Welcome to Gaia! ::

alladar awoke nearly an hour after he went to sleep from a horrible nightmare. he relived his brother being bitten again. this is the same nightmare that has plagued his dreams for some time. he shook off the remainder of sleep and washed up. then he went into the town's marketplace.

the marketplace was bustling with activity in the morning hours. vendors yelling out their wares, people commenting on the various items, and the general din of hundreds of conversations going on at once filled the air. people stared at the huge man with bare arms covered with tattoos and scars as he walked through the market. alladar paused to look at some vials of potions and elixers. he looked at the vendor and asked what they were for. the vendor told him they were miracle cure-alls. alladar laughed and continued walking. he picked up some various jars and vials. he then went to the vendor selling various herbs. he bought various herbs and stones and continued on. he bought a new cloak and new leather clothing. he also bought a sharpening stone and some oil. he stopped at a blacksmith and bought a very impressive looking dagger. he also bought some smoked and salted meats and some flatbreads. he then bought a long bow and a hundred arrows. as he continued through the shops, he bought various objects and items for his journey. he stopped at one vendor who looked at the crest hanging around his neck. "where did you get that?" the vendor asked, "i've seen that crest in my travels up in the northern lands years ago. i think the town was called draconia. but from what i heard they were attacked at nightfall and not a single person was left living." alladar glared at the pudgy merchant. "you are only partially correct. the town was attacked and levelled to the ground. i am the sole survivor of that attack." as alladar said that several people looked at him. the story of the draconian knights has travelled across the lands, as they were the most powerful army in the lands. the word that they lost and got wiped out came as a shock to many people. "why do you need all these supplies?" the merchant asked alladar. alladar replied to him, " i'm traveling up to the norther regions, to the wilds." some of the townspeople laughed at him. going into the wilds without an army meant certain death.

when dusk fell, alladar met up with wolf back at the inn. they each had a large meal and spoke rather candidly about their times when they had homes. once the meals were finished, and the plates were removed from the table, it was time to get down to business. alladar produced a large map of the lands and set it on the table in front of them. he traced a direct route with his finger. "this is the most direct route to the northlands. getting into the wilds won't be too difficult going this route, but we need to figure a different route from there," he said. alladar pointed to a spot in the middle of the mountains. "this where i believe they set up their stronghold. it's an old draconian stronghold so it's well fortified. it was designed to hold 4000 men comfortably, so knowing our enemy, they could have up to 7000 in there. going straight through the front gates would be certain suicide. food will be sparce in the northlands, so i got some salted meats to feed us through that leg. we can hunt for food to that point. i also know of a secret entrance into the stronghold on the eastern side of the building. however, we can't get to it by travelling east. there's a chasm that's hundreds of feet deep not even 20 feet away from it. the walls of that chasm don't provide hand and foot holds so we can't scale the cliff face. we have to travel a day westward and climb the mountains. the mountain route is dangerous, and the travel treacherous, but i see no other options. you have any other ideas?" alladar looks over at wolf, waiting for his reply.

"trust me, the entrance will be heavily guarded. to enter through the frong gates would not only be dangerous, it would be suicidal. even using the secret entrance is dangerous. it's been years since i've been to the stronghold. but if i recall correctly, there's another way in. it's definately a tight fit for me, so i doubt you'd fit in your transformed state. it involves a two day trek through the sewers. we can come up from beneath in the rear of the compound." alladar thinks for a moment. "if my memory serves me correctly, there's a large grate behind the mess hall. if we get there by nightfall, we can slip in pretty much unnoticed."