Red Hand Pilgrimage: The Second Age of Darkness.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

((Purple are the words of N'Jal))
((Italics are Lorenor's thoughts))
((Bold Italics are the endless))

Listen to my word, for the word of N'Jal is the truth. The word of N'Jal is the way. Trust in the signs that N'Jal places before you. Blessed are you amongst my followers. Blessed are you amongst my disciples. You who are my son. The son of N'Jal. Tread upon the broken path and you shall know the way into my kingdom. Eternal is the kingdom of shadows. Eternal is the second darkness that awaits the forsaken land. Come to me ye warriors of purgatory.

Voices swirled within the troubled mind of the ghoul. Fragments came at first, but after a few moments, the voices started to resonate louder than ever. I'm close now. So very close to my truth. The very reason for my being here on this world called Althanas. I will discover the very meaning of my life.

The ghoul thought to himself as he saw the tendrils slither across the ground.

Muscles within the vegetation tugged, pulled, and stretched upon itself creating the dragging motion across the stone floor. Lorenor took a quick glance at the nearby skeletal buildings. Turning his attention back to the area he was looking at a few, Lorenor gasped as he saw the stalk of a plant standing upon its own gravity and staring the ghoul right in the eyes.

His hand immediately went to his weapon. But the stalk of the asteroid merely observed the ghoul for a long moment whilst other stalks slid across the ground, about seven or eight more, and began their assault. The ghoul was overwhelmed with a desire to escape the situation but was quickly swept up by the tendrils. Feeling the muscular vegetation wrapping itself around his wrists, ankles, and ultimately, his waist.

Lorenor felt a squeezing sensation as the tendrils grabbed the ghoul and lifted him firmly off the ground. Looking down, the ghoul saw that he was several feet off the ground. He'd been lifted by some sort of supernatural might.

Then, the small warrior was suddenly pulled forward with a shocking velocity as the world became a blur. His senses were momentarily thrown out of whack as he felt the wind blow past him. Lorenor screamed loudly. He wasn't sure if it was an act of fear or anger, or some combination of both.

Be not afraid little one. For I am your salvation.

Came the voice once more.

When Lorenor's senses realigned themselves, the ghoul coughed. Struggling for air, Lorenor instinctively tried to stand and feel his way through the chamber he felt himself him. MetalDrago was someplace nearby to his person, waiting for him. "MetalDrago!? Are you here!?" The ghoul called out to his friend. He heard his voice echo in the large chamber around him. Wind was blowing, but here, the wind had a different sort of taste to it. An intense feeling of swallowing rotten eggs filled the ghoul's mouth and he wanted to throw up. Resisting the urge, Lorenor found the strength to stand on his feet, all though he was bent low. The chamber all around them was a rocky outgrowth. Glowing crystals and other precious stones shined brilliantly along the walls of the asteroid. Lorenor suddenly knew himself to be within the prison of N'Jal. His senses finally came into full focus and the ghoul was better able to observe his surroundings. MetalDrago was a few paces away from him, to his left. Above were a series of stalactites made of raw steel ore and iron. The ore was in an unrefined state, but superheated.

Lorenor saw that the chamber had a high ceiling. All around them, the air glowed with a dark green hue. It was the same sort of air he'd seen flowing from the crash site a few moments earlier. Only this close to N'Jal, the ghoul could see that the air crackled with even greater energy.

Coughing a few more times, Lorenor righted himself. He took a glance towards MetalDrago and nodded. "Let's go." He said softly having nothing else to say to the apparent youth. Lorenor traversed his way across the uneven floor. Guided towards the center of the asteroid, the ghoul moved a few more feet and found himself staring at the source of the radiation. A brilliant glow of light lurked within an area of a natural fountain that spurted out a mysterious fluid. Lorenor walked over to the unnatural fountain, staring at it. Drawn by its power. The green light pulsated at this point like a heartbeat, thumping within the ghoul's head. Lorenor took the lead, standing in front of MetalDrago. With a sword drawn, the ghoul walked cautiously forward to his destiny.

I have to know.

You will know the truth. Come forward my son.

And Lorenor approached the blinding light. As he got closer, the light radiated brighter. Somehow, the ghoul was not burnt by that brilliant glow. Instead, he felt powerful energies pulsing through him. Powerful, living energies. He walked up to the fountain before him and what he saw...

"NO!"

You will know the truth. And a voice laughed in his head as he began to understand what he was seeing. Lorenor turned towards MetalDrago and began to laugh.

[MetalDrago]

The putrid smell of the dimension within the asteroid was of a kind that MetalDrago had never experienced before. Shortly before Lorenor arrived within the asteroid himself, MetalDrago had lost the stew he’d eaten just a few minutes before. He was wiping his mouth off as Lorenor began to speak to him. “Yeah… I’m here, Lorenor.” The dragonian said, trying his best to breathe through his mouth and not through his nose.

“What the hell is this…?” MetalDrago asked before he saw Lorenor struggling with some kind of internal monologue. It was then that he began to hear something for himself. His eyes beheld a great and terrible force from the past, borne within this asteroid. This being seemed as if it was made from living evil, but… There was something different about it. It didn’t seem like a true being.

It was now that MetalDrago began to see what Lorenor had. The energy dancing around in this dimension of negative energy was a sight to behold. The energy was more than palpable. It was alive. This was perhaps the greatest thing that the dragonian had seen in his entire life.

Come to me, brother of Seraius… Come to me, and I can grant you your wish… I can give you satisfaction… Power…

MetalDrago approached the fountain before him with a near-maniacal reverence. “N’Jal… So Terramat was right. This was your prison.” He dropped to his knees before the fountain and looked in. He looked to Lorenor, who had been laughing for the last few minutes. “So this is the secret of the Thayne… Imagine that.”

MetalDrago, despite his usually serious persona, began to laugh as well. The secret of the Thayne had seemed so mysterious, but the Great Evil: N’Jal, had lain it out clear as day. The clouds of mystery were dispersed by a hapless adventurer and a former mercenary, turned noble of Salvar.

“This… This is the greatest find in the history of Althanas. We’ve experienced something that no one should ever have known. And now… Now, I shall have my vengeance on the Triumvirate.” MetalDrago smiled evilly as he spoke. The living energy around him seemed to grow heavier with the weight of his resolve, almost solidifying around him. Something was going to happen to the dragonian and the ghoul… And it was going to happen soon.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

Laughing for what felt like an eternity, Lorenor finally realized once more where he was and what he was about to do. The ghoul listened carefully to the voices in his head. There was instruction that was being passed from N'Jal into the ghoul's thoughts. Despite the finding of the truth, Lorenor knew that he had a mission to fulfill.

Voices in his head flowed like a storm. It was all so overwhelming and yet familiar at the same time. The glow from the pool of water reflected upon his clothing, upon his very person lighting the way to his goddess. Investigating the pool, tendrils of movement slithered underneath the clear surface of the water. Clouds of vapor flowed from the pool of whatever liquid substance contained the mysteries of N'Jal. Vapor cleared from the surface of the pool, but Lorenor could feel the movement all around him. With his enhanced senses, he could perceive the movement of the creature within the pool of water.

Elevated rock composed of the stones within the asteroid created the walls of the prison. Lorenor felt a sheen layer of ice upon the surface of the pool. He reached back with a closed fist and suddenly slammed his hand down upon the layer of ice. With a thunderous sound that reverberated across the chamber they were in, Lorenor crushed the icey layer beneath his fist. The endless lent Lorenor their strength. Giving way to what basic might the ghoul had, Lorenor felt the ice cracking underneath his fist. His hand sunk into the water contained within the pool. Cracks created from the impact point spread out through the sheet of ice, effectively shattering the layer. Armed with his faith, Lorenor approached the watery prison.

His hand felt cool to the touch of the water flowing through his gloves. And that's when he felt it. A creature within the pool of the water stirred as a mass of living organisms. Functioning as one collective, N'Jal's true form was crystal clear. Feeling the movement all around him, as intensely as he felt the pulsing energy flowing about his person, Lorenor's eyes glowed a brighter shade of purple as he understood what was happening. He couldn't grasp the full severity of their find and MetalDrago's words. Right now, history was being made.

They were looking at N'Jal, proof that the Thaynehood was real. Somewhere within the secrets of N'Jal lurked the truth about the All-Thayne. Lorenor's hand came in contact with the swirling organism. Millions of tiny insect like creatures swirled about his hand with the promise of power. The promise of new secrets waiting for deliverance. Lorenor's hand opened wide, and suddenly, a rush of the organism called N'Jal began to flow rapidly and with full strength around Lorenor's hand and up his arm. Feeling the force and impact of the attack, Lorenor's body was tossed backwards as he saw the truth before him. A single large, amorphous entity burst out of the pool latching onto the ghoul.

Energy flowing within the room reacted harshly to the presence of N'Jal. Standing nearby to Lorenor, a second stream of N'Jal's physical body flowed out towards MetalDrago quickly. Lorenor stared up at the high ceiling within the chamber and felt the machinery, for lack of a better term, crawling across his epidermis. Staring up at the ceiling, Lorenor tried to gasp for air and voices yelled in his head. The black, coating of machinery completely surrounded the ghoul, and flowed with him, joining with the ghoul at the molecular level. Lorenor suddenly understood his place.

"We are the vessel for N'Jal. Her disciples." Lorenor said quietly to the room knowing that MetalDrago was by his side. N'Jal seeped itself underneath Lorenor's skin and joined with the endless in his body. The process was extremely painful, but Lorenor had faith.

Lorenor had faith in N'Jal.

For he was her Paladin.

[MetalDrago]

MetalDrago watched with more interest than at any other time in his life as Lorenor walked across the frozen fountain. He was not ready for what happened. Lorenor was attacked, and thrown backwards by the small beings that made up N’Jal. Soon, the mass was covering Lorenor, and MetalDrago cringed in fear. It seemed as if the things covering Lorenor were changing him.

The dragonian didn’t notice the creatures coming after him until it was too late. They knocked him to the ground before he even drew his sword. As the beings began to swarm over his body, he saw what they truly were: machines. As the black, beetle-like covering began to flow into his body, MetalDrago screamed in a mixture of pain and ecstasy. Now he understood. This was the power of evil. This was what his ideals had been fighting against for his entire life.

The machines began to melt into the Dragon‘s Honor, granting it an evil power similar to the power it had before. Only this time, the power was of N’Jal. It was opposite to that which existed before. It was opposite, yet equal to the Great Thayne. This was the power that MetalDrago needed… It was what he needed to take over the Triumvirate. The sword’s amber blade began to darken to a crimson hew, and it changed from a longsword into a katana, smooth as glass, though a thousand times more deadly. Affixed to the bottom of it was the sigil of the Red Hand, the place meant to be his home away from home.

MetalDrago laughed manically as he slowly stood, leaning on his sword for support. The world looked different than it did before. It was colored with a purple hew. “What… what’s happened to me?” he asked. He looked down at himself and was surprised at what he saw. “Damn…”

His body had changed. The silver and gold scales that had once covered his entire body had changed to a dark crimson. His eyes were glowing a deep violet, and his voice had changed as well, become deeper, almost echoing. The claws of his hands had become like retractable eagles’ talons, as had the ones on his feet. He smiled evilly, showing his new, multiple rows of teeth. “Yes… I feel it. N’Jal is within me. Now, my life is for her, but for me as well. To serve her purpose is to serve my own.” He fingered his sword lovingly and said, “I’ve betrayed everything I once loved. And now, I have you, my sword… my Dragon’s Betrayal.”

MetalDrago looked over to Lorenor, to see how he had transformed. He was shocked at what he saw. Lorenor had changed a lot, but now he was more familiar than he had been before. His energy had changed, but it was the same, in a way, only amplified.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

Trust in us. For we are the vessel of N'Jal. The endless spoke of the dark goddess. Lorenor could hear the voices with much more clarity than he ever thought was possible. With each passing moments, the voices were as a companion within him. A part of the small warrior bonding itself to the ghoul for all eternity. As Lorenor changed, so too, did the endless change with him. The endless was a parasitical organism that existed within Lorenor's body. It was a form of darkness embodied with a sentient shell of slick oil-like body. The endless had an amorphous form that was a few centimeters in height. But the one attached to Lorenor's body could seep across his whole person within a matter of microseconds.

That particular unit of endless served as a body armor. His secondary endless functioned as a familiar was like a devastating pet armed with natural agility and speed. Able to possess living hosts and enhance their native genetic characteristics, making the endless a basically limitlessly reproducing life form capable of creating massive levels of chaos. Currently named Figment, Lorenor's secondary endless watched the ghoul from the shadow communicating with a complex psychic link. It was a mutual shared connection that allowed the endless to read Lorenor's thoughts and thusly communicate by thought where the endless did not possess their own native language.

As an amorphous blob of an organism, the endless in their natural state were a race of deadly creatures. A head had a solidified slime-like liquid body that hugged tightly to the floor enabling supernatural agility. As a foe, the endless were fearsome indeed. Their head was filled with rows of sharp teeth that was as powerful as titanium in some cases with the most mature of endless. As a life cycle, Figment was still a young endless and Lorenor had not yet learned to completely control the creature as he had with his symbiotic armor.

Thoughts were passing between Lorenor's head and the dual minds of the two endless organisms Lorenor shared a bond with. N'Jal used the endless as a conducting rod in order to send massive energy within Lorenor's body.

Serving as a catalyst, the virus within Lorenor's body was freely roaming through the air as an airborn viral weapon. A cloud of darkness surrounded the ghoul making him a threat to all but his partner. As an unstable carrier of the virus, Lorenor's head was filled with the will of N'Jal. He screamed out loud as silver colored swarm of machines consumed him completely. They seeped into every pore of his body. Each crevice was explored painfully until all of the creature known as N'Jal combined with Lorenor. The process was less pleasant than it had been with MetalDrago.

In his ghoulish state, Lorenor was vastly more sensitive to pain. He felt the sensation and the emotion in a raw state. His dendrites flared up like christmass trees pushing the crippling sensation up and down his spinal column. Every inch of his physical being hurt. If Lorenor had eyes, he would be crying until his tear ducts could no longer produce salt water.

Glowing a brilliant amethyst color, the sockets shot out twin bursts of energy that hit the ceiling of the chamber they were within. Rocks and debris slid downward but were immediately irradicated by N'Jal's powerful will.

Memories slid across Lorenor's brain. From the void, images and pictures of a past life...of many past lives...flew across his face. The weight of the asteroid surrounded the ghoul like a momentary cage. For a moment, he felt everything that N'Jal had to endure for aeons as she'd been wrongfully imprisoned by the rest of the bastard Thaynehood. Your enemy is my enemy. Your war is my war. I can embue upon you the power necessary to become my herald, my paladin. Lorenor heard the voice of N'Jal singing alongside the dual-voices of the endless. It was like a choire within his head. A choire of devils. With each passing moment, more visions flew across his head. More memories. Memories of a past that wasn't his own yet everything seemed so familiar to him. He recalled that encounter with MetalDrago Scorpio. He recalled an encounter with philosopher warrior long ago. (Futsuriai) He recalled an encounter with a man from a town known as Dressed Fish Town. The town of the Golems of the ark.

Many more memories passed across his head. There was a war known as the second uprisiing that engulfed Corone. Many battles. Many accomplishments, many feats. Until finally, Lorenor saw something he thought he would never see...his origin. Long ago, a powerful elven paladin fought against hordes of Orcs outside of Radasanth. This man was a hero amongst heroes. Radasanth would have been named after him. But. Timet old a different story. A betrayal. A back stabbing. And the leaders of that age sent Lorenor's soul to The Great Nether. There, an deal with an ancient entity in the service of N'Jal brought Lorenor back to life ages later in the body of a demon. A derelict ghoul. Lorenor learned all of this and understood his place within the scheme of things.

He understood his mission for revenge. I must begin my war against the Thayne. I will make them pay. We will make them pay. And when it was all over, a legend was reborn. Lorenor stood up. Painfully at first, but soon he managed to stand. What stood before MetalDrago was a dark skinned warrior, with braided hair that reached his midsection. Wearing a symbiotic armor with the exact hardness as the metal known as Dehlar in nature. The armor was like a layer of an exoskeleton and no longer a second skin. It was more like a shell that surrounded the ghoul's body. Amethyst glowing vortexes were in place of the man's eyes. He looked at MetalDrago Scorpio and remembered him. His armor had many spikes jutting out of it.

Lorenor was now the carrier of N'Jal. "We are the vessel of N'Jal. For her will is absolute. She has decreed upon us our mission. A war against the Thaynehood. As the Inquisition wars against our kind, so too, must we now become the sword of N'Jal." Lorenor drew one of his damascus swords. "Kneel before the will of N'Jal. MetalDrago Scorpio. And accept thy destiny." Lorenor had a deadly serious expresion on his face the entire time. He no longer appeard sickly or ghoulish in nature, but appeared as an athletic warrior well in his prime. He waited for MetalDrago to kneel so that he could be knighted as an anti-paladin.

[MetalDrago]

The power of evil raged through MetalDrago’s veins, making him feel better than ever. “I give my life in your service, N’Jal. Forever, shall I be bound to your service…” MetalDrago said. He thought back to the days when he’d been a young hero, seemingly destined to destroy some great evil. His thoughts turned to where he had abandoned his ideals in exchange for something more real, more… tangible.

Terramat, his scarred eyes looking down gleefully into MetalDrago’s face, said, “What’s wrong, Lord MetalDrago? You were so confident that you would be able to defeat us!” He landed a kick hard into the stomach of the dragonian. “We’ve gotten stronger these last ten thousand years… You’re no match for us, you fool. Run away now, and we’ll let you live.”

At that moment, Sephiro jumped in. MetalDrago’s most gifted student faced Terramat unafraid. “Fight me, Terramat. I’ve been waiting for ten years to kill you!” The young warrior screeched a long battle cry before bringing the Dragon’s Fury above his head, preparing to jump at Terramat. The Dark Elven Lord made no attempt to dodge the attack, and it connected… or so Sephiro thought. Before he even saw it happen, Terramat was behind him, sheathing his sword. Sephiro managed a single unintelligible sound before his head rolled smoothly off his body, spattering the ground with dragonian blood.

As MetalDrago struggled to cry Sephiro’s name, Terramat landed a hard kick to his jaw. The world swam around MetalDrago, but still he heard Terramat’s parting words, “Come after us, and you will suffer the same fate as your student…” A flash of white hair blowing in the wind and a few droplets of water was all that MetalDrago noticed before he completely blacked out.

After a few hours, MetalDrago awoke to his worst nightmare. Terramat had escaped from an alternate dimension, more powerful than ever, and he had killed the only person MetalDrago had ever considered as a son. “Damn you, Terramat…” MetalDrago sobbed. The rain falling down upon the ancient limestone ritual area helped mask his tears. He grabbed Sephiro’s body and had it taken to the Concordia Forest, where he buried Sephiro with his sword, the blue-bladed Dragon’s Fury longsword. His tears fed his rage, and he buried it deep within his heart, where nothing short of divine intervention would be able to weed it out.

This is why he surrendered himself to N’Jal. His heart had been corrupted by hate, and he gave himself willingly as a disciple to N’Jal. Now, even revenge wouldn’t satisfy the evil prevalent in his heart. Hatred had kindled the spark, but his own heart fed his evil, and he began enjoying it. Now, he was irreversibly evil. He still had his honor, and his insufferable insistence on fighting fair, but that would never change.

MetalDrago knelt before Lorenor, his heart racing. His mind went back again to his past, when he and Lorenor fought. A smile found it’s way onto his face as looked up at Lorenor. “My life… for N’Jal… our Unholy Mother.” He awaited Lorenor’s sword to meet his shoulders, to make them kin beneath the Evil Goddess.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

Surrounding them at all angles, some quite unnatural, rock of all sorts formed pillars and columns of varying heights and widths. They were twisted in many different positions resembling crooked twigs and branches. The minerals present in the rock gave off energy that sparked in the air. Lights shone brightly in the breeze carrying with it an unnatural sparkle that made the rocks seem to glow with potent energy. Minerals of all sorts were present in the dark color of the rock. Lorenor had to guess that a lot of the rock was composed of raw iron and steel material of some sort, probably combinations of other metals and substances appearing naturally throughout the universe. The sedimentary composition of the asteroid was so vast, it was difficult for Lorenor's mind to comprehend it. He was certain that the prison of N'Jal would have other precious metals deeper within it's confines. They would have to seek these out at some point later in this venture...

Exposure to the harmful materials in the air did not bother the mutant one bit what so ever. He was enthralled with his recent fusion with N'Jal at the molecular level. With the endless beginning to reveal its true form, Lorenor knew that his time would was coming. His time when he would be powerful enough to deal with the Inquisition and gain vengeance for all thee Spider Magi slain by the Inquisition and those bastards, the Knights of Dawn. The mutant thought of this as he studied the differences in his companion. He was changing rapidly thanks to the blessing of N'Jal. Was Lorenor changing just as rapidly?

He wondered.

The time had come to knight MetalDrago Scorpio so they could be on their way. "Kneel MetalDrago Scorpio. And rise. Sir. MetalDrago Scorpio, Knight of N'Jal. Paladin of the Dark Goddess." And Lorenor tapped either shoulder of MetalDrago with one brief tap, and then rotated his weapon, sheathing it quickly. "We are bound now, by the will of N'Jal."

Feeling the raw power that the newly restructured endless gave off, Lorenor's presence was much more physically manifest. No longer was Lorenor a Derelict Ghoul, but now he was a Fledgeling Spider Magi. The exoskeleton armor that was wrapped around his body was proof of that. He looked at MetalDrago approvingly and looked back at the strange natural fountain for a moment. He half expected something else to happen. When nothing did, he thought that it was high time for them to go.

"There is lots of raw ore here. We should probably salvage what we can from the depths of this prison. What do you think?"

[MetalDrago]

MetalDrago felt himself swell with immense pride at being one of N’Jal’s chosen ones. He was now Sir MetalDrago Scorpio, Knight of N'Jal; Paladin of the Dark Goddess. He could feel the weight of his new responsibility. He stood after having himself knighted by his fellow Paladin, and said, “Our souls are bound by the Dark Goddess. There’s no escaping our new destinies.”

The ore around them was flowing through the entirety of the asteroid. It seemed to be that the organic components of the asteroids were only a small detail in the otherwise mineral structure. Could it be that the living parts of the asteroid thrive by feeding on the minerals of the asteroid itself? MetalDrago found himself musing. No… It’s not possible. If they did, it would be halfway degenerated by now. Perhaps even fully. If these plants, or whatever they are fed on minerals, then the asteroid couldn’t be as big as it still is. MetalDrago noticed a sharp increase in his intellect as a result of his fusion with N’Jal. It would seem that things had conspired themselves to improve not only his body, but his mind as well.

He noticed that Lorenor had mentioned the ore. “Yeah… I suppose we could… I don’t really use ore that much, but if you’re confident that you could get me some weaponry made from it, I wouldn’t mind collecting a bit of it. Very well. Let’s go.”

MetalDrago walked off alone, wandering deeper and deeper into the asteroid, knowing that with each step he took forward was another step towards pure, unadulterated evil. “As I descend into darkness, I am forced to wonder if I will ever see the light as anything but an enemy from now on…” MetalDrago said softly. He was thinking about things that had happened to him over the years to make him the evil creature that he had become. So many heartaches and heartbreaks.

You are my creature now… Why worry about what once was? came the voice of N’Jal from deep within MetalDrago’s own being.

I’m just wondering how I’ve come so far. I’m devoted to you, heart and soul. I love you more than my own mother… More than… even Sephiro. So many things have happened that have made me stronger… That have brought me to you at long last. Now I know why I was created. I am your servant, and I will never stray from your side. But first, to kill the one who broke his compact with you. MetalDrago replied to N’Jal with his thoughts.

Yes… The traitor, Seriaus… Your own brother, who broke the compact the Triumvirate made with me when I allowed them to escape from that dimension. He fooled Teramat and Reiana into breaking it, but they did so unwillingly, and fear my wrath. They can be brought back to my side… Seraius did it out of spite for my power, and refuses to acknowledge that he even made a compact with me. That traitorous scum may be the embodiment of everything I represent, but no one crosses N’Jal without retribution!

MetalDrago nodded his assent and continued to walk until he found a likely looking spot for ore. He called out to Lorenor to come and take a look for himself. He was sure that he had found something that would be of use to the both of them. All MetalDrago had to do was find Terramat and tell him the N’Jal only wanted Seraius’ head, and that he had no intention of killing them himself. He was N’Jal’s now, and if she could use them, then so could he...

[Mutant_Lorenor]

Lorenor followed MetalDrago probably a few paces behind his companion. With each passing step, he found himself moving with greater ease than ever before. His muscles were more responsive, his thoughts were more collected and organized and he found it easier to think and calculate. Was MetalDrago going through a similar thing? He wondered. His thoughts were no longer sporadic as they once had been. Fusing with N'Jal meant that his entire vessel had changed for the better and become more optimized. The spider magi slowed down several times to adjust his bearings. He was also adjusting his speed so that he could keep pace with MetalDrago. Had MetalDrago become faster?

Lorenor wasn't entirely certain if that's how N'Jal was affecting his fellow companion. The mutant moved quickly and soon found himself keeping up with MetalDrago as his body adjusted to the speed and capacity of his movements. They descended several yards into the depths of the asteroid, and MetalDrago finally stopped. Lorenor noticed that his senses were much sharper than ever before, and spread to approximately one yard. Lorenor was able to sense the various chemical makeup of the ores within the area and was not interested in things until MetalDrago pointed out a site that he hadn't noticed before.

Staring at the site, Lorenor observed something quite interesting. The ore in this particular area was more potent and glowed with tremendous natural energy. They gave off an incredible heat. Lorenor could see the particles in the air as they gave off raw radiation. The protection of N'Jal was absolute and the mutant did not feel any fear in this deeper part of the asteroid. The exoskeleton armor was wrapped firmly about the ghoul and offered its dark aura to protect him from the hazards of the asteroid.

As a cavern, it was huge and filled with raw mineral ore. Lorenor and MetalDrago had discovered a perpetual miner's prize of raw materials. Ore glowed in the humongous walls in its rawest, unrefined state. The ghoul saw the rarest of materials and identified them all. Prevaldia from his time as a warrior in the Dajas Pagoda, and his training with the Monks. Titanium from doing the same research. And he noticed something else. An ore and material that made the mutant's jaw literally drop to the ground. He salivated at the mouth when the endless told him what he was looking at.

N'Jal confirmed the fact.

He was staring at raw adamantime ore. At its refined state, adamantime became adamantium. The find was worth a fortune. Lorenor went to his knees as he discovered the rich vein that could secure his future forever.

The mutant removed one of his damascus swords and began to go to work at the site. One of the closest walls had the largest deposit of available ore and it was only a matter of working to get the precious substance within. The monster worked quickly to dig his fortune out of its cage. There was a series of loud clanging sounds as Lorenor dug into the wall with the tip of his weapons, and flashing bursts of light. The ghoul adjusted his strength and center of gravity, hitting the wall with his weapon. He was making a dent at the fused, sedimentary iron surface. As he crushed the wall with his masterwork damascus weaponry, he was able to tear out a few good chunks of the adamantime ore. He tore out enough for himself and enough for MetalDrago. He wanted as many ounces and pounds as he could carry upon his person. The ghoul quickly took the substance into his personal travel packs, and sealed his pack away. He looked over to MetalDrago.

"I took enough for the both of us and a bit more. We'd better get out of here before the walls become anymore unstable."

The process only took a couple of hours. "Thank you for waiting. This is for you." Taking a small piece of adamantime ore from his packs, the mutant handed it to MetalDrago and nodded. "It's adamantime. The stuff in these walls is priceless." Lorenor added. "Let's go." And he started the climb back to the surface of the asteroid, where they came from.

[MetalDrago]

MetalDrago was stuck in the mire of his own thoughts, and barely registered a word that Lorenor said as he began to dig. The two hours that passed did not seem so long as they could have been. The Dragonian Paladin of Evil was still lost in his thoughts while Lorenor handed him the nugget of Adamantime. He put it in his pocket, hardly listening to the words spoken by the former ghoul.

There were so many things in the world that made so little sense. Even with the new power and transformation allowed him by the great Evil Goddess, he was lost. Deep within his mind was locked a secret that he had never been able to know. He wanted that secret, and somewhere within his new, dark heart was the key.

When Lorenor signaled it was time to go, MetalDrago agreed, and they left the asteroid together, as brothers under N’Jal. But something wasn’t sitting right. MetalDrago was sure of it. It felt almost as if something had changed since they got their new power. It was then that he knew. The gate he’d opened to seal away Terramat ten years ago had been reopened. But this time, it wasn’t in the ritual area. It was right outside the asteroid. The energy of the gate was the only thing visible at the moment, but the second someone entered that field, the gate would reveal itself, and swallow anyone in the area.

It was among the most dangerous spells that MetalDrago had ever had to utilize in his entire history. By following an extremely intricate ritual, he’d been able to call upon the power of the gate to seal away the evil he’d been hoping to defeat. But it was said, in the scroll the ritual had been written in, only a shrine or other spiritually charged area would be strong enough to support the gate.

Of course! N’Jal’s asteroid still has remnants of the Holy Seal put on it by the other Thayne… With that power, the gate could be summoned by itself. But why? MetalDrago asked himself, or rather N’Jal.

You catch on quick. Yes, I summoned the Gate to the Abyss. And you two are going to enter. N’Jal said, her voice piercing MetalDrago’s soul like slivers of ice. He rather liked it.

He smirked slightly at Lorenor and strode into the energy of the Gate. “Seems that we’ve already got our first orders.” As the invisible energy swirled around MetalDrago, a light shot our from the ground and a giant pair of ornate double doors appeared from nowhere. They were quite nice-looking, for opening to a place called the Abyss: ornately carved ivory dragons made the ornamental handles for the grand mahogany doors. The hinges, which were apparently gilded into the very air, were of the purest silver. The only thing that marred the beauty of the doors was not even a part of them to begin with. Scars from a particularly nasty katana had been left on the door by Lord Terramat ten years earlier. Apparently, the doors, though magical, could not repair themselves.

As the doors opened, MetalDrago’s eyes enlarged a bit. This was not what he had been expecting to see in a place known as the Abyss. It was a bit... different than he'd thought it would be.