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The Coming of Nocsaal IV
Nocsaal appeared, breathing life back to those who had perished. He sensed their anger, feeding from their resentment. ‘An alliance was not fair! Nor just!’ ..Would they say that if they had taken the time to arrange an alliance of their own? Nocsaal needed no answer. Brains had prevailed over brawn.
He scanned the victorious teams, a chef clutched a rolling pin, a fierce look in his eyes. Around him lay the bodies of heavily armed warriors. ‘There is indeed a lesson to be learned here’, mused Nocsaal as he summoned forth a gate, allowing the defeated to take their leave.
Twisting a teleport spell through the air, the victorious teams found themselves back in Nocsaal’s lair, the now familiar pungent smell again filled their lungs.
“Congratulations. Whilst the method of your victory may not be the most honourable, it has proved the most effective.”
Some held their heads in shame, having ganged up against people they considered their comrades. Yet most maintained an air of resolve, Nocsaal wanted them to turn against their friends, nothing would entertain his sinister mind more.
“For this final task, you will again need to collect your thoughts. Prepare now for the task at hand. You shall all be presented with a poem, each line of which refers to a Britannian town. Whomever hands me a book listing the correct answers in the shortest length of time, shall emerge the winner.”
The poem read:
The castle sits atop the mound,
Sailor’s friend deep underground,
Struggling free from her scaly grip,
Mine the ore and build a ship!
Safe and sound within her walls,
Stars appear as darkness falls,
As gambling fills the mind with malice,
Corruption breeds within the palace.
Entwined within the towering trees,
Canals flow past the honey-bees,
Magical streets are lined with gold,
Fighters clash, so strong and bold!
As the crowd frantically puzzled over each line, trying to untangle the words within, a silence swept throughout the cavern. Before long, all had handed their completed answers back to Nocsaal, who began quietly assessing them all.
Some paced around in circles, others discussed their solutions, with the grim realisation that their answers had been wrong.
Silence ensued once more as Nocsaal revealed the correct answers. “Britain, Wind, Serpent’s Hold, Minoc, Trinsic, Moonglow, Bucanneer’s Den, Nu’jelm, Yew, Vesper, Magincia, Jhelom!”
He took great delight in announcing the winners, in reverse order. With all but one solution correct, and having handed in his book before any of the 3 others who also attained 11 correct answers, Shazam was declared the champion.
Most showed great strength of character, cheering and applauding him, others quietly sulked, disappointed by their lack of wisdom.
Nocsaal brought forth a mighty staff, carved in days of old, it was twisted and scaled as if it were in fact a living snake. It crackled as he held it aloft, indicative of the powerful magic contained within. “The Staff of the Serpent” He declared, as he handed it to Shazam. “Use it wisely, and it shall strike a plague through the heart of thine enemies.”
Shazam nodded, holding the weapon with caution. He would take care, for such an item could wreak havoc if used incorrectly…
Nocsaal murmured some form of incantation, before violently spinning on his heal, with arms still aloft. A few gold coins clattered onto the cold stone floor around them, before a mighty rain of gold and magical items poured from the darkness above.
”To the others, enjoy these riches, for you also are worthy of reward.”
Nocsaal had harvested enough powers from the unsuspecting crowd, it would suffice for the time being. After again congratulating them, he bid them farewell, and withdrew back to the shadows. Gathering up the darkness around him, he disappeared once more from the eyes of man.
For now, Nocsaal was at rest.
The story is from http://www.uo-europe.com/
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Legends
