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Message: <blockquote data-quote="talien" data-source="post: 4070911" data-attributes="member: 3285">Madness in Freeport - Part 18: Receiving the Jade SerpentAlissstar was overjoyed to see them.“Thank you! Thank you for doing asss I asssked. Pleassse put the artifactsss there on the altar.”Kham dumped the armor, the vial, and the fangs on the altar.  “There.  We’re kind of in a rush, so if you could speed this up a little…that’d be great.”“I ssstill need your help,” said Alissstar.Ilmarė slapped her forehead.“Due to my ethereal nature, I cannot perform the physssical partsss of the ritual. One of you mussst sssacrifice sssome blood ssso that my people can be sssaved.”“Don’t look at me,” said Ilmarė.  “The snakes left my people nothing but misery in pain.  You can rot here until the end of time for all I care.”“It isss true, we will be consssigned to an eternity of sssuffering,” said Alissstar.  Then he added, “but you will never get the Jade Ssserpent.”“That’s really helpful,” Kham said to Ilmarė.  He turned back to Alissstar.  “Look, can’t we use a substitute or something?  I spend most of my time trying to keep my blood in me.”“There isss no other way,” said Alissstar. “Be warned, thisss sssacrifice will be great. You will lossse a part of yourssself permanently.”Vlad stepped forward. “I’ll…”Beldin interrupted the Milandisian’s decision by placing his axe in Vlad’s path.  “I’ll do it,” he said.Vlad began to protest but Beldin silenced him with a shake of his head. “Beldin,” said Ilmarė in gentle tones she rarely used, “you’re not right in the head.  This is ridiculous.  You don’t know the consequences of your actions.”Beldin shook his head again.  “I appreciate your concern.  But I remember a time when I was trusted with the guardianship of mankind.  My betrayal of Illiir’s trust led me from gianthood to this twisted form.”  Beldin strapped his axe onto his back and opened his palms.  “The ghost of Ironfoot showed me just how much humanity is suffering.”  He looked into the eyes of Kham and Ilmarė.  “You both saw what happened to the town of Vestalanium when they were shown the Yellow Sign.”“Vestalanium?” asked Vlad.  “Never heard of it.”“That’s because it no longer exists,” said Beldin. “The madness that ensued destroyed the entire town.  I will not let that happen again.”There was a roaring sound above them. The sound of the surf.“Uh guys,” said Kham, “we don’t exactly have a lot of time here…”“Then let usss being.” Alissstar performed all of the extensive verbal and awkward somatic portions of the ritual. The Scales of the Serpent were laid on the altar as Beldin donned the Amulet of the Serpent. Alissstar instructed Beldin to take the Fangs of the Serpent and use one on each wrist to draw blood. Beldin slit each wrist with the fangs and mixed the dripping red blood into the Venom of the Serpent. He poured the mixture onto the Scales of the Serpent. “IT IS DONE!” proclaimed Alissstar.The building began to shake. Alissstar made a motion with his hands, and the Jade Serpent rose from the center of the altar and floated before Beldin. He grabbed it, his wrists mysteriously healed over with jagged scars in the shape of serpents.Kham took the Jade Serpent of Yig from Beldin.  “Let’s go!”“And now, finally, we are at peace,” whispered Alissstar.  He waved a goodbye as Kham led the charge back towards the boat.  Beldin hesitated, tears in his eyes.  “I have saved a few,” he whispered.  Then he scooped the artifacts off of the altar and followed after them.</blockquote>

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