Deus Rex Regis: Awakening of a God-King

[Invictus Tyr]

Is ignorance bliss? Is it greater to know the truth of ones own destiny before it is achieved or to be a fool to fate and live each day blind to what the future holds? If one knows what they are going to become, can one truly change their lot in life and should they? I do not know the answers to these questions, though I lived a life in which I could have discovered them, but rather I was a slave to my own ambition, a servant to my desire to fufill the prophecies. Perhaps one day another such as me will come and they will deliberately walk a path not laid out for them, I did not. Perhaps it is better this way, perhaps the order I have established will spread and reign for a thousand years or perhaps I have brought upon the deletum alitum, the end of time, only the future ages will know. May they have mercy upon me, for I had none...

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Kannan Prime
1800 KST

A magnificently crafted vessel landed on the stone pad outside the Holy Palace. The ship was akin to that of a Naboo Royal transport with it's gilded hull and magnificent form, yet it was decisively different. This ship had sharp angles and obtuse corners, it bristled with weapons and held a deflector grid. It was designed to fight as well as transport, flanking this vessel was two snub fighters, much in the style of the feared X-Wing yet again different, it's nose was shorter and blunter, the engines and burners were in different locations. All ships came down upon the landing pad in perfect military unison. The boarding ramp lowered and regally dressed guards exitted creating a column at the end for someone to walk through. Another platoon of troops stood at perfect attention at the end of the landing pad all seemingly waiting for the appearance of someone or thing.

"Supplicare!" barked the clear leader of the military outfit and all save the guards knelt to one knee with their heads lowered. As they fell prostrate, a tall, powerfully built figure exitted the vessel. Clad in the royal hue of purple, his long black dread locks were a sharp contrast. The man's features were well defined, a sharp chin and bulging arms. A perfectly groomed goatee and mustache covered his face and a semi-ceremonial blade hung from his powerful hips.

Flanking him as he descended the ramp were two gorgeous women, the apex of female form and evolution. The too carried blades, but theirs were strewn across their divine shoulders. They did not make eye contact with any though their eyes were ever watchful of what was occuring around them.

"Consurrectum, bretheren," The powerful baritone voice of the one clad in purple spoke. All who had been kneeling then rose and shouted out.

"Hail Lord Invictus, Hail deus rex regis! Gloria Imperium, Gloria Invictus," A chourus of deep throated shouts called out. The man nodded his head and waved them silent.

Slowly a man dressed in the purest of white approached bowing humbly as he approached them man.

"Lord Invictus, the Holy Palace awaits."

"Rise Durant and lead your king to his new home."

[Vega Van-Derveld]

Amongst the troops, a man stood. Though he was dressed much the same as those around him, he was not one of them. Each of the figures was incredibly well built and could pummel the proverbial ox three times around the block, and so this intruder fitted in perfectly. With the troops all helmet-less, their identities well on full show, and this snake in the grass was hard to pick out even then.

Standing at six foot and two inches, with cropped blonde hair, the battled scarred soldier followed the motions of the others perfectly. In fact, at times, it almost seemed as though he was ahead of them by one step.

Here we are…

Within the hangar, there was ample space around the closely packed troops and their elders. The room was vast, and had multiples tier with catwalks tracing the inner lines of the walls before panning out into hallways to other sections of the structure. Each of these pathways was virtually unnoticeable from the ground, and this in itself was what allowed a lone man to crouch within the shadows high above.

Armed with a bow caster alone, the ragged looking human appeared to be barely a teenager, yet he clutched his weapon with confidence and showed prowess in the manner which he targeted it on his quarry down below.

As Invictus strode through his troops they parted like well trained waves, setting their ‘Lord’ and his main advisor out in the open, clear from anyone else.

When I start to look a little nervous, pull the trigger.

Vega – speaking directly to the sniper above – had to rely on the fact that firstly no one else in the room could use the force and secondly that if they did, they were not so adept as to intercept the mental conversations of a Sith Lord.

So, doing as he said he would, Vega looked up towards the man and back down, repeating this cycle a few times in a very short space of time. The physical impression he gave off was one of anxiety, although mentally he was as calm as could be.

…cl-…ick…

ffffsssssssssSSSS-HING!

In a split second, a lot happened.

Above the marksman pulled the trigger and the bow caster charged up a single shot. The one green sphere sling-shotted down into the crowd, picking off one of the female guards that followed by Invictus and toppling her into a lifeless heap.

[Invictus Tyr]

I often ask myself; "Would I have stopped him had I known?" Fearna was not just my personal attendant, she was a lover as well. I could have put myself in harms way and stopped the blast without dying. I should have noticed that the blond man was not a normal member of my honor guard. That there was a man in the rafters of my personal hangar. Then I ask myself; "Didn't you know already..."

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The hair on Invictus' neck stood straight up as they entered the hangar, he could feel something in he air. It was the same feeling he got when he was on the battlefield, just before the first casualty.

ffffsssssssssSSSS - HING!

A green globe spit past the wary Celerusian noble, striking his female guard directly in the chest killing her instantly.

ffffsssssssssSSSS - HING!

Another globe flew and Invictus dove to his right, this bolt grazed off 1st Regent Durant's arm, knocking him to the ground. The honor guard then immediately began to fall in around him hunting for the shooter. But Invictus knew where he was, he could sense it.

"Your rifle now!" The angry dark-skinned collusus yelled. He still stood a head above most of his honor guard, but it was obvious that the shootered wanted to make the next shot count. Invictus ripped a blaster carbine from one of his guards and spun, attempting to train his weapon on his would be assasin.

[Vega Van-Derveld]

A ringing of footsteps above suggested that the sniper was on the move. He ran a good few feet from his original position before rolling down into a niche in the wall – another perfect place to aim from. From his vantage point he could see his target down below had managed to spot his movements and had focused his own weapon on the area where the snipers head would inevitably pop up.

With a little guidance from the Force, courtesy of Vega, the barrel of his gun poked out over the edge of the walkway in just the right position. The trigger was pulled and a shot soared out into the air.

Without hesitation, the blonde haired trooper who had stood out from the others strode forward, raising a hand into the air. The others watched in horror, expecting to see the bolt pass straight through his palm and body in a bloody flash – however no such thing happened. Instead the bolt was deflected into the air, and struck the sniper, flushing him out from his position. His body was wretched from the ledge above by an unseen hand, and fell down into the hangar with a sickening crunch.

Vega remained silent, standing in front of Invictus, for a moment, before turning to salute.

[Invictus Tyr]

It's funny the things you believe to be God-like just because you've never seen it done before. Had I been born on a different planet, raised to know the powers and abilities one could gain with the Force, I would have not been in as much awe as the man who had seemingly 'saved' me. I would have known it possible, hell perhaps even I could have performed the same task, perhaps the old adage is correct; "You just have to be in the right place, at the right time..."

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The blonde man made his move leaping in front of Invictus deflecting the blast with what seemed to be nothing more than his own sheer will. Invictus' eyes grew wide and the Royal Guard fell back, then as if they realized they were showing cowardice before their ruler they trained their weapons on the blonde hulk.

"Put down your weapon!" The captain of the guard barked at the man who had just done what they had been incapable of doing, saver their Lord.

"Silence Captain Harker..." A baritone voice called roughly out and the captain's head jerked in the direction of the speaker. It was Lord Invictus he raised his hand and motioned his men to lower their weapons; "Put your weapons down men, this man has saved me, where you would have failed...he should be honored."

Invictus eyed over the stranger, he knew this man was no member of his guard, he knew he wasn't Celerusian either, this was an outsider. Then Invictus did something totally unexpected, yet demanded by the laws of the ancients. He bowed before the man who had saved his life, he bowed in respect for his bravery and in awe of his prowess.

"I am Lord Invictus, Master of the Celerusian people, Leader of my Clan, Tyr, and supposed fufiller of the prophecy of the deus rex regis." He said with a smile that said he was not certain of the last part then he rose and extended his arm to Vega. "You saved my life and for that I owe you my loyalty, I am bound to you to earn back that which you now own. The only thing I ask of you sir is your name."

[Vega Van-Derveld]

“Well met, Lord Invictus,”

The voice with which the man spoke was highly accented; a hybrid of some kind that suggested an aristocrat’s upbringing whilst hinting also at a more rural past through the underlying growl in his tone.

“I am Vega Van-Derveld, a Lord also – although not of people, of the Darkside.”

A murmur went up all at once amongst the surrounding people, as some recalled the nature of the Darkside and the Force, piecing together mentally just how the man could have so easily saved their Leader.

[Invictus Tyr]

The Darkside, funny how one becomes willing bedfellows with something that they have no comprehension. I had heard of the Force through the scrolls of the ancients, via the prophecies. The deus rex regis was to become a Master of this archaic practice. I was the supposed deus rex regis, it seemed my destiny was fufilling itself, how could I have be so naive...

************************************************** **

"The Force...Our prophecies speak of god-like beings who wielded this power that could bend the fabric of reality to their very whim. It speaks of our creator who had made himself a God because of this Force and then made us, the Celerusians. Do you follow the same path as the creator?" Invictus asked curiously. The massive man's body seemed to heave wih anticipation of Lord Van Derveld's answer. Though he was larger he seemed like a child as he spoke to the Force user about his arcane ways.

"Supplicare" Invictus barked at his mean who had been gathering and staring in awe. Each of them immediately bowed before him and Lord Van Derveld.

"I am honor bound to this man, he holds my life as a jewel, he may exchange it for riches, he may exchange it for power, or he many refine it for his own use, you too owe this man your life, for if I had died, the laws would have demanded the lives of the honor guard who failed to protect their Lord. You will show deference to Lord Van Derveld as you would show me...."

Invictus then turned toward the Darksider and spoke softly; "I wish to be like you, a Lord of the Darkside..."

[Vega Van-Derveld]

Guards at his feet, people proclaiming they wanted to be just like him – it was almost home. Fascinataru swarmed with guards willing to sacrifice themselves for any member of the Van-Dervelds; the only difference was that they looked exactly like their Masters – at least Darius and Vega, for they were clones Darius had bred himself. He was such a clever boy.

“I would not wish to … deprive a community of its leader,” the Lupine lied, pausing –

He knew all about this man, and about his culture. Bast Castle provided many tomes and volumes for its inhabitants to read, and among them was the story of the Celerusians; a warrior race by nature, with huge forms and the power of the Force in them, albeit untapped.

- then continued, “However if you are interested in learning the ways of the Force, I think I have some … spare time on my hands, enough to grant your request at least.”

[Invictus Tyr]

And so it began, I sold my soul for a small taste of power. I began my path to damnation or perhaps my path to salvation, I do not as of yet know. But one thing is certain, I have chosen my path, I will follow the Darkside and in Death there is nothing for me, save oblivion, so I will cling to life like a feral beast, lashing out and destroying any who dare take what small bit of humanity I have left...

************************************************** **

Invictus' eyes sparkled at the blonde man's comments. He would become his student and in doing so fufill the prophecies. Surely he above all others could master the power of the Force. He was the God-King after all.

"Then it is settled, you will become the Dominus praeceptoris and I shall be your Scholasticum" Invictus said reverently. The crowd murmured, their God-King had just given another man the title of Master Teacher and taken upon himself the title of student. Never had a ruler of the Celerusian people been blood bound nor honor bound to an outsider. And yet the prophecies were fufilled even in this:

"Il deus rex regis, will become the student of a Fallen God, learning the ways of the divine, to control the powers of the heavens..,."

And so it came to pass...

[Vega Van-Derveld]

This regency certainly was full of pomp and pageantry, Vega mulled. Even he did not have such strict rules as to how he was treated, but then he knew only the basics about the culture and perhaps even the religion this ‘god-king’ was tied to.

“If I am to teach you, you must leave this people, you realise?” he stated, with a sweeping gesture of his hand towards those gathered around.

“You must come to my home.”

[Invictus Tyr]

Though I often question my judgement on many of my decisions. The choice to leave Kannan Prime was never one that I regretted. I would not be what I am now had I stayed and been a figure-head...

************************************************** **

Invictus nodded, he understood what he had to do to attain his potential.

"Very well Master," He said calmly and then turned to Durant, the 1st Regent.

"Durant, you will rule in my stead over Kannan Prime, until I return."

"Yes Lord Invictus," The elder Celerusian replied.

"When do we leave?" Invictus asked as he turned back to Vega.

[Vega Van-Derveld]

“Now.”

Raising one hand, Vega motioned back to the vessel Invictus had arrived upon.

“We will take one pilot with us to Fascinataru. Pick one whom you aren’t too fond off, because I shall be disposing of him once he has done his duty.”

Walking off towards the ship, unhalted and unhindered by those around him, the Dark Jedi grinned to himself. He’d managed to, with little effort, corner this prodigy of the Force and lead him into believing that he himself was some God. But then, after all, he was a God … a Dark God, and with this one at his side, he’d be all the more powerful.

“Come, my apprentice.”

[Invictus Tyr]

The first casualty of my education, the loyal servant. He had no idea of what awaited him, he only wished to serve his master...

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"As you wish," Invictus answered quickly. He then turned and picked a pilot at random from his honor guard.

"You, you will serve us as our pilot, do you understand?"

"Yes, my liege," A young Celerusian replied.

Invictus then turned and took a last look at his homeworld.

"I will return to you, the prophecy fufilled," The large dark-skinned initiate called out. The entire group raised their right arms in salute exclaiming; "Hail Deus rex regis!" repeatedly.

Invictus then boarded the vessel with Lord Van-Derveld and awaited take-off.

[Vega Van-Derveld]

As the flight passengers strapped themselves in, the people outside bowed in reference as their regent departed - before turning to look upon their new leader. All of this politics meant little to Vega and in time Invictus would come to understand that to return to his people would be a waste of what his Master would soon teach him to do.

The Lupine smiled thinly as he looked at the dark figure. It would be a long journey to Fascinataru, but they would arrive (http://meras.org/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7062) eventually. In the mean time, the Dark Jedi permitted himself the liberty of closing his eyes, to sleep and perhaps dream of what catastrophe he would soon cause.