The Creation Schema:THE FINAL BATTLE FOR POSSESSION OF THE SCHEMA

[megamania]

CREATION SCHEMA
SEGMENT 337
“CHAOS GOES BOTH WAYS”
9/04/13

THERENDOR 15, 997

The gnome stumbles out of the alley onto the streets of Passage, Aundair. The military is on the move. Something is happening. What year is it? Where am I? He wonders. His leather jacket still smokes from the magical assault.

Glyder Freetime gathers himself. Looking around he knows roughly where he is. Passage has many good memories for him.

So much has happened to him since the days of traveling to Passage with his parents as a child. He was accepted to Morgrave to study history. In his freshman year he was contacted by “himself”. He sneaked on board of an airship owned by a rich dwarf from Mror Holds- Kim Elderich.

In Xen’drik, they encountered a magical storm. A lightning bolt from this storm struck him. He reappeared in Korth …. Two years into the future. Then with no warning he left time again and reappeared in Wroat. And this continued for about three years. He has seen the beginning of the 100 year war and the battle of Droaam. He met Kim again in year 992. Perhaps this is why the dwarf tolerated his being on the ship. He knew. He knew I would be there. He knew I had to be struck by the lightning. He may have even steered at the storm on purpose.

He just left year 1001. He was being attacked by an agent of the False Moon. He knew he would live since he knows he has to help Kim. He left a note for himself to this effect. That is a bad side effect of Time Jumping. Facts get fuzzy. It was Elderich and Play that suggested he leave notes through House Sivis to himself.

He goes to the communication house and finds a self-addressed letter to himself. It was written in 991. There is a list with several names. Symtex, Play, ir’Gunther, and Annapadda. He reads the rest of it. He turns pale.

He and the people on this list are to find and rescue Elderich. And…. There is a note that this will be his last mission for Elderich…ever.

 

[megamania]

CREATION SCHEMA
SEGMENT 338
“CONFESSIONS OF A TIME TRAVELER 01”
12/30/13

“I have seen much in my time.” Says the sickly old gnome. The halfling nurse smiles and continues to bath his still body. I look to be about 450 years old. But I have not even been born. Crazy isn’t it?” The House Jorasco halfling checks his vitals. Though new to the world, the Dragonmarked house healers are learning to use their powers over healing in new ways. Monitoring pulse, heart beats, eye movement they can tell much without using magic.
“I was born on Orlune 4th of year 981.” Glyder gives a weak smile. The nurse dries her hands and continues to smile at the aged gnome.

“You do not believe me. You think I am…. Crazy in the head. Play’s son and daughter thought so also back in Xen’drik. Now THAT… was a crazy and memorable time.”

The halfling offers him water. He accepts it and nods his thanks before coughing for several moments. “What year… is it?” She keeps working as she tries to tidy up his bedding. With great effect, he grasps her wrist with his cold hand. “Please…. What year is it?”

Smiling, she measures his face for his current grasp of reality and awareness. This John Doe was found in the ruins of an army outpost in northern Metrol several months ago. His mind resists any healing as he continues about being a time traveler. He has no known family. Neither friends nor military records. “It is the year 992, Eyre 5 of 992.” She pats his arm hoping it comforts him.

“I… I have time then. Please… humor an old gnome. Could you get a message out for me?”

Uncertain of the request she merely nods and gives an unclear hum. He smiles back. He already knows she will do it. He has seen it. It is his future. Her future. Eberron’s future.

Months go by. A family member from House Sivis has answered his call. Calli d’Sivis. She is young but eager to leave her mark in the family history. When she arrived to his summons she thought it to be a possible side story to tell in the newspapers or to her superiors for humor. But his sincerity…. His grasp of the past. Then there was the incident.

 

[megamania]

CREATION SCHEMA
SEGMENT 339
“CONFESSIONS OF A TIME TRAVELER 02”
12/30/13

The Incident Nymm 6th 992

Calli d’Sivis thought she was merely humoring a dying old gnome. But then she was told of three things that would happen within a weeks time.

1) A freak storm in Breland would nearly collapse a tower with repeated lightning bolts. The cause- a failed Lyrandar / Cannith experiment to improve the power levels of certain dragonmarks.

2) A child would be rescued from a collapsed building by a warforged. The warforged was caught in a collapse that crushed his legs and lower body even as his upper body and arms held out the children to safety. This would happen in Central Breland and lead to the king to push for their freedom.

3) A gnome by the name of Glyder Freetime would fall and break his leg at home in Ardev, Breland. An exact address was given and time.

Despite the war, Calli decided to travel into Breland. What was the harm. She would be hassled by the governments but by her being a Dragonmarked gnome herself she could do it. It was a mission for House Sivis.

Reaching Ardev by rail, she went to the home the strange elder gnome suggested to go. She witnessed the accident just as he explained it. He was trying to reach a box at work at the local library. The young man looked incredibly similar to the man in the hospital in Metrol.

As she traveled further by rail, she encountered the miracle. The rail was stopped as a Thrane agent had gotten deep into the country and began to unleash powers of his god in anger and pain. His two sons had been killed that day to the north by a Breland general whom had his family hidden in central Breland. A warforged soldier on march to the next battle saw the activity. He was believed struck down by the cleric but survived. The building he fell into collapsed and he saw and rescued a child there- the general’s youngest son. The warforge’s dying act was to save the child…. An unknown child of no meaning to him.

The final event or incident blew her young Gnomish mind. At night, A freak storm occurred. She followed the activity and found a gnome wearing dreadlocks appearing out of nowhere with two others. The three of them stopped a crazed couple of Cannith and Lyrandar family members. This gnome slowed down before her, he winked at her, and said

“I will see you again…. In a few years after the Day. But first, you will see me in Metrol again. You will know me by my eyes and smile.”

Dumbstruck, Calli already knew who he spoke of. The time traveler, the old man, Glyder Freetime.

For the next year or so, she spent nearly every day with him. She wrote of his exploits, the friends and family he had and made through time. He spoke of many things. Though he never gave a time or date, he spoke in pained and quiet whispers of the Day of Mourning. It would forever change the world.

“Can you travel any further?” she asked. He said he had the energy to do this one last time. It was important for him to do so.

On Orlune 18th, 1994 She visited him again. He had a visitor with him. A very tall eloquent man. He spoke with a very strange accent. She, a master of languages, could not understand it. It was ancient. She could tell at least that much. Obviously this man was one of his time friends. She had brought his books with her. She kept them in several Bags of Holding… there were so many.

The gnome sat up, he had energy today she had never seen in him before. He asked to hold her hands and look into her eyes. He looked with great love and yet…. Sorrow also. She could feel the love. It was strong and true.

The tall man said it was time. Glyder laughed at that. A time traveler that seemed pressed or limited for time. He asked her to travel to Ardev. He had money and a note for the parents of the young man she had seen the year prior. He was to go to college. He was to study history.

She gave him a gentle kiss on the forehead and warned her about a special human that lived in Sharn. She would write about him. He was a handful and would travel in strange circles seeking his past. She said she would leave that day. She began to leave then decided to give him one last hug and returned. There was a flash in the room as she reentered it and the man and the gnome were gone. The three bags full of history were also gone.

Orlune 21st she heard about it. The Day of Mourning. The day that would forever change the people of Khorvaire.

She did not know what to do next…. Perhaps she would write for the Chronicle again. Time…. Will tell.

Glyder had never gone this far back before. He saw wisps of the human nations. He saw giants and their wonders of their time so many 10,000’s of years ago…. If time can be explained that way anymore. He saw the demons. He knew of their rise in power that would come again. Then it began to slow. Things became clearer. The man beside him seemed to vibrate and waver. He was three images at once. Black, White and Gray. Three siblings THE Three siblings stood before him. Spoken in unison, they said it was time… it was pretime…. It was the end of time.

The three chanted and created a powerful arcane vortex. Glyder stood there with the three bags beside him.

It is time….as it must be. For us, you, and everyone to live and die….. release the books. Even as Glyder reached into the bags willing his entire history…. the world’s entire history to rise a great wind began to howl. The power of the gods was here. It built and built. Pages began to tear free of the books and from the gnome. The pages raced around the three deities. The words changed shape and form. Some pages defied the power of the vortex and seemed to climb and crawl to the divine beings inside the time storm. The storm of making and unmaking.

The pages struck the three and stayed there. The writing changed further and glowed.

“Thank you kind and loyal agent of time. Thank you.”

There is a celestial explosion……. Three gods ever in conflict, took time out from their battles to form time. Past, Present, Future….all at once…. Never at all……

In time immeasurable, a lone dragon of unsaid color, type and age wandered into a deep cave. A dream had brought it here. It expected to find nothing but was surprised by what it found. Glowing marks on the cave’s surface. They….. they had called to it. They were the first to be found. Soon others would be found…. And the mystery that is time and curiosity will begin.

Thus, it was Siberys, Eberron, Khyber and a little gnome that created time…. And the Draconic Prophecy.

 

[megamania]

I'm not sure why I decided to include the origin of the Draconic Phophecy here instead of Hidden or something else but I wanted to write in a bit to further tie all of my storyhours together. I have huge lofty ideas and plans for my game of Eberron and it seemed to always begin in Creation Schema.

I still plan to finish it. My first game group came and went. The second group were young and novice players which worked poorly with epic level characters. Perhaps I will run it as I do some of my other Storyhours.... whom knows for sure.

Calli d'Sivis will be popping up in John Play eventually.

As for Glyder Freetime..... Time can only tell. his is a history long and important. He will continue to appear and influence my Storyhours of Creation Schema, John Play, Sibeerys Seven and others only beginning to manifest and grow within my mind and imagination.

I hope some of you will reply. If not I understand. Just beware.... The Face of the false Moon is out there....waiting.... and he grows impatient

 

[megamania]

CREATION SCHEMA
SEGMENT 340
“THE MASTER OF ALL MAGIC CANNOT BE DENIED”
1/1/14

ARYTH 5, 999

Kim Elderich stares at the cold floor of his cell. He can still visualize the inscriptions and runes of the spells within his memory but he cannot utilize. His faith is pure and strong but he not the knowledge of how to act on the will and power of his god of faith. Nothing with magic works. Nothing.

Natural healing still works…. To a point. The welt and bleeding has stopped on his face but his two teeth never reformed. He hopes to survive and escape. He’ll find a Jorasco Healer to correct that.

The Frost Giant Greephoor walks up to the cell very quickly. He checks the captive carefully through the cell bars. He checks on the anti-magic artifact quickly also. He rubs his chin and questions something in his mind.

“Little one- how did you do it?”

It takes a moment for it to register that the captor is speaking directly to him. “Huh?”

“Everything outside is ….. it’s a war. How did you do it? There is no magic yet you brought them here! How?!?”

Kim smiles. He stands up and puffs his chest out. He tries to show as much pride and confidence as he can (especially for having NO idea what is going on) . “Magic.”

“No Magic!” the giant almost pleads.

“Yes. Magic. I can control it. I have been resting…. Saving my energy. Now…. I use my magic on you!” and he waves his arms around and acts like he is pushing at the giant. The giant flees screaming like a little halfling girl.

“THAT felt Damn good.” He stretches out his laced fingers and pops them. “Now…. What in the name of Onatar’s Beard is going on?!?”

 

[megamania]

CREATION SCHEMA
SEGMENT 341
“CRY HAVOK!!!!!!!”
1/1/14

ARYTH 5, 999

Another Frost Giant drops from the ridgeline as the Kensai archer hurries through the snow. Arcanis pops from the snow onto the hanging chains and furs of another Frost giant. The over-sized Megaraptor leaps up and bites and kicks the same giant from behind. Alton calls out orders to his animal companion while watching Shy-Anne Shard’s back. She mentally blows up several more frost giants with great ease.

“Keep them reeling. Keep moving- confuse them and hide our numbers as you can.” Calls out the assumed leader- Jasyne Symtex.

It has taken them a very long time to locate the Frost Giant settlement where Kim was taken. It is built into a glacier with natural and magical ice covering it. They would have overlooked it again except for the number of guards that were there.

Several Dire Polar Bears on leashes appear out of the blowing and swirling snow. Alton looks at them and smiles. “Screecha- ready to go big?”

Screecha, if she could smile, she would. She turns and looks at the oncoming danger and begins to leap and charge. Alton calls on the power and with a glowing hand touch her neck. The pack saddle adjusts as she begins to grow. The saddle is designed to give Alton a place when enlarged to ride. She screeches and leaps high into the air even as Alton attaches the cords to his belt. The Frost Giant and bears look up. In giant, one hears “oh crap.” And several tons of excitable claws and teeth come down. Snow is thrown into the already blurred air and the sounds of bones breaking are heard as She lands and breaks a bear.

Jasyne fires arrow after arrow. The powers of acid, cold (sigh), electrical, fire (x2 damage) and sonic mixed with raw magical might and a bane vs. Giants after effect…. It’s not pretty. Heads turn to red mist, limbs disappear and bodies are hollowed out as the magical explosions destroy a front line of five charging Frost Giants. He is trying to get into cover for the main entrance.

A frost giant riding a Colossal Frost worm charges after Arcanis. Shy-Anne sees it and instead of calling out a warning she waves her hand at it and flexes her fingers. Her eyes flare blue and energy rips out. The worm shakes and shivers before bursting in raw psionic energy. The Giant is dumb struck as he tries to blink blood from his eyes. The worm’s body and he begin to fall from about 30ft in the air. He is still in his saddle as he hits the snow. He pushes his upper body up out of the snow and hears “Ohhhh….klik-kkkk- presents from the sky.”

Jasyne, taking a moment from killing giants, looks about. The giants and their creatures appear to be endless. He lost count at 88 kills himself. The psion has at least three times this. But there seems to be more adversaries here now than ten minutes ago. Kim- we need a sign. We need to know if you are indeed there and in need of our rescue.

Shy-Anne then sees something in the distance. “No….. not now…” she pleads and almost whimpers. About 700ft away there are six huge humanoid skeletons walking through the snow. Her incredible and almost irrational fear of undead begins. She turns to flee but sees Arcanis, covered in Worm blood, point at them and charge. She sees Alton and his incredibly large (how did that happen?) raptor already charging to them. How is it these three have the courage to fight them. She can out firepower them. Why flee? She remembers her mother, in Sharn on the day of the Green Mists, her mother and her were caught up in the panic. Her mother breathed in the mists and became a magical undead zombie. Seeing what had become of her and feeling the urges of violence and the hunger…. She asked her to destroy her. Shy-Anne couldn’t bring herself to kill her own mother. Then a fleeing child, one that looked like she did as a little child, ran by screaming for her own mother. “Mother….?” Shy-Anne asked as the undead before her snarled and began to move after the fleeing defenseless child. Shy-Anne was forced to destroy her own mother….. to destroy her before she killed and consumed the innocent child. Then watched as she held the remains of her mother close to her as another zombie killed the very child she wanted to save. She killed her mother for no reason.

Instead of reliving this life changing event and fleeing, the psion concentrates on the anger…. The unfairness, of the deaths of that day. “no”. Her teammates run past her and Alton gives out a loud Yip-Yip! His idea of an invite for the psion to attack the oncoming undead. “no” Her body begins to glow… and pulse…. “no….more….” Jasyne turns and sees the giants. “Sigh…. This is crazy…. Even for our powers…..”

The wilder’s powers build…. Her skin becomes pale and her hair white…… tears roll from white pupiless eyes as she looks hard at the skeletons. “NO….. MORE….”

Several frost Giants stop in their tracks and look slack jawed at her. They know this cannot be good.

Energy flares out of her body and flashes over the charging Thri-kreen and halfling on his super-sized Megaraptor. “Oh Yay!” calls out Alton. “Kliiiiik” says the Thri-kreen in disappointment.

There is no sound.

There is no sight.

There is no feeling.

It is white.

Then the pulse and explosion burst out. The six skeletons… the 24 frost giant clerics and necromancers…. The 100’s of medium sized zombies….. all gone. There is a 100 foot bowl of removed snow, ice and ground where the Frost giant main force was.

About twenty feet from the edge a mantis Warrior digs its way out of the snow…… “kik-klik (can’t translate- grandma would not approve) Feared she would… do that. Klik.” The Megaraptor is back spinning…. She is trying NOT to fall into the crater. Her sheer momentum nearly carried her through the blast.

Suddenly Jasyne feels they can do this. They can defeat a nation of Frost Giants on their home turf. With renewed energy and hope, the Kensai archer begins to attack again. Many of the Frost Giants are abandoning their posts.

Then he hears it. They are not fleeing in fear of them ….. the raw energy of the explosion is causing an avalanche… THE- WHOLE- FREAKING- MOUNTAIN- IS- COMING-DOWN

 

[megamania]

CREATION SCHEMA
SEGMENT 342
“BURIED”
1/1/14

ARYTH 5, 999

Jasyne fires away at another Frost Giant guard that is just inside the fortress / city / glacier. He runs for the entrance as the heavy snow begins to strike his shoulders he leaps forward. He hits and rolls thinking he has beaten it. As he begins to stand up- the snow rolls into the fortress also. If he grunts, growls or curses…. No one can hear it over the roar and his being overwhelmed by the snow and ice.

Shy-Anne, barely conscious, finds the very ground she is kneeling on is rippling and trembling. Her human appearance is gone as the Changeling slowly turns and looks over her shoulder. Her clothes and armor are greatly torn. Her power is nearly wiped out and the snow on the mountain is falling. She will be crushed…. Buried alive. She feels around slowly… too slowly… and finds the object she was looking for. She pulls out the 3x3 inch metal square and places it between her (and the others) and the oncoming avalanche. She quietly says the command word over the deafening roar of the 1000’s of tons of snow, ice and debris coming at her.

A very large magical adamantine walled tower grows between the wall of deadly snow and the group. The changeling half stumbles / half crawls to the doorway and enters it. She clearly doubts even this will save her.

The thri-kreen looks up and sees what is about to happen. He tries to run but the crater and the pushed back snow is hindering his movement. The Thri-kreen decides not to struggle with the churned up and piled snow but instead moves to the crater’s edge. He leaps out and pulls at his pack. The magic flying carpet unrolls and he now races just ahead of the rushing snow as it strikes the crater. He can see the very large metal tower banging around and rolling with large chunks of earth and snow still attached to its base.

“RUN!” screams Alton at the wide-eyed raptor. It begins to sprint as best as it can. Alton pulls out a ring and puts it on while the snow is just reaching them. “I wish Screecha could fly away from this!” The snow covers them and they disappear from view under a thunderous crash of snow, ice, stone and anything and everything caught in its wake.

Then………. All is quiet.

 

[megamania]

CREATION SCHEMA
SEGMENT 343
“I’M HERE TO SAVE YOU SIR”
1/1/14

ARYTH 6, 999

Jasyne coughs and sneezes as he pushes through the snow. He can’t see much of anything. The cold fire sconces are all knocked down and / or buried by snow. Breathing is hard. The air is thick with ice crystals. He finds his goggles and knocks the snow from them. Slowly everything becomes clear in various shades of gray.

He frees his legs and stands upright. Drawing his bow, he begins to search for Kim Elderitch once more. There are giants inside still. But they are frightened and running around. Their leaders are gone and their fortress is under attack and heavily damaged. He uses this confusion to move through the fortress. He has no idea where Kim would be here. The fortress is made from a single sheet of ice.

Footing is difficult as the floors are made from ice. The giants walk on it as if they were made of tractable sandpaper. Not a serious issue. He just moves slowly. It takes a long time. He eventually takes shelter within a crack. He sleeps but not well. He wonders if anyone else survived. He is uncertain how anyone could.

A giant with a broken arm spots him as he climbs out of the crack. Before it can call out a warning he fires several arrows into him. Only the broken arm is recognizable.

As he travels around to another floor his goggles blink in and out. Shortly, after using the wall to guide himself along the dark vision returns. Curious but he thinks little of it. There is a large ice covered wolf padding its way up the hallway. He hopes to avoid it but the wolf gets a whiff of his scent. As it begins to growl he steps out and fires his bow. Its howl ends with the second arrow.

Too late. He can hear the giants call out.

He moves up. There appears to be more guards here. Good.

Kim will be well guarded. The more guards the more likely Kim is there. Go where the guards are.

All goes well until his goggles once more begin to act up. First he can see…. Then he can’t. He takes them off and braces them on his forehead. He takes a few more steps then feels something at his side followed by several loud thuds. He looks to his feet and sees his dozens of boxes of arrows and a wand. The very items he held in his Bag of Holding. He did not wish for them to appear. Something removed them from his magical bag. He pulls out the bag to place everything back in. He opens the bag and sees…. The bottom of the bag?!? His Bag of Holding…. It’s a normal bag……

Then something…. Someone calls out at him. A Frost Giant…. Its silhouette visible by a fire. He draws back the arrow…. No glow…. No ripples of energy. He fires it anyway. A normal arrow, no rainbow tracer… no glow… no boom….. a normal arrow strikes a giant in the leg. Then another… and another. Each time taking a step forward. The giant drops to a knee. “Die giant….die.” says Jasyne in a low voice.

With his magical wards of warmth gone, he is eager to walk to the fire for warmth. As he rubs his hands together over the powerful fire he hears something.

“Jasyne?”

He turns and sees Kim at the cold frosted bars of his cell. “Kim! I found you.”

“Aye lad- now get me the Frag out of here!”

He laughs and looks for a way to remove the bars or open the cell.

“Where are the others?”

“I….am it sir.”

“More death…. More blood on my hands. Get me outta here. I am sick from that retched thing.” Declares Elderitch glaring at a small 8 inch obsidian polished globe.

 

[megamania]

CREATION SCHEMA
SEGMENT 343
“THE ASPECT OF THE GODDESS OF DEATH”
1/1/14

ARYTH 6, 999

The world is grey…. And red.

The world… is pain.

Shy-Anne Shard is slow to get up. Even slower than to awaken. Her tower is destroyed. The inviting fire that is usually on when in a cold environment is out. Wall hangings and decorations are scattered onto the piled furniture. She climbs to the edge of the pile and looks around. At least her cold fire lights are still on. She sees the snow drifting through areas where windows once were.

“Now I know…. How Kim felt…. Will feel…. “ she says to humor herself over this incredibly dreadful situation. “His airship… totaled and thrown to the ground. Its contents thrown about…. Just like…. My home.”

She looks for her medical kit. The one with the potions of healing. It was left out when the others were here. The others….. did they survive?

She gathers up some equipment and tries to leave. The door is stuck. The very walls around the door are dented and bent. Such force… to damage magical adamantine……

The magical field that once protected the tower is gone. This allows her to go Ethereal. She gentle rises through the wall above her. She goes through thirty feet of snow and debris. Once clear of the snow she looks around. She sees several Frost Giants looking around with large Dire Wolfs. It appears they are looking for survivors.
She looks for a sheltered area and lands and materializes. She mentally goes to reach out for survivors. “Kim?”

She turns to go to the glacier fortress when something strikes her…. Hard. She quickly teleports one hundred feet to the sky. Then she manifests her psionic flight. The creature that snuck up on her is looking around for her and calling out. She reaches into the Ice Troll’s mind and shuts it down. The dying troll has alerted the giants to her arrival. “Damn” she snarls. She begins to fly toward the front of the mountain. She is cut off by a gargantuan white dragon.

“STOP CHANGELING”

She finds herself unable to continue. She has stopped.

“Really…. Geas on me?” she turns to look at the Dragon. Big. Very very Big. She is uncertain if she can effectively strike him under the effect of the spell.

While she considers this, Blizzard, the Great ancient White Dragon castes another spell but on itself.

She decides the hell with it and calls up energy to kill it…. Her mind strikes out. She takes pain and this pain disrupts her mental attack. She is then struck by an Iceball spell. She stops spinning in the air and resets herself. The dragon snarls and laughs.

“THE GIANTS THINK YOU AN ASPECT OF THEIR GODDESS OF DEATH.”

“As I am.” She pushes herself and tries to strike him down again. She attempts once more to destroy the beast but the impact breaks up her spell.

She can’t go toe to toe with it. It is over whelming her. It attacks her as she attempts to attack herself thus breaking up her mental concentration. She stares down the dragon…. Or at least the illusion of it.

Searing pain and the inability to move…. Blizzard has struck.

Suddenly…. Blizzard feels sick. He knows this sickness well. He last felt it when taking down the dwarf’s airship. The Frost Giant’s use it to keep him at bay. The crystal…. The crystal created as a weapon during the dragon / fiend wars 10,000’s years ago…… it was meant to destroy anything magical. After its first use, it changed. Now it absorbs ALL magical energies around it. Even permanent magic items lose their ability to function around it.

Snarling, the dragon flees. Shy-Anne falls to the snow below and the Frost Giants surround her. “You are no god….. and we will exact our revenge on you.”

 

[megamania]

CREATION SCHEMA
SEGMENT 345
“KLIK-KLIKKK aka HOLY MOTHER OF GOD!!!!!”
1/1/14

ARYTH 5-6, 999

The roar of the snow is deafening. The push of air before it propels the Thri-kreen even he leaps into the air and calls on the carpet to carry him. He lands on the carpet and it begins to lift him…. Then the snow comes down over him.

“oh….klik…crap.”

Snow engulfs and surrounds him. Everything goes white then black.

Cold

Very cold

Wet too

No like

The Thri-kreen fighter rogue is barely alive but is. He was caught with the very end of the wave. He rode the wave just under the surface of the avalanche. He tries to sit up but nearly blacks out once more. One of his four arms is badly broken. Most of the chitin has been completely removed. He looks to his legs. He can’t feel them. In pain, he begins to push the snow away with his three (still extremely painful) remaining arms. He stops when he picks up the scent of blood. Insectiod blood.

He begins to panic while he digs. The snow is green. “Klik! No!..... can’t be…kikik…..” his legs are twisted and broken. The carpet is twisted around the one leg.

“Klik… Can’t get…klik…any worse…I guess.”

Crunch=crunch=crunch

“oh klik crap”

He leans back and pushes some snow back onto his legs and lower body. For good measure- even his face….. so kliking cold!

Three Frost Giants and a Dire Wolf come near him. The dog whimpers and turns its head. Apparently the smell of insect juice doesn’t please its sense of smell. “eh- Here’s one. Looks dead.”

The Giants lean over and look at him. With the sword tip they nudge the kreen. Most of the pressure is on his broken arm. Through sheer force of will he doesn’t scream…. He merely passes out.

Dawn.

Arcanis can’t believe he is alive. The cold alone should have killed him. He begins to try to sit up again and hears a loud crack. His chitin is brittle from the cold and the blood has frozen between his side and the one arm.

“Stars…. Klik klik… I see…. Stars.” He slowly rolls his head to the other side. The chitin scratches and cracks from the movement. No sense doing any more moving. He may accidently strip himself of all chitin. He would be naked! Healing potions.

He feels for the bag and cannot find it. It has left him! Digging and reaching through the snow he spots the strap. Painfully… he snags the strap and begins to pull it to him. It is now he notices the yellow snow.

“I thought…klik klik…. Dire wolves stunk in general….”

With two working arms he digs in the bag. His third arm remains frozen to his side.

If a Thri-kreen could laugh…. He would.

He pops the top and throws it back.

If a Thri-kreen could cry…. He would.

The potion is frozen within the tube.

He tries to pop it out by shaking it. Nothing. He thumps one hand on it to pop it free…. Nothing.

Nearly whimpering… he places it along the broken away parts of shell. He hopes the warmth of his body will melt the potion.

That says how desperate he is.

Five minutes later, he tries to slide the contents out again. No luck. For the next ten minutes he stares at the potion…. Thinking….freezing….

Suddenly he has an incredible idea and begins to search for it. He finds it and it scares him. His sword is still strapped to his arm so as never to lose it. Strapped to the shattered and frozen arm. “oh crap….”
He tries to wiggle his arm a little. Things become fuzzy. He tries to reach to it with one of his two usable arms. They are the arms opposite of the damaged one. Several pops and cracks happen. He sees stars again.

Another five minutes later… once the stars have set in his mind… he tries something new. Normally, to activate his sword, he holds it. What if just ONE clawed finger were on the handle? Pain as he tries to turn the wrist and tap the sword hilt. He does and mentally calls on its arcane power. Fire erupts causing him to call out. The sword is under his body- buried in snow and his body.

After five minutes of searing pain, enough of the snow has melted that he can move his two frozen limbs. The one the sword is attached to remains useless. Tossing and rolling its head in pain, he tries to gently pull the strap off of the wrist. It is caught on a piece of broken chitin.

A deep sigh later…. He works it free. He wills the sword to light up again. He is stuck between holding the sword close to him for warmth or under the potion to thaw it. After a few minutes time, he tries the potion. It slides out an inch or two before refreezing. “Errrr….klikkliklikliklik,k……” He decides to suck on the exposed potion. “Terrible….tasting…. especially…klik…when frozen.”

After thawing three potions this way he works to free his shattered legs. The healing effects seem to be centered on his arms and chest. Perhaps since the legs are frozen, the blood is not flowing well there… not bringing the magic there….

Using the flaming sword, he slowly melts the snow and ice around his legs also. He thaws the carpet and wills it to fly. Nearly calling out and passing out again… he lifts and rolls his body onto the carpet and slowly floats away…….

“Heh heh…. I live…. Won’t Screecha be surprised.”