It all began with the mhun of Moghedu and their hatred of Mhaldor. Those
fell people who invaded their mines and stole away the young mhun into
slavery.
But I digress.
The mhun council had met on a chill night many years ago and all agreed
that the threat from Mhaldor must be quelled once and for all. They
would tunnel in secrecy to that hated city and undermine the foundations
while creating a series of load-bearing walls that they could destroy at
their leisure, thus toppling Mhaldor into the black depths of the rock.
With this firmly in their minds they set to work with gusto, the miners
and artisans would work on the tunnels. The militant wing would create
diversionary raids and the Mhunna himself met with the leaders of the
mhunnish clans for support when it came to overwhelming the survivors of
the city once it fell.
Only then would the mhun be free of slavery and oppression.

Several years passed with the conflict claiming lives on both sides but
inevitably the mhun plans came to a state of readiness. The Mhunna sent
a small warband of fifty mhun bodyguards into the tunnels and they
travelled through their gloomy depths until they reached the foul city.
They gathered around the load-bearing walls that they had created and a
Captain of the guard ordered a brief, diversionary assault while he
bravely travelled into Mhaldor alone with terms from the Mhunna.
He yelled for parley with the city leaders and was met by Khoraji and
Diamondesce along with several angry citizens come to see this upstart
mhun officer. Terms were offered although the Captain knew that the
Mhunna had no intention of honouring his terms.
Mhaldor WOULD cease to exist.

The terms were reasonable enough, Mhaldor would return the mhun slaves
to Moghedu. Mhaldor would pay weregild to Moghedu to alleviate the
anguish and suffering that they had willingly caused. Mhaldor would
recognize that Moghedu had a right to exist and the eternal raids would
cease immediately. The Mhaldor leaders laughed at the demands of little
Moghedu and refused at once. It was then that the Captain revealed to
the city leaders of their plans to ensure Mhaldor would capitulate or
perish.

Again, the terms were refused and Moghedu was threatened with extinction
by the angry crowd that had gathered. The brave Captain nodded sagely,
knowing full well that proud Mhaldor would refuse and penned a quick
message on parchment before retrieving a white pigeon from the recesses
of his cloak, attaching the rolled up parchment to its leg and releasing
it hurriedly as he realised the delicate predicament he was in.
Asking for an escort out of this enemy city, he was quickly given one
and ordered to leave but as they were about to depart a hated figure
entered the room. Karloptimux, a known slaver who had taken many young
mhun, including the Captain's own son, sneered at the envoy and this
sent the brave mhun into a fury. He attacked Karloptimux, was promptly
slain and his soul taken immediately by Thoth, the God of death who
resides in Mhaldor.

Having received the message of refusal from his brave, dead captain the
Mhunna immediately ordered the assault.
The load-bearing walls were destroyed and Mhaldor started to shake as
tremors rocked the city, the ground started to sink and all seemed lost
but the Statue of Sartan, the Malevolent that the citizens had built and
empowered with decapitated heads of those they had murdered, emanated a
red glow that encompassed all of the city and took the weight of the
crumbling city.
While the citizens fought with the massive forces of mhun bodyguards
that rampaged through the city, the statue swept down the gigantic Sword
of Perdition into the tunnels, revealing the crowded mhun within. A
horde of crimson-skinned daemons burst forth from the eye of the statue,
ran down the length of its arm and leaped headlong into the mhun
forces....then the rift in the rock floor sealed itself.
The dying wails and pitiful screams of the mhun soldiers was horrendous.

Silence reigned over Mhaldor as the dust settled. Mhaldor had
successfully driven the invaders back but not without loss to their own
forces. Some citizens of Mhaldor claimed to have visions of mhun
bodyguards fighting crimson-skinned daemons from behind barricades,
others spoke of crimson-skinned daemons devouring fallen mhun soldiers
but the mhun came again....and again, although their attacks had
dwindled and they now seemed to be trying to fight their way out of
Mhaldor, sometimes there were daemons in close pursuit who would attack
friend and foe alike.
Recently a swarm of giant rats erupted from the now-deserted tunnels,
their origin unknown. Were they bred by the Mhunna for this conflict and
escaped or simply disturbed from their subterranean lairs?
The city leaders of Mhaldor ordered more slaves to be gathered and they
were sent down into the tunnels to repair the foundations of the city
and to claim the tunnels for city use. Several months later, the damage
was repaired and the tunnels were adapted into sewers but unlike other
city sewers, this one had a very dangerous resident.

Be warned.

Penned by my hand on the 14th of Ero, in the year 354 AF.