Khadmas's work was finally coming to a finish. It was clear what he had made now. As he took the chains to a table, there rested on the side of the forge a massive pillar, a morningstar, and a double-headed axe. Each weapon would normally take two hands of a stronger man to wield, but the Gorger could likely hold the morning star and axe in each hand. The pillar, adorned in Dwarven faces and symbols, had a small hole in each end that connected to each other through the length of the object. Once at the table, Khadmas laid the chains out straight and took a pouch from his belt, opening it and pulling out what appeared to be a fistful of glittering, shimmering dust. The dwarf tossed the dust into the air above the chains, and then slammed his fists onto the table inches away from it. He began to utter ancient phrases, dwarven incantations and prayers, and the dust seemed to catch in the light, all of it seeming to glow. Then, as if magnetized, the dust shot toward the chains, embedding themselves in the cavities left by the dwarf's chisel when he had carved his runes.
"Dim Mor, Vanahada Morkorag Vomkenned Durahain Molastad, Vernore Molahod, Ner Feranas....."
The dwarf's chanting droned on, becoming audible as more and more flecks embedded themselves into the chains, filling them out with glittering dust. As each particle of dust had finally found their way into the chains, he lifted his hands once more and gave a final, forceful slam into the table, the sheer force of his blow causing the chains to bounce. Then, as if ordered to life by this heavy blow, the runes on the chains began to shimmer and brighten, until they had reached a dull green glow. Then the chain itself began to rattle, shaking and jerking until finally it shot through the air, looping itself into the pillar. Even all the way through there was still a good length of chain, but now the chain seemed to stretch, as if growing new links as it reached far beyond its original length. The two ends of the chain latched themselves on to the metal-capped pommels of the morningstar and axe, and then reversed motion, the chains compacting in on themselves inside the pillar as they retracted, pulling together until the morningstar and axe slammed home inside the pillar, the only thing left outside of its mass being the heads of the weapons, their grips entirely concealed.
Khadmas walked over to the finished weapon and stood it up, though, the pillar itself being slightly longer than the Gorger's torso, it was taller than Khadmas himself.
"Ta answer yer question, I foresee this weapon causing much havoc upon the battlefield. The chains will obey your mental commands, lengthening, retracting, and moving at your whim. I'll mount the pillar with straps to carry it on your back, but should you feel the need for a battering ram, you can retract your two hand weapons and use the pillar itself. I think, with so much power for collateral damage, this weapon shall be given a name of proper strength. Morkaraka. Siege Breaker."
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"Now young priest, there is no reason to lament. It is said by some dragon philosophers; what makes a god or divine force exist is not universal truth, or divine power, or even some cosmic random event. It is the faith of its believers. Gods and pantheons rise and fall with their followers, and those who lose all faith die, ever forgotten. If you believe, truly believe with all of your faith, in the divinity of this Lumos, then he exists just as much as our Aether, or the many gods of the Dwarves and Nords." The dragon lifted its head, looking down at the human with kind eyes, full of wisdom. "Now, I will show you the path to finding your peace with the universe." the Dragon's eyes lit up with golden, holy light, and in an instant the world seemed to fall away from the two, sky and land all falling beneath their feet as they rose up, deep into the darkness of the void outside the planet's boundaries. They were afforded with a miraculous view of their world, its duality plain as day as the continent of men seemed lush and green, capped with the snowy white of the Norse lands, and the Blacklands looked as if it were a singular mound of mold, blackened and dead, practically devoid of the color green, save for one small dot which was the sacred grove Walter's men had found themselves in.
"Take in this world. Behold its profundity, its great mass, and see it from a new perspective. Here you see the world as if from the viewpoint of a god, watching from on high. Here, the world seems minuscule, not nearly the endless mass it seems from its surface. But take a look above, and see what else is left around." And then the dragon lifted his head, looking about at the wonders around them. There was and endless carpet of stars in all directions, twinkling lights in the distance, and the great masses of other planets about them. And then before them was the sun, the fiery ball that held all of these planets in its orbit.
"Behold the realm of our mighty sun. These planets are its domain. And yet, were we in the location of one of these many stars about us, so far in the distance as to be inconceivable, it would be it which seemed the mighty ball of fire, and our sun a mere dot in the distance. Many of these stars in the distance likely have their own planets, upon some of which might be life like that which is on ours. It is in the knowledge that, no matter what we may think of ourselves or our deeds, we are as insects in the grand scheme of the vast reality around us, that lets us acknowledge our place in the Aether, and discover what it means to truly influence life. Take in the vastness around you, young priest. How does it feel?"
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"Ah, I can see that such strife has truly taken its toll upon you. Come. Walk with me, and I will tell you a tale." Theldorian turned, and began to walk deeper into the elven district. Soon, they reached what appeared to be park, so deep under ground. Majestic trees grew here, and green grass grew lush, and fertile. In the center was a great pond, still as glass, and serene, almost relaxing.
"Life, young Sun Wu, is much like this great pond. It is vast, and unchanging. We all are but droplets in the endless pool that forms our world. Each single droplet holds its own power, its own direction, but in the end it is but one of many, and it will continue on as such forever."
The elf picked up a rock, feeling the weight of the object in his hands before tossing it into the pond. The stone struck the water's surface and disappeared below, the water rippling out and wavering from the impact.
"Each toil we face is like a stone, cast into the pond. Its ripples may travel far, and with great force. They may temporarily disrupt the serenity of the entire pond, given enough mass. But in the end, the water will return to its stillness, and the pond is all the fuller for the additional mass placed within it." And so it was with the lake, the water returning to placidity as the ripples eventually faded, all of their energy spent, and the pond once again restful.
"To accept this is to finally achieve peace with oneself. To acknowledge that no matter what troubles may face us, they too will eventually fade into the pond, and those struggles which do not slay us will only make us more powerful, and better able to cope with the next. Reflect on this, and you will be one step closer to quelling the disquiet within your soul."
