A Burning Passion

[Smaw 2376]

A Burning Passion

 

 

Ashen stone toppled beside Gijaak'Raguk as he rose to his feet, having made his way to the top of the hill. As he clapped his hands together, he rose his focus to the sight beyond. It was an enormous citadel of threatening pillars and alien design, its core beating with an amber radiance as lava bled from the walls and spilled out onto the surrounding landscape. In the backdrop, the sky was glazed over in a golden hue, as if forged from the hellish plane below. He stood in a moment of silent contemplation, before pulling out his staff and descending into the hostile ground.

 

Yet as the Orc approached the city, the deafening silence of the wilderness had persisted, interrupted only by the occasional hiss of steam or bubble of lava. His eyes narrowed as he looked intently upon the walls and the many glowing windows that adorned the citadel. There appeared no signs of life or activity, only the overwhelming warmth that further sought to encroach upon him.

 

The Shaman entered further still, his hand clutched tighter to his staff. Within the citadel where many shops and homes that ran along the alleys of the region, almost all of them surrounded by abandoned tools and weapons that lay scattered amidst the ash and rubble. Where once civilised paths and adornments stood, were now scorched marks of flame and destruction. He continued along his path until he was met with a sight that stopped him in his tracks.

 

Before him, vast mounds of rubble stretched out in all directions, many weapons and armours protruding from within in their distorted forms. From the top of this rubble, an incredible chasm presented itself, descending into the depths of the earth beneath the ruined city.

 

"What..." He murmured, noting an incredible aura writhing from within the darkness. Gijaak took a moment to quell his fear, before pressing onward. Despite there being no presence of time, the Shaman felt as though he had spent hours descending into the darkness. The choking heat became almost unbearable as the Orc followed down the length of the tunnel, pursuing the faint glow that presented itself in the distance.

 

 

As the Shaman came to the end, he held out his fatigued hand against the sharp and black rock that had loomed over him for so long. He stood in amazement of the enormous expanse before him, comparable to the ground and the sky above in its apparent endlessness. It was difficult to ascertain the depth of this region for all of the blinding radiance that spurned from the flame and lava that infested the walls and floor.

 

It was here that Gijaak no longer noticed the heat around him, for his concern for it had been replaced with one of another- the unspeakable Spiritual energy that shook at his core and radiated with more ferocity than a thousand suns. 

 

As he looked out upon the horizon, a beast of stone and fire emerged from the monolithic stone sat in the river of magma. It appeared as a Dragon, its body sharper than perhaps all of the stone that surrounded it. Lava seemed to surge beneath its scales, as if the creature were a living embodiment of this domain. Four spheres of amber that sat on its head focused on Gijaak as its body posed in an incredible display of power.

 

"Back?" It said, through no apparent source. Instead, the voice seemed to rumble through the entire chasm itself.

 

"Wha-" Gijaak paused, his mouth incapable of following his brains command. Instead, it fumbled in a moment of fear and confusion. "Where are they?"

 

"They?" The creature asked, its neck turning as it seemed to look toward the flames that danced around its threatening form. "They have been consumed."

 

"Consumed?" The Shaman asked, taking a step back from the creature and further into the tunnel. As he did, his back was met with a font of flame, searing and boiling his flesh. He threw his arms out in pain as his staff fell to the floor, clanging along the rock before sliding into the streams of magma below. As he screamed and writhed the flames subdued slightly, the creature looking to Gijaak, who pressed his hands and knees out on the floor, looking up to the creature in defeat.

 

"They were preparing for Waagh." It said, observing as Gijaak's eyes returned to the floor in knowing shame. "The Lord sent me, wary of their progress. You helped them..." It said, seeming to hum in irritation as the chasm shook.

 

"I-I meant only to a-appease the Spirits..." The Shaman said, slowly rising to his feet as his face contorted in tremendous pain. 

 

"Yes..." The creature said, its form incapable of showing any sense of emotion. "He was... impressed with your tenacity. You will serve me now." It said, observing as the Shaman knelt down in submission to the Spirit.

 

"Your name?" He asked.

 

"Kriilag."

 

 

In the coming days, Gijaak'Raguk would work tirelessly to erect a totem within the Druidic lands. One that would burn so intensely that the surrounding forest would catch aflame, the wildlife of the region burned alive in the many metal cages that hung from the trees. A intense Spiritual presence had infested the region- one that would not be subdued so easily.

 

Ash, smoke and blood would write out the Shamans intentions upon the land...

[Gallic 1066]

"I'm sure even Freygoth would be upset with this..." Gwion spoke with a fearful awe of the vibrant flames he dared not near.

 

He spent a long while in contemplation of the past, and...

 

"This isn't a matter of poor relations any more; Someone needs te stop it before another land is consumed by fools who messed with powers beyond their control."

[Travista 1361]

 

 

 

 

Shreck'Lak would erect a fort nearby. He would spend his time hunting in the woods, always ready to defend this insult to Freygoth.

 

"Preyze Laklul."

 

 

[osumanduas 1442]

Moved to The Great Library. It shall be sorted into the appropriate category shortly.

 

If you feel this is a mistake, please contact myself or any FM and we'll restore it.