“Our village was this huge?” I exclaimed as I walked past the NPC guards and through the gates, taking in the striking sights.

Sharulrath stopped in front of me and gestured with a grand wave at Kurghal Village. "Welcome home, youngling."

"Actually, my first time here...but it's great to be home. And this village is amazing."

It wasn't merely a sad settlement of the last few hundred Mardukryons desperately trying to survive as I had pictured it to be. I trotted past a few dozen houses arranged in a grid. It was better organized than the layout of Amberkeld town. Dirt roads partly covered with snow separated the blocks. If they used closely packed cobbles for the roads, that would probably hurt our hooves. Carved posts holding up pieces of golden crystals about the size of my head lined the streets, likely to provide light at night.

Mardukryon houses were wide dome-shaped constructs, reminiscent of Mehubanarath's hut-slash-tent, made with precisely cut stone and expertly bent wood for their roofs. They sat in a dugout bowl on the ground appearing more like a bunker—the whole area was pockmarked with craters topped with the houses. I supposed it allowed for bigger spaces for Mardukryons’ bodies without the need for a taller building.

My people walked in and out of the houses, going about their daily business, whatever that might be. Mardukryons pulled carts topped with vegetables and meats. Others carried large bags strapped to their flanks filled with scrolls, tools, or more chunks of the golden crystals. Younglings darted through the traffic as they played. Most peculiar, different kinds of furry six-legged beasts roamed around unsupervised—could be pets, maybe future food.

As we walked further inward, I had a better view of what was up ahead at the far end of the village—a formidable cliff face rising to the sky. There was more to the mountain above.

Unlike the side of the mountain that was the site of my Mirdabon free-falling massacre, large deposits of golden crystals jutted out of the expansive wall of rocks. They were so massive I could see them from this far a distance—the smallest of them were as large as a Mardukryon house.

And because Mardukryons relied on these crystals for a reason still unknown to me, they had built an intricate network of paths carved out of the rocks and wooden bridges crisscrossing the entire mountainside to reach them. More impressively, there were about ten levels, probably more, of Mardukryon housing dug into the rocks of the cliff face. In addition to that, there were egg-shaped wooden pods that might also be houses that I hoped were firmly secured mixed in with them.

That entire portion of the cliff wall looked like a cross-section of an ant farm. I'd hazard a guess that more Mardukryons were living there than here, in this flat area.

Thankfully, the Chief's Lodge was only a couple of blocks ahead and not by the cliff wall or I would've been tempted to jump off the bridges to test the fall damage. It was a similar dome-shaped building as the surrounding others, only far bigger, taking an entire block for itself. It was also decorated with carvings of symbols and heads of beasts, similar to the archway where I farmed the Hermit Crabores.

Inside was a tiered circular hall with a floating golden crystal similar to Amberkeld's in the middle. Several Mardukryons were inside doing chores in their own section of the levels. A group sat on the floor with looms in front of them, weaving cloths. Another group carved pieces of the crystals. Yet another was sharpening weapons.

[Mardukryon Lvl 56|Kurghal Village Chief: Nogras] was a humongous specimen that sat on a pile of fat cushions. The skin of his upper body appeared more burnt out and flakier than Mehubanarath's. He also appeared far from healthy unlike the imposing Big M, groaning for every small movement. Strips of red and green cloth with runic signs weaved along their length were draped over his body.

Other than that, he didn't wear any clothes or armor. A weapons rack behind him carried an impressive spear with a serpentine blade, a sword with a curved blade as wide as my hips, and a round shield with the face of an unknown monster.

I prefer the Big M, was my first impression. But there must be a reason this guy was the chief.

"Youngling… At last, you have returned to us," Chief Nogras said after Sharulrath introduced me and shared how we met. "I pray you had a fruitful communion with our ancestors." His voice was weak and hoarse. He stopped speaking to cough violently.

A female Mardukryon with braided fur tried to give him a cup of smoking liquid but he refused her offer with a shake of his head.

He pressed on after a couple more coughs, "May their visions guide you as you grow into a fine Mardukryon. As is the custom of our people from the time of our imprisonment, you will receive a spear to symbolize the need to fend for yourself on this harsh mountain."

And also to show that I won't be using Ancestral Flames, I added in my head.

One of the warriors near Chief Norgas handed me a spear.

Heavy Spear | Item Level: 10

Common | Melee | Two-Handed

18-35 Damage

1.3 Attacks per Second

20 Combat Rating

Requires: 15 Might

Level ten? I suspected the reward scaled with the player's level. This showed that a new player was expected to explore the Golden Forest instead of heading straight for the village. "I'm grateful for the gift, Chief. I'll follow what our ancestors told me. And they said I'm going to be great."

"I have observed you from the time you were but a calf with budding horns," said Chief Nogras, each word he uttered was laborious work. "In my eyes, you are one of the most promising younglings in this village."

"You got that right."

"And I have a task for you. It is to—” The Chief coughed uncontrollably. He reached out for the mysterious cup and clumsily drank it, spilling most of its contents. “It has…has been two hundred years since…since the Great Quake and the earth swallowed much of our number. But in my deepest of hearts, I believe that we are not the only ones that escaped destruction. Others are out there…"

Interesting. He was different from Mehubanarath who dismissed the thought of any other Mardukryon settlement surviving. This must be another reason these two didn't see eye to eye...or horn to horn.

Chief Nogras waved his hand, and another warrior came forward to give me a small scroll.

[ Received: Tattered Map of the Mardukryon Tribes ]

"What is this?" I said, selecting the item in my inventory to open it.

An incomprehensible map of what I assumed to be the mountain expanded in front of me. Parts of it were missing, seemingly torn off. And most of the available map was grayed out. Only a small patch was lit, an area on the lower-left corner. I tried focusing on the grayed parts but nothing happened. I shifted my sight to the glowing portion and it zoomed in.

A new map appeared—it was more like something from an RPG with indicators of places and NPCs, making it easily understandable. It displayed Golden Forest and Kurghal Village, continuing to a complicated cave system past the cliff wall at the back of the village. Beyond that, I supposed it was up to me to explore for myself. The missing pieces were also a mystery.

"Listen carefully, youngling," Chief Norgas said, "and listen well. Open your heart and mind to the whisperings of our ancestors. Two paths lay before you. You can choose to stay in this village, or you can seek out the other Mardukryon tribes on this mountain. Connect our broken people and let us be united once again. Two hundred years...many valiant Mardukryons braved the dangers of this mountain in search of the other tribes. The few that have returned have all failed…"

“They’re failures because they’re not me,” I muttered under my breath.

"But that does not mean we are all alone. Our brothers and sisters are waiting for us. Let us not lose hope of finding them. The ancestors speak to me in my dreams...the day will come that our herd will be one. Youngling, I am not imposing this task on you, for the path will be inexplicably long and dangerously hard—"

"Long and hard? I wonder who’s the writer who sneaked that in. Kudos to him."

"The choice is all yours. Do you accept this perilous request of mine?"

"I accept it," I firmly said.

[ Quest: The Uncertain Search - Gaining Knowledge I ]

At the behest of Chief Nogras of Kurghal Village, you swear to scour every corner of the mountain to find other Mardukryon tribes that survived the Great Quake. In this monumental task, knowledge of the unknown is required lest your search be for naught. Learn about the history of the Mardukryons from the villagers.

"Every corner? Wow, that might be too much," I said with a snort. "But before I get to searching, I should talk to people first?"

"My heart pours gratitude for your willingness to embark on this journey, youngling." The Chief heaved again and coughed harshly.

The Mardukryon who I assumed to be his wife fetched the elder another cup of the smoking liquid, which he pushed away. He was not long for this world. Maybe the Big M could replace him as Chief and we could teach everyone Ancestral Flame Arts.

"Where do I begin my search?" I asked him. "Who do I ask first for information?"

I didn’t get any answer. Unfortunately, that was all the time he had for me. Laying back down on the velvety cushions, Mardukryons with trinkets and crystals surrounded him to presumably treat him.

Guards escorted me out of the Chief's Lodge and I stood there at the clearing in front of the building, wondering where I should go next. The quest was open-ended, encouraging the player to explore on their own. It had the same tone as spawning on the cliffs after choosing Mardukryon to be my race—several options were in front of the player on how to proceed. But unlike Mehubanarath's location which was highlighted by the smoke rising above the Golden Forest, I didn't have a clue where to start.

I turned around after hearing hoofsteps behind me. Sharulrath exited the Chief's Lodge, sweeping the thick curtain covering the doorway to the side so it wouldn't snag on the spears he carried. I asked him if he had suggestions where I could look for any possible surviving Mardukryon tribes, but he told me that he didn't know. His search for Ancestral Flame scrolls was in areas with no survivors.

"Let us head to Healer Gula," Sharulrath said. "She can take a look at your injuries."

It turned out SpartanDonkey was right—he was already so much better than Luds when it comes to helping. I was going to try his tip at Healer Gula. Perhaps I could gain information concerning Chief Nogras' quest from her as well.

Healer Gula's place was located two blocks away from the Chief's Lodge. Unlike the other houses, the front half of hers was completely open. There was a table stacked high with baskets of various herbs and large flasks of potions; behind it were shelves filled with similar curiosities.

[Mardukryon Lvl 39|Healer: Gula], a frail and thin female NPC with a similarly ashy white skin to signify her age tended the store. She had tied knots and strings of beads hanging from her horns, while her tusks appeared to have been cut and filed short.

A couple of Mardukryon players had just bought something from her. They waved and greeted me, but seeing Sharulrath, they might've guessed I was on a quest.

"See you around, new guy!" they said as they cantered off.

Very considerate, I thought, staring at their backs.

"Ah, youngling, there you are," Healer Gula said, looking up as we descended into the bowl in the ground where her house nested. "The ancestors spoke of our meeting."

"They did?" I asked in surprise at her introductory words. What a weird dialogue. I thought I was just visiting the village Healing NPC.

She extended her hand above my head—she was also taller than me like most Mardukryon NPCs—and whispered, "I sense...I sense...the power of healing in you. A lost art unlike my own. Our meeting is fated."

"Me? Healing?" My forehead wrinkled at her words. "Do you mean my Aritu Form Ocadule?" Was this the start of a special branching quest because of my choice among the three Ocadules the Big M had presented to me?