Saurian roared in defiance at the charging ghosts from The Grey. Dozens turned into hundreds as they surged toward the three of them in quick succession. Saurian channeled magic into his Illusion Domain and used Manifestation to create his Saurus Warriors. He laced their weapons with the Grave Domain because he knew The Grey was hard to handle. He clapped his hands together and cobbled together a make shift three point trident for Arthur.

Nth metal, Orichalcum, trident.

Rating: D+

Effect: Grave Domain: Essence of the Grave laced on the weapons edge.

Effect: Weapon Manipulation.

Comments: A crude and quickly built weapon to fight forces of The Grey. Shop smart, shop S-Mart!

“Arthur! Catch give me a moment to craft something for Mera!” Saurian called out as he tossed the trident to him.

“You got it big guy!” Arthur replied as he caught it and raced towards the front line as the Saurus Warriors slammed into the tide of ghosts. They were like a single boulder holding against the river but the ghosts swallowed them and saved time. Saurian crafted another crude piece of gear fro Mera in a few seconds he had.

Nth metal, Orichalcum, leather gloves.

Rating: D+

Effect: Nature Domain; moisture collection, and water creation.

Effect: Grave Domain: Essence of the Grave is laced into the water.

Effect: 5% energy regeneration.

Comments: A crude and quickly built leather gloves for a Tide Caller.

“Mera! Water creation gloves, laced with poison against the ghosts!” Saurian called and tossed the gloves to her.

Mera snatched the gloves from the air and put them on. She reached out into the air and began to pull moisture from the air around them. Normally the desert would have been a horrible place to attempt this. But with The Green filling the chasms beneath them? Mera created hundreds of water bolts and sent them towards the ghosts with cruel efficiency. The ghosts wailed in agony as they fell to pieces the ectoplasm that made up their flesh and bones falling apart like any mortal body would. Saurian let loose a roar of defiance and used Intimidating Shout the shock wave crashed against the ghost horde and for a brief moment they stood frozen in place. Arthur cheered and raised his trident as he slashed, cut, and stabbed through them in quick succession. The remaining Saurus Warriors raised claws, swords, spears, and shields in cheer before they turned into a grinder.

Saurian reached out and cast Unburden from the Grave Domain on all the remains of the ghosts. The ghostly remains evaporated into the air around them and returned to ambient magical energy. However, the uninjured ghosts retained their form. They would have to defeat them before it would work on them as well. Saurian raced to the front leaving two manifested Warriors to help guard Mera, not that she needed it. The giant carnosaur leaped over the battle line and crashed into the ghostly horde behind. The Essence of the Grave across his form Saurian ripped and tore the ghostly horde apart!

“LOOSE!” A ghostly voice shouted from the city beyond as hundreds of ghostly arrows, trebuchet shots were flung towards them.

“SHIELDS!” Saurian called out, his warriors with quick and practiced movement raised their shields that looked like giant turtle shells above them. Arthur took cover, as Mera hid behind her assigned body guards.

The ghost arrows, and trebuchet glowed blue with a spiritual fire attached to them. They did not react like normal ammunition as they passed through rock, building, and the ghost army. But they did react when they hit them. The attack hit the ground floor with tremendous force that cracked the city streets they stood upon. A few Saurus Warriors shattered in Illusion particles but over all it did little damage. Saurian whipped his bladed tail around and sliced the hordes of ghosts in half then tucked and rolled over the crowd.

“CHARGE!” Arthur shouted, the Saurus Warrior unit of fifty lizard folk pulled their shields down and sprinted towards the ghosts. Another hail of water bolts flew over them and impaled the ghosts right before Arthur reached.

Congratulations User! Illusion Domain, Manifestation has evolved into Minor Manifestation.

Effect: The spells power is stronger, and energy consumption is less.

Effect: You can now make twice as many Saurus Warriors (100).

Effect: You can now make one Saurus Veteran, for ten Saurus Warriors (10=1). Saurus Veterans have access to the passive effects of your Domains.

Saurian grinned and raised his clawed hand into the air and brought in down into a fist. Fifty Saurus Warriors hand a dark forest green glow once the glow subsided they looked better equipped with weapons and armor with a tribal feel. With bone armor, feathers, and black steel weapons. While behind them two Saurus Veterans stood guard next to Mera, and three more Veterans stood behind the line. Each one wielding a long bow, quiver of arrows, and a pair of Khopeshes on their hip. The Saurus Veterans shouted in a strange dialect that neither Arthur or Mera understood but Saurian did.

“WHAT IS OURS!?” Said a Veteran.

“VICTORY!” The Saurus unit shouted.

Saurian translated for his two companions. They both grinned at the life like Illusions Saurian had made. But Saurian was starting to think that maybe his Manifestation was becoming a little more then just an illusion. The Warriors, and Veterans had a gleam in their eye that wasn't their before. The passive effect of Saurians Domains didn't afford a lot of ability. But it could add a bit of extra flavor, as the Veterans charged their arrows shots with Grave Domain for damage, and Nature Domain for zero air resistance making each arrow shoot straight.

Saurian acted as the vanguard as he wedge himself into the attacking line. He would cast Unburden every few minutes to clean the floor. The Veterans were such good aims they even shot the trebuchet bullets in the air while Mera created a water shield for the arrows. The Ghost legion seem to learn the trick and dropped the siege warfare all the soldiers positioned for gorilla warfare in the city.

“Veterans take a team of ten, stay with in visual sight of each other and start to flush out the city as quickly but safely as possible.” Saurian called as the last remains of the initial attack were dealt with.

The Veterans saluted with a clawed fist over their hearts and pulled their assigned units with them. Saurian had established a Temporary pack bond with Mera, Arthur days ago, but now he included his Lizard folk army. Like a well oiled machine the units separated and moved into the city, many of them climbed the buildings with great ease as they had Saurians Gravity Stride. Arthur checked on Mera who smiled at him for worrying about her. Silly boy! Her expression seem to say, Mera had killed more ghosts then Arthur did.

“To the Castle?” Arthur said as he pointed his trident at the back of the city.

“To the Castle. Let me update your gear now that we have a second.” Saurian replied. He didn't do much to them just repaired and added a bit of durability to them.

“I'm impressed that you could make these so quickly, Saurian. May I request a another version of the gloves once we leave this place. Often times with the League I find myself away from my element but with these gloves I'll bring my element with me.” Mera said as she ran her fingers along her dark leather gloves, a shimmering Nature script inscribed on them.

“Sure.” Saurian replied as he finished up.

He turned to face the sounds of battle from the west of the city. He saw several units of Lizard Folk scampering to the location. He felt along his connection, no deaths though a few injuries. The manifested units would heal over time as long as he fed them magical energy. He assured his companions that they could move on. As the sounds of battle continued to rage on Saurian knew he needed to find a central location of the city and cast a mass cleansing. He was sure to find in inside the castle, either the throne room or the primary forge he wasn't sure. Sometimes the center of the city wasn't always so obvious...Maybe the canal system?

“That's not good.” Saurian said softly as he came to a gentle stop about a hundred yards before the castle wall. Despite its age it held together reasonable well.

“Well they already know we are here. So is there any reason to be subtle about this?” Arthur said with a grin as he saw that the giant gate was closed. Mera came to stand next to Saurian's right leg and reached out to touch his armor.

“We do have a battering ram with us.” Mera said with a teasing smile as she gently patted Saurian leg. Arthur chuckled and gestured towards Saurian in a symbolic. 'after you'.

Saurian adjusted his size, and made it so his arms and legs were about the same. He looked a little top heavy as his arms were different. He wanted to keep his bipedal nature if needed. He dug his claws into the ground as Arthur and Mera stood off to the side. Saurian leaned his head forward and felt his spine settle into place like a big horn sheep, or a Pachycephalosaurus. His skull crest was up like a shield.

Once Saurian was with in the eighty yard range ghost arrows, bolts, and ballista shots started to rain in his direction. Saurian went from zero to sixty mph in a few seconds and was gaining speed quickly. A majority of the shots from the wall failed to pin him but a few exceptional arches pegged his armor but did little to slow him down. The gate loomed in front of him, it was nearly ten yards across, and twenty yards high, with a wooden gated behind it. Saurian SLAMMED into the gate and ripped the iron apart breaking past the initial gate and barreled into the wooden gate. The entire gate broke apart from the middle sending huge timbers of rotted wood apart. Arthur and Mera cheered but they noticed something was wrong.

“Fuck! I'm stuck!” Saurian shouted!

As the iron gate had bent inward but didn't break entirely, so Saurian's rear head hung out the back his hind legs trying to shift and move. Arthur laughed so loudly that Saurian felt that the future king may be hyperventilating. Saurian continued to wiggle and moved through the hole in the gate, his legs kicked and moved about as his tail flailed. On the front end dozens of castle guards sprinted towards him. Unlike the city guardsmen the Castle guards were in chain, and plate male with swords, pikes, and shields. He even saw several ghosts in robes that carried staffs. Arcane energy danced around them. Mages, great!

“Don't worry Saurian! Arthur got the whole thing on camera to show the League later!” Mera's sweet voice called out, she clearly had been laughing as her voice was a little more breathless then usual. Saurian grumbled but didn't admonish them for their fun.

Right before the soldiers arrived Saurian shrunk his body down just a bit and was able to wiggle his way through the hole he had created. Thanks to his active Illusion army he couldn't use a majority of his spells. So he had to do this the old fashioned way. Saurian scrambled out of the hole and dove into the waiting soldiers. They braced their long pikes but he slid to a stop and let loose a breath of noxious venom that enveloped the group of soldiers. Just as if they had flesh and bone their bodies melted, and their screams were just as horrible to listen to as those that were alive. He quickly cast Unburden to release them from their pain, it seemed that the ghosts seem to passively regenerate while inside the castle grounds. That wasn't good!

Saurian was like a fox in a hen house as he jumped from soldier to soldier, biting, tearing, and tossing them around. His claws laced with the Essence of the Grave caused as much pain to the soldiers as if they were alive. Saurian felt bad about it, the ghosts were just doing their job. But it had to be done to release them from The Grey's influence. Arthur and Mera soon climbed through the hole he had left behind and joined the fray. Another inner gate opened up and knighted cavalry stormed out! They leveled their lances towards Saurian, with a majority of his magic consumed by his army he had little options available to him.

“Mera!” Saurian called!

“Got it!” Mera replied as she channeled her magic into the air, as she created hundreds of water bolts. Saurian sheltered her from the arrows that hailed down from the ramparts.

The cavalry roared in defiance as over a hundred water bolts were created then mere seconds before they stormed into them, Mera unleashed her attack. The water bolts raced forward not only hitting the riders but their ghostly mounts as well. Once the spell was unleashed Saurian shielded both Arthur and Mera from the force of ectoplasm flesh and armor that crashed into them. After a few seconds Saurian stood up, with several ghost lances sticking out of his armor, and flesh. He cast Unburden as the entire battle scene blew away like crushed leaves in the wind. Then a ghost arrow pinged off his skull crest.

“Lets finish up!” Saurian said to his two companions.

A few minutes later the ramparts were cleared out. The three of them moved into the central chamber and found dozens of Ghost Knights standing at attention, with a few Mages behind them. They pulled out their long swords and shields and rushed towards them. Arthur and Saurian raced forward. With the giant lizard leaping over them and attacking from behind while Arthur speared them down. Mera threw water arrow after arrow at the mages!

Arthur would snare the swords in his trident points and twisted the blade this would throw the knights slightly off balance. Thanks to the weapon manipulation on the trident Arthur could spin, extend, and propel the weapon around him by about a yard as he spun is trident like a drill through the knights. He created a blender that tore through the group with ghastly brutality.

Mera created water arrow, after arrow and flung it at the mages. She would slide and duck behind the pillars in the room. Creating the arrows from the air as she moved. Arcane bolts of magic would strike her position as the rock pillars blew apart. She compressed a single arrow several times to make it thicker and longer. She flung it out and directed to spear through several mages and nail them to the wall. They dangled there like a parody of Bram Stoker's Dracula.

Saurian used his Martial Arts as his whole body become his weapon. He was still ten feet tall, and twenty feet long. His size was actually a hindrance in the room at this point, bigger was not always better. He spun around to use his tail's bladed tip to slice through them. Catching a knight by surprise he gripped his entire head and crushed it and threw the knight in to the waiting and surprised arms of his companions. Then pointed his claws forward on his right hand and speared through the chest of another. Lifting the knight up he reached up with his left hand and pulled him apart from the center! Showering the area in ectoplasmic blood!

Once the battle was complete Saurian cast Unburden once more and cleansed the room. Mera's water spear lost its form with a flick of her finger now that it didn't hold the mages in place. Saurian cast Sooth, Nature's Supplement, and Immaculate on his group. Due to the battle taking place none of them felt the sensual orgasmic sensation that normally happens. Circumstance!

The party of three ran into the occasional guard and knight but a majority of them had been in the main hall, or they seem to be moving towards a different location. As they climbed a set of stairs they came outside once again to find a ruined castle garden. The plants long dead, a giant fountain in ruins but oddly enough a bit of muddy water had started to flow from it. On the other side of the garden was the front gates to a massive door with a hammer and anvil on it. There in front of it was a few hundred knights and mages ready for battle. There at the front of the knights stood a armored behemoth with a giant war hammer and a crown. The 'King' pointed at them.

“For the good of the kingdom, for the good of the city, for the good of the people, you will go no further Monsters!” The King pronounced, the Knights jeered and raised their weapons high.

“King Saharad! Please wait!” Mera shouted in Atlantean from across the garden. The hammer wielding ghost was startled at the sound of his own name.

“How do you know my name, Monster! Why do you invade our home?” King Saharad asked. Saurian watched in fascination as corruption from The Grey reached out with threads of energy to try control the ghost king.

“I am Princess Y'Mera from the kingdom of Xebell. Please we are only here to help, and to release you from your imprisonment!” Mera shouted...

For a brief moment it looked like King Saharad believed her. Then the threads of The Grey strung him up like a puppet. The King shook as if something had stabbed him, his eyes glazed over with a haze, he raised his war hammer and gave the order to charge! Mera's shoulders drooped in depression, missing the chance to speak to an ancient king was a dream for any living Atlantean. Arthur prepared his trident, at the half way mark several Saurus Warriors, and Veterans appeared on the edges of the garden wall. They had climbed up the walls looking for enemies, though they were still out numbered five to one it was still better then nothing.

As the ghost tide clashed against their paltry forces they did not break nor give any ground. Saurian once again grew to his massive size having space to do so. He looked like a land dragon attempting to fight against the kings army. In many ways he was a monster the king feared as every knight and mage that fell they would never return to his side. They were released from their burdens. King Saharad yelled in dismay and charged at Saurian, with every ghost that was killed the king grew a bit bigger, spikes, and skull motifs became stylized. His giant war hammer let a ghostly wail out as he swung it around.

“DIE DEMON!” King Saharad screamed as he swung his hammer faster then Saurian expected.

SLAM! The giant War Hammer collided with Saurians side, his breast plate cracked from the force which was very surprising to Saurian. Like a golf ball Saurian was flung across the castle gardens and flew several yards before he crashed into the ground. Cracks appeared and pieces of the floor fell into the castles underbelly that was now filled with water. They were running out of time!

King Saharad stormed towards him but was forced to stop has dozens of water arrows slipped past the plates of armor he wore. Arthur screamed with a triumphant roar and stabbed his trident straight into the kings back, Arthur twisted and broke off his trident inside of the king he leaped off his back holding the broken trident handle and used it like a club. The king couldn't remove the trident piece and with every movement it tore more of his ectoplasmic body apart like a jagged fishermen hook! The warriors and veterans did their best to fight and kill the knights. They were incredibly coordinated and used pack tactics to take them apart piece by piece.

Saurian stood up and jumped at the king like a giant velociraptor, his claws on his hands and feet raked into armor and flesh alike on the king. He bit down on his massive helmet and tried his best to crush it, but the ghost armor was made of stronger stuff. The king dropped his hammer and pulled out a dagger. He grabbed Saurian and began to stab him repeatedly. Fuck! Saurian clawed, raked, and bit down. His tail wrapped around and snapped on of the kings legs like a twig. They fell together and rolled across the gardens.

Saurian's life dropped with every attack from the dagger, they rolled across the field until they hit the edge of the gardens and the king maneuvered himself so he was on top. His free hand on Saurians neck, he raised his dagger wielding hand into the sky in triumph. A crazed look on the kings face as his eyes were bright red. Water arrows screamed through the air in attempt to stop him, Arthur yelled and taunted him as he sprinted across the gardens.

“Now you die!” The King shouted!

“They always forget the tail!” Saurian said with a bloody grin.

From behind the king like a scorpion Saurians tail pieced through the kings back. If he ever saw the Xenomorph Queen again he would really have to thank her for the update. The attack was so sudden and unexpected that the king dropped his dagger and screamed in pain. Atlanteans may be slightly different but they are still a sub-species of human. Humans are use to fighting humans! Everyone forgets the extra appendages! Saurian reached up and tore his claws into the gaping hole and ripped the king apart from the middle. The king screamed in agony as bone, muscle, and sinew slowly ripped apart then a shower of ectoplasmic blood showered Saurian.

In the movies when the head of the snake dies the body goes with it. That didn't happen with the remaining ghost. As the king was defeated all of the city guardsmen, soldiers, knights, and mages took on a berserk look and fought with reckless abandonment! Saurian slowly stood up as he had over a dozen stab wounds that were not healing correctly. He cast Soul Heal, and Nature's Kiss on his wounds. The icy cold feeling he had on his 'insides' melted away, while his wounds closed all be it slowly. Fighting dead people is always hard. Arthur raced over and tried to help the giant dinosaur up.

“We have to get to the central forge chamber. I can do a mass cleanse while you two use the scroll canister.” Saurian blurted out.

Honestly they didn't know where the canister could be used. Well Mera and Arthur didn't, Saurian did. He had said several things out loud during the trips between oasis with Cosmic Awareness to save time in situations like this. He shrunk himself down to his ten by twenty shape and dragged himself along. Saurian recalled and remade his warriors and veterans so they were all here in the central gardens. They created a phalanx wall as the Veterans took up sniping positions and directed the warriors to tighten up their formations. Mera and Arthur took the stairs three at a time and raced in.

Inside of the chamber was a massive forge room filled with ghosts as they worked and cleaned the area. But unlike the raged filled ones, these ghosts had a content and simple look to them. The city and the castle outside looked to be in ruins, but the center forge was in perfect condition. A lead forge smith walked over with a smile on his face, he pointed at the scroll canister in Mera's hands and gestured for them to follow him.

“Go ahead, I am not sensing any malicious intent from them.” Saurian said softly.

Saurian dragged his tired body to the center forge area and began to draw a ritual circle with magic. The forge attendants didn't stop him, they just walked around the circle. He could hear Mera and Arthur gasp in surprise as a holographic image of King Atlan appeared and began to talk about the trident, the message in the bottle, and eyes of the true king, etc, etc. Just as Saurian finished his casting circle he saw the forge master in front of him.

“Are you here to release us?” The ghost said softly, the hint of a smile on his face.

“I am. Thank you for your hard work in keeping this place.” Saurian replied, his voice polite as can be for a giant monster.

“I am pleased that we accomplished the task that King Atlan gave us. Though....The future king is not what I had expected...” The ghost stared at Arthur who still wore his boots, leather, and had a wild look about him. 'We thought he'd be taller' one of the forge masters whispers in the back.

“He's rough around the edges. But with the right council, and opportunities he'll make a good king.” Saurian replied, then with a shout across the telepathic link one of his Veterans said the enemy was in the gardens and racing towards them.

“Its time....” Saurian said, the forge came to a gentle halt as all the smiths, and attendants came to stand around him.

Saurian clapped his hands above him and cast his least favorite spell, Judgment! Just as before a massive and incredibly powerful force slipped him on like a glove. For a brief moment something else was controlling his body. A giant, translucent finger rose from the ritual circle. A golden trident in hand, longer then normal legs and arms, with fins on the backs of each. Long flowing grey hair with a face that was carved by the gods. Golden, and green fish scale armor across his well muscled form. It looked oddly like king Atlan. The image smiled down at the forge room and nodded in thanks. Shit it was King Atlan! Then it raised his golden trident and swung it from left to right. The entire kingdom of the Deserter Kingdom was cleansed in a single moment. Then Saurian dropped to his knees as the spell ended, from start to end less then a second had past.

Congratulations User! You've completed a hidden quest.

Objective: Cleanse the Deserter Kingdom of the corrupting influence of The Grey.

Reward: Grave Domain Spell; Spiritual Guardian.

Reward: Grave Domain Spells; Unburden evolves into Minor Unburden. Judgment evolves into Minor Judgment.

Reward: Ancient forge master techniques, and smithing.

Grave Domain Spell Spiritual Guardian: A Guardian of the Grave will answer your call for aid. The Guardian is different each time depending on place, location, and favorability. So don't assume you'll get the same one each time.

Grave Domain Spell Minor Unburden: Power increase and reduce energy consumption. Lesser echoes, fragments, and beings may be removed with out damage.

Grave Domain Spell Minor Judgment: Power increase and reduce energy consumption. Judgment can now work in tandem with your attacks.

Comments: Fear the Reaper.

The ghostly apparitions within the forge smiled in thanks as they faded from sight. The tide of berzerking ghosts in the city all faded from sight as the magical ambient energy in the area rose sky high... Or in this case cave ceiling high. Arthur and Mera came to Saurian's side a glass bottle in hand. Saurian's eyes were closed as he digested the new information granted to him. A lot of interesting ways to craft and use orichalcum, as well as hammering spells into the crafts you wield instead of enchanting them after the fact.

“I'm happy that they didn't attack us. But why is this room so put together?” Arthur asked.

“Because the central forge room was almost like a church to them, so it was consecrated grounds. The corrupting influence of the energy outside could not penetrate here. The last echoes of the Deserter Kingdom took their last order from King Atlan seriously. Even in death they remained here to maintain and keep the forge room secure. So that one day you would arrive to claim your birth right, Arthur.” Saurian said softly after he digested the new information.

“Saurian, how are your injuries?” Mera asked softly as she came to stand next to him. With out waiting for a reply she conjured water and began to clean and cleanse his remaining wounds.

Water magic was not as fast acting as his Nature Domain. But it could still do a satisfactory job. His injuries continued to heal slowly, The Grey magic had poisoned him and it would take time to remove. After a few minutes the giant door opened up and a Saurus Veteran walked in to report that the city was clear, but the water had reached the gardens. This cavern would be under water in a few more hours. They looked around the forge for a bit to find anything interesting. The random generated number (RNG) must have been kind. Because they found about five hundred pounds of orichalcum ingots, and Cosmic Deity above MITHRIL! Saurian absorbed that ingot as fast as he could! After a few minutes of 'geeking' out Saurian did a quick picture and video with his Connectivity to document the entire forge. Mera said a lot of the ancient methods of the Deserter Kingdom were lost. He promised to give her a copy later.

By the time they left they had to swim back to their entry point. Once more Arthur and Mera held onto Saurian as he dismissed his lizard folk and swam through the earth back to the SHARC. They popped out of the sands to see that grass had started to grow in the area that they left their transportation. Saurian swapped out with Lash, unfortunately his injuries transferred over so Lash had several healing stab wounds.

“Where are we headed?” Lash asked. Mera walked over with the ancient map.

“Sicily, Italy. Arthur calls it. Is it close?” Mera asked.

“Very. Should only take a few hours.” Lash replied as he closed the rear hatch.

The SHARC lifted off and soon converted to an airplane and flew across the vastly different Sahara desert. There were still vast stretches of sand dunes, and rock. But there were also fresh water rivers that connected to the different pseudo-groves like a road system. It had only been a few hours yet Northern Africa looked a lot different. Lash took a moment to access his Warden page to see if any missed anything. He had a few hundred messages about the changes he made to Africa. Several messages came from the enigmatic druid circles acros-->>

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