(Bella Chose. StormWolf) Dreamers of the Day: Fortune's Calling [M]

[StormWolf]

Rated Mature for violence, blood/gore, sensual and sexually sensative material, and potentially offensive religious and social views and themes (there are nazis involved, after all).

”Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that all was vanity; but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dream with open eyes, and make it possible.”

T. E. Lawrence a.k.a. Lawrence of Arabia

What are the true wonders of the world? The Great Wall, the Pyramids, Stonehenge - these are all just places. People take their significance for granted, and they are too quick to dismiss the true wonders - the myths and legends surrounding these places and beyond. What would you say if I told you that the tall tales told by those tin-foil-hat-wearers were not so tall. Wrong as they may be about many things, at least they acknowledge the existence of things far greater than they are. Humanity is defined by its hubris, now more than ever in this modern age. Countless invisible strings connect events around the world, as they have for centuries. The strings are pulled by the hands of secret organizations and ancient cults, the masters of the puppets. When their agendas clash, borders can be redrawn or the balance of power in the world will shift. How would the will of a few effect the billions in the world? Simple - the true wonders of the world. The Deadly Wonders. Lost cities of myth, ancient and powerful artifacts forgotten by mortals that once split the world asunder, sculpting the cartography we know today. Shadow-haunted tombs from time immemorial lay lost beneath the sands, civilizations greater and older than Sumer lay hidden deep beneath the sea.

Some secrets were meant to remain buried forever, never to be glanced upon by human eyes because they were too great or terrible to be known. It is these secrets that put powerful forces on the move, dark conspiracies set in to motion to converge on the trails of these secrets. Powerful secret societies and cabals rule this world, and have since there was civilization. Now they are constantly on the move to keep that power and make it greater. They have kept the rest of the world in the dark, not wanting to pique that human curiosity so that they may keep the conflict for the terrible secrets and deadly wonders as minimal as possible. There is a whole other world out there, a secret world.

You are an extraordinary individual who has been chosen amongst all others in the world by a man as enigmatic as you are skilled. You have always been dissatisfied with what you had been told was true, insisting on finding the truth through benediction and hard work, not minding getting your hands dirty in the process. The man that has contacted you has promised you that not only will you find the answers you seek, but you will also be paid handsomely. In return, you will have to travel the world, many of the places you visit will be dangerous and in turmoil, and that is without the invisible hands of the Cabals getting involved. You will be racing against enemies with greater resources than yourselves and you will ultimately face things that other people would only dream about.

Your Employer is a man known only as Mr. Cunningham, and aged and sagely Scotsman who has taken up residence in Edinburgh. Though his estate in Edinburgh is only one of his many safe havens across the world, Dr. Cunningham has chosen to stay in this one location and make himself known to you, the players. His knowledge of these ancient and deadly wonders of a world forgotten is astounding. The good professor is an enigma surrounded by a shroud of mystery, only able to be found if he wants or needs to be found. The Doctor reveals the truth of the world and its history you, tearing off the veil of falsehood and lies that has been forged by the secret Organizations and Cabals to keep the world ignorant of their doings. As an exchange for giving you access to heaps of forbidden knowledge and to be able to tap Cunningham’s vast wells of resources, he requires service. While the Organizations and Cabals have their own personal armies, Cunningham has recruited you because you are the best and the brightest in your own personal ways. You will be forced to walk through war zones and wander through places long forgotten by the memories of modern man. Some places may have only existed in myth and legend, but you will blaze a trail that will never be seen by the eyes of others. The dangerous secrets you hunt and uncover are meant to be kept secrets. While the Organizations and Cabals of the world would aim to harness the terrible powers of these secrets long forgotten, you must keep them out of the hands of the wicked to save the world from your power-hungry antagonists or the ancient evils they threaten to release upon the world in their own lust for dominion over the earth.

Spoiler: The Opposition 

The Black Sun: Also known as the SS Occult Society. When Nazi German fell at the end of World War II, the Black Sun went underground, taking whatever important research they had with them, burning the rest. The Organization has become a generational birthright, entire families working under the Black Sun, as Knights of Himler’s legacy. They are actively searching for items of great occult power, their sole desire being to make the entire world subject to the dream of ‘Der Fuhrer’

The Illuminati: Masters of deception with a cruel business ethic, the Illumiati are more of a corporation than an organization. They use their seemingly endless pool of funds and contacts to crush, buy, or bribe the opposition. Their weakness is in their numbers. They are very selective, only sporting a host of a couple hundred worldwide. They are very single minded in their objectives and tend to outsource to mercenaries for hired muscle. They are by no means afraid to fight dirty in this war that has been waging for centuries.

The Templars: An organization driven to control the wills and minds of humanity to keep them from sinning. Templars view Free Will as a terrible burden on mankind, and that it is Free Will that has dragged humanity in to the depths of trepidation. Believing that their way is the righteous way, the Templars want humanity to be subject to Templar will in order to save their souls. It was such radical beliefs and use of Witchcraft that got the Templars excommunicated after the last crusade. They still lurk about today, pulling strings however they can, usually through subliminal messaging and brainwashing.

Hassansins: A society as old as the Templars, the Hassansins (Assassins) first became known to the the secret war during the 1100’s. They instigate chaos to return balance to the world. They kill one man to save a thousand and burn one city to save a nation. With dens all around the world, the Hassansins have been carrying out their chaotic method to order for over a thousand years. Their name, while originally a derogatory term used by the Templars during the Crusades, refers to the rare breed of hash the Assassins employ to enhance their sensory organs, granting them a great deal of focus and ‘oneness’ with their mind, body, and spirit.

Spoiler: Character Skeleton - Heroes 

Name: the name of your character. First and last name
Age: how old your character is
Gender: male or female?
Appearance: I would prefer solely descriptions for this one to have truly original characters. If you draw your own character or get someone else to draw your character for you, by all means share it with us! Posting reference images to clothing is acceptable. Keep in mind that we will be going to many different biomes, and changes of clothing will occur.
Skills and Talents: these are very important. These are the some reasons you are here, after all. No one is perfect. Keep in mind we are all ‘every-men’ - normal people thrown in extraordinary circumstances.
Weapons and Tools: Any weapons and tools they carry on their person. Keep in mind that some placed will require you to go in empty handed
Accessories and Personal Items: Sentimental attachment to objects is highly common. Does your character have any such things they carry with them at all times, like some kind of luck charm?
[b]Personality:[/i] what are they like deep inside?
Biography: Your character’s past - what forged them in to the person they are today. Be sure to mention when and how Cunningham reeled you in.

Spoiler: NPC list - more will be added as time goes on 

Spoiler: Mr. Cunningham 

Name: Mr. Robert Cunningham
Age: 76
Gender: male
Appearance: Mr. Cunningham is an average sized man of 5 feet 11 inches, standing with a straight back and square shoulders, even at his advanced age. Deep wrinkles crease Cunningham’s face like grooves carved by time in to immortal stone. His hair is snow white and his hairline is receding, a well trimmed beard gives his jaw, the last remaining hair color is the grey-black hair on his upper lip. His eyes are steely grey and his skin is spotted and leathery, evident that he has been all over the world and been exposed to a variety of elements.
Skills and Talents: Mr. Cunningham has traveled the globe at nearly every latitude and longitude, using his seemingly bottomless savings to fund convert expeditions. He also sports a great deal of ancient manuscripts, tomes, and artifacts from civilizations and locations from around the world. The greatest knowledge, however, is logged away in Cunningham’s various journals and the greatest of which have been committed completely to memory.
Weapons and Tools: Robert Cunningham sports a genius intellect, a master of psychology and history and deductive reasoning. By comparison, Cunningham can make minds like Sherlock Holmes seem like the uneducated mind of a drunken Welsh pauper. While he is too old to go out on his own adventures anymore, Cunningham puts his massed wealth to work with hired guns and legitimate historians and archaeologists to uncover the secrets of the hidden world.
Accessories and Personal Items: Cunningham wears a necklace, a wooden rosary cut from the wood of the cross Christ was crucified upon as well as a silver rings with a ruby cross inlaid on the broad face of the ring.
[b]Personality:[/i] Calm and calculating, Cunningham is never seen angry nor joyous. He is unflappable and immovable as stone, retaining a composure as still as the Loch Ness no matter the situation.
Biography: If there ever was a human being that was the embodiment of the word ‘enigma’, Robert Cunningham is it. There have been dozens of ‘Robert Cunningham’s throughout history, each one more mysterious than the last. Some speculate that it is a hereditary name, others that there is only one Robert Cunningham who has waded through the centuries and ages of history. Each claim is more far-fetched than the next, but the mystery remains around Cunningham. He will only be found by those he wished to find him, and his knowledge of the secrets lost to time are uncanny, some of his claims disproving the staples of accepted history.

Spoiler: StormWolf’s Character 

Name: Clayton Frost Jr.
Age: 28
Gender: male
Appearance: Clayton stands at six feet in height with broad shoulders and a narrow waist with an athletes build. Not a bodybuilder with a physique that is overly bulky, but a man with a sizable muscular frame. Clayton’s eyes are an ocean blue color and his skin is a Caucasian shade that speaks of Scandinavian descent. He has sandy blond hair cut close to his head, leaving just enough room to have his hair spiked at the front. With a jaw like an anvil, bristly golden stubble can usually be found on Clayton’s face, as his line of work keeps him from getting a clean shave. Clayton sports a minuscule scar on the bridge of his wolfish nose and a small cleft at the right corner of his lips from a scar caused by a split lip - most likely a brawl. Clayton’s right eyebrow is split near his temple by another brawl scar.

Clayton’s wardrobe normally consists of cargo pants of varying colors or sturdy jeans, though he favors gray and khaki cargo pants. Clay wears steel toed boots that bear the scuffs and scars of many adventures. He wears his father’s USMC belt buckle on a weather-beaten leather belt. For a top, Clayton commonly wears thermal henley longsleeve shirt that he keeps pushed up around his elbows. He wears a wide strap watch. In appropriate situations, Clayton wears a universal shoulder holster and a weather-worn leather hunting vest.

Spoiler: Clay as drawn by me 

Skills and Talents: Clayton is well versed in the use and maintenance of firearms and in hand-to-hand combat. Clayton has a great attention to detail, taking notice of details others may overlook. He speaks english, spanish, and basic arabic. Clayton is well learned in world history and western civilization, but unlike others in his field of work, Clayton is a crack-shot with pistols and rifles and is very adept in free-running, rock climbing, spelunking, and base jumping. He can think quickly on his feet, being one of those kinds of people who thrive under pressure. Certified master SCUBA diver with certification to use purified air.
Weapons and Tools: chrome colt 1911, swiss army knife, and a leather journal with a mechanical pen and ball-point pencil.
Accessories and Personal Items: his father’s dog tags from Vietnam with his mother’s rings hanging on the chain.
[b]Personality:[/i] Clayton sports a dry and quick-witted sense of humor and puts up a very cocky demeanor, usually able to find something clever or sarcastic to say in the most dangerous of situations, even when no one is around to listed. He can be quick to help others who cannot stand up for themselves, but will usually not do anything for free or without some sort of compensation. While he can be temperamental at times, he is greatly dedicated to his work and would to protect himself, his work, or his friends. He has killed people before, and he remains aloof to the whole thing and can occasionally take a sadistic sense of humor towards his opposition.
Biography: Clayton is the son of his father of the same name, a Vietnam veteran and a very rough man, even around his own family. His mother was a renowned history professor and was constantly travelling to different universities. Clayton received nearly all of his schooling from his mother on their little speck of land in Texas while his father taught Clayton the arts of self defense ranging from bare knuckles, to improvised weapons, knives, and guns. He was a ghost at his own school, dedicating himself to his studies rather than being social. He knew that his father would give him the belt if Clayton did anything less than the best. Abuse was not uncommon, but it was disciplinary, for the most part. Still, deserving of the beatings or no, Clayton Sr. and Clayton Jr. both got sick and tired of the entire shtick, and a great deal of animosity grew between the two. No matter how much his mother, Irene, tried to mend the rift between the Frost boys, Jr had taken a beating one too many times and no longer wanted to be a part of his father’s life.

Every Frost boy had served in the military since World War I, and Clayton Sr wanted to see that tradition continue, but Jr declined, going to a four year college - graduating in three. With his eye for detail and his affinity to dig to the bottom of the greatest mystery, Clayton Frost Jr became a freelance photo journalist. He served employers that ranged from a jealous husband wanting photo proof of his wife’s infidelity to National Geographic sending him to snap a few dozen photos for their next magazine. It was working for Nat-Geo that Clayton became so adept in the fields of rock climbing, base jumping, spelunking, SCUBA diving, and free-running. Being a photo-journalist, Clayton learned that to get the best shot, one just needs the right angle. The same rule could be applied to firearms as well, but Clayton usually leaves the incident in Mogadishu out of his job interviews.

The hate between Clayton and his father remained until both his parents passed away in a fatal car accident. It took losing his father to realize that without him, Clayton Jr wouldn’t be who he was. Clay’s parents left everything to him - the ranch, the house, the guns, and most importantly, his mother’s collection of ancient texts and historical records. Many of these records are rare - hard to come by or one of a kind. One night, Clayton was pouring over original copies of ancient scrolls from the Mediterranean when he felt a garrote tighten around his neck. He fought frantically, breaking free from his assailant before any permanent damage was done. Three men had entered Clayton’s home like ghosts, obviously intent on killing him and taking his mother’s collection. With the lifetime of training he received from his father, Clayton was able to kill two of the intruders before the third retreated. The fight left Clayton’s house in ruins - ancient Chinese vases shattered, his father’s urn smashed and his ashed scattered. It was going to take forever to clean the mess up but Clay knew that the things that were broken were one of a kind.

It was three days later, after Clay scooped up the last of the ashes that a man in a suit - looking like he belonged by the side of some important political figure, approached Clay’s ranch. With a shotgun in reach behind the door-frame, Clay interrogating the man on the porch. The suited man said that a certain “Mr. Cunningham”, a renown Scottish historian had caught wind of “The Frost Collection” and would like to meet Clay in person to validate the authenticity of his mother’s collection as well consider the possibility of employing Clay on a unique archaeological mission that could be one of the greatest finds of the modern era. While Clay was no archaeologist, he was a historian and a photo-journalist, and so he was bitten by the worm of Curiosity. There was also the case of Clay’s financial issue. Taking all the original documents he could find sealed containers for and packing whatever clothes he would need for a Scottish summer, Clayton boarded the first flight to Edinburgh and left his ranch in the care of his uncle’s family. There was always the lingering thought of the intruder’s returning, but they were after his mother’s collection. With all the original documents gone, the thieves would have no reason to return.

Clay was escorted to Cunningham’s manor, a large Victorian age house in the heart of Edinburgh, nestled in the shadow of Edinburgh Castle. Once inside, the historical collection that Clay’s mother spent her entire life obtaining was put to shame. Once through the iron banded double doors, it was made painfully clear that Cunningham was a man with great wealth and great resources and a passion for history that bordered on the fetishistic. Entering a grandose den with a fireplace that looked as if it was pulled straight from a castle hearth and more valuable objects, fossils, and texts throughout the ages lined the walls. Sitting in a tall-backed, throne-like chair, reading over one of the Dead Sea Scrolls with spectacles blanced on the tip of a hawk-like nose, was Robert Cunningham. From that point, Robert pulled the veil from Clayton’s eyes, telling him that what happened to his parents was not an accident, but an assassination - to have the Frost Collection passed on to their seemingly irresponsible son. Names were given to those who would kill for rolls of browning paper and fading ink - Templars, Illuminati, Order of the Black Sun, Hassansins - societies that Clay had only ever seen in some far fetched book or game. Cunningham offered to take care of the Frost Collection, to uncover the secrets hidden away in their texts so that Clayton’s family would forever be free of the attention of the Secret Soceities. In return, Mr. Cunningham required Clayton’s service, with pay, of course - to uncover secrets of history that has long been dismissed as myth. He would not be doing this alone - more were coming, and it would be up to them to keep the most powerful artifacts in history from falling in to the ruthless hands of those who would kill indiscriminately for an insignificant piece of the puzzle.

[Belle Chose]

Name: Devyn Kissane

Age: 26

Gender: Female

Appearance: Devyn is a woman of Irish decent with dark brown hair that tapers down to the middle of her back in thick waves, with deep-set, dollish eyes and sapphire blue irises set on a gentle, heart shaped face, along with a healthy set of rose-bud lips and pearly white teeth. She has the body of a woman who cares about her body - with supple hips and breasts and a narrow waist, Devyn possesses curves that accentuate a woman the way she was intended.

Spoiler: Devyn as drawn by StormWolf 

coming soon

Skills and Talents: An extensive knowledge of ancient languages and world history, plus various bits and pieces of trivia about... Well, everything, is at her disposal, plus she has a knack for puzzles and riddles. Because of her brother, she has some knowledge of fire arms, armed and unarmed combat, although she hardly practices.

Weapons and Tools: Often, Devyn doesn't leave home without a 4" pocket knife tucked into her purse, always kept sharp and ready to use, but in light of the "quest" she has tucked a Coonan .357 auto magnum into her suitcase, with high hopes that she won't have to use it. She also keeps a small 3x2" "Writer's Block" notebook on her person at all times - normally tucked into her back pocket along with a small pen along its spine.

Accessories and Personal Items: Devyn carries her grandfather's pocket watch around with her religiously.

Personality: Devyn is a clever, intelligent, but clumsy student, who is passionate about her subjects of study and interests. Slightly socially awkward, Devyn has been known to enjoy the company of a book more than actual people, but to her friends and family, the young woman is fiercely loyal. Around others, she can be a pretty hard nut to crack and believes firmly in first impressions, making her a bit thick-headed. Lately, Devyn has found herself restless, craving after an adventure - she doesn't want to be the person she is expected to be any more.

Biography: Devyn was born to Katherine and Arthur Kissane, a couple who married young but otherwise were normal people, no wealth, no special talents. Katherine is a home maker, although she studied literature and, before meeting her husband Arthur, had planned to be a school teacher; Arthur is an accountant for a large firm in Dublin, and is well educated but while he doesn't love is career, is satisfied enough with it that he won't consider doing anything else. They had a child three years before Devyn, Thomas, who was fiercely protective of his little sister, eager to be a good big brother, and still is to this day.
Devyn was a late bloomer, in many anyways - she didn't learn to read until she was seven, but once she discovered the joys of reading, she wouldn't be found without a book in her possession at any given time. Her grandfather owned his own book store after he retired from his profession as a college professor, which Devyn made a second home of every day after school, and even after high school.
Her love of the stories on the pages of novels blossomed into a passion for knowledge in general, and her college career at Trinity College of Dublin, Ireland, became dedicated to long-dead languages and the cultures from which they hailed, among other things.

[Belle Chose]

Babe, please post soon. ; ~ ;