Forbidden Places
By Richard LeBlanc
Chapter Nine: the hall of the king
Within the mountains within the forbidden isles - Lord Arachnid, Toy maker and Enchanter found themselves under the watchful eye of a vengeful looking demon lord that was known - as the Mountain King.
"I have a feeling that the 'king' has something to say." Arachnid pointed out. The small group reassembled and looked up at the demon that was towering over them.
"Who dares trespass within the domain of the Mountain King?" his thundering voice echoed. The wizards looked at each other and then looked up at the angry demon.
"Well, I'm Lord Arachnid - this is my pet and friend Nibbles." Arachnid replied unimpressed.
"I'm Toy Maker and the hawk is Lady Tuly." Toy maker continued - with an equal amount of respect.
"Silence! Do you really think I care? Report to my hall at once!" the demon echoed as he vanished. The sky returned to normal.
"He didn't let me introduce myself." Enchanter commented.
"Thank god for small favors. If he had we would have been here for weeks." Tuly replied as they made their way down the scorched path. The longer they walked the more petrified statues they encountered.
"They look so lifelike." Enchanter commented. Arachnid walked over and lightly scratched the statue's arm. As he did - a small trickle of blood escaped.
"They're real. Some power encased them like this. A form of punishment would be my guess. I would wager that it would take these poor souls - months to die. This Mountain King is something else." Arachnid commented.
"Sounds like the two of you would get along." Toy Maker commented.
"You never know. Stranger things have happened." Arachnid replied.
"Hey - you guys think that place might be his hall?" Enchanter asked as he pointed to a black mountain that loomed on the horizon.
"Looks like a volcano." Toy Maker commented.
"An old one." Enchanter added.
"A very old one." Markys corrected as she skipped ahead of them.
"I like a sinister looking place as much as the next guy - but there is something about this - this whole place that is rubbing me the wrong way." Arachnid stated seriously.
"Hmm. You're just saying that because you haven't seen a single spider since we entered this gloomy place." Toy maker retorted. Arachnid scowled at the artificer.
"Let's get this over with. The sooner we deal with this King - the sooner we can resume our quests - and be rid of each other." Toy maker rationalized as he followed the winding path that led to the black mountain.
A short while later - the small group found themselves before two large metal doors. Guarding the doors were two gigantic demonic orcs.
"Now - I've seen it all - demonic orcs." Toy Maker muttered in disbelief.
"Hey? Down here!" Enchanter called out. The slow-witted sentries looked around in a mild state of confusion until they looked down and saw who was talking to them.
"Your boss is expecting us. Open the doors." Enchanter continued. The orcs looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders. They stepped aside and pushed the large doors open. The wizards slowly walked passed the orcs and entered the stronghold of the Mountain King.
"This has to be a trap." Tuly whispered.
"If it is - he will regret setting it." Toy maker reassured.
At that moment - within his thrown room - the Mountain King sat patiently and waited for his expected guests. Above him - bound by a golden chain was the majestic looking Volcanic Firebird. At his feet - gnawing on what appeared to be the remains of a human leg - was the Orcish Demon Lord.
"Is this necessary? Me could still kill them." The Orcish Demon Lord grunted. The Mountain King kicked him in the face and motioned for him to remain silent.
"Silence. Because of your impromptu attack - I do not have the element of surprise. Now I must deal with these pests in another way." He retorted crossly. Just then the large bronze doors at the end of the hall began to push open. The King looked up and saw Arachnid and Toy Maker making their way towards him.
"Speak of the devil and he shall come." The King muttered.
"Infidels! Bow to the lord and master of all - the great and mighty Mountain King!" the Orcish Demon Lord roared. The two wizards looked at each other and almost wanted to laugh.
"Let me think about that - no." Arachnid replied seriously.
"I never knew that orcs had a sense of humor." Toy Maker added. The orc was about to jump up when the King kicked him again and gestured for him to remain silent and not to move. The two wizards watched as the large demonic orc curled up on the floor and began to tremble.
"You called this dance - King. Why are we here?" Toy Maker asked.
"Hmm. I am curious by nature. This is not exactly a tourist resort - or a place that welcomes guests from afar. So when I learn of wanderers in my domain - I get - suspicious - curious - and angry." The Mountain King replied seriously.
"That's nice. Is there a reason for us talking? If there isn't we still have other places to be." Arachnid pointed out. The King sighed and took a long sip from his golden chalice.
"There is. You are trespassing. I am trying to assess if there is any discernable reason for me to let you leave here alive. So far - I have not." He answered coldly.
"Really? I saw signs marking Chaos' territory - I didn't see any saying this was your place." Toy Maker stated calmly.
"You seem too intelligent to believe so - weak an excuse. What is your reason for being in my domain? I do presume that there is a reason." The King asked as red mana pulsed from every inch of his being.
"Oh - there is." Arachnid answered. The King leaned forward to hear the reason - but deduced that what he had heard was the whole of his answer.
"And that reason is?" the King repeated.
"None of your damn business." Arachnid answered seriously.
"Well answered." Toy Maker commented.
"I have my moments." Arachnid replied. The King grunted and slowly rose to his feet.
"Are you both so tired of living that you would welcome death so openly by risking my anger?" he demanded as the walls to his hall burst into flames.
"That needn't concern you. I heard that you had a run in with an associate of mine - Chaos?" Toy Maker asked. The Mountain King quietly laughed and shook his head.
"What of it? So have you. Both of us had little progress against him - what of it? His natural powers made dealing with him - difficult. That problem - is not here - within either of you." He retorted coldly.
"On the contrary. I underestimated him. I thought him to be a complete brute with a complete lack of vision. I never realized that there was a method to his madness. I learned from that mistake - and if you desire - I can show you what I have learned since my confrontation with that madman." Toy maker replied confidently.
"I would like that very much actually." The King hissed. Red mana flared around the King.
"We leave you alone for a few seconds and already you are starting a war. Honestly - I just can't take you boys anywhere." Enchanter commented. The King looked over and saw Enchanter walking with Markys.
She is with them. He thought. With a wave of his hand - the mana and flames died down. A darkness began to settle in the hall once again.
"What gives? I thought you wanted to do this." Arachnid goaded. The King glared at the spider wizard but returned to his thrown.
"My apologies. Sometimes I let my temper get the better of me. It happens once in a while." He replied.
"And that attack we encountered with those orcs?" Toy Maker asked.
"That - would be the fault of my stupid slave here. He did something incredibly foolish earlier - he believed he had a thought in his empty head. He thought I wanted you dead - that I wanted you attacked. Nothing could be further from the truth." The King replied - unknown to the three wizards - Markys was smiling an evil smile at The Mountain King.
"This boy is starting to sound as phony as Enchanter around a woman." Tuly muttered - both Arachnid and Toy Maker almost laughed at the remark - but struggled to remain serious.
"Sure. Okay. So where does that leave us?" Toy maker asked.
"Well, I heard from a source of mine that you are on your way to the Temple of Chaos - I find the place to be a little gaudy myself - Chaos would have hated it - but if you want I could have an army of goblins escort you through my territory. It tends to be a dangerous place after dark." He replied with a wicked smile.
"I trust goblins even less than I trust you. Goblins make lousy workers and even worse allies. If you want to spy on us - find another way." Toy Maker stated seriously.
"Suit yourself." The King replied. A wall of flames rose up around the wizards. When it flickered out - the wizards were gone. As soon as they were - the King sighed and shook his head. He was lucky that it ended as smoothly as it had - and he knew it.
"At last they gone." The Orcish Demon Lord muttered.
"For once I agree with you." He admitted.
"They big trouble." He continued.
"My stupid slave - you have no idea just how right you are." He replied.
Was it your power that teleported them away? The Volcanic Firebird asked telepathically.
"I had no choice. I can not deal with them yet - but soon - soon." He replied with a quiet laugh. He sat down on his thrown and took another sip from his chalice.
At that moment - at the far reach of the Mountain King's domain - the small group appeared from a burst of smoke and flames. They looked around and could see that their host had almost ejected them completely from his territory.
"I guess his 'majesty' had enough of us." Toy Maker commented.
"Let's not look a gift horse in the mouth. He saved us a great deal of time by sending us here. The Temple of Chaos should be just a short jaunt from here. If we are lucky - we should be able to get there before sunrise." Tuly commented. Sure enough - as the sun began to rise a short while later - the Temple of Chaos could be seen.
"Hmm. The King was right about one thing." Toy maker began.
"What's that?" Enchanter asked.
"That place must have been built after his death. He would have considered that place tacky on almost every level." He answered as they made their was towards the small army of dwarfs that was waiting for them. As they got closer - they could see just how fortified the area really was.
"Talk about entrenched. They could probably keep normal armies at bay indefinitely with a set up like this." Enchanter commented.
"Well - we aren't an army - and we aren't normal. If they tried to keep us away - they might last minutes." Arachnid stated coldly. The leader of the regiment before them made his way forward.
"Is one of you a wizard named - Toy maker?" he asked.
"That would be me." he replied seriously.
"You are the one claiming to be ally to the great and mighty Chaos?" he asked.
"Again - that would be me." he answered seriously.
"Any ally of Chaos is welcome here. Liars - thieves - and spies are not. If you can prove your claim - you will be allowed to pass. If you can not - have no doubt in your mind - that death - will be your instant reward." The dwarf stated seriously. Toy Maker sighed and carefully removed his gauntlet. He looked at a golden ring on his ring finger and then showed the ring to the dwarf. 
"Will this suffice?" he asked seriously. The dwarf looked at the ring and saw a golden glyph of his fallen master Chaos.
"That is his mark. It will suffice. But know that if we believe you have deceived us - no power will keep you safe from us. Move out! There are goblins advancing to the west. I would like them to meet some serious resistance!" the dwarf shouted out. The wizards watched as the dwarves that were around them began to disperse.
"Nice ring. Where did you really get it?" Arachnid whispered.
"It's called a Royal Crest Ring. It was given to me by a Royal Assassin for assisting him. The crest can change into whatever I desire just by thinking it. It has helped me get many supplies and tools for free." He replied as he put his gauntlet back on.
"Come on. If we stay here too long - our hosts might get suspicious." He continued as they made their way towards the temple. The small gathering approached the gates to the temple and made their way inside. Along the walls were dozens of intricately detailed portraits of Chaos in battle with other enemies.
"Still think he would have hated this place?" Arachnid asked.
"He would hate the place - but he would be amazed by the detail in these - especially if the depictions are accurate." He replied as they walked towards the large circular room at the end of the hall. At the center of the room was a magnificent fountain. From it flowed flames as though they were water.
There is great power in this. Toy Maker thought as he discreetly traced his mark in the air over the fountain. He looked over at the others - they were too enthralled by the intense detail to notice what he had done.
"This place truly is a tribute to Chaos." Toy Maker commented.
"Impressive - is it not?" a voice asked. They all looked over and saw a dwarf standing by an opened door.
"You could say that." Enchanter replied. The dwarven priest made his way over to where the wizards were.
"I see that you have been tainted by the Mountain King." He continued.
"We were sort of passing through his territory to come here." Toy Maker stated.
"That - would explain the taint. Have you come to pay homage to the great and powerful Chaos?" the priest asked seriously.
"Truthfully - we were just passing by. I heard about this place and had to check it out for myself. Some of these paintings are incredible." Toy Maker stated.
"Hmm. They are. Chaos would have hated this place though. It was too flashy for his style and prowess. I told that to the artisans - but they wanted to make this place what it is. Some people chose to show their faith in other ways I suppose." He replied with a smile.
"I wouldn't say hate - it would take him a little getting used to - but he would grow to appreciate a place that shows his grandeur and might." Toy Maker replied.
"You really think so?" the dwarf asked.
"I knew the man remember?" he replied.
"I must have forgotten. If you are impressed by these - you should behold our greatest treasure. Are you interested?" the dwarf asked curiously.
"I thought you'd never ask." Toy Maker replied. The small group walked out from the circular chamber and followed the dwarven priest towards a large set of scorched doors. On both doors were two giant handprints - in the palm of both were the marks of Chaos.
"His shrine?" Toy Maker asked.
"You could call it that." the priest replied as he knocked on the doors. The two watched as a red light began to filter out. Once their eyes had adjusted to the ruby light - they saw what their greatest treasure was - the giant armor that was worn by Chaos.
"Behold - the Crimson Armor of Chaos - and his sword." The priest presented. Toy Maker walked in and looked at the empty suit of armor that was sitting on a thrown made from the shaped bones of dead orcs and goblins. Seeing the armor - brought back a lot of memories of his past conflict with the wizard - and the way that it was set up - it almost looked like he was actually alive.
"Nice." Enchanter commented.
"Nice - is hardly the appropriate word. This - this weapon is the legendary sword of Chaos. It's power is said to enslave the minds of weak." Toy Maker replied as he placed his hand on the ebony blade.
"Do not do anything foolish." The priest warned. Toy Maker discreetly drew his mark on the blade and looked over at the serious looking priest.
"I wouldn't dream on it." He began as he drew another mark on the knee of the giant armor.
"I just had to touch something that was once possessed by Chaos." He explained. The dwarf studied the wizard and slowly began to smile.
"Understandable. Many of us feel the same way. Will you and your friends be here much longer?" the priest asked curiously.
"Actually - I think we should be going. There is still much that needs to be done." He replied.
"Very well - but know this - the great and mighty Chaos may be gone but he will rise again." The priest stated with a bow. He turned and motioned for them to follow him from the shrine.
"That boy is a few pages short of a book." Arachnid muttered.
"You so sure?" Toy Maker asked.
"Plainswalkers don't come back. When they die - it is quiet permanent. It is one of the few constants in the flow of power in the universe." Arachnid stated seriously.
"I don't know about that. Chaos - he was different." He replied.
"You are starting to sound as pathetic as these simple minded dwarves." Arachnid whispered.
"Nothing of the sort. I simply knew the man and knew what he was capable of. And if anyone would be capable of cheating death - it would be him."  Toy Maker replied as they followed their guide out from the temple to resume their quest.
To be continued...
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