The winds toss you around the sky as if you weighed nothing. Your attempt to fly over Dark Blizzard Pass was clearly a mistake. Diving into a head wind, you try to land before you are tossed into one of the icy cliffs of the pass. You struggle with the winds for a while but eventually make it to the ground in one piece. It is snowing heavily and the winds seem to howl like angry beasts through the canyons around you. Shelter ... you must find shelter quickly, or you will be buried before you have a chance to freeze due to the cold. Luck is on your side, though, as you see a small hollow in one of the cliffs that seems to resist the effects of the storm. You rest yourself, welcoming the small comfort this hollow allows. You soon grow cold and realize you must be on your way or you will be frozen where you stand. The snow fall starts to lighten and the wind begins to die down and you can see cliffs rise up on both sides of you. The bodies of several beasts lie dead upon the ground, around the hollow you sheltered in. A red glow comes from the base of one of the cliffs. Pulsating it seems to call you over, it's rhythmic flashing nearly hypnotic.
At the base of the cliff sits a man wrapped in a cloak that seems to merge with the cliffside. As you look closer at the cloak you can just barely make out the outline of his shoulders against the cliff. In the man's hands is the source of the pulsating glow. He holds a bow, steam rising into the bare light caused by the bow. The human, no upon closer inspection you can see he is an elf, the tightly drawn features of his kind giving him away, is staring intently at the bow obviously in deep thought. A voice speaks as if from thin air. You search around but see no one but the elf.
"What is your decision Trollhater? Do you choose to join me? This gift I have bestowed upon you is paltry compared to what I can, if you join me."
Trollhater remains seated, not reacting to the voice with any show of surprise.
"I do nae know, Morlend. How can I join ye when ye are all I have fought against?"
"We have fought in the past, but you know as well as I that the Gods will not save you or your guild from those around you. Your enemies are on the move Troll. They plot against you thinking that you are ignorant to their designs. Let them know that their is intelligence behind that elven brow, ranger, and join me. You know the power that I wield. If I give you power, you could use it to whatever ends you saw fit. I would not hinder you from doing what you thought was right."
Trollhater sat in further silence, doubt clouding his features. In the end he spoke.
"Give me time tae think about this Morlend. I need time tae think."
A chuckle floated about the area, upon the winds it seemed. Faintly, as if from an ever growing distance, the disembodied voice could be heard above the sound of hooves clip clopping upon the rock floor of the canyon.
"You will have all the time that you need, Troll. All the time that you need."
The ranger stood and a look of intense anger or frustration seemed to envelop his features. With some difficulty, it seemed, he placed the pulsating bow in his pack and drew another bow from its confines. Untethering his black war stallion from a lone frozen tree, he began to walk out of the canyon the horse following after. Seeing a chance to gain some warmth, you alight upon the stallion, hoping to gain some heat from the horses body. Turning to look at you, the black horse snorts at you, but doesn't seem to be too upset that you are on his back.
An hour passed as Trollhater walked through the snow covered valleys and hills of the Dark Blizzard Pass. It began to snow more heavily than before and the distraught ranger was awoken from his thoughts by his stallion, Corsican, nudging him from behind with his cold nose.
"Ah ... forgive me, my friend. I was nae paying attention tae what was happening around me. We shall begin to look for shelter so that I may dust the snow from yer back. Ye should nae have left me tae me thoughts fer so long."
Corsican merely snorted in reply and shook some of the snow free, making you leap into the air only to once more alight on the horse's saddle. Looking about him, the ranger soon realized where he was and was relieved. For the snow was falling in near blinding amounts and he knew that shelter was close at hand.
"Just a few more moments, lad, and we will be out of this mess."
There was a cave in the northern portion of the Pass that many did not know about, that the elf used on many of his overnight hunts in the Pass. Soon you were all inside and Trollhater began to make a fire with some of the wood he had stored here on his last visit. With a little effort a small fire was burning, keeping the frigid air of the pass at bay. Trollhater smiled at Corsican.
"There ye are my friend. A fire tae warm yer hide."
A voice rang out from a darkened corner.
"Why thank you friend Troll. I was just beginning to start to feel the effects of this weather." Laughed the voice.
Trollhater quickly drew a bow and aimed at the corner the voice had echoed from.
"Who...," began the elf, but he knew all to well who it was. "Morlend ... ," he sighed as he lowered the bow. "What do ye want?"
"You know what I want, oh Guild Master. I want your decision. I have given you an hour to think. Was that not enough?"
Grimacing as he sat down, the leader of the fighter's guild looked at the bow in his hand. It was pulsating once more filling the room with a red light.
"Morlend, do nae press me. I need time..."
The voice of Morlend could be heard to heave a sigh.
"Perhaps you are not ready for the power I offer you. The authority to control your own path and do as you wish, no matter who stands in your way. Think of it, Guild Master. You could forever shake yourself free of the harness that others have thrown about your neck. Do you not feel it choking the life from you. You have lived for others. Live now for yourself, for a change."
The ranger lifted his head and a spark of life could now be seen in their depths.
"Good, good. I see I have caught your interest. Why do you hesitate, Troll? Are you afraid of power? ... of authority?"
"You know I am not afraid of that. I...," paused the elf searching for answers. "I cannae side with one whose mere purpose in life is tae cause pain and death wherever he goes. My faith in the gods may be shaken, but that does nae mean I have fergotten the lessons of me father. "Life is precious, Cameron," he would always say. "Do nae sell it cheaply, son, for it is precious beyond all costs."
"He spoke wisely, indeed," spoke Morlend as his form shimmered into view.
"Aye, he did, 'fore he died. But why do ye agree with him, Morlend? Death follows ye wherever ye go. Surely ye are nae trying tae say that ye agree with him?" queried Cameron as he stared at Morlend, the light in his eyes now brighter and more alert.
"Ah, but I do. Surely you don't count yourselves amongst the fools who believe I kill for killings sake? Come now, Troll. You should know by now that I serve a higher purpose. There is one goal behind all of my actions, and that is the mastery of death and the means to overcome it."
"What do ye mean Morlend? There is no way tae control death. That is but a dream borne from the fairy tales we read tae children."
Smirking at the elf, Morlend walked to the cave entrance and looked at the blizzard raging outside, the winds shrieking as they blew by.
"I have powers you do not guess at elf. I am close to finding the secret of restoring life to the dead. Think of the possibilities, Troll. With this spell, you could journey the lands deciding who lived and who died."
Morlend turned away from the entrance and stared intently at Cameron, looking to gauge what the elf was thinking.
"Think of it guild master. With this spell in your hands, you could even bring your father back from the dead."
You watch the elven ranger and see the emotions rage across his face. Cameron turned away from Morlend and stared at the weapon in his hands.
"You could do this?," asked the ranger aloud, "...bring back my father?"
You see the blood mage turn, a smile quickly spreading across his face.
"There is no telling what could be done with such power. The possibilities are infinite."
"Ye offer me the world, Morlend, but all know that ye never give anything freely. What price do I pay fer merely conversing with ye, let alone joining with ye?"
The warlock smiles wide at the rangers back.
"You know the price, Troll. I need only one drop of your blood. One drop. You will never miss such an infinitesimal amount. You lose more out there fighting the creatures that live in this region."
Morlend seems to notice you for the first time. A smirk crosses his face that chills you to the bone.
"Is this a new pet ranger? I haven't seen you carrying any fowl with you before."
Cameron turned to look upon you.
"Nay that is no pet of mine. I do nae know how it got in here."
A look of concentration then surprise crosses the mages face as you feel him within your own head, probing around. In your mind you feel the words pound through, giving you a headache.
"I know who and what you are fowl. You will pay for watching us."
Morlend turned to Trollhater and spoke aloud.
"Interesting ... it seems we have a spy in our midst. It is time for you to die fledgling."
The warlock lord makes a grab for you, but you were ready for it as you launch yourself out into the storm once more. A flash of fire engulfed the cliff wall below you. The flames reached up and warmed you even through this weather, but no damage was done. You had regained your strength in the cave and now knew what to do. You must speak to the owl, Feather's. For it was Feather's that had asked you to see if you could find news of her friend Cameron the elf. And news you had indeed. You flew high fighting the winds with more determination than before. You had to get through. Feather's would want to know this.
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Crisis of Faith chapter one
Crisis of Faith chapter two
Crisis of Faith chapter three
Crisis of Faith chapter four
