"To him, you understand? Not his henchmen, not the other ice rangers, you must get an audience with him directly. It's paramount!" Kamil's voice, laced with urgency and power, cuts through the crackling of the fireplace, leaving no room for misunderstanding.
Warrior #11988, his massive form barely contained by the dimly lit room, nods in silent agreement. His mind races with the weight of the task. The journey to the Ice Ranger outpost is fraught with peril... travelling north, even beyond the Penguin Capital the desperate gamble Kamil is willing to make for power. Arkol spoke up, “A trip of this significance won’t be cheap, I’m sure you understand… In order to secure such precious cargo, I’ll need to bring on a my finest sailors, additional supplies and secure a tithe with the Salt Kelpie herself to protect us on our journey. I’m sure you understand.”
Rusty the battle penguin piped up, “And fish! We need fresh fish too!” Arkol shot him a silencing look as if to say “Don’t push it! Let me do the haggling here!”
Kalim didn’t seem to notice. He stood at the window looking down over the tempestuous waters of Kelpie Bay, “You know I was cast out from my order for my tinted ambitions?” The silence in the room was thick. “They said only a mad man would go search for a Shadow Crystal, intentionally. They say its power cannot be harnessed. I say they lack imagination."
“I’m glad you’ve got a good imagination. Keeps me in business” grunted Arkol as he shifted uneasily. “So we have a deal then? I’ll deliver the scroll to ol’ Warrior #14361 at the Ice Rangers northern base, deliver the supplies to them, then we are square?”
Kamil nodded. “Rockerfeller will give you a letter to return to me. You must sail back to the keep as soon as possible! Do not get distracted with additional economic opportunities that could jeopardize the whole mission!”
“Double dip on *your *dime? Chad sack, we would never!” piped the battle penguin, Rusty. “Sir I’m offended that you would presume us to be such lowlifes to engage in such behaviour!”
To be clear, they were, in fact, planning several other double dipping side quests along the way… because they were, in fact, that kind of low life. But with their orders, the scroll and their mission, Arkol & Rusty turned and headed back down the tower to their boat where the team was loading the supplies Kalim was sending north.
Kalim watched from the tower, deep in thought. His plan, years in the making, was now, finally in motion. The wheels were turning and no force in the Runiverse could stop them now!
Entered by: 0x2c93…020f
