The sky lit up with fire as a meteor hurtled toward the Basin of Life,
finally crashing into the Southern Mountains near Glomdoring Forest. It
did not take long for the nearby commune's inhabitants to find it;
Xenthos An'Ryshe was the first to stumble upon the still-smouldering
meteor, discovering that it was not a chunk of rock as expected but, in
fact, a colossal beast. The creature, called the Khairsi Beast, began
attacking immediately, and more of Glomdoring joined Xenthos in an
attempt to slay him.

The Beast, agitated, instead fled into their commune, where he started
to dig. The fellows of Glomdoring decided to assist the Beast in his
search despite his hostile nature, with Xenthos following the creature
in the hopes of discovering his origin or purpose. The Beast, however,
soon founds his way to Rowena Nightshade and began to attack her,
causing Glomdoring to cease its search and take up arms in defence.

While Glomdoring distracted the Beast, Rowena observed the collar around
his neck - and became enraptured by the scent of spices and musk exuding
from it. She suggested that continuing to attack might loosen the
collar, but the Khairsi Beast soon fled, bursting into motes of black
light which spiraled toward Magnagora. There, he continued his search
unmolested until a unit led by Kalas Malarious, Tynghall y'Baeloch, and
Sahmiam m'Viraz cut him down, forcing him to flee once more.

The Khairsi Beast found the airborne city of Hallifax and buried himself
into the mountains nearby, causing the very earth to quake with his
digging. For a time, he remained deep beneath the ground, and all
attempts to locate him along the mountain paths were in vain. It was not
long, however, before the creature returned to the surface, bursting
from a mountainside enveloped in a shifting aura of power. He once again
took to the sky, landing upon one of the spires of Hallifax. He
continued his search amongst the crystal, slaying any unfortunate
citizen who crossed his path. The citizens of Hallifax quickly noticed
the Beast's increase in strength, and, in a combined effort with a few
members of the Glomdoring Forest, managed to chase him out.

That time, the Khairsi Beast did not immediately seek a new target, and
with his new whereabouts unknown, the people of the Basin took the time
to alert the other cities and commune. Rika Talnara of Hallifax noted
the creature's collar and its strange, enticing scent, while Xenthos and
Sidd Ysav'rai brought their questions to Rowena Nightshade. The latter
wondered if, perhaps, the creature drew power from the collar itself and
urged that it be removed and brought to her.

After some time, the Beast found himself in Serenwilde Forest, where he
continued his search. The Serenwilders gathered at the Mother Moonhart
Tree in preparation for their attack, but Rika, Malarious, and a group
of Magnagorans led the actual onslaught. Malarious suggested speaking
with the creature in an effort to learn more about him, but Rika
convinced the Magnagorans that all the Beast wants to do is kill them.
They successfully chased off the Beast before Serenwilde arrived at the
scene and assured the forestals that with quick action and group effort,
the creature can be driven away.

The Beast next sought out New Celest, resuming his quest in the city
park. A dedicated group comprised of members of Hallifax, Serenwilde,
and Glomdoring faced him before many Celestians were slaughtered.
Celestians as a whole seemed unfazed by the creature's attack on their
city, quickly resuming normal business once he left.

In the tense moment before the Khairsi Beast's next attack, citizens of
Gaudiguch pondered the meteor that had fallen. Was there more of it,
left behind at the crash site? What other horrors might it contain?
Cilo, a young Illuminati novice, braved the dangerous mountain range to
investigate, but his explorations revealed nothing. He returned shortly
before the Beast found Gaudiguch, where the creature quickly slaughtered
passersby. At first, Gaudiguch attempted to face him one at a time, with
Mieari Disati attempting the first blows. However, his power spoke for
itself, and Serenwilders, Xenthos, and Sidd joined the Gaudiguchians in
a collective effort to chase him off. By that point, many had noticed
the collar around the Beast's neck and began to speculate if he was
perhaps someone's pet. The questions circulated around Gaudiguch like
gossip, but no one could provide answers.

Finally, the Beast returned to Glomdoring Forest, where he doggedly
continued his search of the woods, upturning rock and earth to find the
unknown. Members of Glomdoring swiftly found him and attacked
relentlessly, striking at his collar and rejoicing as the first piece of
it fell to the ground and crumbled to dust. Encouraged, more joined the
continued effort, including Geb Kamau of Hallifax. They chased the
creature around the forest, wearing him down until, at last, he slumped
to the ground and the collar around his neck shattered completely.

Once free of the item, the Beast transformed into a black leopard that,
startled, fled from the forest. It raced across the sky toward Avechna's
Peak, where it was revealed to be none other than the Elder God Shikari,
returned from the Void. The host of Glomdoring and a few members of
Hallifax found the god in His Fulcrux, weakened and confused, but in
control of Himself. Viravain manifested Herself soon afterward, greeting
Her brother with questions until it was revealed that Shikari had been
trapped within the body of the Khairsi Beast by some unknown power.

The mystery remains of what could have tricked Shikari into being locked
into the body of the Beast. And what was the Beast hunting for and why?
Does the prevalent scent of spices and musk relate to any previous
episode with a divine? These questions and others are put on hold while
Glomdoring celebrates the return of the Predator to the Basin of Life.

Penned by My hand on the 19th of Avechary, in the year 269 CE.