Original was posted July of 07.
With respect to the Op....
My humble, stumbling, slightly sleep deprived homage to this quite wonderful thread by Jack Tamson
..
Jasmine was a weary daughter of Defender. In her youth she was a much sought out descendant of Empathy and glorious were the battles she partook in. Countless numbers of Statesmans children had rained praise on her after she had endlessly warmed them in the light of her powers. But she was weary now. She seldom answered any of the calls from this new generation of statesmans children or of the tribe of Pug. She occasionally wandered the deep Hollows or barren parks of Perez casting blessings upon the youngest of statesmans descendants but she simply lacked the energy to once again do battle against the mighty forces of evil. She had grown cynical and depressed in her retirement and felt that no one appreciated her unique powers. Perhaps she was even envious of the praise cast upon her defender cousins for their abilities to weaken the mightiest of foes or enhance the powers of the sons and daughters of Scrapper, Blaster, Controller and Tank. She simply knew that for her, the battle was over; she would no more be a guardian for the rest of Statesmans descendants.
Of course this was not her choice. As a daughter of Defender she had a solemn duty to perform. She was at once blessed and cursed. She who could bring any of Statesmans descendants back from the brink of death felt useless, for seldom was the call for her blessings needed. Statesmans children were strong and clever, and had grown adept in their ability to take care of themselves. But then the unthinkable occurred. Long had Statesmans children fought valiantly against the evil of the spawns of the Spider. The spawns of the Spider were clever and ruthless and without mercy and their jealously and hatred of the children of Statesman was boundless. But the only thing stronger than that hatred was their sense of self preservation. And when the forces of the Rikti Nation attacked they spared no one, and all who stood before them perished.
When the Rikti attacked Jasmine had been shocked by the tremendous outcry and activity from her cousins. They had all gathered together vowing to defeat the menace from the skies and once again bring peace to the cities. They had rushed off to engage in battle leaving her behind, perhaps forgetting her as she had long since stopped answering their calls to join them as they amused themselves in battle with there common enemies such as Dreck or the Spiders. But Jasmine had followed this time , and she watched as her cousins clashed in mighty battles against foes that showed no mercy, and her cousins were sore pressed to defeat these foes even with the startling help of the spawns of the Spider. The daughter of Defender felt her Mothers Spirit move within her. She once again remembered who she was meant to be. She reached deep within herself and felt the powers well up thru her soul and spread to encompass her cousins. When she did this she noticed that not only did she heal her cousins but the children of the Spider as well! What this meant she knew not, but she vowed to never again forsake her sacred duty. She would continue to help in the fight against one of the worst dangers to ever descend upon the cities. The battle in that place at that moment turned and the alien forces quickly retreated. Her cousins congratulated themselves and eyed the children of the Spider who stared at the heroes arrogantly before they left to return to report their own commanders. Her cousins had barely noticed Jasmine in the heat of battle and now they also went back to report on the alien activity to the Vanguard who were organizing the fight against the Rikti invasion. But Jasmine cared not. She remembered once again that being a child of Defender was not about the glory or the praise... and she remembered the tale of Statesman and the Book. She was content that as a daughter of Defender her name would be written in the Great Book.
Fini
I would love for it to have some traffic, its like having a 10 million dollar car you only use twice a week right now. No one is ever in it. Unless we are raiding of course.