The Hall of Heroes

22. - The Gateway to the Titan's Grave

"So it looks like neither of us has much to return to." Crefar said, after the two exchanged recounts of what they saw in their visions.

"I-i-if what we s-s-saw in those v-v-visions was true."

"I think you've seen more than enough about the great Man Há-Tan to doubt him." Crefar got immediately protective about his faith.

"Yeah. I g-g-guess." Duzz waved her hand.

They had been sitting on the earthen floor of the dome for several hours, telling each other what they saw in the visions and trying to make some sense of it. But at that moment the dome got quiet. Both of them watched the other intently as if there was something important that they were keeping from one another. It was Crefar that broke the silence.

"So... I don't know much about the time after those necromantic wars or whatever, but I guess there were no human tribes roaming about in the forests making animal friends, am I right?"

Duzz looked at him defensively. "A-a-and what if there w-w-weren't?"

"Don't get me wrong. You already saw my true form when we met that air-elemental. I'm only glad that we are on the same boat. Just tell me about your people."

Duzz curled her lips and sighed. Even now she seemed reluctant to talk about her past life. "W-w-we are... we were... a forest t-t-tribe of what humans c-c-call greenskins or g-g-goblins. W-w-we don't c-c-call our groups tribes, w-w-we live in hordes, like the rats. A-a-and my horde, the forest-folk, w-w-we never were very nu-nu-numerous, so we l-l-learned to add a-a-animals to our hordes." she tilted her head in the direction of the squirrel, who was jumping about among the roots protruding from the earthen ground. "I-i-it's easier to survive i-i-if your horde is l-l-large."

"And how did a... forest greenskin find herself in the human tomb reserved for heroes?"

Duzz rolled her eyes. "Okay, okay. I'll tell you the whole story. Th-th-there was a f-f-fire, like I told you. I-i-it was the t-t-time of war, s-s-so fires were usual."

"Time of war?" Crefar inquired.

"Yeah. D-d-don't ask me wh-wh-who fought who. I d-d-don't know. We lived in the w-w-woods and we m-m-minded our own b-b-business. Anyway, a f-f-fire broke out a-a-and we all were e-e-escaping. And I got to this hu-hu-human village and it was on f-f-fire, too. And th-th-the people of the v-v-village, they saw me. A-a-and they wa-wa-wanted to escape, too, s-s-so they followed me. A-a-and my bird friend t-t-told me about some c-c-caves a-a-and the people followed me there a-a-and they survived the f-f-fire. A-a-and after the f-f-fire was out, they st-st-stayed there o-o-out of the war. When I was l-l-leaving they th-th-thanked me and I-I-I didn't know why."

"That's quite heroic." Crefar said sarcastically.

Duzz gave him a long stare. "S-s-so, now what about you and th-th-that true form of yours?" she asked.

"Well, what you saw was what I am."

"I d-d-don't remeber seeing any... h-h-horned red men in my time. Wh-wh-when are you from?"

Crefar sighed. "From a loong long time ago. I have no idea how long, no one has been able to tell me, but it is much further in the past than your age. Even than the age of those necromancers. It was a time of high magic.

"You see, there are many worlds that coexist in this universe. And sometimes, they overlap. And when they do, the laws of these different worlds blend and that is how magic is created. Like in my days. There were great disturbances in the solidity of our world and it started breaking apart. And that is how other worlds found their way into ours."