Chapter 1 - Cold Ambition: A Family Affair

[TetNak]

Trejune nods as Saeldur speaks, "What he says is true, or at least it appears to be prophecy," he says to Jeger, as if the Wolf Brother might not believe the elf. He also turns a wary eye around, looking for anything that seems out of place or obviously dangerous.

[Vardaen]

Reaching the icicles Saeldur inspects them only a moment before its clear they are made of magic, or else carved by skilled hands, for each of them in exactly the same in shape and size. The bottom icicles rise up to meet the top ones, on the floor and ceiling they are thick and wide, but in the middle they are like slender bars the thickness of a man's arm. They appear like a cage. Beyond them is a chamber, a large chamber that is cloaked in a shadow, but lit by a full blue light, much like the light of the runic letters. Standing in the center of the chamber, beyond the ice bars is a massive ice gollem. The being is like a giant made of solid ice. The legs of the gollem are chained to the floor, and the arms are lifted into the air chained to the ceiling. Able to see into the ice of the creature you realize that there more to it than the ice, for trapped within the mostly detailess gollem is a small man is bright red robes with pitch black hair and a ptich black gotee beard. They man as a resemblance to Jeger and Trejune, and Saeldur at once recognizes him as Kylorin the Archmage!

He is trapped, inprisoned inside the icy suit of armor, frozen there, suspended inside the gollem.

Display

This is not 100% accurate, but it gives you the idea of what you see.

[TetNak]

"What is that?" Trejune asks, looking immediately at the elf. He takes a step back, as if the giant prison might lurch out and attack. "Do not get too close, Jeger," he tells his brother, thinking he might have to fight once more. He does not understand, not at first, that there is a person in the icy mass at all. However, after a few seconds his eyes narrow, seeing his father for the first time in a tomb of ice. "Fitting," he says offhandedly, but waits for Saeldur to tell them what needs to be done.

[Trogdor]

"That," Saeldur replies, pointing at the man encased in ice, "is your father." He takes a deep breath and wrinkles his lip. "Or at least it looks like him." He glances around to see if there's anything else suspicious. "It may be that he reached too far and something trapped him. Or this may be a trap."

The elf looks back at the Wolf brothers. "Clearly we have to try and rescue him," he says simply. "If this is Kylorin, it's the most important thing we could do. But we should proceed with caution. The rules of this world seem to be turned upside down."

[Vardaen]

Jeger draws Tigerskull Club silent as the three arrive at the icy bars, they block the way into the chamber completely and are the first obstacle to getting to Kylorin.

The two others are speaking when the whole icy gollem shudders, and like a man chained up, tries to pull itself free with one arm. The chains hold and the man inside the icy blinks looking at you.

There is a voice in the ice. It rings out through the chamber, and shivers up your spine. "Saeldur? Saeldur is that you? Oh praise the summer you have arrived. There is little time. You must listen." The Archmage struggles against his bonds but then gives up, clearly he can not break free. "The time is at hand, Mulcarn's time is at an end but only if you can..." he can't move inside the ice but can see his eyes track to Trejune and Jeger. "...gather my children."

[Trogdor]

"I'm here," Saeldur says, his voice full of concern. "We're here," he corrects. "I found more of your children," he adds, "but they didn't make it this far. There are five in all."

He moves up to the bars and peers in closer. "Is there nothing we can do to free you? I have fire magics ..."

[TetNak]

Trejune remains silent, listening to the conversation between his father and the elf. He watches intently, looking around several times for anything that might jump out of the darkness in surprise.

[Vardaen]

Kylorin stops fighting against his icy prison. His voice fills the chamber and the tunnel. "Your power can do nothing against Mulcarn's enchantments Saeldur. You must gather my children, find the Godslayer and reforge it. Only then can anything be done against Mulcarn. I am his prisoner." He is silent a moment, "I have done all I can it it up to them now." Trejune' sleave is tugged on, and Jeger points it into the cell to look at their father, the man in the ice.

"Are you listening brother?" Jeger comments.

Kylorin address the two brothers, "My sons, listen. I know I was never there for you, and I regret never seeing any of my children grow up. Yet my work, my plans have been long in the making, set to me by the Goddess Nantosuelta and I could not be unfaithful to her. It is now up to you to continue my work. You must heed my words, The Enteral Winter can be ended. Summer can come again. Collect the pieces of Godslayer, bring them to Mulcarn's fortress in the extreme northwest from your Amurite tribes. I have given you all I can, and it takes all I can now to break Mulcarn's hold on me. You must not fail, failure now means doom for this world, and a victory of Mulcarn and his broods for all times."

The petition from Kylorin is heartfelt and desperate...


A slight tremor shakes the passage.

[TetNak]

Trejune laughs even as the cavern rumbles. "Hahaha," his laughter goes, dark a low, "We are to fight Mulcarn? Are we?" The skinny young man looks at his brother, a look as though Trejune had tasted something awful is clear upon his face. "We are to defeat Mulcarn when you cannot, oh' mighty Kylorin?" Suddenly, Trejune lurches forward, mashing the massive cell of ice with his fist, just where Kylorin's face would have been. "Save your sympathy old man," he grunts, taking a step back, but saying nothing else. His hand, limp at his side, is probably broken, but the Wolf brother makes no sound or motion other than staring straight forward toward Kylorin.

[Trogdor]

"We're not doing what he cannot," Saeldur says with a hint of reproach in his voice. His patience is wearing thin with Trejune's petulance. "We're all doing this together. Kylorin, you, me, all the others." He shakes his head. "I don't for a moment think that we could defeat Mulcarn on our own. And I don't think you do either. But that's not what Kylorin's proposing. He's saying that while he distracts Mulcarn and saps the Ice God's strength, we have a chance to gather the weapon forged by the gods with the power to defeat Mulcarn."

The elf looks intently at the Wolf shaman. "But if you think it's hopeless, then don't waste your life coming with us. I've said this time and again. Anyone who comes on this mission has to want to try. Defeatism can end this before it begins. And we have to all know that we can trust each other, even when things look their worst."

"Yes, we may all die in the attempt. But if we don't try, then we're just dooming ourselves - and everyone else in the world - to a lower death."