The Hidden Works Vol. II: The Ignored Disease

A dialogue on the unspoken Oro'moor Clan

by The Third Turn

    Greetings readers, I write this for those of you who are all too aware that somethings are very wrong with this world and that nothing can be done without the right foresight. No doubt this novel will be found hidden within the mold of what ever library or repository you have found yourself in, but it will not deter me nor should it you. But who am I you ask? I am but a simple person of meager means with nothing exceptional other then I am the wrong man in the right place at the wrong time. But no doubt you see through my attempts at vague misdirections, so suffice to say that I was once like you, but now too much has happen, too wide have my eyes been opened, and for too long have I evaded death. I am the point in a match that determines how events unfold, I am the moment of cross examination, I am the third turn of every game.

  This chapter of our unseen world is on the increasingly expanding malady hidden within and by forces that would or have sought to use it for their own benefit, it is an ignored disease that if given time will bring about criminal sovereignties. I speak of course of the Oro'moor, a clan of Aq'Ryss unknown to the general and wholesome public, utilitized by society's underground or even government to silence those that would speak out against them or others like them.

     No doubt you find yourself wondering how a clan of insects known for a lack of intelligence could be used to assassinate. I warn you against such folly, for the Aq'Ryss don't lack intelligence, what the lack is motivation and to some extent morality. If you do not believe travel to the Dramer homeland of Rekkan, there you will find Aq'Ryss tinkering alongside the elves and while they may not invent such machines, when prompted to recreate or rebuild them from scratch they will do so in a fraction of the time. But the clan we speak of today is much more cunning, amoral, and perceptive.

     The Oro'moor are a clan like the Oro'skur, in that they seem to understand the importance of wealth and amassing it for times of need. But the similarities end there, the Oro'moor know wealth is power, but also know that their kind are looked down upon and seen as weak or stupid. They do not seem to mind, rather they use this stigmatism combined with their talent for combating those trained in magical arts and innate talent for knowing how to weild foreign weapons to slip into their target's society and be largely ignored as a simple scavenger, slave, or hired help. Using whatever is nearby to carry out their dark deed and sneaking out undetected by those that would overlook their kind as too dim and unfocused to commit something as complex as high profile assassinations.

    But this is not the only issue at hand, looming in the future could be something far worse that lies within this clan's way of life. While in most cases, the other clans' cannibalism has been decreasing over the documented years, the same is not true of the Oro'moor. Rather their cannibalism has increased, something I believe is caused not solely by their past, but also their current and future magical practices. When questioned about their so-called 'Void Magic' many refuse to speak on the subject, but some of the more degenerate ones cannot help themselves. One such spoke about how the rituals they preform to become Oro'moor involves something called "The hunger of the mist," which intensified their natural ability to absorb magical energy. But it comes at a high cost, those inducted are addicted to and constantly hunger for magical energy, no matter where it comes from, even from eachother. Their cannibalism is committed not out of physical hunger, but rather out of their magical addiction, consuming their blood brothers for their stored up energy. In the end, they all eventually succumb to madness from this hunger and if they should lose control of their clansmen, we could very well find our lands beseiged by a plague of horrific insects cannibalizing the other races in their vain attempts to feed their magical lust.

So like one should do under eventual threat, I sought out more on these rituals and the clan's history. Sadly there is very little to be found, the Oro'moor do not like to be known and will think nothing of killing anyone too interested in their way of life. After years of searching false leads and rumors at best, I finally decided to travel to the source, to the Aq'Ryss homeland of Kurn'mar'moor, a land now under Mhenuur sovereignty. Something that pleased me, as I would have had considerable trouble if the nearby Nokana Empire had taken root there; though likely they were turned away by the inhospitable landscape. While the port city and surrounding area shows signs of the Mhenuur cultivating life again on the island, beyond the Oro'kaal region is barren and life less. Sand stretches for eternity with the surrounding mountains preventing any sort of cross breeze from alleviating travelers from the heat. No flora or fauna can be seen save the occasional transplanted Torhrim or Nuum-it that has made its way this far, feeding off of the rare spike of grass along the mountainside.

    Finally making it into the northeastern section of the island, I found myself in the Oro'moor region and began my search. For days I found nothing but the scattered remains of the clan's dead, preserved by the desert. But just as hunger and thirst gnawed at me to leave, I found what I was looking for; a small cave in the far north that showed signs of blunt digging, likely by Aq'Ryss claws. Within I found a small grotto of some unknown liquid that I dared not touch and around this pool the walls were carved with numerous symbols. After writing down the symbols and taking a small sample of the liquid, I returned to civilization. 

   It took years to learn what any of it meant, but I will not bore you with the tale and share what I have learned. The strange liquid was something I had heard of already! the oddly named part of the Oro'moor ritual called "The hunger of the mist." The wall carvings depict a story this mist falling upon the island and transforming the Aq'Ryss, something the Oro'moor see as a divine gift. It speaks of a voice telling them to consume and how to use this hunger to "Open the void in their soul," to make them one. Many of the wall carvings' depiction of this transformation mirror that what I've heard of the Oro'moor's rituals, along with the boiling similar liquids to create the vapors for their practices. 

    But why only the Oro'moor? What is the source of this odd liquid? And what can be done to combat them if things should take a turn for the worse? For now, the answer is simply nothing short of extermination, but I am not ready to condemn an entire race for the sins of a few and I am quite fond of some of the Oro'kaal I have come to call friends over the years. Nor would it solve the problem, what if another race with similar 'magical' properties discovered these rituals such as the Bohrum? For now, you must be patient dear reader and wait for my next endeavor to be published. But have faith, for I have found what may be the source and if I am correct, the truth will disturb you. Be armed by this knowledge and farewell dear reader.