NOW LIVE! Today's the day you meet your new best friend. You don’t have to leave Wolfy behind... In 'Pets & Sidekicks' your companions level up with you!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="the Jester" data-source="post: 2586380" data-attributes="member: 1210">More Behind-the-Scenes“Father... please...”“You have earned your status.”“But to be ridden... to be a mount...”“You have failed me, more than once now.  And it was your own ego that did it.”  His great voice rumbles angrily.  “You will serve my purpose, but if you need to be humbled to do it properly then I will humble you!  Now fall down and make offerings to me, or I will destroy you!”***Lord Alyth gives Dekrasode the nod of an equal.  He knows the dragon thirsts to be first among the Arrows of Law, but they are equals, and Lord Alyth is not intimidated by anything.  He has slain a half-god with his terrible sword Judgment.  Cooly- for he does not trust the dragon- Lord Alyth says, “You asked too see me?”Dekrasode is in his customary human form- a swarthy man of middle years, with strong arms and a handsome face.  Without preamble, he demands, “How would you like to ride a dragon?”Lord Alyth responds blandly.  “I have done so in the past.”Dekrasode smiles.  “I would like to introduce you to one of my children.  He has a lot of potential, but he has failed me in the past due to his own ego.  I think it would do him well to serve under a human for a time.”  He raises his voice.  “Sautix!  Attend us!”Slowly, from the shadows, a form stirs, then slithers forth.  Sautix is huge, and is clearly all dragon.*  Sautix is almost translucent, covered in indistinct midnight-blue or black scales.  His long, sinuous neck has short horns on it, and two rows of spines run down to its dark wings.  The thing seems to blend with the darkness around it, losing distinction in the darkness.  Its chest is a sapphire color so dark as to be almost black.In spite of himself, Lord Alyth is impressed.  He has managed to mate and beget offspring with a shadow dragon!  Impressive.  I wonder what other hidden depths you have yet to show, my ally?“I would be honored,” Lord Alyth admits.  He had intended to turn down whatever offer Dekrasode was going to make him, but... well.  A crossbreed of two of the most powerful dragon species?  That is nothing to scoff at!Sautix glares at Lord Alyth, his eyes full of hate.“You have my full permission to do whatever training you think is required, my lord,” Dekrasode gloats.***Later, after demonstrating to Sautix the folly of attempting to fight or flee, Lord Alyth mulls over Marius’ proposed replacement for Asmodeus as the new Seventh Arrow of Law.  Marius, too, is bold and wily.  My allies here are of the highest caliber.  His suggestion is crafty.  He takes a very interesting approach to winning the war as a whole- he thinks in terms of overall strategy, of the key goals and elements, of the most important enemies to neutralize.  His forehead furrows as he frets over the real problem.  “How to approach him,” he mutters to himself.  A sending might be too impersonal.  Perhaps Prayzose is best-suited to make the approach.  But for any of us to risk ourselves directly at the moment might be ill-advised- the more of us that are safe, the stronger we are at the Bastion.Will he accept our offer?  It wouldn’t surprise me.  But... might he try to infiltrate us for the other side?Lord Alyth shakes his head, wondering at the powers of Chaos to deceive and the powers of Law to see the truth.  Surely, in the heart of the Bastion of Law, the foreces of order could penetrate any attempts at misdirection!Still... the thought is troubling.“Well, we will decide in the morning,” he murmurs to himself.***The Barony of Goldstone has been a point of contention for some time now.  Though God-King Malford the Magnificent has had troops stationed there, he knows all too well that his claim on the land is weak.  The Tiger Empress Reshra, on the other hand, is continuously moving troops to the outlying areas and gradually wearing away at his control, trimming the areas he has made his.  Moreover, she traces her descent to Rajah, one of Malford’s old friends and the rightful heir (in his day) to the throne of Imperial Wotan- which included Goldstone as one of its dependencies.  If I don’t stop her, she’ll take it all back, Malford thinks moodily.  He broods over his mental map of Dorhaus, his continent.  It is bisected along its north-south axis by the Bendrock Mountains, and another range nearly bisects it east-west as well.  The southwest is Malford’s kingdom, the southeast Reshra’s.  Goldstone lies in a large valley on the eastern side, and is rich with precious metals, especially gold, and certain gems and precious stones.  Horbin has been making a lot of noise about making peace between Western Dorhaus and the so-called Tiger Lands.  Well, that would be fine; but Goldstone has been one of the main goals of Malford’s ambitions for centuries.  It’s all much more complicated now, though.  The Tiger Empress is Prayzose’s wife, and Prayzose is one of the only individuals on Cydra that Malford is not certain he could handle.  (Or at least, one of the only individuals on Cydra that isn’t an ally....)  A direct assault on Reshra would, no doubt, only bring the wrath of Prayzose to new heights.  Kill her?  He’ll just true resurrect her.  Imprison her?  The forces of Chaos did that, mostly- Malford suspects- via the enchantress Estelias- but she got out somehow, and if anyone can liberate her it is Prayzose.  Malford knows that even impersonating her won’t work; Prayzose can surely pierce any deception he can come up with.  No, it’s going to be most difficult to dislodge her.  It’s either kill all her forces or force negotiations when I’ve got the upper hand, the king thinks to himself.  If only the fey would go against her- but they fear Prayzose too much, and she has cultivated a relationship with the Elf-King of Ketzia.  They won’t work against her, but at least they won’t work against me either.At least, not in force.He chews the problem over for a while, coming to no new conclusions.  He formulates many plans but is forced to discard them all.  Prayzose’s surpassing wisdom will probably guard against anything tricky, and he is too powerful for a straight fight to take out.  Plus, Malford doesn’t really want to kill him.  They have been rivals for years, true; but they have also been allies, fighting together in Hell (for example) when the party went to destroy the devil Mezzoloch, who had served Fuligin in Var.  Best would be an understanding: Dorhaus for Malford and Moira.  But the Tiger Empress will not give up her claim easily, and the kind of wholesale slaughter it would take to drive her out would be... distasteful, at best.Malford is a very busy man, with a fairly tight schedule.  His deliberations have taken only about three minutes.  He then rises as his schedule intrudes, and he must greet his next guest. ***The remodeling of Nessus, the Ninth Hell, continues.  There are many examples everywhere of what happens to those that oppose Lucifer’s rule.  There are also a great number of devils who have returned from their aeons-long banishment with their Master.  There are a few devils who served Lucifer as spies in Asmodeus’ service- but only a few, for Asmodeus was thorough in rooting them out back when he took over.  Many more have gone over to Lucifer.Still, there are those that still fight, and other factions that seek to take over.  Of the Lords of Hell, only one has (so far) sworn alleigance to Lucifer- but that is Tiamat.  She is ancient and powerful, and angry after her century of imprisonment by Bel.A sly smile.  And Bel is not the only other newcomer that is vulnerable to overthrow by those that came before.  But none must remember the Infinite Hells. Glaisig, the Hidden Minister, looks out from his Unseen Tower.  In the city below him, strange blue fires glow everywhere.  These, he knows, signal the destruction of many of the rebellious newer devils.  Silently he raises a toast to the forces that are burning their enemies with the fires of Lucifer, and takes a long drink from his snifter.  He smiles again, smacks his lips.  Things are ahead of schedule.The blue flames leap from one building to the next, consuming stone, wood, even metal.  Devils, too; this fire- whatever it is- is too much for them.  Even the souls of the dead.Glaisig’s eyes dance as the remodeling continues.Next Time:  I know I said this twice before, but Horbin gives his answer to Prayzose, Gerontius is true rezzed and the party begins moving towards the Bastion of Law!*Long-time readers may recall Sautix from <a href="http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?p=1074381#post1074381" target="_blank">this encounter.</a></blockquote>

Verification