Part 90: Kroxy

Chapter 67 - Kroxy

Music - "Against Doom and Despair"
Download (Thanks to Grawl)


Previously on Divine Divinity:




"YOU LYING BASTARDS! I'LL KILL YOU!" I screamed at the orc bandits.

"_{... go... save yourself...}" my mother pleaded, her face pale.




What is that?! It looks like some sort of... prison!
That's an orc prison! I know, because I've spent time in one. The new orcish member of the council appears to have been taken prisoner by his own kind.
Is that a good thing or a bad thing, though?
Where is this orc prison?
Let me show you on your map. You can find it near Rivertown. The orcs are waging a horrible war there against the town.






Marked One, there is an urgent matter which requires your immediate attention! The orc invasion of Ferol is about to begin!
Thiu Fingol!


Chapter 67 - Kroxy

2 Octavianus 1218

A large force of orcs from the wastelands of Yuthul Gor has almost reached the border. They should be there by next nightfall. The human defenders of Ferol are hopelessly outnumbered. They will have no chance.

"Orcs..." I said thoughtfully.











What is it, Jeremiah?
Zandalor, someone told me that it is unusual for the orcs to cooperate in this manner.
Yes, it most certainly is!
Everywhere I look, the Black Ring is hip-deep in orcs. It's no coincidence that this unprecedented event - the unification of the orc tribes has happened now. The Black Ring has got to be behind the orc invasion of Ferol. But the question is, why?
That is as much a mystery to me as it is to you, Jeremiah. Now you must hurry and rescue the Orc Council member from their war-camp before the thousands of reinforcement troops arrive!
Zandalor, just a few hours ago I was barely able to avoid collapsing after fighting off a mere two-dozen undead. I doubt very much that I can take on a war camp, and if what you say is true, then I don't have time to sneak around.
I do have an idea which might be of assistance. Let me teach you a spell.




With this powerful spell of illusion, you can take on the guise of an enemy - all you need is a dead body, and I'm sure you can create at least one of those.. You'll be able to walk straight into their camp. Be careful though, it will require all your concentration to maintain the spell, you won't be able to cast anything else. And you will only look like an orc. It won't help with the language barrier, so try not to get caught up in a conversation.
Thank you, Zandalor. I'm not sure that this will work, but I think that it may be my best shot.




I headed to the front lines where Captain Mitox was.

Halt! Who are you, civilian?

I took off my helmet.




I ignored his jab at me. I knew what I had done, and I didn't give a drat what other people thought of it. If I tried correcting people every time they got something wrong, I'd never get anything done.

Hello Soldier. What's the scuttlebutt?
So the old duke was murdered, was he? That's bad. He was a good man, even if he was a bit keen on army discipline. I hope they gut the people responsible, whoever they might me. My guess is that some fat-cat merchants in Verdistis formed a conspiracy to murder the old boy while the army is away. Verdistis will declare independence any day now, you mark my words.
Sounds bad.
It gets worse. I heard that Ambassador Bronthion of the elves and Duke Janus had a screaming row. Bronthion asked Janus to stay out of the coming elf-dwarf war, but Janus told him, that we humans would fight with the dwarves! Is the boy mad? We can barely hold back the orcs at the moment. A war on two fronts, against the orcs and the elves will finish our army for good!

A chill ran down my spine.

That might be precisely what he wants. But why does he want to destroy his own army? What purpose does that serve? Janus already has full control of the country

I spotted Mitox.

Ah, the former Lord Protector! Have you come to once again lend the Ducal army your aid?
Perhaps. What's the mission?




Aye. Can you show me the location of the well on my map?
Of course.




My spies tell me that the well is in a heavily guarded area. You'll have to find a way to sneak close enough to the well to use the poison. I'll leave the method up to you. Good Luck.
"Good Luck," he says. More like "Your Funeral."
I could use some better equipment, Captain.
Better than what you already have? I doubt we can do that, but if you want, you can check the tent camp to the west.

With the odds I was facing, it was worth sparing a few minutes. At least, that's what I thought at the time.




As I entered the tent camp, there was a sudden surge in magic nearby.

Video: Ambush at the Tent Camp (Voice Acting)









An elf?! I didn't expect an elf to be working with the Black Ring.

Two more people teleported in, a human woman and an imp.






The soldiers readied their weapons, but looked confused, unsure whether the newcomers were allies or not.

Ready? Let our enemy taste the real power of mind control... uah har har!








All the soldiers dropped their weapons and clutched their heads.




I tried to goad the dark wizards into fighting me themselves.

Are the Black Ring such cowards that they dare not face me openly? They hide behind mind-slaves?

Oh, you misunderstand, Marked One. It would be a simple matter to destroy you ourselves. We simply find it more amusing to watch would-be allies murder each other.

The red-haired woman laughed maniacally.

Darn. I don't suppose that I could get them to fight each other.
The Lord of Chaos has no need for allies that betray their own kind so readily. It matters not whether you succeed or fail in your mad quest, he will turn on you like the vermin you are. In your hearts, you know this to be true.

The woman and the elf both laughed at this.

You don't believe me? I know that Janus and the Black Ring are the ones BEHIND the orc invasion. He cares nothing for the lives on either side. What makes you think he'll spare you once his plans come to fruition?

Do you think that your pathetic mind games stand any chance, you weak fool? Enough of your stalling!




Aarghh... yes... YES MASTER!
YES MASTER!


The three Black Ring members teleported out. The soldiers charged me, weapons up.




I wasn't about to give the Black Ring the satisfaction of seeing me kill innocents.




I cast invisibility on myself and simply ran out of the camp to the Barracks teleporter, which I used to take me into the battlefield. I wanted to enter the orc camp while I had the cover of night.





There was no shortage of orcs and orc bodies around. That was important for my disguise.

Well, here goes...




Well, I feel strange. Zandalor was right. There's no way I can cast spells like this. I'd better get moving.


Music - "Stronghold of the Orcs"
Download (Thanks to Grawl)





There were plenty of orcs at the outer edge of the camp.

The best way to blend in is to be in plain sight.

I ignored them and walked boldly straight past.




The strain was starting to get to me. It was getting harder to hold my disguise. I resisted the urge to break into a run. That would only attract attention.




Here are the prison cells. Oh great. There are four of them. I've got to find out which one the orc council member is in. And quickly... I don't think... I can keep this disguise up much longer!

Only one cell had an occupant - the one a guard was watching. That had to be the orc council member. I crept up behind the guard and slit his throat. I found a key on the body and opened up the cell. I dumped the orc's body down, and then climbed down myself. But I had passed the limits of my concentration, and I lost the disguise.




Thankfully, despite the fact that I was back to my human self, and he'd just seen a body come tumbling down, he didn't attack me on sight. That was a very promising start.




My name is Jeremiah Liro. I am here to rescue you!
What?! Why would human free an orc?
You have been chosen to represent the orcs in the Council of Seven. I am here to take you there!
Council of Seven? Kroxy never heard of this thing.
It is a meeting place for the seven races, it is very important that I gather all seven council members... Or else the Black Ring will unleash great evils upon the world...
Black Ring! Kroxy know of Black Ring! They seek to trick orc leaders and subvert orc warriors honour!
So they are behind this war they're waging on the humans. I thought so. Why are the orcs waging this unprovoked war in the first place?
Most orc leaders not think war is unprovoked. Ever since new Janus become new human leader, many small orc villages - from all tribes - found massacred. No survivors.
Everyone? Even the women and children?
Everyone. My brother-son one of those killed.
Brother-son? Oh, his nephew.

Kroxy looked down at the ground. I felt ashamed. I'd carried hatred for orcs around inside me for years. I hadn't thought of them as having families of their own.

And you think that the humans were responsible?
Damaged human weapons and armor bearing mark of Ferol found. Soon after, Black Ring shows up to all orc chiefs. They say that humans of Ferol their enemies also. Black Ring say that honorless humans must be destroyed, and they can assist.
I've met some of the leaders and soldiers of the human army. I don't think they're the ones responsible.
Kroxy know.
You do?
Orc warriors stronger than humans. Only overwhelming number of humans could kill whole village with no escape, but that would mean many tracks. No tracks found.
Why didn't the other orcs leaders see that?
Black Ring very good talkers. They say that humans smart to cover tracks. They convince chiefs that only way for orcs to maintain honour was for them to ensure no more massacres of orcs by humans.
And of course, they then said that the only way to ensure that was -
Kill humans until there are too few to fight. Kroxy said that wrong. Black Ring convinced other leaders that Kroxy was too weak to be leader - would only be trouble. Should be locked up.
What did the Black Ring offer the orc leaders?
The Black Ring came promised to aid us in our honourable fight against the humans. Offer to incapacitate army of Janus to make victory swift. In exchange, they took some of our best warriors from many different tribes to help them.
You were tricked. The Black Ring is led by Duke Janus himself. Do you know how they're using the orc warriors? He used some of the orcs in a staged attempt on his own life to make your people look villainous. The Black Ring are the ones who slaughtered those orc villages.
It all a trick? Black Ring manipulated orcs into fighting for them?

I took out the vial of poison Mitox had given me.


The commander of the human defenders gave this to me. It's poison. I'm supposed to put it into the well to render it unusable. I'm sure that many orc warriors will die if I do this. But if I don't, many humans will die, and maybe not just soldiers.
Why you ask Kroxy?
Because I'm hoping you can give me another choice. Do you know what's happening now? Ten thousand orc warriors are about to arrive. Once they do, the human army won't stand a chance. And after that, the orcs will kill all the human civilians in revenge.
Yes. Kroxy knows this.
Maybe we could talk to the orc leaders and get them to stop the war, at least for a little while.
It too late for that. Orc leaders minds poisoned by Black Ring. Will not listen to Kroxy. Will certainly not listen to a human.
So I can't stop the war?
Maybe. If you expose Black Ring and kill leaders. Can Jeremiah do that before warriors destroy humans.
No. I don't think so.
Use poison on well. Orc warriors not stupid. They not drink bad water. Will need to get water from elsewhere.
... And because they'll need to get water from elsewhere for their troops, their offensive will stop dead in its tracks! That could give me the time I need to expose the Black Ring and defeat them once and for all! Thank you, Kroxy. Now will you come with me?
Kroxy will go with human to this Council of Seven. Black Ring must be stopped!
All you have to do is say the following word 'XXBZPTRL'.










Once he was safely gone, I used Necroshift again to disguise myself as the dead guard, and then I made my way to where Mitox had marked the map.




I took the vial out, and looked at it.

It's funny... a month ago, I would have felt satisfied having to do this. Now I just feel regret.

Then I dumped the contents down the well.


XP 34000
REPUTATION 5






I understand. The Black Ring has tricked many humans into acting for them too. The orcs are brave and noble warriors, but they can be too trusting.
Trusting or stupid, Kroxy doesn't know, but he thanks human for kind words.


Next Time: Bronthion





Behind the Scenes


Alternate line with Kroxy.

You can get both the "nice" and "not-nice" lines on the same playthrough, they're not mutually exclusive.




If the orcs are so honourable, they should have seen how dishonourable it is to work for the Black Ring! Working for evil through ignorance is still working for evil, friend Kroxy.
Marked One should not insult orcs in front of an orc, is dangerous! Bit I seeing why you feel that way.


Nine.

What's fake in this update?

•  The scene with Zandalor at the start is fake. 
•  After you enter the Council of Seven Chamber, you can't actually get the scene in the tent camp, for reasons which are guessable. This was recorded before going there. That's why Jeremiah isn't wearing his helmet - you can't get one like that before going to the Council of Seven. 
•  Jeremiah trying to talk to the Black Ring in the tent camp was not real, but it is something I wanted to do. 
•  The dead body in Kroxy's cell wasn't really there. 
•  I wrote Kroxy's story about why the orcs banded together to wage war, not the game. But it fits the Black Ring's modus operandi perfectly. 

(Not a spoiler if you read the above stuff.)
Because I mentioned that you can only  get the tent scene BEFORE going to the council,  you may wonder why I held off on that until now. That's because I decided that for narrative purposes that  the Black Ring wouldn't actively start interfering with Jeremiah until this act. It's my way of showing that he's got their attention in a very bad way. First they sent some random thugs, then three of them worked together