Fortress of Midnight

Personal Quarters

War Quest Issued: War with the Damned (Stage 1)

Description: You have begun a small war with the Sisters of the Damned. With all wars, the first steps can be the most crucial and could set the tone for the duration of the war. Eliminate all outposts controlled by the Sisters of the Damned within 30 miles of the Fortress of Midnight and conquer Fortress Ill'Gargon to break the power of the Sisters of the Damned in the area.

Outposts Destroyed: 3/12

Fortress Ill'Gargon Conquered: Not Conquered

Difficulty: Hard

Rewards: 1,000 Gold, Unknown

Jacob whistled at the quest, it was a tall order but it was something he had already planned so he might as well reap some benefits from it. The baby Vampires were out exploring the fortress getting to know their surroundings with orders not to steal, kill, or harm anyone. If they explored the nearby Underdark they were on their own until tomorrow. It should be a slow easy night until tomorrow so when he found someone standing in his office he wasn't surprised. Who was there did surprise him? Dumathoin.

"So what can I do for you Dumathoin? I appreciate the blessing on my War Party and fortress, but that does not give you the right to show up whenever you want. So what do you want?" Jacob asked as he sat down.

"Most beings would show more respect to a God," Dumathoin growled.

"Most Gods are not foolish enough to trust the Spider and have a forced 2000-year-old nap and need the help of a Vampire to save them...Now, why have you come to call on my favor?" Jacob continued to ignore politeness. He owed the god nothing, the point of fact was Dumathoin owed him a lot more.

The Dwarf god nodded his head begrudgingly, "You are right and I owe you much still for freeing me. I know you do not owe me for anything but I am asking for your help. Lolth gave me a map that revealed where all my old allies were entombed throughout the Underdark. I was one of 9 such gods or goddesses forced to sleep. I have already confirmed that the Spider was not lying and that all the locations are real and hold my brethren. Will you help free them? If I do it, the others will know and will either move them or even kill them. Please."

"If I do this, it will take time. I have many responsibilities and I do not have the time to go hunting throughout the Underdark for your lost brethren. I will do it when I can. Second, you, those I free, and any others you can convince will stand with us when the time comes. You will make sure when we go to destroy the Curse that the Pantheons do not interfere even if that means you go to war with each other. Agreed?" Jacob asked as he stared at the Dwarven god. The god nodded quickly at Jacobs demands but he had no idea how he would make sure the gods did this...yet.

Secret Quest Issued: Let My Gods Go!!!

Description: Dumathoin has charged you with freeing 8 of his brethren from prisons built by Lolth at the end of the last war. In exchange, you have no time limit and they will assist you if you need godly assistance in your crusade to free the Vampire people from the Curse.

Sleeping Gods Freed: 1/9

Difficulty: Insane

Rewards: 10,000 Experience for each God/Goddess freed, Variable

"Thank you Jacob Longstrider, once again I am in your debt and will not forget. This scroll is the one Lolth gave me. I have extensively tested it and used it. I believe it is safe. It will glow when you are nearby one of my brethren. I have slowly been regaining my power and more than one ear within both Pantheons found it odd that I disappeared shortly before the final vote was cast to see your people cursed. The numbers against the hardliners are growing but I need the other 8 to crush them and prove what they did. Call on me if you need my assistance and if I can help I will assist you." with that Dumathoin created a portal and vanished.

"I was afraid he would never leave. How has your week been?" Mikeal stated as he stepped out of the shadows.

"When it rains it pours...Mikael, my friendly neighborhood Deathwalker. How have I missed you." Jacob hissed as he slowly stood and started stalking closed toward the assassin.

"Don't look at me like you want to kill me. I didn't know until the night of the ball and I warned Lady On'tel to tell you immediately after I did find out. Believe me, it was a huge surprise to me as well. The Hollowed Tombs do political marriages within the Noble Undead but this is a first for someone outside our species. I had no idea they would go that far to put eyes on you 24/7." Mikeal responded.

"Fine...I will believe you for now. I assume you know about obscure weapons. I was going to ask my friend Darren but he is away right now and I want to know who else is watching my back." Jacob said as he placed the weapon on the table. It looked similar to a shuriken, but it was subtly different.

"Yes, it is a custom weapon of the Noble Houses of the Hollowed Tombs. Only the highest of the nobility train in such weapons and require a large amount of mana and physical attributes to control and use properly. It should not have been there Jacob, I was the only Deathwalker assigned to you. So either another House is taking steps to protect you, which is extremely unlikely, or someone from House On'tel decided to tag along on your little campaign and protected you when you needed it." Mikeal responded while studying the bladed weapon.

"Well it ended up in a Drows throat, it was an Archer we had missed and he could have been aiming at anyone in the raiding party," Jacob responded.

Mikeal disagreed immediately, "No, whoever did this was protecting you. No one trained by our people would have exposed themselves like this unless they were protecting you specifically. Ahh...see here. The Grim Reaper with the sun behind them, that is the Motif of House On'tel. It was someone within my families House"

"Well if you find out who did it, tell them thank you for the assistance and I owe them a beer. According to my Engineer Jigibs, we have some pretty good dam beer here. Now, why don't you tell me when I am supposed to marry your Cousin?" Jacob asked the Deathwalker while he leaned back. For once the Deathwalker started to relax and lean against the walls.

"In one months time, you are to be wed at the Palace of Night. That was agreed upon between your Queen and my ruling council." Mikael responded. "I am sorry that this responsibility was placed on you without your knowledge or consent my friend. I have been studying you for a while. You are a good man and did not deserve to be treated in such a way."

"I will go forward with the wedding with a couple conditions, first and foremost the wedding will be held here with my friends and family. Two, only Vampires of my House will be allowed to attend. Three, no one and I mean no one talks shit about my home or my people. We have built this place literally from nothing but rubble. It deserves respect if not for what we built but the fact my people have built something from nothing. Please convey this to your people. Finally, I want to get to know who I am going to marry. That means she actually has to be here, yes I understand she will require an escort to make sure I don't do anything inappropriate but hey, your a big scary Deathwalker. So, that is the deal." Jacob told him and he was certain that he smiled at the last part.

"I will gladly relay your demands Lord Jacob Longstrider." with that formal goodbye shadows swallowed him once again.

Palace of Night

Entryway

Jacob paced back and forth while waiting for the Master of Shadows. Having given up the position of Royal Executioner had apparently meant he no longer had the right to enter the Palace as well even though the dam quest said to go there. Assholes. Both Heart Guards smirked at him while he had been waiting for a good 30 minutes. "You know what asshole, tell that Master of Shadows to go sit on it and twirl. I made the right decision to leave you guys in the rearview if you guys act like such little bitches. Good luck breaking the curse by the way."

Fucking bitch ass mother fuckers, "Excuse me what would you like the Guards to tell me." the Master of Shadows asked.

"Got hearing problems as well as hip problems. SIT ON IT AND TWIRL. It does not take 30 minutes to walk from anywhere in the palace to here. 10 minutes max, so I assume you have hip problems because you walked so slow." Jacob retorted.

"You are quite correct and it took me 5 minutes to get here after a guard finally showed up. So I apologize for my tardiness Lord Lonstrider I will make sure that this does not happen again. We would not like to make things worse than they already are. Now, why don't we walk and talk, please? Also please call me Ezekial." Ezekial said as he led Jacob away.

"I am truly sorry for the actions of those two Heart Guards, I will make sure they are punished for their choice today. Now, I am aware you have completed the Second Step in the important task of breaking the Curse over us all. The third step will be crucial in securing this area of the Underdark and your own personal power. Both will be crucial in the fourth stage and when we eventually break the Curse. Now good luck." Ezekial stated. as he turned back to the palace.

Quest Updated: To Rise or Fall (STAGE 3)

Description: A Vampire Lords power is derived from many things, his home, his allies, and his crushed enemies. Learn from this by either allying, destroying or subjugate all your nearby neighbors. During your time in the Underdark, you will need to have a very strong base to operate from and friends to depend on, but your power is more than just the physical home. You are also an Immortal, help found a Guild and recruit at least 50 members.

Guild Founded: No

Guild Members: 0/50

Fortress Level 2: No

Allies: Bloodfang, Earth Splitters

Destroy, Subjugate or Ally: Ineford, Darkfang Hold, SIsters of the Damned Fortress Ill'Gargon

Difficulty: Insane (That's you)

Rewards: 500 Gold, Variable, To Rise or Fall (Stage 4)

"I forgot mylord. This once belonged to a powerful Vampire Lord, he died protecting the ones he loved. I think he would be proud if you were to wear it." Ezekial said as he flung a necklace at Jacob who caught it and studied it.

Spoiler: Spoiler

Name: Heart of the Blood Lord (Neck)

Level: Artifact, Scales, Set Item (1 of 8)

Properties: Increase Strength, Constitution, and Agility by 15

Properties: Increase Armor Rating by 10%

Properties: Increase Experience Gained by 10% (Locked until you have 3 Pieces of the Set)

Properties: Ability: Life Absorption (Locked until you have 5 Pieces of the Set)

Properties: Aura of the Blood Lord* (Locked Until Full Set is complete)

Requirement: Full Blood Vampire, LVL 30, Soulbound to Jacob Longstrider

Description: It is said that the Blood Lord was the very first Vampire, but no one knows for sure. It is known that he died protecting his family from those that feared Vampires and his story later inspired the creation of the Order of Blood Knights. This armor set was lost during the War of Survival and no one knows where all the pieces are it.

Holy Shit...well it looked old and covered in blood but it didn't flake off when Jacob rubbed it. Odd. Well, time to go drop off the Guild charter and knock off one of my to-do things without problems.

Quest Issued: Lost Lineage

Description: The Blood Lords Legacy is old and lost to time and war. Many Houses over the last 2000 years have funded expeditions to try and recover this lost legacy of the Vampire nation, only the necklace has ever been recovered. The set consists of the Necklace, Chest, Leg, Boots, Rings, Shield, and Crown. Recover them to unlock the Legacy of the Blood Lord and help lead the Vampire Nation down a new path.

Pieces Collected: 1/8

Difficulty: Nightmare

Rewards: 10,000 Experience per piece, Blood Lords Legacy, Unknown

City of Ineford

Slums

A pounding on the door woke Samuels up, who the hell would be calling on him at this late hour. The person at the door made him snarl, "What do you want Goldflint? You took my business and my position on the Council. Are you here to take this piece of shit shack as well?"

Dudrik Goldflint winced at what the man said, "It was nothing personal, just business and politics. I need your help with something, I know you are into ancient and obscure history. I have hit a wall in the research I can do on a subject and I am willing to pay for your help."

"50 Gold in advance and 50 after the research no matter how much or little after the job is done. No negotiations." Samuels said as he waited for his hand out for the money.

Goldflint handed a money purse over and then an envelope, "That has the original impression I was given and everything I was able to pull up on it. I need to know what it stands for yesterday, please."

"Come back tomorrow night. I will have an answer or I will have a timeline on how long it will take me to get one." Samuel responded as he slammed the door in Goldflints face. After the Dwarf left Samuels went to work as any Necromancer did at night as he summoned spirits of Knowledge to aid in finding the truth of Dudrik Goldflint's question. Neither one saw the bum sitting next to the hut or the fact that his eye glowed red when he looked up.

Hollowed Tombs

House On'tel Estate

"He demanded what?" Anastasia demanded as Mikeal kneeled before the Lady of House On'tel.

"That the wedding will be at the Fortress of Midnight, Two that no other Vampires other than House Longstrider be present, Three that no one will insult his home or his people, and four more time with Lady Cathrine," Mikeal stated as he tried to make himself smaller.

Lord Ishmael On'tel chuckled at both the demands and his wife's reaction to them, "Well I will give the pup some respect for having the balls to make the demands. Love, you are missing the bigger picture. He has agreed to wed Cathrine, he just changed the venue and considering neither his Queen or you included him in the negotiations I think he is entitled to some wiggle room. Did you honestly think he would accept what you two did and not buck the collar a little? He would not be who he is if he did not fight it a little. Both of our people need this marriage to work, we can compromise on the location with him. As far as more time with Cathrine before the wedding ceremony...I will think about it. I will go with Mikael and meet this Jacob Longstrider and see the Fortress of Midnight and evaluate both myself."

"Don't kill him, please. He was not afraid of what I am or scared of my mind magic when I used Mind Speak on him. I would also like to spend more time with my betrothed so I can get to know him better as well." Catherine said from the doorway.

Both parents turned and smiled at their youngest daughter before Anastasia spoke, "It is good that he was not afraid of you, daughter, but it takes more than that to make even a political marriage work. Why don't you go with your father and Mikael to see Jacob and spend some time with him? It will do both of you good to get to know him better. I will stay this time. Remember my love you have a Council meeting in two days so does not stay too long. Mikael, please keep them both safe."