DCC - The Heavenly Staircase

Darkness.

Then memory. One of their shamans, staff raised high on the orange sand, Fourion herself can be seen rising on the horizon. His unit charges. A firebolt claims Gluindis first, a swelling of flame then smoke, his skeleton falls through and hits the sand. Then gravimancy. The Elf and Dwarf that had accompanied his unit are crushed. Red smears.

Enraged he charges, he can almost feel the heat of the shaman's blood as he approaches. His knife ready, vivimantic spell untracing itself from his brain. Then a counter-gesture from his opponent, the spell is cancelled. The shaman extends a single finger, a point of blue light at its tip. He remembers nothing else.

Now there is sensation. An electric shock, immense pain. And again more intense. The pain is almost unbearable.

Praise Othegre!

For if there is pain, then there is life! And if there is life he may continue to serve the Protectorate!

His vision coheres and he sees the resurrection tank, the delayed reincarnation spell has restored him to one of his clone bodies in Karinthia. The technician on the other side of the glass gives him a nod and empties the tank of water.

"Greetings Loygar, the resurrection is a perfect success. Fifth so far" the technician says with a smile.

"Our enemy is skilled. Still I have learned, it will be longer until the sixth. Are they here?"

"Yes, bound and ready to go. The Shogunate is supplying many of its own. The portal is also ready to go, the elf from the Triumvirate will be waiting with his servants"

Loygar glances at the four Nerosians in their bonds. He remembers such rebellion himself, before he was cleared of mental corruption. He pities them, they probably consider this enslavement, abduction or brutish conscription. Minds too weak to comprehend the glory of their service.

He drags them to the portal room, casts the geasa on them and tosses them through the gateway before leaping in himself.

On the other side he sees the elf the Triumvirate had sent word of, standing at the edge of the wood. He casts the hex silently on the elf's group all the same.

"So elf, you are at least reliable..." he begins before seeing another group of four emerge from the woods.

He smiles to himself. The visions can always be trusted, he had a premonition the clone body should be given three geasa and instructed the technicians as such before he had set off on his last mission.

He casts the last geasa on this group as they leave the forest. Two elves and two commoner humans. "What is their story?" he wonders.

"Elf, you four coming from the woods, Nerosians! Listen..." he cuts the Nerosians bonds and releases their gags "...as you know, it is over two years since the invaders from our new orange moon, the Bandu, landed. You know that the mighty beams of light that carry them between here and their home are sustained by the Klodic gems. Now know that I have bound you all to die unless you retrieve the Klodic gem from that monolith"

He points to a huge structure a few kilometers away in the desert.

"I am Loygar of the Protectorate, follow me, I shall take you all there"

"This group shall produce heroes, I know it" he thinks as he waits for them to object or follow.