6 hours after Alexus discovered the enemy, Kaz was the first to wake. Maximus quickly updated him on Alexus findings. Kaz quickly woke the others and managed to suppress the battle rage rising within him as the group began to move toward Alexus.
Alexus drew her longswords and expected to be discovered every moment she waited. She could clearly hear when the patrol started. The sound of Kaz's hooves and the footsteps of the undead dragons constantly echoed off the cave walls. Minotaur's and dragons were many things, yet stealthy was not one of them.
Kaz and the group arrived rapidly. They knew they were unable to move in a stealthy manner, and thus were more focused on speed than Alexus had been the previous night. 30 minutes after they began their descent they arrived at Alexus and drew their weapons.
Kaz lead the charge, followed closely by Maximus, Senani and the others. As they moved closer into the cavern, they began to be able to discern the varieties of enemies present. Kaz could see thousands of goblins, trolls, ogres, worgs, hobgoblins (hobgoblins were like goblins, though slightly larger and a bit more intelligent. They primarily came in shades of brown.) and giants. This army was far more formidable than they had anticipated.
Senani began to feel a sudden sense of dread as they approached the army. This would not be as simple a battle as he had originally anticipated. He used his Icon and requested aid from both Patricia and Argent. Argent moved the hoard he had located into Deviant Home and used the bond from the Icon to teleport to Senani in his human form. He was unsure if he would fit in the caves in dragon form.
Patricia immediately sent all the vampire warriors in Deviant home as well as the mindless undead to aid Senani. She then teleported herself to provide what aid she could. She was after all a rather formidable necromancer. If their enemies died, the number of undead in her service would continue to increase.
As Senani's army bowled into the horde of goblin kin, a thundering voice boomed across the cave. "Who dares to invade the domain of Grishnar the Patriarch of Dusk? Your sacrifices will fuel my return to the outside world. Destroy the intruders. Charge."
Hearing that voice, Argent commanded the group to return to the entryway. He and the other undead dragons aimed toward the charging goblins and began to expel their bright purple fire. Hundreds of Grishnar's army turned to ash. Their lifeforce strengthened Senani and Argent.
Seeing the fire, Grishnar spoke again, "You will pay for what you did to my army at Argent's Rise. None of you will live past this day."
A great darkness began to rise from Grishnar as he spoke. It quickly began to fill the chamber. A loud screeching began to be heard in the darkness. It was like a nail racking across a chalkboard, and it tore at ones very soul.
Sensing the power of the new arrivals, Senani commanded his champions to return with their troops to Deviant Home. He then teleported himself and the gladiator patrol into Deviant Home.
Now that everyone had successfully managed to move into Deviant Home, Senani breathed a massive sigh of relief. They had managed to escape Grishnar and his strange powers.
As Senani began to relax he began to see a dark cloud appear in the distance. Inside, Grishnar shouted, "The darkness permeates everything Senani, even your domain. How dumb are you to lead me here? To your very seat of power. I who master the secondary dimensions and travel through them freely. Now all that you possess WILL BE MINE." As he spoke the darkness continued to spread toward Senani.
· Quest Received, Protect Deviant Home. "Your new nemesis Grishnar has proven to be far more resourceful than you anticipated. Now you wish you had headed Ezyrth's warning. Many of the Ancient Anomalies waged war on the fields of Argent's rise with the armies of Grishnar and yet they faced defeat. Now you alone wage the battle. This was not your wisest choice, was it?"
· Quest Reward, Survival of the Deviant Faction.
· Quest Received, Defeat Grishnar. "You chose this battle, now win it."
o Required tasks
§ Absorb or recruit Grishnar by claiming his candle.
· Quest Reward depends upon decision made.
Senani read the quests and realized the truth in their words. He had forgotten that Ezyrth and the other abnormalities were being defeated when he arrived. Had he considered that, he would have sought help from Ezyrth at least before he placed his faction in this dire situation.
The darkness slowly approached the buildings in Deviant Home. As it approached the screeching of the creatures could be heard, though admittedly it was much louder now than it had been in the caves. Who knew how many creatures that darkness contained, or for that matter, what variety they were?
As the darkness touched the edge of his platform, Senani formed a rather desperate plan. He attempted to move Deviant Home into his land grant. To his surprise, it worked. He could feel the increased power surge through him. 125% from Deviant Home and another 100% increase from his land grant. Senani hoped this would be enough to allow the survival of the Deviants.
Grishnar stepped out of the darkness and onto the open land and began to walk toward Senani. The darkness followed in his wake.
Senani then began to alter the rules of his Land Grant. The powers of Grishnar would no longer be permitted. To Senani and Grishnar's surprise, the darkness dissipated. With it gone, the world became deathly quiet.
Senani charged at Grishnar and placed his hand on Grishnar's forehead. He then began to absorb the life and energy of Grishnar.
Grishnar released a bone chilling laugh. "It would appear you have bested me Senani. Now I know your powers are those of life force absorption. Absorb this body quickly Senani. For when you finish, I fear the surprise may kill you." Grishnar then remained still and allowed Senani to absorb his body freely.
Grishnar's warning fell on deaf ears and Senani continued to freely absorb Grishnar. As Grishnar's body turned into dust, Senani began to glow with a blinding darkness.
· Quest completed Protect Deviant Home. The Deviant Faction survives to fight another day.
· Grishnar Absorbed. "You have successfully absorbed the power of the body of Grishnar and removed that portion of his presence from Orion and Deviant Home. Unfortunately, another body will be formed over time at his candle. This may be either in the secondary dimensions or the primary world as he has not been banished from the primary world. Find and deal with his candle to fully remove the threat."
· Gained Dusk ability. "You can now use the power of darkness to aid you. Grishnar used this power against you in the battle in the caves and yet neither of you understand the true potential of this ability. Grow it to unlock its true potential."
· Gained Illusion ability. "You can now disguise yourself with the power of illusion. Only other's bearing abnormality force equal to or above yours or bearing special abilities can see through your disguises."
· Due to the amount of energy, you now possess, your crest has added benefits for all your champions. Due to system limitations, these cannot be displayed at this time. Increase your abnormality power to increase your system functions.
· Quest Complete. Eye of the storm.
· Quest Reward granted.
o + 2 icon grants
o Gained ability stone creation ability. "You can now create ability stones that contain any abilities you possess to grant to others. These will be weaker variants than those which you possess though the receivers of the stones will be able to grow the ability by use."
Senani was rather pleased with his gains. Yet he continued to glow with the glow of blinding darkness long after his system had finished displaying his benefits.