Udall stood before the portal home, his thoughts returning
to that fateful day all those years ago.
His cousin Vanos stood beside him as he had throughout all their
battles. Where once the legion stood one
hundred thousand strong now only ten thousand remained, the best of the best
Udall grimly thought. It was almost
impossible to comprehend that they had finally achieved the victory their king
had envisioned all those years before.
Udall and Vanos, the leaders of the lost legion, destroyers of Edomira,
stood before the flame portal home, their memories overwhelming them...
The drow spy lay dead on the floor, his formerly invisible
blade lay at the feet of the Dwarf King Melair IV. Silence filled the King’s chamber, the lack
of sound almost as loud as the noise of battle the preceded it. All six of the king’s men stood waiting for
their monarch to speak, silently wondering if one of their numbers was also a
magically disguised drow elf. Udall
looked across at his cousin Vanos who stared back and gave a short nod. They both knew that the drow only would
attempt something this brazen if they had already planned to attack. Their army would not be far from the Melairkyn
walls, their spies wreaking havoc throughout the dwarf city.
“Now comes the true test of loyalty my brothers!” The king’s
voice echoed loudly through his chamber piercing the silence that held everyone
still and silent, “The advisors will be here soon filling my ears with their
worries, certain that I must lead them to a war we will not win.” All six of his men stared at their king,
uncertain what he was addressing. “Our
fate is not this temporary home and our war is not with these cockroaches in
the earth, the drow that hate us and lust after our mithral.”
Udall and Vanos knew then that their King intended to
continue with his plan, despite the drow army that was coming to vanquish
them. The other four dwarves, also
generals in the King’s army, stared at their king, confusion on their
faces. “Our war, if it is truly to be
won, is with the Red Watcher!” continued the king, “The beast will continue to
send its allies and followers, manipulating the drow and other creatures,
empowering this world’s dragons while hoarding all this world’s riches. Shall we stay and fight wave after wave of an
army without end? Shall we spend all our resources fighting to hold onto a
strip of land while our enemy rests easy waiting for mortality to do what she
could not? Nay! We shall take the fight to her.
None of our brethren that stay here can know the truth of our
sacrifice.”
King Melair IV continued to outline his plan to send his
best legion of warriors through the recently discovered flame portal to the City
of Brass. From the fabled city they
would launch a battle to bring an end to the most of evil of dragons, Edomira,
The Red Watcher. The remaining dwarves
would fight the losing battle against the drow army here, their defeat hiding
the true goal and allowing the legion to gain a foothold in the elemental plane
of fire.
A clap of thunder and both the dwarf generals were shaken
from their thoughts, the portal stood ready.
Vanos called out to the troops of dwarf warriors, “At last to home! Let
us return, reborn through fire!” The dwarven army’s cheers echoed across the
battlefield where the elder dragon lay dead.
Each dwarf carrying all the riches they could recover from the limitless
hoard, they followed their generals lead into the portal that returned them to
Toril.
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