The Chosen

By Rami Abdo

 Zurri sat hunched across the fire with his clan brothers and sisters. They were all silent, waiting anxiously for what was to come. The light of the flames flickered and highlighted the myriad of Gruul tattoos and painted markings that littered every inch of his muscular body. He tightened his grip on his trusted wooden spear and glanced up at the night sky.

“The stars are clear this night,” he thought to himself. It is a good omen. Today would be a good day to die.

The flaps of the large tent behind him parted open and two figures emerged. Zurri and the others all instinctively stood up and stepped aside to give way. Gomeg the druid and Ravek the guildmage walked up to the fire, with the rest forming a semi-circle around them, audience to their imminent chants. Ravek raised his staff and recited the clan’s mantra. Zurri murmured it under his lips with the rest, allowing it to engulf him in a sense of clan pride. His clan was his home, his everything. He knew he would defend it with his life if he had to, and would gladly give his soul too if he could.

Ravek raised both his hands, ending the chant abruptly. “The ancients have spoken. Tonight a warrior amongst you will be chosen,” he declared, pausing to scan his audience. “The chosen one will climb the lava mountain and take to battle with the Uur-dragon that has terrorised our lands for far too long.” He pointed behind him at the lava streaked mountain in the distance. As if for effect, a small lava fracture at its peak burst outwards with menacing foretelling. The ground shook slightly with its distant roar, and then a silent moment ensued as the warriors shifted uncomfortably on their feet.

“Step forward each of you, into the fire’s light, so that I may gaze upon your faces,” Ravek continued.

One by one the warriors stepped up to the fire, standing in front of the mage and druid for a glancing moment until they were quickly waved away. When Zurri’s turn came, he confidently stepped forward, head held high. He returned the piercing stare of the wise mage, unflinching as he gazed intently into those dark pools of knowledge. Ravek lingered for a moment longer than usual and then waved him on.

After all the warriors had presented themselves, Ravek spoke. “Zurri! Step forward!”

Zurri’s heart leapt into his throat. There was instantly murmurs heard amongst the others; some were more a sigh of relief than anything. Zurri composed himself and stepped forward into the circle again, leaning on his spear, now more for support than anything else. His knees were weak but he held himself upright with pride, he was chosen and that was that. The test of his mettle as a warrior was finally here, and he wasn’t going to back down now.

“I see in your eyes that you are a brave soul, Zurri of the fire-heart clan,” Ravek whispered softly, as if only to him. “You will be a worthy opponent for the dragon.” He turned his view to address the rest. “Zurri is our chosen warrior!” he proclaimed loudly. “His fire-heart is strong and his spear sturdy! He will vanquish the Uur-dragon and bring us its bloodied fangs as his prize!”

The warriors of the tribe cheered for Zurri, invigorating him with positive energy. He had no doubt that the dragon would taste its own blood off his spear. He took a deep breath as Ravek dipped his fingers into a jar hanging from his belt and painted fresh markings on Zurri’s face. The guildmage then took off his necklace adorned with Gruul charms and placed it around Zurri’s neck. “May these protect you from the dragon’s wrath and give you safe passage home...or may they grant you a clean death in battle,” Ravek pronounced. Zurri bowed his head to him in respect.

Gomeg the druid spoke for the first time. “Take this potion I have concocted and drink it just before you face the dragon,” he said pulling out a gourd made of swine leather and handing it to Zurri. “It will give you great strength and valiant courage to face the beast and defeat it. It acts quickly, so do not linger too long after drinking it!” Zurri took the gourd and placed it in his satchel. He bowed his head once more to the two wise ones and then turned to bid his brothers and sisters farewell. He embraced each of them in turn. Some smiled for him and some cried for him, each recalling a fond memory of their chosen brother.

“Do not shed a tear for me my clansmen,” Zurri announced boldly, “I go now to victory or to death. Either way, I serve my clan well.” He gathered his supplies and began his long trek to the lava mountain, which loomed ominously in the distance. No one had ever ventured there and lived to tell the tale.

It took him several days to reach the foot of the mountain, and several days more to climb it. The path was treacherous, littered with jagged rocks and searing lava flows that burnt the skin off just from approaching near the red river. The dragon’s lair was at the top of the mountain, but all wildlife for leagues around had long disappeared, driven off by the threat of the winged beast. It had acquired a taste only for the flesh of men, so would regularly attack the tribe’s lands searching for its next meal. No one was safe anymore until the dragon was vanquished.

By the time he neared the summit’s peak, the lava mountain had taken its toll on him. He was blackened with soot and pockmarked with burns and scratches from head to toe. His whole body ached, his muscles sore with fatigue from hiking the steep climb of the rugged mountain paths. The ground shook from the constant lava flows below the surface, and there was a constant thrumming rumble that rattled his brain. He lay on a rock to catch his breath and scan the peak’s edges, searching for where the dragon would make its lair. He had spied from the distance spouts of flame shooting out from an area just below the peak, so he had headed for that general direction. He could see now that it was a large cave, its entrance vertically flat across the mountainside, impossible to reach by foot. As if on cue, another spout of flame discharged out of the cave entrance with roaring thunder. “That’s certainly not lava,” he thought to himself. He glanced up at the night sky and saw no stars. The ash and steam had covered them all. “No omen today,” he thought.

“DRAGONNNN!” he yelled with what strength he had left. “SHOW YOURSELF YOU SCAB SWINE!” Zuuri marvelled at his own brazen arrogance. However, whatever bravery he had inside him was instantly evaporated in the next moment. The rumbling had stopped. He realized now it was the dragon’s breathing. Two massively taloned claws edged their way out the sides of the entrance, followed by leathery wings, and finally a scaled bony head made of nightmares. The dragon had emerged.

It was large, larger than he thought. One of its claws spanned his entire body, and Zurri was tall for a man. As it emerged from its dwelling and reared to its full height, he realized it may as well have been a mountain itself. Bony spikes protruded from its immense skull and its red eyes emanated with a blazing radiance that pierced directly into his soul. Its body was as that of the mountain, a rock hard carapace veined with a network of glowing flame, as if its heart was the very sun itself. Fumes of ashen smoke arose from its fiery nostrils as it searched for that which interrupted its slumber. When it spied the puny human on the crevices below, it let out a chilling growl that resonated in Zurri’s very soul. His heart sank at the sight of the towering behemoth. His body failed him and he fell back onto the ground with base terror. He crawled backwards, whimpering with fear, until he hit his head on the rock he had been resting on. The jolt awakened his senses and reminded him of the potion that Gomeg had given him. He clambered for the gourd and pulled it out of his bag. The dragon was slowly crouching, preparing to leap upon its hapless prey.

“Gods of old...give me strength,” he worded, as he uncorked the potion and drank it all in a single swig. Its effects were instantaneous. A tingling sensation washed over him, numbing his body and his senses. The weariness of the last few days left his limbs entirely, and he leapt to his feet with strengthened might. He felt a renewed vigour in his heart and his spirit soared above the clouds. He sensed the power of his entire clan behind him, urging him on. He was invincible, untouchable. He raised his spear at the dragon and roared back defiantly, no longer afraid.

“FEAR ME NOW DRAGON! FEAR MY BLADE, FEAR MY SOUL, AND FEAR MY CLAN’S DEFIANCE!” Delirious with power and foaming at the mouth, Zurri launched himself at the beast with a triumphant cry, at the same time as the dragon pounced with its open maw. It caught his airborne body along the midriff with its snapping jaws. He felt his insides crush with the impact as its sharp fangs pierced his body. He felt no pain, the potion made sure of that. Spitting blood, he cursed its existence before plunging the spear deep into its fiery red eye. It screamed with pain, Zurri still impaled on its teeth. He laughed at the dragon, mocking it.

“You are a mindless beast,” he thought to himself, strangely calm at that moment of respite. “You shall never know the meaning of brotherhood, of nature’s true power...of self-sacrifice.” He coughed blood and uttered his last bellowing war cry as the dragon snapped its jaws shut.

Ravek and Gogem walked across the foot of the lava mountain. It had been many moons since Zurri had set out on his quest. A few days after he had left, they had seen flashes of fire and heard thunderous roars coming from the mountain peak. Since then, there was no sign of him...or the Uur-dragon for many days.

As they rounded the mountain to its far side, they came across a welcome sight. The dragon was slumped on a protruding cliff some way up, stone dead. It had petrified, as lava dragons do after they die, their inner-fire long extinguished. Only a faint glimmer remained, its heart, which never fades.

“The poison worked,” Gogem the druid shouted triumphantly.

“Yes, and so did its delivery method,” Ravek uttered sadly. “Zurri offered a noble sacrifice for his clan. The greatest he could ever give.”

“I made sure that his last moments on this earth were spent well,” Gogem said as he recalled the ingredients of his concoction. “We shall feast on boar tonight in his name, and burn the dragon’s heart in his honour. He has made the fire-heart clan proud.”