So this is what the Bookah mean when they talk about “the belly of the beast” Xavier thought to himself as the Asuran Commander hung by his sword, Kymswarden, over the Claw of Jormag’s stomach.
Just moments before, the Pact were in the process of launching an assault against the Elder Dragon’s lieutenant.
After many gruesome hours of fighting Ice Elementals and Corrupted Beings, they had managed to blast off the dragon’s wings, knocking it into the hard ice of Frostgorge Sound. Commander Xavier led the infantry charge, but as soon as they reached the Claw,
it recovered faster than any of them anticipated, consuming them and then diving into the ocean below.
Those who were consumed all fell down into the stomach; the Commander was the only one who could act fast enough to use his sword as a pick and prevent himself from falling into the pool of acid below. He witnessed as his comrades all fell into the pool one by one, all crying for help as they slowly sank.
It had been a while since then, and the sword was beginning to dislodge itself.
“So, this is where my endeavors will stop, consumed by my enemy so I can provide him energy to fight my friends” the commander whispered as he slipped inch by inch closer to his demise. “What a hero I’ve turned out to be.”
Suddenly, a large ping echoed throughout the stomach chambers. The Commander, recognizing the ping, quickly reached into his armor and pulled out a rusted VOED (Very Old Energy Detector). It was an old project of his, dating back to his days at the College of Statics, that was capable of detecting high concentrations of magic.
Of course! the Commander thought, something this huge must be powered by magic somehow. Maybe if I unleash it, I can destroy the dragon from within! However, his smile quickly turned into a grimace when a quick scan showed that the core containing the magic was directly below him in the acid. “Well, here goes nothing,” he said out loud,
as he pulled Kymswarden out.
As he was falling, Xavier recited the tomes of protection that he had once come
across in an ancient dwarven cavern. It was a fairly simple spell, but hopefully it would keep him alive long enough.
After falling into the acid, Xavier began navigating around the disintegrating remains of his fallen comrades to get vision of the core. The small, icy sphere glowed a bright white and was closeby, but he could already feel the effects of the tome fading. By the time he swam up to it, the tome had expired, and he could feel his skin burning and his armor breaking apart. Mustering up all the strength he could, Xavier plunged Kymswarden into the core,
releasing a burst of bright blue light around him.
When Xavier woke up, he was on a cliff, his back aching in a way it never had before.
“My my, what could have possibly happened while you were in there?” inquired a familiar voice.
Xavier quickly turned to face the leader of the Pact, Trahearne, who was standing beside him.
“What do you mean, Trahearne?”
“We had lost sight of the Claw of Jormag and were about to deem the mission a failure until there was a large explosion in the middle of the ocean. We were doing some reconnaissance when some troops stumbled across your current state and brought me here to examine you.”
“Thank you for the concern, Trahearne, but I think my wounds should be treated by a healer, not a scholar.”
Shaking his head, Trahearne said “I’m afraid you’re misunderstanding Commander.” He pointed to the side of the icy cliff, “See for yourself.”
After jumping down to examine what had become of him, Xavier was shocked to find that his previously gold and silver armor was now bright blue and white, much like the glacial structures surrounding him. What was even more concerning was that icy wings had grown out of his back and were moving.
“Kymswarden underwent a similar transformation” Trahearne said, placing a glowing blue sword beside Xavier.
“The magic I released from the Claw’s core most have infused itself into Kymswarden and my armor. Trahearne, what will we do from here?”
“Some day down the road, the full effects of what’s happened to you here today may be pivotal in our war against the dragons. But for now, we will declare today’s mission a success and get some much needed rest, Commander.”
Do you want the Claw of Jormag’s power?
This armor set uses a mix of winter ice and white dyes on the following pieces of armor:
- Electromagnetic Helm (Asura Tier 3 Heavy Armor)
- Vigil Pauldrons
- Inquest Breastplate (Crucible of Eternity Heavy Armor)
- Radiant Vambraces (Obtained at 3000 achievement points)
- Orrian Legguards (Ruined City of Arah Heavy Armor)
- Primeval Warboots (Primeval Set in the Gem Store)
- Holographic Shattered Dragon Wings (Event item from Dragon Bash)
The weapon used in the above picture is from the Super Greatsword skin, obtained through the Super Adventure Box event.
For those interested in the armor set in the first picture, the set uses a mix of Illumination and Ancient Silver dyes on the same armor, with the exceptions of the usage of Flame Legion Gauntlets (Citadel of Flame Heavy Armor) instead of the Radiant Vambraces, and the removal of the back item.
