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Back to the Beginning
As Missy Hissy left the rogues guild, Bratsol pulled her aside. “Now that yer a member of the guild, are ya interested in taking care of some guild business? There’s something in it for ya, if ya can do it.”
“Perhaps,” replied Missy. “What’s needed?”
“A rogue assassin needs to be put down,” said Bratsol. “Grue Morde is his name, and he has… displeased … the guild. Rogue assassins can’t be tolerated, and assassins who give freebies… ugh! There’s no business to be made in free work. Find this Grue Morde and take care of him. The guild will thank you for it…”
“I can do that,” said Missy. “Any idea where he might be?”
“He was last seen near Brimloch Roon, but that’s no guarantee of anything. Ya might even ask him about that ring – odds are he knows something of it, since he was the guild secretary for a bit. Made it a point to know about the contracts out there, in case he might fill one.” Bratsol grimaced. “And then he starts givin’ freebies… argh, it pains me to think of it.”
“I’ll see what I can do,” said Missy as she headed out the door.
The dark night of the Gael Serran was brighter than Missy’s mood as she left the safety of Ishad N’ha. Anger over the unseen person responsible for her father’s death boiled into her blood. Sure, she had taken care of the hand that killed her father, but the body that sent the hand… she still had to take care of that.
Grabbing her cloak, she headed toward the back entrance to the Dragon Spire. She still had some work to do there, and her attitude wasn’t getting any better waiting for it.
Heading back into the Spire, she found that life wasn’t getting any easier. A giant scorpion was one of the first beasties to try her mettle, and after a few well-placed sword strokes, the scorpion’s sting was no more. She found a strange piece of dragon crystal near the scorpion, and later, she found another piece after defeating a giant spider queen. She ran across Kol, the seemingly insane hermit she had met near the serpent temple; he babbled about the Mavin and fate, and disappeared into the shadows again.
“One of these days,” thought Missy, “I may have to put him out of my misery.”
She came across a crystal serpent in the depths of the spire, and retrieved its eye after slaying it and its friends. While retrieving the eye, she spied a dark opening in the bottom of the pool. Surfacing for a deeper breath, she dove down again and looked into the opening.
It opened to a small grotto with yet another Oracle, yet another otherworldly being to help guide her. She was starting to get tired of all these people who knew her destiny, but decided to pay attention one last time.
The guardian spoke to her of her mission, and offered her a ring. But not just any ring; one that could remove the boulders she had seen earlier in a passageway, the boulders that blocked her way to a chest with, hopefully, the last piece of dragon crystal.
Scampering back out, Missy grabbed a jewel-encrusted sword she had spied on the bottom of the pool and headed up to the surface. Upon closer inspection, it was a nightblade, a mystical weapon offering greater accuracy, better damage, and the occasional paralyzed opponent. Missy traded her old sword for the nightblade and spent a few minutes practicing. It felt good… what more could you ask for?
Still nursing a dark cloud of gloom, Missy continued her search through the Spire, removing the two boulders and uncovering the last dragon shard, and finding Hephaestus, Erzebette’s friend to whom she had delivered the letter.
Hephaestus told her much about the dragon and the other things he’d created. The little inventor was quite in demand, making unique items for the Boogre queen, the Stout king, and others. Hopefully he wouldn’t be too upset that Missy had been taking care of his customers.
Missy climbed to the top of the spire with Hephaestus’ strange elevator and found the door where the dragon pieces fit. On the other side, she saw the strange Kol talking to the dragon who had flown over her head some days ago. Interestingly, Kol, who was about as big as the dragon’s claw, was insulting the dragon, demanding it turn over the Mavin sword. After a moment or two, the great dragon simply rolled one leg over and squished the demented priest like a plump waterbug lazy under the hot sun.
As Missy approached, the dragon noticed her and began to roll another leg. Thinking quickly, Missy tried to recall the mystic word. “El Shaddai? El Segundo? Elseeyalater?” The dragon kept coming closer. “Elseramavin?”
“Ahh…” breathed the dragon, rising its giant head. “You speak the sacred word. You are the next champion… but wait! You must still provide the second piece of the puzzle before I can release the Mavin. Have you the Shroud?”
Missy produced the Shroud, which quickly disappeared into the dragon’s hoard.
“Good, good. Now, I offer you the Mavin Sword… but beware! It always comes back, but those who take it never do. They are consumed by its unholy fire.”
Missy stepped back from the great dragon and went through the door the dragon had just opened. On an onyx stand stood the Mavin sword, the item Gareth had sent her to look for. Curious… it didn’t look that impressive. As she hefted it, a brief tingling feeling passed through her arm and quickly dissipated. Well, perhaps it would be useful later.
She checked the two treasure chests near the sword and uncovered D’Soto’s chain, the magical armor of the last champion of the Gael Serran. While it was powerful, she decided that her armor was better. “Who knows – in a hundred years, someone may be pulling my plate out of this same box.”
As Missy left the dragon’s quarter’s, she found herself in the northern reaches of the forests between Ishad N’ha and Brimloch Roon. As the sun rose, burning brightly in the morning sky, Missy’s heart burned just as darkly. Thoughts of the mysterious person who had contracted her father’s death ran through her head, and she headed down the Spire trail towards Brimloch Roon, a foul mood sending stormclouds into the Gael Serran in front of her.
On to Chapter 19
[ 02-26-2003, 10:53 PM: Message edited by: Bungleau ]