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Lisaera, because of Her bond with Fain, was chosen to infiltrate a meeting of the Coterie. Her sibling-mate, [[Elfenehoala]], would remain in the Continuum and, just as They had once done with Amberle and Meridian, They would watch the proceedings through a viewing crystal linked to the Sisters. It was also revealed that the Gods suspected Fain's Coterie of feeding upon some of Their siblings, driven by the same hunger for Divine essence that was a characteristic of the Soulless. | Lisaera, because of Her bond with Fain, was chosen to infiltrate a meeting of the Coterie. Her sibling-mate, [[Elfenehoala]], would remain in the Continuum and, just as They had once done with Amberle and Meridian, They would watch the proceedings through a viewing crystal linked to the Sisters. It was also revealed that the Gods suspected Fain's Coterie of feeding upon some of Their siblings, driven by the same hunger for Divine essence that was a characteristic of the Soulless. | ||
==The Twelve Traitors== | |||
The plan to spy on the Coterie hit an obstacle early on; to protect the identities of His allies, Fain enchanted masks that They each wore when meeting. Lisaera's mask was made of porcelain and was decorated with emeralds, while Fain's was blood red and embellished with gold. The masks also allowed Fain to transport Lisaera to the meeting place without revealing its location. | The plan to spy on the Coterie hit an obstacle early on; to protect the identities of His allies, Fain enchanted masks that They each wore when meeting. Lisaera's mask was made of porcelain and was decorated with emeralds, while Fain's was blood red and embellished with gold. The masks also allowed Fain to transport Lisaera to the meeting place without revealing its location. | ||
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The group then mixed a new batch of the elixir, presenting Lisaera with a drink to commemorate Her membership in the Coterie. Instead of drinking it, She crafted a careful illusion that made it only appear that She had drank some of the elixir. Back in the Continuum, the Gods, at the urging of Kalikai and Her Crimson Eyes, decided to track down the plane where Fain's Coterie was meeting. | The group then mixed a new batch of the elixir, presenting Lisaera with a drink to commemorate Her membership in the Coterie. Instead of drinking it, She crafted a careful illusion that made it only appear that She had drank some of the elixir. Back in the Continuum, the Gods, at the urging of Kalikai and Her Crimson Eyes, decided to track down the plane where Fain's Coterie was meeting. | ||
==The Twelve Traitors | With the help of the Fifth Circle, Kalikai's Crimson Eyes began searching all known unborn creches, spots on the Cosmic Plane where there were no half-formed beings and no Elder God had chosen to inhabit it. One of these unborn creches, [[the Vortex]], was where the team of [[Igaso]], [[Ologri]], [[Panamandius]], and [[Braun]] was sent. They walked right into a trap devised by [[Morgfyre]], and soon the entire Coterie was there. Driven wild with hunger, the Coterie approached the members of the Crimson Eyes with the intent to kill Them, but the Eyes had prepared an emergency plan and put it into action. Kalikai quickly appeared with an entire formation of Warriors behind Her, causing the Coterie to scatter. Their escape was halted by a dimensional scrambler created by Xyl and [[Roark]]. Roark even succeeded in trapping Nemach, the Soulless. The Twelve Traitors and Nemach were transported back to Mount Dynara to await trial. | ||
==The Triumvirate== | |||
Five times throughout history, a Triumvirate of the Gods was necessary. Fain's treachery was the sixth crime worthy of such an elaborate proceeding, and soon the Third Circle had decided on the Gods who would act as judges for His trial: [[Hoarcle]], the Forest Dreamer, [[Mysrai]] of the Mysterium (appearing in the form of a short, shapely female), and [[Jadice]], of the Ice Plains. The Triumvirate's investigation lasted several weeks, but eventually They were ready to pass sentence on the Twelve Traitors. | |||
The Triumvirate quickly declared that Fain was guilty of performing a Rite of Abomination: the use of a forbidden elixir capable of perverting One's very nature. He was also guilty of coercion, conspiracy, and treason, and it was even revealed that He had murdered several members of the Pantheon, whether because They would not support Him, or just to supply the Twelve with the Divine essence they needed to sate Their unnatural hunger. The Triumvirate sentenced him to a lifetime of exile in the Void. | |||
Raezon and Gheasia were also found guilty for conspiracy and partaking in the Rite of Abomination. In the course of the Triumvirate's investigation, it was discovered that the pair had created several artifacts of great power that were used at various times for treasonous purposes, including: the [[Hyringex Collar]], used to trap and restrain Elder Gods; the [[Morkeche Seat]], used to torture the Elders; and the [[Singoah Weaponry]], armaments fueled by the essence of the Soulless. For their crimes, They were sentenced to exile in the Void. | |||
Five Warriors of the Second Circle were members of the Twelve, and they were referred to in the judgment as the Dark Cadre: Morgfyre, Thax, [[Ivanko]], [[Slaay]], and [[Gruenella]]. Like the others, They were sentenced to exile in the Void. | |||
Malmydia, a Hamadhi of the Third Circle, was charged with having committed grotesque acts and experiments using the essence of the Soulless, and was viewed with great disdain by the Triumvirate when They revealed that she had mutilated and tortured many of the Elders, including [[Fininkora]] the Fair, and had even murdered at least three other Elders. Several diseases, designed specifically to harm the Gods, were discovered in Her laboratory. She was sentenced, as you might expect, to exile in the Void. | |||
Jadice recused Herself from judgment on the next member of the Twelve - Manteekan - because of Her close connection with the Awakener. He was accused of using the Rite of Abomination to create the dark and twisted beings like the grimalkin, bogies, spriggans, and slaugh. They also found Him guilty of corrupting the entire [[Icewynderkel Forest]] in His pursuits. His sentence was exile in the Void, with His fellow Traitors. | |||
Blooredi was next to be sentenced, now irrevocably transformed by the Elixir. The Triumvirate vowed to do all they could to reform and rehabilitate the creatures that Blooredi had created, such as the scorpion and many of the saurian beasts, and He was also revealed to have been working with Malmydia on concocting the poisons and diseases She planned on using on the other Gods. Into the Void this Traitor went. | |||
Finally, the last of the Twelve Traitors was brought before the Triumvirate - [[Drocilla]], an Artist from the Fourth Circle. In the course of Their investigation, the Triumvirate uncovered reports that Drocilla had helped Fain by luring many Elders away from Their homes, many of Them never having returned. Those that did return reported faulty memories and amnesia, and it was highly suspect that Drocilla was present for each of those encounters. She tried to use Her enchantments during the proceedings, but Jadice used the Hyringex Collar to stifle Her powers, and entrusted the key to Hoaracle to hide it deep within the Basin. | |||
The Twelve were then taken to a portal deep within Mount Dynara that led to the Void, and it was into the vast, harsh plane of darkness that They went. | |||
==Escaping to the Void== | ==Escaping to the Void== |
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