OOC: This occurs after Slate 9

Dibbka waited impatiently as the old wizard Caleb worked his magics on Krista's pendant. Though he was hopeful that the wizard could alter it t= o contain Slate's demon instead of harming Slate, he knew the dangers of altering powerful enchantments. If Caleb wasn't careful, or if he misjud= ged the pendant's power, he could utterly destroy the pendant -or worse -destroy them all.

But Caleb knew this, and Dibbka had t trust the old wizard. What made it worse, though, was the fact that he needed to hide his feelings. Krista = was the happiest he had seen her in a long time, and the buffalo didn't want = to shatter that hope and risk sending both her and Slate in a deep depressio= n. The trio was on the proverbial edge of survival, especially with Slate's recent deterioration. There was no need to push them over the edge any sooner than they were fated to.

And besides, Caleb needed no more pressure than he would be putting on himself.

*** Almost a full day passed as Caleb prepared and enacted his spell. Dibbka assisted when possible, but much of the magicks the wizard used were beyo= nd the buffalo's comprehension. So, mostly, Dibbka watched intently, learni= ng a trick here, a short cut there, but mostly, just waiting.

And then it was done. Without much fanfare, Caleb spoke in a soft voice with some archaic language, and the spell was completed. 95% percent of = the work had come from collecting the right components for the spell. Dibbka did notice, however, that the pendant now glowed a soft hue of sapphire, where there had previously been no noticeable power to it.

Caleb spoke, "The glow you see is the alteration magicks I endowed upon t= he pendant. In theory, the pendant itself still holds all powers it had originally housed, but my spell acts as a filter. You will also notice t= hat it's power will wax and wane with the moon -most powerful at the full mo= on, weakest with th new moon. Be aware of that fact, and act appropriately."

Dibbka nodded in understanding. "Thank you, Caleb, we are much in your debt."

The old wizard shook his head. "No, it is I who am in your debt. You sa= ved me from a life of madness, and for that I am forever grateful. This is j= ust a small portion of what I owe you. I wish to give you something else in thanks." Caleb left the room, returning with a small tortoise shelled bo= ok and a set of 3 miniature horses the size of chess pieces. "This book is = for you, Dibbka. It contains a few of my personal spells that I feel will he= lp you on your journeys. Further, these figurines are really magical steeds that move much faster than a normal horse and need no sustenance. Though they can only be used for a third of the day, you will be able to travel twice as far as you would with a full day of travel on a normal horse."

Dibbka was speechless, and so Krista uttered their thanks. Dibbka and Krista then proceeded to try the pendant on Slate. While they were quite worried, it seemed to work fine. Slate, who had been sleeping, awoke whe= n the pendant was placed around his neck. As if waking from a coma, his ey= es fluttered open and slowly focused. As they did, the dark aura disappeare= d almost completely.

"What did you do to the pendant? I...I feel like myself...?" Slate seem= ed confused, but it was obvious that Caleb=92s spell was actually working. = After some explanation, Dibbka, Krista, and Slate said their goodbyes to Caleb = and were on their way. That night, the full moon shined brightly in the sky.

***

Aah=92 Zaergo looked out over the land from the tallest tower of Falcon=92= s Keep, surveying how the countryside seemed to be devoured by the shadows = of the hills and trees. Even if he didn=92t especially care for the moonlig= ht, the effect was beautiful in a twisted way. It was amazing how a small gr= oup of trees could seemingly eat a whole hill with their shadows, or a house could simply engulf a lake.

In such a way he would soon engulf his brother Dibbka, Emperor of Buffali= a, and bane to Aah=92 Zaergo. Alone on this pathetic world without his loya= l guards and friends, the emperor would be an easy target for Aah=92s army = of undead. And, if by some miracle Dibbka evaded or survived his army, the buffalo would be no match for Aah with his newfound shadowmagic.

The power he had attained by finding this keep and taking it for his own = was amazing. The wealth of knowledge in the secret library he had found contained everything he needed to easily become an arch shadow mage, and = he was well on his way. But that was just the surface. If his assessment o= f the library was correct, his power wouldn=92t have to be limited to his m= ere corporeal form: with time, Aah=92 could learn to exist merely as a shadow *and* retain all his current abilities. Aah=92 would become a shadow god.

Reassuring himself of his power, Aah=92 lifted his right had and pointed = to the trees he was looking at earlier. Speaking the arcane language of the shadowmage, he made a few motions in the air, and the tree=92s shadows ca= me to life. Now, he pointed to the hill with his left hand, and then closed hi= s right over his left. Within seconds, the shadows attacked the hill.

Now one may think that attacking a hill would be futile, but with the pow= er of the shadows he had summoned Aah=92 Zaergo reduced the hill to nothingn= ess. When he open his eyes, only a crater remained, and the shadows seemed alm= ost full. And the buffalo vampire smiled as he concentrated on ordering the shadows to the south. They would seek out his brother Dibbka before the night was through and usher him north to Falcon=92s keep.

-The afternoon of the next day a young boy found the grove of trees that housed his play fortress ashened and charred as if the husks had been scorched by an internal fire. Crying, he ran home to his mother=85

-***

That night, Dibkka, Slate, and Krista had been riding on the magical hors= ed for about 4 hours when the hairs on Dibbka's neck stood on end. Slate noticed it too, and they brought their horses to a stop. The air around them was unnaturally still, and for the first time since they had entered the desert, Dibbka realized just how cold it could get in the barren wasteland. Normally the only sound one could hear would be the wind and their own movements. Now with the lack of even a breeze, it was eerily quiet. Sweat broke out on Dibbka's forehead, and though he wasn't scared= , he was on edge.

All three scanned the deserted wasteland for signs of trouble, but their eyes failed to detect the menace that they all sensed. Slate pulled his sword, though even he started to feel it would be of no use against the f= oe that awaited. Protectively he pulled his horse near Krista's. Dibbka followed suit and flanked her other side. While the full moon had given them a fairly good view of their surroundings, it had now become hidden behind a cloud. In response, Dibbka started chanting the words to a simp= le light spell.

And then he realized that the sky clear all evening. Suddenly Dibbka fel= t that they were all in terrible danger, and the world started to moven slo= w motion as he lept into action.

Before he had even finished his light spell, Dibbka dove, knocking Krista from her horse. As if by some astral spell, he watched his body knocked Krista to the sand, he felt an icy grip close in on his shoulder at time same instant he saw Slate's sword sweep through the air mere centimeters from his head. The sword flared brightly, it's magic doing damage to the unseen attacker even though the blade made contact with only air. Landin= g on the gritty sand brought Dibbka painfully back to his body like the snapping of a rubber band.

Looking up, Dibbka saw them: five shadowy figures swarming around Slate. Shades, or some form thereof, but these seemed much too quick to be simpl= e undead. There was some uncanny power behind them. Ignoring the icy burn= in his shoulder, Dibbka picked Krista up and threw her on her horse. "RIDE!= " he yelled as mounted his own horse. The buffalo emperor knew they were poorly equipped to battle five shades at once.

And so Krista was off, her magical horses quickly taking her away from th= e battle. But Slate was surrounded and had no chance of escape in his curr= ent situation. It was all he could do to fend them all off. And so Dibbka urged his horse into the fray. Luckily, he thought, magical horses aren'= t afraid of supernatural evils.

Quickly Dibbka cast another, more powerful light spell, barely avoiding t= he attackers so as to complete his spell. Calling forth a sunbolt, Dibbka instantly slayed one of the shades and drove the other four back long eno= ugh for Slate and him to urge their mounts to safety. Physically drained fro= m casting one of his most powerful spells, it was all Dibbka could do to st= ay mounted as he, Slate, and Krista sped off with the shades chasing them.