A Letter To A’zad About Power

Just Let Me Vent, Then You Can Tell Me Why I Failed

Rod Rambler, the chronicler can see the field where CrIsis is standing so clearly he tries to call out to them only to realize he is in a vision. The group of heroes appear to be under the blanket of night in a grand forest. Turning his head in the distance he can see the clearing and the stone fortress city of Yggdrasil. Walking among the group he has noticed Xerx’ses is no where among his friends. Turning his head the other way he sees the golden giant sitting upon a small boulder writing within the Book of A’zad. He walks over wondering why the Minotaur is trying to communicate with his dead, mystical, mentor? He listens as a silent sentinel watching, knowing he was drawn here so strongly by the emotions the Demigod is not aware of yet. Emotions that can create visions in their followers and untrained in people they have a strong connection with.

Your dead, lucky bastard, there will be no picture by Father Indaris. I deserve no such token of esteem as my heart feels as though a thousand paper cuts are feeding the chunks to Tautons in a feeding frenzy.

I am two halves a tarnished silver coin. I can’t even bear to pray because I lost two followers! I wasn’t there to protect them. What hurts worse is they were Elves! That race is like Lady Isis, remembering the sins of our forebears. Part of you must feel smug sitting where the dead sit finally getting me to open up to you about how insignificant I feel. You prodded and poke me to understand myself before seeking power to achieve my goals. Well I still don’t understand myself, but I wonder if understanding is regret?

You always said power would come with a price I must pay, always. I wish I had known how much of a liar you were back then. Power indeed came with a price A’zad, however, you lied about me having to pay it. Darakh’zan paid it, the Etrinan paid it, Haven is paying it, and now those that would look to me for hope and salvation are paying it.

But not me! I haven’t paid a thing, unless you call watching all you care for wither away in false hope that I will be able to save them!

LIAR!

I have days upon days of hate and bile to draw examples from. Oh, don’t believe me? Let me tell you a story about the sundering of Palladium! Just yesterday on the 29th of Majestic we teleported into a group of zombies made up of Humans and Wolfen victims. As the attacks began to rain down Master Dream parries an attack with his Rune-bow, Azomir. Joyful, the now Brother Grignak, Drew forth his Wooden Rune-sword, which turned out to be none other than Trigom the Chaotic! Alongside his enchanted, invisible sword he named “Itomas” in honor of the Western Emperor, Itomas the II, he wades into the fray with the wild glee a former arena gladiator slave might have. Master Ursus just bit another’s head off.

Stop it! I’m not smiling A’zad, you don’t have to smell it when it comes out the other side.

Father Indaris made two undead flee with his holy prayers invoking her name on high. I managed to be useful getting rid of one harming Brother Grignak and nabbing up most of them that tried to run away. During that time Master Dream levitated into the air and continued to demonstrate his skill with the bow. Then while I had been flying I failed to keep Father Indaris from harm and he fell. Master Dream was able to revivify him with his mental powers after that fight. I love that little Kankoran, for saving my best friend’s life. We started wandering toward Yggdrasil, and then changed our minds after a fashion and returned toward a hill we had seen in the distance before our trek.

Arriving at the hill we come to realize it is a manufactured hill out of dead body parts from Humans and Wolfen! I flew up and realized we were within a mile of a Ley Line and when I looked toward Yggdrasil I saw some really tall tree. I was informed that without trying I had just seen the Tree of Life planted by Lictalon.

Oh I will get to this topic in due course, actually, I might not want to continue talking about it. The concepts it regards regarding Lictalon the Great make my blood boil if it is indeed the genuine article.

Moving on, as I mentioned I had flown up and what we thought was a hill appears to be a several mile wide Circle of Power made up of the body parts of the deceased, killed by zombies of the necromancer – Mayor Ravenholm. Master Dream managed to use his rather incredible psychic powers to discern this was indeed a circle confirming my guess. That it was a few days way from completion! We decided that we needed to kill Mayor Ravenholm to stop the circle from working. By going in this fashion we would not be looking for the Tree of Life, and may stumble upon it. If that plan worked me might be able to leave a piece there and gain the Tree’s help against Mayor Ravenholm. Either way the Necromancer and his creations were going to die.

The morning of the 30th of Majestic when I felt two names disappear from the Uradi Votum Caelo Lux. I opened the book and found that Master Rincewind, the Rules Master of the Tri-Arcanum Magic Guild, and another name I had not met were now gone. I was lost and forlorn because I did not know if he had died or what happened to him. I still feel as though part of my heart has been torn out! Even as a Demigod I occasionally had dreams that I believe strongly were prayers and now I can’t recall them at all! It’s bad enough the memories I have re-written to acquire skills needed, but to have dreams become ripped out of my mind! I composed a quick note to Master Mustrum and asked about the Rules Master of our guild.

Note to the reader: Between the time these events took place and this book’s publication I was able to contact Mustrum Stibbons and recover the note for publication.
– Rod Rambler

Seeing me forlorn, Brother Grignak tried to cheer me with a joke about sex and when I just said, “sure” he knew I was in poor spirits.

I think it was ten small battles by the time we reached Yggdrasil at the afternoon, or perhaps dusk may be the better word? Late in the day to be sure. Having undead slave labor has allowed Mayor Ravenholm to turn to turn Yggdrasil from a small woodland town to citadel complete with stone walls and crenelations! As that sight was sinking in for those of us that had been here before a flurry of pigeons landed and began to explain a phenomena hitting all over the world! I don’t know why anyone might be surprised that Lictalon has become a god since he survived the those ancient times. However, he seems to have become the tyrant he sought to overthrow, calling all the Elves to him!

No Name came to talk with me earlier about magical energy regeneration and I help him with energy passed through my Talisman Coins, which he thought was cool as each of them were 50 Imperial Denominations of his homeland. During this time Master Dream reaches out with his mind to try and acquire animals to scout for him. One resulted in a Sucker Bird landing on me and barely taking a nibble before I flexed and caused the creature to fly off. The second creature was another example of when mages began modifying life forms. An Eye Killer was a vicious predator that communicated via psychic powers and agreed to perform scouting. Poor Master Dream is a very kind soul and not a predatory hunter. Still he was forced to watch it hunt and kill during the scouting mission and it was for naught.

When that failed, both Khonsu’s Reaper and Khonsu’s Revenant agreed to try and scout the same area. Before they left oh short, dark, and creepy did something really neat!

Oh shut it old Bull you never got that golem to work again after the demon raid.

So Master No Name was able to take a dead tree and animate in a similar fashion to a golem! He named it As’gharjan or Twiggyleaf in Elvish! Master Dream used a psychic power to help us sleep so that even a mere quarter of an hourglass would be enough to have the effects of a full night sleep. I was hiding my anger at the usurper Elf God as depression and made a crack at this really amazing magical golem saying, “Nice tree.” Then I rolled over and scrawled two other pigeons in hopes to effect positive change in the world. I was trying very hard to feel as though I was a worthless god, unable to defend those placing their faith within me.

Master Ursus received a dream of some fashion and I felt rested physically but certainly not on my mental and emotional fronts. Off both the Werebear and Dread Knight left to survey Yggdrasil crossing the 100 yards of clear woods to press themselves against the wall. I had gone back to sleep expecting to be woken up when they got back but was instead summoned to a wakeful state from bells of the stone city of the dead. Grumpy I barked out, “Can someone look to see if they got caught?”

Master Dream responded, “Maybe be a little more concerned, Xerx’ses. These are our friends!”

Grunting I retorted, “I am, however, I need to know if they are caught or running.”

Master Dream nodded understanding those conditions required different responses, “Ah, got it. I will tell you in a moment.”

To assist Brother Grignak began to use a Chant of Divination, which he stopped and his eyes glazed over looking up to the night sky. Silent Dream paced nervously during Brother Grignak’s trance inducing dance. Just then, all of us heard a loud SMACK! Brother Grignak’s face rolled to the side while nodding. His eyes cleared up and he said that as Bast’s Free Agent, he needs to work on proper prayers going forward. His prayer was able to give us a direction and we managed to regroup with our missing friends.

Huh?

What do you mean that’s not depressing?

All the dead bodies being used for Necromancy? A’zad were you even reading what I wrote?

Yes I’m alive, and yes my friends are back.

What do you mean shut up and quit whining the dawn is coming….?

You’re right I am so dumb! Today is now the 1st of Corg! This is the day of the Festival to honor Lord Osiris the Lawgiver! We shall prevail!

Rod Rambler watched as a tree branch fell and hit Xerx’ses in the head, breaking and getting stuck on one horn. The minotaur said something rather rude to the book and shut it, smiling though. Still, Rod was able to see a smiling face form in the ink before Xerx’ses shut the book. Hmm, Rod thought to himself, somehow the book had won its viewpoint regarding forgetting about the world right now and focus on what you can change today. His quickly made notes about what pictures to add when he chronicled this vision down as it began to fade.