-Quick Turn-Silver Tree shoulders his grief and moves on. It seems that no matter how fast he runs, he can't shake the Mother T-Rex though...she continues to follow, tracking his scent trail with supernatural accuracy. She's never more than ten minutes behind him.
By the time he reaches the the village, the Ogres have prepared themselves, having heard the stomping and roaring from afar. They have formed a defensive shield line, and refuse Silver Tree entry into the village. He can see the Chief is arguing with some of the Ogre thanes.
Thogga rushes out
"
Bad news, tree-friend! The Ogres say they won't let you back in. The Shaman admitted to them he had sent you to steal the egg to the North of here, mostly as a joke, since he didn't believe anyone would actually try...well, they say if they let you in, the Mother T-Rex will destroy the village to get you, and do it afterwards if you escape. "
"
You know, they call her "Shakkalka Arg U Gorld Unk Krasj", which in your language means "Devouring Rage of Heaven Ultimate Destroyer"...you should really have asked about this before you left."
Thogga shakes his head, and retreats back into the village.
Silver Tree doesn't have alot of time to make his choice.
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Blade Singer walks forward, hands up in a token of parley. He's barely 40 feet away when he hears the audible click of multple crossbows being readied.
A comely female Orc rises from the shadows in front of him. Her true form is hidden within the folds of her dark cloak and rags. Only her eyes can be seen-the shade of a vibrant sapphire blue. She's oddly beautiful in the moonlight, Blade Singer thinks...
"I hope we've passed the test for dramatics?
I know why your here. I also want to help you. But, certain precautions must be followed...we do have a reputation to uphold."Blade Singer is carefully stripped of his armor and weapons, and led into the Shadow-Blades domain. In fact, the seemingly empty and destroyed ruins cleverly conceal a sprawling, well fortified complex of hidden traps, sniper holes and guard posts that serves as the Orc Assassins monastery.
Blade Singer is led to the deepest recesses...Lord Grey marveled...
I marveled at the Orcs ingenuity. An entire fortress, hidden under ground. I thought only the Dwarves were capable of such feats. I was glad I had chosen not to attack them. As I descended, I found an entire army worth of Orc Assassins. Neega would later tell me that they were not only founded to protect the Orcs from invaders, but they policed the Orc Clans themselves for signs of corruption and evil. An honorable group, even if their tactics were decidely vile...
I knew what they wanted me to do once we reached the inner sanctum. The test I had to undergo was a dangerous one. What would I not risk to hold my love again, though?Blade Singer returns to his body, an Neega shows him a long, saw bladed knife-actually, it's a tooth-looks like a wolf tooth. She takes out a small red urn, opens it and dips the fang in the black liquid it contains. Then she hands it to Blade Singer. Neega speaks.
"This fang is coated in the poison of the Dark Wolf Yelkmor, the destroyer of this village, who I slew myself. It can fell the strongest warrior-no matter how strong your body is, only your willpower can save you from death. Scratch your arm with this, and if you survive the hour, you will gain my blessing. You must understand-my brother Okus will not listen to your pleas, and will even go against his word if given. I need you to survive this test, so that I can convince my father to help you, against the words of the Axe-Brother.
If you don't wish to do this...I can still help you, but not in that way...but my father is the only one who knows where Mother lives now. This choice is yours."Blade Singer stares at the fang, watching as a thin sheen of black smoke rises from it. The choice is his to make. The calculating blue eyes of Shadow-Sister Neega, from across an age of men and an eternity of the Gods, gaze upon him serenely.
Heroquest Stats
Spirit 13/15 (Your Spirit is strong)
Body 11/16 (Your Body is stable)
Mind 13/13 (Your Mind is strong)
Quest Artifacts
Yelkmors Venomous Fang
Lord Greys Razor Edged Greatsword
Lord Greys Runed Cloak of Blade-Turning
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Merame is about apply the Ice Cap to Sheltering Leaves, when the Blood Shaman emerges from his hut, wearing his Red Skull Mask. He speaks common, like you. Darain is happy to have to translate, for once.
"Save your supplies, warriors, for more dire straits. Let me show you something."Merrigurthag chants silently, and the blood that Sheltering Leaves spilt in the battle comes back to life, floating toward him, entering and closing his wounds, and restoring his strength. Sheltering Leaves awakens-his wounds seem to have healed.
((Sheltering Leaves, all HP refilled!))
"As you can see, Blood Magic is capable of good things, as well as evil. It is always the user who determines which." He motions for them to follow him. Merrigurthag pauses for a moment, shaking his staff, and reanimating the blood on the ground to form a sort of cage around the Spider-Elf.
"These bars are not steel, Spider-Elf, but if you try to break them, you will suffer most horribly before you die. I would enjoy it, at least. Stay where you are until your master comes to retrieve you."He invites the Kai into his home...it's sparsely decorated, but fairly roomy. Many strange alchemical ingredients are stored on shelfs in the walls, and a bubbling cauldron of red liquid complete the "Crazy Shamans Hut" effect he was going for. Molten Heart notices many Ogre-Sized soul fetches hanging about, for defense against...what?
Merrigurthag takes off his imposing red mask to reveal the face of an old Ogre-one of his eyes is white, but the other one is red. As he takes off the mask, they fade to a normal brown hue.
"The Mask is a tool of the trade, I'm afraid. Now, you will ask what you want, and I will listen to you."