A Dragon....

[LordCove]

A young Druid packs some things into a pack, and then settles to a table, painstakingly writing and sending letters to various people of reknown ... even those he isn't exactly on good terms with.

Once done, a man in a brown coat looks down at him and the pile of letters, and just nods with a roll of his eyes.
" Yer an idiot. Simple as that. Delve into this an it'll just end up bad for ya son. But.... " he sighs and shrugs....
... " If ya want.. I'll tell ya all I know. Not that it'll do ya much good... but it might."

Event: http://forums.layonara.com/calendar.php?do=getinfo&e=14452&day=2009-11-11&c=3


Trouble looks up and smiles a little.
"Thanks pops. Pretty sure some folks will be glad to hear it all... but... can't talk me outta it. I gotta go... if only to stop the bloody niggling in my head."

Event: http://forums.layonara.com/calendar.php?do=getinfo&e=14442&day=2009-11-17&c=3

[Script Wrecked]

[INDENT]*he gets up slowly and dusts off his cloak* "I am Ruben Wintersby and a scholar. It seems years ago that I last visited the Great Library, however, due to various reasons. Back in the day, my focus was Sinthar Bloodstone, the Council of Seven, and the banishment of Sinthar. Today, my focus has shifted somewhat and I have come here to listen and give advice... perhaps.

"My question was, how did it all begin?

"I just arrived. Not only here at this meeting, but from a trip to Kuhl. There I learned a thing or two, but it has been difficult to discover how the threat emerged. I believe that something lies at the heart of this matter that must not be ignored. Armies fight battles and it will likely take battles to turn away this enemy, but can the enemy be defeated in a battle of armies?

"I have not the answer, but I state the question. What is the heart of this green dragon cult as you call it? And what is it's head?

"For the sake of clarity I believe it would be well to start at the beginning and quickly move to where we are now. Perhaps one could start and others take over if he or she lacks information.  

"What I would like to do, for the benefit of those who are new to this, is to make a quick outline of what I have picked out over the years. Is that okay with you all?

"Alright then. Mind you, I was occupied with other matters when the green dragon cult emerged, so I may not have things right - nor do I know all there is to it.

"I remember hearing rumours about dragons emerging after the ultimate fall of Sinthar Bloodstone. Dragons seem to have hidden here and elsewhere in order to survive the centuries. They were elusive, however, and few could claim to have actually seen any.

"Then, however, rumours arrived of people who hunted these mighty creatures. Hunting dragons! I believed the rumours to be false... or the dragon hunters to be short-lived. But then the disaster of Leringard took place and most knew that something was amiss.

"A white dragon from Krashin came down upon the city and laid waste to much of it. It left a message. The message claimed that heroes of Mistone had broken an alliance with dragons... with Fisterion among them. The destruction of Leringard was payback for that.

"During the war against Bloodstone, heroes strived to form sort of an alliance with the last remaining dragons - against Bloodstone. The alliance was costly and paid for in blood and gold. Much can be said about the devious minds and trickery of dragons, but they staid true to their word as far as I know.

"Anyway. Leringard was rebuilt.

"The green dragon cult were active, however, and must have taken down several dragons over the years. How and when I do not know. *he sighs*

"The next I know is that Orn's Tear was stolen from Fisterion. A lucindite was involved in the plot and I believe that the group of adventurers who stole the artifact were tricked. The Tear made it's way to the green dragon cult instead of to the forces that fought them. Needless to say Fisterion was enraged and this could have blown up into a war of immense proportions.

"In the end though, the Tear of Orn was returned to Fisterion and the balance restored. The balance here meaning the two Tears - of Orn and Ausir - held by the two strongest dragons on Layonara. One being Fisterion and the other being Shadrixkayl of the Deep.

"Then unrest started on Belinara. Leaders and lords of Phal and Tammil disappeared and were replaced. Others followed and soon there was fighting in the streets. Warriors seemingly belonging to the green dragon cult were attacking the cities.

"At first not obvious. Phal's new Lord presented the city with a draconic guardian - Bastion!  The dragon seems to have behaved like a watchdog for the Lord of Phal and there were actually festivities where the beast landed on the market square to be fed by the children and they could ride it's back. All very very uncharacteristic for a dragon.

"Anyhow... soon war was a fact in the Kingdom of Kuhl and Westgate fell. It fell to the forces of the cult and the might of an enormous red dragon. Kuhl was in the hands of the green dragon cult. Queen Alise Langovale seems to have fled in due time and escaped with her life. Hope remains. I have not had time to research the beast that broke the walls of Westgate. It must have been immense though. The city was strong.

"The green dragon cult let things cool down in the Kingdom of Kuhl, lowered or removed taxes on trade, arranged festivals to lighten the mood and soon peace was restored. Peace enforced by the iron grip of the Drach Garra.

"Other things have happened since then. Some here on Mistone as Argali told you about. Therefore I would like to hand the rest on to someone else. Please feel free to add to the tale, for I have very likely left out a lot along the way."[/INDENT]

[Script Wrecked]

[INDENT]"I saw a man become part dragon once. Jennara and I had taken a poison to North Point. A priest there opened the bottle and cautiously smelled the brew. A cat in the room was somehow contaminated too. Both began to change.

"The man became extremely strong and his skin changed to scales. He didn't change entirely, but as well as I can remember, he looked like the drachs(1) I have seen, a winged part-man. It seemed to drive him mad, and he was extremely powerful. The clerics chained him, and tried to help, but a band of men attacked and carried him off.

"The cat died, and I don't know what happened to the body.  The priests at North Point might know.

"That poison seemed to do the trick, whatever it was.  As I remember, the liquid was scraped from the scales and wounds of a dying dragon. We had only a tiny amount of it.

"They didn't develop the poison, they rediscovered it. The poison was developed long ago, when dragons ruled and then fought each other. Again, Jennara would be more sure of the facts than I.  She found an ancient storeroom. In it were scrolls that seemed to describe the poison, and later she found what seemed to be a ruined temple with further lamentations on the evils of using it.

"I think that the Rofirein temple is protecting what she found.  It might be possible to look at the things. No, the poison we found came from a diseased or poisoned dragon.

"Xora was also working on a cure, and Jennara gave her a sample of the poison. Perhaps we should find out if she's made progress?" [/INDENT]



(1) "You say 'Drachs'. Drachs or Drach Garra is the name of the Cult's army. What I mean are the winged half dragons." ~Ruben Wintersby

[Script Wrecked]

[INDENT]"Beforre we go furrtherr, it zhould be known that Misterr Ruben iz not the 'merre' scholarr. He iz possessed of cerrtain... abilities. He iz verry much involved in the historry of Layonarra. In zerrtain key battles.

"The miszing Bastion iz the latest development. The most recent event beforre that was the Path of the Claw. Zis iz wherre Misterr Ruben firrst makes himzelf known to Argali. The Path of the Claw iz the... magical path... with zome rewarrd of powerr at the end... if you arre zurrvivng to the end. The Path was opened recently. By the Cult. It lurred the shape zhifterrs to it. Like the ziren's call. Misterr Ruben alerrted us to zis, and the Cults involvement.

"It would zeem one was the diverrzion(1) forr the otherr.

"Unforrtunately, we werre unable to ztop the Cult frrom walking the Path of the Claw. Zeverral of us enterred the Path, but what actually happened to them while on the Path iz... unclearr.

"One of the Cult enterred the Path. It was not clearr what happened to him... until recently. We believe the individual known as Molvarren(2) may have zuccessfully walked the Path, perrhaps to the end. Molvarren iz the memberr of the Cult. He was beneficiary of the theft of the Tearr frrom Fisterron. He was last zeen slipping into the Lampil Sea off Krrandorr."

"I am sorry, perhaps this was said, why do we suspect that man was Malvoren?"

"Because Molvarren went missing afterr the incident underr the Hammerrbounds. It iz the aszumption, he did not tell us his name. And when she says miszing, she means that the forrces of the Cult, who werre on Mistone at the time, did not know of his locale.

"Perrhaps the Ruben can best descrribe what powerr iz had frrom walking the Path."

*Ruben shoots a quick glare at Argali, followed by a resigned nod* "IF he succeeded, he will eventually gain complete control over his body. He will be able to slow his heartbeat or stop it, the same goes for his breathing. Other benefits are increased strength, quickness and regenerative effects. He is difficult to catch and difficult to kill. He will be able to shapechange into some other form of being... I believe. And his bodycontrol will enable him to perform incredible acts of physical prowess, such as focusing most of his strength into a blow or kick, standing on one finger... etc.

"Oh no, he can be defeated! But it will be harder than before. Remember that Tuhral Araljan fell in the end."

"Tuhrral Arraljan made the Path.

"The Shadrixkayl zays the Cult use the powerr of the Fezrekthania and the Bloodpool to be crreating the half drragons.

"Therre may be anotherr. He was interested in who opened the Path. Zo interested, he laid siege to Brrenuth to find out. The Ractrafieroz."[/INDENT]



(1) refering to the attack on Fort Hurix by the Drach Garra army
(2) spelt: Molvaren

[Script Wrecked]

[INDENT]"The name of the Lucindite .. Arwal Dumoin. Or rather the Lucindite who was not a Lucindite.

"The shadow in the deep, Shadrixkayl, the Deepening Dark. The red on Molten Island, Fisterion the Red. The white on the ice isle, I assume you mean Snow Tooth? Or... what is his draconic name? Knad'radoniad. The blue and the black... do you mean the Long Storm and the Black Plague? Yzyartkadrania and... Drez'zlunkhazhn?

"The Drach Garra, it means 'Dragon's Claw', by the way, are the army, and well known. They fight the wars, patrol the borders, the roads, the cities. The Drach Tesak, 'Dragon's Fang', are the secret network. They are the... the secret police. The special forces. The assassins. The ones with skills beyond those of the common soldiers of the army. They are headed by Cyn Chen.

"Even in Phal when she was there, the locals did not like to speak of her, and were hushed if they did so. No one asks questions about the Drach Tesak.

"In any case, I would start with what befell the dragon. I heard an odd rumor... it was after others had left by sea. I went by land, to speak to the villagers to the south. They spoke of a fire in the sky, something that made them afraid that the end of the world had arrived. The farmer I spoke with thought all the stars in the heavens were coming down that night. He was vague on a date, but it could be around the same time Bastion disappeared from public view.

"Bastion has been used to keep that city calm and happy for many years now. The denizens are disappointed their dragon is so conspicuously absent. I do not think that Nevsonger would keep him out of the public eye so long without good cause, which leads me to think something may have happened, especially since Cyn Chen was summoned to the city to deal with whatever it was, and the city was placed under a stricter lockdown.

"Forgive me, I take much of this for granted these days... Arbos Nevsonger is the Lord of Phal. They are regents of sort, acting under the queen, or so it was in the past. Kolban Lastyn was Lord of Phal before him, and was very well liked and went missing under suspicious circumstances. Foul play was suspected but could not be proven. Alise Langovale, who was queen at the time, appointed his advisor, Arbos. He had a shady reputation even then. He was one of the first I suspected of being part of the Cult. Oh, I think he is a full participant. Phal has long seemed an epicenter of sorts.

"Does anyone know if it is true that Molvaren was a former captain in Bloodstone's army? That would explain how he got his hands on the Broken One, actually... And perhaps the bloodpool as well... The Broken One is the common name for the dragon known as Fezrekthania. Someone told me long ago that Molvaren was a captain in Bloodstone's army once. And that his journal, which was found with the Tear, held information on how he had created the poison from the Broken One and the bloodwell.

"We suspect Molvaren was the one to walk the Path. We know he has returned to seek Cyn Chen. We know Cyn Chen was last in Phal, and that something big happened there. That Bastion is missing, and they speak of a fire in the sky."[/INDENT]

[Script Wrecked]

[INDENT]"It is important to know those involved. If Fisterion will involve himself, I believe he would stand against the green dragon cult. No King of Dragons would allow a group of humanoids to poison and control dragon-kin.

"The Broken One was slain by Sinthar Bloodstone years ago, Argali. The corpse was reported to have been taken away by Bloodstone. How can it be involved?

"Interesting... and seriously troubling. Immense power is needed to meddle with the astral locks that hold our forms. It should not be possible.

"For as long as the green dragon cult holds the poison, any dragons will be hesitant to move directly against them.  

"What about the other kingdoms of Belinara, Hilm for instance, do you know their stance? And what about the power of the Great Forest, and the Black Wizards? And the dwarves...

"There are the great dragons that did not go into hiding during the war against Bloodstone. The blue in the desert, the black of the swamp, the shadow of the Deep, the white of the ice isle and the red of the Molten Isle. Those I know of.

"To answer your question, master dwarf, I would focus my efforts to secure a cure, if there is one, and to find out where and how to apply it. With the cure you have leverage and others may flock to you.

"And I would consider alliances with others that oppose the green dragon cult. They cannot be that hard to find, all things considered.

"It depends on what has transpired there. Have they lost one of their beasts? Or has it been sent elsewhere? It would be good to know. Perhaps the poison wears off?

*he sighs* "So much to ponder... and so much to do. I thank you for letting me join you and I encourage you to continue, but alas, I must depart for the night. I bid you all a very fond farewell and good luck." *he dips in head and heads down* [/INDENT]

[LordCove]

* Trouble quickly arrives and adds, a little later than he planned. *

In quick answer to some above questions. Molvaren was supposedly an apprentice of some sorts of BloodStone, and a low ranking one as well.
This er... was apparently confirmed by Fisterion.
The essence of the Broken One is supposedly how the Cult is able to make these "half-breeds" of man and Dragon... though there is some rumour that they need to be "controlled"
Apparently my father reported an instance in Kuhl whereby a town was attacked by the Drachs.. who then became out of control and even turned on their own forces.

As for Bastion... it's believed he is dead... somewhere.
And where its body lays, it leaves a mark on the land the likes of which it's never seen, completely out of tune with the rest of the natural order.
We're not quite sure how as of yet, but I'm intending on taking a group of Druids to find it and hopefully... cleanse and learn from it.

[Serissa]

*Sala arrives in time to hear some of what was said.*
 
 Ferrit is mistaken. She's remembering bits of something I told her and bits of something else. I was with the group that went to North Point in Febra 1426. Clarissa and Jennara were there, as were Oma Limetree, Rain & Sonya Darsus and several others.
 
 The Aeridinite priestess, Wina told us that they were brought what was thought to be a poison or elixir to study.. Quantum brought it to their attention. Quantum and his friend mentioned something about the Brenuth and the Brech mountains.. and of a dragon... a sick one. The vial with the red liquid.was found nearby..He said there was another vial..
 
 In describing what happened, Wina said Brother Laethe, an accomplished alchemist.. took the vial for study. Brother Laethe's cat was the first to show signs of.. well, infection? A few days later Brother Laethe also became ill... no others have taken ill. They isolated him far from anyone. Their best clerics attempted to purge from his system, whatever it is, poison or sickness.. and.. Quantum himself visited several weeks earlier and attempted an exorcism and healings as well.. She explained that though he was ill, he had become very strong and had undergone many changes... His eye changed... covered in a disturbing blood red.. His skin became mostly green scaled and covered in an oily secretion.. Not long before our visit.. wings erupted from his shoulders. He screamed and tore at his room all night.
 
 On questioning, Wina said that the secretion was oily and sticky.. somewhat clear but with a dark tint.. Quantum also brought a vial of it from the dragon. We obtained a sample of the secretions of the afflicted priest. Wina told us that the cat's body was crated and put in stasis. It became very aggressive and feral.. even grew a few green scales and its claws and teeth.. It died rather suddenly.
 
 Tarmaren Silverfield told us that the vial container was mostly clear.. it had a brass colored lid with very good sealing.. The liquid within was thick and red.. and.. Quantum said it seemed to have a life of its own.. It would react to magic.. move on its own. It was a very caustic substance as well.
 
 In speaking with Tarmaren outside, Clarissa said that a goblin said something about dragon poison. He said he thought that the poison was made using a Blood Pool He seemed to be reporting first hand when Fisteion sent his messenger to meet with us. The messenger was interested in anything known about a group of people with tattoos of green dragons The goblin spoke up about poisons and a blood pool She said she had heard the same rumor from two directions and then the poison appeared, so.. She said these green dragon cult members possess great power and this could explain their sudden rise. She said that this cult seemed to be trying to control dragons rather than slay them for some reason They also seemed to possess the power to accelerate the growth of young dragons. Incidentally, she also reported at one point that the cultists were flying on a green dragon to go meet Snowtooth.
 
 We took the sample of the exudate to the temple of Az'atta in Audira. All that Priestess Senelia could tell us was that one test indicated something.. that was dead and decaying.. but.. this second result.. indicated a protective coating. When told that the poison had been used on a young dragon, Senelia said she had heard long ago of a dragon poison, ages past.. at a time when dragons ruled over Layonara... but.. it was legend anyway.. nothing remains of that knowledge.
 
 Clarissa wrote a falcon letter to Quantum asking about the other vial of poison. Jennara mentioned that there was at least one documented case of a young dragon becoming much larger over a short period of time, maddened, and covered with boils, and that the liquid might be related, though that was speculation.
 
 Senelia returned to North Point with us to examine the dead cat, hoping for more information on the poison. She reported that the body of the cat was changed in a number of ways... even scales.. the very essence of it permanently changed. She said it was not a poison as such. Further analysis required some of the 'poison'.. as it didn't seem to linger separate from the cat in its system anywhere..
 
 On our return to North Point, we found the priests all rendered unconscious with sleep darts and Brother Laethe missing. We were able to track and kill some of those responsible, and noted that their equipment bespoke a strong power base with great wealth. We did not find Laethe, but saw at least one woman escape by ship in Hurm. Clarissa mentioned then that Chanda was suspected of being closely in league with the cult.
 
 I don't know whether Quantum ever responded to Clarissa's letter about the other vial of poison in his possession.

[Lynn1020]

*Amanda looks over to Sala*

Is this the vial that Tegan mentioned?

[Skywatcher]

*Clarissa arrives late but in time to hear the recounting of her experience.*
 
 I did in fact hear from Quantum after those events and before his demise he turned over to myself and some companions a vial of the contaminated dragon blood and the vial of the sample he took from the priest.  I will confer with my companions and ensure that there are no issues with making the vials available for study by whoever would best be able to help in deriving a cure but I warn you that it is like she said.  The blood in the vials is alive in a way and is very dangerous to whoever might examine it.

[Script Wrecked]

As for Bastion... it's believed he is dead... somewhere.
And where its body lays, it leaves a mark on the land the likes of which it's never seen, completely out of tune with the rest of the natural order.
We're not quite sure how as of yet, but I'm intending on taking a group of Druids to find it and hopefully... cleanse and learn from it.

"Hmm..." Argali looks thoughtfully for quite a few moments.

"If what you zay iz trrue, Anmeyfca(1)... it iz zounding like the Drragon Poizon iz... perrhaps... conzuming the drragon afterr the perriod of time.

"Zis iz the zpeculation by Argali, you arre underrstanding... But if what she iz zaying iz correct, then the otherr Drragon Protectorrs of Kuhl could be about to zufferr the zimilarr fate.

"If zis iz correct, then it would mean two things. Firrstly, the Cult contrrolled Kingdom of Kuhl would be without theirr Drragon Protectorrs and in the incrreased state of vulnerrability. Zis would have consequences of its own, not least likely anotherr clamp down by the Drrach Garra(2). Zis time, though, they will be strretched morre thinly acrross the other zities.

"The zecond thing iz that the Cult will be hunting forr the new drrragons to be infecting, to replace those lost. Even if zis occurrence iz limited to the Bastion only, iz likely zis will occur anyway.

"Frrom the recent response by the Drrach Tesak(3) to the missing Bastion, it would be fairr to zay that zis development iz unexpected. Furrtherr, now that we know that they did not invent the Drragon Poizon, it iz unlikely that they would be in the pozition to be rectifying the poizon in any shorrt time frrame.

"If Argali's zpeculation iz correct, we may have the window of opporrtunity that we zhould be planning forr. What can we achieve should all the Drragon Protectorrs zuddenly die? How can we prrevent the Cult frrom locating and poizoning the new drragons?"



(1) elven: Trouble
(2) the Cult's army (not the winged half dragons)
(3) the Cult's secret police

[Serissa]

*Sala thinks a bit and says:*
 
 Galathea!  Galathea has the journal!  I remember now.  When we retrieved the Tear, she found pieces of a journal that marked Molvaren as a former captain of Sinthar Bloodstone.  Perhaps there was more to it than that!
 
 But I haven't seen her in at least five years....

[Serissa]

I sent a letter to Galathea and have received a reply.  She'll make the journey here to give one of us the journal, but cannot stay and help us.  I'm not sure whom she'll find on this brief visit, so everyone please be on the lookout for her.

[Xiaobeibi]

*Galathea receives a letter from Sala and digs out an old worn journal*

Hmm this should be an interesting read....

*She retires to her library and begins working through the journal, copying out the passages one at a time and annotating them. A fortnight later she pulls the cover of a battered old prayer book and wraps the journal in it, packs a few belongings and quietly slips out of the house.*