[hider=The Delirious Journey] It had been at least a couple of hours since Andris had left the castle. He wore a hooded clock as to hide his identity and he had brought his sword in case the worse was to happen. Only Fajera and members of the war council knew of his whereabouts. It had been a few days ago that a meeting was held to discuss the so-called rumours about the old man in the mountains. Not much information was gained but the one thing they did know was that old man on the mountain has been a local story in Deliverance for the last hundred years. Everyone knew that this was impossible, however Andris considered the possible advantages if the rumours were indeed true. Much to everyone’s disagreement, he decided that he would journey to the mountains himself. The Mazeltof siblings were opposition. Ever since the meeting regarding their sister they had been far more abrasive and hostile to Andris’s decisions. As Andris approached the mountain path he could see that some of the mountain tops disappeared into the clouds. He took a deep breath. “If an old man can climb up and down this mountain then surely I can.” He thought to himself as he started his journey upwards. Time had passed, but due the clouds obscuring the sun Andris had no idea how much. Was it minutes, hours, days, months or years? It was as if something supernatural was affecting the mountain and clouding his mind. Andris tried to make sense of things but it was hopeless. He felt suddenly tired as if his strength had quickly been drained from him. He had to rest. Andris then saw a medium sized rock that he could lean against. The weird thing was that he could have sworn that the rock was not there before. At this point Andris couldn’t care. He felt he was going to collapse any second. Andis sat down against the rock and before he could take in his surroundings his eyes felt heavy and fell asleep. [/hider] [hider=The King and the Necromancer] Andris suddenly woke up he looked around him and saw that it was dark with only the full moon to light his surroundings. Andris was shocked to discover that so much time had passed. He knew he had to return to the castle. As he got up he noticed an entrance to the cave located only a few meters away from him. The entrance had not been there before and between that and his sudden tiredness he knew some form of magic was taking place here. However, his sense of curiosity urged him to venture inside the cave. He drew his sword and slowly walked through the entrance. He had only walked a few steps in and then suddenly everything went completely dark. He turned around to see that the entrance had disappeared. Now the only way was forward as Andris ventured further into the cave. It was nearly impossible for him to walk without stumbling, the ground felt greatly uneven and it felt like it was shifting under his weight with every step. Then in the distance he could see a faint light. As he got closer the cave opened into a great chamber with a fire in the middle. To Andris’s horror he discovered why the ground felt so weird. The floor was covered with skeletons, men, women, children, animals and some that he couldn’t even identify. “I see that you have found my sanctum!” a voice cried out. Andris raised his sword. He looked around and besides from the area that the fire’s light revealed there was nothing but darkness. “Fear not, I mean you no harm. Never have I had such an esteemed guest within these walls.” The voice said with a cruel laugh “If you mean me no harm, then show yourself!” shouted Andris. “As you wish.” The voice said. As this happened an old man emerged from the shadows. Andris could not see him clearly. All he could make out was an extremely long brittle beard that almost reached the ground. The old man wore an old torn robe that covered all his body with a hood that obscured his face. However, Andris could swear that he could see a faint but unearthly light coming from the old man’s eyes. “Who are you?” asked Andris. “I am but a simple hermit. But I know who you are Andris Mandarass. Former King of Uzgob, Ruler of Deliverance and would be King of Formaroth.” Andris was shocked to hear his and raised his sword. “How do you that?” “Please. I know everything about your recent escapades. The petty war in Formaroth, your flimsy claim to the throne and now your current occupation of this country. But I’m not here to tell you what you already know. Ask what you wish to know.” Andris took a second and then said “People in Deliverance talk about a man in the mountains who was rumoured to bring back the dead to life. Are you that man?” “You already know that answer.” Said the man. “But deep down in yourself you have another question.” Andris stood in silence as he thought to himself. “Would you consider an alliance? With your so-called abilities you could raise an army that could be unstoppable.” “I would gladly give you what you desire.” Said the old man with a smirk on his face. “But I must warn you. My power is not some simple magic by any common mage. Unlike other forms of magic, necromancy requires puppets for me to control. If you want an army of the dead from me then an army of corpses you must deliver. Furthermore, there is another matter” The man continued “Even for a master prodigy such as myself, I can only summon a couple hundred undead warriors on my own. I however have a solution to this problem, something that I will share once I can guarantee your loyalty”. Andris realised what this meant. The idea was unsettling for him, but the capabilities of this power would be something that all Formaroth would fear. “I sense the turmoil within you.” Said the man. “That is understandable. I will give you a month to think about it. But before that time comes you must look into yourself and ask what you are willing to sacrifice to win your war and if you do win what you will do with that power.” Andris was moved by these words and they even made him think about how his past decisions had cost him and his loved ones dearly. Now he would do anything to make amends. If he wanted to defeat Alasdair and Eli, he would have to put away his honour for now. “As a gift of our new friendship, I will restore what has been lost to you.” The old man closed his eyes and started to mutter inconsistent words as this happened the fire in the middle of the chamber started to glow a blue flame. Bones started to lift from the ground and Andris looked on in amazement. Suddenly the bones flew with inhuman speed towards his missing arm. An excruciating jolt of pain seared into his flesh as he cried out in pain and agony. What was merely seconds felt like minutes as he heard the bones crack and form into place. The pain stopped, and he looked to see that his missing arm was restored but not in the way he imagined. His new arm was nothing but a skeleton with no skin or muscle in the slightest. He tried moving the fingers and they moved like as if he had never lost his arm in the first place, but despite this he could feel nothing. “Now go!” said the old man “Leave this place. You have one month to make your choice.” “How will I find you?” questioned Andris. “You won’t. I will find you.” The old man said he began to mutter again and with that the flames started to die down and darkness consumed the chamber. Andris opened his eyes to find himself in the courtyard of the castle. He was back in Deliverance though he had no idea how. “Andris?!” shouted a voice. Andris quickly covered up his new arm with his cloak. He then saw that it was Maror. “You’re back we weren’t expecting you so soon you’ve only been gone for a few hours” Andris was shocked to hear this, it felt as if it had been far longer “Andris? Are you ok?” asked Maror. “Ah yes. Yes, I’m fine.” Andris said feebly. “Did you find what you were looking for? “Yes, but I we must have a meeting with the council at once and in private. I have much to discuss and show. The two men entered the castle. Andris knew that this meeting was not going to be easy. [/hider]