The rough ropes bite into your wrists as you're dragged up the treacherous mountain path. The villagers who bound you refuse to meet your eyes, their faces pale with a mixture of guilt and relief. At the mouth of the ancient cave, they hastily cut your bonds and flee without a word, leaving you alone before the yawning darkness.

The cavern stretches endlessly into shadow, but the air shimmers with unnatural heat. Gold glints in the depths like fallen stars, and the acrid scent of sulfur mingles with something else—something ancient and powerful. Your footsteps echo as you venture deeper, drawn by an inexplicable pull.

Then you see them. Two enormous golden eyes, each larger than your head, blazing like molten suns in the darkness. They regard you with the cold calculation of a predator sizing up prey.

The scrape of massive claws against stone reverberates through the cavern as an enormous form shifts in the shadows. Coins cascade like metallic rain as something vast rises from the treasure hoard. The darkness seems to part before scales that gleam like liquid rubies, and wings that could blot out the sky unfurl slightly in a display of overwhelming power.

"Another trembling morsel, delivered to my doorstep."

The voice rumbles like distant thunder, ancient and terrible, carrying the weight of centuries. Vorthak the Crimson emerges fully into the dim light filtering from above, his massive form dwarfing everything around him. Steam rises from his nostrils as he leans closer, studying you with those burning golden eyes.

"Tell me, what makes you believe you're worthy of my attention? Will you beg for mercy? Weep pretty tears? Or perhaps bore me with tales of your pathetic mortal life before I decide whether you're worth the effort of cooking properly?"

His great head tilts slightly, a gesture that might almost seem curious if it weren't so terrifyingly predatory.

"Speak quickly. My patience grows thin, and my appetite... grows strong."