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No. 8793
Audio
50_-_Repression_(Memoro_de_la_S^tono).mp3
- (2.87MB
, 50 - Repression (Memoro de la S^tono).mp3
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The leyline, the chamber surrounding you, and even your bodies seem to fade away as some sort of vision overtakes your consciousness. You feel as though you are connected to some very distant place... and you're not alone. There's something else here...
It is night. A village. Most of the nearby buildings have already dimmed their lights for the night. The tavern is somewhat still abuzz with activity, though, and there are sounds of music and laughter from within.
The somewhat plain-looking human woman, wearing a rather ragged-looking hood and clothing that heavily obscures her figure, puts some distance between herself and the activity, finding a darker, more isolated location. An alleyway between two very quiet, seemingly deserted buildings. Normally, you'd think that this kind of location would be avoided by a lone peasant girl, especially at night, but she seems to be looking for something... or someone.
"Cordelia," a voice calls out from the shadow of an abandoned wagon. The woman turns and moves to the source of the voice, and a figure emerges. The only light here is a dim lantern the woman carries, and she shines it so that you can see the figure she is meeting with. Another hooded figure, tall and built to be quite sturdy-looking. Clearly masculine. Though his face is well-hidden behind some wrappings, you can tell that his skin behind those wrappings is a dark green. You cannot make out any other details of his figures due to the low light and the cloak he wears.
"Ragrim... I've been waiting. How much longer...?" the woman asks.
The male figure shakes his head. "It's gotten worse... we need to get you out of here. This whole area could become dangerous very soon, if civil war breaks out... and I don't think that's a very big 'if' anymore."
"Where shall we go, then?" the woman urges, looking desperate. She wants an answer from him... but not the answer he can give.
"Not us. I have duties to my clan. If only things were safer... you must escape from this place. There are villages to the west... there isn't a lot of turmoil along the Surbin river. Flee there as quickly as possible. Once this matter is resolved, I will find you..." the orc begins to pull away, but the woman clings to him.
"You can't run away again!" Cordelia urges. "We... we made a promise! Doesn't that mean anything to you?"
Ragrim rests a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "When the unrest settles, I will either take you to the Spine of the World as wife of the chieftain... or I will be fleeing in disgrace to live the rest of my life out quietly with you. Whichever way the war goes, we can end our secrecy here."
"And if you die?" she looks at him, clearly angry now.
"I won't die," he says simply.
The scene suddenly drifts away, and is replaced by another. A dwarf, scorched and gasping for breath, wanders a dark tunnel. He is hunched over, limping, and leaning against the rough cavern wall to support himself.
"Damn... dammit all... tha demons... tha fortress's..." he begins, but he is interrupted by a rumbling sound coming from the tunnels behind him. He looks back, fear covering his face, and he hurries forward. "Damn...!"
Suddenly, the dwarf touches a part of the cavern wall that feels different than the rest. "Eh...?" His hand is resting on what appears to be a glass-like membrane, very warm to the touch. It was glowing softly before, but at the dwarf's touch, it seems to react rather strongly, glowing much more brightly with a brilliant, fiery orange and red. Suddenly, a voice fills the chamber--though it seems as though only you can hear it, as it is speaking directly into the dwarf's mind.
"Do you wish for the power to fight?"
That scene too melts away--and is replaced by a different cavern. This one is lit with a soft, blue glow, emanating from strange bio-luminescent moss covering sections of the walls and ceiling. The cavern is filled with the sound of metal on metal, and war cries echo. It sounds as though a great battle is taking place here, though you only see two figures. Both of them are orcs, and they are battling one another. One is clad in scale armor, decorated with spikes, and with the triangle of arrows symbol you recognize as the symbol of Many-Arrows. In one of his hands is a hefty battle axe, and his empty hand is covered with a spiked gauntlet. He is bald, but has a black beard accenting his chin.
His opponent is the figure you vaguely recognize from before--a gray-bearded Ragrim. His long hair is braided and tied back, and he wears a dragon-head symbol stitched into hide armor. In both hands he wields a jagged great sword expertly, striking forward at his opponent. It seems that Ragrim is on the offensive at the moment.
"Give up, old dragon-worm!" the orc of Many-Arrows calls out. "I am Gruumsh's chosen, and your dragons are not here to save you now! My kingdom will have no place for such cowardice!"
Ragrim replies with a roar, and a mighty swing sends Obould leaping backwards. Despite being apparently being on the defensive, Obould eyes his opponent with cool, calculating eyes, and he slowly resumes his fighting stance. "The Dragonsworn will never die, Obould! Feel the wrath of the elements!" With that, Ragrim slams his war pole into the ground, and the whole cavern begins to violently shake, and the scene disappears as an avalanche apparently engulfs the entire cavern...
You suddenly snap back to reality. It appears the ritual is now complete.
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