Laz Palo was just finishing collapsing his snow castle. At least that's what he liked to call the dwellings he built while traveling. He made sure every morning to cover his tracks to avoid any problems. You never know who was lurking about and you would be surprised how many people would want to harm a small defenseless purple goblin.

The thought made Laz smile on the inside(only on the inside because he wouldn't be caught dead with a smile on his face). He was far more dangerous than what met the eye. If not he wouldn't of left his cabin to make this cursed journey. But he was close, today he would arrive at the temple and so far there hasn't been any trouble.

At least no trouble that wasn't caused by his failing mind. For the past few weeks Laz has had an unwanted companion.

"So this is it, we gotta be close. Huh Laz?"

"Dammit ya damn pest, I told ya I ain't conversatin wit no creature done grew out my ear! And anyways ya ain't real ya just my magination gone wild."

The "creature" that called it self Weedaboog flew around the goblins head leaving behind trails of blue light.

"O come now Laz, how many times I have to tell you I'm a one_ hundred percent real dragon ghost. And its a little more complicated than just growing out of your ear."

Laz thought he looked more like a dragonfly than a dragon but he continued on his hike ignoring the pest like he had come accustomed to. He was sure he had lost it but since he lived a life of solitude he was not sure if others could see the dragon ghost. Part of his reason for heading to the temple was to confirm his sanity.

The other more disturbing reason was the visions. He just started seeing them right before the pests appearance. Bloody horrible sights filled with corpses and fire, orcs and dragons. This was very important or another sign of an infim mind. Its been three weeks now so four days ago he set out to the closest place to his home, the Winter Temple. Being a devout worshipper for most his life it only made sense to seek help here.

Marching on it only takes a few hours and Laz Palo finally sees the doors . Its been about 15 years since the last time he came but it still looks the same so far.

Making it to the door he trys to swat at Weedaboog but misses like always before opening the doors.

"Hello! Anybody ere?"

Laz walks in nervous of finding the truth. Either he's crazy as a Weedaboog or things in his quiet life are about to take a dark turn.

"HELLO?"

"Such a loud booming voice for a...purple goblin?"

Tatania chuckled some and stepped from behind Elysia's altar. The priestess was splendid in sky blue robes trimmed with silver threading, her dark hair wound at the nape of her neck in a single thick braid. She blew out the incense stick, the dark smokey scent of roses began to fill the temple as she set the stick down so that she might approach Laz. With a warm smile and gracious dip of her head, Elysia's priestess folded her hands before her.

"Well met young goblin and welcome to the temple of Elysia." Tatania peered at Laz for a moment, her head cocked to the side as she tried to discern whether or not Laz appeared familiar to her or not. Unsure if she was able to place him from memory, the priestess gestured for the goblin to venture within the temple, especially where the brazier was centrally located, a warm fire burning to chase away the cold that always seeped within the temple. Aleris may have been in the midst of summer, but winter reigned eternal in the land of icy Arthuran.

"I am Tatania," she began by way of introduction. "If you have come here, young goblin, for shelter, food and rest, then by all means, rest your bones. I can have hot broth and bread brought to you." Tatania approached Laz, her warm smile still in place. "We do have rooms in the west wing should you require a bed. It is nothing glamorous, but the room is clean and comfortable."

The priestess turned her head slightly, her posture rigid as if listening to a voice that only but she could hear. Slowly she nodded before turning her attention back to Laz. "Unless it is the Goddess herself you seek, goblin?" A mischievous twinkle appeared in her eyes. "Perhaps you seek guidance...or is it reassurance you desire...Laz Palo?" Tatania stared at him intently. "Call upon Elysia if that is your desire, and perhaps...just perhaps...she will answer."

While listening to the priestess Laz carefully watched to see if she noticed the weedaboog that currently was perched on his large left ear. Though from the looks of it the creature went unnoticed. Laz's stomach felt unsettled by this along with the horrible scents filling the temple. He'd never understand why humans love such unnatural smells.

Once she finished Laz just stared her for a full minute. Something seemed a little off with this Tatania. And how did she come to know the goblins name?

"Yea yea! Bread, shelter all this sounds great but what I really need is to talk to the boss lady."

Laz walked directly up to the priestess, straightend his posture as much as possible and looked up fixing in on her with his sternest face.

"Now look ere! I've been me a perfect follower of Elysia for fifteen years now. Before then's a diffrent story, but what I'm sayin ere is I ain't once ask for nothin now I'm in need of some divine wisdom!"

Laz looked back down at his feet feeling exhausted. Just speaking to another living being after so much time spent alone was draining. Espeacily with all the stress of the past few weeks.

Taking a few steps back then looking in the direction of one of the resting chambers he spoke in a defeated sounding voice "I'll show myself to a bed. Just wake me if Elysia appears." Laz left Tatania's presence without another word and slowly headed towards the chamber. Although the goblin was tired Weedaboog was full of energy like always. Darting back and forth he followed Laz into the sleeping area.

As Laz sat on the bed the miniature dragon ghost hovered before his face"I told you before that no regular mortal would see me. See buddy, your special! You have a purpose beyond sitting around all day reading old books and diddling yourself. Don't fret it will all come to light soon enough and if this god of yours shows her face she will let you know I'm real and if not you should question her so called divinity."

Laz took a halfhearted swat at the pest, missing like always then layed down on the hard bed. Surprisingly he fell fast asleep despite all his anxiety. As he snored Weedaboog flew off to take a look around.

"Yea yea! Bread, shelter all this sounds great but what I really need is to talk to the boss lady."

The priestess nodded and smiled understandingly. "I am aware."

"Now look ere! I've been me a perfect follower of Elysia for fifteen years now. Before then's a diffrent story, but what I'm sayin ere is I ain't once ask for nothin now I'm in need of some divine wisdom!"

Her smiled widened and Laz would see the tiny dimples that appeared at the corners of her mouth at Laz's outburst, but tried hard not to chuckle. The goblin was desperate, it would seem, for Elysia's guidance, and Tatania did not wish to offend him.

"I'll show myself to a bed. Just wake me if Elysia appears."

When Laz finally disappeared from sight, Tatania couldn't help but notice how seemingly defeated and tired the young goblin sounded, his slumping shoulders giving testimony to his mental exhaustion. "Be at east little goblin," she murmured quietly. "Elysia is not blind to your plight."

Tatania was not the Winter Goddess, not a divine creature of any sort really. However as she was connected to the Goddess as her most high priestess, Tatania spoke for Elysia and acted in her behalf. It wasn't as if the Goddess was purposely ignoring Laz and refusing to show her face, but the reality was so many had died recently and the Goddess of Winter and Death had her hands full. Ironically enough, it would seem that Elysia was being assisted in ushering the dead to the great beyond by another who claimed specialty in such an area, an expert if one could call her that. Tatania wasn't sure exactly how well Elysia was handling a usurper in her department, but knew that eventually...soon in fact...the Winter Goddess would return to her temple. Laz's pleas would not go unheeded.

The priestess sighed and drifted off to the rear of the temple, an area reserved strictly for those who served their Goddess, and at times, a place of communal gathering for those who found themselves in the temple seeking refuge. It was here that Sarra, a young novice priestess was busily preparing a stew for this evening's meal. Tatania watched in silence as Sarra methodically cut carrots, onions and potatoes which would eventually join the simmering and savory broth that gurgled in the large cooking cauldron. Nostrils flaring ever so slightly, Tatania smiled some as she recognized the scent of rabbit cooking. She was fond of rabbit and hoped Laz would be as well. A turn of the head and she would peer into the brick oven where several loaves of bread were baking, their heavenly scent filling the cooking area. "It smells wonderful, Sarra. Oh...we have a guest tonight. A little goblin." Tatania paused with a grin. "Purple."

Sarra lifted her head from her work, her brows raised in question. The young priestess had never seen a goblin before much less a purple one, and regarded Tatania with great interest just as the high priestess knew she would. Sarra rarely spoke, an act done purposefully, but the elder priestess knew the child was a curious sort and no doubt would have tons of questions regarding their special guest.

"I will leave you to your work." The women nodded to each other before Tatania left the rear chambers to make her way back to the altar of Elysia. Candles in various shades of blue were lit to honor Elysia, and the priestess began to speak softly to the Goddess who would no doubt hear her.

"He is here, my Lady. He seeks your knowledge, your advice. He is...troubled greatly. I am concerned for him. If possible...please, make haste, my Goddess. I fear for him. He needs you so."

Tatania concluded her prayer and gave thanks to Elysia. She was about to check on Laz, whom she assumed was sleeping peacefully, when she felt it. Nothing specific. Just...as if eyes were watching her. Perhaps it was the Goddess herself, but Tatania frowned, knowing Elysia would reveal herself. Turning slowly, the priestess saw nothing, heard nothing, but yet that nagging feeling that she wasn't alone still remained.

And then one of the candle's flame blew out. There was no draft, no breeze, and Tatania was certainly not responsible. The priestess turned slowly in a circle but again, there was nothing there. At least, nothing she personally could identify.

"Hmm."

Most...peculiar.

The overflow of death and destruction had kept her away from her temple for too long. Normally, there was a standard flow to things - a certain sense of order. Before death, there was a reason; chaos usually. It passed through her sibling Tempesturo and on to her, but not this time. The merfolk had risen from the depths and caused a great mess of things by being swayed at the hand of Brahngier Themana. Elysia had been swarmed with the souls that had been lost in Aleris' latest catastrophe, but she kept time as if in a dance, ushering the deceased past her gates and into the afterlife. Some of them... she wished she never had to see at all, but all things eventually had an end.

This whole ordeal had shaken the faith of many. Herself and her siblings had not participated and instead left the fate of saving Aleris up to those who lived upon its earth. As a consequence, she heard on the wind many times that the people had been abandoned by their gods. Majority of the faith in Aleris had been lost and there were only a handful of people who still believed that Elysia and the rest of the Alerian deities had not forsaken them. Elysia knew that Laz Palo, the goblin, was among that handful.

Though this event was over, another one was unfolding, unbeknownst to anyone except maybe those who lived in Chaliceton. It was all about timing and preventing another sad event that was attempting to move forward. Unfortunately, Elysia clung to the fact that she could not interfere herself; that people needed to not depend entirely on the gods to save them as they had in the past. They had proved this in the encounter with Brahngier and the merfolk, though many interpreted this as being tossed into the fire. Therefore, she would not stop what was to come herself; she would need someone else. A helping hand.

Laz Palo.

Elysia entered into her temple, unseen by even her most faithful like Tatania. The Goddess of Winter went straight to the room Laz Palo rested in and let herself inside. What Laz Palo would see upon waking was not the goddess he may have read about in books. These days, Elysia chose a form that allowed her to roam Arthuran when there was time to do such a thing. A white wolf slowly padded into the room and sat down a few feet away from Laz's bedside. Her head tilted to the side, obsidian colored iris' inspecting the sleeping goblin. After a few moments of silence, she spoke, though her lips never moved.

"Awaken Laz Palo," she said. "There is much we need to discuss. Namely... about the goblins who reside in the Oblivion Mountains."

Slowly floating through the immense temple chambers Weedaboog took time to ponder his new setting and its inhabitants. He watched the priestess and the others go about there routine. Such boring creatures this realm produced he thought as he softly landed on a bueatiful flower growing out the wall of one of the chambers. Everything seemed to be in motion how he saw things. The miserable little goblin was the perfect gateway for Weedaboog to come into existence. The specifics of how the process worked was overlly complicated, but in the end space and time came together in perfect unison along with a certain purple skull and POOF... here he was. The hardest part of the plot was done.

The woman Tatiana caught his attention. She seem to be speaking to no one inperticable but as he listened Weedaboog realized she was communicating the diety Laz worshipped. He found this intresting having thought this religion was mere fantasy, well he guessed more than Laz shared the fantasy. Taking flight he soared around the priestess, studying her as he was want to study all he came to see on Aleris, when suddenly something caught his eye towards the large entryway. A massive white four legged beast slowly paced into the temple. With perfect timing it head through the temple right as all the priestesses were moving this way and that way, but never turning in the direction of the animal. Weedaboog knew at once this was an unnatural occurence. Realizing this he was not surprised to see it head strait for Laz. The little enigma decided to watch this encounter from a distance. The goblin was too important for anything to derail his plans.

"Awaken Laz Palo. There is much we need to discuss. Namely... about the goblins who reside in the Oblivion Mountains."

Laz's heavy eyes started to raise at the sound of his name. With a yawn he slowly arose then immediatly screamed "Oh holy Elysia!" His whole purple frame jump up right and stiffend like a board. At the sight of the huge white wolf the goblins heart all but stopped." Please Fido, please. I ain't no treat I can promise". Tears were forming in the corner of his eyes now and he knew his time was upon him, but suddenly the words that awoke him were repeated in his head "Laz Palo, there is much we need to discuss. Namely... about the goblins who reside in the Oblivion Mountains." Second by second it was starting to hit him, could it be.


" Goddess is it true. Is that you tryna cause me a early grave. Why I'm in desprate need Mother. These visions ... wait did you say Oblivion Mountain? Them foolish buggers are the least of my problems. Never got long with 'em much but a few knocks on the noggin a put 'em in they place. I fear more ferocious beast, orcs and dragons, and what ever can do to them what I seen in my visions. Please my goddess, I'm but a humble hermit and I need you, hell the whole Aleris might need ya!

Laz sat there tears still in his eyes. His desperation causing him to speak more words than he reserved for a whole season. He could only wish that the goddess in wolf's clothing could solve all his problems but deep inside he knew how this would play out. The divine always worked in round about ways.