Open Chronicles Frozen Power

[Ormr]

And the tail struck the Half-Giant too.

The Sword in his hands plunged deep into the eye of the Wyrm causing it to recoil as the Half-Giant drove it forward, thrusting it into the soft part of the creature which exploded in a shore of gore as the clear gel known as the vitreous oozed from the wound.

As the Wyrm thrashed wildly Ormr had tried to maintain his hold on the sword, using it as leverage to control the head of his foe but the tail strike had collided with him like a hammer. The Half-Giant felt it around the middle of his back and he was thrown to the cavern floor. A lesser creature would have been crushed, death would have been the forgone conclusion, but the Half-Giant was merely injured.

The Wyrm continued thrashing, its tail and body moving wildly as it threw itself from one direction and into another trying to dislodge the sword lodged into the socked of its eye ruining whatever remained. It gave Ormr the opportunity he needed to recover, his hands sliding beneath him as he rose to his footing again. Growling he would charge the Wyrm again, slightly slower due to the pain in his back but undaunted.

As he came at the Wyrm he saw Kol in the background, moving for the pillar and the blue shard hovering above it but he paid the Sorcerer little mind. The Sword flew free of the Wyrm’s eye as Ormr came at it leaving the wounded socket to leak a sickly gel from where its eye had been and where an empty hole resembling a popped and pussing sore remained. Ormr’s eyes started to radiate with a pulsating light as he came closer to the Wyrm and he thrust his hands upwards.

When the Wyrm recovered long enough to focus on the Half-Giant through its remaining eye it lunged in, maw wide as it went to sink enormous incisors into his chest but Ormr caught it. The strength of Eogorath rushing through his limbs as the Half-Giant called on the blessings of his God he’d have caught the Wyrm by its fangs, gauntleted hands wrapping around them as the poison from the Wyrm dripped down in menacing fashion.

Ormr grappled with the Wyrm, forcing its head to one side while its tail thrashed behind it, swinging at the pillar where Kol was attempting to retrieve the shard wildly as the two combatants wrestled for control….

 

[Kol]

The tail lashed through the air and whipped the pillar. Stone and marble shattered in an instant as the powerful muscle tore through it.

Dust and debris floated into the room, a cloud of broken earth instantly exploding outward from the shattered piece of architecture. The shard that had sat atop the pillar tumbled down, falling towards the ground. "SHIT!"

Kol swore as he rushed forward.

If the shard struck the ground it would shatter and the being inside of it would be unleashed in a flood of rage and power.

The rune upon his arm pierced light, and then suddenly Kol jumped into the air. He flew over the tail as it thrashed wildly, reaching out and grasping the shard before tumbling onto the ground with a soft thud.

 

[Ormr]

The strength of the Wyrm was immense, even as the Half-Giant grappled with it, gripping both its immensely large fangs in his hands he was forced to a knee. Somewhere in his peripheral he heard Kol shouting while the Wyrm thrashed wildly. It was a struggle worthy of song as the two clashed while the Sorcerer struggled to retrieve his prize.

The Wyrm reared its head, adding to its leverage and Ormr felt his shoulders begin to press backwards while his weight started to crush down into the cavern floor. Desperation hadn't begun to show in the Half-Giants eyes though only determination, it thrilled him to be facing such a foe.

Gritting his teeth, his eyes still radiating with the pulsating light of Eogorath as the God blessed him with strength Ormr would heave with both arms, his mouth splitting in a battlecry...

"Grrrraaaaaaarrrrrrggggghhhhh!!!!!"

...the sound was incoherent as he twist with his hands, locking his arms and turning them to drive the head of the Wyrm down before it happened. Wrenching with his right hand there was an audible CRACK as the fang of the Wyrm broke in half in Ormr's grasp causing the beast to howl in pain while the Half-Giant brought what was now a makeshift weapon in his hand around. Arcing his arm backwards Ormr would shift his momentum and drive the broken fang into his hand up into the Wyrm's mouth, into the soft underside so that he could force it up into fleshy part of the creature. The response was not pretty as a torrent of meat and sinew was cut away and the entire body of the Wyrm thrashed, dislodging Ormr and sending him flying.

The death throes of the Wyrm came like a wave, the creature rolled and thrashed. Crashing around the cavern chaotically before stilling. Perhaps it was truly dead or perhaps merely incapacitated for now.

Ormr, his vision foggy and his body full of aches and pains started to lift himself up onto hands and knees from where he'd fallen while his voice called out in a guttural sound...

"Where are you, Sorcerer?"

 

[Kol]

Kol slowly stood up from amidst the cloud of debris, standing just a few feet away from where the wyrm had fallen. His lips thinned for a brief moment, and he clutched his fingers tightly around the odd blue shard that he had just managed to catch as it fell.

"I am here." The Sorcerer said as he raised up the shard.

Blue light Cascaded from the odd gem like artifact, a strange effect of waves rushing through the inside of it. Kol watched it for a few seconds, noting the twisting of water within the gem before he looked up at the Half-Giant.

"I have what we came for." A smile touched his lips, two of the odd grins appearing in the air around him. "I believe it is as the Gods whispered to me."

Even as he held it Kol could feel the power within the shard, and along with it utter rage.

 

[Ormr]

Hearing Kol's voice told the Half-Giant that the Sorcerer still lived. That was good, at least for now. Down on hands and knees as he continued to recover he turned his head to look at the Wyrm which still laid still. It had been a challenging fight that tested his strength. Ormr wasn't sure if he'd broken anything but a stiffness had started to fill his limbs.

Rising carefully up to his full height he'd have went in search for his sword, which he'd lost amidst the fighting...

"What you came for."

...he'd correct the Sorcerer though if Kol could create a pathway deeper into the Blightlands as he intended it might benefit the two of them equally. As he found his sword the Half-Giant would scoop it into the palm of his right hand, lifting it easily if not a bit slower than he had originally before passing it back over his shoulder to sheath it across his back again.

Ormr turned and came closer to Kol then, eying the strange blue shard that the Sorcerer held with mild skepticism though he would admit that artifacts of power had no uniform appearance. The Cavern was void save for the fallen Wyrm and would be easily forgotten when the two of them left but the Half-Giant asked...

"Now what, Kol?"

...he wondered if there was some ritual, some climax that would be performed here and now or if these Dark Gods that lead Kol had something else in mind.

 

[Kol]

For a brief moment the Sorcerer did not answer, instead he closed his eyes and felt the power emanating from the shard. The sheer strength of it was stunning, and Kol imagined all the things he could do with it.

His fingers tightened, and a deep breath shook his entire body. "Now I must travel south, through the Blightlands."

The journey would be a dangerous one, but it had to be done.

"I must reach the tip of the Drawa river, the waterway that separates The Blightlands from the Wilds." The river of course flowed out into the ocean, but the various inlets were guarded by guarded by several fortresses controlled by Menalus.

Breaching them would take a fleet far larger than what he had, at least for now.

"There I will be able to use the gem to create a new path." He explained. "One that Menalus cannot guard."

 

[Ormr]

The Half-Giant came closer to Kol, towering over him easily while he studied the Sorcerers body language. Unlike Kol he couldn't feel the power of the shard, he recognized it as a tool of power however he hadn't the talent or the inclination to tap into its true power.

When the Sorcerer shook, his eyes closed Ormr observed him with mild interest then replied after hearing him speak...

"Through the Blightlands."

...his voice remained a rumble though something about his tone indicated the Half-Giant was interested...

"The trek will be long, perilous. There is a chance one of the Sons of Molthal may notice."

...or be sent by Menalus to intercept the Nordwirr. No group traveling across the Blightlands was beyond notice. Considering that Ormr also recognized the potential for such a trek, there could be many challenges along the way, many enemies. This appealed to the Half-Giant.

"You will reach the tip of the Drawa, I will ensure it."

...the Sorcerer had not asked Ormr to accompany him but he must have known that by suggesting the danger it would tug at the mind of the Half-Giant, appealing to the fire of battle that his God demanded. It seemed their paths were the same, at least for now.