Arriving at the designated location at the appointed time, I was met by Empress Sorsha, an envoy of Pyro.
"She is known as an expert in defense and military art, master. They say it's because of her constant conflicts and feuds with Buta," Zizix informed me.
"Ah, there you are. This is our gift to James, the latest development," she chirped, pointing to a small group of creatures standing a little further away.
I was quite surprised to see these creatures. It seems Pyro knew what he was doing when he sent me on the previous mission. The trolls we managed to capture have been trained and equipped with high-tech gear developed by Festus. A group of such creatures can defeat a superior army. I felt that it was wasteful to provide such magnificent warriors to anyone.
Sorsha, the trolls, and a small escort and I set off. After a few minutes, we were spotted by an air patrol. A pair of gargoyles inquired about the purpose of our arrival and agreed to escort us to the lord, but on the condition that the empress had to stay behind. The border was guarded by Lord Graccus, who looked like a stalactite.
"These are trolls! Persephone will be furious with us for associating with you. You'd better leave," he growled.
"Persephone's fury is nothing. The time has come to choose a side. Non-interference is tantamount to death."
"Treason!" someone from Graccus's warriors shrieked, immediately turning to ash on the ground, crushed by a troll's fiery fist.
I didn't understand what happened. Either they lost control, or it was some kind of plan, or just an incident. In any case, it suddenly became very hot there. All I could do was frantically heal the dying creatures. Mine and Sorsha's, who immediately teleported to the scene. Together, we defeated the enemy, although it was not easy. His creatures truly possessed the strength of stone.
In general, the negotiations failed. And all we could do was defend ourselves. Suddenly, while I, annoyed by this turn of events, was thinking about what I would say to Pyro, James himself addressed me. Either he is an incredible fool, or he is a truly understanding god, as he expressed regret for the situation and said that he personally had nothing against me and was even glad that I tried to establish contact until the very end. He offered me a blessing, and I, stunned, accepted it.
A strange feeling.
1) Several ticks and a gift. Trolls in exoskeletons with fiery fists. They are also called flamefists. Air supply, heat-resistant material. Something I didn't catch, they have tanks on their backs. I need to check.
2) The Empress. Voodooist. Such a huge woman, but with a pleasant voice. One of the few models in the game who looks the most human. I won't show her from the back so as not to traumatize Arandora, but she can give birth to a dozen children at once.
3) Some kind of temple that I discovered while walking through the desert. By the way, you can see a new spell at the bottom of my panel. It debuffs the enemy with rings of fire, dealing damage to him. And, apparently, to everyone around. Not very good. Stratos's chain lightning was more useful. Although it lasts a long time, it might kill a strong creature.
4) Now I can build such altars to collect souls faster. Looks cool.
5) Settlement. And behind it - Graccus with security. And my peacemarine.
6) "Hey, can you call your brother? And do you have any change? I need five mana for teleport, help a guy out."
7) Terrible Battle. The ground is covered in blood, the screen is blazing, there are three colors on the radar at once. I could have been rude in the conversation, the effect would be the same, but Sorsha refuses to participate in this, and I suspect that the blessing would not be obtained in this way.
8) Terror and "red rooster." Well, why are they attacking?