Friday, October 5, 2018

The Unrequited of the Tayrathian

Hey Everyone!  Today, as promised on my post from Wednesday today I will be sharing the lore behind my Aethermyst and the army I am taking to Realms at War.  The general lore of my Army, since its conception, has been focused around the idea of a cult that was very heavy int he Witch Aelf culture and I always tend to play with lots of Witch Aelves as the core of my force.  As a fun nod to some of my music preferences, I created a mythical founder for the cult in the form of Tayrathi Swiftheart.  After working with Morathi to found the Tayrathian Cult she disappeared in some unknown way and is believed to be dead by the cult she founded.  The tale of my Aethermyst is the possible rebirth of Tayrathi and her quest to now usurp Morathi and resurrect Khaine.


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Norhadra Bloodsilver that was the name she used to use, a former Slaughter Queen and now the self-proclaimed Aethermyst of the Tayrathian Cult.  She stood upon her Aetherlab, her two assistants kept a respectable distance following behind on foot in case of any Aethermy mishaps.  One of her assistants, now simply known as “Blades” knew first-hand of the danger, but it had worked out well enough for her.  She had to hand it to “Blades” who had adjusted well to the extra set of arms and the advantages it gave her in battle.  Aethermy could be a blessing as much as it could be a curse. 

The road they traveled on was rough causing the lab to bounce side to side sending the discarded equipment on the floor bouncing hazardously around the lab.  The motion was multiplied due to the fact that her lab was pulled by the clumsiest Hydra the mortal realms had ever seen so that even her unnatural Aelven grace wasn’t enough to keep her from swaying like a drunk to keep her balance.  She regretted not building the lab on something a bit more stable like the back of a Dragon or a Phoenix, but at least this beast was faithful as a newborn pup.

As they traveled she let her Aethermy swirl above the cauldron at the center of the lab mixing with a potent collection of blood contained within.  Despite the rough condition of the road, not a single drop of blood spilled from the cauldron due to the web of enchantments surrounding it.  The Cauldron, and indeed most of her Aetherlab, was built from the remnants of her old Cauldron of Blood she once used to ride gloriously into battle singing the name of Morathi, The High Oracle.  Now the name Morathi was a curse upon her lips and she would see her dead or she would die in the attempt. 

She thought back to the battle in which her Cauldron of Blood had been destroyed.  Most in the situation would have died, but whether it was fortune or fate she survived and held that day as the greatest moment of her life.  As her Cauldron of Blood disintegrated below due to the decaying magic of a Nurgle spell weaver the enchantments containing the blood in her cauldron failed.  Blood and Shadow magic enveloped her form and protecting her from the rot of Nurgle and while her army shriveled to husks she remained untouched.  Within the cloud of blood and shadow, Khaine came to her and revealed to her three truths.

Khaine had died long ago in the death throes of The World That Was, but a single part of him had endured and was currently in the hands of The High Oracle Morathi.  While this was well known the first truth she was given was that Morathi was using the prayers and offerings meant for Khaine to empower herself and in doing so prevented Khaine’s glorious return.  The second truth was that her kind was once known as the Brides of Khaine as opposed to the Daughters of Khaine.  The final truth was that through she was destined to usurp Morathi, resurrect Khaine, and take her rightful place as his Bride.

Norhadra Bloodsilver died the day she was shown these truths.  The next she knew she was miles away from the slaughter of the battlefield.  She emerged from the protective embrace of blood and shadow, but she was different.  Her hair was no longer jet black but was now blonde as the wheat fields of Ghyran.  Visions and memories she knew to not be hers filled her mind until her mind finally put all the pieces together. She was the reincarnation of the cult’s founder.  She was Tayrathi Swiftheart, and she had returned to her Coven.  

She would later learn about Aethermy from an Old Crone named Drusala who had found her wondering the field of battle she had been spirited away from hours prior.  The crone described how it was likely Aethermy had a part to play that day.  It had saved her, it had given her new life, and it had brought Khaines message to her.  Most importantly it would give her the power to slay Morathi and take Kahine’s Heart from herself.

As Tayrathi’s mind slipped back to the present she had the Hydra pulling her lab halt while simultaneously motioning for her assistants to approach.  Before she could usurp Morathi she first had to deal with the little issue of a war being fought amongst the Aetherguilds.  She had sided with the Aetherical Science Study Guild and while she intended to honor her oath to the guild she was going to use this little distraction to steal what secrets she could and fill her cauldron with as much blood as possible.

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I hope you enjoyed my little tale about my Aethermyst and her quest to truly bring Khaine to the Mortal Realms.  I am sure my story will continue to grow during and after the events of Realms at War and if I get a chance I plan to do a short post-event narrative piece to tell Tayrahti's story based on how my games play out.  Happy Hobbying!

Chuck Moore