Hunt the Great Hellwyrm

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As the others seemed to be distracted by the happenings around Lox, Fang remained at the remnants of that pillar. There he communed with the Elder Council, monitored the happenings around the area, and took on his role as guardian with the women, the child and the cultist. His reasoning for such guardianship was simple. The women and the girl had all been locked in a dungeon for some period of time. Regardless of how short it was, they had suffered, and would be hard pressed to mount a defense against their own worries, much less something that may desire to actually harm them. The cultist was severely wounded. While Fang had attempted to repair some of the damage done, it was not much. It was true that the elder could be considered a master of many things, but healing simply was not one of them. The only reason he had the small skill in it that he did was because of the holy artifact weapon at his side.

So, there he sat, as still and watchful as the once grand pillar he now leaned on. The glow of his eyes hid the stone-steady gaze he held, fixed on a solitary point off in the distance while he let his senses tell him the truth of what happened around him.
 
"This place just gets better and better" Rand muttered sourly to himself, hurrying away from the huddled crowd of women and towards the still and ashen-faced Lox. His hand tightened on the grip of his sheathed sabre, though he was unsure what he and the blade could do against the mist-Wraith that had materialised and attacked the caster. He'd fought similar creatures before and managed to keep his skin whole, but he wasn't keen on pushing his luck right now...

His luck was saved as the Wraith seemed to shrink in fear from the attractive newcomer, and faded away to nothing, seemingly deciding to find other prey in this blasted place, a prey that didn't stand fearlessly before it and stare it down. She's probably some bloody demon, or daughter of the King of some bloody Underworld he thought, crouching beside the prone Lox

"Is he alive?" he asked of anyone paying attention. It wasn't the greatest question in the history of enquiries, but it was probably the most pertinent right now. Rand had a unpleasant feeling that they were going to need all the spellcasters they could get soon enough. And having one off'd by a Wraith before they'd even left the city was not a good sign.

OOC: I realise my last post made almost no sense... this is thanks to my works web filter. It blocked the last part of page ten's posts, so I had no idea they were there...
 
The young cultist still hadn't said anything, and Baros shook his head when the commotion outside started up. He wanted to get what information he could out of the boy, so that he didn't need to take him to the chapterhouse. He'd already decided that the cult were simply drawn to the ruined city like moths to a candle flame. They were not responsible for the destruction.

"I will be back in a moment. Perhaps then you might feel up to saying something." Baros said and then wandered out of the temple ruins.

"Do we know what happened to him?" Baros asked after looking at Lox for a moment. He'd seen a fair few spells that could do this, but there were far more out there he'd never encountered, so it was best to ask, rather than making assumptions.
 
Asana Looked to his compatriots as they gathered round himself, Lox, and the mysterious woman. He knew this was a bad sign but what was worse is he had little to work with here there was few ideas springing to mind before he called to Aramil, what he was thinking should have been a sin out right, but he hoped Tyr would forgive him for his rash decision. He had Not spotted the wraith but he knew when someone was close to death and that this was anything but natural. "Aramil bring me your catch of the day " He said quickly before turning to Rand and speaking clearly " I Need Light and a lot of it perhaps a few of those torches from inside the temple " He said before looking to the woman " Do you know anything about herbs from this area ? If you can manage it we need broom weed and wolfs Bane as it is known here, they may allow him to live a little longer till I can get the spell prepared" he said quickly waiting for a response as he could feel Lox was rather close to a quiet end if things could not be set up quickly.

Looking over his shoulder to Baros he called back to him loudly " Not yet but unless I miss my guess something took part of his life force and left him for dead, Since I can't see what ever took it we are left with few options for how to reinforce his life. " He said looking towards Aramil and his captive.
 
Baros spoke a short series of arcane sounding words, and then a glowing white ball formed in the air overhead. It bathed the area in something almost approaching sunlight.

"Does that help?" He asked. "The chapterhouse may have someone who can help, or if not there may be something in one of the tomes of the order that can give us a clue."
 
The information gathering for this particular group had quickly faded when the attention shifted from the devastation wrought by the Hellwyrm to the wraith attack on Lox. While Fang held compassion for all living things, the impact of the Hellwyrm on The Balance was more significant to the Elder Council than the survival of a lone seer. Plus, there was little Fang would have been able to do that the shared capabilities of those already present would have been capable of.

So, Fang rose, with the women, child and cultist still there. He stepped out of the area that was the temple and whistled sharply into what appeared to be thin air. He continued to walk, then, with a purpose to his stride, aimed almost directly for the group gathered around Lox. As he walked, he held one hand out to the side and, as if by magic, was apparently swept up to ride the wind.

Upon closer inspection, one would see the midnight black alicorn that came from the sky to pick up the elder. The pair ran directly by the group, headed in the direction the Hellwyrm traveled, though none of those about seemed to know that other than Fang. There was a disturbing sense that had just pulsated in the air, darkly magical in nature. Fang was sure that, if they hadn't already, the others would feel it soon enough to have some clue where he was going. Most likely Lox would recover with the type of care he was receiving. If nothing else, they could get him moving around enough to bring him with them and Fang could use SevenStars to restore the rest of his life force, once he gathered the next piece of information.
 
Hearing Asana's words, the old man nudged his horse slowly forward, dragging his catch slowly behind him through the dirt. He stopped once the barely conscious cultist lay next to Lox and with a groan of effort, reached back and untied the rope in order to let it fall from his mount, leaving the bound cultist in Asana's care. Plucking a pouch from his saddle bags he casually tossed it before the elf as well, his voice mildly hoarse as he spoke; "There is some wolves bane in there."

And with the comment, he simply turned the horse around, moving back to where he had sat away from the group earlier. When the other was swept away off his feet and darted passed the group, Aramil could only shake his head softly commenting to himself softly; "Such impetuousness..." Inevitably, he found himself seated off to the side of the group once more, near the temple entrance, simply observing the event as it unfolded. Pulling a tome from his bags, a seemingly ancient book, its cover wilted and molded with age, the old man was content to scribble on the parchment inside while the others went about their business.
 
When everyone started to gather around Lox, she took a step back. This was their companion, their friend. Truly, she had no place interfering. When Asana spoke to her, she nodded then looked to Penumbra and nodded to him as well.

Moving off, she gathered the wolfs vane and went in search of broom weed. After a few minutes she returned and handed both to Asana, waited for him to take them then stepped back once more. In silence she watched what all went on, speaking to noone as she idly ran her hands along Zeus's neck.
 
At Asana's behest, Rand had hurried back into the defiled Temple ruins. The gore that streaked the walls and pooled on the floor had begun to dry, and his boots made sticky noises at every step. He carefully ignored the noises, the smell, and the corpses strewn across the chamber as he began tuggin torches from the brackets and cracks that held them aloft.

However, by the time he emerged, the spell-sword Baros had already provided light, and much better than the smoky torches that were singeing Rands fingers. With a grunt he tossed the burning lights back into the temple, and sauntered over to Aramil. He had no ability with healing, beyond wrapping a rag around a wound, and had no wish to be any closer than necessary if when the Elf started flashing spells around. It seemed Aramil had little interest in being near the healing, which suited Rand just fine.

When one of the newcomers extended a hand and was seemingly whisked into the air by the breeze, Rand gave a start. But when he failed to return breathing fire, he relaxed a little. This damn place is getting to me. The sooner we get out of here, the better!

 
As Fang rode aback the alicorn toward the source of the dark energy pulse, he communicated back and forth with the others of the Elder Council. When sitting together, the elders shared information with each other through pure understanding. Not even mental words were exchanged. When a grouping of elders had need to speak with one of their own not present, their voices came through to that one's mind as a single collection of voices.

~You will need to evaluate the others' interaction with the beast, neutral one. Do not face this alone until we can be certain of the thing's nature.~ One major flaw with the Elder Council was that a good majority of them believed themselves superior to all creatures, including each other. The only member any of them gave even remote respect to was Fang, simply because of his neutrality. Luckily, Fang had long ago figured out how to deal with the superiority mindset.

His response was instantaneous. -The others are occupied with their seer companion. Most of them are mortal and vulnerable to quick emotional changes, much as you were when you were young dragons.- The use of "you" instead of "we" was one way to get their attention.

~The creature who wrought destruction is more important than the seer. You must get their attention.~

-I can see that just as well as you can. If the seer was a close companion of yours you would not believe him to be so unimportant. When they feel the seer is no longer in danger they will come. If you truly wish to speed the process along then lend aid to the one attempting to heal him. Otherwise, keep in mind that I am the representative for the center of The Balance and, as such, am fully capable of deciding when it is in the most danger.-

The response from the other elders was not so immediate, this time. They were debating amongst each other. The Elder Council consisted of a range of alignments from dark chaotic evil to light lawful good. The ones closer to the center of The Balance tended to favor Fang's word, whereas the ones to the more extreme sides wanted immediate action. Eventually, though, they came to an agreement. ~Verywell, neutral one. We will leave the decisions with this particular creature up to you. However, you will be held responsible for any tilting of the balance that results from its presence.~

Fang chose not to answer. He had reached the location where the pulse of dark energy came from. Once again, the Hellwyrm had eluded him. But he was closer. The council was right about one thing, though. He needed to get the others' attention. He just had to figure out how.
 
There was something strange amiss, far stranger than a wraith but much more subtle. Something was listening into the communications of the elder dragons. Listening in a way only It could.

When Fang had finished his dialogue, Something shifted in the ashes and sped off.

Across alleyways and forlorn streets a massive cloud of ash quaked over the town of Free Haven and then faded. A faint rumbling, and then noting. There was not surge of energy, just a sudden and inexplicable shift of emotion, of dread that superseded the already dreadful situation. Then it was gone.

At that moment Lox Regardie inhaled sharply and sat up, his eyes wide and his skin pale. He murmered something and fell to his side, his hands barely catching him. To his eyes, he saw blurred images of the people standing around him, but his memory was hazy.

"W-what..."

Then the dull ache hit, and he realized he didn't have the strength to move much.
 
Looking to Baros he nodded with a smile nothing like having another mage around when you needed light to prepare a potion or a spell. "That's perfect if you can keep that up for a bit that will be wonderful " He said before turning his attention towards the woman who had returned with the supplies he asked her to get then Aramil also chimed in with Wolfs bane . Asana almost thought of asking for something impossible to find just to see if he could have them find that for him, but he was well aware he left it in Camdia.

Gathering the brooms weed he sets it around the still unconscious seer. It was his hope to use the Brooms weed to deflect some of the negative energies and the escape of anymore of his life force from Loxs body while he prepared the spell to suck the life from the prisoner and implant it into the seers body. Blinking hard a moment as he gathered the two collections of Wolfs Bane also known as Tyrs helm he took the fresh leaves that the woman whos name he was not familiar with and began crushing them in his hand the smell of the leaves filling the air as he dropped the leaves over Loxs mouth, nose and the energy centers on his chest.

Seeing Rand run out with the torches he felt a little disheartened because Rand did what he was asked too, but at the same time it had all been for naught. He was about to call Rand over and have him burn some of the brooms weed and wolfs bane for a smudging of the seers body but it was then that the seer awoke with a start. Which caused even Asana to jump back "If your going to die tell me, if your not going to die you owe this woman, and Aramil a few coins for gathering herbs and a prisoner to save you from the gate. "
 
She stood back in silent reserve, observing everything and everyone around her. Zeus had wondered off and was standing a few feet away from the group. Casting a glance around her, she realized she was most likely no longer needed.

With a soft whistle, Zeus returned to her side and folded his front knees, dropping beside her. Looking to Asana as she slid onto his back and her steed returned to his full height she shook her head. " Nay, he owes me nothing. " Giving a small smile, she motioned to Zeus with her legs and he replied by moving away from the group once more.

Watching them all for a moment, many things from her past came back to haunt her. She sighed, shaking her head and the memories away. She would remain for a few more minutes to see if anything else was needed or required by her. If not, she would venture out of the city and see what she could find out about the beast who caused this destruction.
 
Fang did not enjoy the idea of taking such direct action in these events at such a premature juncture. However, there was little choice in the matter. Being creatures of an alignment, the others were susceptible to emotional changes that could quickly take their minds off of the more important issue. Such had happened here.

He was far enough away to where a change to his true form would not be seen. A warcry while in such a form, however, would be impossible to ignore.

He changed shape quickly to that of an elder dragon over 500' tall and took a deep pull of air, nearly filling his tremendous lungs to capacity. A short moment later, he released the breath in a gargantuan roar of battle that shook the sky and rocked the earth for miles, loosening rocks and limbs from their base.

As soon as he finished, the elder dragon switched back to his human form with a powerful echo of the roar still reverberating through the air. His goal was to make the others remember, if not think the call came from, the Hellwyrm. He hoped it would draw them here, at which point the casters would be able to analyze the nature of the powerful energy from the beast still emanating in the area. He could do so himself, but that would be even more involvement than he'd already used. He took the lesser of two non-neutralities.
 
"Dragon!" Baros shouted and drew his sword. The speculation about a dragon having destroyed the town was one thing, but any dragon capable of such a feat was not one he could ever fight. He'd faced a dragon once before in the desert to the west, but it was only a hatchling. Even so he reacted quickly.

"Either the creature you think has done this is back, or another scaled beast has been drawn here. We should leave at once. Can the seer be moved?" He asked Asana.
 
At the tremendous roar, Rand very nearly made a noise that can only be written as 'Eeep'. Fortunately for his ego and sense of male bravado, all he actually did was gasp, and draw his sword, useless as the gesture may be. His blue eyes flitted immediately to the sky, expecting at any moment to see the dark silhouette of fire-breathing death. Moments after his initial start, he realised that the cry had come from some distance, and the echoes were all wrong for it to have been overhead...

At another time, Rand may have wryly thanked Baros for pointing out the obvious, but given his near-'Eeep' experience, he kept quiet. Besides, he took a slight comfort in the fact that the caster had drawn his blade too. Looking over at Magus, Rand moved closer to the vertical mage. "If he can't do his floating trick, he can have my horse. If there's a Dragon headed this way, then I'll bloody well run!".

It was at this moment that Rand took into account another sound he'd heard in the moments after the thunderous roar - the sound of his crow-bait mount scarpering across the cracked cobbles of the street. Stupid bloody horse! At least I didn't run!. Spying the bedraggled tail of his even more bedraggled horse cowering in the shelter of a collapsed wall, Rand trotted over to the animal, darting down between it and the drunkenly leaning wall, and snatching up the animals reins. With much cursing and pulling, Rand persuaded the animal to leave it's erstwhile sanctuary, and rejoin the others, who would hopefully be ready to leave, if not already underway....
 
Lox had risen to his elbows, but he found himself a new burst of energy as the far-off roar of a Dragon prompted him to his feet. Immedietly, Regardie stumbled forward, his body rather week and his reserves low. Dammit.

The white-haired Seer chanced a gaze over his shoulder toward the alley where the Wraith had risen from. He wasn't once for vengeance, but he was one for caution.

He moved a bit slower than the rest, considering, but the shock on his system seemed to be wearing off. Regardie approached Rand and his horse, his own hand supporting himself against a nearby wall. He would need to meditate soon.

Then he saw the monstrous plume of ash rising in the distance, from the direction of the roar. A mental note, stressed, prompted the Seer to rise from his feet and begin moving back, towards the road that would leave town.

"I-it might be a nice time fr us to vacate the area, if you please...", Lox managed, eyeing Baros.
 
A cloaked figure walked out of the shadows, having used them to travel from home, behind the elder dragon as he returned to a human form. She had been come to this place to search for the power behind such destruction. It was slightly surprising to walk upon the black dragon, or rather pleasing actually. He was not the cause of this she knew, she could taste the energy left behind by the beast in the air. She did not seem at all concerned about her own safety so near him, she walked forward toward the center of activity.

He would know immediately that she was no mortal and she cared not to hide that. Although exactly what she was would be hard to pinpoint even for him, although it would accurate to say her aura was neither good nor totally evil. She paused a few steps away from him regarding him at least with some caution as she raised a pale hand, with black painted nails, to push the hood of the dark red cloak back. Raven black hair falls to her mid back and she ran her fingers through it to get some strands from her pale face. Icy light blue eyes stared at him intensely and a smirk graced red painted lips.

Standing before Fang in the rubble of Freehaven, now the city of death, was a woman that gods and demon lords a like disowned. She was the outcome of what happened forgotten centuries ago when a Goddess of magic conspired with a demonic lord, the reasons now forgotten. She had been hunted by both parties, condemned to death at birth but somehow had survived. Walking the path of a magic user exploiting the traits both parents gave to her. Once power hungry to prove herself to both those above and below. The goddess and demon had met mysterious ends over a century ago. The woman no long tried to prove herself, she had found something else to follow. She was once mated to a blue/shadow dragon until he betrayed her, how is not exactly clear to any beyond the parties involved. However, his death was not one that was hidden and mysterious. He was possibly the only thing her black heart had ever cared for and she stared into his eyes coldly as her trap drained him of his life force and power.

If anyone was here that knew her they would have been surprised that she didn’t make some sarcastic remark about Fang’s show of power and flame when it wasn’t needed, the city was already destroyed after all. Perhaps the smirk she gave said it all. Instead for a moment her cold stare left him to survey the damage and she sighed almost disappointedly “Seems I missed all the action.†Her tone was displeasing and cold.
 
"Aye. Tis time to be leaving my frends. I think perhaps this situation calls for a faster means of transport than simply riding." He said, and then walked to his own mount. After sheathing his sword he reached into his saddlebags and took out a metal box with runes engraved upon its surface. He walked back away from his horse and set the box down atop a smallish, flat topped section of the temple wall.

He spoke a word of arcane power, and the tip of his right index finger glowed white, then he traced a series of runes upon the box lid. As each was traced, a corresponding one upon the box glowed in response. When each rune was lit, there was a click and the box opened. There were five crystals, each of the same cut, long and thin with a triangular cross section. All were white, and looked identical. Baros however ran his hand over each in turn, until he reached the fourth from the left, then removed it from the box and closed the lid.

"If there are no objections I shall teleport us to the chapterhouse."
 
The woman appearing behind him did nothing to alarm him. Then again, it had been centuries since he had last been startled. He knew she arrived in time to witness his change from his true form. It made no difference. There were others amongst the group still at Freehaven who already knew what he was. Again, his concern was to get the attention of the others back o task. What happened otherwise was of no consequence, a result of true neutrality.

As she spoke he sensed the use of arcane power. He simply turned his head in that direction, unaffected by her, or her tone. After turning his head back to the front, without so much as glancing at her, he spoke in his deep, emotionless tone, still echoing upon itself. "Perhaps."
 
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