Ring of Fire

We have reached the islands.  The air is thick with ash from the volcanic rocks. Brechnar, Jalis' brother, stands with us on the port and we are instantly despaired, as the path is thick with mursaat guards and it seems hopeless.  He turns to me with a wink, and yells "FOR THE DWARVES!" and alone he runs, taking all the Mursaat with him.  A heroes death, much like Saidra.  We do not waste our moment and run up the opposite path scarcely seen by enemy eyes.  We reach a magical ward that blocks our progress.  Carefully, I distract the Jade guards with my longbow, and then we go in for the kill.

Iron Mines of Moladune

 Up the mountain we climb.  The chilled air thinning with every step.  I am going to kill Markis. The traitourous swine needs his heart cut out, and served to Saidras monument on a platter of gold.  I am also off to see if the Seer can aid our fight. Evennia's intelligent officers tell us the Seer is holed up in a cave atop the mountain.   Fiends of all types dog our feet while we take the mountain backpathes.  To face the mursaat now would be a suicide mission. A price we cannot afford to pay. 

What the Seer has is store for us in a mystery.  The secrets to the mursaat much the same.  When we reach him it is with nervousness, and awe to finally have a way to defeat these terrible beasts.  The seer stands by a fire.  Or floats, I should say.   It hovers over the ground, a creature unlike any i've ever seen.  Its body wide and rectangular as a stone coffin, its voice faintly feminine and robotic.  I can scarcely believe a creature such as this would need our help, but it tells me that it wants to help us because I will do what its kind never could; defeat the Mursaat for good.  It cannot help me as it stands though.  There is a beast, a Eidolon, in a cave nearby and its skin is naturally immune to the agonizing touch of the Mursaat.  Naturally, I must kill it and bring its guts steaming freshly to the Seer and he will infuse my armor with it.  Also naturally, I do as it asks.

Time to test this spectral beings work.  I leave the cave to go further up the mountain and encounter my first Mursaat.  I am stronger, and he does not overcome me like before.  It works!  Praise be to Dwayna.  The playing field is now even.  Before killing Markis, I decide to take my new gift for a spin.  I am going to release all their prisoners, and dismantle their trebuchets, annihilation of the white mantle and mursaat is also on my menu.  I climb back down the mountain through the enemy camps until I find Blade Scout Ryder.  Only one prisoner? I had wished to hit them much harder, but Ryder tells me there is a Judge. And Inquisitor if you will, and he is leaving to meet with Markis at this moment.  I will take his head for Ascalon.

Taking a moment, I breathe.  I put myself back on track. We come up to Markis' keep, and dispatch of his watch from outside the wall.  Inside, he scoffs at us seeking revenge, but  he is grossly outnumbered now, and we are immune to the Mursaats agony.  He is dead, and Evennia curses him in death to spend his time in the mists in torture for those he's gotten killed and betrayed.  Saidra has been avenged.

To Kryta!

Rurik is dead. I don't know what to do.  I know that I am to take charge.  I am in charge now. A promotion I take with a very heavy and conflicted heart.  There are centaurs everywhere, but atleast the dwarves are gone.   It seems I am not the only lost and conficted ascalonian in the mountains though.  The refugees run in to battle half hearted, and needlessly at times.  Its almost as if their survival is no longer relevent.  They just want to inflict pain in hopes to lessen some of their own.  I am too tired to stop them.  Mentally and physically exhausted from our journeys, I must collect myself.  I still have people to lead.  We weave our way through the Deldrimor Bowl, in to Griffon's Mouth where we meet Master Seeker Nathanial.  He says that the archer Aiden has gone ahead, and left us his ranger markers to show the way.

In the caves we meet a friendly army from Kryta.  They label themselves the White Mantle, they are the peacekeepers of Kryta and they are happy to see us.  Seems the unrest has come to Kryta aswell.  We continue to follow Aiden's marks through the cave until sure enough we find the man himself.  Greeted with a smile the size of of a great whale it is hard not to feel lighter of heart when we see him.  He cheers and whoops with glee that we had not all perished, and though his show is very genuine there is a dimness to his eye.  I say nothing but take the man in my arms and give him an embrace of happiness.  He gives me a letter for Ambassador Braun, assigned assistant to the Ambassador Zain, and embittered I take it.  My prince perishes amidst the snow and the ambassador seems to have no issue getting through, I wonder why.   The Krytans are having a civil war aswell at the moment, and Aiden tells me Braun will fill me in.  There is more to do before we can reach our settlement, so off  to the beaches we head to deliver our papers.

You think I would be happy to finally be out of the snow.  The ambassador awaits us directly outside the cave, the sand is soft and warm on my sandals.  I am to head next to the Gates of Kryta, the witness Casori will allow us passage through.  Shortly in to our beach vacation, I see what problems it was they meant.  There are ghouls and ghosts.  Hostile Zombies creating minions, merpeople disabling walking speeds.  These are much more hostile lands than the King had spoken of.  When the king spoke of Kryta, which he did often, he painted the lands to be full of traitors and cowards.  These dangerous spectors are run off from when Orr sunk in ancient times.  Civil unread caused that aswell, and as I recall the story I am much reminded of what happened to us in Ascalon.  Pride destroying all that is good for everyone.  But we find these ghouls are just as succeptible to death as the living, and we make it to the gates.  Casori is excited to meet us.  It has been years since a person from Ascalon has set foot in Kryta, and they think it is a momentous occasion the likes of Saul D'Alessio would even have liked to see.   Who in the world is Saul D'Alessio?  He fills me in on history of old, how Orr, Ascalon and Kryta were too busy warring with eachother to notice the Charr population amassing and arming.  Hard run and empty from the fight between eachother, the Charr had an easy time taking over.  While on the run, a young hero named Saul D'Alessio emerged and put spirit in his citizens, and eventually they were able to push back the Charr and retake their lands.  Enough though, I am to take our refugees to Justiciar Hablion by Lions Arch and he will give us our accomodations, and lead us to the tracts of land that are to be our own.  We have atlast made it, one more mission to Lion's Arch and our people shall finally be free and safe.

The Frost Gate

The magical becaon burns bright here at the gate.  I had a troubled sleep.  We are almost at Kryta, atleast we are closer to Kryta than to the breach.  Come so far, but all we learn of is more and more turmoil in the continent.  If indeed it is the flameseeker, than that means now is the time for our heroes aswell.   Some of these heroes among us may save the world, or we may all perish in titan fire.  The Frost gate is closed.  Its not as simple as lighting some beacons this time, the Summit dwarves have broken the levers and outnumber us in mass.

 We are followed up the mountain by minotaurs.  Rurik and I split up, he is to take the lower path while I take the upper path.  He cannot continue until we slay the ballistae engineers.  It is a slow process, and we can only inch further, our progress depending on that of the princes and he on ours. Garris Nightwatch, a foe ranger dwarf of the summit mocks us while he hides pretty behind a gate, but the look on his face was not so pretty when we killed his engineer, throwing the gate open unwillingly.

 Running through a cave we find Rornak Stonesledge, captured again. He stinks of ale He is no good at this spy job.  He got the information he was looking for though.  The stone summit are attempting to further their Ballistae of mass destruction, but they are not done and the blueprints are easily stolen.  We lead Rornak to a decripit shooter that he will fix, and he will blast the gates to where the plans are hidden.  We sit thier bosses throats and forge on until the last ballistae gate is open.

We finally meet with Rurik.  He tells me that I must fix the lever to the gate mechanisms.  He and his small troop will hold off the wave of dwarves that will spill out when seeing the Frost gate move, and I will lead all the refugees towards the gates of Kryta.  First we must attend to the ballistae. We melt and crush ice beast after ice beast and redden the snow with the blood of dwarves and retrieve Rornak what he was looking for. The Deldrimor Dwarves are finally getting ahead in this rebellion.

I find the gear level directly next to the mechanism. No doubt the planning of a drunken Summit.  Now is the time to open the gate.  Soon we will be overcome, and Rurik will be in danger.  It is time to open the gate. I see three mechanisms I must start in order to open the gate to Kryta.  I begin the first while Rurik readies himself for battle.  I start the second mechanism and Rurik shouts over to me.  I am promoted again.  Probably not the best time, but I see that he's been spotted and the Summit are flying at him en mass.  I run the lever to the third mechanism.  Rurik is fighting for his life.  

 The gate is open, we start leading our refugees through when I hear a great screech.  I run towards where Rurik fights and see Dagnar, Summit boss, atop a great drake.  He yells to Rurik that the mountains belong to him, and his punishment for trespassing is death.  A great avalanche erupts and I run for my prince.  When the snow clears I see he is stuck under debree.  He cannot get out, and I cannot help him.  I am dumbstruck.  He screams at me to take our people to Kryta.  I must obey.  He will not have died in vain.   I get back throug the Frost gate to see him beheaded by the dwarf.  A great man is lost.  We are lost without him.