After sitting silent and alone in his office for some time, Highmarshal Korek finally arrived, breaking the standing silence of his office with the low creak of the wooden door on its hinges. Without word he quietly shut the door and found his seat on the opposite side of a huge stone desk covered with masterful scroll work.
“Rorrin, my lad. I’m glad to see you in good health. Throrn has chosen to work his power through me, and thus restore you to life.
I know that such things are… disconcerting, to say the least. I myself have been to that place beyond the pale on more than one occasion, but always have I come back when called, feeling that my work in this our mortal world is not yet completed.
Pay no mind to the fact that you cannot remember what lay beyond the gates of death, that place where our eternal souls go for final rest. Even the wise cannot see for certain what lay there, though through the gods we can glimpse some understanding.”
Korek paused for a brief time and furrowed his brow.
“I can see my words find you… disheartened. Though your brother has come, pick-axe swinging and voice ringing, into the fold, I am not here to convince you to do the same. All people have a part to play in the world and for some such naked worship and obedience is not necessarily the true path.
Ahhh… I see I have captured your interest with those words. Surprised to hear a devout man such as myself speak them so plainly? It is true. For though you may not have an interest in the path of Thurn, know that Thurn has taken interest in the path that you follow.
Resurrections are miraculous, lad, and not to be taken lightly. Know that the fact of your brother’s devotion is not cause enough for us to perform such a feat… though it was enough for us to seek consul from the Righteous Warrior himself… and he tells us that you have a fate set aside, once that concerns the church, yes, true enough… but also, your family.
Unfortunately, our limited comprehension of the grand will of the deity filters his message. Exact details of your quest are hidden. Know only that, as a payment for your, ah… reinstatement, we ask you to seek a holy relic for us; the Hammer of Delhodir. Legendary amongst our clergy… but little known else wise.
The hammer is a weapon of legend, to both the followers of Throrn and Thurn, for you see, each claim it as a relic of their faith, as a symbol that their own truth is the right one.
In an age past, there was a battle between the forces of Thurn and Thror, and open battle in the very halls of Citadel. In this battle there were two brothers, one on each side, who threw themselves in war, caught up in a zealous fervor.
During the chaos of the fight, one brother slew the other, without realizing whom he had killed. His name was Delhodir, and the hammer he used to kill his own kin is they very one you are tasked to seek.
It is said that as he stood there, watching the light of life fade from his brother’s eyes, he was moved and spoke, ‘What glory is there in death?’. He dropped the hammer on the ground and walked away. His words teach us who follow Throrn that the greatest glory lies not in how you die, but how you live.
The Thurnites, naturally, twist this tale. To their ears, Delhodir spoke, ‘What glory is there in death!,’ implying that to die is the great glory.
Naturally, this is utter foolishness. At every turn the warmongers steal our great lessons with twisted rhetoric of their own.
Ah, but I digress. The hammer has changed hands, from one side to the other, over the years since. A symbol of truth, for to have the hammer is proof of the truth of the matter, or so it is said.
It was 57 years ago when we last had the relic. The Thurnites ambushed our clergy and stole the weapon from us, hiding it away. It took us years to discover where they had hidden it, and when we learned… the great mountain of fire fell from the sky, the herald of Naresh. Citadel survived, as you well know… but the easten city, Sunderstone, was put into ruin. It was here that the Thurnites were hiding before the quakes, and here still does the hammer lie… somewhere in the eastern caverns, hidden now by rockslides, collapses, and the chill darkness of Naresh that festers there like a cancer.
Slowly, yes, I know this is a great deal to learn so quickly, and so soon after your re-awakening.”
He paused for a moment, watching Rorrin as he parsed these new revelations.
“To recover this relic from the ruins of their hideout is your task, Rorrin. Go on your way now, as you will, but know that someday soon news of the hammer will come to you, and you may find yourself treading unexpected ways.
The hardest lesson for some Thrornites is this: the obvious path is not often the best path to glory, and the pursuit of glory for the sake of itself is a sin. Because of this, keep knowledge of your quest a secret until the time is right: worry not, Throrn assures me that you will know the best time. Only you are in the position to make the best choice in this matter. It is in your nature, or so it is revealed to me. This quest is for you and no other. They may choose to help, if they wish, but not lead.
Throrn has chosen you, Rorrin, for this most important task.
But, think not of such weighty matters now. Go and rest, and the time will come for such things later.
Just remember, this is a debt to be paid, but not to Throrn.
The debt, lad, is to yourself.” |
