Fight or Flight

Two Days Previously

Kryos took a large drink from his water supply, preparing for the quick journey ahead. He wiped his mouth to clean up any stray droplets, and replaced his water back in his pack. He then grabbed his sword, and swung it over his shoulder. Looking around camp, he studied the rest of the group.

Anne was sitting by the elves, taking a silent vigil over Lexxum. Her dog, Alk, was curled up next to her, watching their wounded companion with sorrow-filled eyes. The elves themselves were kneeling next to Lexxum, carefully watching him and keeping his symptoms in check. Occasionally, they would lay their hands on him, and try to help the healing process. Then there was Lexxum himself, currently lying motionless on the ground. Often though, he would thrash about, threatening to injure anyone too close. Then, there were the two humans. Once they woke, they had just been relaxing. They had eaten a quick meal, then got to setting up the tents. Now, they were lying on their backs, watching the occasional cloud float by. Kryos wished he could have their carefree attitude once in a while.

He approached the elves slowly, not wanting to break their concentration. Yet somehow, when he stooped down next to them, studying the wounded lizard, Ellers looked up.

“How’s he fairing?” He asked.

“Not well. The fever has gone up slightly. The poison is a treacherous one, and seems to possess a mind of its own. But Sir Lexxum will make it though this. With your antidote, and our constant healing, he’ll recover. But what takes time is the actual destruction of the alien substance that flows in his veins.”

“I understand.” He said. He had hoped that Lexxum would have been recovered by now. But since when did things like this turn out the way you wanted them to? “Ellers, can you summon fire by any chance? I heard once that Blood Vines will flee from fire. I was too exhausted last night to remember.”

“Yes, but not for very long. I haven’t gotten very far in dealing with fire in my studies.”

“Great. Come with me for a moment.”

He and Ellers rose, and he led her near the northern edge of their clearing. The Blood Vines could sense their approach, and began moving slightly. “I need you to scare the vines away so I can get through. I’ve some business to see to, and I’ll be back around sunset.” He glanced at the sun. It was just approaching its zenith for the day. “Be alert for me shouting at you to reopen the vines at that time.”

She nodded, and walked forward, Kryos following right behind her. She held her hands in front of her, palms facing each other, about a foot apart. The blood vines were now moving this way and that, eager for an easy catch. But when Ellers started murmuring words of power under her breath, and an orb of fire appeared between her hands, the vines thrashed about, racing to get away from the small inferno. Still uttering words under her breath, the ball of fire enlarged, chasing the vines away. By now, a good opening had appeared in the way. Kryos rushed through it, and out into the rest of the Red Forest. Once he had cleared the danger area, he turned. Ellers was standing there, flames gone, watching him. The vines were hastily reclaiming their positions around the clearing, closing the gap with astonishing speed. Kryos nodded to Ellers, and waved a farewell for the time being.

~ / | \ ~

He had been walking northward at a good clip for about two hours. He had run into no signs of intelligence, living or dead. He had, however, passed by two corpses. One belonged to a deer, and the other to an elf. They looked to be dead for a while now, the decomposition process well under way. He held his breath and passed on though the forest. The trees were still evenly spread out through the surrounding area, masking the rest of the forest from his eyes. He must be getting close. If it was too much farther, he would need to turn around and set out earlier the next day. Still, distance was always hard to tell in the red gloom of the forest.

Suddenly, he stepped out of the forest. He hadn’t noticed the edge of trees because he was watching his footsteps, in between of watching the surroundings. And there before him, loomed the Obsidian Spire. Its black walls and towers could only be described as mountainous. The spire rose to an enormous height. Even from where Kryos was standing, a good two hundred yards from the base, Kryos felt like he was falling backwards when he gazed at the top. This ebony structure rose from the earth, a terrible monument to Xem’Zund's power. The dark windows that were embedded in its sides seemed to glare down at him, as if he were an intruder. He shuddered to think that later, he would have to enter those desolate halls.

Not wanting to waste time, he stuck to the perimeter that the forest made around the jet-black monument. His eyes scanned the surface of the tower, getting familiar with its structure and layout. Yet it was so big, that after a half an hour of walking around it, he had only gotten to the east side of the giant clearing which housed the Spire. The darkness of the eastern side, cast in shadow by the slowly setting sun, made it extremely difficult to make out any details. But there, in the middle of the eastern facing side, were two large, onyx doors. That would be how they would penetrate the structure. Still, they would have to be careful not to get lost once inside. The Spire must be a maze of corridors and rooms from its size.

The sun was getting dangerously close to the horizon by now. He needed to leave immediately to get back to the safety of their clearing before sunset. He jogged back around the perimeter to make sure not to get off course, and then started making his way due south, back to camp. On his journey back, he ran into no trouble. He did, however, run into something that worried him. When he passed by the place where the two corpses were, he found that there was nothing there. There wasn’t even a sign of the bodies being dragged away. It just seemed like they had vanished off the earth. He looked over his shoulder, and around the clearing, looking for anything unusual. There was nothing but endless trees. Cautiously, he continued on.

He reached the camp just as the sun began to disappear. Ellers was waiting near the vines, watching for his return. He called out to her, and like before, the vines raced away from the magical fire. Kryos walked through the portal, and immediately went to Lexxum’s side. The entire company was gathered about him. He was thrashing violently, as if engaged in a terrible battle. Lucas was whispering to James, wishing there was something he could do to help. Anne sat next to Allaria, tears leaking out of her eyes to see the saurian in such pain. Alk was worriedly looking up at her, whimpering now and again. Lexxum’s tail beat the ground in a loud thud. Something needs to be done. He thought.

Kryos let his eyes blossom with crimson color. In the twilight, they softly glowed, and Kryos dived into the Fluenta, the realm of souls. He was shocked to see what was happening with Lexxum’s soul. It was a soft red color. But an angry shade of purple was flowing through it, fighting to survive. Kryos had never seen anything like it in his years traveling the land. It was as if the poison in the saurian’s blood had a soul of its own, and it was acting as a plague would.

Kryos pulled back into the normal realm, and rushed around Lexxum’s body. He summoned the white flames that belonged to the Charity Spell to his hands, and increased its potency to maximum. Waiting for the right moment where he could get past his claws, he rushed forward when it was clear. He laid his flaming hands on Lexxum’s head and neck, sending soul power into him, aiding the battle. He was surprised by Lexxum’s strength, as he jerked on the ground. But after a moment, he slowly settled. When he was motionless, Kryos took his hands off him. Too much aid to the soul from an external source was sometimes a cause of more damage, and that was always a terrible thing.

Kryos took a deep breath and stood, watching the now calm rest of the lizard. He still had a fever, his red scales radiated the heat, but hopefully he would be on the rise. He turned away as his eyes started to change to silver, and went to grab some water and a quick rest.

Present Time

Kryos walked over to Lexxum as he awoke. It had taken him three days to regain consciousness, and he was a little irritated that they had been delayed that long. But nothing could be done about it. He was just glad that Lexxum was awake, and would soon be ready to head out. He grabbed his water skin on his way over.

“It’s good to have you back, friend.” He said, handing him the water. “Drink. Your battle with the poison has left you weakened.” A slight grin played about his lips as relief washed through him as he beheld his friend finally come back.

My whole body ached. I felt as if I were far away for a very long time. My eyes blinked several times as the harsh gaze of Lord Mitra greeted them with an almost warm smile. The sun seemed to glow particularly brighter and fill me with a certain warmth. Three days. Anne wrapped her arms tightly about my person and I felt the strength within the Elfling. I held her in my arms and nodded towards Kryos extending a shaky hand towards the water skin. I wouldn't admit that my throat felt extremely parched, as if I were traveling Suravani's bosom for many moons without the comfort of water. I unscrewed the cork gaining access to the contents within the water skin.

The texture of the hide felt rough against my hands. I could feel the various manufactured imperfections of the water skin as my fingers touched the surface of the object. Even through the epidermis of the object, I could feel the cool, fresh water awaiting my consumption. I took my parched lips to the opening in the water skin and let the refreshing substance flow down my throat like a river unbound. Cooling liquid substance touched the parched insides of my body and I swallowed a handsome share of the liquid in one gulp. I felt my tail itching as it moved about against the underbrush beneath me. Various flowers and plants jutted out from the ground struggling for some equal shares of sunlight. Lord Mitra's warmth filtering down to the planet below it and offering its energy to the natural process of photosynthesis. I could feel the warmth that flowed from the earth as Lord Mitra touched it with his natural glare. The whole natural cycle of life was poetic and seemed much more vivid to me after my near case of death. A part of me was well aware that I'd touched death for a moment there.

A mask of concern suddenly shadowed the visage of my facial features. I let the water skin touch the ground beneath me. My body felt heavy and still felt as if I was someplace very far away. I looked at the crimson stained bark surfaces of the sea of trees about me. By now, the red blur seemed so familiar to me but at the same time felt foreign. I knew I was a stranger to these lands. But for whatever reason, Raiaera herself welcomed me into its embrace. This was the right place for the strength of righteous might.

Lucas and James both walked up towards me and placed hands of comfort upon my shoulder. Allaria and Ellers nodded in my general direction as they kept looking upon me. I smiled back, weakly, knowing now that I needed to rest at least a full night more. This would slow our journey down considerably, but when all was said and done, I would be able to come back to the journey at full strength. And they needed my might, not me at a weakened state. I looked towards everyone and nodded.

"I'm sorry. I got careless back there. My size has its advantages in most things, but in some things, I'm actually rather clumsy."

"Don't worry about it mate, it's just good that you're back with us. You gave us quite a scare for a moment there. I doubt we'll be able to complete this quest without you." That was James talking. The man wore a lopsided grin and Lucas seemed to be nodding in agreement. I turned my attention back to Kryos.

"Thank you all for your kidness. But I need to rest now in order to recover my strength quicker. I'm sorry that the set back is my fault this time. Once I have regained my strength we can continue on our way again. Hopefully it shouldn't take more than extra night's rest and we can be off."

Allaria stood up and walked over to me.

"Take all the rest you need to, we are safe here. For the moment at least."

She placed a moistened bandage on my forehead to keep my head cool, apparently I was running fever not too long ago. This greatly concerned me but I allowed the healers to work their magics upon me. I looked down upon Anne and kissed the little girl on the forehead. Afterwards, I laid down upon the soft earth and let myself fall fast asleep. I managed to close the water skin before that...

He grabbed the waterskin from the forest floor, and uncapped it, taking a drink himself. He only took one swallow though. They were running a little low on supplies, and if they didn’t find a pure water source in the next three days, they would be in trouble.

He was still unnerved by Lexxum’s strange symptoms. He had not shared to the two elves what he had seen in Lexxum’s soul, and had no intention to. But he had never heard that blood vines were so poisonous. Suddenly, he had an idea. He approached Allaria to see what she thought.

Looking across the saurian’s body and into Allaria’s blue eyes. “What is the possibility that the blood vines around us could have become a hybrid with the Fealotë, the Soul Blossom? I’ve never known of a blood vine to be this poisonous, but if it were a cross, then we could be in trouble if any more of us get injured like Lexxum.”

Allaria’s reaction was one of surprise, then thoughtful meditation. At last, she broke out of her reverie. “Normally, that should be impossible. The genes of the plants are too aggressive to be paired. However, I suppose it could happen if something of dark magic were to force the two together when they are immature, or seeds. And I agree that these vines are more deadly than they normally should be.” She paused. “The forest holds many dark secrets, and this could be one. But right now, it is of little importance to others.” She said, returning to looking after Lexxum.

He nodded and stood. As he made his way across the clearing to put away his water, he noticed that Anne was still hugging Lexxum. He reached down and patted Anne on the head. She looked up at him with wide eyes.

“Come on, Anne. Let’s let him rest. He’ll be up and about tomorrow.”

“But, Kryos, he’ll get lonely in his sleep.”

He couldn’t help but smiling at that. Even after she had gone through all this, she was still just a child at heart. He gave her a quick nod and left to his pack. After replacing the water, he stretched, arms above his head, feeling his vertebrae cracking, then relaxed in an exhale of breath. Truth be told, he was restless. Hanging around in a clearing for three days wasn’t much fun. But now that they would be leaving tomorrow, he was energized. An idea came to him, and he grabbed his sword. He pulled the blade from the sheath, and walked over to where James and Lucas were. He grinned at them.

“Anyone up for a light workout while the sun’s still shining?”

His smile broadened as they went to fetch their weapons.

The time to move was upon us now. I recovered my strength and gathered my supplies. Anne followed me about the entire time watching and learning from everything I did. I made sure that I could provide an effective role model for her young eyes. My soldier's training assisted in that department. Gathering up what supplies remained and leaving behind what was no longer useful, I made sure we dusted our tracks. I doubted we were being followed but my soldier's training demanded a certain degree of caution with every move that I made.

I awoke to the sounds of Kryos', James, and Lucas sparring amongst themselves. This pleased me; Kryos was forcing everyone to spend their time constructively and not grow complacent. Even Anne was busy helping out with minor chores such as gathering wood for the fire and other supplies. I was grateful that we'd obtained enough foodstuffs for the long journey ahead. But I was concerned about our fresh water supply. There were many ponds in the Red Forest but we hadn't come across a fresh supply in a while it seemed. We would need to restock at least once more before we reached Anebrilith.

I could see the Obsidian Spire in the distance and knew that we were close now. No more than a day or two away from our destination. I walked over to Kryos when we were done packing and nodded to him.

"I apologize for that scene earlier. I got a bit careless and it cost us precious time. Also resources. We'll need to restock on our water supply as soon as our path takes us across the sit at Carnelost. We're very near to the Obsidian Spire right now aren't we? I can tell. There aren't many animals making their calls around these parts. We should be very cautious once we leave the clearing." I took a couple of sniffs at the air and the scent of death touched my nostrils. We were close now. Deep in the realm of the enemy. We weren't that far off from Anebrilith either. Another hard day's ride towards the East. But the path would lead us through Amon Lungan. The enemy would have the advantage of the higher grounds over us. I looked at Kryos for a long moment.

"This path will lead us across the Escaldor River where we can resupply our water. I think that if we travel hard we should make it to Anebrilith without incident. "

I said to Kryos. But I was worried. As we started off on our journey again, I took my position next to Kryos. Anne was mounted upon her great dog, Alk, Lucas and James took up the center of our party, and Allaria and Ellers took up the rear portion of the entourage. I carefully studied the road ahead thinking about my battle with the strange sand golem. I didn't remember much about it, but I had a feeling that it would become an issue later on. My ancestors often spoke of a place of our people called The Wild. They said that there it was possible to come across Gradins. Vengeful spirits that often had an affect on the natural world. It was also possible to obtain great power for a blood lizard that learned to unlock the great mystery. I started to march forward without saying another word and simply drawing my weapon so that the tip of the blade was pointed towards the ground. The glowing sword vibrated with the power of the Eternal Tap. I could feel the hunger within the weapon as it developed its own sentience with every kill I manged to obtain with it. It was a bloodied sword, but a beautiful weapon of destruction nonetheless.

We were half a day out...and everything seemed to be going well...but there was a strange feeling in my gut of imminent danger.

His breath came evenly and deeply, as he gazed at his two partners. They all had their swords out, waiting. Waiting for the first move of the morning’s sparring match while they waited for Lexxum to awake. Apparently, the two humans had learned much from the previous day’s workout. Today, they had suggested that they continue on. He had most willingly obliged. Now, as he faced his two opponents, his eyes watched their every move, saw every shift in balance. He saw Lucas plant his dominant foot, before lunging forward with his short sword.

He easily deflected the blow with a sidestep, and brought his muandrian up to ensure that the opposing blade missed its mark. A harsh scraping sound rent the air as the blades rubbed against each other. Then, the noise ceased, as he darted past Lucas and at James, who had waited to enter the battle until he could get a clear shot. Kryos’ blade came down toward James before clashing to a stop, blocked by James’ long sword. Turning with reflexes slightly faster than the two humans’, he blocked a strike from Lucas. Spinning his sword, his forced the short sword away from himself, leaving Lucas open. Rather than taking the opening, he raised his leg, and pushed Lucas back. He swung his attention back to James, who had just drawn a dagger. Faced with two blades, Kryos readied himself. He needed to get out of the middle. He brought his blade down again at James, to be blocked just as before. Only this time, James sung the dagger at Kryos’ nearest side. In response, the Dwiilar shifted his sword to block the dagger as well, then grabbed the hilt of James’ sword with his free left hand. Taking control of that sword, he pulled it toward him a little, causing James to stumble forward, off balance. Keeping the dagger caught in between his blade and hilt, Kryos readjusted the angle of his sword, and brought the end up to James’ throat. He paused for just a second, letting James know that he was eliminated from the round. Then he turned, to face the oncoming Lucas. Ten seconds later, Kryos found himself frozen in submission to Lucas’ sword. A smile flashed across his face. They had improved.

“Excellent work, both of you.” He said, grinning and lowing his sword. “You’ve both improved, as well as gotten better at working together. And you’ve shown me some things as well. Thank you.”

“No problem, Kryos. Man, I don’t know how you can switch opponents so fast. It’s like you aren’t human.” James replied, breathing heavily.

Kryos grinned at that. He stepped back, and took up his ready position once more. The morning sun cast a long shadow in front of him. Just as he prepared to attack, another shadow approached. This one was tall and powerful. It belonged to Lexxum. He turned then, and nodded greeting to him.

After hearing his comments about the past few days, as well as the plans to finish their trek, he shook his head. “No apology is necessary, Lexxum. Ill things can happen to the best of us. However, I wasn’t planning on going to Carnelost. From our current position, that would take us directly past the Obsidian Spire. Also, I had heard before I left the capital, that a host of enemies was approaching Carnelost. In our current situation, venturing there wouldn’t be the best course of action.” He paused to gather his thoughts. Then he remembered. “Oh, I did visit the Spire while you were under, just to get a feel for it. I’ll tell you about it when we are on the move though. For now, we need to get going. I was planning on just heading slightly northeast from here on out. That will be the quickest way to get to Anebrilith. We’ll cross the Escaldor River, as well as the Elleduin River, so we should have plenty of water once we reach them. If we keep a good pace, then hopefully we can see the port city tomorrow at dusk.” He turned to Lucas and James, sheathing his muandrian. “Let’s pack up. The sooner we leave, the sooner we can get to Anebrilith.” The humans grinned with enthusiasm, and turned to help the others pack up. Everyone was anxious to get out of this crimson forest, and Kryos didn’t blame them.

Once they were all assembled at the eastern edge of the clearing, he nodded to Ellers. She strode forward, and, flames dancing between her hands, banished the vines. Beyond, was the gloom of the Red Forest. The group hesitated, wishing they could bring the safety of their clearing with them. But then, Lexxum strode forward, and back into the Lindequalmë.

The sky above seemed to possess the only comfort for me. Anne was positioned on top of Alk carefully handling the big dog's hide. She kept looking in my general direction strangely with an expression of longing. I couldn't blame her really. I knew what would happen at the end of the journey ahead, we would all part ways. It was a painful thought to have to abandon the child at such a juncture, but she'd be in better care with the Altmer than with myself or Kryos. I knew a little about human culture and the child needed a sense of stability and a home to belong to. A part of me didn't want the journey to end, I had grown complacent to having my companions around. They'd become more than friends, they'd become a fellowship. We'd bled together, we'd shared battles together, suffered together, cried together, and nearly faced death together. I knew deep down that the chance to face death again as a unit would come soon enough. To my right, I could see the flowing waters of the Escaldor River. Our path would eventually take us past the Elleduin River a few hours later. I was grateful that we'd completely bypassed the site at Carnelost, all rumors suggested a major battle was taking place there.

I looked at Anne's general direction as we walked. Keeping track of the time, I was glad that we were given ample opportunity for rest. Looking at the flowing waters ahead, I could see the environment around us take a sudden transformation. I knew there was a bridge that crossed the rivers further ahead, with any luck we could make it by the hour. I walked over to the bank of the river's edge seeing that, at least so far, our party was safe from encounter. It was now or never. I looked at Kryos and raised my fist to motion the other to stop for the time being.

"Now is a good time. We probably won't get another opportunity to refill our water supplies."

After that, I moved forward towards the river banks. Sedimentary rocks and other earthbound stones jutted out from the rough ground. I could see rocks jutting upward from the bottom of the river. By this time, I was weary of battle and knew that every part of the Red Forest held its dangers, especially the watery depths of the rivers famous in Raiaera. Fortunately, I didn't try to go too far into the flowing water. I just went close enough that my feet could stay on dry land. With my extensive reach, I was able to take my water skins and fill them to the brim with fresh, flowing water. I capped all of my water skins and made sure I had a steady supply. Not realizing until that moment that my sickness had drained so much of our available water supply. I never quite completely healed from the poisons either, they simply just passed through my system and altered it ever so slightly. I still didn't understand the vision with the sand golem, I had no idea what it meant. And that girl? Who was she? I knew every member of my tribe and I'd never seen a girl like that before...most peculiar.

Taking my cue, the rest of the bunch went up to the waters edge to refill their water supplies as well. The process took less than half an hour. I looked at Kryos and nodded. Once the process was completed, I took a sip of fresh water to clear my throat, refilled my water skin once more and prepared for the long road ahead. It was time to go.

"We should be going. Let's stay by the river bank until we have to cross the bridge."

I said simply enough and we were on our way again with fresh water supplies. I decided that staying along the river's edge was probably the best course of action to follow. Walking forward, our path continued onward steadily Eastward.

As we walked something strange happened. I started to see blood and other human remains upon the earth near the position of the river. Looking at these remains, I became curious. I motioned for the group to stop again, assuming that Kryos would have noticed these changes as well. By now, we were more than half a day out, we were almost a full day's out from the clearing with the blood vines. A part of me longed for the clearing. I drew my weapon and that's when I noticed it. There were objects floating in the river that I hadn't been able to identify up until this point in the journey. Then, one of the object floated closer towards the river bank and I could immediately see what it was. My face went wide with disgust. Alk started barking with alarm as the bodies moved downstream. I recognized some of the corpses, they were the people of Valinatal, and a few other places as well. The ones I didn't recognize were from other cities of Raiaera that fell to Xem'Zund's forces. A horrible smell touched my nostrils. I chastised myself for exposing Anne to such a horrible sight. She closed her eyes after screaming for a moment.

"Bloody hell, we're lucky we got out of there alive." It was Lucas speaking I turned towards him and nodded.

"It's not the old, it hasn't started decomposing." That was James speaking now and he was examining the body that washed ashore. The body was a young male elf. I felt an extreme amount of anger for seeing such a waste of life. I walked over to their position. "These bodies must be from Carnelost. I few of them are from the site at Valinatal. I'm surprised, this would be fodder for a Necromancer's army." I said casually. But then it hit me all at once. What if these weren't meant for Netha'Tu, but for another Necromancer yet hidden in the Red Forest? I immediately drew my weapon and prepared for imminent battle. I turned to Kryos.

"Curse the Gods! These are fresh supplies heading towards another Necromancer! We've been tricked...this is not a safe passage at all."

And as if to confirm our worst fears, sounds from the South of a group of Arta warriors approaching could be heard. The sudden scent touched my nostrils and I turned towards that general direction. A group of Arta were heading towards us, at least twenty of them. I prepared for imminent battle spitting on the ground.

"More zombies!" Alleria suddenly yelled.

I gave the command.

"Prepare for battle!"

And the group of zombies came towards us whilst we prepared for battle...

The horrid stench of the undead grew stronger as the zombies approached. Their eyes were filled with evil, and they came in an unorganized pattern. His eyes narrowed as he swung his pack off his back. He grabbed his muandrian, and pulled it from his sheath, the metal scraping sound issuing through the immediate area. Anne had taken out a dagger, and gotten off of Alk. The canine was growling savagely, ears flat against his head. Suddenly, two arrows flew past Kryos, and sunk into the rotting flesh of the leading zombies. One hit a zombie in between the eyes, while the other sank into the chest. But still they came. Kryos cursed. They would have to totally incapacitate every one of the monsters. Behind him, Lucas and James were getting ready to fire another set of arrows. The two elves were singing their songs of magic. From the sound of it, Ellers was working on defensive magic from the School of Ost’Dagorlin, while Allaria was singing the soft, eerie sound of Turlin magic. A white orb of light appeared between the two groups, which then exploded. He covered his eyes with his arm, and then saw that the creatures were picking themselves from the ground, flesh burned. After that, there was no time for thinking.

Kryos threw himself at the nearest zombie, sword swinging through the air. It struck the creature on the upper arm, cutting though flesh, bone, and stopping when it hit the rotten torso. The arm fell to the ground, but still it moved, under the influence of the Necromancer that controlled it. He jumped back, putting space between himself and the howling beast. It charged him then, joined by another zombie. Retreating rapidly, he suddenly ran into a tree. He braced himself for the zombie attack, when a fire blast collided with the lead zombie. The force was so powerful, that it knocked the creature to the ground, where it lay writhing in pain. Making use of the distraction, Kryos beheaded the other zombie, and then lobbed of a leg and an arm from the body. That should be enough to keep it from being an immediate threat. Blood streaked down his blade, and he looked around for his next enemy.

Around him, chaos reigned as the battle continued. Lucas and James were fighting back-to-back, keeping each other covered. They by far, had the most opponents. The elves had swords in their grasp, fighting two zombies, while trying to use spells as often as they could. Alk was defending Anne, who was murmuring under her breath. Suddenly, the creature that Alk was engaged with suddenly sunk up to his chest in the ground. Kryos was surprised that Anne could do such a thing. And then there was Lexxum. He was a magnificent fighter, using his claws as often as his sword. His red scales seemed to glow with the excitement of battle. Kryos dove back into the fray, intent that everyone would make it through this.

The world changed. Nothing existed except for himself and his opponent. Kryos moved with instinct, keeping his distance from the defiled until he could strike a damaging blow. Blood flew through the air, only to fall back to the earth, and soak into the soil. The enemy numbers were thinning. There were only a few more left. Then, a scream rent the air. A scream that belonged to a child.

"No!"

I heard the cry almost at exactly the same time that Kryos did. I was busy with my own battles, but I relatively close to Anne's position. A single zombie managed to crawl past everybody's defenses and make its way towards Anne's position even whilst she chanted more song magic. I took the head off the nearest zombie I was engaging and immediately moved towards Anne's position, throwing all other objectives aside. The rotting creature moved towards Anne's position with the intent of making a meal out of her. It had grabbed Anne with a decayed hand attempting to quickly bite the child. But I would not allow such a fate for my young companion. The dog, Alk, saw the threat immediately and acted.

I decapitated another zombie that decided to risk its second life and come at me. The afternoon sun taunted my vision with promises of Lord Mitra's embrace. I moved quickly and swung my weapon to keep the undead at bay, any that attempted to come too close. Song magics flew through the impromptu battlefield as Alleria and Ellers released their knowledge of the archaic arts onto the environment. Subtle changes occurred upon the area around me as the air became alive under the Elves' command of those mysterious arts. Strange words filled the air causing it to vibrate underneath the weight of power. But none of that could protect my Anne.

Lucas released a skilled arrow that felled another zombie. James launched a bolt from his crossbow. The shoulder of a zombie was struck as it fell backwards and was stapled to the ground. They quickly reloaded their weapons, but the zombie broke through the main line of defense we were able to conjure up. Lucas and James were forced to abandon their long ranged weapons and drew their melee weapons. But none of that could protect my Anne.

I felt rage pouring through my system as I converged upon the zombie, but the Alk beat me to it. The powerful canine ripped a chunk out of the creature's shoulder and spit it out to the ground tasting the rot of flesh. The zombie did not turn its attention from the girl. It came in for a quick bite and I could see Anne screaming in terror. I suddenly reached forward with my sword, Tap Buster, and did the only thing I could think of. I was still too far away to reach with my weapon and the dog wasn't going to bite more than just enough flesh to slow the creature down. The dog reached for another bite, but the zombie quickly took a swipe at the dog's position. A moment later I heard a yelp and the zombie continued on its inevitable path towards my Anne.

I yelled a prayer out loud towards Lord Mitra. Remembering the ancient words of my people. I called upon the strength of the God I believed in to give me the chance to save my Anne. Tears of anger and despair flowed down the scales of my face as I desperately called upon the powers of the Eternal Tap. I chanted the tongue of my people hoping it would be enough to call upon the sword's power. (Translated roughly from Blood Lizard's speak) "O Lord Mitra, I beg of thee! Give thy servant the strength to protect the innocent. Give thy servant the guiding hand to conjure up the forces within the Eternal Tap. Honour bound contracts from the ancestors of mine people! I beg of thee Lord Mitra! Aide thy servant in battle! Let me protect the one they call Anne from harm at the cost of mien own life! I call upon they help! Tap Buster to the aide of Anne!"

The prayer was heard by all. More powerful than any of Raiaera's turlin magics. The blade of my plynt masterwork sword glowed with the angry energies of the Tap. A living vessel of power. From within the blade, symbols of archaic energies came to life in order to honour bound contracts between master and servant. The sword was bound to me. I could feel the powers of the Eternal Tap flowing through my blade and used as a medium in the physical world of Althanas. The air around my weapon suddenly became vaporized as steam as the potent energies were called. I released the powers of my weapon, and within a moment, a sudden burst of Tap Fire licked from the molecular substance of the plynt weapon in my hand. The fires streamed forward in a burst of wizard's power, singing the air as it rippled through it towards my target. In an instant, my world slowed down as my weapon, Tap Buster, released the archaic fires from its focal point. The burst of elemental fire flowed towards its target, heeding my call and more. A moment flowed by like an eternity. I could feel my heart beating in my throat. All I could think about was Anne's safety, and I'd released my magics unto the world hoping for the best possible outcome. I watched as the zombie lunged for my Anne...

...But would that be enough to protect her?

Kryos whipped around to look at Anne. A zombie, decaying hand reached out to grab her, was stumbling toward her. Alk, sensing the danger, attempted to stop the creature, only to be hurled back by a strike from the undead. The zombie opened its mouth wide and prepared to sink its corrupted teeth into the little girl. Kryos’ eyes widened, and he rushed to intervene. But the distance was too great to make in such a short amount of time. He turned, to see if anyone else was aware of this new development, but everyone was in the midst of battle. Only Lexxum had seemed to have heard the girl scream. He was fighting his way to her, but was being delayed by zombies.

“No!” he yelled. “Anne!”

Then, time seemed to slow down. Turning his head, he saw Lexxum shouting in a strange tongue. The words reverberated around the battle site, louder than the song magic of the elves. The chanting didn’t stop the progress of the zombies, though. They kept coming. A white orb of Turlin shot past Lexxum, crashing through the chest of an undead that had been preparing to attack Lexxum’s back. He saw the creature fall, grasping at its chest, before hitting the ground where it lay unmoving. Kryos kept running toward Anne while all this happened. Then, as Lexxum’s chant faded away, he felt the arrival of an incredible power. He stopped and turned toward Lexxum, and the source of the new energy.

The saurian’s dark scales were glowing a scarlet light. But his sword, blood running down its length, was shining emerald. Arcane runes, burning orange, raced down the length of the blade, etched in with a power greater than Kryos had ever seen. The air around the sword suddenly hissed and became steam as the heat of the sword grew. Flames began to dance along its edge, shifting from red, to green, to the deepest black, and even to violet. Lexxum pointed the sword at the zombie attacking Anne. The energies seemed to condense for a moment at the hilt of the sword, the light from Lexxum’s body dimming. Then, the focused power burst from the sword, ripping through the air. The sound was incredible as the archaic flames raced to the zombie. The core of the blast exploded as it collided with the living corpse, throwing it off Anne, burning the skin, muscles, and bones to cinder. The flames danced as they charred the body, emitting a heat so strong that Kryos could feel it from twenty feet away. The flames suddenly seemed to race in circles around the zombie, as they descended to the ground. When they met at the bottom, they exploded yet again, and raced outward on the forest floor, where they quickly dissipated.

The grass and leaves around the remains of the zombie were burned black. Anne lay on the ground, shaking. The zombie hadn’t had a chance to bite her. Kryos rushed toward her, as the rest of the company finished of the last two or three zombies. The zombies that had been around Lexxum when the blast had left his sword lay motionless on the ground. He was amazed at the devastation that Lexxum had controlled.

Arriving at Anne’s side, Kryos felt his stomach clench in horror. Lexxum’s attack had prevented the zombie from biting her, but with a terrible price. The entire right side of the young girl’s body was scarred from the powerful flames. Her clothes were missing on that side, exposed to such intense heat that they disintegrated. The red and tender flesh wrapped around her body and across her face and neck. She was unconscious, probably due to the amount of damage she had recieved. Yet her body moved on its own, shaking against the ground. Kryos turned his terrified expression to the two elves.

“Allaria! Ellers!”

I heard a scream, and then silence. The scream tore at my heart and made tears swell in my eyes. I wasn't fast enough. I'd learned a harsh lesson in humility. My Lord Mitra came to assist me, but I wasn't able to react quickly enough to prevent Anne from getting hurt. Grass from underneath the area of impact was badly scorched and a horrendous scent of burnt skin flowed up into the wind. I looked upon the two bodies on the ground, one was a fallen zombie sent to a second death with the power I was able to conjure forth. The other was the writhing body of Anne. My Anne. My child. I felt anger swelling up in my well scaled bosom as I looked upon the burnt flesh of the young one. She would forever be scarred and it was all my fault.

Tears flowed freely from my eye ducts. I walked over towards Anne's position and let my sword drop to the scalded earth. My large sized boots crushed the ground beneath me. I crawled on all fours and quickly covered the distance between my last position and Anne's current position. I could see Ellers and Allaria currently working on the girl's injuries. She was badly burnt and scarred from the attack to the point of disfigurement. The tears continued to flow down my eyes as I came in close to Anne's person. Ellers suddenly paused what she was doing and looked towards me.

"It's bad." I nodded in silence. Unable to speak at this point. I was in complete shock as to what I'd just witnessed. In a moment of complete carelessness, Anne was the one who paid the price. I swore that Xem'Zund's forces and their allies would pay for what had occurred. I swore to Lord Mitra that I would make Xem'Zund pay. But first, there was the threat of Netha'Tu and whatever other lieutenants that Xem'Zund had in his command. The army of Necromancers would fall to my rage. "I couldn't get to her in time. I was unable to protect her." [i]I cursed lowly not speaking to anybody in particular. I could feel a hand upon my shoulder, and I turned quickly to meet another potential zombie. Naye. It was Lucas. James had gone off to scout to see if there were anymore terrors from the pack that needed to be destroyed. I wanted to be with James, but my heart wouldn't let me part ways with Anne. A part of me felt like I belonged at her side, her eternal protector. "Anne. You have to pull through. I can't let it end this way."

"It won't lad. Just make yourself useful for her sakes. We still got zombies to pick off. There maybe more of them out there." Lucas said casually. "Please, Sir Vordic, you have to pull yourself together. Anne would want you to be strong and we need you to be strong."

I reached out for the child with shaking hands. But deep down I knew that Lucas was right, I just couldn't express it with the recent near death experience, and now, the potential loss of Anne. It was all too much to deal with and I let out a mighty roar. I looked up at Lord Mitra, shining bright, and allowed the warmth to fill me with a rage. I wanted something to destroy, to allow my warrior's righteous wrath full exposure upon a victim. I wanted revenge for Anne. For Valinatal. For all those innocents that were dead because of Netha'Tu and my inability to stop him. My simple days as a lizard pup living on the fields of Fallien were over. I walked over to my sword and picked it up off the ground where I'd dropped it. I felt the familiar weight of my Tap Buster and looked at Lucas with a dangerous expression on my face. I was angry, I was vengeful. Anger was more useful than despair.

"You're right Lucas. Allaria and Ellers will take care of Anne, we are useless to her without the battle." [i]I turned towards Anne one more time to memorize the appearance of her injured person upon the ground, suffering in silence. Every now and again she uttered words of gibberish from her lips. This made me even angrier as I observed such a sight. My people were bred for warfare and destruction. But we had a code of honor, no innocents could fall by our hands. After all, we came from the Lady Suravani herself and eventually evolved into followers of Lord Mitra. I kept my weapon in my hand and prepared to sulk off into the wilderness in pursuit of James. I looked over at Kryos.

"My friend, we're no good to Anne like this. Let's move on and see if we can't find the source of these bastard creations someplace nearby."

"I found something!" [i]It was James. He returned with a satchel in his hands that obviously contained items of some interest. I looked at Kryos and then looked at James. "Bring it here James, let's see if you found anything useful." I waited to see Kryos reaction to James, Lucas, and ultimately Anne.

Kryos raised his eyes when James brought over the small container. He left Anne’s trembling body, and after sheathing his blade, took it from James’ hands. It was light, so there wasn’t a very big chance that it was dangerous. Still, he held it away from the others as he undid the tie at the top, and opened the bag. Nothing happened. Relaxing, he brought his arm toward him, and peered inside. The sun, now directly overhead, pierced the canopy and lit up the contents. Inside was a beautiful gem. Kryos reached in and pulled it out to examine it in the light. The others leaned in to see it as well. The dark surface seemed to swirl, as if vapor was trapped on the inside.

“Hey, what’s this?” Lucas reached into the previously thought empty satchel, and pulled out a small piece of paper. The human scanned the message. Suddenly, his eyes widened and his face drained of color. He passed the note to Kryos, who grabbed it with his fourth and fifth fingers, since he was still holding the stone and the bag. He looked at the elegant words and read.

Quote:

---

Scourge,
The creature has been completed. Now awaiting your orders as to where to attack. Please send instructions via these minions. Also, the Corruption Stone, which is included with this message, has been finished. The owner of the gem will be able to turn living beings into the minions easily. It is a gift from Morian.
Always ready to serve,
Rashilan Penna’ak

---

Kryos’ eyes widened like Lucus’ had and stepped back, holding the gem away from him. “The power to turn a living person into a zombie.” He turned to Lexxum. “This stone is dangerous. It must not fall into the wrong hands.” He paused, thinking of other options. “Actually, it would be best to destroy it, though by the looks of it, that won’t be easily done.” He replaced it back in the bag and tied the top shut. He turned and approached Allaria. She was softly singing healing songs, while her hands carefully looked over the burnt flesh. He knelt down next to her and placed the bag by her side.

“Take a look at that when you have time. Find out what you can. It’s a Corruption Stone, so be careful.” She nodded once and then redirected her attention back to the wounded girl. Kryos stood and looked at the two men and Lexxum. “Well, Lexxum. We lucked out. Apparently this Rashilian Penna’ak is the one behind this. Judging from the direction that the zombies were coming from, she’s to the southeast. But we need to be careful. I’m a little worried about what this ‘creature’ is.” He walked over to the group of warriors and faced the southeast. He pulled his weapon out, preparing himself for the danger ahead. They were out to get a necromancer. He shook his head and grinned, surprised that things would turn out this way.

“Well, then. Let’s go.” He began making his way through the trees yet again. Only this time, he and the others were the hunters, instead of the hunted.

I took a look at Anne, tears still flowing down my eyes. I wiped them from my face, tossing them to the ground a moment later. In my eyes I was the one responsible for Anne's injuries, which in many ways I was. The Tap Buster was reluctantly picked up and placed back in my possession. My scaly face, along with powerful maxilla reflected itself in the glow of my sword. I looked at myself for a long moment. I wasn't the young Lexxum that first got off the boat and showed up at Anebrilith so many ages ago. I'd become a man of amongst my people now and would have stories to tell them when I returned home as a great lizard warrior. My saurian physique rippled with rage as I pondered the next course of events. We had to hunt a Necromancer now, sure it wasn't Netha'Tu, but it was a Necromancer nonetheless. One of Xem'Zund's loyal servants. I walked over to Kryos for a moment and decided to share my experiences with Netha'Tu. We'd spoken quite a bit already during the journey, but I hadn't yet had a chance to reveal much about my encounter with Netha'Tu himself.

"The Necromancer will be extremely powerful. He is a trusted servant of Xem'Zund we should watch out for his tricks. When Typheus and I fought Netha'Tu, that Necromancer was able to conjure up infinite armaments made of plynt. Terrible wizard's lightning, and other powers too foul to mention. We best be on our guard. I doubt that we will have enough on hand power to defeat him by ourselves. But we have to give it a try, for Anne's sake. For Valinatal's sakes."

There was more that I wanted to say, but time was of the essence. We needed to make sure that the Necromancer faced justice. I kept Tap Buster in my hand in a loose grip. I was aching to do some damage on more zombies, the recent battle was dreadfully short. I wanted to satiate my anger and rage. Walking in the general direction that Kryos suggested, I felt my heart heavy. My tail swung gently from side to side as it moved the foliage beneath me. I felt like I was forcing my legs to move with the weight of the guilt I felt for Anne's plight. I took one last look at her small form. I knew that Alk would stay behind and guard her. The area was dangerous with all of the zombies walking about, the living dead. I took the front of the group feeling my rage building up in my heart. I could hear the vessels of the arta speaking to me, commanding me forward. It wanted me to submit to my hate. Submit to my saurian rage. I would allow such a thing to occur when my enemy was upon us. I had a few cards I could play after all. As I walked I kept clenching my free hand, which happened to be the clockwork one, open and closed.

The metallic hand still felt like a strange addition to my body. It weighed much differently than my organic hand once weighed. It felt more like a blunt object attached to my arm than anything else. Somehow, a natural, archaically induced feeling made the hand feel like a normal hand might. I was eager to slam the metallic fist against the skull of some foe. I wanted to break limbs. I wanted to tear flesh. I wanted those responsible for the fall of Valinatal to suffer greatly. I could feel the wind blowing, and the ground beneath my boots. Occasionally, my heavy boots crunched thick foliage beneath me, broke tree branches and bits of roots from red wood trees. I was making a lot of noise, but I wasn't trying to be stealthy. The heavy armor that I wore from Valinatal's outfit. It took a bit to get used to wearing the heavy armor, but the extra protection came in handy where my scales might not be able to protect me. As in when enemies used magics. I thought about the battle with Netha'Tu. It ended in a severe loss, I was forced to take a hit for Typheus that would've killed my friend.

Walking several feet forward, I noticed that the terrain was decorated with something else. The flesh of the dead. There were corpses everywhere, and some of them were in various states of mutilation. It seemed that a few of the corpses had injuries consistent to a drowning death. Some of the bodies were removed from the nearby river and recently dragged by something or someone. I could see some undead creatures pulling bodies nearby with their rotting limbs. Immediately, I dived forward to take these creatures out as I saw them as my enemy. I skillfully swung my weapon towards the creatures and decapitated the nearest one. A rotting skull was severed from an equally decomposed body. A burst of black blood shot up from the stump of a neck. The permanently dead figure slumped down to the ground as a fallen memory. The nearest zombie was several feet away and suddenly broke into a run away from our group. I gave chase. Soon, I found myself upon a low built valley and wasn't concerned with the simple fact if the group was following me or not. At this point I didn't care. Vengeance was on my mind.

I saw the zombie heading towards a structure. Stopping my mad sprint, I noticed that the structure was a fair sized tent. Narrowing my eyes into thin slits, I studied the situation unfolding before me. An area of the camp was set aside for the construction of a forbidden beast. Many bodies were resting in the center of the camp. These bodies, in turn, were combined together using the knowledges of Necromancy. I observed the zombies working and then I saw a power source attached to a device used to generate fuel for the monster. The whole thing resembled a clockwork mechanism. I'd seen a few of these in Fallien. I looked down at my metallic hand for a moment, and it dawned on me that I might be alone. Suddenly, a form emerged from the tent. I studied this form and saw that it was the undeniable form of a woman. This revelation made me even angrier. Her eyes had a mystical green glow about them and I noticed that she was staring directly at me. The zombie I'd chased so blindly into the hand of the enemy was communicating with her in some sort of fell tongue. The Necromancer pointed at me. And with that one accursed moment, the beast of flesh and bone awoke. Horrible, glowing emerald eyes flowed with energy from the beast. It was a good two stories tall, and made of rippling muscle. I looked upon the horrible contraption as it stood up, pulling chains up from the earth with it. It roared mightily and broke several chains that held it down. I prepared myself for battle...

As Kryos crested the hill and looked down into the defiled camp, his eyes widened in horror and disgust. The whole place was a production line to create the “creature.” It was adeptly named. Slowly, the corpses that were drawn from the river were lifted up by an unseen force to be pressed to the monstrosity. Gradually then, the corpse was absorbed into the being. Then, by the woman’s command, it rose up. The eyes were glowing green, mirroring the eyes of the necromancer in control of it. It bellowed and began to walk toward the Kryos and the others.

“Well, any idea on how to kill this monster?” James asked.

“Yeah, damage it as much as possible without dying.” Lucas responded.

Then, there was no more time for discussion. The creature loomed before them. It reached back its colossal fist and made to slam it into the ground.

“Move!” Kryos yelled, taking off to the side of the monster to avoid being hit. The fist crashed into the earth with an earsplitting explosion. Kryos stumbled, losing his balance, fighting to keep his hold on his sword. The mutant zombie looked around for its prey. Kryos didn’t hesitate, and rushed forward to the leg of the beast. He brought his sword down as hard as he could, feeling the sharp edge hit the flesh and tear through it about half a foot. The creature roared as it lifted its leg, tearing the blade from Kryos’ grip. A giant, eroded hand swept by, crashing into Kryos, sending him back into the forest. He landed thirty feet away, gasping for air. Rising from the ground, he stumbled back toward the fighting ground. He could see Lucas and James both shooting arrows into the beast, before discarding them to go to short ranged combat. His muandrian stuck out of the creatures’ left leg. He made for that, trying to stay out of the creature’s way. When he finally made it, he grabbed the hilt and pulled it free, only to recoil in horror a moment later. There, beneath the flesh of the monster, Kryos could see what remained of the corpses that were used to create it. The body parts of the dead were fused with the golem, used for its vile purposes.

Suddenly, an arrow whizzed past Kryos. The other zombies down in the camp were still active. It looked as if these were more skilled than normal zombies. He swung around.

“Lucas! Take care of the five zombies in the camp! We’ll try to handle things here!” he shouted.

Lucas, who had just dodged a giant fist, nodded and took off to make the undead return to being dead. Kryos, meanwhile, readjusted his grip and prepared to make another assault.

I could hear frantic yelling. My allies had caught up with my sudden sprint into the enemy camp. All had gone horribly wrong. My thoughts were on killing the nearest zombies when the creature suddenly got up from its containment unit and all hell broke loose. Since I was busy taking down some of the nearby zombies, I looked in the general direction of Kryos to see how he was faring. The lad was busy taking the mutant dead on. Lucas and James ran past me and for a moment, I felt confusion. I was torn between trying to make a direct assault on the Necromancer and helping Kryos out. Turning towards the Necromancer, I noticed that she kept staring at me with an amused, lustful expression on her face. I decided that I would take on the Necromancer so that I could avenge Valinatal. She was a representative of Xem'Zund's forces and so, I wanted to make certain that I could take her down. Kryos and the others would keep the monster occupied. As I ran towards the woman, I took down several more Arta warriors that didn't stand a chance because of my rapidly increasing rage level. I could already feel the need for violence.

I pushed my powerful body forward with a direct objective in mind; kill the Necromancer that stood before me. She radiated energies as I quickly stomped across the ground between my former position and my current position. The afternoon sun seemed to make the Red Forest appear as a sanguine substance. I noticed the blood stained trees around this particular area of the Red Forest and I was glad that Anne wasn't here to see this terrible monster. With Tap Buster at the ready, I swung my weapon and cleanly severed the neck of another arta warrior. Some of these warriors were armed but it wasn't enough to get past the current rage I felt. It was steadily increasing. And before I made it to the Necromancer's position I let out a mighty, unearthly howl. A burst of energy suddenly erupted from my body. I could feel the arta cells taking my person over. Within an instant of time, my red scales grew into a black color. I could see the look of shock on the Necromancer's face. My muscles became even more knotted as this occurred making my visage that much more intimidating. The Necromancer looked upon me with a scowl and prepared her powers.

"I know that sword. You took it from one of the Commanders in Netha'Tu's army. I personally, had it constructed for Netha'Tu."

"Then it shall be your undoing."

"It glows with the powers of the Tap. How did you get it enchanted in such a manner? I must know! Speak Saurian!"

"These are secrets I take to the grave witch! There shall be no further discussion. I am taking you in for crimes against Valinatal and against all of life!"

"My, my. You're such a brave little lizard. But I want you not to--"

And it was already too late. Blood poured down her pretty, pouting, crimson stained lips. She wore an expression of shock as I'd moved to run her through. There would be no games. No pretty speeches, no hesitation. My form was flawless as I moved on the Necromancer and caught her almost completely off guard. A part of me wanted to know more about the servant of Xem'Zund, but we could always ransack her camp after we defeated her creation. "You're a fool lizard. My time wasn't nigh. You serve those bastards at Valinatal but I serve Lord Morian. Xem'Zund commands a massive army. I am but one commander. What hope do you have against us?" And then she did something strange. She grabbed the blade of my sword and pulled herself out of the deadly attack. Blood poured from her injury. She walked off the blade, and moved a few paces back. Dizzy as she was, she managed to move anyway. Her eyes looked upon me with mischief in them, hostility, and something else that I couldn't quite place. She had raven black hair and an athletic physique.

"I'll make you regret that Lexxum Vordic!"

"How do you know my name!?"

"I will show you the power Xem'Zund commands. I will show you the powers of Morian!"

Morian was a name that she kept repeating. It was mentioned in that letter that was found earlier too. Who was Morian? What was Morian? Was he another Necromancer like Xem'Zund? I pondered these matters. And then suddenly, I felt the air around my body grow heavy. I had a full minute to act upon her, but so captivated by her beauty was I, that I opted to hesitate instead. So many mysterious were unfolding all at once, that my head hurt from the information I was receiving in my current state. And then, something happened. As the air grew heavy around me, I felt a sensation of weightlessness and my body started floating. She raised her hand to gain control of my physical vessel. "You come to me with the taint of Netha'Tu's warriors! I will make you regret that decision as you are forced to take on your own friends! You will know terrible pain Lexxum Vordic!" A moment later, I was slammed against a tree, hard. Pain coursed through my body but the pain did something quite unexpected. The arta vessel within me began to completely overtake me. I felt trapped within my own body as the transformation into my black form was complete.

"Destroy your allies."

Was all she said. And I obeyed her command...I began to move upon Lucas, James, and ultimately, Kryos.

The terrible beast slammed his fist into the ground yet again, missing Kryos by a few feet. He rushed forward, swinging his blade through the air and leapt up upon the closed fist of the mutant. He started to run up the length of the giant arm, slashing with his sword, until the other fist made a wild grab, pushing Kryos off his perch and to the ground below. The air was pushed out of him and he struggled to rise, gasping.

“Lexxum!” he managed. But no reply came. Frantically retreating to the trees, he searched for his friends. Lucas was attacking zombie minions close to the giant tent, while James was dodging the mutant. Then, he finally found Lexxum. What he saw, though, made his eyes widen in horror. The great saurian had turned into a menacing shadow. The normally bright, scarlet scales appeared to be stained with ink. His eyes, though, were filled with an uncontrollable fury. He stood in front of the necromancer, but then, he turned and started towards Lucas. Kryos’ breath caught as he saw what was happening, then turned and frantically ran out toward James.

“James! Back Lucas up now! Try to help!” James turned and immediately made his way to Lucas’ position, but when he saw the new development with Lexxum, he started shouting to Lucas to let him know that their friend was somehow being controlled. Just as Kryos turned back to the monster, he heard the sound of metal clash together.

The defiled creature was turning, intending to follow James. It was then that Kryos hesitated. What chance could he have of taking down such a thing? Rather, how long could he fend off attacks until he was smashed into the forest floor? He thought of running. He could easily leave and go about his way, safe from such a monstrosity. The beast was getting farther away. How easy it would be. He would die if he stayed. He started to turn and leave, when Anne’s face suddenly filled his mind. He stood still, as the image which he saw began weeping, then turn and disappear into darkness. Fury rose in Kryos’ mind as he thought of the guilt he would have if he deserted his friends. He wanted to become someone, and that would never happen if he acted like a coward. He turned raced toward the menace, swiftly gaining on it, while activating his Blood Gaze. His Shrodeye glowed crimson, analyzing the movements of the beast, as well as those within his sight.

As he neared his opponent, he shouted at it to turn its attention to him and away from his allies. It roared and lifted its right foot and smashed the ground. Dirt shot up the hillside and flew across Kryos’ face as he raised his arm as a shield. The monster, now about thirty feet down the hill from him, began to run, barreling its way up the hill, earth rumbling with every footfall, intent on killing the minuscule annoyance that kept distracting it.

Pain. It coursed through my system like a tornado. No. Like an earthquake that ravaged my insides. It felt as if lightning was traveling across my epidermis burning me with the power of a million volcanoes. One terrible thought coursed through my predator's mind. The pain was mixed with a supernatural desire to cause violence. The arta vessel choked out my blood and made me want to tear out my own insides. My eyes were hazed over with a blood red, crimson cloud as I looked at the world. I kept blanking out of consciousness and my brain struggled with the fact that I was about to hurt my friends. And I couldn't control my body! My black scales made me a devastating of shadow of my former self. I was a creature of destruction now and I wanted to destroy anything that came too close. Friend or foe. A zombie got in my way as it was heading towards Lucas and James. I grabbed at the zombie with all of my fury and quickly tore it to shreds. The last piece I removed from the body was the head, and this, I tossed in the general direction of James with all the force I could throw with.

"Look out James!" They were hesitating. I was a threat to them now and they were still hesitating because I was a friend. Thoughts of madness coursed through my brain now, and after a moment, everything faded to darkness. I felt myself traveling to some far away place, this sensation happened to me before and felt somehow familiar to me. The battle before me became a distant echoes in my head. They sounded farther and farther away until they were but memories. I found myself traveling across the dune sea, Suravani's bosom. Suravani. The mother of people in Fallien who was responsible for our creation, and yet we worshiped Lord Mitra. Therein lay the irony of my existence. We were creatures bred for warfare and yet, I found myself hesitating to attack my friends. I found myself hesitating because I hadn't been granted a choice in this matter. My eyes were flowing with a fury that reflected the agony I was feeling in my very atma. When I looked around again, I found myself on the dune sea running. Running from a beast that was superior to myself.

I was crying to my people for help, but nobody would come. I found myself alone in the wild lands. A place of deserts and oasis, a place where my ancestors once thrived. Now, the deserts created its own natural glass that made it difficult to walk on in certain parts of the bosom. The specter chased me and I turned around to find out I was running from...myself. I suddenly stopped my run through the wild and turned to face my pursuer. My tormentor. I turned to face the demons within my own blood. Staring at my opponent, I lunged forward, and, in turn, the dark version of myself ran towards me. There was an impact of two great forces that sent a reverberating shock across the air. The two titans fought one another for dominance of the vessel. And in the physical world, I was busy fighting against the warriors before me. When something new happened within me. Visions of Anne started to fill my head and I cried out in agony as I was resisting the commands that Rash had given me. In my state of madness I needed to destroy something. Lucas and James backed off from my roaring person. A nearby zombie came at me, and I grabbed it and easily tore that second zombie to shreds like the first.

My muscles were screaming for violence. I looked at James and Lucas, but turned around for there was a greater enemy to destroy. My arta blood was drawn to the archaic energies of the Necromancer. Destroy my friends. She had commanded. But they weren't friends. I had found a way to usurp her commands. In my insanity, I managed to convince myself that they weren't friends. No. They were enemies. But I had a greater enemy to defeat and it was that pretty faced girl that haunted my dreams. I turned around and stopped my pursuit of the my former companions and ran towards Rash. The girl looked at me with utter shock. "What are you doing Lexxum!? I told you to destroy your friends!" And through my pain, I found a way to gain control of the arta's vessel in my body. I found a way around the powerful magics in my blood. The fury that lurked within. I took Tap Buster into my hand and prepared for combat. As a Necromancer, she seemed to hesitate which was something that Netha'Tu never did. Maybe she was more of a sweet talker? Or a bed rider?

I didn't know which was the case. As I lunged at her she conjured up a weapon made of plynt, a longsword, and our two great blades collided. Her eyes were looking at me with her inner fury and she met my sword with every amount of skill I lunged at her. "I'll make you regret you were ever born, Lexxum Vordic!" I grinned at her comments. Sharp teeth were visible through the grin. "Spare me your words little girl. You will soon meet those that judge you. You will soon feel the fury of your Ancestors in the Halls of Suravani and Lord Mitra. You will know the pain and anguish you have caused others." I made the promise to her. I had experience fighting the Necromancer Netha'Tu. I was used to dirty tricks and tactics. She met my sword strikes blow for blow. Suddenly, I felt the air gravitate beneath me, and I was tossed aside like a rag doll. I grunted when I landed, some ten feet away from her position. I stood up and stared at the Necromancer for a moment and continued my charge against her. That's when she launched her terrible powers of Necromancy against me. From her hand, a powerful bolt of horrible green energies swelled through the air and crackled against me. I felt a burning sensation strike my chest, and I looked down and a strange sensation filled my body. I had a gaping hole through my chest. The light armor I wore from Valinatal's guard hadn't protected me from such an intense blast.

"All your words for nothing."

Tears swelled down my eyes as I looked upon the girl for a moment. But in the midst of it something else happened. I managed to take Tap Buster and shove it through her shoulder, injuring her further. My task was completed after that. Steam flowed from my body where the powerful energy had touched me. I was dead...I fell down to the ground and released Tap Buster even as she threw it to my side.

"Pity. You would have made a better servant to me in your state of undeath."

******************************************

Lucas looked at James after their mighty companion fell in battle. A look of stunned disbelief crossed both of the companions' faces. Lucas and James both simultaneously turned towards Kryos. "Kryos! Lexxum fell!" Lucas yelled even as he continued to fight nearby zombies. Rash looked upon the warriors. "We will meet again." She said and began to walk away, a portal opening up in front of her. James saw the shot, and allowed an arrow to fly, and at the same time...she walked into the portal. The arrow followed her into the portal. James would never know if his arrow actually met its mark or not, but now, they had the monster to deal with. Worrying about Lexxum for later, James and Lucas rallied together around Kryos in order to defeat the fell beast. They ran into close combat range in order to engage the giant warrior effectively. They were hacking at the various mutilated pieces of the beast in order to inflict some sort of damage to the titan...all in a hope to protect friends from the ravaging terror they now faced. And the loss of their greatest companion was fresh in their hearts...

The End.

****Spoils****

001-Full suit of Valinatal Armor made of Steel, Masterwork in quality and a Vlince cloak with the insignia of Valinatal's army.


002-The Wild-A place that Blood Lizards sometimes go to during times of great stress and physical torment. This place is a pocket dimension of Althanas and during their stay in this place, they are better able to deal with times of great physical stress. In some cases, stronger Blood Lizards are able to project their soul into The Wild and leave their body in a zen like robotic state. During visits to The Wild, Blood Lizards can interact with higher powers like Lady Suravani or Lord Mitra. These are blood visions that often tell of various incomplete futures that are yet to pass. In Lexxum's case he was able to send his soul into The Wild in order to surpass the clutches of death at the hands of the Necromancer Rashilan Penna’ak. Lexxum experienced a physical death, but his powerful spirit lives on in Phantom form.

The monster rushed toward him, dragging its chains the whole time. Kryos prepared to dodge to the side to avoid the attack, his crimson stained eyes watching for the shift in weight that would signal the attack. There! He leapt to his right, diving on the ground and rolling out of the dodge easily. His attacker slowed to a stop, giant form turning. The thing bellowed at Kryos, infuriated that it had been foiled. It grabbed one of the chains connected to it with a horrible hand and whipped it through the air. The deadly chain sliced through the air toward him, who in turn dropped to the ground to avoid it. The metal links missed him and connected with the trunks of trees behind him, snapping the wood with earsplitting explosions. He scrambled out of the way of the falling objects, racing down the hill to a safer location. He was able to see how the rest of the battle was going.

Lexxum, a terrible image of what he once had been, was engaged with Lucas and James. The great beast was fast, incredibly fast for one so large, with moves precise and wild at the same time. Kryos skidded to a halt down from his opponent, about to turn and face it, when Kryos’ eyes, now fully activated in the Blood Gaze, enhanced even further. Time seemed to slow for a moment, as they narrowed in on Lexxum’s dark form, analyzing the movements, watching every shift in weight, every step in his footwork, everything about how he was currently fighting. As he watched, his advanced eyes took that information and stored it in his brain, ready to be summoned forth at his bidding.

Time rushed back to normal speed and Kryos gasped, shocked at the phenomenon. Then the giant, mutant undead was upon him yet again. He turned and tightened his grip on his sword, wishing that Allaria was here with her Turlin magic. The monster rushed Kryos, but this time, he waited where he was, not dodging out of the way of the immediate attack. Instead, he raced forward, sword cutting through the air and into the inner thigh of the creature. The undead bellowed in pain and stumbled past him, its legs passing on either side of the Dwiilar. Turning, he followed it, intent on keeping it away from the others. For a brief moment, he saw Lexxum destroy an undead minion, ripping it to shreds with his powerful claws and sword, before the monster obstructed his view. Running forward, breath becoming heavy from the intense battle, he switched his grip on his weapon so that the blade pointed down. He reached back, yelling, and thrust the blade into the knee joint of the monster with as much force as he could muster. The blade sank deep into the flesh of the beast, ripping through whatever material it was that allowed the monster to stand. The blade went half way in, before it stopped. Roaring in agony, the mutant fell its hands and knees. Leaping up on its leg, he ripped his sword free and prepared to strike again. However, the leg beneath him jerked violently and sent him a little way into the air.

As he flew, gravity regaining its hold on him, he beheld Rashilan Penna’ak, the necromancer of Morian, release a shot of emerald magic from her hand, which proceeded to rip through Lexxum’s chest. Landing once again on the ground, Kryos saw Lexxum silently roar and swing his weapon through the woman’s shoulder, before he too, fell to the ground, smoke issuing from his gaping wound.

“No!” Kryos gasped, unwilling to accept that such a great warrior and companion had been defeated. Distantly, as if in a dream, he heard the two humans shouting something, before the necromancer turned and left the battle site through a portal that she had conjured. An arrow, fired from James’ longbow, raced after her, before the portal disappeared. But that didn’t matter to Kryos. Rage filled his being as he gazed upon the still form of Luxxum’s body. Then, something happened. His eyes summoned back the memories of the fights he had analyzed, replaying the exact movement for him. He witnessed the fight that had happened moments ago between Lexxum and the human warriors. His crimson eyes suddenly became lit with greater luminescence and they clearly shone in the gloom of the forest. He rose to his feet, muandrain clenched in his fist, anger brimming in his eyes. He raced to the titan, now in the camp once again, and began to fight with the style of the great saurians, a gift given to him unknowingly by Lexxum.

He moved like the blood lizards, working in unison with James and Lucas, as they sought to bring down the terrible creature. He leapt from one place to the next, hacking at the rotting flesh before him, trying to cover Lucas and James as they fought on. The creature growled as it was dealt more wounds without it able to give back any damage of its own. Kryos darted past the creature’s legs to the front side of the golem. Reaching to the ground, he grabbed one of the chains and pulled, getting the monsters attention. The thing reared back, launching Kryos directly at the mutilated face. He swung his sword, blade digging deep into the side of the creature’s head, powered by his momentum toward the great defiled. But that momentum was too great for Kryos to stop. As a result, his weapon was wrenched from his hand, imbedded in the giant skull. The monster fell back, clawing at his face and the wound that he had inflicted, while Kryos flew into the trees yet again, before slamming into a tree. He felt something crack in the right side of his body. He coughed, tasting blood in his mouth as he fought back the pain.

Meanwhile, the monster fell into one of the lines that branched off of the main power source that had been used to create the terror. Green flames erupted from the broken line, burning the dead flesh. Bellowing in pain, the creature tried to escape. Then an arrow pierced the air and the center of the power conduit, racing from Lucas’ crossbow. The following explosion burst from the source like a volcano’s wrath. The tent, as well as any structure in the camp, was flattened under the wall of wind that was pushed outward. An inferno belched up from the earth, quickly consuming the giant, greedily eating up the dead flesh. Lucas and James were thrown back, landing on their backsides as the magical flames began to deteriorate. Kryos was pushed against the trunk of the tree that had stopped him, black hair whipping in the wind. The last thing he saw, before surrendering to unconsciousness, was the beautiful green flames that licked the air, so similar to the ones that had chewed through his friend’s chest.

~ / | \ ~

James rose to his feet, gazing at the dying flames. The explosion that Lucas had created had totally demolished the camp as well as the creature. He turned and helped Lucas up.

“Nice shot there.”

“Thanks. It seemed like the only chance we had.”

“Agreed. Come on. Let’s go see if anything is left.”

Lucas nodded and they both began striding toward the decimated camp. Nothing was left of the tent, the flames had consumed that as well. They started picking their way through the wreckage, salvaging any spare arrows they could find. But there was a strange occurrence there. Lexxum’s body, as well as his mighty sword, were no where to be found. They looked all over camp to be sure, but they could find no trace of the great warrior. They were puzzling over this when a faint light gleamed at them. Lucas crossed over to it and pulled the object out from under burnt remains. The weapon that he held belonged to Kryos, the strong material having resisted the intense heat.

“Kryos.” he said, turning and rushing toward the trees where the youth had been launched into, James right on his heels. They came up short when they saw him lying against a tree trunk, apparently unconscious. James rushed to his side and gently shook his shoulder, urging him to wake in a low voice. Suddenly, Kryos’ face grimaced in pain. He groaned, moving his left hand to clutch his right side. He coughed and spat out blood.

“Sorry,” he murmured.

“Nonsense,” James replied. “That move was brilliant, though a bit more planning might help next time.”

Kryos chuckled at this, though every breath hurt. “I think two or three ribs are broken.”

Lucas came in then. “Don’t worry about it. We’ll get you back. Come on, James. Let’s get to work.”

They left Kryos’ form and started looking for two straight pieces of wood that would get Kryos to the care of the elves.

~ / | \ ~

Allaria and Ellers kneeled close to Anne’s side. They were softly singing the ancient songs of healing, slowly repairing the burnt flesh. Alk lay on the ground a few feet away, whimpering now and again. The seared skin had recently been oozing a strange fluid until they had been able to close the wounds. They had stopped the progressive damage that had been implanted in the burns and now they worked to toughen the sensitive skin. As they had worked, Anne’s body had relaxed and stopped shaking. It was a good sign. If they continued to treat her over the next few days, there should be no permanent damage. But she would carry the scars with her forever.

Allaria opened her eyes and placed a hand on her friend’s shoulder.

“Let’s take a small break and get something to drink, or we’ll become exhausted.” Ellers nodded and pulled her hands off the skin of the young girl. She turned and grabbed a water skin from her pack and unscrewed the cap. Once she began to drink, she realized that she was parched from their exercises. Allaria also had gotten some water, drinking quickly. She then lowered the water, replacing the lid, and looked to her right. On the ground was the bag that Kryos had left her with, with the Corruption Stone. She had heard of them in her studies while in the School of Turlin, but had never thought that someone was so powerful as to create it. It wasn't that difficult to do, except that it was hard to get so much dark energy into such a small object. Otherwise, Allaria herself could make one, though she would never dream of doing such a thing. Her hand reached out and grabbed the bag, turning it over to dump the stone on her palm.

The swirling mist created intricate patterns beneath the surface of the stone, tempting her to lose herself to it. Ellers gasped beside her. Allaria looked at her, closing her fist over the stone to shield it from her view.

“Careful. The stone is meant to be alluring. It can destroy the weak minded easily.”

Ellers, who looked like she had come out of a trance, blushed and turned away, rolling on her back. Allaria turned back to the stone, closing her eyes. She softly hummed a simple Turlin spell, trying to reverse the effects. After a few minutes, she stopped and checked to see if anything had happened. There was no difference to the shape of the stone, but the dark mist seemed to be a little lighter. She smiled to herself and placed the gem back in the bag. Rising, she stretched her body out, inhaling deeply. She then relaxed, air rushing out of her lungs, and then proceeded to get some food from her pack. She was just pulling out a dried fruit when she heard a voice sound throughout the clearing. She looked over and saw Lucas emerge from the trees, carrying the leading end of a makeshift stretcher. James carried the other end, and lying wounded between them was Kryos. Ellers rose and rushed to them as they gently lay the stretcher down, followed quickly by Allaria.

“What happened?” Ellers asked.

“He’s got two or three broken ribs, that’s what happened.” James said. “We met the one responsible, as well as a mutant giant of an undead. Took out the entire camp just to take it down.”

As Allaria began to heal Kryos, he clenched his teeth in pain. “Geez, Kryos. What did you do?” Ellers asked as she cataloged his injuries. “This will take time to heal.”

It was then, as a white light was emitting from her hands, that Allaria asked the question. “Where’s Sir Lexxum?”

She was answered by silence. Looking up, she saw Lucas and James exchange sorrowful looks. James then sighed. Quietly, he whispered, “He’s dead.” Alk’s howl of anguish spoke for the two elves as they kneeled there, magic pouring from their hands, as they tried to understand what James was telling them.

One Week Later

The majestic city, Anebrilith, was relatively calm compared to the state that Eluriand was when Kryos had left it. As he walked toward the docks that lay in the eastern side of the city, elves and humans alike moved with purpose and not panic. Order had been established and everyone in the city were doing their best to help escapees.

A human boy brushed past Kryos, making him wince in pain. His broken ribs, four in all, were still healing after the battle a week ago. Needless to say, when their group had gotten into the city four days ago, it was a relief to all of them to be able to relax from the constant threat that dwelt in the Red Forest.

His eyes gleamed in the morning light as a light mist struggled to remain in the city. He rounded the corner to the docks and passed through the main gate and onto the wooden planks of the harbor. Four magnificent ships lay peacefully in the water; the rest had departed for Scara Brae earlier. He approached one of the ship’s gangplank and looked at his comrades, already assembled. The two elves were in fine, white robes, quietly conversing with Anne, Lucas and James. Anne. The poor girl was sitting astride Alk, her constant support. The scars that ran along her right arm and face were clearly visible. They would grow less pronounced with time, but they were a horrible testament to her adventures, as well as what connected her with Lexxum. His heart felt heavy when he thought about him. When Anne was told, she had cried for a long time, and Kryos didn’t blame her. The usually glittering, blue eyes that she had were now sorrowful whenever one looked into them. He adverted his gaze when she looked up at his approach.

“Well, I guess this is it then.” Lucas said. He turned to Kryos. “Thanks for all your help. We wouldn’t have made it without you.” Kryos just nodded his head to him in response.

James then spoke. “Uh, I wanted to apologize, Kryos.” He rocked back and forth, clearly uncomfortable. “I’m sorry that I held us up in the forest, and I don’t know . . . ”

That incident had apparently been eating at him since Lexxum died. “It’s all right, James.” Kryos reassured him. “We were all under a lot of stress. Don’t worry about it.”

Allaria turned to Lucas and began to give him instructions about how to care for Anne’s injuries on the trip, since they had decided to stay in Anebrilith and help any survivors that came in. Anne, meanwhile, slid off Alk and went up to Kryos. He dropped down to a knee to speak to her.

“Kryos, aren’t you coming with us?” She asked, hope bright in her eyes.

“No. I will stay here, keeping an ear out for any news of Lexxum. After all, no one can explain his body vanishing like that.”

Anne jumped at Kryos then, hugging him tight. Kryos clenched his teeth as his ribs protested, but he hugged her back.

“I don’t want to leave you!” She said. “Come with us!”

“Shhh. I’ll be all right.” Kryos was a little uncomfortable. He wasn’t use to being near a child. “You need to go with Lucas and James to Scara Brae, where it’s safe.” He pulled her off of him and looked into her eyes. They were filled with worry and fear. “Please. You must go with them. I’ll keep in touch.”

Anne just shook her head. “No! If you won’t come, then I won’t go! I’ll help you find Lexxum, then we can all leave together!”

Kryos rose and backed slowly away. “No. You can’t. It could be dangerous.”

“I don’t care. I was with you in the forest. I’m staying.”

Kryos breathed deeply, closing his eyes. He wasn’t sure what he should do. It was Ellers who made up his mind for him.

“It will be all right, Kryos. She’ll be safe with you, wherever you go.” Opening his eyes, he saw the two elves standing in front of him. “She really is strong. Besides, she may be more able to find Lexxum than any of us, since it was he that she connected to most.” Kryos sighed and gave in. He nodded.

“Then I take it that just James and I are sailing? Man, maybe we should stay too.” Lucas said.

“Don’t be stupid, Lucas.” Ellers responded. “There really isn’t anything that you can do here that’s useful. The best thing for you to do is to leave. Just let us know what’s going on once in a while.”

“She’s right, mate. We aren’t needed here.” James patted his shoulder. “Well, I guess this is goodbye, isn’t it?” He then went up to Kryos. “Thanks a lot. I wish you well on your journeys. And make sure to look after Anne for us, ‘kay?”

Kryos nodded. “Thank you. May you have safety on you trip across the seas. It has been quite an adventure.”

So it went, the two humans making their farewells to Anne, Allaria, Ellers and Kryos. James even said goodbye to Alk. They moved up the gangplank and into the other people making their way up to the deck. Once aboard, they waited at the rail. After ten minutes, the finishing preparations were made and the ship cast off. James and Lucas wove to them as they sailed farther and farther away. Then they grew so small that they disappeared into the rest of the ship.

“Will we be seeing you and Anne around, Kryos?” Allaria asked.

“Probably. We’ll stay in town for a while, listening for news. Maybe in a month, we’ll sail around to Alerar and visit my home to see if anything has come up there.”

“Well, goodbye then, for now. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to drop by.”

Kryos nodded, then motioned for Anne to follow. She rushed to Alk and led him along.

“Oh, wait a moment, Kryos.” He turned back to Allaria, who was reaching into one of her pockets. She pulled out a beautiful white gem. “This was the Corruption Stone,” she said, seeing the question in his eyes. “Some of the more powerful mages here purified it.” Kryos took the stone and marveled at its color and glimmering shape.

“Hmm,” murmured Allaria. “There’s an idea. Kryos, let me see your sword.” Confused, he slowly pulled out his muandrian, still a little dull from the fight with the creature and the resulting fire. He gave it to the elf, who in turn placed it on the ground at their feet. Taking the Purification Stone from Kryos, she laid that on the hilt of the weapon. She started to sing. Then, as the ancient magic took hold, the stone began to merge with the weapon. The magic in the stone spread along the length of the blade and hilt, vaporizing the dark smears from its surface. When she finished, the blade glowed a soft white and appeared to have vapors running through it, just like the stone had. The light dimmed to nothing until the sword looked ordinary. Kryos bent down to pick it up, noticing no change. However, when grasped the hilt, the glow returned.

Amazed, he asked, “What did you do?”

“I fused the two substances together. Your blade now has a holy attribute to it. Needless to say, the undead shouldn’t prove as much trouble as before. Also, only you can summon that glow. It will respond to none other.”

Mystified, he gazed at his new sword. He then reached up and sheathed it. The scabbard too, glowed softly for a moment before dimming. “Thank you,” he said. Allaria bowed. She then turned and left with Ellers. They turned a corner and out of sight.

“Well, come on, Anne. Let’s go.”

“Ok.” She said happily.

They both turned, away from the way the two elves had gone and away from the sea that held their friends. They turned to what they both hoped, was the direction where Lexxum Vordic, the warrior, the saurian, their friend, lay waiting.

Fin.

****Spoils****

01 – Learned Ability: Blood Lizard fighting style. Learned with Kryos’ Blood Gaze just before Lexxum died. He is only able to use it when his Shrodeye (Blood Gaze) is activated.

02 – Purification Stone. This was merged with Kryos’ muandrian (sword), giving it a holy attribute. It is effective against the undead, or anything that has been tinted with dark magic. Due to this, Kryos’ sword glows white when he wields it. The effect has also spread to the scabbard of the sword. This is also the weak magical item of choice.

All right, I'm sorry this took so long to judge, but here we are at last! Kryos, since this is your first time being judged, I'm going to go over the categories and what they mean.


Continuity: 5

Continuity is basically asking where you came from, why you're here now, and what you're doing after.

I don't know anything about Kryos, why he was in the Red Forest, where he came from, anything, and you didn't go over it at all in the thread. It was like you were dropped out of nowhere into the story. A key thing to remember is that no matter what, your story begins before the thread does. I'd like to see some backstory. I do know what you're going to try to do in the future, though, and that's a good start.

Lexxum, I got a good sense of where you were, although you kept shoving in clips of the past erratically without tying them in enough that I knew what you meant by them. I'm also not entirely sure where you're going from there, since you died. Though there are several possibilities.

Setting: 4

Setting is the environment you travel through and act on. It isn't just the flowers and trees and buildings and air, it's the apple you grab at the stand and the coin you throw the vendor.

You both tended to ignore the setting for the most part, and then put in excess detail when you thought it needed it. Keep the environment and how you act on it in mind, and make sure the reader has a solid idea of it, too.

Pacing: 3

Pacing is how the thread flowed, if it dragged or rushed, etc.

This had numerous pacing issues. First of all, for the plot that I saw, the thread was way too long for its plot. Thus, it had a tendency to start, then stop, then kinda drag its heels, then rush, then stop, then false start, then start again. It made the thread a pretty hard read.

Try going for a simple plot and making it flow smoothly, and then work your way up in complexity. Also, when your partner charges forward, don't lurch back. When he had everyone ready to head out the door in the clearing, you had half of the team sparring.

Persona: 3

Persona is how well each character (NPCs included) showed their true selves.

For Kryos, I didn't feel like I knew anything about him and who he really was until almost the end. I know that this is his first quest and you're just getting a feel for him, but I'd like you to come forward with who he is, be sure and assertive about it, instead of following behind and taking someone else's lead.

Lexxum, despite the fact that you write in first person for this character, you sound really detached from the character, as though you're telling it from his perspective, but not from his head. He also seems more refined than your other characters, despite the fact that you try and show him as bestial.

Also, the NPCs pretty much fell flat. A good rule of thumb is: if you name a character, give him/her character.

Action: 3

Action is what happens, whether it's logical that it happens, and whether it was within your ability to have it happen.

Most of my comments here are for Lexxum.

First of all, the moon hitting the planet, which was a meteor in the last thread, and which you wanted to tell me was now an asteroid, was illogical. If a meteor big enough to cause that much destruction hit Althanas, we'd be experiencing global cooling, crop failure, perhaps mass extinction, and absolutely no survivors at the site. And if the entire MOON, as it said in the thread, were to impact Althanas, I think the planet might break. And the atmosphere would all go away. Xem'zund and his minions would be pretty much the least of everyone's problems.

Anyone who saw any of this was tricked by N'Jal's magic.

Also, when you described the attack that was meant to save Anne, you said it was "more powerful than any Turlin magic." This is powergaming, you are a Level 1, please remember that.

For the rest of the action, it was about as sporadic as the pacing. Nothing for long stretches, and then lots, almost at random, within a very short space of time.

Dialogue: 4

Dialogue is what you say, how you say it, and whether or not it fits.

Kryos, your dialogue was okay. Nothing was particularly special, but he did talk when he had something to say and stayed silent when he didn't.

Lexxum...when you're going to beat the crap out of someone, you don't have the character talk about it. He's a big lizard man, for crying out loud. He shouldn't be all "I'm taking you in for crimes against humanity," that's Alberdyne's schtick. I'd see Lexxum as more the type to roar and try and bite someone's throat out. I also don't see him as the type to make grand speeches.

Mechanics: 6

This is the stuff that takes such things as spelling, punctuation, and completeness of sentences into account.

Kryos, you had a few typos here and there, but otherwise, you're pretty good here.

Lexxum...most of the comments I've made in other threads still apply. You still have fragments, run-ons, and word groupings that just don't make sense. Also, you kept using "trapezius muscle." Honestly, it's simpler and clearer to say "shoulder." Remember what I said a while back? No jargon when there's a plain English word.

Techinque: 3

Technique is the use of aspects of formal writing.

I didn't see much from Kryos, but from Lexxum I saw an attempt at flowery language that confused me and read more as awkward.

Clarity: 6

Clarity is how well I could understand things.

I could understand most of it, but a lot of things that happened on Lexxum's end had me trying to puzzle through what was happening and hoping it'd get clear in the next bit.

Wild Card: 5

This is basically that "other" category, where we lump in other things that don't fit anywhere else.

I'd like to say that this was a good attempt for a first thread, and I look forward to seeing you around the forum.

Total: 39! Congratulations!

Rewards:

Kryos gains 1430 EXP, 300 GP and his spoils, with the stipulation that the holy spell is a weak one. You can have it amped up when you request your magical item. Blood Lizard fighting style subject to RoG approval.

Lexxum Vordic gains 1780 EXP, 300 GP and his spoils, but the breastplate of the armor has a big hole in it from when the necromancer attacked him.

EXP/GP added!