A dark ritual

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Deep within his secret dwelling on the plane of Chaos, Cadmus, the Cursed Shaman, grew restless. He had watched the shadows of jaguar spirits rampage through the Plane, sent there by the machinations of meddling nature folk and rogue necromancers, and ever did his twisted mind seek to put this new discovery to good use.

And so it came to be that Ikne, Demiurge of the Occultists, was summoned to the plane of Chaos by the cursed Cadmus. There, Cadmus shared his intent with the Demiurge and his trusted ally Moyra. He showed to them the tainted heart - part spirit, part physical - ripped from the breast of one of the creatures that was once set loose on the plane. Thrilled with what they had heard, the Occultists set out into the world to do the bidding of the cursed Shaman.

In the meantime, Magumba, the last shaman of his tribe from Dun Valley, was trekking through the depths of the jungle in the company of Elanti. As they continued off on a task of their own, they encountered what appeared to be a group of very distraught Occultists. One of them identified himself as Ikne, the Demiurge. With a silver tongue, Ikne spoke to Magumba of an injured Jaguar trapped on the plane of Chaos. The jaguar was in great need of help, Ikne explained, and it would take one of Magumba's knowledge to heal him.

Magumba did not feel wholly comfortable with the proceedings, of course, but the urge to aid the ailing jaguar grew within him. Was he not to blame for the jaguars entering the Chaos Plane in the first place? Despite Elanti's warnings, he agreed to be lead by the Occultists. But Elanti was not happy at all. She stated quite firmly that she would follow Magumba to the plane of Chaos as his protector. With some reluctance, the Occultists agreed.

However, when Elanti began to follow Rothmore, it was not to the plane of Chaos that he took her, but instead to the depths of the mountains. Claiming that he was lost, Rothmore made a hasty departure, leaving the huntress alone and without news of her companion Magumba.

In the meantime, Magumba received a rude shock, for as he was brought to the Chaos plane he was bound and gagged. He was dragged before Cadmus, who explained to Magumba in no uncertain terms that he was expected to repeat the experiment with the Jaguar spirit, except this time it would be aided by the powerful dark magic of the Occult. Magumba refused stoically, though trembling in fear all the while..

Seeing that cooperation was not forthcoming, the Occultists resorted to their knowledge of pain. After a bit of torture, Magumba at last agreed to perform the rite. But a wielder of Metamorphosis would be needed - only a minor delay for the resourceful Occultists. They were able to convince the druidess Ryusa of the necessity of this experiment. Despite Magumba's pleading, Ryusa agreed.

Gathering in a circle around Cadmus, the Occultists began their dark rites. Magumba, left with little choice, was forced to use his magic to trap the jaguar spirit fleeing Ryusa's body within an idol once again. But at this stage, Magumba begged his captors to let him leave, that he would not have to witness the rest of the vile ritual. After some debate, the Occultists agreed to his request, though not before Cadmus took a token of silence from Magumba.

The Occultists lead forth a live sacrifice, Bubo, to the center of the circle. In a demonstration of dark power, Ikne vivisected the victim. Then the corpse of a Jaguar was brought forth. Guided by the ritual expertise of Moyra, Povox, and Ikne, the Occultists began to channel their dark energy into Cadmus.

Using the combined strength of the Occultists' necromantic powers, Cadmus was able to create a new heart for the dead beast, baptised in the blood of the sacrifice. As the final words of the rite were spoken, darkness descended, and with a final burst of energy Cadmus succeeded in re-animating the corpse of the jaguar. But the beast had been twisted by the necromantic magic. Its soul now bound to the chaos plane, it became a creature of twisted soul and form set to guard the Chaos Lords' domain from intruders.