THE FALL OF ZAROS
The followers of Zaros had some spies in their midst. Lenissa, in the employ of Saradomin, had been faithfully serving her lord for years leading up to Zamorak’s uprising. When Zamorak and his followers returned, she was serving them.
"A few sapphires will buy your silence, eh, wench?" asked Zamorak.
"Certainly, my lord," replied Lenissa, taking the proffered sapphires. She was then dismissed back to the kitchen, where she thought about what she heard.
Zamorak has a god-staff, and refuses to tell his master about it. He must be planning some kind of uprising. I must inform Dhalek of this theft, and he will see to it that neither Zamorak nor Zaros keeps that staff. Lenissa took a tray of food and brought it to the tent of her immediate superior, Dhalek, a mage also in the employ of Saradomin.
"Dhalek, I fear that things may get a little violent in the camp in a short while. I learned about five minutes ago that Zamorak is in possession of the God-Staff of Armadyl. He hasn't told Zaros of it, so I believe he plans to attack Zaros."
"This is troubling news indeed. If Zamorak should succeed, he will become a serious threat to our Lord, and if he fails, the staff will come into the possession of the Empty Lord, and I need not tell you that that would result in the rule of the rest of the gods by Zaros."
"So what do we do?"
"For now, pray that Zamorak will not use the staff for a while, and I will contact our Lord." In reality, Dhalek had no intentions of warning Saradomin. He knew, deep down, that Zamorak would not have gathered so many of his loyalist followers so close to him unless planning something soon. He began to formulate a plan in his mind about aiding Zamorak in his destruction of Zaros, as this would be the preferable result against Zaros taking the staff himself.
Calling upon deep magics, he started to weave a spell of hiding around the god-staff. A few minutes later, he was done. He was confident is the spell's ability to hide the staff's true nature from even Zaros until the very last minute.
Meanwhile, across the camp, in the tent of Zamorak, his followers could suddenly no longer feel the power of the staff. Was it a trick? Was it truly a test of loyalty by their lord?
"Calm yourselves!" yelled Zamorak. "It seems a foolish wizard has found out about the staff in the camp has cast a hiding spell around the staff. If you hold it, you still feel its power. However, this will prove beneficial in our venture. The Empty Lord will not sense it until it is too late. Swear your eternal loyalty to me, and you may have a piece of land to rule in my name."
One by one, the demons, humans, vampyre and Mahjarrat all came forward and swore an oath to never betray their new master. They then planned the attack on Zaros in his capital. They would enter the citadel under the premise of having new plans to attack Saradomin in Hallowvale, and during the meeting, as Zaros's guards slowly let their guard down, Zamorak would attack the Empty Lord. The rest of his followers would hold off the inevitable onslaught of Zaros's guards until Zamorak could be fully destroyed. Zamorak and his followers left camp that night, bound for the Zarosian Capital. They entered the city, with great fanfare and circumstance, and they soon arrived at the Citadel of Zaros.
"General Zamorak is here to discuss invasion plans with his Lordship," said Zamorak.
"What do they have to contribute to the meeting?" asked the Mahjarrat guard, indicating Zamorak's followers.
"They each have specific parts to play in the attack, and is crucial that they listen to the attack plans," answered Zamorak.
"Very well, his Lordship will be informed of your arrival."
A few minutes later, Zamorak's party was led into the citadel, into an antechamber of Zaros's throne-room. The god Zaros, conqueror of nearly half of Gielinor, was seated at the head of the table. The smell of incense hung heavy in the air, and refreshments were scattered about the table, flanking a large map of Hallowvale and the surrounding countryside. Zamorak and his followers bowed low, and Zaros indicated seats for them at the table.
"My lord, my lieutenants and I have struggled for many weeks to formulate a strategy to oust the forces of the foul Saradomin off your eastern flank and allow you to concentrate your forces against Armadyl and Saradomin in the West. The plan is a complicated one, for many parts of your army to attack different targets with guerilla tactics," Zamorak stated. "Each of the commanders before you will take a section of your army against targets in Hallowvale and the surrounding defenses. The forces of Hallowvale are not large, so while one attack is being fended off, another shall destroy a much more valuable target. Within a short while, they will have no choice but to abandon the city or surrender."
"This is all well and good, Zamorak, but in the end, I believe a decisive victory in open warfare will serve much better to defeat them." Zaros replied. "Open my eyes, as you have done so well in the past."
"The problem with seeking a decisive victory against the Hallowvale forces is not strength or numbers, as we have both, but nailing their army down long enough to destroy it. Dividing into many groups each capable of destroying a large portion of the enemy, while destroying infrastructure will be a better strategy overall because it provide more opportunities to destroy more of the enemy."
And so the debate went back and forth, Zaros providing an argument and Zamorak providing a rebuttal against it. Many of his followers were worried that he would slip, as there were truly no plans beforehand to be this specific in their discussions. Finally, after nearly an hour, Zamorak slid his hand across the table, a signal to prepare to attack. His followers, disciplined almost to the death, tensed up internally, while still remaining bored and tired on the outside. He slid his hand across the map, indicating the attack Lord Drakan would launch, and then scratched his head, the signal to attack.
Immediately, a flurry of action swept across the room, with Zamorak unsheathing the god-staff and plunging it into Zaros's back. His guards immediately attacked, but due to Zaros's paranoia, none were much of a match against the followers of Zamorak. A massive battle erupted in the chamber, spilling out into the throne-room. Zaros and Zamorak were involved in a one on one battle, ignoring everything around them, seeking only to kill the other. Viggora was dispatching guard after guard, but slowly, he and the rest of the Zamorakians fell back, forming a circle around Zamorak and Zaros. Drakan and the two Mahjarrat fought like hell beasts, slowly gaining ground against the onslaught of guards. Suddenly, Zaros fell forward, impaling Zamorak on the god-staff as well. They rose into the air, the air thick with the smell of burning flesh as Zaros's power flowed through the staff into Zamorak. The Mahjarrat General began to feel more and more power, turning him from mortal to immortal.
Finally, in what were thought to be his last moments, Zaros unleashed the last of his power, flowing backwards through time, cursing anyone who aided Zamorak in the rebellion. Miles away, Valdez felt his spirit rise from the grave, but he didn't have the worst of it. Rennard, Kharrim, Lenissa, and Dhalek had their spirits ripped out of their bodies. In the throne room, too, Viggora felt his body leave him. They shared a curse, a punishment, one last vengeful act by a petty being. Zamorak, the Mahjarrat, the demons and Drakan all shared in the curse, as well. Being beings of magic, they would not feel the effects of the curse until that magic left them.
Quickly searching through the surrounding alcoves, Zamorak found a powerful artifact known as the Stone of Jas. Jas was rumored to be an elder god of the world, having aided in creating the plane out of nothing. Little did he know that the stone was the specific reason Zaros had built his capital and empire around it. He knew what would happen if it was moved. He had gathered the evil races of the world around him in an attempt to scare them into submission, to not seek the stone's power. Nonetheless, Zamorak picked it up.
"With this, I can conquer the gods!" he thought as he held it. But it was not to be, as the gods of the realm would soon appear to decide on his punishment for daring to attack one of their own.
A crackling of air filled the throne room of the Empty Lord. One by one, the gods of the realm began to appear out of the air. Saradomin, Armadyl, Seren and many other lesser, desert gods, formed a council in the chamber to solve the problem of Zamorak and Zaros.
"Banish him!" shouted Saradomin.
"He dared to attack one of our own. He doesn't deserve to live. He could be a major threat to our power in the future. God or not, he has the power of one," said Armadyl.
"I vote with Saradomin. His deed cannot go unpunished, but he did rid us of a powerful enemy," voted one of the many desert gods.
"Zaros's empire will break without a head, he must go," replied Seren.
"I foresee a great threat in the future, but I cannot defeat him alone, so, I will vote with Saradomin as well," gave Armadyl.
"It is settled then. Begin the ritual!" shouted Saradomin.
The gods forced Zamorak, captured by the power of Armadyl, the God of Justice, into the circle and began chanting. Slowly, he began to fade. Soon, it was as if he were made of fog, then mist, then a mere discoloration. With him, went his servants. The Stone of Jas, which Zamorak had possessed for only a moment, was taken into the guardianship of Saradomin. However, the removal of the Stone from its resting place where it had been since the beginning of time had rent a temporal rift in the fabric of Gielinor. The World Gate, closed since Armadyl's arrival on the plane, reopened, and a horde of goblins, ogres and orcs, charged through, led by a god like none the world had seen before.
Far away, in a plane of evil, Zamorak planned his return to Gielinor... He would take back what was his, and the Stone of Jas would give him power equal to none...
