The Black Necklace III
From Atlantic Roleplay Wiki
Title: The Black Necklace III
Author: Trebr Drab
An insignia? Of rank, perhaps? There is no denying, after this revelation, and coupled with everything else, that a necklace with a black center means something. A symbol? Or were they producing lesser versions with the knowledge that the Liche Twins had unlocked?
It is a telling tale that I interject here, where Jasper McCarrin, reporter for the United Press, the earliest version of official reports, seeks answers to the Necklace that Juo'Nar had taken. Finth Desrin sends him on an interesting quest.
And what about that Amulet?
March 20th, 1998
"I asked Finth what he intended to do, and he said that he needed to know about the amulet before he made any other plans. I sensed a bit of fear in Finth when talking about Juo’nar, but perhaps it was only anger. Hmmm… I’m not sure. Regardless, Finth told me that considering the lengths to which Juo’nar went to obtain the amulet, it must hold significant power or be of great worth. This is what Finth hoped to ascertain."
"Upon Finth’s suggestion, I headed to Britain to speak with Sage Humbolt. Sage Humbolt is well known and has been instrumental in thwarting the schemes of the two liches, Lathiari and Kyrnia."
"I suppose that he was preoccupied with his research, because he seemed to ignore most of my questions. But I did find out that I should speak with Brother Olic of the Empath Abbey monks."
"Brother Olic sent me to Vesper to speak with a jeweler there, one Grunthal Durn."
And so, Finth Desrin, seeking answers to the Amulet, send him to Sage Humbolt of the Liche Twins accounts, who sends him to Brother Olic of the Relics of Mondain fame, who sends him to a Jeweler. And being sent to a gypsy cave, he was left with no answers on this quest.
After all this, we seemed to go into a lull in events, as the FOA leader was captured, his trial prepared, and then a complete lack of any news. Things seemed to just end. What ever happened to the FOA leader is still in doubt. Is he still being held, perhaps secretly, as the knowledge he would release to the public under a trial could be dangerous?
Did he escape? Was he killed or did he commit suicide like so many others? We just don't know.
Minax Arrives
In the past events, several letters from an FOA leader signed with "W" left many wondering if it was an upside down M, and if Minax was behind the FOA. Then she arrived, in heated search of something. One of her first moves was to attain some ancient tomes from the Lycaeum, dealing with arcane magics involving blood, death, and souls. This threw me off the trail for some time, as I wondered if the control over undead and the possible restoration of Mondain (or attempts at such) had more to do with these tomes than any necklace. But then I noted the dates of events. A look at the sequence here shows something interesting. Please note also, that the dates reported in two of these articles are a year off, yet they are reported correctly in the list of events.
A misprint? I doubt something more sinister is involved.
"And so it begins...."
March 18th, 1998
Where is what I seek? It could be anywhere, but I need a place to start, she thought to herself.
"Forbidden Knowledge" March 20th, 1998
“EXCELLENT! They ARE here!” she exclaimed breaking into excited laughter. She pulled the books from the shelf. Three in all. Book of the Dead. An Eater of Souls. Servants of Blood. She thought wildly, ecstatically, about the doors that this knowledge would unlock."
"Day of the Dead - October 30th, 1999"
"The Oracle is jarred from her meditative state and the horrific vision. "The brothers will attack Britannia again as they did in the past. I must warn the cities of my vision. I must warn them of the coming of the Day of the Dead."
"Return of her Brothers November 10th, 1999"
"At the small graveyard from whence the brothers had come, a gust of wind roared across the broken tombstones. If one did not know better, it might have sounded like a frustrated sigh..."
Minax had read the tomes, perhaps cast their magic, but she had no control. There was a small lapse in events, and then this....
"Still searching? - April 2nd 1999"
Sprawled buildings, massed together. Water surrounding. Soaring low. Eyes darting from place to place. Seeking… seeking…
Minax had not yet found the thing she searched for most, and I believe it was the necklace.
Soon after, we have new reports of undead attacks, controlled by someone ....or something.
"Strange Occurrences Across the Realm: Guards remain unresponsive - January 15th, 2000"
"A paladin from Trinsic – "Zombies, skeletons, ghouls... if I don't have to wipe their putrid ichor from my sword again in a long time, I will be a very happy lady. Seems hardly a month goes by without some sort of undead uprising around here."
The dark Mistress - January 27th, 2000
"Increase the raids on all fronts; I want the people of Britannia to suffer endlessly. Have Juo'nar and Malabelle combine their efforts to crush Trinsic. I want no humans left alive in that putrid city of honor. Juo'nar must call forth all who lie beneath the soil to fight for him against the living. Even if he has to call upon the creatures from the depths of abyss to aid him, he will take and hold that city."
Minax had found the necklace, or Juo'Nar in liche form with the necklace.
"Update From Trinsic! - January 27th, 2000"
Trinsic is suffering terribly from vicious and massive undead attacks. Reports continue to come in describing growing numbers of undead hordes, streaming into the streets bringing brutal carnage to the very doorsteps of the citizens themselves.
In those times I had often heard of the "Black Necklace" that Juo'Nar had, but I cannot find a single entry in any archives relating to this. I remember in the battle that defeated Juo'Nar, and finally put an end to him, I was driven away and out of sight of the Liche. After the battle, a guildmate came up to me and told me they had killed Juo'Nar. I asked about the neclace, and my friend said that "the authorities took it", with a crooked smile and a curse. Remember the intrigue within British's court.