my arm, Cecilia told us her idea of compromising; She would place a tracking device on the Rake during the meeting. I pulled my hand out of my coat, and told her that it would be an acceptable trade.

Now Knight on the other hand... His request was a bit more complicated.

Elijah Shepard

Knight eyed me warily he asked if we had information on an Organisation he'd been searching for. I asked if this organisation had a name, to which he responded "It did at one point...". The only information he had at this point in time was a single name: Sirak Deacon. Hearing it for the first time in years, I chuckled. Nathan and the Deicide may not have known about this organisation, but I had a personal file on them regarding... "Previous interactions".

I made eye contact with Knight, and he once again gazed at me with a hint of suspicion. "Of course I know about them" I said, as a smile spread across my face. "And I am perfectly willing to provide any and all information I have, as long as you help us out. You scratch our back and we'll scratch yours, as the saying goes." 

"What is it you'd have me do?" He asked, seemingly suspicious.

"You're a rather intelligent man who seems to be rather knowledgeable on the subject of the Fears." I said as I stood up. "All we ask is that you assist my friend Mr. Umbra in experimenting on our recent hybrid experiment, Wendigo. Use your knowledge of the Rake to help us gain the upper hand."

Knight nodded and stood up, offering a hand to shake. As I was leaving, I passed each of them a card with the address of our base, as well as the passcode for entry. I told them to stop by whenever they saw fit, at which point we would continue planning this "Meeting" with the Rake. 

Until then, I bid you all adieu. 

AB-01 TESTING LOG (A)

Test #1: Firing 28 9mm hollow point rounds into AB-01's chest

Effect: None noticeable. Bullet wounds regenerated within 1.5 seconds of impact.

Research Notes: Conventional firepower is unfit for combat with Fears. Continue testing until an effective method of delaying regeneration and causing damage occurs, then re-arm Deicide forces.

Test #2a: AB-01 placed in a "Biological Matter Elimination Chamber" Set to sterilize via Heat Based Radiation. Test begins at 300 Degrees Fahrenheit.
Effect: None.

Test #2b: Temperature set to 500 Degrees Fahrenheit
Effect: AB-01 Shows visible discomfort, but does not otherwise deviate from normal behaviour.
Research Notes: Double it.

Test #2c: Temperature set to 1000 Degrees Fahrenheit
Effect: Subject's flesh begins to slowly bubble. With continuous exposure, regeneration is brought to a standstill. Regeneration resumed 15.43 seconds after exposure ceased.
Research Notes: Double it.

Test #2d: Temperature set to 2000 Degrees Fahrenheit
Effect: AB-01 screams in agony, as it's skin begins to boil and melt off. Regeneration resumed 5.03 minutes after exposure ceased.
Research Notes: I think we're on to something with heat. Perhaps we could look into developing an amplified and portable ADS weapon?

Test #3a: "Biological Matter Elimination Chamber" set to sterilize via corrosion. A light mist of Hydrochloric Acid filled the chamber.
Effect: AB-01 expressed confusion, but suffered no physical damage whatsoever. Regeneration was not impaired.
Research Notes: Full spray from all angles. High pressure. Now.

Test #3b: High pressure spray of Hydrochloric Acid from all directions.
Effect: AB-01 shrieks, and is immediately silenced by the spray of acid melting half of it's head off. Subject falls over into the large pool of acid, destroying all but it's torso, half of it's head and it's left arm. Medical teams drained the chamber and rushed in only to be immediately devoured by AB-01. This caused the near instant regeneration of all lost limbs.
Research Notes: Well at least we know it's hunger for flesh aids in regeneration... Seems the nickname "Wendigo" keeps becoming more and more meaningful. Have the development teams look into the creation of a high pressure acid launcher.

Note from Lieutenant Umbra: Just... No. That has got to be THE most impractical weapon anyone has ever proposed. No one among you can seriously say that you looked at the words "high pressure acid launcher" and took them seriously. Next test is being conducted by me personally.

Test #4: Subject placed in a field of Tesla Coils, which activate simultaneously.
Effect: Subject afflicted with full bodily paralysis after 13 bolts of electricity strike it. Paralysis ended 3.0 minutes after exposure ceased.
Research Notes: This we could do. Hell, any teenager with a few car batteries and a metal rod could probably do this. I believe this would work well in conjunction with the previously mentioned ADS, as well as any method of causing physical trauma.