hetherios.wolfpaw.net:5400
Circle of Chaos
The soft sound of footsteps echoed throughout the campsite,
a slight
crunch of a boot upon some dried leaves was the only warning of any approach
to his tent.
"Sir?" , came a soft call from the flap that
was the entrance to the tent.
"My Lord General, Sir, I've returned with the report you wanted..."
He turned slowly towards to voice that addressed him.
The soldier is a
young one, he thought to himself, still ready to please.
"Come in, Soldier. Did you do what I asked"
The soldier nodded slowly and
strode up to the make shift table in the center of the tent. With a
slightly trembling hand, he pulled a rolled up document from beneath his
breastplate. Using rocks as paperweights on each of the four corners, the
soldier spread the map out.
"It does not look good sir," The soldier
started "The opposing army has
quite a reputation"
The General let out a soft chuckle. "Son, I've
won dozens of campaigns, and
I shall not lose to a bunch of militia rag-tag soldier pretenders who call
themselves The Circle of Chaos"
The soldier shifted uneasily and let out an unconfident
laugh "I've heard
rumors milord... They say"
The General waved his hand cutting off the soldier.
Clasping his hands
behind his back, he started to pace the room muttering to him self in
thought.
"If my years taught me anything, it is to know
your enemy... What can you
tell me of them?" He addressed the now very nervous army man.
"Well My Lord General, They say the Circle of
Chaos is gathering of Warriors
and Mystics, with chapters stretching out from the corners of the world.
This group seems to be fairly new to the region, but they have picked up an
enormous amount of support. They are very selective of who can be amongst
their group," The soldier paused for a moment to catch his thoughts "You
really have to be Elite for them to embrace you as one of theirs."
The General nodded slightly, taking in the facts "Sounds
almost like a Cult
of Imidazole. I've dealt with that Cult before."
The Soldier shook his head slightly "Nay, milord.
They do not seem to
worship Imidazole or his works of Chaos, despite their name. The seem to
sow Chaos in their wake, like an unholy army, taking in consideration no
laws or edicts but their own... Sir... We outnumber them Five to One, but
the rumors... The men are afraid, they wish to retur..."
The soldiers words were cut short by the General slamming
his fist onto the
table in outrage, shattering it's fragile frame "I'll have no talk of
mutiny
in my ranks Man! Return to the Camp site and rouse the men. We attack the
enemy camp at daybreak." The Soldier gave a quick salute then bolted
from
the tent.
The General sighed softly and rubbed his almost bald
head with his hand
absently. He was growing too old for this. He needed his pot of tea, to
soothe his nerves before the battle. Walking slowly towards the entrance
flap. He poked his head out to address the Private who usually stands guard
at his tent. He frowned with consternation when he saw that the private was
not there. He must be off at his bedrolls, The general thought angrily to
himself. I must berate him for such slackness. He strode out of his tent,
and stumbled over a large object in his path, tumbling head first into the
dirt. Standing up quickly, he turned to regard the object that tripped him.
The corpse of the Soldier who reported to him lay silently at his feet, a
black-hilted dagger embedded deep in his throat, denying him even his death
scream.
"Beautiful... Is it not?" A hiss-like whisper
came from the shadows. The
General spun towards the direction of the sound. A huge golden-scaled
lizardman stood half concealed by the shadows around him. "Yes, Elgi
think
it is time for your pathetic group to be destroyed..." As the giant
lizardman spoke, three more figures slipped from the shadows. A terrifying
silver haired voadkyn, a male mrem with black fur like the shadows
themselves, and a evil-looking grinning platinum scaled lizardman.
"To arms men!" The General yelled on the
top of his lungs, drawing his
bastard sword "We are under attack!" The figures before him started
to
laugh quietly, smiling wickedly in the dim light. The voadkyn kicked a
round object towards the feet of the surrounded general. His eyes adjusting
slightly, the General saw it was a severed head of his Second-in-command,
Lanth. Growling in disgust the General leapt back. Had he been paying more
attention, he would have noticed a dark-skinned female drow with silver hair
creeping up behind him, with a wicked looking dagger in her hand...