The two moons of Eternia rise to their respective zeniths. Across the vast landscape of this often war torn planet, creatures of all shapes and intelligence inhabit the various environmental dwellings that Eternia offers. The planet itself is divided into two large landmasses, separated by a vast and rather treacherous ocean, with creatures every bit as lethal as ones who trod the land. The rulers of this planet reside in the Eternian Royal Palace within the city of Eternos; however, their rule is always subject to question, as has been the case recently.
~~~
In the throne room of the palace, King Randor paces uneasily, small divots beginning to form in the plush rug that rests underneath his feet. The still fairly young warrior has only recently been placed in the monarchy due to a move by the elders of Eternia. Surrounding him are some of his most trusted soldiers and warriors from around the land who have pledged their allegiance to his rule. Warriors such as the mighty RamMan, Mekaneck of the northern quadrant of the city of Eternos, as well as the tornadic avenger SyKlone. Standing impatiently halfway up the staircase to the throne was Keldor, Randor's brother and Duke of Eastern Territories. Below him stood Randor's most trusted servants, the inventor Duncan: Man at Arms of the castle, as well as Teela who was only recently promoted to captain of the guard for bravery in battle. All of them waited with baited breath to find out what the king would have to say on the resurgence of the Snake Men. King Randor though, never felt the need to offer a rushed thought in the midst of ever-recurring dire circumstances. It was simply best to think out the best course of action, to refrain from hasty...and oftentimes unwise judgements.
The Snake Men themselves had inhabited Eternia long before anything else ever did. It is a period of time referred to in Eternian history books as 'Preternia.' During that time, reptiles ruled the earth. Not simply the dragons and wyverns that still existed today, but the same sentient, calculating creatures who now resided in Snake Mountain. Led by their zealous king, Hiss, they would stop at nothing until it was once again their law that governed what was and was not done on Eternia. All of the people gathered in the Eternian throne room tonight were determined to see that that day would never come.
Keldor takes a few steps down, though still staying a couple of steps above the likes of Teela and Duncan. They were mere servants, and as such, should never be at eye level with one such as he. "Randor! The Eternian populace grows weary of waiting for a royal response. We should gather our forces and eradicate the Snakemen before they grow too numerous for our forces to handle. If we destroy them now, while still in their nest, we can assure the safety the people. Their children...your children." Randor turns to look at his brother. He fights to restrain tears. He had only a son now, Adam. His daughter was kidnapped before he ever really had a chance to know her.
"I only have but one child now Keldor. And I would do anything in the world to protect him! None here would question that. However, the threat of the Snakemen remains to be seen. They have not attacked our people. They have remained in the division of Eternia that has been allotted to them. We cannot allow ourselves to become any more of a dictatorship than those who we fight against. Until I see a real threat posed to our people by them, I will not act any further." Randor turned to garner the approving nods of Duncan and Teela. Keldor took a step back. Oh how he wanted to blast his brother for his foolish grip on a state of peace that was not there. They needed to act now! But Keldor was also quite perceptive, and knew that his viewpoint was not held by the majority in the room. Therefore, he allowed silence to reign once more. Realizing that his while his king he made a decision, he was still looking for answers, Duncan steps forward to offer some.
"Your highness, if I may." Duncan reaches into one of the many storage spaces on his custom-made armor. When his hand once again comes out, it is filled with tiny glowing orbs. "What I have in my hand are technobiological seeds. I've programmed them to recognize and respond to reptilian presences within the borders of our city. If we plant them carefully in numerous places, I wouldn't see why the Snakemen would pose any real threat to us...not without giving us plenty of advance warning."
Keldor's eyes widen at Duncan's invention. His meddling would only delay the inevitable. "Foolishness! These spyplants will only tell us of the Snakemens' arrival when they're right on top of us! And how long will it take before they mature!? Months? Weeks!!?"
"Days actually." Came the calm voice of the Man at Arms. To the side, Duncan could tell that his daughter Teela would like to offer the Duke some terse words of her own. Keldor was obviously not satisfied by this.
"You see? The Snakemen could be planning their move right now! By the time these plants tell us anything worthwhile, we'll be hauled away in chains, or decorating the castle after having been turned to stone!!!" Randor took several long strides and was immediately a step above his brother. Randor was constantly frustrated by his brother's inability to engage in intellectual debate without immediately resorting to ridicule of the opposing viewpoint. He had been that way since childhood. Duncan's idea made perfect sense to Randor.
"That is enough Keldor! Duncan, your plan will be made so...see to it. And as for you..."
"What is all the commotion for, Randor?" A soft voice interrupts.
The King turns to look upon the one voice in the kingdom who could calm him like no other, that of his wife Marlena. Beside her stood the castle security chief Tri-Klops as well as her Lady-in-Waiting, Evelyn. "Keep this up and you'll wake your son."
"My son should already be awake. You know how I want him to be apart of making the vital decisions of a kingdom that will one day be his." Keldor sighed. Marlena raised an eyebrow at him.
"Of that I am all too aware, love. However you hold these midnight meetings more often than we have dinner together as a family, and Adam needs his rest. He has plenty of time to learn the ways of the kingdom, he is but a boy yet." Randor frowned slightly. Would she never let go?
"No. He is a man. While everything else you say may be true, a boy he is not." Randor replied calmly. Marlena looked her husband in the eye. It was all too typical for the two of them to make points that were either correct or debatable during the course of their often mild arguments. It was why she cherished their relationship. As did he. They smiled at each other, indulging for a moment to give the other a peck on the lips. Triklops scanned the room with his intangible eye, which allowed him to see through solid objects. His eye settled on one corner of the room. On the other side of the wall, carefully hidden from view, a striped snake lay carefully on the floor. Shifting to his destructive eye, Triklops fires a blast at the wall. The members of the royal court gasp.
"Your highness, a spy has infiltrated our domain." Trikops says as the king looks to him for an explanation. Even now the snake was slithering down a side corridor. Seeing that there was no time to waste on plans, Randor moves.
"Retrieve the creature!" Randor shouts as his other warriors move ahead of him and out through the hole Triklops made. Keldor makes his way to the Queen and her handmaiden, not wasting an opportunity to make a case in point.
"You see!? And where there's a spy, there could well be an attack force! Come, your majesty, to the safety of your quarters." Queen Marlena takes the hand of her lady in waiting and proceeds to the door that leads to her chamber.
~~~
In one of the side hallways, gold and silver walls stand in strict geometrical patterns. Draped with rich tapestries and paintings of the royal family. The only thing out of place is the large viper that pokes its head around the corner before gliding down the hallway. A blast sizzles the air directly above it, causing a piece of the wall to crumble before it. This causes the snake to rise up for a moment, prepared to strike, before proceeding into and through the rubble. "It's this way, I saw it!" Comes the anxious voice of Duncan. He had never had a thing for snakes. But his duty to protect the kingdom took precedence over such silly fears. Dashing down the hallway, Duncan attempts to stop in time, but fails as he runs directly into his daughter Teela as well as Fisto, who had been running from either side of the T-shaped corridor. Duncan quickly rises to his feet, smoothing out the thick moustache before reactivating the energy clip on his blaster. "Didn't you see it? It just went the direction that you came from?" Man at Arms said, exasperated. Teela looked at her father quizzically.
"No, I didn't see it."
"Not at all?" Duncan said, clearly confused by the fact that his daughter could not see such a brightly colored creature.
"Let's keep moving then, that thing obviously wants out of the palace, now that we know its here." Teela said as she looked past her father back down her on hallway. Man at Arms motioned two fingers forward, signaling the trio to run down the corridor.
~~~
In his own private chamber, the young prince, Adam sits awake in his bed, listening to the pounding of footsteps as they grow steadily louder and softer in relation to their distance. Something interesting was going on. It wasn't a battle, or guards would have entered his room. No, this was something decidedly less risky. And because of that, he felt even more tempted to go exploring without the fear of any serious repercussions from his parents were he to be caught. Adam's pet since childhood, a forest colored, striped feline named Cringer, carefully hopped up onto Adam's bed, settling in beside his master. Adam stroked the chin hairs of his cat, which was easily as big as he was. "Whaddya think's goin' on out there Cringe? Huh? Something interesting?" Cringer looked up at him with eyes that seemed to say 'Nothing I want to be involved in, thank you.' Adam tussled Cringer's mane a little and then threw the sheets off his bed. " That's what I thought. Let's go check it out. Come on, move it ya big lug." Cringer reluctantly got up, stretching out his legs and giving his fur a couple of licks before hopping off the bed and following his young master, who had already made his way to the door. The kid always wants to go out and be in the action. 'Why can't he just sit back and watch?', the cat wondered to himself. Adam took a step outside, checking for the remote possibility of danger, and then took off in a small jog down the hallway, Cringer tagging along at an even pace.
~~~
In another part of the castle, Ram Man met up with another armored defender of Eternia by the name of Extendar. Together with SyKlone, the trio searches through every nook and cranny of the armory, remaining totally clueless of the fact that the quarry they are pursuing had no intention of remaining hidden in the palace for long. "Here little snakey, come out, come out wherever ya are...ol Rammy just wants ta squish ya!" Extendar turns away from the suit of armor he is scouring, appreciating more of the detail of the armor itself rather than looking for some silly snake.
"Ram Man, would you be a good lad and try not to be so vulgar. Hypothetically, if you were to stumble upon the reptilian in question it would be a disservice to our mission here to 'squish' it." Extendar states matter-of-factly. SyKlone grins and floats over to where the two armored warriors stand.
Hey now, if 'Rammy' stumbles onto anything, it's gonna be 'squished'!" SyKlone says with a grin.
"Is that a crack about my weight stickboy?" RamMan says with a grunt, as he looks behind a preternian Repton shield. The lower half of SyKlones torso begins to spin, lifting him into the air.
"Nah, cause if it was, the only crackin' you woulda heard would be the floor just before you went crashin' into the basement!" SyKlone flies over, giving Ram Man a small noogie on his armored head before flying off to another part of the corridor. Ram Man attempts to swat him away. Once SyKlone is gone, Ram Man's mouth curls into a slight grin.
~~~
Tri-Klops was the only one out of the lot who had been able to keep an eye on the reptilian intruder. However, there was no real motivation to keep up the pursuit. Not compared to the motivation he had to let the creature go. The sooner the spy returned to its master, the more likely a battle would soon come. A nothing felt quite as enjoyable as a good war. He watches as the snake slithers out through a small crevice where the designers left just enough of an angle that slender creatures like serpents could easily glide in and out. Just one of the many holes in the structure that symbolized Randor's rule. In an effort to keep up the image of pursuit, Tri-Klops walks steadily down the same pathway he was following.
~~~
Inside the Queen's Chamber Keldor looks about nervously. Partly to appear concerned about the safety of the Queen, but also about what steps to take next, now that there had been an actual snake in the palace. While the appearance of the snake had not been due to any planning on his behalf, it did serve his purposes for it to have appeared. Hopefully it would show Randor that the Snake Men could not be taken lightly and force his hand in regards to how they be handled. With them out of the way, it would be one less obstacle Keldor would have to face once he maneuvered himself onto the throne of Eternia. Seeing this as an opportunity not to be passed upon, Keldor approaches the Queen, who is now sitting on the corner of her bed. "Your highness, I would be remiss to not take this chance to speak with you about the current state of affairs in Eternia, our beloved city of Eternos in specific..."
"Spare me Keldor. I am all too aware of what your specific agenda is, and I can assure you that it is a viewpoint that I do not share." Marlena eyed the Duke suspiciously. Ever since her husband's father had chosen his youngest son, Randor, to be king, Keldor had been enraged. It was an ever-present state of family unrest that Marlena tried her best to keep out of the notice of the public eye. Keldor looks at Marlena, and then turns to Evelyn, before returning his gaze to the queen.
"I understand your highness. I fear you, like your husband, shall discover the true nature of a reptile far too late. I pray your son not suffer the same fate as your daughter." Keldor said quietly, attempting a mock show of concern. Marlena however, was not pleased with the sound of such a threat, veiled though it may have been.
"You will not speak to me of Adora, nor Adam! I know what is best for my children!" The queen states defiantly. Keldor is taken aback by Marlena's vociferousness over the issue. Turning to exit the room, he slips a few coins from the folds of his robes to the hand of the Lady-in-Waiting.
"Speak to her, Evelyn, she must see." Keldor was not sure what inclined him to expose part of his underbelly to the likes of the queens handmaiden with such a brazen bribery attempt, but he could not deny that oftentimes during one of the many midnight military meetings, that Evelyn had nodded her head repeatedly during his own speeches, while remaining still and austere during the peace-loving soliloquies of many of the other members. He had to get through to Randor though, and Marlena was now the best way to do that.
~~~
On one of the silver-angled walls of the castle, a rustling in the adjacent garden could be heard, ever so slightly. In the greenery, a long multicolored serpent climbs through one of the small crevices and out into the open. Surrounded by darkness, it knows exactly where it is going. Returning to its source just as naturally as a frost-mammoth makes its yearly journey to the Ice Mountains. In an out of the way area, the Snake Man warrior known as Snakeface sits anxiously awaiting the arrival of his serpentine spy.
In the distance he can see it crawling forth from the undergrowth, no other individuals chasing it as he had originally expected. Snakeface lies down on the ground, getting eye level with the terrain. The snake itself continues its path, making a beeline directly for Snakeface's...face. The gorgon warrior waited patiently. The snake, now only a few feet away, lifted its head off the ground. Picking up the pace, the snake pitched forward, directly into the man's eye. Snakeface stood up, his eye socket seemingly devouring the snake head first. Slowly the snake writhed its way entirely into the warrior's head. Snakeface instantly began to receive messages of everything the viper had seen and heard. "Exsssellent. Our highness will be pleased to learn of their plans. I must make haste back to the mountain."
~~~
Adam holds his torch, walking carefully through the fresh grass, his faithful feline using the same tender steps only a few feet behind him. He had crept past RamMan, SyKlone and another armored fellow earlier. They were easy enough to get past. Teela though was an entirely different story. She seemed to have a sixth sense for knowing wherever he was. She had looked directly at him as he peered through a pair of peepholes. Whether she had actually not seen him or had seen him and simply not said anything was a mystery to him. Whatever allowed him to continue his exploration though was fine with Adam; however, he was beginning to think that this particular night out was just a false alarm. Turning back and kneeling to stroke Cringer a couple of times, Adam speaks, "Well Cringe, I think we've done just about everything we can do out here. Wanna go back to bed?" The cat looks up at him, his eyes reflecting the light off the torch, and bobs his head up and down ever so slightly. Adam grins. "I thought you'd say that. Alright, let's go to bed."
Adam gets on his feet and turns to head back when suddenly his field of vision is filled with the face of an incredibly hideous man. As least he seemed like a man. His head bore an ornate black helmet, with a serpent rising to a crest. His face though, was a sea of serpentine scales, his eyes the same slit-like pupils of any other reptile. There is a reason the warrior he now stood nose to nose with was known as Snakeface. From every orifice in the creature's face, snakes began to pour out, writhing in a state of suspension from the man's face, much like the many that now rose from the top of his helmet like hair. Adam quickly turned away, remembering only vaguely the lore of the Snakemen's powers. Cringer, though, was not so fortunate as to have attended that lesson. Looking up and growling at the reptilian creature, it turns to face him, the eye sockets containing the snakes beginning to glow the instant the two make eye contact. Cringer's growl is silenced as his face turns to stone. Like a venom coursing through the cat, the rest of his body follows suit and slowly turns into a statuesque piece of granite. Adam turns to see his best friend, now frozen in front of him. Not caring now about the fact that the same fate could befall him, Adam turns to confront the Snakeman, only to be struck across the face with some sort of hard rod.
Snakeface looks down at the young man. Probably a squire of some sort. He was a bit large for a squire though. Whatever the case, it would be best not to kill him. King Hiss had specifically ordered this to be a surveillance mission only. Turning, the Snakeman disappears off into the village just outside of the castle. He would just need to make use of his limited magical abilities to produce a portal to the other side of the world, where Snake Mountain lie. It would only be a good run before he reached the Banshee Forest, and the comfort of Snake Mountain in the midst of it all. Hiss's disruptive spells prohibited him, and anyone else, from teleporting further into the snake border.
~~~
Randor quietly enters into his bedchamber. A good distance away, he can see his beautiful wife lying fast asleep. It had been a disappointing evening. He never enjoyed the squabbles he had with Keldor, as seemingly ritualistic as they were. If only he could see that going to war continuously would not establish them as anything other than tyrants. And the Zodakkian had warned them, during a visit that seemed like ages ago now, that no dictatorship would be tolerated on Eternia, no matter what the ideals were of those who held the power, be they good or evil.
Even the search for the spying serpent had been a failure, with all but one team reporting back that they had not even seen the reptile that Triklops fired at. One team had seen the serpent in question, but had failed to acquire it. It was surely going to report back to Hiss about their new defense system. What effect that would have on future events, Randor could only guess. As the king stands in front of the full-length mirror, changing into his sleeping attire, the silence is broken by the soft voice of his wife. "Randor, darling...would you please come to bed now. An entire day awaits for you to think about everything that has gone on tonight. But you will need your rest to be able to provide good judgement on such matters." Randor smiles lightly, turning and making his way to the bed.
"As is often the case, you're right." He kisses her lightly on the forehead and starts to climb into bed. Suddenly, a 'thwap' is heard on the chamber doors. The sound causes Marlena to jump slightly. Randor is instantly ready to protect his wife from whatever is on the other side of the door. Unsheathing a dagger from underneath his pillow, Randor walks towards the door. Whatever it was, it was not trying to break the door down. Randor presses his ear against the door, listening for any conspicuous noises.
Nothing.
Randor turns the heavy locks with a series of metal clanging noises. Slowly the door opens, with the weight of a person behind it. Prince Adam almost collapses into his father's arms. Partly in shock after seeing what was done to his friend, but mostly reeling from whatever that Snakeman had struck him with. Randor looks down at Adam with concern, his wife already at his side, kneeling, with an arm around her son. "Adam. What has happened?" Adam looks up at Randor, his eyes tearstained.
"A snake warrior, father. He...he froze Cringer. We need to do something...do something now..." Adam says, tinges of fear and authority fighting for control in his voice. Marlena lays a hand on the gash that covers a good amount of Adam's left cheek.
"Adam, honey, we need to take care of this wound...I'll call Evelyn, she'll..."
"No! This will heal. Cringer may not! We have to figure out how to turn him back." Adam states defiantly. Whatever had happened to him was trivial compared to what his feline friend now faced. Adam wondered if he had lost him forever. Randor places a hand on Adam's shoulder.
"Son. I will go and speak with Duncan now, and see if there is anything he can do. Until then, I want you to go with your mother and let her fix you up." Adam sits in silence for a moment. There was nothing more he could do, as much as he wanted to.
"...alright dad."Adam says, a hint of defest in his voice. Randor and Marlena hug their son. Adam gets up and walks off with his mother. Randor looks at them both for a moment before exiting his chamber to go wake up Duncan. He knew how important this was for his son. That alone outweighed any need for sleep.
~~~
The howls of the Banshee Forest are as unnatural as the name of the location implies. To one who has been trained in the ways of darkness though, they are no more unnatural than the cries of dragons during mating season. Snakeface steps through the portal and comes through a clearing, sitting in the sunlight, a large series of mountains sit, casting ghastly shadows on the surrounding meadows. One exceptionally large mountain marks the name of the location, as a large stone serpent sits coiled around its peak like a constrictor enveloping its next meal. King Hiss would be anxious to hear of what the gorgon had discovered.
~~~
Entering into Snake Mountain, one would be welcomed by an array of vile odors. The noxious smell of incredibly large storehouses of serpent venoms. The smell of decayed trespassers, unfortunate enough to have stumbled anywhere near this nest of vipers. As one progressed deeper into the castle, the smells would become decidedly more fresh, although distinctively serpentine in nature, if such a classification could be made. Snakes of all sorts, wander the corridors. Some very sentient, and bipedal. Others with no evolutionary developments since the days of preternia other than a connection with the lord of this house.
The throne room of this forbidden nest is filled with activity. To one side, a few dancers of both genders writhe in a rhythmic motion with each other, their appendages acting like extensions of their own snakelike bodies.
At a nearby wall, a lady cannot suppress her natural urges, as uncultured as it was to eat unprepared food. A rat crawls along the wall, apparently unaware of how unwise it was for any member of their species to find their way into this place. The woman looks at it curiously...hungrily. What a rarity for a creature like that to have made it this far into the bowels of their home. Her hand lashes out as quickly as one would expect of a serpent strike. The animal shrieks. The lady holds it in her scaly hand, rubbing an iridescent purple fingernail against its soft fur. The rodent struggles in vain to free itself from the predatory grip. In one motion, the lady extends her jaw slightly, allowing herself to swallow the rat whole. Just another snack.
For someone to actually get to the throne room, they would have to proceed deeper, past all of the entrapments of the serpent society, and descend into the royal pit. Only but a few had access to the lair of King Hiss. Inside the room, one man sits in a chair, draped in black and emerald green robes. Lining and markings of the purest gold mark the robe of serpentine royalty. Hiss himself is a dark sorceror, with a past as shrouded in darkness as his pit. His face is human by choice, its natural state as snakelike as his brethren. His eyes though, forever retain their slitted serpent's appearance. They are hidden though, as is most of his face, in the darkness provided by his hood. To one side, Lasher and Rattlor stand by the large double doors. Lasher has been his most trusted warrior ever since he ascended to the throne, and now served as his vizier. Rattlor was simply efficient, by far his most effective warrior. Only his refusal to speak kept him from rising to a more trusted position in Hiss's eyes.
The only light in the room is provided by the eerie glow of an unknown source that emanates from a pool in the center of the room. It spreads its greenish gold glow over everything in the room. Hiss sits in thought. To have creatures ruling over a land that was rightfully theirs was unnatural. It was an evolutionary oddity that Hiss planned to deal with. The Snake Men had existed for many millennia, but never before had they possessed the benefit of a leader such as he. With his ingenuity, the Snakemen could arise once again.
The door to the chamber opens slightly. A nondescript snake soldier takes precisely one step into the dim room. With confidence in his voice, he addresses his lord, "Your highness, the warrior Snakeface returns with news from Eternia." Hiss' slitted eyes dart up quickly. He was anxious to know of even the most minute detail of Randor's latest meeting.
"Show him in." Hiss replies coldly. The soldier bows and exits the chamber. After a few moments, the gorgon steps into the throneroom, walking directly before Hiss and then kneeling before him. "Rise, gorgon, what news have you from Eternia?"
"Much my lord. The disssention in their ranks grows ever more prevalent. 'Twill be a tool we can use to our advantage when it comes time to ssstrike. But more importantly, their inventor has created a new a new tool which will allow them to detect invaders before any direct harm can come to their palace." Snakeface fell silent, curious as to how his king would deal with this curious setback to any direct battle plans. Hiss on the other hand, knew all too well how to proceed. In an instant, Hiss had chosen the most logical course.
"I want a sample. Not until we study whatever it is they have invented, can we counteract its value." Hiss turns his attention to Lasher and Rattlor. "You will assist Snakeface by any means necessary. I care not how you come by these new detectors, but they halt our progress...and I grow increasingly impatient...find them." The warriors bow before their king and exit the throne room. A war is brewing.