Tale of Horron

Tale of Horron

I'm going to repeat a simple tale for you. A tale in which I have not conjured up the words from imagination but instead a tale which has the tell-tale ring of truth. I have added small bits to what I was told firsthand; but these small bits I believe to be accurate in their stance. I merely elaborate and draw logical lines between the pieces of fact I heard from one who had witnessed the events first hand.

The creature that many know as Horron was once a dreamer long, long ago. A dreamer like any other.. Having a simple sphere or five. Having Arts, experience, two legs and even a CloudsBreak shard much like any other dreamer. Perhaps the only thing that truly separated him from others was one thing: his ambition. His ambition undoubtedly rivaled a collective of a room full of the sphere-seekers of today. Many other teachers of his day saw this, some of them outright refused to teach him- Afraid of what he would do with the power he sought so earnestly. So Horron began to look elsewhere for the power that he must have. The greatest source of it all, in fact. The chaos that lurked outside the thick walls of UnderLight.

Find it, he did. The raw power of chaos makes everything else pale in comparison. He had found a way to draw off of, and focus this limitless power to his desire. News such as this did not stay behind a veil of shadow for long, and the Houses heard of how he was obtaining his power and were appalled. One of the Houses rulers spoke with it a bit idly when they had heard of it and decided to simply deal with him now. So they decided to collapse him and dreamstrike him, and be done with it once and for all. They sent out a hunting party comprised of three ninth sphered dreamers and a sixth sphered dreamer, who would be doing the actual dreamstriking. Their minds eased as they watched the party exit the facade... Though that party was never seen again. A short hour after they had left, they were relocatable. A few dreamers even lived within the same CloudsBreak shard, and they reported that their beds lie empty and un kept. They were never seen dreaming again.

Another, at times, violent house realized that the power of this solitary dreamer had been underestimated and began to formulate a plan to flush him out with larger numbers and finally strike him from the dream once and for all. In the end, they did not have to worry how to find the frequently-mind-blanked dreamer. For he walked right into their facade. The dream was much different then. At any given time there was at least fifty dreamers guarding the facade. These ranged from the low sphered dreamers of the fourth and fifth spheres to the higher-ups. On this day, there was seventy-eight waiting. Immediately the entire house readied their weapons and descended upon him. In the initial overwhelming onslaught, Horron was collapsed into a soulsphere. Several dreamers had begun the invoking of DreamStrike the moment they saw him enter, and cast it upon him while his soul was vulnerable. To their utter amazement, the art had no effect. "Even the mundane art of dreamstrike would not effect him". Mere seconds after his collapse, he regained his avatar and begun to fight again. It continued like this for not much over a minute, in the end all seventy-eight of the dreamers that stood upon that facade had either fled or had been struck from the dream forever by Horron. He used not blade or chakram, only the "Arts" he had learned from using the raw power of chaos-- if they could even be called Arts anymore. After this dreadful display, he left the house and went back into seclusion. During this time, an occasional dreamer was found missing from time to time. It was whispered that the dreamers that mysteriously vanished had been ones to deny Horron training in the past. Maybe his ambition was only exceeded by his taste for revenge? It had become even worse now. For not only had his avatar been twisted by his use of chaos, so had his mind. Many in the dream grew fearful; especially those that in the past had scorned Horron and his ways. The Elders of Keepers of Eternal Shadow thought of a plan, to be rid of him once and for all. - I also believe, that at this time Keepers of Eternal Shadow would have had no such desire of Chaos within the Dream as it's been proposed recently. -

They would lay a trap for Horron. They would wait for him to come to them as he had come to others at the furthest point in the dream from Threshold. There, They would be ready for him. They knew he could be collapsed, so their plan was to quickly collapse him... and in the moments before he regained his avatar, to will him out a tear they would create in the walls of the Dream-City to the torrent of raw chaos that awaited him on the other side. They were sure of the plans success, all they had to do was wait. Horron was a far stones throw from stupid. He knew it was a trap, but perhaps his amazing power blinded him to the fact of taking a more cautious approach then simply taking his mindblank down and walking into the room in which he knew the Elders of Keepers of Eternal Shadow were waiting. A battle immediately ensued. Chakram, Offensive Arts, Abjure and a veritable wealth of others Arts now unknown to the dream flew at the form of Horron. True enough that they had been ready for him, but his power had grown since he destroyed the dreamers in the facade as the elders fought with a desperation since unknown. Desperation for their lives, their house and quite possibly the rest of the dream. His power was near-staggering. Frequently he roared out, collapsing all that heard his voice- Causing them to quickly soul evoke restore - ten more of them stricken from the dream by Horron during this delay. He could even stop the chakram blasts speeding his way with a simple glance, only damaged from behind. When they thought all hope had fled and had lost as many as half their numbers, he finally collapsed into a soulsphere in a last-ditch effort. Quickly they did as they had planned and willed him out of a small tear in the wall of the dream-city. Lord Xenus plucked up his essence left behind and tossed it after him as they resealed the wall. They were sure that they would never see him again.

Well, Quite Simply, They were wrong. Horron perhaps grew more powerful when thrust out into the chaos. He now has many incarnations. That of the most powerful Nightmare. That of a Darkmare. And that of an incarnation to strengthen an avatar. This can be seen by trying to locate Horron. Then try locating Horron with a slight pause after his name. And lastly, Horron Darkmares are seen. Such as Foulmoth and numerous others. The Darkmare Horron has most of Horrons intelligence, the other incarnations being simply a reflection of his raw power. We know which one has his intelligence, which ones have his power. But which one has his ambition? Perhaps that stayed behind as his spirit and essence was thrust from the dream, in the minds of those that would descend upon the secrets of his dangerous power. Or maybe you're wondering about where exactly he was thrown from the dream? If you're curious, it now has the name of Horrons Lair.

What I say after this are matters of educated conjecture of things I have uncovered from a variety of differing sources, with a small bit of hinting and allusions to it by the ones who was there first hand and would witness the events after this.

Some of the elders that were present descended upon Horrons notes of what he had done, and how he did it. Perhaps they said it was to keep others from following in his footsteps, but might it have been for more selfish reasons? At any case, it is whispered that contained in these notes was one that others learned to master, one of Horrons minor "Arts" that he wrote off as not powerful enough, and it came be known as Finger of Death.

Undoubtedly the 'credit' for this Art falls to one who learned of the Art through Horrons notes first. What of Keepers of Eternal Shadow? Is this the pinpoint time in which their beliefs changed to what they've been hinted at today? A desire for chaos within the Dreamcity? Was it the knowledge in his notes that did this, or some sort of infection cast down upon them, much as had effected Horron, by a gone-awry ceremony? What is the book that Mi'raj was said to hold when performing ceremonies involving the summoning withdrawn from Horrons original notes? Does Horrons original notes still exist? Can others take his path?

In my overwhelming desire to answer questions, such as how this all began long, long ago with "Who was Horron?" I'm often met with more questions such as these. Perhaps they must remain unanswered for now. Maybe it's better off that they always remain that way.

Sincerely,

Solister

Reference

http://www.acheron.com/~marian/dreamhistory/solister.html