Master Midnight
Overview
| Master Midnight | |
|---|---|
 Dark Lord of the Midnight Masters | |
| Zone | First Ward |
| Coordinates | (206, 943, -243) |
| Level Range | 20-29 |
| Introduced By | Cerulean |
| Introduces | Vanessa DeVore |
| Enemy Groups |
 Carnival of War Carnival of Vengeance Talons of Vengeance |
Master Midnight is a Praetorian contact in the Sunken City neighborhood of First Ward at coordinates (206, 943, -243). His level range is 20-29.
Background
(Copied from official background.)
The End
Montague Castanella was beaten.
As the last of his strength faded, he collapsed to his knees. Time seemed to crawl as Montague's eyes swept across the dead faces of the Midnighters who lay strewn about the hall. He knew each by name. These were men and women whom he considered family, and before him stood their murderer.
The figure was clad head to toe in garish armor, designed more for show than function, but it was the swirling cloud of eldritch wards surrounding him that had made him so formidable. Montague had never before seen such magic. As the murderer folded his arms in quiet victory, the last words out of Montague's mouth were, "No! Percy--what have you done?"
A Nobody
Percy Winkley never had respect until he took it for himself. Unappreciated and openly mocked by the members of the Midnight Squad, treated by the preening Montague Castanella like a dim-witted pet, Percy struggled for years to gain their acceptance. Time and again, he failed. All of that began to change, however, when he first laid eyes on Tammy Arcanus.
A Dream
She was the daughter of Tommy Arcanus, one of the Midnight Squad's most influential members, and the apprentice of the great wizard Cerulean. As far as young Percy could tell, Tammy Arcanus didn't know he existed. What chance did he have with a girl of that power and pedigree?
But as different as they were, Tammy had something in common with Percy Winkley: ambition. Despite Cerulean's warnings and her father's prohibitions, she delved into magic she was unprepared for. Percy mustered up the courage to warn her of the dangers of astral travel, but she dismissed him like a piece of pocket lint. The tragic loss of her material body and the murder of her father by her own hands sparked a crisis that echoed throughout the Midnight Squad. Tammy fled with her father's soul, a villain to be hunted down and destroyed. Percy was shaken to the core. The woman he loved was evil, and he found himself more attracted to her than ever.
A plan began to form in Percy's mind. He would follow in Tammy's footsteps, learn the same magic she had used to kill her father and enslave his soul, and then use it on the entire Midnight Squad. He would become someone that Tammy Arcanus would be incapable of resisting. She would have no choice but to acknowledge him, respect him, and ultimately love him. He would rule the Midnight Squad, with Tammy by his side.
An Opportunity
But one thing stood in Percy's way. He was not entrusted with the secrets of magic. As fate would have it, however, Emperor Cole began to neutralize the many schools of magical practitioners throughout Praetoria. The Midnight Squad was forced to hide inside the Midnight Mansion, a magically constructed fortress nestled neatly between realities and beyond Cole's reach. It was this period of isolation that gave Percy his opportunity. The Midnighters needed every wizard in their struggle against Cole, even one as unproven as Percy.
Although his magical study had been from observation of others, never from his own experience, Percy's hours of theory had given him a unique insight on magic. The realization struck him: Magic wasn't the enigma he had originally believed. It had a system and a set of rules. But most amazing of all, it also had a universal rule that made it possible for all the other rules to be broken. It was this rule that Percy intended to make full use of. To test his discovery, he scoured the Midnighter library for spells and rituals that were beyond either his comprehension or his ability to counter. He could find none.
Percy hid this discovery from everyone, using the disdain of those around him to his advantage. He found the spells that Tammy had used to bind her father's soul, and committed them to memory. He studied wizard dueling strategies and then set about inventing his own; mixing spells so dissimilar, breaking rules so traditional, that no magical defense could possibly withstand him.
A Master
Between his studies, Percy worked on assembling a suit of armor to strike fear into the hearts of his enemies. The amount of fear induced by its appearance was questionable, but the eldritch wards he laid upon it more than made up for that. He had even come up with a name for himself, one that would strike awe into those who witnessed his fearsome visage.
Then, one night, while the Midnighters slept in their beds, read in their studies, or enjoyed tea with their tightly knit little groups (into which he was never invited), Percy revealed his new persona. "I am Master Midnight, your new lord and master!" They laughed at first, but this gross underestimation of Percy would be their last.
Room by room he moved, effortlessly performing the sequence of carefully prepared spells designed to completely disable each of the Midnighters he had grown to hate over the years. The Midnighters responded exactly as Percy had expected, overly confident one moment only to have their spells dashed in the next. Each opponent had a different combination of arcane wards, offensive spells, and contingencies designed to defend against any adversary, but these spells were useless against him. Percy had studied them all. The Midnighters watched in terror as their magic was dismantled and their bodies slain and then reanimated to serve Percy's will. Only Cerulean regarded him as a true threat; their duel ended when Cerulean fled.
The Beginning
When he had finally defeated Montague, a duel that left Percy strangely unsatisfied, Montague had the gall to ask what Percy had done. Percy answered, his voice distorted by his helmet to carry a dreadful weight altogether unlike the voice of the young man he had been.
"Percy Winkley is dead, Montague. You killed him. I am Master Midnight now." He crouched down and gripped Montague by the throat with a gauntleted hand and looked him in the eye. "And what I've done is something even the Emperor could not do."
Montague could feel his soul being ripped from his body, and the last thing he heard was Master Midnight: "I destroyed the Midnight Squad."
Introductions
Contact Introduced By
Contact Introduces
- Vanessa DeVore has graced my presence with her mental caresses. She asked for you by name.
- This contact I've introduced you to can probably move you along down the path you've chosen.
Information
Dark Lord of the Midnight Masters
The Midnight Master himself, Master Midnight wrestled control over the Midnight Squad and their Midnight Mansion many moons ago. Those who he has defeated have become slaves to his power, serving him even beyond death as the undead Midnight Masters. Though despite all his power, Master Midnight lacks true knowledge of magic, a gap he is working feverishly to close in the hopes of obtaining the affections of Diabolique.
Prior to Introduction
- None
Initial Contact
Briefing
I'm here not to do battle, but to offer you a proposition. What say you?
- I'm listening
Sweeping cape motion, 'whoosh!' Cue lightning flash and a clap of thunder, 'Crash-boom!' Then the choir, 'Ah Ah Ah! Ah! Ah Ah Ah! Ah! Ahhhhhh! Ahhhhh! AAAAAAH!'
I am the Magnificent Master Midnight... ...and I am Master of the Midnight Mast... er... s...
Wow, that sounded way better in my head.
Irrelevent! I have come to save the world and the delicate wallflower of love that is my Diabolique. My beautiful, delightful, sensitive, caring Diabolique, who has been taken by, by... by that equally striking, seductive, cunning, and enchanting vixen, Sorceress Serene!
Greeting
- They tell me that's awe you are feeling in my presence. I've never felt it so I can't say with any authority, but you'll get used to it in time.
- All I want is to be both feared and loved. Is that so much to ask?
- I'm ready for adventurer, Character.
- I've been looking forward to unleashing my raw awesome power.
- Don't worry, you don't need to bow in my presence.
Too Busy
Missing Too Busy Dialogue
Too Low Level
- None
No More Missions
Alas! We must part ways here, Character. Our quest demands it of us. Though my immense intellect and vast resources would no doubt be of greater use in the battles that you must face, my talents are of even greater use in discovering the weaknesses of our foes. But fear not! When times are darkest and the final hour draws near, look for me and I will be there. My timely arrival at the pivotal moment of the final battle you will most certainly be imperilled in will grant me final victory!
But until that day, travel swiftly, be safe, and never, ever trust a sultry woman / handsome stranger you meet alone in a tavern. That bit of common sense has saved the lives of countless adventurers.
Store
- None
Story Arc
Revenge: Serve Chilled
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Merit Rewards: This activity awards 7 Reward Merits. |
Souvenir
Cerulean's Chilling Gaze
Whenever you think of Cerulean you can't help but remember his chilling blue eyes. They spoke volumes of the man and his sordid and tragic past reminding you of the old adage about a certain dish and how it is best served...
Revenge: Serve Chilled
In reality, this all began years ago, when Master Midnight betrayed the Midnighters and set Cerulean off on his quest for revenge. With the events unfolding as they were in First Ward, however, it seemed prudent to put aside differences and form an alliance against the Talons of Vengeance. But Cerulean would have none of that. He opted to show you just how powerful the Carnival of War really was, and that Midnight's offer for assistance was really a plea for help, but when you arrived the Talons of Vengeance had already struck and had the Carnival of War against the ropes. Though you managed to rescue some of the Carnival, casualties were high. Cerulean, however, remained adamant about refusing to work with Master Midnight and so you went to Vanessa DeVore to secure an alliance between her Carnival of Light and Master Midnight. She agreed, citing that Cerulean's thirst for revenge was dangerous, especially now with the Talons of Vengeance on the loose.
Master Midnight was pleased to find willing allies in Vanessa's Carnival, but that demeanor was soon shattered when, upon returning to his Midnight Mansion, you found Cerulean and his Carnival of War ransacking the place. Though the Carnival of War retreated in earnest, the damage was already done. Cerulean had stolen the Chronicles of Doom; the one source of information about the Talons of Vengeance and now the alliance was strained.
Midnight demanded that Cerulean be brought under control as his pettiness was risking everything and then resigned himself to trying to unlock the secrets of Cerulean's transportation spell. As a gesture of good faith, Midnight gifted you with an old witch's spell book that spoke of an ancient series of caves that the witches used in their rituals, in addition it contained a spell that might be the secret to restoring Blind Makwa's spirit sight. Visiting the old medicine man and informing him of Serene's return prompted him to have you warn Nadia of her old coven-sister's return and that she was likely in grave danger. As Blind Makwa predicted, the Talons attempted to kill Nadia, but your warning saved her life.
Returning to Midnight he informed you that he had succeeded in discovering how Cerulean's gateway worked. You went through to pursue Cerulean in the secret underground tunnels he and the Carnival of War were using as a base of operations, but when you arrived it was already too late. Cerulean and his followers had succumb to the siren song of the Talons of Vengeance and given in to their thirst for revenge. The Carnival of Vengeance, as they called themselves, had lost all sense of identity and fought to the bitter end. Ultimately you faced Cerulean, who had vowed to serve Sorceress Serene in exchange for vengeance being called down upon Master Midnight and had to defeat him. In his final moments, his eyes, burning red with hate had faded back to blue. But in them you no longer saw cold vengeance, but rather the still serenity that only death can bring. Template:Mission:Revenge: Serve Chilled - Part One: Burying Hatchets Template:Mission:Revenge: Serve Chilled - Part Two: Loose Ends Template:Mission:Revenge: Serve Chilled - Finale: My Enemy's Enemy
