The Path of Death, Destruction,
and Mayhem Chapter One
The Path of Death, Destruction, and Mayhem
Chatper One: The Early Days
After arriving in this new world, I vowed never to return to my homeland. Even
if such a thing were possible, I would turn my back to it. My life from before
was no more. Everything has changed.
I found myself in a northern town called Holtberg. The air was crisp and smelt
of impending snow. My desert roots have long been severed, so I felt no dread at
this weather.
After a day in the local tavern I was able to find much about this place. We
were all drawn to this land called Dereth, they told me, by a powerful mage
named Asheron. Well, I've never been one to go willingly to someone else's call.
We would see what this Asheron has in store and whether or not it parallels my
own designs before I would call him ally or nemesis.
I learned of the lifestones, and my own apparent immortality. I was dubious. I
learned of the aggressive creatures that materialize on this world as i did, and
that survival meant to hold them at bay. Again, I had my reservations. I set out
to verify these "spawn locations" and analyze the potential threat for
myself.
As I crossed the river to do some preliminary scouting, I heard a voice from the
distant past. It was Talon Ashenheart, a companion I had long thought dead or
worse. How he came to Dereth was a similar story to my own, and one we didn't
discuss for long. Suffice it to say, he escaped the Royal Guards with his wife,
Krystin, and fled through a portal to this world. The important factor was I had
a known and trusted contact in this land. He was able to verify much of what I
had learned at the tavern. Coming from this source, I cast aside the last of my
skepticism. Everything has changed indeed.
Talon provided me with some of the local currency and stuck with me as I hunted,
helping me learn the ways of the creatures on this world. I learned firsthand
how the lifestones work. Once ressurrection was a reality, I threw caution to
the wind. Talon watched with disbelief as I crushed Hunter Shreths and
Banderling Gaurds, muttering something about upstart mages and their infallible
luck. After a few hours he felt the need to return to his wife in Glendon Woods.
As we bade each other farewell he jokingly mentioned I was ahead in the kill
ratio. I had died 12 times and had killed close to 10 times that amount. He was
right about my deaths, but by my count, I had killed half again as many as his
estimate. I smiled and nodded as he turned south towards his home.
Free of the task of keeping Talon busy, I returned to town and commenced my
training. Mana Conversion would indeed prove useful in this land of endless
enemies. I restocked my components and headed north. Thanks to the good people
in the tavern and Talon, I knew where I wanted to establish my headquarters.
After a somewhat hair raising run to Cragstone, I immediately sought out and
used a series of portals that landed me in the southern town of Qalaba'r.
(To be Continued)
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Path of Death, Destruction, and Mayhem Chapter One