A quaint cart rumbled along a rarely-traveled road. The young Thamarite priest had been awake for too long, but his mind was still buzzing with excitement. The rogue Grey Lord who'd originally owned this cart was going to be his way in to the Thamarite Order. The foolish wizard had thought himself safe in that little barn with the arcane tome, never realizing the guard who'd helped him smuggle it was an information broker. The information hadn't been cheap, but it was worth it.
Izak Bloodfellow tapped the smooth wooden box with the side of his foot for the tenth time this hour, again reassuring himself that the tome was safe. He had thumbed through it as he waited for the shallow breaths of the dying grey lord to slowly end, and knew it to be yet another theory on raising the dead. His order had perfected the technique long ago, but the Thamarite Order was nothing if not hungry for knowledge.
The serenity of the abandoned countryside was cut short as he began crossing a small bridge. A small explosion that rocked the cart and sent Izak tumbling backwards and crashing to the aging planks below. Dazed and disoriented, it took the priest a moment to realize he was buried beneath the scraps of wood that were once his cart. As he sought to push himself up from the wreckage, he heard what sounded like a pair of pigs who had just seen a ghost.
Rising up and taking in his surrounding, he saw a pair of brutish, humanoid pigs holding several of his ruined belongings in their arms. Both were dressed in tattered clothes that were two sizes too small. One had a small ax strapped to his side while another had an old rifle slung across his back. Looking past them, he saw three other pigs jogging away with his food and, to his disgust, the box holding his tome.
Cold rage billowed up inside him and Izak turned it to the two creatures. He calling upon his innate magical abilities, his cloak started whipping around him as the air around him began to churn. Before their could squeal in surprise, the Thamarite forced the furious wind out ahead of him, striking the two farrow with a thousand invisible blades.
Stepping past the two fresh corpses, he looked to where the trio had carried his prize. He spied a small cave off the road and set out to reclaim his property. As he approached the cave, he could only assume they'd stolen this from a large bear. The ceiling sat low, and the pigs' manes gently scraped it as they moved about. There were only three here, along with a chaotic mess of garbage. Looking at the loot they'd acquired from several different kingdoms, it was apparent that his wasn't the first cart that had been waylaid on this small stretch of road. It mattered little to him - they had stolen what was his, and they would pay for it with their lives.
Two pigs appeared to be taking part in some kind of gambling using several stones. On the floor beside them he could see his belongings that they'd pilfered. In the corner, another pig wearing a Cygnaran officer's coat was picking through his food sack as he wandered aimlessly around the cave. It was clear these creatures were expecting their comrades to dispatch of any survivors from their recent attack, which would mean their minds wouldn't be on alert. Perfect.
Izak Bloodfellow tapped the smooth wooden box with the side of his foot for the tenth time this hour, again reassuring himself that the tome was safe. He had thumbed through it as he waited for the shallow breaths of the dying grey lord to slowly end, and knew it to be yet another theory on raising the dead. His order had perfected the technique long ago, but the Thamarite Order was nothing if not hungry for knowledge.
The serenity of the abandoned countryside was cut short as he began crossing a small bridge. A small explosion that rocked the cart and sent Izak tumbling backwards and crashing to the aging planks below. Dazed and disoriented, it took the priest a moment to realize he was buried beneath the scraps of wood that were once his cart. As he sought to push himself up from the wreckage, he heard what sounded like a pair of pigs who had just seen a ghost.
Rising up and taking in his surrounding, he saw a pair of brutish, humanoid pigs holding several of his ruined belongings in their arms. Both were dressed in tattered clothes that were two sizes too small. One had a small ax strapped to his side while another had an old rifle slung across his back. Looking past them, he saw three other pigs jogging away with his food and, to his disgust, the box holding his tome.
Cold rage billowed up inside him and Izak turned it to the two creatures. He calling upon his innate magical abilities, his cloak started whipping around him as the air around him began to churn. Before their could squeal in surprise, the Thamarite forced the furious wind out ahead of him, striking the two farrow with a thousand invisible blades.
Stepping past the two fresh corpses, he looked to where the trio had carried his prize. He spied a small cave off the road and set out to reclaim his property. As he approached the cave, he could only assume they'd stolen this from a large bear. The ceiling sat low, and the pigs' manes gently scraped it as they moved about. There were only three here, along with a chaotic mess of garbage. Looking at the loot they'd acquired from several different kingdoms, it was apparent that his wasn't the first cart that had been waylaid on this small stretch of road. It mattered little to him - they had stolen what was his, and they would pay for it with their lives.
Two pigs appeared to be taking part in some kind of gambling using several stones. On the floor beside them he could see his belongings that they'd pilfered. In the corner, another pig wearing a Cygnaran officer's coat was picking through his food sack as he wandered aimlessly around the cave. It was clear these creatures were expecting their comrades to dispatch of any survivors from their recent attack, which would mean their minds wouldn't be on alert. Perfect.
He crept closer to the mouth of the cave and focused on the gambling pig nearest to him. He closed his eyes and forced his will into the primitive brain until the body became his own. The beast resisted, but Izak's will was too great to fight against. The pig's companion looked confused as Izak's puppet walked towards him, and could only shriek in surprise as his head was lopped from his body.
Izak released the pig before his mind became too exhausted, and smiled at the ensuing chaos. The pig in the Cygnaran coat stalked toward his confused ally, and Izak could only imagine the insults being hurled at the helpless creature. Normally he would have continued toying with these simple minds, but Izak had a mission. Refocusing on the elements around him, the pigs' attention immediately snapped to the mouth of their cave and the thin, powerful being approaching them.
The wind whipping around the cave was deafening, but if there's one thing these creatures knew it was that they needed to kill anything they didn't like. As they charged through their mess of stolen goods, Izak released the hurricane churning around him. The pigs were lifted from their hooves and pounded against the back wall as all their boxes splintered and followed after them. All the boxes but one.
The cave calmed, and Izak reclaimed his prize. He offered one final glance at the red stains on the cave wall and walked back to the road, the box under his arms and his focus set on returning home.
I hope you enjoyed this little side adventure. Who knows, you may just see Izak again.
See you tomorrow!
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