Now that the Second Coalition had been defeated, and Neo's anger had subsided, he wanted to move on in search of the Forgotten Lands. He appointed his marshal Bernadotte as satrap of Mangani: "You've always wanted to be a king...you can't get much closer than this, I'm afraid."
But meanwhile, news also reached him that at the border of the Lost Lands, a Third Coalition was waiting for him, led by Királya Orkok... the king of the Orcs.
And he had been joined by Skar and Skra, the sons of Astaroth. Királya's advisor on human affairs had couched their tale of revenge as a one-time opportunity to acquire Opal and Mangani, and Királya was eager to do so.
Neo had to get past the Orcs if he wanted to reach the Forgotten Lands. He could do this in two ways: through the valley, where the Orcs would be waiting for him,...
...or through the mountain passes and attack the Orcs from behind...with triceratops. Brute force against brute force. And play on surprise. It would be his only chance.
At a given moment, as they trekked through the mountains, Neo's horse panicked. With its eyes set back in their sockets, the animal reared so wildly that Neo fell backward into a crevice.
The animal itself continued to buck and jump in panic until it slid into a ravine.
Once at the bottom of the ravine, the horse lay dead next to the saddle with a broken saddle strap.
Neo suffered no real injuries and was helped out of the crevice by some soldiers.
After learning the fate of his horse, Neo was inconsolable. It soon became also clear that no extra horses were available, so Neo was forced to continue his journey on one of the guides' donkeys.