Closed.

“Who are you? What happened to you?”
Dhea took a step forward, her eyes wide and full of concern. She moved only few inches away from him, reaching out a hand. She spoke gently, kindly.
“My name is Athdhea.”
She touched his shoulder softly, searching for some sign that she could help him and that he wasn’t wounded.
 
"Just a priest. My name is Shalla." The man answered, staring at her with wild eyes. As Dhea approached she noticed that he was the source of the stench and it made her gag, forcing her to step back. "It was Klattamen! They chained me!" The man continued. "They ransacked the temple, took everything of value and left me here!"

A rat dashed across the floor of the chamber. The man snatched for it, tore it in half and started chewing. Seeing her stare, he offered a half of the dead rat.

- Break the chain with your sword.
- Cast a spell.
- Leave.
 
“No, thank you. I appreciate it, though.”
She held back the need to vomit and politely shook her head.

“Shalla, how long have you been here? Months? Weeks?”
Athdhea looked at his chain and unsheathed her sword, examining it for a weak link as she tried to distract him from her current task.

“Is this the temple for the goddess Throff?”
She moved forward and found a weak link, holding her breath as she tried to break the chain with her sword.
 
"I don't know, could be days, could be years. Days merge together in this place." He answered, before finishing the rest of the rat.

The chain was rusted and frail. As soon as Dhea brought her silver sword down on it, the chain shattered. The man leapt forward in gratitude, wrapping her arms around Dhea in a bear hug.

"Thank you, Dhea! It's wonderful to be free!"

He shouted and dashed up the steps into the sunlight. Glancing up, Dhea noticed the man's hand on the edge of the trapdoor. Was he about to lock her in?

- Shout to him.
- Cast a spell.
- Run up the stairs.
 
Athdhea’s nostrils flared and she snarled.
“No, you fucking don’t! I freed you, you stinking rat!”
She let out an electroshock spell to stun him and run past him, out the door. She also aimed a sharp boot to his stomach.
 
"Wha-" Was all that the priest managed to say before the spell zapped him, tossing him to against the wall of the temple.

The impact made one of the already crumbling pillars wobble further, until it completely shattered, collapsing on the ground with a loud crash. The priest's body was buried underneath the pile of stone now.

Whatever was the man trying to do, Dhea would never find out now.

- Go inside the temple.
- Leave the temple.
 
“Shit. Fuck. Ballsack.”
Athdhea crouched down, softly apologising for causing his death and explaining that she had not meant to kill him. She inhaled and walked past, going into the temple.
“I am such an idiot.”

Dhea nibbled the inside corner of her lip, arms crossing over her chest as she stood at the doorway, just before stepping over the threshold.
 
The floorspace of the temple was empty, but the walls were covered in long lines of intricate hieroglyphs that reminded a little of the symbols in the Temple of her Guardian, Lord Courga.

"This temple was built by priests Yadu in honour of Throff, Goddess of Earth." Courga read it in her mind for her. "Those not of faith are forbidden and these must not speak the name of Throff."

Suddenly there was a deep rumbling below her feet.

- Tell Courga to keep reading.
- Beg Throff for mercy.
- Cast a spell.
- Leave the temple.
 
“Courga, please keep reading.”
Dhea took a step back, her body tensing. She was starting to regret her hasty reaction to kill the priest. Even if it hadn’t been her intent. She did not want to face the wrath of a goddess, especially not the one she needed help from.
 
"Those who wish to join the faith, speak the name of Throff three times." Courga finished.

At the third use of Goddess's name, something happened. The rumbling subsided and a woman in elaborate armour stepped out of a carving on the wall.

5f33b587f6ff9acf44038eae1e343c0a.jpg

"Mortal." She said. "You speak my name thrice in the temple. Do you wish to follow me?"

- Yes.
- No.
 
Athdhea inhaled, bowing her head. She spoke softly in her mind to Courga.
‘Thank you for your help.’
And she looked back up at Throff, rising slightly. Her voice was shaky, but not unsure.
“Yes.”
 
Throff nodded and reached out, touching Dhea's forehead. Her touch was cool, but not cold, like wet earth after heavy rain.

"Goodbye, Analander." The deep voice of Courga was receding.

Then she felt the warmth and power of Throff entering her mind.

"Go in peace, follower." Throff said, reaching up hold the crumbling roof of the temple in place, allowing her to go outside.

As soon as her feet left the temple, it collapsed to the ground, making a terrible sound, but Throff's voice stayed in her mind.

- Go to the east toward the clearing.
- Go up to north, to face the Moon Serpent on the bridge.
- Eat and rest and then choose a path.
 
Athdhea needed to rest before she could fight anything. She sat down in one of the shadier parts of the temple and ate, debating which path to take. She had to take the Earth Serpent down first and then go after the more powerful ones.

She inhaled through her nose and rose up after resting, turning her gaze to the east. She would go to the clearing first, as it had caught her attention before.

Dhea was glad she had stopped at this temple, though.
 
With one of the rations eaten and slightly rested, Dhea was able to processed across the plains in a much quicker pace. The sun fell down slowly as she trekked across it and toward the grass clearing she had seen before. She was very close to the grass patch when a sound of singing reached her.

Looking around she saw a hooded figures sitting on the ground in a circle, chanting. It seemed to grow darker all of a sudden, the night coming far too quickly. There was strong magic in the air.

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"Athdhea." One of the figures suddenly called her by her name. "We have awaited you. You have made good time to us. We are the Seven Spirits. Come, join us."

- Approach them.
- Hurry away.
- Cast a spell.
 
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Athdhea inhaled, mentally flipping through her spells. This was one of the Serpents. She couldn’t tell which one it was. Then it sparked in her brain and she closed her eyes, drawing on the magic deep within her. She smiled and opened them again, her face almost contorted with rage.

“No.”

And she wrapped herself in protective magic, in a spell that would keep her safe from the powerful magic in the air.
 
The cultists disappeared as soon as the spell set in. Mocking laughter filled her ears.

Suddenly she started noticing other strange happening. All around her insects were frozen in mid-flight at one moment and at the other they would spin insanely fast through the air. Overhead there were no stars. She could see clouds speed over the sky, then stop abruptly, then speed up again. It was like a broken clockwork.

Then, out of the darkness, a creature materialised in front of her.

16h6jhs.jpg

"The jaws of Time are unescapeable!" The Serpent called, swirling around her. But, Dhea wore the protective spell, the creature's magic would not touch her now. She only had to cut it down.

- Attack with the sword (Roll die, Difficulty 10, Bonus 3).
- Attack with the knife (Roll die, Difficulty 11, Bonus 3).
- Attack with the bow (Roll die, Difficulty 10, Bonus 4).
 
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“But you are not Time! And Death claims us all!”
Athdhea whipped out her bow, her eyes narrowing as she screamed out the words. Defiance set in her shoulders and she took a deep breath, releasing it as she let fly an arrow.
 
The Time Serpent was just a snake without its magic. As the arrow struck, it let out a snarl that turned into a bloody gurgle.

Blood spilled down its neck as its huge head fell down to Dhea's feet. It choked once, before the light in its eyes extinguished.

The first change Dhea noticed were the clouds, as they started moving at a regular pace across the sky. And then the twinkle of stars returning to fill the darkness above. The grass begun to shift and she felt wind again and the insects flew out of her way.

The second Serpent was dead and perhaps the strongest one out of the Seven.

- Rest there for the night.
- Cross the mountains to the east.
- Return to the bridge with the Moon Serpent.
 
Athdhea looked at the body of the dead snake, her eyes cold and her body numb. She was changing within the wasteland and she wasn’t sure if it was for better or worse. She spat at the corpse, before kicking it aside and finding a small spot to rest. She could kick the other Serpents asses after she awoke. She needed her energy.
 
The night was calm enough and the grass was soft, allowing for a cosy sleep.

--

But, she had to move in the morning, the Serpents were still out there and they will not wait for her. She could see a storm brewing on the horizon in the direction on the Snatta Forest, it seemed to be going toward her. Perhaps it was best if she moved right away.

- Go toward the storm.
- Go over the mountains and away from the storm.
 
Athdhea was not scared of storms, but with what was happening around her, she did not wish to risk it. She also did not want to tangle with Earth Serpent just yet. She paused, looking between the two. The other Serpents would’ve known if she had killed the Time Serpent, but then she remembered that none even noticed the death of the Fire Serpent.

She figured with Throff on her side, she would have a better chance of fighting the Earth Serpent than the others.

So, Athdhea made her way to the mountains. She was not so scared of killing. Not after this.
 
She went toward the peaks, but the storm followed her. The sand blew in her face, pricking her skin. The wind picked up around her to the point of making the air look like a whirlpool. The ground shook and made her trip up and fall down, twisting her ankle, though not causing too serious of an injury.

The weather turned in such a short time - the sun was gone and heavy clouds hung overhead. Suddenly she saw a lighting hurling down from the sky straight at her. Only then she realised it was not a lightning - it was a hooked claw!

- Dodge left.
- Dodge right.
- Cast a spell.
 
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