New Dream Adventures of Raven Knight

04/18/13

Ambush I
I am in a green field, I am completely surrounded by Templars. I don't really want to take a lot of time on these Templars. I tell the nearest Templar that I am about to drop an Immortal Fire in case they would prefer to leave before that happens. No one responds by leaving, instead it looks like they are about to attack me. A strange energy seems to be radiating off of them. I use the Immortal Fire spell and create an explosion of fire that expands out from me… Before the fire has even faded I open a portal to the moon, heading for the balancing pools. I go through the portal and into the pool. Nomad is already there with Winter, and he seems to be trying to heal her. I focus healing energy through Winter and also through Nomad, I figure to get rid of the remaining sores on his foot. I am still focused on the healing when a dark shadow passes over the healing springs. I look up and see there are huge winged creatures in the sky over us. They look like giant bats or wraith horses, and each one has a Templar riding it.

They are in the biodome? They dive down and are attacking everything in sight. They are dropping energy bombs. The bombs are exploding and spreading dark energy all over the place. I use another Immortal Fire that creates only light energy, I don't want to cause any more destruction than the Templars are already causing. A blast of light energy extends out from me and incinerates the Templars, along with the dark energy bombs they are dropping. I get on Stardust, a winged unicorn with flaming mane and tail.

I ride into the sky and survey the area around the biodome. There are Templars attacking everywhere. There are Templars attacking over a city down below. The city is around a large temple. Nomad has followed me into the air and immediately attacks the Templars. I use the song Battery and strike a number of Templars with lightning. I fly down over the city and see there are all different races living in the city, all of them being attacked by Templars. I wonder what it is the Templars are after… I activate another Immortal Fire, and create another explosion of light energy. The light energy is destroying all of the wraith Templars it hits. I land in the city down below, feeling a little drained now, maybe too many Immortal Fires at once? I see Nomad blowing on what looks like the Horn of Eld from the Dark Tower series. Shortly after that I notice there are many others in the fight now, many of whom I don't even recognize, but they seem to be fighting against the Templars. The fight is still going on when I am unable to avoid waking up.
 
Undercover
I am with some other people just outside a town. I see some people sneaking into the town. The people disappearing into the town are Templars. The Templars are disguised as civilians. I am there with Nomad and Altaïr, I notice they are disguised as the Templars are. I am in the same disguise. We enter into the town. Q appears and says the Templars are aiming to plant dark energy bombs in various parts of the city, he isn't sure if the goal is to gain control or just to destroy everything, but it has to be stopped. So we split up and head into the city, looking for the Templars or the bombs they have left. Nomad and I are near the castle in the center of the town when we spot a couple of Templars leaving a bomb. We each take out a Templar with our hidden blades. Another Templar says something about a traitor, but doesn't get a chance to sound the alarm before Altaïr silences him. I hear someone calling for help from inside the castle. We all go in and follow some stairways down into a dungeon where there are several Templar wraiths torturing an orc.

We still look like Templars, so they take no notice of us. We easily get close enough to covertly cut the bonds holding the orc back. The orc grabs an axe from a surprised Templar and cuts him down with it. I take out a Templar right beside me using my hidden blade. At first they seem to think there are traitors among them, but it doesn't take them long to realize they have been infiltrated by Assassins. Nomad is throwing Templars through portals, he says something about them respawning if they are killed. I use Through the Never to open a vortex portal to somewhere around Pluto, and it pulls a pair of Templars through it. It will take them a bit of time to get back from Pluto, I figure. I then wonder if they won't just open a portal and come right back… The orc we freed has no ideas of sending Templars anywhere except the grave. He is about to attack me when I transform back to my Assassin form and he stops quickly, realizing I am not an enemy. I return to the surface and scan the area using Eagle Vision to see if I can find the remaining Templar infiltrators. I see the trails they have left, though it is not that easy to follow. I am not sure which way they went in! I follow a path to a bomb, which I send through a portal to a void between worlds where it won't hurt anyone. I get attacked by what looks like a random civilian, but is actually a Templar. I see him coming since he is glowing red, I see him in time to dodge his attack and counter with one of my own, forming Witchblade into a sword which he practically impales himself on. I see other people who look like Assassins searching the area for any more bombs. I wonder how many Templars got into the town. I never have a chance to find out before I wake. 

Ambush II
I am in a hotel room, it looks weird there, sort of like a dream. Maybe it is a dream. I pinch my nose and find I can still breathe, so I know I am dreaming. I hear a lot of cursing from nowhere at all. I recognize the voice of the person cursing as Susanna Dean from the Dark Tower books. I am not sure how I recognize her voice, but there is no doubt in my mind that is who it is. She is getting angry at her alter, Mia, for setting Eddie and Roland up to be killed. I remember the scene in the book that this is referring to. I talk to Susanna telepathically. I tell her that no matter how many hired goons have been set on Eddie and Roland, it won't be enough. Mia asks who the fuck I am, she says she didn't know before and wants to know now. I tell her to be glad I don't want to alter the story enough to kick her sorry ass right out of there, and send her chap along with her. She says I couldn't do it, but she doesn't sound too certain of that. I have to get to Eddie and Roland. I focus on opening a portal to find them, and it opens, so I go through. I am near what looks like a truck stop called the Dixie Pig. As soon as I appear there someone starts shooting at me, so I hit the dirt. As I am there on the ground I see I am not alone. Eddie and Roland are both there, Roland is looking at me strangely and Eddie looks a bit disoriented.

We are being shot at. It is the small army sent by Enrico Balazar to intercept Roland and Eddie. Roland asks where my friend is. I focus on a portal to find MoSh. The portal opens and MoSh comes through, hitting the dirt as he is also being shot at. Eddie seems to be coming around, and we all start returning fire. I shoot a couple hired goons that are closing in on us from beyond several parked cars, behind which the remaining people take cover. Not all of them make it, however, Roland shoots three, Eddie shoots two, and MoSh shoots two. There are at least five more hidden behind the vehicles. I see someone else coming onto the scene. Nomad is riding what looks like a saber tooth tiger and shooting with a couple revolvers. He flushes the five goons behind the car into the open and shoots a couple of them, the others are left open to being shot by Roland, Eddie, MoSh. We make our way to the gas station area of the truck stop as more hired goons close in on us. An 18 wheeler comes barreling out of control and crashes between us and what looks like a couple dozen more hired goons. Roland wants to go out the back, there are three customers in the place that are staring wide eyed at us. Roland tells them all to get down, but only one of them does it. A couple older women get shot and collapse to the ground. Eddie recognizes one of the enemies and refers to him as old double ugly. Double ugly seems to recognize Eddie, and hesitates much long and gets blown away by Eddie. I notice for the first time Eddie has been shot in the leg. Some hired goons are coming around each side of the truck stop, and some are coming through as we get out the back. None of them get very far before we cut them down. John, the customer that is still alive, says he has a way to make an exit but we need a distraction. Roland shoots one of the fuel tanks and starts a leak. John throws a lighter to it and it bursts into flames. We all head down a path behind the truck stop as the gas pumps burst into flames. We haven't gotten far out of the way before there is a huge explosion behind us.

It looks like it must have taken out quite a few of the goons with it, I wonder if any of them managed to get away. We all pile on a boat and head out across a lake to put distance between us and any remaining goons. Roland, Eddie, and John talk a bit but I don't pay a lot of attention. We get to the other side of the lake and enter a boat house. I tell them I can do some healing. Eddie looks a bit confused, Roland looks at his right hand, flexing all five of the fingers there. He tells Eddie I can do it, but hurry. I find the bullet wound in Eddie's leg and focus healing energy through it. The wound begins healing and quickly closes up. I also heal a bullet wound in Eddie's arm and a bump on his head. I look over at Roland, but he says he is fine. I grab his arm anyway and focus healing energy through him, I remember he was having some trouble with arthritis… which I am sure I can't cure, but I think it should help some anyway. And I have even less time than they do, I feel I am about to wake up. As I focus healing energy through Roland everything around me fades and I wake up.