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"Something is wrong with Ihsan," muttered the old Inquisitor.
Ihsan and Leillani were apparently the only survivors of a surprise
attack on the fortress of Azak-Kaghk-K'korr some time ago. The two had
escaped, it seemed, from the clutches of the Orc and Goblin armies and
had made their way back here, to Northkeep, the great fortress at the
border of the nation of the Aysen and the Mountains of Shiraz.
But while Leillani was acting normally, though perhaps a tad
tight-lipped, Ihsan was turning into a bit of a recluse. The Inquisitor
had sent a courier south to the capital, requesting that a prominent
judge be brought up. He wanted more answers out of the two, but
particularly Ihsan. Something just wasn't right about the situation.
However, the fortress' defenses were being mobilized, and reinforcements
were trickling in, though perhaps at a slower pace than the commanders
of Northkeep would have preferred.
A gruff soldier came in to the Inquisitor's small office. "You
watch over the Paladins in this garrison?" he asked.
"Yes," the Inquisitor stated. "Why?" He did not appreciate
having his musings interrupted by some soldier.
"Well, I'm responsible for seeing to the needs of the rank and
file, and I've been getting complaints from the troops about some
Paladin, whose goin' around acting a bit too edgy, nervous, tends to get
a tad too irritated whenever they tell him how good he is if he can
escape an enemy army like that."
"You mean Ihsan."
"Yep. That's him. He's not acting like the other Paladins at
this garrison...is he sick or something? The troops are uncomfortable
around him and all, so it'll make my day a whole lot easier if I can
have him sent home for reasons of sickness or something."
"We have a judge coming up to ask him some questions, so I'm
afraid he has to stay until then."
"Suit yourself," the soldier shrugged. "He's just starting to
hurt the morale, y'know. We can't really defend this fortress against a
horde of Orcs and Goblins if the troops are all on edge from some
irritable Paladin."
The soldier left, leaving the Inquisitor to wonder what was
wrong with Ihsan. Well, the judge would settle that.
Leillani sat in her bunkroom, shared with the other small cadre
of female Serra Paladins of Northkeep. She had no idea what had gone
between Ihsan and that thing that called itself Baron Sengir, but since
they were now free, she didn't think it could be very good.
While her conscience screamed out for her to speak out on what
had happened, she knew that Ihsan may have had good reason to make an
agreement with the Baron. An army the size of Tormoth's could very well
overwhelm the Sengir Barony, and while the Baron's Vampires were
powerful, so where some of the shamans the Warlord had at his beck and
call. It was not prohibited to make brief agreements with evil beings,
so long as there was a more dangerous foe to face.
Well, she would have to wait a bit longer, and if it looked like
things were getting too out of hand with regards to the Baron, she would
have to simply explain things to the Inquisitor, regardless of what
happened to her or her comrade Ihsan.
"We made it," said Tyrlim. It had been an exhausting week-long
march to the small cave. "Somewhere down there lies Barl's Cage. Have we
got all the supplies we may need?" Quickly, the party of five checked
out their packs and belt pouches: everything was accounted for.
"Good," said Monnor. "We should wait out here in the evening,
and descend into the caves at first light." There was general agreement,
and immediately, a camp was set up.
Night had fallen over the continent. The Baron watched Ihsan in
his mirror. The Paladin had been unusually guilt-ridden, but the Baron
doubted that either he or his companion would confess to the agreement
Ihsan had made with the Baron prior to their release.
Regardless, Ihsan had been betrayed. The Baron had promised his
Vampires would destroy Tormoth's elite warriors and reveal parts of the
Warlord's plans to the Paladin. Of course, he would do neither. In fact,
Veldrane was now busily spying upon the Orcish camp to learn where the
shaman Gnorrbb kept his tent. Sengir wanted the Disk, and if Northkeep
had to fall, and hundreds of thousands die in apocalyptic battles, then
so be it.
The Baron smiled, coldly and without humor. This would see him
triumph over that foolish planewalker Serra and her minions. The Disk
would provide him with enough power to rule over all of Dominia. It was
simply a matter of taking the Disk from the hands of that foolish shaman
Gnorrbb.
At dawn of that new day, Tormoth's army was roughly a week away from melting through the snow and ice that blocked the mountain passes. The army being sent by the An-Havva and their numerous allies among the Elves, Dwarves and Anaba was a week and a half away from Northkeep. The Aysen were yet to send up roughly another ten thousand soldiers and Paladins to reinforce the existing garrison. And the small company of five that was beginning the search for Barl's Cage began their perilous journey into the depths.
End of Chapter Seven.
Don't miss Chapter Eight of Enlightenment - Descent.