Griznuq Gaming

I am very confused.    Doesn't Dolph Lundgren wear boxing gloves and speak with a bad Russian accent?  

"Hey, Bastion?   I can't seem, to make this script out.   It runs around the entire chalice.   Here, take a look!"
Dale handed the chalice to the priest as he stepped closer to him.   His excitement was building as he hoped that he discovered something significant.

Dale was hardly paying attention to the priest as he scrutinized the chalice.   He was lost in thought, trying to remember all that his mentor had taught him.   Dale's ablty to concentrate was a blessing and a curse.   He could focus so intently, that the rest of the world around him seemingly disappeared.   That same concentration, would also allow him to miss other important details.   He often would become fixated on a small detail and miss the overall picture.  "Yeah, Sardior's boots probably do need some polishing..." he muttered.   After responding to Bastion, he refocused himself on studying the chalice...

As if snapping out of a trance, he looked at Bastion and noticed that the young priest was holding some polishing cloths.   "How common is a chalice like this in the temples of Sardior?" he asked.

Dale was turning the large cup over in his hands again and again.   Feeling the rough edges and bumps of the artwork on the palm of his hand as it spun by relaxed Dale as he thought about the chalice's possible origins.   Before Bastion could even respond, Dale had resumed his transfixed state of mind.

Seeing Bastion's good natured smile relaxed Dale a bit.   As Dale carefully took the chalice from the jovial priest, he said, "Thank you.   That is an excellent point.   Still, I wonder about all of the coins lying around on the floor.   Clearly that creature had no use for money.   Maybe it didn't value the other items either.   I am most intrigued by the difference in the wall that we found the chalice in.   It was clearly constructed, while the rest of the cave seemed to be more natural.   I would love to know what had been there.   Who lived there and why it was destroyed."

Dale let the conversaton dwindle as he intensely scrutinized the chalice.   He was looking for anything that might identify the time period of the chalice.   He was also searching for any sign or symbol that may have been missed by the priest.    Maybe Sardior would grant him a clue.

Dale was surprised by Bastion's enthusiasm.  As Bastion spoke, Dale remembered the zeal that some of the wizards of the coven had for academic debate.   They would spend endless hours arguing over the finer points of summoning creatures from the outer planes or finding how to create elemental power through the alchemical combustion of sulfur and charcoal.   This inevitably led to explosions, stinking fumes and more than a few singed beards.  

 By listening to these conversations, Dale learned that there were two kinds of scholars, those that debated to discover truth and those that debated to hear their own voice.   Dale hoped that Bastion was not one of the latter.   He feared that Bastion was one to listen to himself too acutely.

"It is possible that the arachnid stole the chalice from an unsuspecting victim...However, I think it is also likely that the chalice, cloak and scrolls were secreted away long ago.  The wall that they were stashed in may have been from a very old structure.   That structure may have been built around the same time as the chalice.   This of course is all conjecture.  We will probably never know for sure.  

" Might I have a look at the chalice?"   Dale stepped around from  the horse and approached Bastion.   He hoped that he might find something that would help define the chalice's age.

Dale looked at the old chalice in Bastion's hands.  He noticed  the empty spots where jewels had once resided.  Noticing Bastion's interest in the chalice, Dale was very curious as to what the priest knew about it.

"Have you ever seen those symbols before?   Do you know what they mean?" asked Dale.  

Dale smiled at Bastion.  "I was wondering if you would let me examine the chalice that we found this afternoon.   Among other things, I have become a student of ancient sites.   I am hoping to see if there are any clues on the chalice as to what the arachnid's lair had been before it became a ruin."   Dale let his hand pause upon the horse's back as he waited for the priest to respond.

As Dale walked away from the campfire and his conversation with Maccabeus, he started to think over the events of the day.   As he walked, his mind kept coming back to the arachnid's lair.   He just wished that there had been more time to search it for signs of who created it and what it had been used for.   Was there more to the structure that they had not discovered?   The scrolls of arcane spells and the cloak of protection suggest the possibility of the ruin having been occupied by an arcanist.   Could there be clues about Valekai or Sorcer 'Nyx in the arachnid's lair?

Dale stopped in mid stride when he thought about the chalice that Bastion had taken from the lair.   Dale had not truly examined the ornate cup.   Could there be a clue there?  

Dale turned and walked back towards the camp looking for the priest of Sardior.   He hoped he wouldn't find him asleep.   As Dale neared the fire, he spotted Bastion caring for his horse.

Dale approached the priest and greeted him.  "Good evening Bastion.   I was wondering if I might have a word with you?"   Dale stopped on the other side of the horse and patted its head in long strokes along its mane.

Yeah

Seeing that the little gnome was getting tired, Dale stood up and said, "Well, thanks for your help.   Have a good night."  

Dale walked away from the fire more than a little confused by the gnome's strange behavior.   He had hoped to discover whether he could openly discuss his secret with the druid.   Based on the friendly responses that the gnome had made towards Dale's questions about Valekai and Sorcer 'Nyx, Dale had considered discussing his own magic use.    After seeing the gnome acting so strange, he realized this was the wrong time.  

Dale was quite sure that if the druid was paying attention, he would suspect what Dale really was.   Now it remained to be seen what Maccabeus would do about it.   Dale regretted sharing so much with gnome.   Now he would have to sleep with one eye open.

Dale frowned in thought.   After a moment he decided to move the discussion in a slightly different direction.   "When you call upon Mahiya, do you call to Mahiya in general or do you call to the power that would best help you at that moment?   For example, when you want to use fire for your power, do you call to Kossuth?"

Dale scrunched his face as if in deep thought when Maccabeus mentioned the sentience of Sorcer 'Nyx.   "Thanks for the warning."  
Dale hesitated for a moment and then, giving int ohis curiosity, asked a flurry of questions.   "Is the sentience of Mahiya's powers, a manifestation of Mahiya's will?   Or can they think independtly of Mahiya?   Can you give me an example of this sentience you speak of?   This idea fascinates me!"

Dale tried to sit calmly as he listened to Maccabeus speak.  He tried very hard to keep an open mind to what the druid had to say.  Dale continued to wring his hands, showing the tension that he was feeling.   He was extremely nervous speaking to Maccabeus, a druid, about magic, even if it wasn't directly about his own use of that power.

Dale put his hands on his knees and replied to Maccabeus.  "I have heard and understood what you are saying.  The power of Sorcer 'Nyx is not to be used lightly.   It should be treated with great care and respect, just like all of the other powers of Mahiya.  

"As for evidence of its use, Whisper claims that Valekai abused the power of Sorcer 'Nyx and as a result, the wastelands to the east and north of Threshold were created.   By all accounts, these wastelands are very similar to what we saw at the ring on the way to the arachnid's lair.   The wastelands are supposedly the same, but on a much greater scale as what happened to the Ring of Mists.   We know that the Ash Lords created these rings of waste.   It is probable that they manipulated Sorcer 'Nyx to do this.   I have no evidence that the Xan Thakians are connected to the Ash Lords, but it is not too much of a stretch.  Where there is trouble, the dark cloaks are not far behind.

"As for fighting fire with fire, the most important lesson that I have learned is that those who seek to rule others with power, will not respect anything other than power.   Even if fighting the power of Sorcer 'Nyx with the power of Sorcer 'Nyx is not the answer, we need to learn of this natural power.   Without understanding the power of Sorcer 'Nyx, we can not hope to defeat it."

Dale stood up and paced back and forth in front of the gnome.   With anxiety clear on his face, he continued.   "According to Whisper, Valekai destroyed his enemies who also used used the power of Sorcer 'Nyx.   He used Sorcer to do it.

As Dale continued his thoughts, he looked the gnome straight in the eye.   The light of the fire highlighted the scar on his face in a most hideous fashion.   "Aren't you even the least bit curious to find out about this lost facet of Mahiya?   What if it is no different than Istisha or Kossuth?   Should the use of the power of Kossuth be banished, because it can be destructive?   Fire can also start the process of healing and regeneration.   I would think that any facet of Mahiya would be both destructive and regenerative or protective.   Isn't that part of the balance of Mahiya?"  

Dale stopped pacing and place a log in the fire.   Then he sat down and took a long draw on his waterskin while he waited for Maccabeus to respond.

"We each have our calling.   If given the choice of righting a wrong by jumping across the chasm, or letting atrocities continue, I will jump every time.   I have watched too many people die, because they were afraid to act.   If the Xen Thakians, or others, dare to wield the power of Sorcer 'Nyx, who will stand to oppose them?   It may be that the power of Sorcer 'Nyx is the only way to stop them.   Would you watch Whisper and her grove die because you were afraid to jump?"   As Dale speaks, he becomes more and more animated.   When he finishes speaking, he stares intently at Maccabeus.   Realizing that his tiny friend is not the enemy, he sits down and draws a deep breath and silently wrings his hands while he waits for Maccabeus to respond.

"I understand that much.   Our enemy is abusing the power of Sorcer 'Nyx.   But you said it yourself, that power is of 'Nyx, which is Mahiya.   So the power itself is not evil, just those who are using it to destroy.   The power is a tool.   Much like a sword, it can be used to kill or protect.    

Whisper mentioned that Valekai lost his way and didn't realize it until it was too late.   Then he destroyed others who were seeking to use the power for ill gains.  

The more I ponder this mystery, the more I believe that Valekai was very much like you..."    Dale looked Maccabeus in the eye to gauge his reaction to his next statement.   "I believe that Valekai was some sort of priest of Mahiya.   Only he didn't serve Mahiya as much as he manipulated her power.   I think that when he strayed from his path, he studied and maybe worshipped only one aspect of Mahiya, Sorcer 'Nyx.   In this devotion he may have failed to recognize how his power was taking from the other aspects of Mahiya.

It is my belief that the power of Sorcer could be used to help right the wrongs that have been done to the land.   At the very least, it could help balance the fight against the Ash Lords and their minions."

Dale watched the diminutive druid for his reaction.   He fervently hoped that he had not offended Maccabeus.   He wondered if he was straying too close to committing blasphemy in the eyes of the druid.   Or maybe even worse, giving away his secret.   Would Maccabeus persecute him for being a mage?