Chapter 6 – The Forgotten

Marik stroked his gray beard. A large ruby ring hung on his middle finger; it bore the insignia of Fraath, a dragon claw clutching a broken sword. His gray hair draped over his ears, barely touching his shoulders. Marik was one hundred and twenty eight years old, or somewhere thereabouts. He had forgotten exactly how old he was. He served as only the second high priest of Fraath, a title he held for well over 80 years. His green eyes shifted towards the guards and he spoke. “Leave us. This is a private matter.” The guards bowed before him and left the room.

Marik leaned in and cocked an eyebrow at Carrath. “A vampire you say?”

“Indeed, and I fear that that is not the worst of it.” Carrath said. “The boy I found, he seems to be hidden from Suun's eye. Whatever evil is behind this appears to have the power to obscure Suun's vision. I can't imagine what that could be.”

“Uriel would have that power, but I find it hard to believe that she is in league with the undead. Have you considered the possibility that the boy wasn't actually at Stone's Crossing?”

“I have, but his depiction of the events was so precise, and he had Nameless' amulet. Of course, our other priests were unable to see him traveling with me, so its not an isolated incident.”

“Then there is only one other possibility.” Marik sat back and raised a hand to his beard.

“He has no destiny. A soul without direction, absent from Suun's plans.”

“Free from his restrictions is more like it. Think of the power he could attain.” Marik smiled slightly. “You must leave him to Fraath's training, he could become an incredible force in this world.”

“I'll do nothing of the sort. He'll train in the ways of Suun. Fraath would have him out blowing up castles and leading armies on conquest.”

Marik slammed his fist on the table and stood up violently. “So, you'll leave him to the training of the dragon that has forgotten him? What will he do then? Sit in your tower for his entire life meditating? Would you ever even tell him of his potential? Would you tell him of his...unique position?” His eyes were glowing slightly red. That was Fraath's power welling inside of him. It reacted best to strong emotion.

“Calm down Marik. He'll follow whatever path he chooses. I'll not stand in his way, nor will I force him to stay locked in the temple. Neither will I tell him of his situation, it would be too much for him now.”

“Then you'll at least let him know of the other paths. The other dragons. You'll give him a choice as to which one he will serve.” Marik commanded.

“If you wish, but I doubt that he'll serve any of them. He has his own path to follow. I'll teach him about the other dragons, and then I'll take him to the Dragon's Challenge tournament so that he can see each order in action. Only then will I ask him to choose his path.”

“That is satisfactory.” Marik said as he sat back down.