Seeker of Thrones 5-51
“Kassardis knew his time was running short as he fled into the wastes around the town of Kol Varas. Instead of his naming knife, he had a stale hunk of bread, and instead of his prince’s garb he had only a stolen woman’s garment, thin and nearly useless against the freezing cold of the desert nights. He knew his three wives were not far behind, and despair was his constant companion. But still, he pushed on, wholly consumed with the conviction that he would find the peaceful land of Samura, or die in the process.
By the third day, when the desperate prince’s wives were closing in rapidly, the scorched and tortured soles of Kassardis’ feet felt stone and not sand beneath them. Kassardis looked up and saw that he had stumbled upon a mighty road, broad and sweeping, that passed through enormous stone arches into the distance. The road was crumbled with age, but Kassardis recognized at once that it was the famous Arched Road of Samura, and a great burst of hope filled his heart.
Kassardis followed the road until it was dark, and lightness filled his step, so that he did not even notice when the sun had gone and the nightmare chill of the desert began to grasp at him. All through the night, he followed the road, and the night itself could not touch him. And when the sun grazed his face, Kassardis was still walking, but he still had not found the kingdom of Samura. It remained like this for a day longer, until Kassardis, sustained by hope alone, and dying of thirst, stumbled across a battered old sword master encamped by the side of the road.
The sword master was aghast at Kassardis’ dreadful condition, and at once tended to him, and gave him water. “Young man,” said the old sword master, “I am Ket Amonket, the gate keeper of the kingdom of Samura. There is nothing for you here. Turn back.”
Kassardis was shocked. “Uncle!” he gasped, ” If you are indeed the gatekeeper of that mighty kingdom, please take me there at once. I am fleeing from my three wives, who wish to drag me back into a world of bloody tyranny!”
“You are here already,” said Ket Amonket, and motioned to the desert, “This is the kingdom of Samura, burned to ashes and ground into dust for decades.”
Mortified, Kassardis could only gape at the empty desert. But here and there, the young prince could see what he had been blind to while hope had still filled him up: the corroded remnants of great and stately buildings and fluted columns poking out of the desert like bleached ribs.
“Samura was founded on the principles of peace,” said Ket Amonket, “So it was sought out by many across all the ten thousand realms. Those that sought to flee from the world of violence.”
“Violence is inescapable,” moaned Kassardis.
“Yes,” said the old man. “Very wise words indeed. Soon this land contained more people than it could sustain. Violence once again began to grow in the hearts of its people, like a foul disease, until it blossomed into destruction. It was a foolish hope.”
“Then there is no hope for me,” said Kassardis.
“There is still yet,” said Ket Amonket, resolute. “Let me do one favor for you, young man, as one who has already lived too long. You must flee to the canyon south of here and hide yourself there as best as you can, until the sun sets. I will tell your wives you vanished into the desert a day past, and throw them off your trail.”
“Thank you Uncle,” said Kassardis, “I will hold on to my hope a little while longer.”
“Hold on to this,” said Ket Amonket, giving Kassardis his sword, “It will protect you a lot better than hope.”
Kassardis took the weapon very reluctantly, and would have thrown it away at the first chance he had, but the words of the Very Wise Frog continued to tear at his mind, so he clung on to it as he fled for the canyon.
“At the very least I’ll give the boy a good head start,” Ket Amonket assured himself as he watched Kassardis’ three wives trek over the dunes a little while later.
The sword master was wrong. Ipreski severed his wind pipe before he could get a single word out, and all that passed his lips was a spray of blood . Kassardis got a head start of about ten minutes.”
– Tales of the Silver Prince
Huh.
ok i’m not sure exactly what she did but that was pretty damn badass
I think she head-butted him with astral skull of a god.
Says Allison as she’s immediately stabbed by all the Red Devils who were hot on her heels.
Flesh, flesh, rip and tear
But the ire of others you must beware
For who enters a king’s house
Without the deference of a mouse
Save for fools and meat, doomed to die
With their corpses scattered, and in ashes lie
Fool of a girl. How can you talk to the Prisoner when you have assaulted the Keeper of his cell. How now will you open the sealed door to HIMSELF?
Well Allison, you were certainly fortunate to have given yourself the “I want to speak to a manager” haircut ahead of time.
That went a great deal better than I thought it would.
For whom?
For us.
This is axiomatic.
AL-Yisun
I wonder how much of that was Incubus and how much of it was Alison?
The start was Incubus, but as you can see by the Rising King’s eyes and flame, everything else was her power and will alone.
I believe It’s almost entirelly Allison. Look at her in the last panel: all the signs of Succubus’s influence are gone. Her key gives off completely white energy and her eyes aren’t bloodshot anymore.
We might have found out the flaw in Incubus’s plan.
Most likely: The power was Allison, the skill was Incubus. For now.
The skill was Allison’s as well. Only the ambition and courage to do something as daring as this was, shall we say, rented by Incubus.
Incubus is just an enabler, a whispherer of soft words, driver of ambition contained within.
His power here is to influence her mind and to let her get rid of her inherent inhibitions.
Violence is inescapable. Reach heaven through it?
Allow me to now post the more ideal version of this comment, as my past self was surely a fool.
Story: Violence is inescapable.
Comic: Reach heaven through violence.
Al-YIS-Un used headbutt.
It’s super effective.
It’s interesting to see that the Lies told to the universe dissipate once the vatra that did the telling is rendered unconscious. I’ll have to remember that next time I’m brawling with someone who’s capable of the Red and White Arts.
I have this feeling that the Successor is going to meet Himself soon.
I don’t understand why Our Heroine is see through, and exactly what DOOOOOMed our current antagonist.
The SKULL OF YS MYRA, of course.
The sound effect was caused by the impact of the skull of the summoned blue lady on the devil. It disappeared right after impact.
Allison looks half-transparent because it’s actually the god woman apparition that’s transparent, and Allison was in the middle of her head.
Headstrong, this thrall
Put platinum star to shame
I hate having to spit out your own fused hands.
I know that look. Her coffee shop customers have trained her well.
Is this the power the King wielded? I knew he was mighty, but to restore the gods themselves… It is nearly beyond belief.
A most profound meeting of minds. But, alas, only one of them came away having learned anything.
I love seeing her carry her (so far) purely ornamental sword. I would be very pleased if she carries it her entire journey and never finds a need to use it.
It is a practically useless thing after all.
However, their steel can be used for cutlery; or nails when you no longer need the blade itself for it’s only duty. Or if you want a particularly ornamental fence, you can keep the sword intact and just put them into the dirt around your home.
A sword in the dirt would be quite the statement. “I am unworthy to even be beaten into a plowshare.”
T’is the statement yes, as it is a final dishonor to those whom decided to live by the blade.
A good performance on the part of Allison Ruth. Quite loud, although that seems to be a marker for Kingship. To Loabarrisleb, I would advise in the future, taking a more careful touch of observance before slighting unknown entities, no matter how seemingly small; I’ve seen belligerent fruit flies take down kingdoms, and the girl Allison Ruth is so much more than a fruit fly.
To Ket Amonket, I feel deep regret; anyone on the road should always carry means to defend themselves, and words only qualify if threats are willing to listen.
That’s most pious headbutt I’ve ever seen
Not just “boom”, but “doom”!
The skull-crack of doom!
Heads up!
But why would you want to talk to yourself?
There is too much of that in throne already. She wouldn’t stand out in the slightest. The place is half mad on a good day! While this makes for excellent business it is burdensome to the spirit.
Dear throne, do not despair, the relief of change swiftly approacheth. Let the circles be broken. Look up ye citizens. Look up and see: The new King riseth to eclipse the broken sun. Look up and let your hearts dare to hope.
Nobody wins with a headbutt.
Except Allison. She totally wins with a headbutt.
Firm handshake. Establish dominance.
Doooooooom.
Myra used skull bash!
It’s super effective!!
Uhhh, I think he was in charge.
Was… was that a stand?
I don’t mean to sound like a hater,
but two in the morning, or five hours later?
I rush to be a relevant commentator.
Zoss has decided to remain relevant even after dying. A lyric will such as your own easily has the strength to declare which ever part of the thread it finds itself in of utmost relevance and worth searching for.
I bow, and take note
this compliment you wrote
warms me better than my coat.
And so, again, we see the the First Truth of the Guild of Mysterious Peddlers demonstrated in perfection.
Alone among goods, politeness costs nothing, and pays immense dividends.
What, you think that was polite???
Well, then again, she didn’t kill him…
The Skull of Ys-Mira is as nothing compared to the Astral Wealth Scourge Prana the Rising King now deploys.
Against a demand to speak to the manager, politeness is the only known defense.
Who shall answer this violent demand I wonder…
Rash, unplanned, somehow successful, and is going to grab EVERYONE’S FULL UNDIVIDED ATTENTION. I”m sure this will end well.
To achieve a similar feeling to what unfortunate Lobarrisleb just experienced, one should mix the following cocktail:
– 50ml of purest vodka
– 90ml of tomato juice
– 10ml of Red Devil war-ale (illegal to obtain in most universes)
– Half a teaspoon of Old Man Orpheus’ finest blue spice
– A few dashes of gunpowder
– A ground up Iblis’ Tears pepper, one of the most volatile fruit in existence
– The yolk of an Abyssian Worm egg, laid no more than three nights ago
– 5g of powered uranium
– A pinch of lemon to help the taste
Carefully mix in a well ventilated room, lest the fumes overpower you. Once the cocktail is bubbling nicely and you can hear screams of anguish coming from the glass, pinch your nose, throw your head back, and down the whole mix.
If you wish to show off to your friends, see if you can hit a target from fifty feet away with your brains after they explode out of your forehead.
I have, OOC, brewed a blackberry rotgut that didn’t have a kick half that nasty,
and it peeled the paint off the floors, when the bottle exploded.
AL-YIS-UN used headbutt. It was super effective!
Summon a God.
Use the God to headbutt a motherfucker.
Advice Allison?
YES
http://i.imgur.com/GYNNZ7N.png
Template: http://imgur.com/a/z4IJE
Many thanks!
That last panel made me wet myself a little <3
Allison… Smash.
Now THAT is an introduction!
HAHAHA! DEVINE HEADBUT!
niccce…
As devils grow truly ancient, even they may forget things now and again, such as the reason they dwell BENEATH the dead gods. Blessings to the Rising King for reminding this one.
Fuck yeah
Truly, divinity is incarnate in this headbutt.
Well, at least she’s using her head…
That was glorious oh my godddd. The most graceful and badass headbutt I have ever seen.
I have no idea what the fuck just happened, but I totally want one.
To boldly go where angels fear to tread, regardless of strength, seems a poor tactic.
But then again, fortune favours the brave.
I know this opinion won’t be popular, but I hope Loabarrisleb is okay. He has such a cool design, as well as good reason to be suspicious of Yabalchoath (if not Cio).
Now THAT was a headbutt IN Hell.
In under ten minutes a city could be reduced to bone, glass, and ashes. Kassardis has quite the head start in my opinion.
Ket Amonket was a sword master, too bad he did not have a sword.
Generally a very silly little lie, a sword master can make a good showing of skill without a sword. But this is the abridged version sadly. The original was ten pages of skillful word play and combat- and fairly dry.
Either Ipreski or the Printing and Bards Guild hates Ket Amonket or Lassardis, tales usually end with his esophagus slashed, his tongue blistered from the sheer act of the cut, and blood pouring from the jugular before even a single word is exchanged between the combatants.
Slander is nothing new to the ten thousand worlds and more encompassing the wheel. Lies are even older, they did not need paper to form.
Ket Amonket was a sword master, he did not know how to cut. To be a master of cutting, of strife, of violence. To be a master of that, he must embrace it – live in it – he sat in solitude and relative peace for ages guarding a dead city. A good man, a just warrior, but only a sword master. Without a sword, he was helpless – just he was with it; unable to prevent the fall of Samura.
Peace must be forged like a thousand swords – not kept as a cloth, iron cloth does only so much to prevent its wear – forging swords requiring the beating of dirt-wrought iron into submission, buening it, melting it, forcing it to your will. A master blacksmith knows peace, a tailor only knows demands and whimsy; the smith tells you what you will get, the tailor is told. A sovereign acts, a commoner demands and acts as so though they were pithy like a sovereign. Peace is a calm violence.
Ket Amonket died as a sword master, too bad he did not have a sword.
Samura was a city of Peace, therefore, its swordmasters never knew what it truly is to Cut.
It cut itself. Eventually, it attained Holy Division, and that was ruin.
To all the fine folks that predicted a face full of head:
Bravo, and WELL done!
This Earth is the anvil. I am the hammer.
Shieeet
Zinedine Zidane approves…
Am I weird for thinking Alison would be attractive with scars? Am I weird for liking women with scars?
As long as you are not the one who scarred them – probably not.
Ever head butt someone so hard a few of their eyes pop out?
Ever headbutt someone so hard a few of their eyeballs pop right out of their head?
BOOYAH!
AL-YIS-UN’S bizarre adventure?
Poor, sweet Loabarrisleb, always doing things for others’ benefit. I told him not to join the Heretic’s Court, it’s not generally the sort of place where such rare generosity as his is rewarded.
“I’d like to speak with your manager!” That was seriously badass.
Come for the comics. Stay for the supplementary written lore.
haha best headbutt ever
A skull of Ys-Myra T-shirt.
Or Poster. Or really any All-Yis-Un/Yis-Myra merch.
I desire it.
It is fair to expect Loabarrisleb to survive the encounter, as his mask was not targeted. What kind of doom awaits him? Perhaps, his head will burst. But for all the right reasons.
I must protest the lack of a good showing of skill from the sword master, if one is going to tell a good lie- at least make it markedly entertaining for the rest of us.
The swordmaster had given his useless thing away to the foolish prince.
so gorgeous
divine indeed
So she’s mastered the Ranma-type Giant Battle Aura Image. Won’t be long before she approaches Kamina levels of coolness.
no one will ever reach kamina cool. not even gods.
no one will ever reach kamina levels of cool. not even gods/ goddesses like her.
Take us to your leader; we come in violence.
Here we mourn for
Cat among cat
Bob: “How’s your head?”
Elvira: “I haven’t had any complaints yet.”
–Conversation from Elvira: Mistress of the Dark (1988)
In the immortal words.of the Unstoppable Juggernaut: ” HEAD CRUSH!!!”
… but I am in charge here.
Huh, so, Allison has a stand now. Neat.
The most pious headbutt indeed. Do you suppose AL-YIS-UN is from Myra’s universe? Will she invoke other gods in this way?
How common are techniques that invoke dead gods this directly? And how will the court of devils respond to it?
Many questions. Thank you, Abaddon.
Wow. That frog really WAS a dick. He said Samsura was a myth, not ancient history.
S’what you get for getting your information from frogs, I suppose.
-Peter D’Vie-n, Eavesdropper, Audience, Migrant of Throne
this forehead hit was awesome.
head
butt
They are rage, hatred, without mercy.
But you, you will be worse.
Crush them beneath your heels, smite them with your hands.
Let only those who ally themselves with you survive your gaze.
Rip and tear at this world until you have won.
When fighting demons one should use their head
or arm or leg or perhaps sense of dread
or use whatever doesn’t leave you dead
When killing demons one should use their head.
The tower and the secret name of god
be at your back with courage, foolishness
and strength. Be swift, for darkness edges close.
“Ket Amonket”? Surely not of the same-named world? A warm and shining place, its mention evokes a chill in my spine.
so like, was this the 2/6.000.000.000, or is amygdala jr there still alive?
Funny that no one mentioned Aesma in the comments, she was the first one to come to mind when I saw the summoned god.
Kar-UN, Seeker of Managers
Demand to See 6 Billion Managers