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Her daughter's friend given Ariel's mother a feather.  Well, the friend's mother had actually dropped it off, an amazing lady with the brightest red-blond hair she had ever seen.

As Ariel's mother grasped the feather, she found herself drawn to the mountain top, magically transported there by a magical fire.

With the entire family together in the presence of the oread, they completed the greater quest pattern and their leaving the mountain top pulled out the last challenge, the final blow that always lurks in a quest.

It was a small gift, in a way, but a powerful one, to bring them face-to-face with the bitter lord and the chance to break the curse that bound them all before it drove each of them into destruction.  It was as much as the Rukh could do without bringing down a war as the result. Left to herself, she would have done started the war (if fools decide to die ...) but her husband's vision prevailed.

The bitter king realized where he was in the pattern, and he had hoped to delay this day until he had slain or crippled them by driving them into reckless adventures in a reprise of Ariel's father and his spontaneous act (saving of the oread from the bitter king and bringing about a pattern where the bitter king had had to make peace with the snow dwarves of the mountains). His secret curse was a counterstrike for that event forcing impetuous acts on the man and his family, forcing them into ever greater danger.

The bitter king gave himself over to the deep magic and embraced the depth of his bitterness.  He could have repented himself of his anger and of the curse, but he refused to do so. Instead, the bitter king laid hold upon the chaos stone that he had hoarded for the time he decided to betray all, and in his anger embraced it.

Then his dark self, the twisted soul, manifested as a great basilisk as he shifted into the realm of dream, the shidhe's true home and power in this world.

Greater Chaos Basilisk

STR 4d6+6 (normal is 2d6)
CON 2d6 (normal is 3d6)
SIZ 4d6+6 (normal is 2d6) (SIZ is for reach and attack, for defense treat SIZ as SIZ/2)
POW 2d6+18 (normal is 1d6+12)
DEX 3d6+3 (normal is 2d6)

Glance 100% causes death (chaos/death rune combined) POW v.POW attack on target, if it wins, target dies (and also takes 3d6 to CON).  If the gaze fails, it still does 2d6 to CON.  Range is POW*3 in meters.  For countermagic, a greater basilisk's gaze is treated as a five point runic connection (normal is 3 point).  The rune spell reflection can work on a Basilisk.  If the gaze is reflected, treat as POW+points in reflection v. POW.

Claws d3+1 (dex*3%) or bite d4+1 (dex*2%) (both with poison of POT=CON*2 of basilisk).

Breath (volume is 10 cubic meters a movement round, normal is 3 cubic meters) 2d6+12 POT poison cloud, accumulates in the area of the basilisk (their lairs are dank and noisome and the poison extendes for a significant distance downstream/ downwind of a basilisk lair) (normal is 3d6+6 POT).

Armor 16 point scales (normal d2-1).  Speed 4 (normal is 2 +d2-1).

Additional chaos taints (roll 2.  normal none).  The death/chaos power of the gaze/breath is a chaos taint as well.

The oread wrapped the mother and the son in herself and was swallowed by the earth, where the bitter lord could not reach them as a basilisk -- though they immediately engaged his other self on the dream plane where he took the form of a giant scorpion man and the mother took the shape of a wind eagle, the son took the shape of himself with his sword and spear.  The oread kept them bridged.  The Battle Form of the Bitter King was a giant Scorpion Man (as a scorpion man x2 for all characteristics, +3d6 to STR, +2d6 to SIZ after the x2).  The brother's sword automatically parried, and his spear was the fir bolg (which bursts when it strikes doing a d6 for every point it otherwise would have done, with the added bonus of always impaling).

Sword:  d10 +95% to parry, 20 points of armor
Fir Bolg Spear:  d10 Bladesharp 9, always impales, +95% to hit, multiply damage done xd6 for points that penetrate armor. +3 to any other anti-chaos effects, level 3 anti-chaos rune.

Giant Scorpion Man			.	Scorpionmen
STR	4d6+24			STR	2d6+12
CON	2d6+18			CON	3d6
SIZ	2d6+35			SIZ	2d6+12
INT	3d6+2			INT	2d6
POW	3d6+15			POW	2d6
DEX	3d6+18			DEX	3d6+3
APP	3d6+4			APP	3d6-2
Sword	1d8+1d10	95%		Spear	1d6+1d10	35%
Shield	10	55%		Small Shield	6	25%
Sting	Pot=CON	75%		Sting	d6+d6	46%
Chaos Taints	3+d3			Chaos taint	1-5 on d6
Move	6			Move	4
Hit Poitnts/Armor	36+2d6/9+2d6			Hit Points/Armor	15/3
Fatigue	90			Fatigue	30

The Oread took her earth form and gripped him strongly (an ancient oread takes a form similar to a 3 point gnome, but x3 for the characteristics, same size and area of effect).

Ancient Oread in earth form, as an Oread, and
+60d6 STR
+45d6 POW
+60d6 hit points
60+2d20 points in nature spirit track
10+d20 in rune magic
120-(nature spirit+rune magic points) in spirit magic and earth powers.
+12d6 in CHA
6+2d6 Free Int.

Travels through earth and attacks as would a gnome.

As mother and son fought the Bitter King's battle form in the dream realm that is natural to the shidhe, Ariel and her father acted in the real world against his hidden self.  With harmony the father bound him, and with power (and the dragon's talon)  the father struck the basilisk, blasting his power away from him and turning death in on him. His greatest power destroyed him, and being turned in on him, consumed him in both worlds.  

The father carries Trshkk'pkkt's Talon, a Dragon talon, in the form of a sword.  It is a 12 point dragon talon rune, 12 points anti-chaos, 12 points shield (3 meter zone of effect around sword), 12 point claw sharp, binds to user as a familiar would, 12 points of free int, (1+2+3+4+5+6+7+8+9+10+11+12 points of POW in the talon, of which 26 are available as POW and 78 magic points are available.  So, it resists with 78 points of POW, adds 26 points of POW to user's POW).  Sword is always with user, manifests on need can strike any target within 12 meters of the user.  Extremely powerful anti-chaos, 12 +12 levels to any other anti-chaos powers or abilities with a 12 meter zone of effect.

When the little girl moved to protect him, he protected her, as a father should.

Then the curse turned back and consumed him in both worlds and the family was suddenly together and free at the edge of the meadow, returned to the world they knew, strengthened by the conflict (each gained d3+1 points of will spendable on attribute points from the conflict and the mother and son gained the ability to bridge over into the world of dream, the girl and her father gained resistance to death and poison -- double the appropriate defensive skill, requisite or defense against any such attack).

The oread was truely restored to herself (and yes, that included acting, somewhat, her age) and as a result of defeating completely the bitter king's claim of mastery over her mountain, completely controlled the meadow in both shadow and dream as well as magic and earth.  The star shrine effects extended to all realms and paths into her meadow as a sign of her triumph.

It was a memorable adventure (and the hidden end to the quests that made the adventure Ariel was really on), and one after which Ariel had a normal time for a time, though she and Amber were to still travel to Starstrands from time to time, things were much more normal until the girls had their fifteenth birthday parties together.

The Bitter King The Mountain Shidhe of the Pacific Coastal Mountains have two kings, the bitter king and the joyous king.  The bitter king traditionally rules over warfare, and recent bitter kinds have expanded into poison, chaos, treason, curses and spite. Anyone who feels a call or a desire for these things, follows him.  The joyous king rules over celebration, peace, blessings and trade.  The shidhe can follow either or both and many attend both courts. It is a different pattern than the continental (european) one of the dark (ugly) and light (beautiful) shidhe courts and is relatively new (only a few thousand years old).  On the other hand, it does lead to a grouping of the shidhe more on behavior and attitude than appearance, which many consider an improvement.  And, the courts do not fight or raid each other in the traditional sense (like the european sealie and unsealie courts do). If one is caught inside of a curse laid by the bitter king, the contest is between the king (and anyone else on his side who participated in the curse) and the person (or persons) caught.  To attack the curse from the outside is to attack his entire court and those who follow after him.  Recent bitter kings have rarely the victim of betrayal or treason, as those who seek such a path are drawn into supporting him and become his tools (there is an interesting power in being the focus and king of treason).  So, unlike a conflict with a curse laid by the unseelie court (where the choice of how to react to someone breaking the curse from the outside would depend on many things), with the bitter king it is a war on his entire nation, or at least treated like one. That pattern need not be, but because it is, his curses are much, much, much less likely to be tampered with from the outside, though some have been tempted (or have been tempted just to kill him and thus break the curse). On the other hand, the king is personally at risk as to every attack on a curse from the inside.

Grhthswyndr who fought the five kings (when he fought the lightwalker) Now that was a fight.  Grhthswyndr used the usurper bardiche, and had both the disorder and the chaos that causes it to fully manifest.  The lightwalker had the sword of severance, and he used his cloak as well. Grhthswyndr moved towards him with the bardiche and as he struck, the lightwalker's cloak entangled the bardiche (kind of like an active shield) and then the lighwalker struck with the sword of severance.  With both hands gripping the bardiche, which had been pulled out of line by the cloak, Grhthswyndr took a wound.  The dance repeated until Grhthswyndr had taken five wounds and then failed to escape. Then Grhthswyndr "who fought the five kings" was no more.