Your dreams are a confused mass of pictures and images.  Lots of formulas and numbers, the strange disk you found in the woods, a violet light engulfing you...


A whisper in your ear breaks you from your slumber.


"Wake up, strange beast.  I need to talk to you."


You open your eyes so find that it's still dark.  The face of an Oalkwardner stares down at you, blocking out the moonlight.  It startles you so much, you sit straight up; if it wasn't for the creature's swift reflexes, your head would've smashed right into it.  That's when you get a good look at it in the light of the moon.


"What the heck do you think you're doing here?"  You ask, "You were the guy that ran away after I saved Pila!"


"Not so loud," He hisses, "Do you want to give me away?"


"Yeah, actually.  I should call Merk right now, or better yet, do you in myself!"  You take a deep breath to let out a shout.


"Don't!"  


Something about the creature's tone stops you, if only for a moment, from alerting the Oalkwardners in the house.  What would drive any intelligent creature to walk into the lion's den like this in the first place? It just doesn't add up.


"At least hear me out."  Pleads the creature, "I need your help."


"What makes you think I would help a kidnapper?  Seriously, are you crazy?"


"It's not just me you'd be helping, but them too!"  he gestures towards the house, "In fact, you'd be helping every Oalkwardner in this village."


"Is that a threat?"  You ask, "Are you going to kill them or something if I don't cooperate?"


"My word, you must really think I'm some kind of monster, monster.  No, I'm not here to hurt anyone. Like I said, I'm here to help."


"How does kidnapping children help anyone?"


"I was getting to that.  This village, Arrorn, I believe it's called, is not as peaceful as it seems.  It is under the rule of King Faerdalm, a cruel, ruthless tyrant."


"Sound like something a teenager would come up with for a writing contest,"  You say, rolling your eyes.


"Will you let me finish?"  The creature glares at you, "He takes their food, says they owe it to him for getting to live in such a 'great and powerful country.'  It's all a load of bull, of course. He takes so much that a good many of the villagers die every year from starvation. I'm part of a resistance group trying to stop it.  We've been working on a way to get rid of Faerdalm once and for all, so everyone can be free, just like in the good old days. That's why we've needed to take children, to run tests on them.  We're developing a way to make ourselves stronger, so we can finally stand up to him. But we're still a ways out from perfecting it. It's going to take a lot more people, a lot more deaths, to finally perfect it.  To be quite frank, I'm getting quite sick of it."


"So, where do I come in?"  You ask.

"Never in my life, have I ever seen a creature as powerful as you." He says, "If you were to join us, we would be able to achive our goal much quicker. And the quicker we achive it, the less needless deaths must occuer." He extends his hand, as if to shake yours, "So, are you in?"

You do not. (No way you're helping this guy).

You stare at the Oalkwardner's hand.  Slowly, you shake your head, and he draws back his arm, frowning.  


"I figured this might happen,"  he says,  "I suppose you won't be much use as an assassin if you don't cooperate.  But we may be able to find... another use for you."


"What are you talking about?"  You ask, "I said no!  I'm not going to help you!"


But he doesn't respond.  Instead, he makes a popping sound with his mouth, three times in a row.  Suddenly, an entire hoard of Oalkwardners appears from all directions, all holding spears, all wearing the same cloaks as the leader before you.  


"I feared it might come to this,"  he says,  "That's why I brought backup.  The data we gather from studying you might just help us yet."


You leap to your feet and tense for a fight.  "You're going to kidnap me now?  Bring all the Oalkwardners you've got, I'll just do them in like I did your other friends!  You said it yourself!  I'm a force to be reckoned with!"


The Oalkwardner shakes his head and raises his hand.  All of his soldiers, or whatever it is they are, leap towards you as one.  There are far too many to fight off, even if you're stronger than they.  Even still, you put up your fists and start swinging madly as you are engulfed in a wave of papery skin.  Each swing of your arm makes contact, sending the creatures flying right and left.  But as much as you punch and kick, they still manage to get a grip on you, pulling you this way and that, crawling up your legs and weighing you down.  For some reason or other, none of them have spears.  Not that you're complaining, if it weren't for that fact, you'd probably be dead already.


A single Oalkwardner is light as a football, easily tossed around in a fight.  But a whole hoard?  That's enough to crush a grown man under their combined weight.  Slowly, your knees begin to weaken as more and more of the creatures pile on top of you.  You stagger around for a few moments until you finally collapse, falling backwards into the grass.  It's hard to see anything, they cover your face, blocking your view.  But over their cries, you can just hear the leader's voice.


"You should've taken my offer, monster.  Perhaps then, we could've been friends."


A pain slashes across your wrist.  Something's cut you!  Before you have time to figure out what that might be, you begin to feel dizzy.  The edges of your vision close in until all that's left is one small pinprick of light.  Then, even that is extinguished, and the world fades away...