Main Game Thread
. (Reactivating thread)
"Because of our chief the Tribe survives,
through his will we endure,
through his wisdom we hunt,
through his strength we thrive,
Veskat's word is law,
Veskat's command be done,
To war we march,
TO honor our chief,
To honor the ancestors.
For the Tribe."
Draconic chant sometimes heard among lizardfolk hunters as they go about their day.
Veskat was the chieftain of the River Kingdom Lizardfolk, a small insignificant village in the Stolen lands south of Restov. This small tribe survived in an ever dwindling swampland in mud huts in the center of a river flow.
Survival in the Lizardfolk village was for the strong and resourceful. Often when times were lean they devoured their own eggs and other sentient beings that trespassed. Meat is Meat was a common saying in the tribe, they didn't eat others out of ritualistic custom or a sense of malice. It was a practicality, a means of survival. A practice that wasn't discouraged by the current chieftain, Veskat.
It also wasn't uncommon for them to cast out the weakest members of the tribe as well or those that didn't contribute to the tribe.
One such outcast was a particularly strong lizardfolk, whose heritage was emerging as he entered adulthood. Being a clutch brother to Veskat and, naturally, this made him a threat to Veskat place as Chieftain. For which Veskat arranged for him and other more troublesome members to run afoul of some Numerian slavers.
Slavers that dragged him back into Numeria and forced him to explore Silver Mount, where his half-dragon form emerged while he was under heavy duress. Despite the massive surge in strength and power he still fell to the inner workings of the technological wonder of a ruin.
When he emerged he was changed, physically, mentally and emotionally. Not only had his draconic heritage taken him over completely but so had the mutagenic fluids that he had fallen too. He was no longer lizardfolk or even normal, an alien intellect had emerged within him and he now had goals for those that had crossed him he would soon rain ruin upon them. His return to the capital city of Skyfall was not a glorious one, though he didn't care now that he had a goal. He soon joined the gladiatorial arena, where he aimed for the top place and to earn his freedom so he could leave the poisoned land of Numeria.
It took him a full year to rise to the rank of champion, during his championship bout he did one better and challenged a high ranking officer in the Technic League. His goal? THe officers slave, a blind dragonkin named Astrata. Urux felt a kindred spirit in the bound slave and felt confident in his ability to defeat the technology dependent officer. His confidence paid off in spades. Not only had he earned Astrata but the artifact the Technic League officer had been hiding on his person.
A simple deck of cards that would soon change goals and their life completely. Before he stepped out as Champion the Black Soverign gifted to him another for his harem a rare albino lizardfolk without a name. A creature bought at great price from the jungles of the Mwangi for Kevoth-Kul's pleasure, however the Warlord found no such thing in the rare beauty. So Urux luck continued to hold out until they reached the Numerian border, where the Technic league ambushed him and his two followers. Slaying the albino and brutally injuring Astrata before Urux sent all of them to hell.
Claiming the Technic League items, and placing his fallen companions within a his magical bag of holding, he pressed on. Determined to reach the stolen lands and initiate his plans, along the way he slept in odd places. Broken ruins and found more magical items that he took note of. Hopeful that he could recreate them later...
Once there he flew out to the distant Candlemere and destroyed the wisps that called the lonely isle home. Once they were dealt with he pulled forth the Deck, knowing full well that it could destroy him. But the cards he drew would change him forever.
He chose to draw five cards...
The First...
The Gem
Before him appeared fifty gems worth a great deal.
The second...
The Throne.
The image of a fortress appeared in his mind, a fortress that was his for as long as he could hold it and he could place it anywhere he wished within the next hour.
The third...
The Jester.
A creature appeared before him, offering him great knowledge or the chance for two more cards from the deck. Its smile was both infuriating and frightening to Urux, who fely his lucky was swiftly running out.
However he chose two more cards...
The fourth...
The Star...
He felt his body strengthen, the decision already made for what this card could provide. With a stronger heart he continued to draw...
The fifth...
The Sun...
A magical item fell at his feet, fate once more deciding what he needed for him as the very air around him hummed from the magical might of this artifact. Urux swallowed heavily before drawing his remaining two cards...
Jesters draw... The Sixth and Seventh...
THe smiling Jester emerged from thin air, smiling as it drew the next two cards and looked at them. Laughing gleefully as it revealed the first card drawn...
The Moon which was nearly a full moon and Urux fear vanished as he felt reassured he could avoid whatever fate had in store for him now. The Jester waved a long bony finger back and forth before his silver scaled muzzle. Not so fast... Its not Over yet~ with a leaden heart he held his breath as the Jester revealed the last card...
The Key...
A blade appeared in his hands, one with a unique make and as it formed the Jester stepped through the invisible slit in reality once more. Leaving the air echoing with its giggling as its words made a chill run up Urux spine. Lucky, Lucky~! Now don't die.
Urux pulled forth the Throne card and willed the mighty fortress into existence over the northern half of Candlemere. The appearance of the castle was announced by a thunderous roar that caused a ripple across Candlemere lake. These ripples turned to waves that were felt even in the lizardmen's marsh, not before the flash of light brought their eyes to look to the east.
With his fortress in place Urux made his first wish. I wish for a natural spring of hot water, safe for all to swim, drink and lay in. A water without end. He placed this wish within the great fortress that had appeared and to his surprise a spring erupted powerfully into life. Raining down water that made his scales feel warm, water that his people could use now that winter was upon them...
After this he went to work, pulling forth the resources he needed to craft magic items this world had forgotten, beds that could heal the sick and injured, a larder that never ran out of food. Items of wonder his people would never consider or may be too proud to use. But Urux was not as he once was. Nay, he was a new existence.
Upon the completion of these items he brought out his fallen comrades, placing them upon the beds he created and watched as their injuries healed. The evil done to them by the league was reversed and after man days Astrata roused from her deep coma she had fallen into. Same with the nameless Albino. Upon waking they found themselves in a fortress that was airy and warm, every hall was filled with a warm breeze that washed over the scales with an ease that was magical in nature. The air thrummed with magical power.
Aside from the fortress they found that magical amulets hung from their necks, amulets that made it so the defenders of the castle ignored them completely. Who were these defenders?
Wooden Golems, whose ballista sized bows made for an intimidating presence. These lizardfolk like wooden golems marched back and forth across the castle with a resolute and absolute grace, protecting the grounds as Astrata and the Albino made their way into what could only be the great throne room. Where they found Urux, crafting a beastly golem from the corpse of a monster. As they entered they apparently were witnessing the final strokes of magic it took to raise the beastly corpse.
With his hound completed he now had eleven golems protecting his castle, his might had risen substantially and upon seeing his comrades again he felt his heart thawing. Together they could do so much more the he could alone. Without them he felt incomplete and now that they were returned to the waking world he felt elated. After embracing his companions he showed them around, determined to introduce them to their new home and what they now controlled together...
What else do you do Urux?
This was the first time he had felt true elation in days, no weeks! He had carried on alone, carry the still forms of his comrades as he fled Numeria with all the haste he could muster. Despite his efforts the Technic League had come for him, time and time again but to no avail. For he had grown far to strong to be simply dealt with so lightly, since the League failed to unleash anything of real strength or destructive power on him then they failed to stop his escape. He knew Astrata couldn't see, but she could feel something he planned on ensuring she wouldn't lack as being part of his harem.
He showed them around the massive fortress, the same fortress he had made spring up over night. He showed them the work rooms, the sleeping chambers and the magical furnace that heated most of the structure. Chuckling if the albino lizardfolk was lost in wonder. He spoke in the dragons tongue as he explained every room and place, excited to not be alone anymore. "This place is our home now, the power of the deck has ensured we will rise above this weak land and master it from this fortress. It has given us an opportunity..." He leads them along, saving the best for last and though he didn't enjoy the hot springs as much. He knew it would be a great thing for his people.
The hot springs was a large room, over ten feet deep in some spots but the hot springs had flooded an entire above ground area near completely. A fact that Urux was quite pleased with. Since the steam rose into the open sky and left the entire area feeling warm and moist, this same moisture was often pulled into the fortress by his gust of wind spell and maintained some humidity throughout the structure. There was a drainage system that allowed the hot springs to run off back into the earth where the water would get filtered and eventually return to the spring. "Despite our circumstances I don't plan on leaving this place empty for long. I hope to attract others of our kind and more to this place and build our own tribe. They will bring their eggs here to hatch, the tribe will know warmth and safety unlike before. Though it may make us softer, it'll be a lasting peace. Even if I must destroy those that threaten it personally."
The walls around the hot springs had murals to the goddess of Hearth and Walls, the same goddess that had given him such luck this last few years. Though it had been full of hardships he was glad to finally have a place they could call home.
"What say you two? Will you stay with me?"
Astrata eyeless face sways back and forth, perhaps taking in more then Urux could realize. She sniffed the air in the hot springs and seemed very pleased at the scent and feeling. "Warm... Pleasant. Reminds me of home."
She dips her claws into the warm water, the Albino doing the same while staring in wonder at everything you had created while they were asleep. The Albino cocks their head. "Make tribe?" She goes from dipping her hand in the waters to sliding in and sighing in pleasant surprise as the hot waters warmth seeped into her scales. "I will stay with the Silver one. Urux owns me now."
Astrata nods at the Albino's words as well. "We both are indebted to you, for you are our master now." She too reminded Urux of the contracts that bound them to him.
The reminder makes him smile toothily. "Yes. Those contracts..." He raises his hand, the pieces of magical parchment appearing in his claws as he clicked his tongue in distaste. "In this land. Freedom is law. No..." He summoned for a ignited the contracts in his hands, ensuring they burned brightly before the albino and that the smell reached Astrata before being pulled away by the gust of wind spell. "contracts." He paused for effect before speaking once more, though he too slipped into the hot springs waters with his wings outstretched.
"I don't need slaves. I need companions. Comrades! To fight! To win this land for our tribe! Contracts muddy the water, make things foggy. So by Hearth and Wall Freedom will be key to our success!"
The tattoo's on their necks shimmered before glowing brightly as the binding magic shattered. The lines faded, forever disappearing and returning the scales back to their original color. Astrata and the Albino both appeared shocked as they looked at Urux, Astrata's eyeless muzzle looking right at Urux as the Albino stared in utter disbelief. "Me free?" Was all the Albino could muster while still in disbelief at Urux actions, Something she had never expected. Though Astrata surged into the water after Urux, grabbing him up in her powerful arms as she embraced him quite forcefully.
"Yes! I will join you! FINALLY! After so long I can breath again, without whip or magic to force me!" She spins, carrying Urux in a circle before setting him down once more and leaning back in the waters. "I may never see my home again but home is what you make it."
The albino nods in agreement, swimming with ease through the hot waters. "The jungles of my home are far from this place. This cold land is unknown to my people. So me stay and make new tribe." She swims upto Urux and around him before springing onto his back with ease. She was quite adept in the water, much like most of their race but her movements were far more fluid.
They both look, well as much as Astrata can look at anything, expectantly at you now. "Where do we begin?"
Urux looked at his pair of companions, a toothy grin spreading across his muzzle as he dipped into the hot spring rapidly. Washing her off and emerging a few feet away with a powerful stroke of his limbs to propel him. When he surfaced he returned their hopefuly looks. Though Astrata's sightless face was always on his mind.
"We complete what I started here on this near bare rock. We build a home for our people, one that will stand strong and withstand the cold touch of winter. Or the pain of hunger." He runs his hands through the hot waters that surrounded them. "We need to combine our skills and complete this great place. Astrata... I never learned everything that you could do. Will you share with us?"
He nods to the Albino saying the same to her as well.
Astrata seems to bulk at the direct question, the slave magic fading away was leaving her confused. As before she was forced to be receptive to her masters advances now she was... Free. Something she hadn't known in many years. However it brought with it a torrent of new emotions, unsullied by the Slave Enchantment magic.
It takes a firm shake of her head to refocus as she turned her head to where she last heard Urux voice. "I was a powerful Magus and Oracle before my fall into this world. Though my magic hasn't been allowed in some time..."
The albino lizardfolk merely fluttered her frills at his question, obviously less affected than Astrata by the loss of the Slave magic. "Hunter and Tracker. Provide for tribe, though I was Chieftain's daughter. I wanted to fight, to provide and craft my own weapons." She flutters her frills proudly at that, obviously seeing herself as a crafter of some skill.
Astrata continues to focus on Urux, intent on understanding what she needed from him. "You say build a home here, how shall it appear?" The albino nodded enthusiastically at the question, her curiosity and raw energy making her nearly dance in the spring waters.
"Through the ideas of the scale-less, their great walls, protected cities and society. All of their ideas must be captured here and turned into making a greater tribe. One that can tame the land, one that can survive." He moves towards her then, running both of his scaled hands under her chin. "We surround this island in great stone walls, build large places for refuge and use our magic to make it untouched by the seasons. A place where our kind, our companions can survive. We leave what land there is to grow with open and grow crops like the scale-less."
He pulled away from her then. "We teach, we do all the things we have lacked until now. Or we will waste away until we are naught but bones." This wasn't an option for him. He wouldn't die, he couldn't die now. "We use my Wooden Warriors to protect us. Until we can stand on our own, but even then they will remain as guardian's."
"But wouldn't you lose your culture?" Astrata responded curiously, shaken by the touch of Urux's hands which jumbled her thoughts.
His response was cold, heavy with experience. "No. For mud huts, starvation and dying eggs is not culture." He sighs. "Ignorance also, these are things I would destroy. Willingly. It is an existence of suffering needlessly when all around their are idea's that would better us. But yet we are too stubborn to admit that we are flawed, wrong and stupid."
He pulls himself from the warm waters as he says. "I will not cling to hides and spears, when there is more we can aspire to. To create, to build and to grow. From there we can refine our culture and make something truly worthy of our kind. Something to rival those that have forced us to hide in unwanted swamps and tainted waters." His old life seemed distant and mocking to what he was now, his suffering to this point hardening him for the task at hand.
Their would be resistance, the current state of his people would be unwilling to yield possibly. But the next generation and the one after would be more accepting, born into a birthright they could inherit and was tangible from the moment they opened their eyes. "We will build a place where no more eggs die of the cold. Where none of the young starve or kill one another to survive. We will leave that barbarity behind us in the swamps that were our prison." He looked to them then. "There will be resistance, but together I know we can accomplish this. Though, nothing holds you here. If you wish it, you can leave at any time."
IT's obvious that the Albino was sold on the idea, her curiosity as apparently as the splashing in the heated waters. Astrata seemed more reserved, cautious until Urux's final statement, his harsh life experience breaking through her approach. "No more eggs dying... I can agree with that. Resistance though... I expect some will not go with your plan?"
He grinded his claws into a fist, his knuckles crunching at the thought of the one who would fight the hardest. "My brother won't, Veskat will not surrender his title easily. I will have to kill him." It wasn't a statement it was a fact. Veskat would fight to the death rather then surrender. He had sold out many of their kind for gold and got away with it until now, the gutless coward would regret the day he betrayed his kind for spoils.
"The Scale-less bandits too will fight us. Their want for plunder will blindly lead them to their demise."