Half-hidden beneath a heap of thorny branches, Thalia cautiously made her way into the nearby cave. Both the historian and Siv had encouraged her to wait until the next morning before clearing the cave of magic beasts. Thalia had refused the suggestion…it was only midday and the sun was high and she honestly did not feel tired from the journey.
While Siv and the historians continued discussing trade of supplies, books, and other artifacts, Thalia decided to not waste any further time. After some minor preparations and confirming a few details from the historian, she marched on to clear the cave.
As she entered the cave, the cool air felt pleasant against the heat of the midday sun. Thalia could hear the low rumble of Ligers in the distance. The darkness of the cave presented no problem to her…after all terrans could see mana even in thick darkness. Her eyes perceived the faint glimmer of mana signatures deep within the cave. She counted 18, 19, 20…at least 20 magic beasts. Roughly half were clustered together in the heart of the cave, the rest were spread throughout.
She approached the first Liger quietly…it was lazily lying on the ground.
'Good', Thalia thought to herself. With some luck she may be able to ambush the Liger and kill it with one swift attack. Unfortunately, the still air shifted for a brief moment right when Thalia was about to strike. The Liger picked up a whiff of her scent and immediately sprang up on his feet.
AARRROOO!
The Liger cried out in pain as Thalia's cutlass pierced deep into its shoulder.
CLANG!
The Liger swung its paw with force at Thalia, but she managed to parry with her cutlass. The impact of the swing, however, threw her against the cave wall. She quickly assessed her situation…thankfully there were no serious injuries…just minor bruises.
Thalia calmed her breath and used her keen eyesight to predict the Liger's next move. She could see the mana building up in its legs and left shoulder…that meant it would leap at her and slash with the left paw.
THUNK!
The Liger's head hit the floor and rolled.
Just a moment ago, the Liger dashed at Thalia and delivered a powerful left blow. However, having predicted its next move…Thalia dodged the blow and landed a powerful counterattack severing the Ligers head. It was a clean cut.
'That was a close one,' Thalia thought to herself in relief. 'No wonder the historian ran away…these beasts are no joke…and there are 19 more of them.'
As she considered her next move, she noticed the faint glimmer of mana coming from the cave wall where the Liger had struck with its paw. The attack had managed to crack the cave wall and reveal a hidden chamber. Using her cutlass, Thalia quietly chipped away at the cave wall creating a hole big enough for her to pass through.
'What in the world is this?' Thalia looked at the hidden chamber in bewilderment. It looked like a temple combined with a science lab…or perhaps it was a science lab turned into a temple.
At the center of the large temple was a giant stone statue of what appeared to be an Itarim God! Was this a double dungeon? The giant stone statue held a stone epitaph tightly in its hands. Around the statue were various magic circles, inscriptions, and a work table with books and notes. Also visible were skeletal remains of magic beasts…whether they were experimented on or had fallen prey to this chamber was hard to guess.
A sudden sound caught Thalia's attention. To her surprise the stone statue spoke!
"Worship God or Die!" The stone statue commanded with authority.
Thalia knew the Itarim were not worthy of worship. Although they were Gods and had created the known universes, she knew those beings were far from "good". During their time together, Vidar and Gaia often shared with her stories of their experiences, battles, and memories. From these conversations, Thalia learned that the Itarim Gods were responsible for the Outer Gods War. It was their ambition and lust for power that had engulfed the cosmos in a brutal war. Billions of lives were lost, and billions more were scattered and uprooted because of the Itarim.
"NO!" Thalia yield firmly in response.
The statue released a powerful surge of mana. The mana pressed down on Thalia like the weight of an ocean. The mana pressure was suffocating…Thalia struggled to breathe under such unrelenting force.
"WORSHIP GOD OR DIE!" The stone statue repeated…murder intent oozing out of each word.
It unleashed even more mana. Thalia closed her eyes and gritted her teeth. She thought of her brother Kesi, orphaned and left to die by the heartless Itarim. She thought of Gaia and Vidar, soulmates and lovers made to fight on opposing sides just for the entertainment of the Itarim…and later separated from each other. She thought of the many orphaned children traveling with her…all victims of the pride and ego of the maniacal Itarims.
Her mind was clear…she would not bow or bend nor would she give into fear and despair. Thalia had long decided she would never submit to the will of any Itarim.
"NEVER!!!" shouted Thalia.
"THEN DIE!!!"
The Itarim unleashed even greater surges of mana. Thalia felt like a mountain was placed on top of her. Snap! Snap! Snap! Her bones cracked under the pressure of the immense mana. Blood sprout out of her noise, ears, mouth, and eyes. She could feel her lifeforce diminishing rapidly. Staggering, Thalia used all her strength to remain standing on her feet refusing to kneel even as her body broke.
Unable to breathe, her vision blurred then faded into darkness. As she drifted into unconsciousness, she thought of her mother, father and brother.
'I can't let it end like this…I need to survive…need to grow stronger…to protect them all…I need to...'
Hours later, Thalia opened her eyes and gasped for air. Just moments ago, it felt as is her very life was draining out of her.
'What happened? Did I die? Where is the stone statue?' Thalia looked around for answers. The temple lay still and empty. The giant stone statue was nowhere to be seen. Any signs of a struggle were long erased…only the memory remained like a bad after-taste of bitter medicine.
Suddenly what appeared to be a holographic image appeared before Thalia.
!ALARM!
[YOU HAVE COMPLETED ALL THE NECESSARY REQUIREMENTS OF THE
SECRET QUEST: 'DEFIANCE OF THE DISPLACED']
[WELCOME PLAYER}