The Dragon Queen's page

"We have been gathering information on the current state of Gelkrosh for quite some time, Surtur, you will not be going in blind, I assure you."

The Dragon looks to her other servants. "Take him to Master Kiayuscan" she commands, voicing a name you are certain you could never learn to pronounce correctly. Then she turns back to you.

"You fought well for me against the giants, Surtur. Those who fought with you speak well of you, for the most part. But that war was straight-forward. Gelkrosh is not."

She closes her eyes and lays her head back down on her stony bed as if to sleep. You get the distinct feeling that is a common gesture of dismissal for her.

"Master Kiayuscan is my leading expert on the Gelkrosh situation. He will tell you what we know, and advise you on how to proceed. Good fortune to you, Surtur. Serve well, and your rewards shall be... fit for a king."

"When Gelkrosh first began burgeoning, I was busy with other things. Then, when the mantids turned up, it was too much trouble. As it happens, many of the displaced refugees came here. Now, with the war against Ybtrafalz The Giant King who rules the Dragon's rival nation, our most fertile region is raided, troubled, even invaded from time to time. Many people are fleeing the borders. Understandable, to be sure, but inconvenient."

"To be plain, Surtur, this realm needs living space. And food. Gelkrosh has these, especially once the mantids are dealt with. But I cannot invade it openly - that will only extend the border of the war, to no immediate benefit."

"I have a mind to send you in my stead. I would have you return to the land of your people, and do whatever you feel is necessary to unite and pacify the region. Then, it shall become a part of this realm. With you - should you wish it - as it's ruler."

The Dragon snakes its head forward and to the side, until one eye is only a couple feet from your face.

"Is this a task that interests you?"

The Dragon makes no mention of Surtur's slowness to bow as its other servants do. She blinks, slowly, lids sliding over her opalescent eyes.

"Such change, recently, for Gelkrosh. Not so long ago - for me, at least - it was practically deserted. Your people's ancestors, a few other tribes. Then the river farmers came, and all the rest followed. And then those dreadful mantids."

The Dragon heaves a sigh, her breath hot and smelling of brimstone and smoke.

"Tell me, Surtur. Do you think you'd like to go back there?"

The view from the entrance to the Dragon's audience... cavern... was spectacular, but you aren't given much time to appreciate it. The robed pair in front of you, a kobold and a human, gesture impatiently for you to keep moving.

The chamber at the top of the mountain is enormous. The glint of sunlight on metal catches your eye, and you realize there is a huge hole in the distant cavern roof above you. The sun - nearly to its zenith - is shining down on a pile of coins and gemstones, littered here and there with large items. The whole lot is heaped against the left cavern wall.

"Not actually to my taste, but one must keep up appearances."

The voice is deceptively gentle, both in tone and volume. You glance back to your right, and not five feet from you is the great face of the Dragon. Two eyes larger than your own head, set above a maw large enough to swallow an ox.

The human and kobold attendants bow low, and after an insistent shove you remember to do so as well. "The human warrior, Surtur Murumasa."

"A pleasure."

The Dragon lifts her head somewhat, affording you a glance of the sculptured stone you lie on. At first you can make no sense of it, until your sense of scale shifts and you realize the dragon's bed is carved in the likeness of a gargantuan cityscape, complete with rubble where many of the once-proud towers and voluminous mansions had been toppled by her repose.

"Tell me, Surtur? Is what I hear about your childhood true? Were you raised in that unfortunate region they call Gelkrosh?"

Please respond in spoilers as well so we can keep this compact.