The Solarii

Part 1: Advent of Saevan

A hooded figure dressed in cloak and dark robes strode through cold tunnels under the earth. This place, he had been told, belonged to a powerful and evil man known well in the region. A man who dreamt of conquest and of total control of those with weaker wills, in short, supreme power. The hooded figure knew of such things, conquest and power. And although this man did not know it, the hooded figure had journeyed a great distance to offer his assistance to him.

But, before hand, the hooded figure had first to gain an audience with this man, and then impress upon him the nature of his offer and his genuine sincerity. He had also been told that this man disliked strangers in his lair, being a private individual and valuing his solitude. This man would send his minions made of cold metal, circuitry, and gears. To a lesser individual, these mechanical sentinels would be a force to fear. However, machine warriors were nothing new to the hooded figure, being from a place that understood and employed technology such as this but to a much higher, more powerful degree.

Besides, the hooded figure had came prepared. In his left hand, he held a long straight staff made of a midnight black metal, topped with a blood-red crystal that seemed to pulse with a rude parody of life. Runes of mystical origin and arcane power adorned its polished surface, and it's far end was sharpened into a point as well. In his right hand, the figure clasped a thick black book, bound in the same black metal that composed his staff. More runes of the same kind as the staff's shaft adorned the covers of this volume. Inside, there lay vast amounts of magical power contained in various incantations, rituals, and other chants.

This was the Onyx Grimoire, a rare and dread artifact from a equally dreadful place, and contained dark powers the likes of which could have only once been wielded by a great fire lord of the abyss or a mighty duke of the hells.

Secure in the knowledge that he came with both weapons and magic of great power, the hooded figure continued through the underground complex without hesitation. In time, he exited the tunnels into a vast cavernous area. The roof was alive with mechanical things, great gears and wheels, pistons and cogs. Ahead of him, he saw what might have passed as this evil man's headquarters on a raised platform, with a long causeway extending out from it to a smaller platform in the middle of a great chasm surrounded by sightless windows, or screens.

On this smaller platform there sat a dais of three raised steps, and on this highest step sat a great metal throne of orange and black. In this throne sat the evil man, who wore his orange and black armor of plates and chain, his face obscured by a mask. Only a single eye was visible, and this eye flared with a cold malevolence when it fell upon the hooded figure. In his surprise, he stood from his seat on his metal throne, and pointed an accusatory finger at the hooded figure, "How did you find this place! Tell me quickly, or else prepare for a truly unpleasant end!"

The hooded figure stopped in the middle of the cavern, half way to the causeway that led out to the man's throne. "Locations over, on, or under the earth are easy to find with the proper interrogation techniques. This you should well be aware of, Slade."

Slade, the man whom the hooded figure had come to speak with, felt his anger rise within him. Such an answer was, in it's nature, designed to both give an answer and not answer at the same time. The fact that this intruder knew his name and was not afraid troubled him. He sat back down, attempting to regain his composure. "Well, no matter how you found this place, it is of no consequence. You won't be leaving to tell anyone of your discovery, after all. Guards!"

Out of secreted doorways and up from hidden elevators swarmed an army of Slade's minions, and they charged right for the hooded figure, seeking to destroy him as soon as possible. The hooded figure stood perfectly still as the horde rapidly approached. He shook his hooded head and said, "Slade, how hasty of you! You do not even know what you are dealing with. That is well and good, for now I suppose I must educate you."

With that, he took his staff and stuck it in the floor, it's tapered spear-like end first piercing the hard rock easily. Then, he began to chant under his breathe, the Onyx Grimoire left his grasp and began to float before him within an eerie red and black aura. At his command, the Onyx Grimoire flipped open and rapidly leafed to a specific passage within its pages, a section of runic writing began to flash as the hooded figure read it aloud. Then, with a shout, he flung out his hands, causing a wall of flames to rise before him on all sides. The minions that entered or were caught within the flames were instantly destroyed, incinerated beyond recognition. The others, upon seeing this, raised their blaster weapons and opened up fire. Beams of coherent light energy threatened to ventilate the hooded figure, but the figure never wavered in his intense concentration. He began to chant again, his voice carrying a different pitch and timbre, giving his arcane words a different inflection. The firewall absorbed the energy blasts and surged outwards like a wave, reducing to ash the rest of the minions nearby.

Another wave of the android soldiers charged, but once again the hooded figure chanted and once again they were destroyed by another spell from the Onyx Grimoire. This time, a swirling vortex of energy opened above them and out leapt arcing bolts of chaotic energy that swept the androids from existence in a series of coruscating explosions. A third wave of androids converged on the hooded figure from all sides. Seeing how easily these automatons were destroyed, the hooded figure grabbed the Onyx Grimoire and his staff from where it was stuck into the ground and executed an impossible leap high into the air, back flipping out of the encircling ring of robots. He landed behind them without effort and leveled the staff at the entire lot of them. With a command thought, he ordered the staff to reveal its true power. The staff was the Rod of the Blighted Heart, another powerful dark artifact in his collection. With a horrible shriek and a terrible flash of black light, the fabric of reality warped and allowed a portion of the negative plane of existence, the Void, to enter the material plane for a very short while. From out of this primeval place in the center of the multiverse reached the tentacles of a horrible creature that resided there. The androids were clutched in the oily grip of these appendages and dragged flailing into the planar anomaly out from which the beast reached.

Slade, who had witnessed the utter destruction of his minions, was livid with rage. He shouted for yet more of his mechanical servants to beset this sorcerous intruder, but before he could even finish what he was saying, the intruder appeared next to him out of a passing shadow. Without thinking, he lashed out with one foot, directing all his expertise in the martial arts to break the intruder's neck. Faster than Slade could register, the intruder had his ankle in a vise-like grip.

"Now, Slade, enough of your foolishness! I've come not to do battle with you or your creations. Instead, I had come to offer you something of great power, but you attacked me. So, I leave the decision up to you. We can continue to fight, and you can lose and die a horrible death cast within the Void, or we may parley. What say you?"

Slade could only stare at this person. Whoever, or whatever, he was. He had never felt such strength! Or seen such a display of destruction... This intruder spoke of offering to Slade an object of great power. What could it be? And, more importantly, would it be enough to finally annihilate those troublesome Teen Titans? These missing answers and his own undying sense of curiosity finally sealed the deal. The hooded figure, sensing a release of anger and a relaxing of the muscles in Slade's leg, relinquished his hold on the villain's ankle. Slade once again stood on two feet. Hoping he hadn't lost much face in the eyes of this surprisingly potent individual, he replied, "You have convinced me of the worth of such an offer. I will hear what you have to say, but I would first know who you are."

The hooded figure nodded, seeming well pleased with Slade's response. "But, of course!" Reaching up with gloved hands, the figure removed it's hood and revealed to Slade the visage of the person underneath. The intruder was a young man, appearing no more than seventeen years of age on the surface with a elfin handsomeness to his face and long black dread locks falling from his head. His eyes, however were black with red irises, and shone within an intelligence and wisdom far older than his physical frame attested to. They were the darkest windows into a heart filled of the purest malice that Slade had ever seen. He bowed deeply, gracefully, "You may call me Saevan."

"Saevan, is it? Very well, then." Slade said, slowly growing more comfortable now that he sensed an opportunity that he could exploit, "Tell me of this object that you offer to me. The one of great power."

Saevan smiled as he straightened, and for all the world he looked like a content serpent who had just swallowed a plump rodent. "Tell me, Slade, have you ever heard of the Adamant King?"