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The Arcane Order |
| In the fading light of the evening, he made
his way east from the Yew Moongate. He was ragged, and seemed emaciated
from hunger, but will alone pressed him forward into the dangerous
darkness of Spirit Wood. He was searching for something... something
that made all other considerations meaningless.
The candle placed atop the skull he now held in his hands gave off an eerie, greenish glow. Its flame did not dance in the cooling nighttime breeze. Instead it burned sideways, always facing the same direction. It was a beacon, a guide, shaped by forbidden magic, and conformed to the will of the traveler. And it pointed toward TelRuid. The sound of footsteps made its way toward the stranger. He reached to his side, pulling away the folds of his cape, and exposing the hilt of his weapon. His bony hand gripped the weapon and drew it from its sheath. The footsteps drew closer. He stood ready, his blade held aloft by sinewy arms and bony fists. An onlooker may have mistaken him for an undead creature. The weapon itself was something to fear and to marvel at. The hilt was crafted of polished obsidian, with exquisite carvings all about it. The blade, however, was the dull white of a bone a sharp contrast to the black of the hilt. In the green glow of the skull-candle, the blade took an even more sinister aura. The footsteps made their way into the clearing, and the green glow of the candle revealed the familiar garb of a wandering healer. Oh... pardon me. I did not mea... The voice was cut short as the blade was thrust into the healers stomach. A fraction of a cry went out before that, too, was silenced. The attacker continued the thrust, angling upward so that, when the weapon finally exited, only the smallest bit of it was exposed through the back of his neck. Still alive, but both paralyzed and mortally wounded, the healer was gently guided to the ground by the stranger. Im sorry that you are in pain. But you must understand that the process takes some time... and you must be alive through all of it. A half-hour later, a youthful man with striking red hair made his way eastward. His pace was determined as he made his way through the night. To his left, he spied a band of orcs, and an ettin traveling near them. But they never even noticed as he passed within a yard of them... Perfect, he thought. That healer was just enough to give me the strength I need. His skull-candle continued to guide him to the elven glade, but a shroud of imperceptibility now masked his approach... |
The
Library Arcane: The Lord of the Dead