[10.18.10]Chapter1- "her tortured cries continue to haunt our minds"

[Aitana]

The Rise of the Dark Mother's Champions - Chapter 1nnThe Bone Priestess Swanthula and Night Mage Shi'Xinfeng await the arrival of the tribe Nyx. They are the Light-Bearers, the guides for the Tribe, to the Gathering where the Oracles will speak. When the company arrives in a cloud of dust on the old, shadow-strewn road, Swanthula and Shixin lead them through the forest, to the nearby seashore where they find a clearing that is obviously marked for some ritualistic purpose.nnnnnOnce arranged at the Gathering, the Tribe waits eagerly as the Oracles take their position.nnnnnWARBURN: Mah brodduhs and sistahs... a great time has come. n*Pauses and looks around at those gathered*nnWARBURN: Many of yooz are aware trouble comes on da horizon... tis no secret. Many among yahs wield magiks born in de rock of dis plane, or harness de life energies of the druids of Moonglade...n*Puts his hand on Aitana's shoulder, and smiles at her. He then looks back at the champions surrounding him.*nnWARBURN: ...while othahs dabble in fel magics or arcane energy... yet wherever it is you gain jah's powah, I have spoken to many elders who agree, dere be a great shift wit-in de balance of Jah's energies of de world.nnAITANA: This balance is broken... and some of you already have sensed this, as have we.n*Looks around at the group assembled before continuing.*nnAITANA: We do not know why.. but the Dark Lady... our guide in this world .... we feel she continues to attempt to warn us..... of what has happened and what is to come.nnAITANA: As some of you may know, Oracle Warburn Smoketusk and myself have been burdened with visions.. nightmares... and mental images of a nature never felt.nnnnnWARBURN: But dese images.. dey are vague.. full of mystery... and dey drain our essence mos every moon now.. We are robbed of rest and peace of mind.. and dey grow stronger each night. Is why we'z stand 'ere now...where de healin spirits of de watah is strongest. Aitana is weak. I am weak. And still no clear message from Our's Lady of Shadow.nnAitana's shoulders slump as she listens to Warburn. She visably gathers her strength and straightens up to continue.nnAITANA: We have begged... pleaded with the dark lady to clarify her warnings... to come forward and guide us through what we see as oncoming destruction... yet she cannot reach us, and her tortured cries continue to haunt our minds with increasing pain and frequency.nnWARBURN: We need yah's aid... each and every one of ju.nnAITANA: We feel we have no choice.nnnnnWARBURN: I share wit you chosen befo me, a secret dat only de Oracles 'ave known. A secret I see as needin to be shared, now in dis dangerous times, mon. Mebee ju don’t know but dere was a time when Aitana had her own Tribe, an did not walk wit us. In de Dark ladies great wisdom, our two tribes become one. Dah great Tribe of Nyx. nMany seasons ago it was a time of great convergence. It was den dat dah Dark Lady grant us a gift when our two tribes become one…... Dis Tomb.nn*Pulls out a big heavy book*nnWARBURN: Wit-in, it’s pages always shift. I spended many nights studying it’s mystery. One day an entry say sometin', de next day, as if by an invisible hand, dat same page rewrote itself. Sometime I cannot read de tongue de words be written in.nn*He looks up from the book and and continues*nnWARBURN: But always one entry stay de same………de ending. It’s detail shift around, but de message is always one ting. I never understand what it to mean….until tahday.nnWARBURN: I have little resolve left. De Lady Of Shadows does not answer me now, her message is confusion an pain. My strength and de strength of Aitana Tallbear has been weakened by de dark omens and nightmares she force into ours minds. Jah understand mah people?nnWARBURN: Dis endin I now see be instructions fo a great ritual….a ceremony never perform…an most dangerous. Our strength will be tested and in de end we will work a great magik to Call to de Dark Lady herself, and conjure her to stand before us.nn*His brows furrow and the age in his face is very apparent*nnWARBURN: Jah understand mah peoples?nnAITANA: With this ritual we can use our combined power to draw Lady Nyx forward, to bring her here to the physical plane, to stand here before us, and make clear our path and what we must do.nnWARBURN: Dis has never been done.. Whether it can be done in time, my brodduhs and sistahs, will be up to each of yooz... for it be yah's efforts dat shall either bring Nyx to our side, tah guide us safely trew dis darkness.. or leave us disconnected from her, diving forward alone into oblivion.nnAITANA: Yet it is no simple ritual, and the required elements necessary are next to impossible to gather... that, my children, is why you are all so needed. We have 21 moons to do this. It has been forseen.nnWARBURN: Fo dah gathering of the materials, I call into ordah each Ward of de tribe, and charge dem as a whole tah work to obtain what we be needin... at all costs!nnnnn*Warburn slowly walks to Miaoyin*nWARBURN: For those soldjah's who wear de colors of War.. I charge yooz wit de gatherin of 500 SKULLS to be fed in a pyre in honah of Lady Nyx. nnWARBURN: We'z need dis done between now and three weeks time, and their heads shrunken and brought to the ritual.nn*He points at Miaoyin, poking her chest with a long fingernail yellowed with age*nWARBURN: Do not fail the tribe, Nightwarder Miaoyin... this is what your years of training have prepared you for. n*The old troll returns to stand by Aitana*nnnnn*Aitana moves to stand before Cobriana.*nAITANA: Our soldiers who face TRIALS on behalf of the Dark Lady, your task shall not pale in comparison.nn*She points at each of the Ward of Trials members.*nnAITANA: You will bring to us the heart of a god, buried deep within Ulduar...nnAITANA: YOU ARE TO BRING US THE HEART OF YOGG SARON!nnnnnWARBURN: For those who walk da path of Growth and Nourishment, mark my words now: Ta anchor de Lady of Shadows to dis time and dis space, your task is important as well, nnWARBURN: 50 HANDFULLS OF HOURGLASS SAND AND DE HEART OF DE OLD GOD C’THUN!nnnn*Aitana walks to face Shixin.*nAITANA: And lastly, you.. the torchbearers of Lady Nyx's legacy... the Ward of Lore. nn*She unrolls a scroll and holds it up for all to see.nnAITANA: Your task is solve this ancient riddle and bring back the required items. n*She hands Shixin the scroll with the riddle.*nnnn*Aitana and Warburn return to the little hill in the center of the Gathering.*nnAITANA: Do you understand what we ask of you my friends?nnWARBURN: Dere be no time ta waste... yooz challenge begin now, and you've tree weeks time ta accomplish dem..nnAITANA: We shall reconvene at this very time when three weeks have passed, and your wards are to present the tribe with the items we have required of you.nnAITANA: Do not fail us, my friends ... our very lives and the life of this entire plane of existence may depend upon your success.nnWARBURN: GO NOW, CHILDREN OF LADY NYX! GO INT DA WORLD AND FIGHT FOR YAHS TRIBE!nnWARBURN: GO FORTH... FOR LADY NYX!nnAITANA: FOR LADY NYX!nn

[Shixin]

The Riddle has been deciphered and the scroll copied. The Ward of Lore will meet this evening at 9th Bell to receive their copies and begin work on puzzling out its meaning.nnWe will meet in the library of the Sunfury Spire in Silvermoon City.