Battle at the Shrine of Sacrifice

The crowd gathered at the Shrine of Sacrifice, waiting for the battle to begin, members of the Justice Alliance shying away from the fetid presence of the Undead. All were here to cheer their champions on to victory—Aeife, Jaryd Noi and Tauros for the cause of Justice; Void and the Valorite Dark Slayer standing for Scarmandine the Elder and the evil Necromari. A hush fell over the crowd and the air seemed suddenly chill. The spectators realized from his armored sleeves of valorite that this was Scar’s most powerful Dark Slayer, the outcome anything but sure.

Challenges were exchanged. Suddenly the Dark Slayer fell to the attack and within a thrice, Aeife lay dead at his feet, denying Jaryd and Tauros the mage support they so desperately needed. Soon Jaryd too lay dead, leaving only Tauros to stand against the two champions of evil. Now, the Dark Slayer stood aside, allowing Void and Tauros to face each other one-on-one. The battle raged, as each warrior demonstrated his terrible competency in the arts of war. The balance teetered between the two combatants, first the advantage seeming to go to one and then to the other. It was a privilege to watch such skilled warriors demonstrate their intense familiarity with the martial arts. In the end, it was Void who lay dead, but Tauros’ victory was short-lived. His second vanquished, the Dark Slayer fell to the attack. Tauros fought valiantly, but in the end, he too lay dead at this arena of sacrifice. The Dark Slayer recalled away.

The combatants were resurrected. His friends helped Tauros from the field of battle. Suffering from a lung infection contracted when he was imprisoned in Deceit, this hardened soldier seemed for the first time to be showing the true number of his years. As the crowd milled about dejectedly discussing the outcome of the battle, unexpectedly the Dark Slayer reappeared. Announcing that Scarmandine now allowed him to attack at will, the Slayer set upon the unprepared spectators. Grabbing up their arms, the members of the Justice Alliance rallied and were at last able to defeat this most powerful of the Dark Slayers. His champion laid low, Scaramandine himself appeared and announced that from now on the Dark Slayers would attack whenever and wherever they chose. When they were least expected, they would appear bringing death to all unfortunate enough to be present. With an evil chortle, the head of the Necromari then vanished in a crash of lightening.

Now the crowd scattered, some going to the Shrine of Justice to offer up prayers of thanksgiving, others to Empath Abbey to seek the counsel of the learned monk, Anton Wygrant. Those at the Justice Shrine found themselves attacked by spawn, which they were able to beat off. Meanwhile, those at Empath Abbey implored Anton to search through his library of arcane knowledge for a way to use the Spell of Binding to banish Sacramandine from the plane of the living. Anton promised to study the matter, but cautioned the supplicants that he himself was not able to wield the Spell of Binding. For this role, they must seek another.

At last, the weary folks returned to their homes in Edinburgh and throughout Sosaria to rest and prepare. None know what the future shall bring, but the days ahead look dark with challenge for the beleaguered citizens of Edinburgh and the Justice Alliance, which champions their cause.