"Promises are like snow in spring, Ornux. Why should we join an alliance whose fruits we have never tasted?"
"Because we are at the dawn of an era in which old boundaries will be redrawn. Your skill and knowledge could form the core of this new world. Not as servants, but as shapers and guardians. Ib'Agier may never have been yours, but the future could belong to all of Fallgar. And therein lies your power," Ornux explained, with a quiet fire in his words.
"And what if we decide to follow this path and the battle is lost? What then, shadow mage?" Brumir questioned, his brow furrowed.
"Then, Brumir Ironfist, we will have fought and risen together again. This is not a pact of submission, but of cooperation. Erwight of Entorbis sees you as allies of equal strength," Ornux replied with conviction.
A moment of silence enveloped them, in which the wind seemed to be the only answer. Then Brumir nodded slowly.
"Ornux, your words carry the ring of truth, even if they are surrounded by shadows. I will accept your proposal. But be aware, the trust of the gray dwarves is hard-won. We will be vigilant."
"So be it, Brumir. Together we will carve a new path through the darkness, a path that leads to a tomorrow where iron and shadow shine in the light of a new world," Ornux spoke, a sense of hope in his voice as he said goodbye.
Thus ended their conversation, a dialog between powers that laid the foundations for a possible future. A future in which the gray dwarves might never call the mines of Ib'Agier their own, but in which they could play a role in shaping a new world order. An alliance forged on the thin line between mistrust and hope now carried the possibility of breaking through the shadows and leading into a new age.
Vrenli was shifted again.
A multitude of diminutive creatures, their silver-gray chain armor reflecting the bland moonlight, climbed out of the gray dwarven city on wooden ladders that reached over the edge of the moat. They followed a path north, which led them to a cleared wooded area where several powerful, destructive war machines were being built. He flew at great speed over the catapults, ballistae and assault towers, heading north, where after some time he reached the land of Druhn.
He floated further and further over the wildwood, grasslands, meadow lowlands, streams and rivers to the northeast. It was getting much colder and the landscape was covered in snow.
He could see from afar a frozen lake covered in mist, in the middle of which lay a rocky island where a fortress built of blackstone and dark iron stood, with a flock of black crows circling in the night sky above its five mighty towers.