The Emjedah Star

The 6th day of the 10th month in the year 318

In the past several months, Emjedah and its citizens have been working hard to put behind them the idea that Emjedah is nothing more than a small mining town or rest area for merchants who are just passing through. Great efforts have been made to do this including the ending of slavery and the creation of golems, the new tower of Sa, and several other changes that has brought Emjedah to where it is today. After awhile it was decided the city needed to get the word out of these changes and again looked to the press to do so. With great effort Alya and Foom were able to pull together another edition of the Empire News and while it was well written it still carried that image of the old Emjedah with it. Because of this the paper did not make it past that issue and hope seemed to be lost. With the rise of the senate however the idea of a new paper to reflect the new Emjedah was born. A contest was offered to the citizens to help decide this new name and thus the Emjedah Star was born. The word star carries with it an important and symbolic meaning to this city. A view of the crossroads from above is all you need to realize the meaning behind the star. With a name chosen and a new direction the city of Emjedah and the staff of the Emjedah Star are pleased to bring you this first edition and look forward to keeping the city of Emjedah informed of all that goes in here and abroad.

-The Emjedah Star Staff

Emjedah News

Magick and Lore

An in depth look at Muldavian History.

Aradath News

Questions? Comments? Please send a scroll to: Ward Jahanel

Re: Magick conference. Page 2

A Study on the UnMagick
by Railt Belryn

For thousands of years scientists and mages have both attempted to unveil the secrets of the UnMagick. Much time and effort has been put into replicating it and studying its properties, but to no avail, all documented attempts thus far have failed. One might say in this day and age, the secret remains lost with the memory of its long deceased creator, the Wizard Telfast. Others might say good riddance –thinking perhaps its secrets are not meant be unveiled. Some even fear another catastrophic incident would occur should such information ever be revealed.

As a scientist, a mage and a Penthanian, I must disagree. I believe much good could come from this knowledge. Examples being the development of new spells and ultimately, the reversal of the curse bestowed upon my kinsmen and I thousands of years ago. Many would scoff at the thought, automatically deeming it an impossibility. Fifty years ago I might have thought the same, but finally, after several years of research I have found the beginnings of what may reveal to us the mystery behind the UnMagick.

To begin, one must first understand the basic principles of the UnMagick. The first and most simple principle is that UnMagick is the very opposite of what we know of as raw Magickal energy. Combining the two energies would result in ultimately one destroying the other, depending on the quantity and potency of the sources.

To understand this completely, you must also know that nothing can ever be truly created or destroyed; it can only change forms. The same rings true in this situation -the end result of combining the two energies would be a larger more potent quantity of whichever was successful in taking over the other. Unfortunately, no past attempt has been successful in actually harvesting the ethereal form of the UnMagick until now, which I will discuss later.

The second principle is a bit more complicated. UnMagick is found dormant in all creatures changed as a result of the catastrophe three-thousand years ago. That being said, the opposite is also true. Along with the UnMagick, dormant raw magickal energy is also found in creatures affected by the curse (Creatures not affected by the curse simply hold the dormant form of Magickal energy). In Penthanians, I have discovered the substance -which for the purpose of simplifying the theory, I will call “essence”- is found within their bloodstream and crystalline skin.

Herein lays the problem. If the UnMagick cannot simply be created from nothing as stated in the first principle, then why is the curse still passed on via heredity? To answer the question I conducted an experiment. Using samples of my own blood as well as samples from another Penthanian from a younger generation, I was able to discover that the evidence of UnMagick in the younger sample were much more visible and vice versa for my own. Traces of magickal energy in my bloodstream were much more potent than in the younger sample’s.

What does this mean, you ask? Well, the answer is simple. It means that during the gestation period of a Penthanian female, the dormant forms of the energy become active. As a result, both forms of energy combat one another for dominance during the primary growth period of the Penthanian child, albeit for a short time. Obviously, it is clear as to which form holds more potency, the UnMagick.

I have estimated that Penthanians 100 generations from now will no longer possess any trace of magickal energy within their bloodstream, ultimately resulting in the race becoming similar to the Arachnians in that they will lack the ability to control runes or use magick in any form. Quite possibly, the break in the routine of the life cycle would also result in the extinction of the race.

This brings us to the third and final principle of the UnMagick. Currently, with the knowledge discovered thus far, harvesting the dormant essence within the Penthanian bloodstream is impossible. However, were it active, the story may be different. To find active essence, I scoured through every resource on Penthanian anatomy available to me until I was able to find a detailed documentation on the Penthanian birth cycle. Through this, I was able to find the appropriate stage of gestation when the two forms of energy become active.

The documentation, mentions a period of approximately four Aradathian months where the mother’s magickal prowess is severely weakened; almost to the extent of not being able to control runes whatsoever. It was obvious to me, that this was the answer I sought. During that time the energies become active.

Finding a willing mother was rather difficult. Although we are an aloof people, Penthanian females also possess motherly instincts and are just as fierce in protecting their children like any other, but I digress, it was necessary to find a willing subject. I will not mention how or who, but eventually I was able to conduct my experiment.

Using a long glass tube -of which was enchanted to hold within it a vague matrix of raw magickal energy- and excluding the graphic details, I was able draw out the UnMagickal energy residing within the child. Interestingly enough, once harvested, the energy remained active, though unstable at best observation. Through the sample, I have been able to use this source as a means to create more and more for further experimentation. Using the knowledge of the second principle, I simply used minute amounts of raw magickal energy as a means to “feed” the original sample.

Soon, after harvesting a significant enough amount of the essence, I was to apply my discovery to a willing subject. For a mere fifty gold, I was able to convince a go-blin-al to participate in my experiment. Using a syringe filled with trace amounts of my own blood, I injected the UnMagickal essence into the go-blin-al’s arm. The result could have easily been seen as a failure as the fabric of go-blin-al’s arm –as well as the rest of the poor creature- was unraveled before my very eyes. The remains simply dissipated into the air as UnMagick. Through the experiment, I learned that I was missing two very key factors.

The first lies within the subject. As most already know, the Arcanians of old were hands down, the most talented magick-users in the world. When the Arcanians were struck by the UnMagick, it is my theory that through the sheer raw magickal power within their bodies, they were able to survive. Thus why the go-blin-al was destroyed so effortlessly. Knowing this, I would need to create a formula of UnMagick versus Magick. The dosage would have to be lowered significantly next time. This also played into the fact that the Penthanians were not hit directly by the UnMagick, but struck as a result of the backlash.

The second factor lies within one key difference between go-blin-al and Frontacian anatomy. This is of course, the Frontacian gems. To accurately replicate the mutation, the go-blin-al would need something by which to mutate or meld with. Something resembling a Frontacian gem. The most logical replacement would of course, be an ordinary gemstone.

Using both of these factors, I was ready to begin my experiment once more. Again, I convinced another go-blin-al to participate -this time using a fair sized chunk of crystal in which to finalize the deal. The go-blin-al greedily clung to it, as expected, occasionally peeking into his clasped hands to take a glimpse of it. The same procedure was conducted as the previous, except the dosage was significantly lowered and the ratio of my blood to UnMagick upped a bit. The results, although not completely successful, would act as the first step toward successfully replicating the mutation. The go-blin-al, now completely one with the crystal he clung to so greedily, is now an ornament in my garden.

After several other tests and through process of elimination, the formula eventually became stable. Eventually the desired outcome was reached and the transformation was made at a small enough scale to where the go-blin-al test subject would survive. The next step would be to reverse the process. A much more difficult task than is assumed. While in its crystalline state, the UnMagick would turn dormant once more, leaving me unable to continue my research by proceeding with the next logical step and applying raw magickal energy to it.

The entire project would eventually come to a halt. Seemingly nothing would solve this problem and it remained that way up until a short time ago…

Precisely three months ago, a journal was uncovered from the ruins of a Frontacian settlement in Southern Aradath. The journal belonged to a Frontacian mage by the name of Xalshan Nara’zhal. Xalshan was best known for a procedure involving the mending and regeneration of flesh at an accelerated rate. He believed that the research, if successful, could provide a means to revive a soldier from near death –or worse- and ready it for battle within mere hours.

The subject of his experiments was a Penthanian child wounded in an accident involving two battling Frontacian expeditionary forces on Aradath. During the procedure, as written in his journal, Xalshan imbued the very essence of his blood to the child’s mortally damaged crystalline skin. It is mentioned that the result would change all preconceived notions ever documented on the UnMagick.

This is where Xalshan’s journal ends. He was never able to continue his research. Records state that he brought his project before the Grand Council on Sorcerer’s Isle and was immediately turned away. Xalshan was afterwards labeled a Necromancer and exiled from the Isle, never to be heard from again.

Xalshan’s journal never mentioned what actually happened when he imbued his essence to the child’s skin. He was either a man who enjoyed leaving people in suspense or the section was conveniently removed. I tend to believe the latter. Regardless, the only way I would ever learn of Xalshan’s discovery was to conduct his experiment again and see for myself.

Again I sought out a go-blin-al test subject and injected the concoction into its arm. The results ended in its arm turning into the crystalline substance as expected. Next, using the essence graciously lent to me by my cohort Gannon, I carefully imbued the essence into the crystalline skin of the go-blin-al’s arm just as Xalshan had done. The results were a minor success and the crystalline skin receded. However, much of the go-blin-al’s true flesh was destroyed, leaving its arm more or less useless.

Through the examination of the reversal, I was able to discover that Frontacian essence is quite possibly the closest opposite to the crystalline make-up of Penthanian skin. Closer observation will prove the reaction to be identical to the way the first go-blin-al test subject was destroyed. The fabric of the crystalline skin merely unravels and dissipates as it is consumed by the magickal properties of the essence, regardless of its dormant state.

Continued work in perfecting the formula in which to use on subjects could quite possibly be the answer to completely solving the mystery. Of course, an actual Penthanian subject will be one day required to test that theory. My final hypotenuse still seems quite farfetched, but I shall continue until I am unable.

There is still much more to be learned and I am not certain whether or not continuance of my experiments will ever result in the true reversal of the UnMagick. Through nearly two years of research, I feel that I have only begun to skim the surface. Thus far, I have only discovered a means by which to combat the effects of the UnMagick and in turn gained a greater understanding of it. However I would one day like to apply the UnMagick itself to more potentially useful gains.

The Art of Voice Magick
by Toronaak Athaer

The art of Voice magick is commonly practiced by entertainers as a means to enhance their performances by simple cantrips. It often provides a means for those who are not proficient with magick to "put on a magick show" for their audiences. As such, it is often ignored by Elemental Runemages as a mere shadow of true power. However, an extensive study of Voice magick reveals that it can be tapped to unleash powerful mental effects. Voice magick operates, as its name implies, primarily verbally. There are very few somatic components to Voice magick, which sets it far apart from all other forms of magick. Also, the effects of Voice magick are entirely mental. The runes involved in voice magick add a powerful hypnotic (and in some cases, auto-hypnotic) quality to the user's voice, which is then manipulated through different notes and combinations of notes, frequently combined into a song or chant. The possible effects on the target are nearly limitless, if the proper vocal stimulus is provide.

A Voice mage's powerful hypnotic abilities are, as I said, frequently used to enhance the performances of the entertainer, but they can also be employed with lethal effectiveness. Something as simple as a harsh note can, when infused with rune energy and intoned by a powerful Voice mage, cause mental damage by making the target believe that he is in pain. Similarly, a properly executed song by a Voice mage can fully hypnotize the target and prevent him from moving his body, and even force him to lose consciousness! This is all done without the influence of elemental power.

The Voice mage, as I mentioned, has strong auto-hypnosis abilities as well. He can use his own voice to alter the way his mind perceives any given situation, thus leading to effects such as a burst of strength, enhanced senses, or a "second wind". With practice, this auto-hypnosis can be projected outwards to affect the companions of the Voice mage.

The basis of the Voice mage's power is, as the name implies, in his voice. Voice magick cannot be performed if the user is unable to speak, though a weaker version may in some cases be employed through humming. Because Voice magick relies exclusively on the control of the user over his voice, it relies nearly as much on the natural born talent of the user as any other kind of magick. Although I have used masculine pronouns to describe everything up to this point, it is worth pointing out that woman have been known to make excellent Voice mages, because of their slightly wider range of notes that their voices can produce.

Although most if not all of these effects can be achieved through diligent study of the Elemental arts, I feel that the merits of Voice magick are worth at least a discussion. Though not capable of reaching as high a level of power as an Elemental mage, a skilled Voice mage is still an oddity in the realm of magick, as he simulates effects of powerful spells with nothing but the hypnotic power of his voice. Voice magick is still being developed to this day. I believe there are powers that can be employed through Voice magick that have not even been discovered yet. It is a field that receives far too little research, written off as the realm of entertainers. However, it is possible that one day Voice magick will be developed to the point where it can stand alongside Elemental magick as a viable route to power.

Magick Conference. Page 3

Theory on the afterlife, specifically enhancing undeath
and the use of undead energies to power various magics.
by Ranier Thrazzeltog

Greetings Archmage and other enlightened beings of Emjedah. I am Ranier Thrazzeltog, priest of Taath, and practicing necromancer. I have set before you a theory I have pursued greatly in my time in Spur. I have spent countless hours studying the results of the tests and feel confident in my results. If you have any questions on the validity of my research, feel free to contact me.

My theory focuses on the fact that with the entity known as "Death" removed from this plane of being, there are numerous undead beings roaming the realm. I have studied the majority of undead almost exclusively. After careful observance of these undead, I noticed that there seemed to be an unusually large amount of undead compared to the relative number of living in the general area. With this thought in mind, I focused not on the beings themselves, but on attempting to find what kept these beings in this plane of existence. With the aid of certain tomes and magical items, I was able to focus on the energy that allowed them to exist. I discovered that different undead had different amounts of this "Unlife force". With this discovery, I set out to examine what determined the amount of unlife energy an undead being had.

My first experiments involved various living beings located near Spur, specifically the gypsy camp and the north bridge trail. After luring or capturing the rogues and such that lurk about, I started testing my theory. Using specific runes and other various magical wards, I built a small room to prevent the release of any spirit or undead. After exterminating my subjects in various ways, I discovered that the type of death the subject faces directly affects the strength of his undead energy. If the death is extremely painful, or is from something that the subject fears greatly, the strength of his energy when passing is doubled, sometimes tripled.

There are some variances in my findings. If the subject is conscience, then the energy upon their death is almost nothing. Barely enough to animate a zombie or skeleton. Another interesting finding is that children tend to make more powerful undead than adults, perhaps due to their fears and emotions being stronger than someone who may be jaded to such things. The relative strength of the subjects will affects the final outcome as well. Those that succumbed immediately were less powerful than the few that struggled to stay alive longer.

As I mentioned before, the type of death makes the largest amount of difference.

To test this, I subjected twenty subjects to two different types of death. Ten were drowned and ten were burned alive. Since drowning is relatively peaceful, with just a slight bit of thrashing about at the end, the undead were also weak. The majority of the killed became lesser wraiths or shades. When the subjects were burned to death, one female human, approximately 17 years of age, stayed alive much longer than the others, cursing me and yelling until she finally passed on. I was quite surprised to see her energy take the form of a greater moaning spirit. I was pleased with my findings, as you, the distinguished reader, would agree. I examined her body afterward, and apparently she was pregnant as well. Perhaps this accounted for her attempts to stay alive longer.

This brings me to my next step. I noticed that even after forcing the energy from this plane, slight remnants of the energies remained. Each energy type has its own "signature" so to speak. Being in tune with the subjects energy signature, I waited to see what would develop. Since my wardings did not allow the energies to escape, they slowly reformed. With this knowledge, I released the majority of the undead energy, with the exception of the spirit of the pregnant female. Eventually it reformed, and I destroyed it again. After two days of this, I noticed its energy strength was slightly weaker. The difference was barely perceivable, but it was there none the less. I believe undead can also get "stuck" in one area, usually where they perish. They then constantly reform until their energy becomes too weak and changes form to another type of undead. I believe they are also drawn to like amounts of energy, that would explain undead gathering in different places.

The uses to this study would be immense. Long have necromantic ceremonies been contained in Taathian Temples and other ritualistic ceremonies. If it were possible to harness this energy efficiently, we could use it to power all sorts of magical devices and constructs. The lands are covered with the dregs of society. Bums, thugs, rogues and other miscreants. Instead of locking them up or public executions, put them to use powering the very city you live in.

Treatise on Time Travel
by Weldoian Sesca

The concept of time travel has long titillated the imaginations of the world's populace. After all, who would not like to go back to the death of loved one, and prevent that loved one from dying? Or go back to a major battle, and help in it's outcome, possibly changing it? Who hasn't curiously wondered what would happen were the Psycians to fail in their attempts to topple the Frontacian Empire, or what would have happened had the Foe not been trapped in the Octagon? But, for the majority of people within our world, and especially on this continent of Aradath, time travel was left to just the imagination. In recent times, no event has singularly had more to do with the revitalization of this part of the imagination then with the events surrounding Malzor, the San Elf Evolochian.

Malzor, in his efforts to return back to the past to prevent the High Lord Maloveous Ta'zandar from becoming the High Priest of Evoloch, caused many temporal distortions to pervade the clock tower southeast of the Spurian Town Square. These distortions also occasionally ebb out of the tower. This exposed the Spurian populace to a magick that they had previously little experience. Not only did the slightest experience with this temporal magick confuse them, many confessed that the very thought of it caused their minds to hurt. Indeed, there were times where I, in my thoughts of it, felt the need to take a moment of rest. Up until Malzor, I, as well as many Spurians, had not given much thought to the idea of temporal magick, or e'en to the idea of seriously traveling back in time to change history. During, and after that time, I have thought about the subject very often. Temporal magick, as Malzor proved, is very much a part of reality that we have to deal with. With powerful! mages, such as Malzor, capable of using temporal magicks malevolently, 'tis important for us to have a decent understanding of what temporal magick is, what it's effects are, and what consequences lay in store for those who use it. To do this, we must ask ourselves several questions.

The first of which is simply: "Is time itself linear or circular?"

In other words, is a person able to move forward and only forward in time, or able to move back and forth through time. For example, a trip from Spur to Emjedah is a linear trip. You go from point A to point B. But, a trip from Spur to Emjedah and then to Treehaven is a circular trip. Assuming the cities are all connected to the same road, you can go from Point A to Point B to Point C, or any combination of the three. We live in a circular existence. We can move back and forth, and sideways, through our world. Through space. Time is, as we perceive it, linear. We only move forward through it. You cannot drop a glass, break it, and then decide to repair it while it goes through it's falling motion backwards. At least, not without the help of magick. So, drawing from our perceived notion of time, time travel...the ability to go backwards and forward in time...is only half possible. We can only move forward in time, but never backward.

This seems to answer the question, only, as Malzor's experiments and efforts suggest, our perceived notion of the nature time may not be the correct one. Indeed, they suggest that time travel in a backwards motion is indeed possible. So, with this suggestion, we must then ask ourselves the second question in our understanding of temporal magick: "What are the consequences and limitations of traveling back in time?"

In other words, if you could go back in time, what would you, or could you do? And, what consequences would be derived from your actions? Let us consider the classic "Grandfather Paradox." You have a grandfather whom you truly hate and wish would never have existed. To fulfill this wish, you go back in time to the day of your grandfather's birth and somehow prevent your grandfather from being born (the most common method in this example is by murder). By doing so, you prevent your grandfather from growing up, meeting your grandmother, having your father/mother, raising your father/mother, and thus, allowing your father/mother from giving birth to you. Thus, by killing your grandfather at the time of his birth, you effectively prevent yourself from being born. You cease to exist. However, if you cease to exist, then there should be no one around to kill your grandfather when he is born. Thus, he is allowed to grow up, marry, have kids, and eventually have grandkids, which would be you. Thus, you would exist again. This is a paradox. Paradoxes, while interesting, have no relevant place in an argument of any kind. And, indeed, time cannot have a paradox. If it did have a paradox, then it would end right where the paradox begins. In our example, the flow of time would effectively end when you go back in time to kill your grandfather. This is because, at the exact time where you enter (or would have entered) the time portal to go back in time, there is created the possibility of two different timelines to exist. One with your grandfather in it, and one without him. Since both sprout from the same origin, and that origin is dependant on the present timeline, which is changed by you either killing or not killing your grandfather, and thus, is constantly changing from Line A (with a grandfather) to Line B (with no grandfather), time can no longer move forward. Thus, obviously, one cannot go back in time to kill their grandfather.

The follow-up question to this is, "Can I go back in time to change the result of a war?" The answer to this question is, at you might have guessed, no. This is due to the same reasons as listed in the "Grandfather Paradox." If you change the result of a war and/or battle, then no reason would exist in the new future for you to go back in time to change the result of the war and/or battle. Thus, with you not present to change the outcome of the war and/or battle, then outcome will return to what was before you had changed. Again, paradox ensues, and time cannot move forward.

So, now the question that begs to be asked is: "Can I go back in time at all?" And here is where it gets a bit confusing. The answer, you might guess, is no, judging by the prior examples. However, the answer is yes, you CAN go back in time. But certain conditions would have to be met. First, and foremost, you could not go back in time with the intent to change anything. If you did, and assuming you succeed, then paradox will ensue. If, however, you go back in time with no intent to change anything whatsoever, then a whole new set of complications arise. That being that your actions, regardless of how seemingly small or insignificant, can lead to drastic changes.

Let us consider a hypothetical example. You live in a peaceful city that has enjoyed five years of prosperity and has become a pinnacle of goodness in the world. In order to discover the driving forces behind this success, you translocate yourself five years into the past without any intent to change anything. You stand where you are, take a deep breath, and walk around being extremely cautious not to talk to anyone, bump anyone, or do anything that might disturb the business of anyone in anyway. The next day, you fall sick and die. Five years later, the city that was once peaceful and prosperous is now in smoldering ruins, barely even a blip on a map. What happened? There are many possibilities, but the simplest, and most poignant of which, is simple, and an example of what is known as the "Butterfly Effect." The moment you took a deep breath after translocating, you inhaled a viral agent that was traveling on the air. Had you not inhaled it, and gotten sick, it would have continued to travel along the air until it got inhaled by an Arachnian Matriarch living several miles away from the city. She would have gotten sick, died, and never enacted her plan of sacking the town. Thus, the town would have been able to grow and enjoy the prosperity it once had. Since the Matriarch did not get sick and die, thanks unknowingly to you, she was able to rally her Webhold and destroy the town. This is, of course, a drastic and tragic example. Drastic changes in the flow of time need not be bad. They can also be good. Go back to the previous example, you could have inhaled a viral agent that would have otherwise prevented a boy from growing up and issuing the town into an era of untold prosperity. The act of breathing is just one small precaution you would have to take into account. Walking, too, could pose a danger. You may accidentally kill an ant which would then cause an anteater to go hungry, which would cause a Go-blin-al who's life depended on that anteater to go hungry, which would cause a weakening of a San Elf's army and thus cause it to fail in it's assault of it's Muatana-al masters abode. The most innate and simplest of acts, acts that we take for granted everyday would have to be regulated and controlled in order to prevent a drastic change in the timeline. However, e'en the simplest act of you BEING there, could change history. E'en if you took all the precautions available, your presence might block a slight breeze from growing into a gust of wind that would have caused the hair and dress of a girl hundreds of miles away from gusting outward, embarrassing her and attracting the attention of a young boy, who, seeing a beauty in this girl he never saw before, would have courted her and through their relationship, caused a great movement of peace to spread throughout the world. No breeze, no gust, no hair flying, no attention, no relationship, no movement.

As ye can see from the above examples, going back in time is, more or less, impossible. One change can either lead to paradox, or lead to drastic, and unpredictable changes in the timeline. However, there is a pseudo-exception. That exception can be found in the answer of the next question: "If I travel into the future, am I stuck there?"

Traveling forward in time is obviously possible. We do it everyday. We travel one month, one day, one hour, into the future without any conscious effort. But where is the exception? Consider this example.

It is the year 317 AC, on the 23rd day of Mateth. It is 10:00 in the morning. You cast a temporal translocation spell and translocate yourself a hundred years into the future. You arrive at the same point in space, at 10:00 in the morning, on the 23rd day of Mateth, in the year 417 AC. The world has obviously changed. You take note of the changes and then translocate yourself back 100 years into the past, to a time directly AFTER you casted your first translocation spell. In other words, you arrive back where you started on the 23rd day of Mateth, in the year 317 AC, at 10:01 in the morning. All is well, correct? History hasn't been changed, the past and present is as it should be, and you still exist. You've found an exception to the rule! The reason I called it a pseudo-exception is this: the future you observed is a future that would have came to be had YOU not been around to mold it. In that ONE minute of you not being in the present world, you effectively created a whole new alternate future; a future based on the fact of you not existing. The moment you returned to the present, you effectively destroyed that future, and created another one; one that may or may not be similar to the one you observed. While there are no paradoxes involved, or created, the scenario certainly plays games of morality. For instance, you just killed the entire population of the world only to replace it with another population. Now, if the laws of good morals guide ye, then ye can pretty much see how this scenario too would be impossible to do. But, what if you translocated back to the very INSTANT that you past self translocated away? Well, the answer to that is complicated, and I cannot present a case, since it all depends on how far apart in time one would consider an instant. Is it a minute, half-a-min ute, a second, or less? What determines an instant, and for whichever answer you derive, how would, or could it, effect the future? That I cannot answer. You might ask, then, if an instant after you leave is impractical, what if I translocated back to slightly BEFORE my past self translocated away? That answer can be found in the next question.

The next question is this: "Can I encounter my past self?" Or similarly, "What were to happen if I encounter my past self?" Let us use another hypothetical example. Let us say that I, Weldoian, go back in time with the intent of warning my prior self of an attempt on my life. Let us say I go back ten years. I know that ten years ago, I was much more jovial, more child-like, and hadn't developed an interest in being a Sage. Knowing this, I am careful to not mention affirmative or negative statements about these traits. I warn my past self, and suddenly, I fail to exist. Why? While I might not have condemned or praised my past self for his nonacademic interest, or for his jovial attitude, he may have found me too overbearing, too arrogant, or too sarcastic, and decided that he would never be like that. Thus, he became someone else entirely. This falls in line, as ye might have guessed, with changing the past. It is, in fact, a variation of the "Grandfather Paradox.

" But what if I didn't intend to tell him anything? Merely observe him. Well, that would fall under the "Butterfly Effect."

But what if I appeared before him right before he left to translocate into the future? He may view me suspiciously and decide not to go into the future. In which case, I would cease to exist. Or, he may accept my existence and continue into the future. However, this to could have unforeseen events. What if I appeared in front of him ragged and bloody? Then he would go into the future knowing a similar fate awaited him, and he would seek to avoid it. I would then, again, cease to exist. The only way for such a scenario to work out without me ceasing to exist would be for my past self to go into the future and do everything EXACTLY as I did, which would mean he would have to have complete control over both his conscious and subconscious mind. And since I profess no such abilities, and know very little who do profess to, this scenario is very improbable.

With these questions answered, I have come to the conclusion that yes, time travel is possible, be it into the future or into the past. However, the risks so far outweigh the gains as to make it completely impractical. May haps 'tis best if only the most powerful of mages have access to such power, since the expertise needed to wield temporal magicks takes years upon years to acquire. 'Tis nae wonder why Evoloch himself stopped Malzor from going back in time. While Evoloch is oft known as the Master of Time, for the reasons stated in this dissertation, I believe that that title is not based on fact. Similarly, I believe that the Gods themselves do not violate the temporal laws. That, however, is another discussion, one that is only slightly relevant to the topic of this dissertation.

Magick Conference. Page 4

Lesser Magicks ahn ihtz applicashin throo
the theree uhb Kaoz Dha Influencin of Beingz, Processez, or Objekts
in our world by dha application of obscure physical ur behavioral lawz.
by Shleegulz Pariffatz

Lesser Magick iz dha impelling or encouraging, convincing, increesing of probabilitee of measure. Iht iz not Compelling or forcing, making a certain measure occur. Dha object uhb lesser magick is to make something happen whid out expending dha time ahn energy to make iht happen through direct effort.

All lesser magickz iz a variation uhb dhizz concepts. Lesser magickz involve everything frum simpul trikz of misdirection to extremelee subtle and complex manipulation of fakturs of dha mind. While dhis requires less time and effort in application than overt, direct methodz, it is more intellectually and requirez extensive praktizz.

In addition to dher basic personalities and logical thinking processes, all tingz have likez , dislikez, strengthz, weeknessez, and emotional emphasiz. Thees tingz are shown throo direct communication, habitz, dress, style of livin, dher class of work, peepol dhey hang whid, and uddur stuff. Dha mage whoo uses lesser magick must constantlee be lookin fur clues up dha persun, ideally whid out dha persun knowin bout iht. Ib dha subject feels they is bein studied in this fashion, dhey will become defensinve ahn use whut ah call dher “personalitee armur”.

Dha purpose of analyzing peepol ain’t always tah deceev ahn exploit dha subject. Most of the time, iz’ta get a beddur idea ub dha subject, so dhat any future interactionz iz as pleasant ahn productive as possible. Itz often been noted dhat conversation whid a mage usin lesser magickz is stimulatin and pleasant. Much of dhiz is due to dha magez’ conscious manipulatin and tailorin of dher mannerismz’ to dha style mozzt effective in dha situashin.

Dha Lesser Magickz reechezz it’z full potential when used whid large groopz ub peepol. The governin principle is still dha same an very much applicable, to impel certain behaviorz, ahn tah control da circumstancez whid out anyone realizing how ur what iz happenin. Mozzt successful polticianz spend a lot ub time in tah learnin dheez seekrit artz. Dha actions are planned ahn carried out accordin to dha desired behavior and circumstances ahn iht happinz accordingly.

The interesting ting bout dhizz system of magick iz dhat it seems deceivingly eezy. Mozzt dhun bodder eeben exploring lesser magick techniques, ahn eeven fewer are aware of dha complexity of it’s form ahn function. Iht truelly be taking the mentality of a mage tah understand dha full implication of a singul action and manner in which dha smallest uhb detailz iz handled. Remarkably , iht seemz only dha Setite Tempol , ahnd dha occasional Pent ever put dhizz system in use.

Even mur interstin iz dha implekashin ub dha theory ub Kaos on dhizz system. Dha theory ub Kaos states, that a given variable has so many different implecations and influences on so many of the circumstances around that iht directlee ur indirectlee affectz, that’s it’s neer impossible tah determine or predict the exact occurrence caused by ah given variable.

Such a system can make dha mozt minor cause have dha mozzt bizaree ahn ironic of causality in dha foochur. Fur example , ah recentlee had a vishun in which sum long long time ago, ahn Odarian khat was teaching hiz hawk tah hunt flyin pidgeonz on a mountain side. The pigeonz happn’t tah be an Saian Air mage’s pet, who immediately summoned a lightning bolt to strike down dha hawk. Dha bolt missed happn’t tah strike a Fir in dha forest below who whuz juzt bout tah kill a flerian theef. Dhe flerian had been flailin hiz armz around outta feer ahn a young psycian setite who had been watchin from the shadows . Dha young psycian beleev’d dha flerian had summn’d dha bolt, ahn work’d veree hard tah become ah mage himself. He later became a fire mage name’t Devan, who enjoyed slaughterin khats by dha handful including ahn edlerlee one who happen’t to have owned a hawk.

Taganoth and the Underworld
by Moss Purpleflame

My theory goes something like this...

Taganoth and the Underworld are two different places, and at looking at the different features of these two realms, a third realm becomes clear.

Taganoth is the realm of demons and from research, Taganoth is also the realm that touches the most other realms. Taganoth is as chaotic a place as one can envision.

The only reason demons in their native realm would seem to have a set form is so that the mind does not become insane.

It is only when they cross over that they take form, often being composed of various elements and magicks that surround or summoned them.

The Underworld, which some rightly refer to as hell, is a place of the dead and devils. Unlike Taganoth and much like death, the Underworld is a fairly orderly, if still terrible, place.

Now for that last world, and my theory.

The Maw is not Taganoth, not the underworld, but The Foe itself.

The name Angran-Sar, and his cursed talisman should be familiar to many here. The talisman is said to open the Maw. Many think Angran-Sar found a portal to Taganoth.

Like I said, portals to Taganoth are plenty, and such a talisman would not be necessary or much cause for concern. Also, take a look at Angran-sar.

He is not demonic, but something undead, trapped between realms. Yet, the descriptions of the beings he sees are more demonic, not undead.

The Foe, was the lord of demons. Demons are now under Taath, but what if there were demons within the Foe? They would be the Foe's, not Taath's.

I point this out because of prophesies that only the children of the Foe may release it. Also, where the maw was found, which I feel I can reveal because both friend and foe know the location, adds to my belief.

To get to the location of the Maw, you must cross the eternal maze. I won't go into my theories about that place, which I roamed, lost, for many weeks, but suffice it to say that going through warps time.

On the other side, The Foe is dead. Here it is still living, but trapped!

So, there it is. Taganoth is the chaotic realm of demons. The Underworld is the realm of the dead and of devils. The Maw however is neither of these. It is not just a place, but The Foe itself.

Demonic temple sent back to Taganoth. Page 5

Demonic temple sent back to Taganoth
by Methoss Tember, Drag-al.

As the threat posed by the Green Eyed reached its apex, a brave group of warriors, runemages and clerics decided to take the fight to them. Renalk Treglondi'kor, Emjedah's Archmage, devised a theory of how a determined group of adventurers would be able to help him banish the dark temple in Emjedah's mines back into Taganoth. It was hoped that this act would diminish the demon presence in the mines themselves, and remove one of their footholds in our world and a serious potential threat to the safety of the city of Emjedah.

Troops were gathered at the Archmage's behalf by the Monitanian warrior Gwoss Moss. Setite, Taathian and many Monitanian warriors as well as runemages and healers of Sa answered the Monitanian's calls. Rumor has it that even a politician of some renown answered, determined to use the heroic image as a tool for election.

These troops gathered in Emjedah's arena to train for the assault by battling beasts and other gladiators. During the practice session, one of the Green Eyed demons appeared and taunted the group while unleashing hordes of demons at them. Axes rose and fell, swords slashed and runes blasted these demons to oblivion, and the Green Eyed refused to show itself in fear. It was decided that the assault on the foul temple would proceed as planed.

On the day of the assault the group gathered, strong and determined they readied their weapons and renewed their runes before entering the dark mines of Emjedah. The mighty warrior Gwoss led, but all in the party showed their skill as demon after demon was dispatched with some ease. Upon arriving at the dark temple the runemages and clerics, following Archmage Renalk's instructions began invoking translocation spells and prayers. Using the disturbances caused by these attempted translocations the Archmage begun to try to force the temple back to Taganoth. The Green Eyed must have noticed, for one of their number opened a rift at this time and assaulted the group, trying to distract them from their goal. Demon lords and nether demons attacked under the guidance of a Green Eyed, but after a long and arduous battle they were all repulsed, including a badly wounded Green Eyed. The Archmage, showing amazing powers of concentration managed to finish his incantations during the battle, and the temple begun to collapse around the party.

Instead of abandoning the place, some of the party remained behind to wipe out the last of the demons and became trapped within the collapsed temple. Thankfully, after some searching they managed to find a rift and escaped the ruins into Taganoth, and from there managed to make their way back to several different locations near Spur. All who participated in the raid conducted themselves bravely, and I for one am proud to have battled the demons beside them.

It was a sterling example of what can be accomplished, if people put their rivalries aside (even for a brief amount of time) and work together towards a common goal.

Ancient History of Muldavia. Page 6

Ancient History of Muldavia
by Archmage Renalk

This is an attempt to illuminate some of the history and culture of the land Muldavia, known as "the Dark Continent" by the more fanciful. It shall focus on my own race, the Sanene, though much about the Muatana-al will unavoidably be discussed. No treatise on Muldavia can begin, however, without acknowledging that there are two competing forces on the island, and two competing versions of history espoused by each. A pure chronology is thus impossible if one seeks an objective account. Instead, I shall proceed by mirroring the experience of the Sanene race, starting from the beliefs that were near universal among them prior to the rebellion, and then presenting a more revisionist account, now a common view in the Clans.

Know then, that there are two distinct groups of San, each seeking to convert or destroy the other. The first, loyally serving the Muatana-al, calls itself "the true San," and the other group "the traitors." The second, engaged in an insurrection against the Muatana-al, think of themselves as "the true San" and call the first group, "the collaborators." The Muatana-al themselves categorize them as "domestic breeds" or "wild breeds"

For objectivity's sake, I shall call the first group "the Loyalists," and the second "the Rebels," so as to neither praise nor insult either.

In addition, as the best way to learn history is from historical documents, passages from some of my sources will be included throughout. Many of these passages, both for the aforementioned imperative of objectivity and to make the account more accessible to Aradathians, are from Aradathian scholars or observers.

We begin our account around the year 3000 BC on the Aradathian calendar. Aradath at this time was firmly under the control of the Frontacian Empire, as were many of the surrounding islands. Icons of the Golden Dragon were everywhere, and the rest of the pantheon was nowhere to be seen. The epoch of Sa-Rinanni, which had just begun, saw a gradual end to the massive wars of conquest which had initially characterized the Empire. The Frontacians turned their attention to mercantile and intellectual matters, and allowed a handful of lands to retain their independence.

~~ Muldavia, the Myth ~~

"From the battle of the Octagon to the Age of Lessons, throughout the birth and growth of their Empire, the Frontacians had avoided Muldavia. While the official reason now found in court documents is that there was little of value to be found in such a dreary place (nothing can be further from the truth), I believe the answer has more to do with the fact that the Dark Continent was an object of fear in Frontacian culture. Children are still told terrible tales of the life-draining Muatana-al, of Dark Elves, and of other monstrosities besides. The only place a Frontacian General would have been more reluctant to invade is Hell itself."

-From "A History of Fear"
by Sage Lanessil of Carthen

Muldavia existed as pure myth for a good thousand years after the end of the war with the Ancient Being. According to some legends, it was the birthplace of this being, the place where the abomination took its first breath, screamed its first scream. Others merely call it a staging ground, a place from which the dark armies launched their campaign of world domination (destruction?). All agree that it was an island somehow touched by a dark force, a place with black clouds that no ray of sunlight ever pierced. All knew that it was the place the Muatana-al who survived the Battle of the Octagon fled to, and none were inclined to pursue.

Over the centuries, many intrepid adventurers attempted expeditions to the Dark Continent, but few returned. Those that did spoke of a Muatana-al Empire, of cities of black onyx, of armies of Dark Elves. It was not until the Frontacian Empire had grown in power, and the need for new trade routes spurred on an age of exploration, that the reports were corroborated.

The Muatana-al seemed largely uninterested in trade and ignored all official envoys as beneath their attention, though slavers soon learned that they had the sole currency the life-drainers were interested in, and made a hefty profit by trading flesh for precious stones and metals.

~~The Muldavian Empire~~

"I had barely gotten myself to a safer spot when the square began to be filled with the Muatana-al's army. The sound of metal sliding against metal, so soft in the sleek armor of these Sanae, was deafening when multiplied by a thousand. All stood at attention before the Palace, where their Executor, on a balcony a hundred feet aloft, looked over the sea of black armor appraisingly. Raising an arm to indicate something behind him, a dark cloak hanging from the arm like a curtain, he spoke in a voice that seemed amplified to cover the square:

"'Kneel before your God, Te'Suvernus, Lord of Muldavia! He who has created you, He who has given you power, He who directs you with purpose, now commands you to visit His wrath upon His unworthy enemies!'

"An image then rippled into existence behind the San, and it was the pale face of a Muatana-al, smiling softly. A deep, booming voice echoed all about the city and made the very walls vibrate. 'Go forth into victory, my children,' it said, and the kneeling San rose to draw their swords and beat them against their shields, raising a clamour that must have been heard as far as the White Forest. At last, with the zeal of holy crusaders, they marched out of the gates, and I pitied their enemies."

- From "Enslaved in Muldavia, an Usil's account," Anonymous

This scene begins to illustrate the makeup of the Muldavian Empire. Perhaps Empire is not the correct word, as there was no Emperor, nor were the Muatana-al interested in conquering other lands, but they certainly had the power of an empire, and firm control of their island. The Muatana-al Lords of Muldavia have always had feudal arrangements amongst themselves, with various Lords commanding various regions, and Greater Lords commanding the loyalty of several lesser vassals. A reclusive group known as the Overlords is also known to exist, with all the rest acting as loosely-affiliated vassals, though their names and number (probably three) remain a mystery.

Throughout the reign of the Empire, up to the third millennium BC, Muldavia was a land of everlasting night, where Muatana-al could walk freely without fear of the sun. There were three main cities where the majority of the Muatana-al population (it is not known even approximately how many that is) lived. Death magick barred all other races from entry, dealing them a permanent death if they tried. The cities were presumed to be ruled over by an Overlord each.

Other Muatana-al Lords set up castles and palaces of their own. Every one of them was a mage of immense power, and, whether by breeding them like cattle or growing them in strange laboratories called "birthing pools," populated their domains with Sanene servants and soldiers. The Muatana-al claim to be the original creators of the San, a view echoed by Fir and Usil Elves, who find their darker brethren too repulsive to be related to them. With the aid of their very godlike magickal powers, they caused the San to think of them as Gods. All Loyalist San believe that the Muatana-al in general are divine beings, and that the one they serve in particular is the most powerful.

The lowest tier in these societies were the slaves, usually consisting of other races that were either unfortunate enough to have ended up on Muldavia, or were captured on an off-shore raid. A slave was not expected to survive long. Field slaves were worked to death. Palace slaves were quite literally eaten by their master at the slightest whim. I fear our Usilin friend from the opening passage is anonymous for this very reason. Sanene females were next. To optimize breeding, they were more numerous than the males. For this reason, also, they were seen as more important to that end than for battle.

The males were invariably warriors, bred and trained to be as strong and fast as possible. Even a common footsoldier was a highly skilled swordsman. With the superior physique of Sanene, advanced training in ancient Muatana-al sword-arts, and staggering numbers, the Hordes were nearly unstoppable. Only a handful of Sanene were given the ability (potential) to use magick, and they were trained as magi. For some reason (theories shall be discussed later), the Muatana-al strictly controlled magick, forbidding its use among common San, and restricting these mages to a very specific set of spells. As for the racial magick of the Muatana-al themselves, such was forbidden to all but Muatana-al, along with the Muatana-al language.

A single San Elf, usually a mage but sometimes a skilled swordsman, was chosen to fill the role of Executor. As the title implies, he commanded all the Sanene forces and carried out the orders of his Lord. Usually, only the Executor was granted the honor of private audience with the Lord, and a single Executor, if he survives, may serve in that role for centuries. Above the Executor were a host of lesser Muatana-al serving various functions, all vassals of the greater Lord. Like the master himself, they were rarely seen unless their presence was specifically required.

The most common enemy any Muatana-al had was another Muatana-al. Various Lords had rivalries that spanned centuries, and their armies clashed again and again. Spilling Muatana-al blood in such conflicts was frowned upon by the Overlords, but the Sanene were considered essentially worthless, and thus proved acceptable chess pieces to determine the outcomes of such conflicts, and increase or decrease their Lords' prestige accordingly.

Before moving on to the next historical period, there are no doubt some surprised reactions at the revelation that assuming the roles of Gods was so common among Muatana-al. Such surprise no doubt stems from assumptions of our pantheon's universal supremacy. This assumption is erroneous, both geographically and chronologically. In fact, just as the majority of Aradath concurrently followed a monotheistic Saian religion, Muldavia did not even have that much. The Muatana-al are not known to have worshipped any gods until centuries later, and the more powerful among them soon made the claim to be gods in their own right. They saw religion, divinity, as the best mechanism by which to rule over the Sanene population, thus they became Gods. Whether they were false gods or true depends on your view of what constitutes divinity. I do not exaggerate when I say that their powers could be truly immense, and the Loyalist Sanene continue to accept this as proof. The Rebels do not. The Rebels were the first to believe in gods of our own pantheon, forcing the Muatana-al to adjust accordingly, but we shall get to that later.

~~The Muldavian/Aradathian War~~

"Your Majesty,

"The invasion shall conclude with glorious victory. The might of the Imperial Navy swiftly crushed the coastal outposts, and the land war commenced ahead of schedule. As Your Majesty has predicted, the barbarians of this continent do not possess anything resembling the sophistication of our war machines, and their warmages, if they even have any, are nowhere to be seen. Not a spark of magick protects this land. Soon it shall be but another jewel in your crown."

-General Kerre's first report to Emperor Ulin VII, start of the Muldavian campaign (from published Imperial Court documents)

"Your Majesty,

"Victory shall be ours. It shall not be long before these demons and their servants fall back before the unstoppable might of Frontacia. We need but another shipment of weapons and supplies, and perhaps an influx of five hundred to one thousand footmen, and my next report shall be that of our final triumph."

-General Kerre's final report, written the day before he and his army were completely destroyed.

The various Muatana-al fiefdoms continued to show no interest in diplomatic discourse, though they did establish lines of trade with slaver groups, purchasing slaves in bulk in exchange for their apparently limitless wealth.

Eventually, this apparent wealth made Muldavia the next land slated for conquest by the Frontacian Empire. The Empire had already captured much of the known world - Psycia was the only major land allowed independence - and it had done so swiftly and easily.

As his predecessors had done a hundred times before, Emperor Ulin VII, who inherited a peaceful and prosperous kingdom, sent an ambassador to the Dark Continent. All previous envoys had been ignored, but this particular one was instructed not to take no for an answer, and he had with him an escort of five hundred Imperial Guardsmen for emphasis.

His mission was simple: Inform the leaders of the land that they were to be annexed by the Frontacian Empire, and help them begin preparations. Frontacian might, after all, was so renowned by this time that they no longer needed to fight wars. All independent rulers knew that once one is noticed by the Frontacians, one does as he is told.

The response this time, however, was quite different. The escort was never heard from again. The ambassador himself did return under mysterious circumstances, unharmed, though without his sanity. For the rest of his life, he would mumble nothing but the response he was made to give his Emperor: "The Overlords do not wish to be annexed."

What followed was an invasion greater in scope than anything the Frontacians had mounted since the early days of empire-building. News of it spread all across Aradath like wildfire, and speculation on what was seen to be the continuation of the war with the Foe became the favorite pastime of all citizens of the Empire. The Emperor was hailed as the leader who would finally bring a decisive end to their ancient enemy's foul progeny. It was a true clash of titans. Rival empires - rival continents - were at war.

Or so it seemed to the uninformed, at least. In reality, the invasion force was a small fraction of the totality of the imperial armies, and on the Muldavian side, only a few coastal fiefdoms were actually involved in the fighting. The Emperor had vastly underestimated the strength of the enemy.

For those that did fight in the war, however, it was a massacre. The Frontacian soldiers were utterly shocked at this new foe they faced, an enemy that had no fear of their neat rows and phalanxes and seas of gleaming armor. It was an enemy that would not scatter, an enemy with tremendous focus, an enemy with a bloodthirst that could not be quenched, not even when their black armor turned crimson with blood. The Sanene warriors seemed stronger and faster than any Elves had a right to be. They would continue to fight even under grievous injury.

The Frontacian Generals quickly realized that they had to keep their troops away from the enemy, as they would lose five to one in every battle of footmen against footmen. Instead, they attempted to dodge around, and to kill as many of the Sanene as they could with catapults and storm spells, hoping to soften them up. While this did kill many Sanene, it did not seem to significantly diminish the strength of the enemy. The expected quick victory never came, only occasional news of the destruction of a Frontacian army, one that had failed to stay ahead of its dogged pursuers.

The war dragged on like this for ten years. Coffers were emptied and lives lost, and nothing at all was gained. At last, a new Emperor ascended to the throne, and he quickly brought a halt to this fruitless conflict. The only explanation for this unprecedented retreat was that the land was too hostile and would take too many resources to tame.

By this time, commoner and nobleman alike had ceased to care about the war, and today it is a mere footnote in official history books.

There is some indication that a few in the Imperial Court voiced concerns that a retaliatory strike from Muldavia might follow, but this only resulted in a few troop movements no one remarked. What no one truly appreciated was that this retaliatory strike was imminent, for the Lords of Muldavia were now making preparations to invade Aradath.

But before the invasion could take place, the Muatana-al Empire would be shaken to its core by an event no one could have anticipated.

(The above piece was first published in the Empire News but was brought back for the reader so they may fully enjoy the next part of this Muldavian History)

The Sanene Rebellion Page 7

The Sanene Rebellion
by Archmage Renalk Treglond'ikor

“Lord Anarus is dead, and chaos reigns. I had thought nothing could be more frightening than this Muatana-al’s reign. I was wrong. This is far worse. I am sure to be killed now, whereas before I could survive by being useful.

'Outside, Dark Elves fight each other with frightening ferocity. I can only imagine that this is what a Muldavian battlefield looks like, but somehow I think even that is more civilised. Scarcely an hour had passed since their master’s death, and already they have broken up into factions. Some have sided with his slayer. Some are simply fighting over weapons, food, gold -- anything of value. A large majority continue to fight for the Muat, refusing to believe he could be dead. And who can blame them? To them he was their deity, their creator, the future master of the world. He had lived for thousands of years, of as much permanence to them as the celestial bodies or the earth beneath their feet.

“And it was no Muatana-al, no rival supreme being that slew him. It was a San Elf, a mage whose power somehow proved equal to the Muat’s. After a terrific battle, the Pale One mortally wounded before him, he pierced the darkness above with a bolt of crimson energy and watched as the sunlight reduced his foe to nothing.

“For the first time in thousands of years, the sun shines upon Muldavian soil. I know now that this land will never be the same again.”

-Diary of Chalfas, Human Slave, Scribe to Lord Anarus,

The Frontacian invasion had had a profound effect on the Sanene of Muldavia. The most immediate was an increase in patriotism, for lack of a better word. They had just fought the largest conflict even the oldest among them could remember. They had faced the mighty Frontacian Empire, and they had proven themselves vastly superior, or so they claimed. The Dragon of Frontacia was a weak God, they said, easily chased back to his lair to lick his wounds.

But this was more than a mere affirmation of their masters’ power. For the first time, thousands of Sanene warriors had fought a large war that did not involve fighting each other. Coalitions of ten Sanene armies with the crests of ten different Muatana-al fought and died side by side. For ten years, they identified with themselves as a race, not as followers of rival deities. It was a new feeling, a good feeling, and for some, it did not go away after the war ended.

There was an effect on the Muatana-al as well. For thousands of years, since they built an Empire for themselves in Muldavia, their policy was to ignore foreign lands until they had resolved their own differences and a stable order evolved. It is testament to their individual ambitions that this stable order never came. But the war gave them an idea of Frontacian strength. Furthermore, they thought it a sign of weakness not to retaliate. Thus a Grand Council of Muldavian Lords was convened, and in this council they all agreed to turn their combined strength on Aradath. Had this actually happened, it might have been a catastrophe for the rest of the world.

Unbeknownst to them, several of their Executors had their own meeting. They were all mages, and the topic of discussion was Frontacian magick. Several of them had led armies in the war, and saw the destructive powers unleashed by the enemy warmages. Some of these powers outstripped their own. They knew now that their masters withheld many spells from them, that there were sorcerers in other parts of the world whose powers developed without constraint, whereas their own were but crumbs from a Muatana-al’s table.

They would not have it.

They resolved to keep open eyes henceforth, and see what other deceptions they might uncover. Learning of these, they would reconvene time and again and share what they had learned. It was treason, they knew, but they were not loyal for loyalty’s sake. They respected power. And they saw now that there were powers in the world they had not known about.

As precursor to the invasion, they were all sent to lead raids on Aradathian shores with greater frequency. This time, gold, jewels, and women were not the only booty. They captured books and perused them, learning all they could. Intrigued by Sa, they investigated the Golden Dragon they had previously scorned. They saw true temples, and true priests performing true miracles. This too, they shared at their treasonous council, to which they added new members.

They broke the highest Muldavian law by teaching their art to apprentices, young San of talent who felt as they did. As their numbers grew into the dozens, and their hidden powers doubled, a true order of mages formed. Centuries later, when the Rebellion became widespread, they came to be known as the Sirulinae (“Founders” in the Sanene tongue).

That is all I can say with absolute certainty. Here accounts become very confused and I am forced to draw upon sources that are more mythic than historical. How the rebellion grew from a few disgruntled mages to hundreds and then thousands of San in a few short years is unknown. The Sirulinae remained very secretive and left no records for others to find, and the average rebel warrior was still very much predisposed to think of things in pseudo-religious terms. Thus, myths are all I have.

Supposedly, it began as a set of sudden assassinations. “Wielding powers unseen in any but the Gods themselves, the Liberators pierced the Lords’ veils of deception. One among these took their very lives, removing their black hearts from their bodies and feasting on them –“ etc. etc. This one San that could defeat the Muatana-al in combat is referred to again and again. It may have been a single San, the strongest of the Sirulinae, or it may have been simply the messianic figure that accompanies any new belief system. The account of Chalfas confirms, at least, that the rebellion was initially forged from the deaths of several Muatana-al and the chaos that ensued.

The other great mystery of this time period is why the Overlords and their vassals did not immediately crush these uprisings. After all, this was the first time any Muatana-al was killed in combat in a long time. Their wars were supposed to be games where only San Elves ever died. Furthermore, they would have wished to prevent the spread of “the plague,” as they called it, by any means necessary. The fact that they canceled their invasion plans of Aradath shows that they took the insurrections seriously.

Once again, the only answer is pure myth. The Sirulinae had discovered new magick deadly to the Muatana-al and their servants, magicks that supposedly protect the rebels to the present day. I personally doubt this myth. There is some evidence to support that such spells may have eventually been created, but it is preposterous that all this was devised in the very beginning. Every other record seems to suggest that the knowledge of the Sirulinae grew gradually, mage messiah or no.

The true answer, I think, has to do with the Muatana-al themselves. The same reason they dragged their feet where it came to the invasion of Aradath is the reason they did not immediately deal with the rebels. Crushing the rebellion would have taken considerable resources. Conversion was impossible. The rebel San no longer believed in the Muatana-al. Many began to learn the ways of magick and dedicate to the Frontacian God Sa. Genocide was seen as the only answer to "the plague," and no Muatana-al wished to expend that many resources exterminating a third party while his immediate rival took the advantage. Furthermore, with the deaths of some of their brethren, the balance of power had shifted substantially: there were new unclaimed lands to fight over, scattered armies and forts to consolidate, and they thus had a lot of catching up to do with each other.

~~The Exodus~~

“For centuries, our dark cousins had been but a nuisance, something we oft spoke of and scorned, but few of us had ever seen. There were occasional raids, but we always defended our homes with great success. The blessings of the Lady of the Forest protected us, we knew.

“Little did we know that our freedom was truly a result of our cousins’ enslavement, for their dark masters had them in check, kept them off our lands. But the darkness and fury in our cousins’ hearts could not be contained. We could have told the Muatana-al this, and saved them much trouble. Now they are free, free to rampage across our lands, that is.

“We have fought them, and we have lost. Our beautiful home is destroyed now. There is nothing left to fight over and we must leave. So much death. Ancient trees. Ancient Elves. They have endured through many a storm and many an evil. A mindless lust for destruction undid them in the end.

“We leave this dead forest to them. I hope it becomes their tomb, for it shall not be ours.”

-From the Scrolls of Voranthias, Ranger of Elindale

No San Elf who does not serve a Muatana-al has any love for that race, but not all seek vengeance, nor care in the slightest about who possesses the island of Muldavia. In fact, before the Rebels could form themselves into any sort of cohesive force, thousands of Sanene took the quickest and easiest road: they fled to Aradath.

They had gathered enough riches from the remains of their dead masters’ domains to bribe their way off the island. Their absence was not particularly noticed on Muldavia, but on Aradath, this Exodus had a profound impact. The continent had up to this point been happily San-free. No longer.

The ancient hatred between San and Fir Elves began when the former encroached on the territory of the latter. It is not clear what precisely drew them to the wood elves. After all, San Elves prefer cities of cold stone and onyx. If they cannot have that, they opt for caves and underground tunnels. Forests would be a distant third choice.

Most likely, they simply wanted what the Fir Elves had, whatever that was. Imagine a boy who is gifted a toy sword. His brother is given a violin, and is happier with that than the boy himself is with the sword. He does not particularly want the violin, would never make the effort to learn to play it, but he jealously takes it, if only to smash it. Such was likely the mindset of the Sanene when they forced the Fir Elves out of their original homeland.

After this war, which sparked a hatred that endures to this day, no cohesive group remained of the Sanene that arrived on Aradath. They scattered, pursuing individual ambitions. Aradath became a much more chaotic place, and the mischief that these Elves wrought has sullied the reputation of all honest Sanene for all time.

Somewhere along the line, enough males found their way to females for future generations of San Elves to be born. Like all Elves, they disapproved of thinning the blood with other races and remained, for the most part, pure. Even so, those Half-Elves who do exist almost certainly arose from them, as there are none on Muldavia that I have ever seen or heard of.

The future generations learned little to nothing of their ancestral homeland from their parents. They adopted traits of whatever cultures they lived near, and today there is a marked difference between Muldavian and Aradathian San. In fact, nearly all of the San who walk on Aradath and cause mischief there are native Aradathians, for travel to and from Muldavia is still very difficult and dangerous. San Elves have become a fact of life here, like bad weather. They are a diverse group, the members of which could hold loyalty to anything, or to nothing. In that sense, they are much like Humans, yet something in the blood leaves them predisposed to chaos.

~~The Clans are Born~~

“Before I was allowed to see the Clanmaster, I was shown, without much subtlety, the heads of all those who had challenged him for his position. I counted twenty-three. My guide told me, with a sigh of regret, that they have been waiting for a twenty-fourth for a terribly long time.

“When I did finally see him, I was forced to kneel before him as if he were some sort of Lord, yet his court, if that’s what he called it, was run-down and looked more like a refuge. In fact, it looked like one of the places we stowed illegal goods so the authorities wouldn’t find them.

“The trade deal did not quite work out, mostly because he demanded that we trade with no other Clan. This would have been fine with me if he had paid for an exclusivity contract, but all he offered was a death threat. I was also made to shed my own blood as part of the signing, repeatedly, and I don’t heal quite so fast. So we signed, but I won’t be coming back to this godforsaken place. No wonder no one comes here.

“Well anyhow, It isn’t as if they can follow me home.”

-Diary of Zaithan, Aradathian San Elf Merchant of Set (of “invisible blockade” scam fame)

Those who remained on Muldavia were the ones determined to fight the Muatana-al for their homeland, or at least to carve out a piece of it for themselves. Few San could survive on their own for long in such a harsh place, so they banded together into communities. Eventually, two types of communities evolved: the Clans, and the nomadic tribes.

The nomadic tribes exist to this day, and are much like the “Wild Elves” of yore, though with a darker and more unforgiving bent. They have adapted to their environment, whether it be plains, forests, wetlands, or desert. Their hatred for the Muatana-al is fiercer than anyone’s, and they raid trade caravans and patrol troops constantly. Do not mistake them for barbarians however, for all Elves have a certain amount of sophistication, even Firs. Their traditions are ancient and they understand the ways of civilisation. They keep what records they can and they follow real religions. They have simply chosen a lifestyle more suited to those who are hunted, for they knew that the Muatana-al needed only to turn their gaze to them to destroy them.

Even now, when the Muatana-al are considerably weaker and the Clans stronger, the tribes do not change their ways. They look upon the Clans as decadent, serving no purpose but the personal ambitions of their Clanmasters. They believe the Clans have deviated from the plans of the Sirulinae, and stand for nothing.

The Clans themselves vary in number from decade to decade, much like the Muatana-al fiefdoms themselves, as their leaders rise and fall. However, there are usually about twelve and that number has not grown significantly since ancient times. The Sirulinae, at first easily identifiable as former Executors to Muatana-al Lords, were initially heavily involved in the formation and survival of the Clans. Each of the first Clanmasters was a member of this budding mage order, and according to a plan they had decided on in one of their first secret meetings, they led what Sanene factions they could to safety, and to a new life of rebellion.

Later came the Burning Wars, which I shall describe in more detail in the next portion of this account, and in these conflicts many parts of the magickal cloud-cover, which for millennia had blanketed all of the continent, were dispelled and destroyed. New environments were formed in which the Muatana-al had little chance of survival, including a central region which today is nothing but desert.

It was in places such as these, with relative safety from Muatana-al armies, that the Clans were established. At first little more than refuges, with some tenacity and ingenuity, they preyed on parts of the Empire left vulnerable in the confusion and built up their strength, becoming city-states in their own right. For a number of generations, the Clans followed only descendants of the Sirulinae who led them, and six of the present Clanmasters still claim descent (for the most part legitimately) from one of these. Also for these formative generations, they all responded to one who was deemed the leader of the rebellion, and given the honoured title “Sirulin” (“Founder.”) This was the closest the rebels had ever come to an actual King.

Centuries later, upon the conclusion of the Burning Wars, the Clans had established themselves as seemingly permanent features of Muldavia. Though their very existence was constantly threatened, they had become powerful enough to defend themselves from invasion. A unified effort by the Lords could still extinguish the rebellion, but they, for the most part, continue to play power games with each other as if the rebellion had never happened.

Unfortunately, by this time, the Sirulinae had all but withdrawn their support for the Clans. Even though their descendants continued to rule as if they were noble families, the relation was distant. Only younger siblings, cousins and such assumed power. The elder and more powerful mages withdrew into the Order, which by now had become so secretive that many doubted it still existed. By the time the Burning Wars receded into history, and on Aradath the Frontacian Empire was collapsing, no Clanmaster even knew how to contact the Sirulinae anymore.

No explanation for the withdrawal was ever found, except a general observation that the Sirulinae, as their name suggests, seemed far more interested in creating the Clans and making sure they could survive, than in actually ruling them afterwards. I can say for certain that the Order does still, in fact, exist, but they are as reclusive as Imperial Dragons and about as appreciative of visitors.

The last great change that would come upon the Clans, before we are more or less brought up to date, happened after the Frontacian Empire collapsed. On Aradath, with most fuedal ties broken, the only things that kept civilisation from disintegrating altogether were the Saian Regencies, who attempted, mostly successfully, to assume theocratic control of former Frontacian Provinces. However, the lack of central control led to the emergence and growth of five other major religions, previously only regarded as cults. This was the birth, with the exception of Unknown, of the modern Pantheon.

The Taathian faith quickly took hold among the Clans, and for a long time it was more popular on Muldavia than it was on Aradath. Taathian zealots quickly came into conflict with the more traditional Saian leadership. The religious wars continued for several centuries until both sides came to realise they were weakening the rebellion in the same way the Muatana-al had been weakening their empire. Large conflicts came to an end, but the Clans were never again truly united, and continue to raid each other whenever it becomes convenient to do so.

In the end, a number of Clans abandoned the old dynasties and became openly Taathian, with leaders who ruled until stronger leaders killed them. Other Clans tried to maintain the old bloodlines, though they had thinned considerably, yet even they have large Taathian minorities. Setites never became as common as they are on Aradath, but there are of course stories of them slinking about. The original Sirulin bloodline is gone, but even if it were not, the Clans are now as divided as the Muatana-al Lords themselves are, banding together only occasionally.

Beyond the geographic, political, and religious changes, however, many other things were taking place -- some in the shadows, known only to scholars of hidden forces behind history such as myself -- some right in the open, as a new culture and new civilisation were being born.

Next Issue: “The Burning Wars, the Mystery of the Sirulinae, and the New Sanene Civilisation”

Remembering Regent Bloodbaine. Page 8

Remembering Regent Bloodbaine
by Weldoian Sesca

Slightly more then a month ago, a service was held for the former Saian Regent, Anvil Bloodbaine. He had died protecting a temple of Sa from a webhold of Arachnians. The service was held in Emjedah, in the Saian Temple.

In life, Anvil accomplished many things. He quickly advanced through the ranks of the Saian temple, eventually wielding one of Sa's most holiest of relics, the Black Sword Morinod circa 306 AC. He then became Regent of temple, succeeding Regent Kyrinne Woodmyst circa 310 AC. Using his influence as Saian Regent, he was a core contributor in the erection of the Emjedahan Saian Temple. He also helped with the eventual emancipation of the Emjedahan slaves. He was also rumored to help, or be in connection to, the attack on the city-state of Treehaven that eventually lead to the burning of said city-state.

The service was attended by Renalk, Scruple, Gossamer, Melraath, Noffbrau, Korlit, Panick, Railt, myself, Lillian, and Ward. Most everyone in attendance had a kind word to offer that brought smiles to many faces as they remembered their fallen friend and leader.

After testimonials, Sa revealed His presence in the temple and proceeded to use the Regent's delicately sculpted gold rose shaped ring to restore His altar.

In closing, I'd like to say what I wasn't able to say then. Anvil was a dear friend of mine. I had known him for many years and never once doubted his faith to Sa. He was a devoted Cleric, and when he received Morinod, it didn't surprise me in the least. However, I never quite realized how strong the chaos raged within him. He was always so helpful and cooperative with Regent Woodmyst, as far as I knew. It wasn't until shortly before he became Regent that I realized just how strongly he felt about chaos. Yet, I was comforted in the knowledge of how devoted he was to Sa. Anvil was a stubborn man. He never admitted his mistakes...I don't think he even consider what he did mistakes. He was sure that everything he did was what Sa wanted, and he never strayed from the path he had laid out. For those who did not know him as long as I, it is surely easy to condemn for his actions; rumored or otherwise. He unwaveringly showed to everyone, Saians and non-Saian alike, that Sa was not concerned with ethics or morals. And he did so without ever backing down. In his later days as Regent, him and I exchanged many words. In all of those exchanges, I got the distinct impression that I was the only party who cared about appeasing the masses. But even so, there was the overwhelming feeling that he was doing it all for Sa. It was almost certain that in these exchanges we would erupt in an argument. He would question my validity as Sage, I would question his devotion to Sa. Each of us exchanged insults, yet at the end of each of such exchanges, neither of us would be terribly offended. There existed between us a mutual respect, as both individuals and Saians. While I sometimes cursed him for being a Chaotic Hithual, as I'm sure he sometimes cursed me for being an Orderly Secian, I never once believed that he was a blasphemer in anyway. What he did, however strange or terrible, was always with Sa in mind. This world has lost one of it's best. May haps we all see Anvil again, in some near or distant future. I hope we do. Until then, may he dance on the rainbows of the heavens.

SA Bless, Anvil. SA bless.

The Revival of Asherak. Page 9

The Revival of Asherak
by Weldoian Sesca

Roughly two weeks, the ancient ArchMage Asherak was return to the realm of the living. As most Spurians know, images of this ancient Mage had began periodically popping up several weeks prior. Each time it appeared, the image delivered cryptic messages; all of them alluding to the eventual worship of the name "Asherak." Following these messages, what started out as a small groups of tin golems would appear. Such continued until slightly under a month ago, when Asherak possessed Padraig the Secian by way of runes. Luckily, Padraig was attending a gathering of Secians, who were able to quickly break Asherak's hold on Padraig. Before leaving, however, Asherak managed to say:

"Soon this tree will be buried beneath the ruins of my coming, each of you slaves of the armies of eternity which rise from the depths of Aradath to serve my bidding and wipe the civilized races from its rotten core. With every passing moment my spells grow in power, even now the creatures of the most distant lands of this world grow with my magicks, soon enough they will strike at the hearts of your civilization. Those who do not swear loyalty at the throne of Asherak will be destroyed, tell all you know, my coming has been prophesized, my return is eminent, your failure is assured. You will believe soon enough, my powers can be seen already. Adventure to the dark corners of this world, if you dare."

At roughly the same time, hydras--sent by Asherak--invaded TSC. When the aforementioned Secians returned to TSC, Weldoian the Secian was reported to feel a sharp pain in his head, before discovering blood dripping from his ear. He reported that Asherak had warned that he intended "to return the land to the state in which it was before the plague of civilization came and tampered with the pure magick of it all. He said he would kill all remnants of civilization...every city and every race. Lastly, after all this, he would then kill himself." After dispatching the hydras, many Spurians gathered and headed out to find Asherak's Tower, located in the distant Tanga. Upon finding, and entering it, they were warned to leave the tower, for they were unwelcome. Not heeding this warning, the group pressed further inward. In response, Asherak casted a spell which translocated them all to the Termite Mounds.

For awhile after that, all was relatively quiet (as far as I know). And then, several days ago, the image of Asherak once again appeared in TSC. The following is an account of what happened by Phannah Zeni the Human, a main player in the unfolding drama.

"We were standing in the square with all the old geezers catching up on old times when the vision of Asherak appeared. Same as usual with all the threats and such. Then we were attacked by Hydras and executioners and the like. So, after we killed at the bad guys we went back to the square and Ward had found an orange crystal shard on one of the creatures. As we all sat around talking about it the shard shattered and a wisp of smoke came out of it. It streaked off toward Asherak's tower. So, being the smart bunch that we are, we decided to follow it. It was me and Dhameon and the geezers and Binx. so, we get to the tower and the voice of Asherak greets us there and tells us not to enter. He said that it would be too dangerous and one of us would suffer and it was out of his control. So, of course we didn't listen and since I am weak, I dropped back a step when we entered and that wisp of smoke followed me. After a few steps it went up my nose and I couldn't stop it. I felt strange, like all my emotion was draining away. Then a thin crystal shell covered me, Orange no less."

"I was turned into a Pentathian and I wasn't alone in my body anymore."

"He would speak through me, but I found that I could still talk and I still had all my emotions. I made Binx and the others bring me back to Spur to find help. Stanrar was here and I encouraged him to ask questions of Asherak. When that wasn't getting anywhere very fast I left to talk to him on my own. Asherak told me that he wanted to live his life. That he had been imprisoned in the shard when they released the unmagick so many years ago. He was the prime mage for that in Pentathia. He was betrayed by his brethren and he says that he doesn't know how he ended up in the shard. He said that if they found his real body that he could be magicked back into it without killing me. He said that they tricked him and that if they tried to put him back in a shard that he would kill me. So, Noffbrau said he knew where the body was and he went to go find it with Stanrar and the rest of us went up to the crystal tower and through the portal into Tanga to wait for Stanrar and company. Once they showed up, they suggested that we put Asherak back in the shard and then from there into his corpse. I guess Asherak wasn't paying attention because when they started casting he said that he had been betrayed again and then he left my body and I died. Before they started casting I promised Asherak that I would make them return his body to him and I told Stanrar that I had made this promise. So we took the body back to the sapphire bridge and Stanrar dashed over with it. Then Asherak came out and greeted us. I was returned to normal when he left my body and Noffbrau rezzed me."

So, with that, the ancient Penthanian Asherak was brought back to our realm of the living. Only a few days after this conversation, Asherak appeared in TSC, claiming to have come to repay a debt owed to the city of Spur. This debt was repaid, apparently, when Asherak translocated a rather silly young Draco, who kept talking about chickens and his wish to become one, to his Tower. The Mage claimed that he had fulfilled the Draco's wish, however this remains to be seen as the Draco has not been seen since as far as I know. With that, he mentioned a lingering debt to Ward the Leuian before he disappeared, likely back to his Tower.

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Re: Flerian bravery. Page 10

Flerian Bravery
by Rolend the Flerian

We had just returned from the frozen fort Hothgri. Rweq had a brand new mammoth spear and it was a bute! As we wandered into the square, still exhausted form our journey, we noticed a small gathering around the fountain in the square's center. We stopped by to chat with the folks around the square (except for that gross spider. Ewww!) not knowing all the while trouble was heading our way from above. Rweq was showing off his pretty new poker when all of a sudden a giant with wings came swooping down form the sky. It shot towards us like a bow from a tree elfs arrow. A massive ugly bluish blob of an arrow with wings! All of a sudden it stopped, twenty or so feet above us, its wings slowly, rhythmically flapping to sustain flight. It stared at us, Rweq and I, gross globs of gooey dragon drool dripping from its jaws.

Well I knew that look.

That's the look I get just before I dive into a fresh apple pie. Well I wasn't gonna be no apple pie! In an instant, faster then I could even ready my trusty poker, it swooped down at me! It's teeth gnashing like an angry lampry! It landed right before me. I tell ya it was fifteen feets high if it was an inch. It leaned toward me, drool dripping through its stiletto like teeth. It said one word.

"Lunch"

Lunch I thought! I don't think so. Unfortunately my arms and legs felt otherwise cause they wouldn't move. I thought it was all over when all of a sudden "WHOMP!" I thought for a minute a nearby Hithual struck an anvil with his forge hammer. I opened my eyes, expecting to see a row of drake teeth. What I saw instead was a look of surprise, terror, and rage on the face of the ugly blue bully. A small cut dripped with what I could only imagine was blood on the left side of its jaw. I glanced left and there was Rweq, spear in hand and a glare on his face.

"Leave flerians alone!", he yelled.

"Yeah!" I shouted and as fast as I could, I drew my poker and lunged, its tip biting into the shoulder of the beast. It reeled back, grasping it's shoulder with one claw and it's jaw with the other. Angrily, it's glare returned to the two of us as it leapt in the air and returned to flight.

Rweq and I cheered for we had beaten back the beast! Flerians weren't to be eaten! Our celebration, however, came to an end abruptly. Electricity, seemingly from nowhere bolted from the drakes wings and struck Rweq! Well if that hurt half as much as it looked then I knew Rweq needed some help. Fortunately for the both of us, Master Set grants me the ability to do just that! Another bolt of electricity flew from the sky, striking Rweq as I began casting my magick blue healing glow! I began casting as fast as I could, which unfortunately for the both of us was not very quickly.

As I focused my healing glows on Rweq, I noticed something behind the fountain. It looked like a large greenish worm and it occasionally twitched back and forth. I pointed it out to Rweq and just as he looked over, another huge snot green drake jumped from behind the fountain! It was the snot dragon's tail! It lunged at Rweq and I and swung two massive claws at Rweq. The daggers attached to his hands sunk into Rweq with a gross squishy sound. Just as the drake removed its claws from Rweq's left arm, foam began to gather at the corners of my friend's mouth. His eyes began to turn a bright shade of red. He began breathing very heavily as he stared at the snot drake.

I knew this look. This was the look Rweq, and those who fought like him, got when they got mad. Mostly, bad things happen when people get this look. I took one look at the snot drake, one at the giant bluish drake, and one at my foaming friend Rweq and dove right behind the fountain! I heard the clang and clash of poker on scale and claw on armor.

"Wait a minute!" I thought, "That's my friend out there! I've gotta help!" I jumped from behind the fountain and dove towards Rweq. Fearing the drakes claws and Rweq's wild swings, I jumped behind Rweq and began healing him with blue glows once again. Rweq was beating the snot drake good. He had little poker holes all over him. Rweq also wasn't looking too good at that point. Both the bully drakes were beating him up and I couldn't heal fast enough to buy Rweq enough time. Rweq fell over, all bloody and foam dripping from his mouth. Rweq went to visit his god then. I felt bad for my friend and angry at the drake bullies. I pulled out my whale bone poker and dove at the snot drake. I swung and swung as fast as I could! They started beating me up real good. I couldn't beat em so I ran off to heal all my ouchies.

I'm gonna get those drake bullies one day!

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