Iconox

The Agori continued his journey north to collect the remaining seals of the Glatorian. He decided to collect Strakk’s seal first. Ruthless and ambitious, Strakk of the ice tribe would do whatever he must to be named champion of the arena. His ice axe was one of the most feared weapons on Bara Magna.

Earlier in his journey, when he had set up his Jungle Adventure location, the Agori had received a letter from Strakk. He was unsure of what it was at the time since that was before he had met up with Gresh, but now it made sense. The letter read:

“Cut out the middleman:

“Metus - that guy. Who does he think he is? I don’t report to him. Listen - if you wouldn’t mind betraying a few of your friends, go ahead and build this ambush structure. It may lose you a friend or two - but it will get you Iconox’s Favor a lot quicker - and more importantly teach Metus a lesson. By the way - I’m going to act like I never met you - no matter what. So don’t even think about snitching on me.”

His mail included a blueprint for a Desert Ambush structure. Apparently, if the Agori got to trick 5 individuals into using this structure and getting attacked by ambush in the desert by the Zesk, the traveler would gain Iconox’s Favor. But is that really a good thing to do, just to cut out the middleman?

The Agori tried to talk to Strakk in person but the Glatorian said to me, “Show me where you stand. Despite what I may have said to you, you need Iconox’s Favor for us to speak any further.”

The traveler decided to seek out Metus, an Agori of the Ice Tribe. For some odd reason, he was affiliated with a Rock Tribe Agori named Atakus. Fast-talking and smart, Metus was a promoter for Glatorian matches. He had a natural talent for spotting a Glatorian’s strengths and weaknesses. He was constantly imagining and calculating the potential fights between Glatorian, scoring them for entertainment value.

Metus began to speak, “There’s not an arena match on Bara Magna that I haven’t set up or at least had the best odds on. If you want to know about any Glatorian, you come to me.” He continued, “Well, well… You stepping in on my business? I’ve heard from a number of Glatorian about you. Surprised it took you long to come my way. So, I’ve heard you’re looking to get some buy in on a plan to save Vulcanus? That’s real sweat and all, but what’s in it for you? There’s gotta be something. Okay, check it out, your last two seals are going to be nearly impossible without me. So here’s the deal. I need you to help me track down a certain piece of real estate: a Desert Spring. I want to claim it for its water and the valuable plants that grow around it.”

He appeared to be trading a blueprint for a Desert Adventure area, so the Agori decided to buy it for 10 Thornax fruits. He then set out to find the Desert Adventure area.

Before long, he located the Desert Adventure area that he sought. Now that he had located the area, all the Agori needed to do now was to try his luck in finding the location of this real estate. The Agori eventually found a map detailing the location of the Desert Spring.

The Agori gave the Desert Spring location to Metus who said, “Great. Deal’s done. Here, take this and go see Strakk. And then he’ll get you in with the Roxtus bunch, Atakus and Skrall. They are a nasty group of guys, so watch your back. Take care and see you at the arena.” The traveler collect the Iconox’s Favor from Metus.

He then returned to find Strakk, who previously refused to talk. But the Agori now has Iconox’s Favor so the Glatorian should have no qualms about speaking to him.

Strakk took one look and scoffed. “It’s them or me. It’s that simple. I will do anything I can to win - do you think my opponents see it any differently? Don’t be foolish.” He continued, calmer now. “If your good with Iconox, you’re good with me. I see you got Iconox’s Favor. That couldn’t have been easy. You must have had to bend the rules a bit to get to me. I like that. Sure, you can have my support in your campaign against the bone hunters - if anything, it will allow me to show off my new moves to the other Glatorian. Or maybe I’ll pretend to fight poorly so they underestimate me next time I face them in the arena. Oh, I am good. If you keep quiet about my little plan, you can trade with me for an upgrade to your Agori badge and that should get you the respect of the Rock Tribe, and Skrall’s seal.”

Strakk charged the most hefty fee of all the Glatorian so far. He demanded 25 Thornax fruits for his seal, and another 5 Thornax Fruits for an upgrade to the traveler’s Agori Honor Badge. The Agori grew more Thornax and then returned to him to complete the trades.

The Agori now had Strakk’s seal and he had upgraded his Agori Honor Badge to Rank 4. The shape of the badge seemed complete, but the Agori still had one final task to complete before he finished the Glatorian Contract. Now he had to risk everything and enter the grounds of the vicious Rock Tribe, home of Atakus, and the ruthless Skrall.