Mythic Portal - A Story from Long Ago - Hidden Pictures with Prizes

avatar
(Edited)

desert2.png

Identify the six factions in the picture and what objects there are representing them
Each correct answer is 600 DEC at Splinterlands
Must have all six answers discord https://discord.gg/c9nVJtDQY2
channel #discordgames

Max award of 6,000 DEC to all players, no more prizes after that

The wind blew across the sands and he thought he saw the slight contours of a face wisping in the grains.
It was the same feeling he got when he looked into the darkness underneath their hoods. Sometimes he thought
he made out eyes then they shifted their stance and he could no longer see. Even when they spoke,
nobody was sure if they were talking or just hearing something in their mind.
That's how they got their nickname, the faceless, and all those on the inside called them that.

His horse had long since wandered into the distance looking for something to satisfy it's endless
hunger. It was tough to see him clearly with the sand continuing to blow. There was a slight
feeling of fear to realize how far away the horse was even after all his daring adventures.

Of course he didn't like being so close to the Egyptians home but the faceless needed help and when they
needed something people listen. The alternative is total chaos and nobody wants that, not even those that thrive
on it's fringes. All he knew was a stone had been stolen from his home land. The stone was usually sitting in
the parthenon at the center of the village upon the acropolis. He had viewed it many times watching it
pulse and vibrate. People would stand close and visibly seem happier. The fishermen that worked the islands
edges would bring in more fish and would move along with an extra step of energy. Since the stone had gone missing
everything had been taken away. A slow, emotional drain on his people had taken place. The crops to the east
had withered. It wasn't just having less food, it effected their spirits.

All of this made it important for him to find the stone, to return it. Yet his resolve was strengthened even
more. He had a brush with the mysterious ones. Not long ago he had been tending to the crops and gathering them.
Then out of the corner of his eye he caught the glimpse of the black robe. The robe that brings death when
you're too close. The rope that brings fear and a respect for the unknown. People have seen them walking
but they don't leave footprints. It was no surprise to him that the faceless appeared to come out of nowhere.

He couldn't say the sound came from the vicinity of the presence or not but he heard it, heard it loud and
clear. "The stone is missing, it must be returned. For the stone that controls everything must have all stones.
For the stone that gives us balance must breathe with all six setting stones. Find it or we shall all perish."
With that it turned, without any type of jointed movement as if it was hovering and it slowly moved away. His
eyes stayed locked on him till he became a small dot and then nothing.

He passed his crop bag and seeds to someone near. He pulled his small ivory whistle from his cloth pocket.
He could hear it no more than a hiss when he blew it but it must scream to his horse pegasus. For out on the horizon
hovering over a mountain his white wings beat as if an eagle. Only when it came closer could the features of
a flying horse be seen so distinctly. His mane glistened as you might picture a forgotten brush in the sunlight.
Perseus didn't hesitate as he grabbed hold of it and swung himself a top.

From high above in the skies his eyes searched for anything out of the ordinary. It was urgent and his bleary
eyes pleaded for rest but they did not. It was over the sands of Egypt that he spotted a trail of footsteps
starting to fade ever so softly as the wind slowly eroded them. He kicked his horse to descend as they had done
thousands of times before and onto the sand they went.

Flecks of sand pelted his face as the wind picked up. He started retracing the steps being ever mindful of being
spotted by the Egyptian guards. They couldn't reach him in the air but they could end him easily in the sands leaving
very little of him left for the desert vultures. He couldn't see them but he carefully double checked that his whistle
was snug in his pocket. Pegasus had always given him a quick escape when needed or he wouldn't be here now.
He crept slowly, pushing forward into the wind following the bed crums of his mystery.

The dotted line of footsteps drew his eyes to someone pulling hard on the draw strings of their pack horse. He could see
the darkness of fur or skin, a very elongated facial snout with pointed ears. Even from far away, sand saturated wind, he recognized
the Egyptian Set. Set didn't see him and he continued on by pulling the rope guiding his horse. Perseus waited till he was gone
in the distance towards his Egyptian home. The foot prints led to a cave upon the border of the sandy desert and the much harder rock
earth of the mountainous dragons.

It was a new danger now that tingled his skin as he walked closer to the cave before him. It was the mountainous lands of the dragons
and he was far from home. He didn't want to see a patrol as they surely would be aggressive defending their home territory.
He reached again making sure he had quick access to his whistle for pegasus. Then he made his way through the remaining sand and on to
the rocky path that led into the cave that Set had been with his horse moments before. Set was usually up to no good and with the
stone of his homeland missing he had to investigate any suspicious possibility.

Upon entering the cave his ears felt a relief from the constant blowing noise of the desert. It became strangely peaceful as he
almost forgot the threat of Egyptian guards and lurking dragons. A crack in the cave was letting water in somewhere and the tiny
sound of water hitting rocks pitter pattered. He was grateful the cave wasn't very deep because he didn't want to stay very long
and it bothered him he couldn't see the sky above. Obviously, he didn't want a dragon to suprise him and if he was pinned into the
cave it would be his last.

Some loose rock had been disturbed on the caves path inside. He made that out to be Set's heavy hooves. It was all very odd
because he couldn't imagine what Set might be doing inside the cave. Why had he made such a long journey from home and he too
would have taken great risk nearing the dragons. That's when he saw it. Lodged in between some small boulders was a wooden chest
with a half corroded, rusty latch. With great effort he pulled the chest out that had been wedged in pretty tightly.

Pulling the chest open he discovered a stone vibrating in cadence with a blue glow emitted from it. He knew what it was, but,
it wasn't the solution he had been seeking. This was the home stone of someone else. The greeks stone was all the same except it
had a pinkish glow. He had to assume that it was none other than the Egyptians stone. He knew they would want it back but he wasn't
sure how to get it there. He wasn't welcome in the Egyptian city's borders. The stone was placed inside a bag that hung on his belt.
The chest was closed and placed back where he had got it. He quickly searched around for his own stone could find nothing. It was
time to go.

He quickly walked out of the cave to hear a schreech from a dragon flying close by. It appeared that they both discovered each
other right at that exact moment and they locked eyes. The dragons brow tighten with resolve and showed it's teeth. Perseus's eyes
widened, pupils exploding, and fear froze him for a moment. He quickly darted behind a big stone hugging the entrance. The blue
dragon dove mouth widening, muscles tensing, and released a lightning blast cracking the air. It hit the boulder shaking it and
cracking it slightly down the middle. The shock knocked Perseus back a little and instincts were taking over. He knew by experience
that it would be a bit before it breathed again. Hand to pocket removed the whistle and he blew as he ran in the general direction
of pegasus.

Pegasus always responded quickly as he knew there were situations like this that meant life and death. He had just been flying
around scouting for more food to eat. He saw Perseus running and he immediately dove to rescue him. The horse was diving so fast
that he tried to pump his wings to slow himself as he was about to hit Perseus and the sand hard. The emergency had moved him to
speeds with adrenaline that he was unaccustomed to. He got to the side and braced with his hind legs hitting first then the rest of
the blow being absorbed by his front. The hero dove onto the horse his legs bouncing on the the horses back as he grabbed the mane.
Pegasus was as scared as it's rider and immediately lurched forward away from the incoming flying lightning dragon.

The horse was disoriented fleeing the danger and it was flying towards the inner mountainous area. Both rider and animal knew
this was incredibly dangerous. Wandering dragons could see them and even worse if guards saw them it was a deathwish as the guards
were even stronger dragons as if someone could even imagine that. The horse cut higher and changed direction by arcing ever slowly
back towards their home. The blue dragon had recharged it's breathe, locked eyes on it's target and flew with great agression.
It was merely defending it's home ground and didn't understand the what it thought was an unneeded intrusion. It was letting it's
anger out as it flew with intent to destroy, for someone had stolen the home stone of the dragons as well. It was easy to believe
a foreign presence had something to do with it.

As it had happened in the Greco region, the crops the dragons harvested in their lower lands bordering the mountains became less
productive. They were finding less gems to trade for resources they needed and it was really quite baffling. The energy was
draining from the dragons and gossip spread by interactions near the portal entrance. Sometimes they didn't kill each other and
actually talked especially when everyone was sharing a burden of pain.

Smartly, Pegasus was flying in a constant zig zag to make for a tougher target if there was a lightning blast. He was also
scanning for potential allies to help them or even just a possible enemy to the dragon to scare him off. The farther they got
away from the mountains their chance for survival increased. To their relief, they spotted Zeus collecting resources near the
outskirts of the portal. A blue dragon was a challenge even for him but he spotted his own in such desperate need.
He lifted his hand and drew energy from the sky to form a lightning bolt. The lightning bolt was thrown and it neared the
dragon's head so close that it caused it to rear it's head back sharply disrupting it's flight pattern. It would be ironic
that the very thing they were running from, a death by lightning bolt, would be that which saves them. The dragon decided it
was too far out and the sudden appearance of a defense scared it off. It's winged body became a small dot then disappeared into
the mountains that could be seen even from here.

Zeus smiled and pushed his chest up a bit to show his inner pride at helping his son. He didn't let his fear of his son being
hurt show through in emotion but they both nodded at each other in an understanding of appreciation. Perseus kicked at his horses
massive body and they soared ever faster towards their Greco homeland. They were past the portal entrance now and adrenaline started
to wear off as fear was diminishing. A sigh of relief was here and his energy level started to fall as his body had been asked
for all it's resources to escape such a threat. He took his horse to the usual drop off next to his parthenian home. He stroked it's
neck thanking him for yet another rescue from certain death. He took feed from the nearby trough and gently placed it under his mouth.

As Pegaseus enjoyed his feed his thoughts drifted to the Egyptian home stone he had found. He really didn't know how he would
get it back to them since trying to enter their city would be certain death. The guards were trained to kill without the slightest
concern about what Perseus might be doing even if it was returning their precious stone that would restore prosperity. Exhausted
he tossed his bag containing the stone up on it's usual hook. It was handled so casually by him yet meant so much to the
Egyptians survival.

The beginning of evening was here, not yet night, but he was so tired. His body had built up a need for rest after expending
so much energy. His feet fell heavy on the stone floor of his home and he slipped on to his bed falling a sleep quite quickly.
His rest was deep. The breeze from the ocean crept in his home and tingled his nostrils but it stirred him not in the sleightest.

A dream began. He saw the faceless in the field again but this time it started at him gliding. Knowing they kill anyone
that gets too close he immediately started walking backwards. Seeing that it or he, it had never been figured out, kept coming
at him still he turned and ran. He went instinctively to his home not thinking clearly under duress for he trapped himself
in his home. The faceless moved towards him and Perseus tripped onto his bed pinned. The arm of the robe extended towards him
and he heard it, heard it so loud that it gave a pang of pain to his temple. The stone must be given to Merlin of the
Arthurian order, he will know what to do, he will return the stone to the Egyptians. Find him and take haste as the stones
may not be outside of their homes. The balance must continue. With that the faceless reached to his arm and touched him. He
felt the strange burning sensation as he looked into the darkness underneath his hood. Then the entiny left his home as
quickly as it had arrived.

A darkness entered his dreamy state until that was all there was as he recharged his body. After such a dream he woke
abruptly, startled in a small sweat, one that comes from a very deep sleep. He felt a burn on his arm, it confused him.
Remembering the vivid dream the connection was made. Somehow the faceless had found him in the world of dreams. Now it was
clear what needed to be done. He must find Merlin. Travel to the Arthurian hills must be made. He wasn't sure how he would
find him and of course he couldn't venture into their castle as their powerful guards would have none of that. Still he had to
try. If another had his stone he would want the same boldness and the faceless always got what they wanted for to disobey them
was your end. Proof that it was some kind of visit from them was his arm stinging with pain.

The morning had hit and along came the wind filling his nostrils with salty air. He went to find his horse in his stall
that was still sleeping no doubt from the exhaustion of the adventure yesterday. He gently rubbed his nose to rouse him
and the horse awoke startled and snorted with the interruption. He was loyal but not beyond showing disdain for his sleep
being disturbed. The dream the night before was a sign to take action. He climbed on top of Pegasus and with a heel kick
they went flying into the sky.

His mind was reeling about how he would find Merlin and that is when he spotted it on the edge of the Arthurian territory.
Three of the faceless had left their post at the portal and were now semi-circling a crevace in the green rolling hills. It
was also then that he spotted the notorious blue flowing robe of Merlin. The three protectors of the portal were helping
him see where to go.

The flying duo landed on the side of Merlin that was furthest away from the hovering wizards. Although they seemed to
be intervening in helping the realm he still knew that being near them was fatal. Merlin's robe flapped in the gusts of wind
along with pushing his beard to and fro. His seasoned face crinkled even more as his eyes focused on the incoming Perseus.
The old man's gaze moved rather quickly to the bag attached at the waist holding the Egyptian home stone. It was almost
as if he was expecting it.

Merlin dug his staff into the ground for balance and he walked to the dismounting Perseus. He yelled over the wind "It was
Set I saw him by a cave near the Egyptian Dragon border. The home stone it was hidden in a chest. Something's gone wrong.
Our home stone has been stolen as well."

The wizard spoke "make haste, make haste cast me the stone I'll get it back" the wizard extended his hand and he suddenly
was self aware that Perseus was from a different faction. He was focused but not immune to fear. Perseus grabbed the bag
that was tightly attached to his waist and threw it at Merlin. He caught it with great effort. The aged one's power was
not a physical one. He spoke no more and extended his staff in the air. "Ah to see waaa" was what Perseus heard. His robe
fluttered rapidly and an unseen force, a wind pushed Merlin into the air. Amazingly, the man flew in the air at a rapid pace
back to his home land. Perseus wondered what would happen next but there was nothing more to do here. He mounted Pegaseus
and they took to the air as well, except they headed back to their home land in the opposite direction.

Merlin flew into the center of town next to the Arthurian fountain. Eyes darting everywhere he spotted the Arthurian
squire. He was just tripping over some hey after walking out of the horse stables. He blonde hair was a little over grown
hanging in his eyes. It was constantly being handled by him pulling his hair back. The blue eyes he had were like sapphires
radiating his humble kindness. Not gifted with coordination, but a young physique was his. Arthur had chosen him
for his desire to learn and his gratefulness renewed you.

His name was Ryu and he had just grabbed a hand full of hey when Merlin tugged his arm. "Come quick boy, let
us talk in private inside the stalls." Ryu was shocked, wide eyed, but Merlin was very well respected. He knew he
meant business. "The stones have been stolen, the cities are dying, all of them. I need you to find the stones.
Perseus has found Egypt's" he pushed the bag in Ryu's face. "Take this, go quick, find the other stones, and take them
to the faceless at the portal entrance. They'll be able to walk to each of the cities and nobody will stop them."

"But..but..why me?"

"Nobody will expect you to have the stones. You are the one to save everyone precisely because
you're unexpected and shall not be corrupted."

"Where do I go? What do I do?"

"Take Hengreon, Arthur's horse, I'll tell him you're doing something for me. For even Arthur can not know
what you do. You will travel to the land of the undead for the Skeleton King has been taking strange travels
to the forgotten island. He is sure to blame for all this."

Young Ryu got aboard Hengreon nestling in oddly as he had never been aboard him, only taken care of him.
For this was his king's horse, the man he served on a daily basis. He felt a wave of pride run through him
much as you might get when putting on nice clothes. He was on a royal horse and who knew what adventures were
ahead except maybe the faceless.

The sun was shining brightly, he was riding the king's horse, and under normal circumstances he would be
having the time of his life. Yet, ahead of him was fear that he had never faced before. The fear of death
pushes adrenaline through your body too much, makes you hyper aware, and starts it's toll on the body.
It's rare men that thrive on such and he wasn't a man yet. This was his rite of passage, his everything,
and everything depended on him.

He would take a path hugging the portal on his way to the forgotten island. For to take a straight path there
would take him needlessly through the undead's fog, darkness, and it's inhabitants. The danger would be enough
just to enter the edge of the undead territory and venture to the forgotten island. The island got it's name
because nobody went there, not even the undead. It is surrounded by a swamp that is thick from tree debri
mixing with a water that oozes up from a water resivor. The trees are sparse as very little life handles the
conditions. Dark, foggy, surrounded by muck, a piece of soggy land is perched in the middle of it.

A cluster of dead trees had fallen on each other in the forgotten island forming a cave. Inside it nothing
could be seen as fog and darkness were the first layer of protection and the shielding of trees made it impossible
for anything outside to see in. It was here that the skeleton king had been coming. The king was rumored to
once be a living king on the outside of the portal but before his death he hired a necromancer to bring him back to life.
He was warned that he wouldn't be the same but his thirst for immortality was insatiable. His greed for
power ruled his past life and the next. The faceless walk between worlds with their need for balance
is always a priority. Whether the good must be in check with evil or the king was a threat to the world
is not known. He was pulled into the portal by the faceless not allowed to walk the earth.

The undead seek little in social matters or desire for order, but even chaos needs a leader. The King
was a moderator and leader for battles. He is the most powerful as is often the case in such base orders.
The king had been taking trips to the forgotten island and meeting the betrayers at the cave. Each of
the factions had one and praying on these beings tendencies for greed, power, or chaos was a delight.
The culprits were Set, Prometheus, Loki, Mordred, and the Black Dragon.

He had sent his minions out to find them in the more neutral areas.
Then meeting at the cave they conspired to bring destruction
by stealing the home stones and with everyone weakened they would take control.
The King especially wanted to bring disorder
to the faceless as they had brought him here and he held deep resentment.

All of the stones except for the Egyptian one were now hidden in the cave. Despair was hitting all the
cities. Crops were withering and the luster of life was just just hanging on. Hengreon's hooves thundered on the thin
grass that weaved in a trail from the many that had come this way before. The sun reflected off the horse's coat
and Ryu held on to the reins a little too tightly as his thoughts drifted to the life and death challenges ahead.

His fear became ever more gripping as the sunlight started to fade and he began entering the famous fog
of the undead world. He hated that he had to squint to see things ahead and his senses were heightened
as he knew it was only a matter of time before one of the undead would see him. It was also a worry that his
fresh hoove prints might attract the curiousity of the lifeless and his trail could be followed.

A ghost was traveling the fringes of it's territory no doubt looking for a weakened soul that it could
prey on. It was then that it discovered the hoove prints made by the great stallion Hengreon. The undead
didn't have an attachment to possessions like the other factions, but one thing they really hated was having
their territory invaded. The ghost realized that it no longer would need to search outside it's lands.
Something had come this way recently and it was trespassing.

The story is unfinished

crypticclues 1.3 the third card is higher than level 4
https://peakd.com/splinterlands/@marcuswahl/the-2nd-card-has-started-its-not-too-late-to-get-in-for-your-free-prize



0
0
0.000
0 comments