quote:

Mark of the Loremaster
Authored by Loremaster Sancak

(Page 1) Introduction
The Order of Loremasters has existed since time immemorial. It is through our actions that the world and its history will be remembered. As such, our Oath forbids us from purposely seeking fame and fortune.

We are the observers.

We are the recorders.

We are the keeper of the history that others make.

Above all, we should remain impartial.

If a Loremaster is pulled into an adventure, then another shall be called to record their deeds.

(Page 2) Chapter 1 - The Mark of the Loremaster
Every Loremaster is gifted with a Mark upon their graduation. This gift from the Avatars reveals the subject the new Loremaster is destined to record, though it may sometimes be open to interpretation.

Very rarely, the destiny of the Loremaster has changed, and with it, their Mark.

This can be both a blessing and curse as the Loremaster must cease recording or collecting the stories of their old home and seek out their new destiny, which could be fraught with danger or monotony. Only the will of the Avatars knows until the Loremaster can begin their writing.

Many Loremasters are secretive about the Mark they were gifted. Some even managing to carry the secret with them into Death. They believe that sharing the fated subject of their observations could have an effect on the story they're meant to capture.

(Page 3) Picture #1 / (Page 4) Picture #2 showing the Mark of the Loremasters

quote:

Dyana's Diary

(Page 1) I hate it here. I hate my family. Why couldn't I have been a Valorous? We're supposed to hate them because the dragons favored them and then Lord Valorous disappeared with their gift... I bet he went on an adventure! He went to save a town from the Night Knight Pugs Frydae or the Goddess Arkana! He's probably been trapped in a dungeon or under a spell for the last 400 years... one day he'll come back with the dragon's gift and I won't have to be afraid anymore. He'll save me and all the townspeople from my family and we'll go and stop the Drakaths, and the Frydae's, and the Darkspyre's. and the Duat's and all the fighting will finally be over....

(Page 2) Jaysun broke all my mixing bowls. Mother just looked at me with disappointment. How am I supposed to defend myself against him? I hate fighting. I hate hurting people. Jaysun loves it! "He's already broken three masks and he's two years younger than you!" I hate masks. I hate them! Mother and Father took us both down to the tomb so he could hang his masks and with every coffin we passed, Jaysun just bragged about how he would have even more broken masks than Great Great Great Grandma Ripley or ol' Grandpa Fredrick. It just creeps me out to go down there.....

(Page 3) Grandpa Walter said he would teach me about potions. If I can't fight with my fists, I can fight with my mind he said. "If you learn enough, you could be the 'danger"".

I don't want to be the danger... I want to be the one who bakes.

But maybe I can learn to make a potion to make Jaysun turn into a frog!

(Page 4) I took the last sweetroll and I made Jaysun mad... I didn't know he wanted it! I didn't mean to make him mad!

He took me to the center of the castle... to the old bricked up door... and he just put his hand on it and said he'd let it out. He'd let out the thing Great Grandma Ripley trapped and it would eat me.

I hate him.

(Page 5) I don't know why they even want me at war council meetings. I'd rather be baking or cleaning or painting or... anything! I guess Father still holds out hope that I'll discover my "inner warrior".

It's all just yelling back and forth. Jaysun wants to attack the Drakaths, the Duats, the Iadoas... just everyone! Mother and Father, for all their pride at his pile of broken masks, keep trying to advise caution... to get him to plan his attacks.

But Jaysun doesn't like to wait for his enemy to come to him.

(Page 6) Jaysun... he found something out in Deadlands.

It's a cape. Made of shadow.

He says it's made of his enemies souls. That with every soul he traps, he'll become even more powerful.

I'm scared for the Drakaths... for the Duats.... for the Darkspyres... for everyone.

(Page 7) Mother and Father are... gone. Jaysun was tried of waiting to take over and he... he devoured them.... I thought that his cape was going to take me too but... but he just laughed and I said that I was wasn't worth it... that he needed someone to bake his bread.

(Page 8) I remember what Grandpa Walter taught me. I remember the stories about Lord Valorous, I've heard about the bravery of Ash Alteon, of the horrors that Great Grandpa Ripley went through to take this castle and trap the evil inside it....

I can't... I can't kill him... but I can stop him. I can be brave... I can be the danger... I can stop Jaysun.

I have to.

(Page 9) Oh, by the Avatars... what's happened? How long have I been asleep for? A man in a hood pulled me from my tomb... My tomb!

There were shadowy figures around Jaysun's tomb... but all that was left was his mask surrounded by shadow. He should have been asleep! The potion worked on me.... Did... did his shadow cape devour him too?

The castle is in ruins... I managed to escape them and get to my room but... but whatever was trapped in center is out now. I can hear the screams....

They wanted me to show them the way out but they have the cape.... I can make a potion to forget.... then no one will ever find it. The Valtrith Clan will finally be buried.

quote:

The Wind Orb - Shadow of the Wind Village
Authored by Loremaster Hije

Introduction
Thyton, Jonin of the Shadow of the Wind Village on Sho'Nuff island is in search of a hero that will adventure for the glory of his ninja clan!

Chapter 1 - The Kessel Run
Thyton, leader of the Shadow of the Wind Clan, had need of a hero to help in the fight against the pirates of Sho'Nuff Island. The Kessel, a ship enchanted with wind magic to move faster than any other ship ever built, was built to break the pirate blockade and help the ninja village survive.

Chapter 2 - The Hunt Begins!
The ninjas of the Shadow of the Wind Village and the pirates of Osprey Cove were fighting over the Jewel of the Four Winds. The Jewel would give the bearer control over the winds and, thus, control over the sea! It lay hidden for ages in the Ruins of Kordana until it was stolen by the Prince Drakath.

The remains of an ancient mech and its AI, Kordana, revealed that the Jewel of the Four Winds was its power source and Orb of Wind. Kordana also warned that the power of the Wind Orb in the wrong hands... would be disastrous, and that Drakath was headed north.

Chapter 3 - Return the Scrolls
Drakath headed north, to the Lair of Okuchi No Okami, a devil fox and one of the oldest foes of the Shadow of the Wind Clan. Thyton tasked his hero with the recovery of the Wind Scrolls and the Jewel of the Four Winds.

Okuchi No Okami tried to bribe the hero with information about Prince Drakath but the hero refused to betray the Ninja Clan and, after a fierce battle, the devil fox was defeated and the Wind Scrolls safely returned to the village.

Chapter 4 - Walk Through Fire
Drakath lay hidden in the volcanic caves on the northern shore of the island while waiting for word from his master, Sepulchure. The Hero fought him for the Wind Orb but was defeated when Drakath managed to somehow unlock its elemental dragon power for a single, devastating attack. Before Drakath could finish of the hero, though, the power of the Wind Orb carried him away.

Chapter 5 - The Jewel of the Four Winds
The Wind Orb carried Prince Drakath to center of the Shadow of the Wind Village. The Sneenja army of Okuchi No Okami, led by the devil fox himself, was marching south towards the village. While Thyton led the villagers to safety, the hero needed to defend the home of their ninja clan.

Prince Drakath, unable to unlock the power of the Wind Orb, was soundly defeated and fled into the night, leaving the hero alone to face the devil fox who had stolen the Wind Orb from Drakath during his defeat. Okuchi No Okami was no match for the hero, though.

Chapter 6 - Honda's Accord
Honda, the Iron-Fisted Giant, was awakened with the power of the Wind Orb. Only the hero and their dragon could defeat the ancient guardian of the village and his iron fists!

The power of a DragonLord and their Dragon kept the Shadow of the Wind Village safe and recovered the power of the Wind Orb from the hands of evil.

quote:

The Shaking Kings

(Page 1) Long ago, before the Shattering and before the Dragons came from the West, this place went by the name of the Hard Mountains, for from Drakan's Shoulder to the Gates of the East Wind, there was nothing but mountains, hard tipped, brave faced, dotting this land of ours.

Then one day, there was a great sound from the South. The earth shook beneath our feet, shook the mountain tips, and then behold! A gap appeared in the Wall. The up to then unblemished and noble Kaer had been split opened just as a poor shield splitting before a tempered spear. None knew then the cause of this. None know now either.

But all agreed that this event forewarned the coming of the Shaking Kings.

(Page 2-3) Some claimed the gap let them through. Others said that the gap had no part and they simply had come down from the Kaer; that they had always lived in the high, inaccessible peaks of the Wall.

Whichever this was, it was clear that once they came, there could be no stopping them. Three full-grown men would not reach any one of them and they marched forward with unperturbed stride as identical warriors armoured and covered of hard steel plate. But all their armour, all that they were, was stone. Cold and grey, hard and dark. Like statues, living, moving, fighting and, most of all, shaking as the Shaking Kings shook down the foundation of everything that stood in their path.

This is how they would shake. First, they stopped, paused in their stride. Then they would hum or mutter strange words or some say sing in a manner only they could; one that prickled and rose the hair on the back of a warrior's neck. And then finally, they would stamp their feet, in unison, ten times.

~~~~~~

Tremo Tremis
Corporis omnis tremimur
Regibus venisti
Tremitum venisti
Regibus trementibus venies tremere

~~~~~~

Anything that had stood before them then would shake, crumble and fall.

And as they were as hard as stone, no arrow could pierce them. No sword or blade could stop them. Even when the Four Tribes put aside their differences to band together and fight against them, they had stood no better chance. Like the mountains that first trembled, then shook and finally crumbled down... the tribes trembled and dispersed before the earth-shaking feet of the Shaking Kings army.

(Page 4-5) They fled and were pushed back, more and more until the last remnants of their united forces stood together in a last stand at the Gates of the East Wind. But it was for no avail. The Shaking Kings came. The Shaking Kings paused. The Shakings Kings sung. The Shaking Kings stamped...

~~~~~~

Tremo Tremis
Corporis omnis tremimur
Regibus venisti
Tremitum venisti
Regibus trementibus venies tremere

~~~~~~

The Shaking Kings shook and crumbled down the mountain, crumbled down the Gates of the East Wind...

But as it fell, there was a sudden rush. A rush of Wind, a great gust of Wind, that blew from the East behind where the Gates had stood... And the Wind blew fiercely over the Shaking Kings, and strange dusty crusts, just as metal rusts, suddenly patched and covered the Shaking Kings' stone armour.

And the Kings fled in pandemonium. Where sharp axe or keep arrow could not even stir them, the howling wind of the East had sent them into an unbridled panic. They no longer stood, so stern, so calm, so unopposable, but instead in the most chaotic of fashions possible they ran all ways, forgetting their warriors' pride, forgetting their battles and simply sought by all means to escape the East Wind.

But as the Gates stood no more-and the mountains also-the wind had free reign to follow the Kings to every corner of the land that had been known as the Hard Mountains.

(Page 6-7) Try as they might, the wind caught up to every single one of them, rusting their stone armour and petrifying them in place...

This is how the wind overcame the Shaking Kings.

This was long ago. Now the wind blows and whispers everywhere in the Steppes. The Shaking Kings? The wind of the Steppes defaced them long ago... What remains of them are large, stalwart stones that stand on the forlorn plains and hills. The ones that have forgotten only call them the stones of the Steppes. The Stones of the Whispering Steppes.

~~~~~~

But listen carefully on the wind and you might just hear it whispering the strange thrum of the Shaking Kings also.

~~~~~~

Tremo Tremis
Corporis omnis tremimur
Regibus venisti
Tremitum venisti
Regibus trementibus venies tremere

quote:

The Spear of Lumina
-Lucis Veritatis

(Page 1)
For what common folk consider to be a long time ago, there used to be, on the cusp of the Ashes, south of Vale, a small village whose name has been forgotten. It was a village, as you might imagine any other might be like: blooming and breathing of small country life... that is until one terrible night. Lightning ripped through the sky, and the wind howled as the Blood Brotherhood raided and pillaged the town.

By the time the Knights of Lavan arrived, nothing remained of the village save for a smouldering, desiccated scenes of death and destruction, for the Blood Brotherhood spoke to their dark masters only through cries of the innocent and split blood. By the houses and window sills, the dead decorated the streets just as had the flowers only the morning before.

(Page 2)
All but two children had died. One, a sickly, pale-skinned boy with disheveled, black hair and russet eyes- Ephel was his name, and another a girl, who had amber eyes and yellow hair that shone like the sun: Lumina, she was thus named.

Now they were companions in their unfortunate misery.

The Knights brought them to the fort town of Lavan and, out of pity, and perhaps some shame from their failed duty, took them into their own care. Within a year, Ephel and Lumina could be found dashing through the halls of the fort and playing together, never leaving each other's side. On one day, they would be in the Library, and Ephel, older and wiser, would teach Lumina the alphabet, how to read and how to write. On another, they would be scolded by Nasim, the Knight Officer, having been caught sneaking around the Knight's training ground to play pretend fights with swords from the supply room.

(Page 3)
Lumina had not yet come of age before she entered the recruitment office of Knight Officer Nasim, an almost second father to her, and demanded with fierce determination to join the trainee knights while Ephel eschewed physical combat and kept to the books he loved as well as his frequent talks with the arcane masters of the fort.

Ephel eventually left Lavan and traveled the country as the Chascent Mage-meaning the Avenging One-so that his name was fear to those doing ill, and comfort to those ill-used. He was draped with a dark green cloak with black trimmed edges, and a staff of charred ash wood crowned with a dark emerald orb went with him wherever he went.

But Lumina on the other hand, struggled with her training.

(Page 4)
She had been born with a weak constitution, and the Lavan knights' style of shield and longsword was enduringly demanding to her, so much that one night in her room, she wept angrily and bitter tears as she had all but lost hope and confidence in herself.

"Brilliant child..."
(For her name was Lumina)
"Please... Do not despair..."

An Elemental of purest light appeared right before her, pulsing with warmth as much as brilliance. It hummed, one hand open before it:

"Strength can come from the heart... Let me show you."

A strand of light drew itself in the air and came down to Lumina. A long staff with a sharp blade... a brilliant, yellow sheen so that the weapon seemed to be made of pure gold, though it was far stronger and more keenly edged.

(Page 5)
"This... is yours..."

And it added triumphantly:

"The Spear of Lumina!"

Like the spear's keen edge, Lumina, with her spear, was a fearsome knight initiate. To the spear, swift and versatile, she also imbued her strikes with elemental Light like the warriors who use light-empowered abilities did: The Paladins.

Yet just as she had found her way, rumour followed that the Blood Brotherhood had been spotted in the land once again. Against warnings of Nasim, Lumina harnessed a horse and hurried off in pursuit. She came upon a fallen village, one that had suffered a similar fate to her own, and noticed the bloodshed was still fresh: by the time the Knights would come, the perpetrators would be long gone once again and free to pursue their crimes.

(Page 6)
She rushed northeast to the edge of the Ashes-where nightmares, on some nights, would still bring her.

The woods-the ones she had been lost in more than once as a child-seemed far less welcoming than in olden days. A cold breeze snaked through the hollow ash trunks, biting her cheeks and chilling the inner lining of her armour. Out of the corner of her eye, a twinkle fled. She deftly spun sidways, slinging the edge of her spear as she went, to slice through the bloody red bolt that had been shot her way.

Out of the depths of the forest, dark shapes of human-like forms crawled forwards and surrounded Lumina-men or women, she could not tell, for the long robes obscured too much of their likenesses-like the bolt before, she could see the red death smoking from their hands.

She had been cornered.

(Page 7)
She fought valiantly to keep the onslaught at bay. She was talented and courageous, but they were numerous and had ambushed her. A bolt grazed her left thigh and its debilitating magic robbed her leg of its strength as it did with anything else. She fell to one knee as the cloaked ones fell upon to her.

A green explosion tore through their midst and the blood robes were violently pushed back. A green mist surrounded Lumina, making her disappear in seconds. Lumina stood on her feet again, and to her side stood a man in the dark robes of a mage, with a black stub of hair on his chin, ash wood staff and a dark emerald orb. Ephel and Lumina had been reunited again- and now together they rushed into battle. They landed blows on the bringers of red death, swift and deadly, unable to be contained so that they overwhelmed and culled them until none but their leader lay before them, wounded by one of Lumina's previous strikes.

(Page 8)
Solemnly, Ephel intoned:

"Your following has been dealt with... Your murdering spree ends here!"

The Chief among the Dark returned a hateful gaze. He shoved one hand into his wound and brought it back before him crimson red. He muttered words whose very sounds were toxic to the ears and air so much so that the duo staggered back from the miasma. A nauseating, dangerously dark energy surrounded the evil one. But Ephel mustered his physical and mental fortitude and, slinging one last emerald bolt, struck him squarely in the neck. The wretched energy dispersed and he fell with empty eyes.

(Page 9)
But without warning, his corpse erupted in the same energy as before and large strands of it shot out, arcing, grabbing and seemingly pulling to itself the bodies of his fallen followers around him. Ephel raised his staff, intending to strike once more, but suddenly another strand, larger than the others before, rushed forth and wrapped Ephel in its grasp. Lumina desperately caught Ephel's hand and pulled... but it was too late. His hand was ripped out of hers and he disappeared into the mass.

There was a large bust in the clearning and Lumina was catapulted to the ground. Where the bodies had been taken and where Ephel has disappeared... there was a strange, floating being. A long, tattered cloak of a nauseating, dark green, with traces of black trim almost extended to the ground where no feet or legs laid.

(Page 10)
It had the upper half of a skeleton's body, a torso with a rib cage encapsulating a dark, pulsing sphere. And it had a half-decayed face: a rotten eyeball in the right socket of its skull and an empty, hollow void lingering in the left.

"I am..." it rasped with a dead, diseased voice, "I AM THE ARCHLICH NEPHELDEM... RULER OF THE WASTES! HAHAHIAAAAHEEEEUUUGH!!"[

But while the newborn Lich crowed and cackled frantically, Lumina's mind was elsewhere. Her eyes watered and stung...

"E... Ephel?"

A sad cast poisoned her gaze as a voice came from the Spear.

"Wake up, Child! That Lich may still be reveling in its own birth... but not for long!"

"What... what happened to Ephel..?"

(Page 11)
"I... I fear that he is lost."

The spirit of Light paused.

"...But you can yet still free his soul from the wretched body of that Lich."

"...How?"

"It possesses great magical abilities... but it is still vulnerable to direct attacks. Aim for the dark mass hidden away in its ribcage! That is the heart of the Lich!"

Woeful rage powered through Lumina's veins and the sheen of her golden hair redoubled in brilliance. With boiling wrath she bolted, light gathering round her spear, while the Lich still cackled and, in one great strike, plunged her spear into what she thought be the very center of the Lich's heart. There was a great flash...

(Page 12)
And when Lumina came to, she was alone in the midst of the cold twilight of the Ashes.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Lumina had then only been an initiate- while the Lich she had faced had indeed been strong. It is likely that the strike she dealt had connected, possibly even wounded the Lich, but it had sadly not killed it. Several stories tell that Lumina then followed on a long quest to slay the Lich that had robbed her of her closest friend, but from my father's word, those stories stop short of telling whether she succeded in the end or not. Whichever it is, time has remembered the wily girl paladin with gold hair and amber eyes wielding a fierce spear of Light: The Spear of Lumina.

Orphan to warriorness. Light in the dark. As told by my father, Turlough the Bard, before his passing. May the Light live long and the Paladins longer.

~Lucis Veritatis

quote:

Douglas Digg's Introduction to the Dwarf World

(Page 1)
Oi there! Name's Doug, Doug Digg, and in this book I'll be introducing anyone reading to the world of Dwarves a bit. (Least if this book ever gets off Warlic's shelves that is... he asked for a quick tome and I owe him.)

The first thing to know about Dwarves is that most of us hide below ground all our lives and never leave the quality welcome of Lore's rocky crust.

Why? Well, there's a few good reasons for that.

(Pages 2 and 3)
For one... we're fond of the inner crust of Lore as if it were our da! 'Far as we're concerned, that whooole part of Lore's our father. Can you guess who's our maw? Have a guess. It ain't too hard. Whatever you might think or see in Dwarves, we're all actually born of stone... well, gemstone to be exact, and one that's very special at that. Inside our da's stout body, you'll find special deposits of gemstones the kind most humans' never even seen, most made from mana.

They come in two varieties:
The first one's the ones Gnomes use for their fancy machines 'cause they slowly release mana that's more stable and easier tae turn into energy or use for items... at least mostly. I hear mages don't like to use 'em 'cept for objects because they can't shoogle lots of mana out of 'em all at once like one of those Nexus things... but hey, I'm not in the magic business: you be better askin' Warlic bout that part.

We mostly refer tae these as dead gems: they're just stable mineral mana. Nothin' much else to them.

(Pages 4 and 5)
The second kind's very special to us. Comes in different grades and rarity: Rubite, Tourmerite, Sapphirite, Garrite, Ephrite, Ophrum, Berylum... you name it.

We call 'em bairngems since that's where our wee bairns come from. Although you have all kinds of bairngems, there's one that comes above all the rest: Manachite, the rarest and post precious. Manachite's also referred to as the King's gem 'cause it's the bairngem from which Dwarf Kings are born. Sometimes Heroes too.

How are they born you'll ask?

Well, the Seers would say that way, waaay back we'd have a belter of a way to just aff and out of these gems, but you know I wouldn't be able to tell you much about that.

Better to find a dusty book or have a craic with a Seer to explain that one to ya.

(Pages 6 and 7)
Nowadays, we do have to go through a special process: there's a certain magic ritual we have to accomplish and we have tae take care of each bairngem in the Kinderhöhle, but I'm not telling you more.

We love our wee bairns and the ritual's one of few all Dwarves know well and think of as pretty sacred. You'll have to wait long enough tae get real buddy-buddy with dwarves to know more about that one.

So now you know: dwarves are pure magic folks, born straight out of magic gems. We live pretty long. Mana slowly eeks out of our gem over time: takes centuries for the good ones tae run dry.

But you know, as long as a dwarf stays well within Da's body, they'll be close enough to Mawmaw for their gems tae fill right up!

That's right. Our Maw's the Mana Core.

Pretty neat, huh?

(Pages 8 and 9)
A broken gem, a really bad onset of Cave Rot... a dwarf's unlikely to die from natural causes, but we also don't always have it easy. I wish I could say it's perfectly safe and that dwarves live happily and peacefully but there are plenty of nasty things between the different Kingdoms, shuffling in underground paths. Not every place's like Feandr.

Whatever happens, a dwarf that nips Maw goodby turns back into the gem they were born from and that's about it. There's no rituals to bring back the panbread.

Dwarf society can be hard if yer not a fit. Yer job and role in Dwarf society is determined by the bairngem you were born from and it don't matter much which clan you came from.

If yer born as boulder dust then you pretty much stay boulder dust. It's not bad if you like the place yer born in. You'll have the chief's protection and a biiiig family always there for you. All in all, you'll never be alone! Although, that can be a problem for some of you I hear. Ha ha!

(Pages 10 and 11)
Some dwarves like me are less afraid to venture out in the surface world and have a bit of thirst for adventure.

Often fill in necessary roles for envoys or projects to the surface plus they do need a few of us on that side for things like trade and such. We're a lonely bunch: dwarves whose job is on or with the surface world tend to be seen differently by the rest.

We don't fit in as well.

A shan to be sure, but that's just how life is. A dwarf's life!

quote:

The Last Stand of Ehr'Ishin

(Page 1) As my guide led me through the massive gates of Ehr'Ishin, I could feel the cool rush of mana flow over me.

Power, that was what they held here, hoarded behind the shining pillars of the temples of the Elements. What used to be temples, I corrected myself.

(Page 2) Across all the Elemental Plains, there was no bastion of the Exalted as might as Ehr'Ishin, with its white walls towering over fields and distant forests, its spires reaching to the heavens.

Despite the ongoing war, word of cities falling and refugees flocking every day, there was still a semblance of normalcy. Young families browsed markets and children chased their toys between the towering pale alleys.

(Page 3) Yet soldiers and guards dotted every street corner, every parapet manned by the finest Exalted guards in their black striped armor. Not keeping a watch on the city, but waiting for the first sign of attack.

(Page 4) The second thing that hit me after the invigorating flow of mana, was the collective tension in the minds of the Exalted. Sure, they could play at living normally, but with the flow of Exalted refugees pouring in around me, there was no question as to how the war fared.

And everyone knew it. From the smallest child to the oldest guardswoman, the rolling thunderclouds of war were surely making their way to Ehr'Ishin.

(Page 5) Ah, but I was here for a reason. Even as the alarms were sounded on the walls, and I was rushed forward, and the screams and pleads as the gates were closing, and I was pulled from street to back alley, as the sounds of battle engines clashing against elemental monstrosity echoed through the sky, and I was brought to the base of the great spire of Ehr'Ishin-

(Page 6) The great spire.

Brilliantly constructed, dependent on the flow of mana to sustain its great height, it towered over all else in the city. The center of technology and magical research.

The sole reason Ehr'Ishin was still stand. Barely, from the roars and crunching of the battle outside. But standing. You'd enter and float to the desired floor, and my destination was the very top.

(Page 7) -even as I lifted myself skyward with my escort, reflecting on the rush of researchers and guards desperate to create the next thing that would save the war-armor, weapons, creatures, as they no doubt had been for weeks now- I sincerely hoped they would succeed, though I knew that there already was an answer.

and we arrived.

(Page 8) It was rather gaudy. They spared no expense letting anyone who saw it know that this was, indeed, the great artillery of the great spire of Ehr'Ishin. Covered in gleaming filigree and design, mostly ornamental, it was no surprise why they were struggling. Too many Celestials and you end up with the prettiest weapon that can't cut butter. Celestials budiling what came out of an Infernal's mind. Story of the Exhalted alliance right there.

(Page 9) But I was here to see it through.

New glyphs and runes were drawn around the artillery, connecting it to the city, the mass of mana available. Threads of mana were snapped, unwoven, and rejoined.

(Page 10) When the storm burst and the Elements themselves came through to crush fair Ehr'Ishin, when their flaming boulders and thunderous strikes assailed the walls and shields of the city, here because their pride demanded that they see their own word undone, the cannon was set. There was no use praying that the weapon would work, for it was turned toward our creators. I looked down at the city in turmoil- chaotic- in the throes of battle for survival.

(Page 11) There would be survivors. Not here. But elsewhere in the Plains. Those that stayed low in the shadows, in the deepest caves, under the tallest trees. And they would be free.

We aimed the artillery. I completed my spell.

(Page 12) As I feel my threads of mana unravelling, I hear surprise, acceptance, from the Exalted around me.

This miracle weapon had a cost to win the war, and power doesn't come cheap. The people of Ehr'Islin would defend it with their lives, and push back the onslaught of the Elements.

As I fade away, I just hope it will be enough.

quote:

A Collection of Lorian songs, rhymes, and other things

(Page 1) *N.B: .The following folk tales, song and rhymes encountered come from varying sources, some of which originate specifically from local and in the lesser known dialects of the region they were recorded in. To the best of my ability and to attempt to preserve their lyrical and cultural integrity, I have transcribed phonetically as to do them justice... no matter how strange or bizarre they might sometimes sound for the part.

Let the Reader be advised.*

(Page 2) The first lyrics in this book were brought to my attention by a travelling adventurer at the Dented Shield Inn in Willowshire.

They have previously passed through a rather particular town that had dealt occasion with an even more particular tog...

If there is any truth to be had in the tale of the song.

(Page 2) Wee Wily Toggy

Wee Wily Toggy

Rins through the toun,

Sideways and backways

Barkin at the moun,

Wakin all the touns folks,

Beat'n all the clocks,

Com'on Wily Toggy

Now you've got to stop!

(Page 3) Hey Wily Toggy

Won't ye let us sleep?

The Mog juice's stash'd in the barrel

And the un'dead been put back to sleep,

Though we mighten kno 'bout the turducken

And in the morin' there might be an army!

My word Wily Toggy

'Til then can't we have some peace?

(Page 4) Hey Willy Toggy

Enough is enough!

The paint fairy's losin her hex codes,

The Guardians ar wearin mops,

If ye keep barkin mad like that

We'll be mad 'thin the week!

We'll grow a hundred tentacles and be Kathool's groupies.

(Page 5) Onythin but the Avatars' rest!

Bark and bark all week!

We avent had a wink of it,

We starten to see monkey geeks,

We tried to move the toun on Monday,

The Wind Cyclops blew us back Tuesday night,

Avatars Wily Toggy

Couldn't ya rather bite?

(Page 6) Wee Wily Toggy

Rins through the toun,

Sideways and backways

Barkin at the moun,

Wakin al the touns folks,

Beat'n al the clocks,

Com'on Wily Toggyyy

Now you've got to stop!

(Page 7) The next song was told to me by a bunch of Verterochian natives who had settled in and around the Capital.

They mentioned something about remarkable cheese seller or something of the kind and apparently once a man from Verteroche that had been involved...

Either that or they were having fun at my expense.

(Page 8) It's a long way to Swordhaven

Up to mighty Swordhaven came a Verteroche man one day

And as the street were paved with knights, sure the puns were neigh!

Singing songs from Dragon Alley, Thrand and Alteon Square,

Till Remy got all excited and shouted to them there:

Itz a long way to Sword'aven,

Itz a long way to go.

(Page 9) Itz a long way to Sword'aven,

It ze sweetest cheese I know!

Aurevoir to Dragon Alley,

So long Alteon Square!

Itz a long way to Sword'aven,

But my cheese is right zere.

(Page 10) Remy wrote a letter to his Verterochian Jacqueline O.

Saying: "Should vous recieve zis letter by gryphon

Send anozer back for ze cheese to go!

I will send it all back promptly,

And come back 'ome wis' some more!

(Page 11) Itz a long way to Sword'aven,

Itz a long way to go.

Itz a long way to Sword'aven,

It ze sweetest cheese I know!

Aurevoir to Dragon Alley,

So long Alteon Square!

Itz a long way to Sword'aven,

But my cheese is right zere.

(Page 12) Jacqueline wrote a curt reply to Verterochian Remy O.

Saying: 'I've 'ad assez wis' your cheesy nonsense! Itz time to let it go!

Return 'ome at once wit's ze stuff for ze kids

Or my boot will 'ave vous know!

(Page 13) Poor Remy breathed a sigh, packed his bags and went

But not before singing one last time, again and again:

Itz a long way to Sword'aven,

Itz a long way to go.

Itz a long way to Sword'aven,

It ze sweetest cheese I know!

Aurevoir to Dragon Alley,

So long Alteon Square!

Itz a long way to Sword'aven,

But my cheese is right zere.

(Page 14) This one was rather odd I have to say.

I was in a small country town seeking out new stories and hymns to collect when, seemingly out of the blue, a dragon-yes, you heard right-of all things came up to me. Mind you, it was a baby, or toddler, my expertise in dragonology is sadly lacking here ; it seemed to beckon me into taking a piece of parchment paper it held in its mouth.

I, bafflingly, snatched it from its jaws (damaging part of the scroll, sadly) and, as oddly as it had wandered in, it wandered right off. I must have sat there for what must have been a good few minutes a bit bemused by how equally rare, and silly, event that had just occured was.

(Page 15) Sometime later and one near brush with a dangerous pack of Dravir, I happened upon a strange room in ruins of which I will not reveal the location. I was exhausted from fleeing when a cold hand placed itself upon my shoulder and almost scared the living Elements out of me.

A spectral blue Guardian bobbed before my shaken self and asked as simply as the living what I was doing here. I hadn't formed much of a thought when he turned his attention to the scroll that sticking out of one of my own satchels, grabbed ahold of it somehow and read it aloud. As it so happened, it was the scroll the dragon had given me.

(Page 16) It was the strangest thing as he seemed less to be speaking and sounding much more like grinding of two mountains against each other ; and his words were deafening or seemed to reduce other sounds around.

The Ghost Guardian later explained to me that the scroll I had come into possession was written in Draconic, the ancient language of Dragons. He also seemed to think it derived from a noticeably ancient pattern although he said this more to himself and as a pondering murmur.

When I pushed him about it, he wouldn't say any more however he was kind enough to translate it for me so that I could produce what it is found below:

(Page 17) Two dragons went out to play
Under the sun and far, far away
Avatars said, "It's time for your snack." But only one dragon came back

One dragon went out to play
Under the moon and far, far away
Avatars said, "It's time for your snack." But none of the dragons came back

(Page 18) The last finding still makes me wonder sometimes... I had reviewed most of the evening's merrymakers at the Running Sneevil Inn without discernible luck. I sat down with my own tankard of juice resigned to drink and be done for the evening with my collections work when a man came up to my table and asked if he could share a drink with me. I was tired by this point and could have turned him away, not being someone for merry company of crowds unless demanded by work, but for some reason I decided to indulge the man and invited him to sit down.

As the tankards were brought and emptied, our trivial gossip and talk warmed until we were on quite friendly and lively terms.

(Page 19) We weren't even discussing of deep or provoking matters, but it seemed this man had traveled or at least seen many other places in the kingdom as I for to every remark I could supply about one place, he would know another in knd to go right along. Finally, as the evening drew to a close, I thanked him very much for his most enjoyable company and said I would retire to my quarters for the night before leaving the town the next morn. The man smiled and seemed ready to reply the same when he suddenly interrupted himself, turned all quiet and simply sat there.

I asked him if something was the matter and he replied, after a moment, asking if I wanted to add a children's rhyme for my collections.

(Page 20) I was surprised: he must have caught sight of me earlier trying to coax something out of the other patrons, but I happily replied that I most certainly would if it came from him.

The man smiled, if nervously, and took out a piece of parchment paper from the satchel he carried with him and handed it to me. I took the piece read through it, frowned to myself and asked what this rhyme was about. For a while, the man said nothing and seemed like he'd give no answer. But then he said plainly:

"...a friend."

And then he simply got up, walked out of the Inn into the night and I never saw the man again.

(Page 21) He used to play with ald the children
Ill and sad and lo
And when the young and old were hurtin
He'd get them up from low

He'd come to town with'ou a whisper
Sneaky and quiet and masterfol
But then he'd turned just like a Fair
Colorfol, loud and wonderfol

He had a big heart right on his chest
Beat, beat and go
When he spoke to us in pain
We laughed ald a plentifol

He'd play around, he'd fool around
Hearts and Diamonds and Clubs
He'd listen down, give cheers so sound
Spades and hearts and Clubs

(Page 22) He used to play with ald the chidlren
Some long time ago
When he'd go off and leave the town
We'd wait for him ano

The Dragon's Ire, The Bandit's threatenin
He'd make them ald just go
He used to play with ald the children
Turning away all the noes

Upon one day 'fter all the cheers
And two grownups were in a ro
While he'd work to spread the smiles
These ones couldn't kno

He tried and tried to turn the fight
To make these friends from foes
But then a strike came with a fright
Shattered his heart with ald its might
Into the broken heart we kno

(Page 23) Gan is his heart, gan is his head.
Gan is the one we kno
He used to play with ald the children
But now gan is the one we kno
Withou' a heart, a righteous heart
Withou' the kindness to go
You'll lose your head right from the
start
And gan will be the one you kno

The heart was broke in thousand pieces
Bits and pieces and morsols
We tried to piece it back together
But it wasn't the heart we kno

The heart was warped, the heart was
jagged,
The broken heart of woe
We couldn't put it right back together
Warped and sorry and woefol

(Page 24) He used to play with ald the children
To be the funniest one we kno
But now he's frightfol one to see
He's not the same as befo.

Gan is his heart, gan is his head.
Gan is the one we kno
He used to play with ald the children
But now gan is the one we kno

Withou' a heart, a righteous heart
Withou' the kindness to go
You'll lose your head right from the start
And gan will be the one you kno

(Page 25) ~Talisin the Bard

quote:

The Smallest Dragonrider

(Page 1) A long time ago, in a small Moglin village near Stoneheart Fall, there lived a Moglin named Willow. Willow was small. Not just for his age, but for a Moglin in general. Visitors to the village often mistook Willow for a child and didn't, perhaps, pay quite as much attention to him as they should have.

Willow tried hard to find his place, but to no avail. He was too small to do much physical work, and his healing left something to be desired. He wasn't much good with the younglings, since they found it difficult to listen to someone even smaller than they were.

(Page 2) Now, moglins are generally kind by nature, and there was no cruelty in the way they treated Willow. They truly cared what happened to him, but sometimes even honest intent can be misread, and poor Willow eventually grew very sad because he felt he could do nothing to help his fellow Moglins.

Often, when Willow was sad, he would go out into the forest and meet with the creatures. He would carry on long conversations with the wild creatures of the forest, and they taught him a great deal about how they lived. Willow never discussed this with the other Moglins because he always felt they would tell him he was making it up. Willow, of course, had no idea that his ability to speak with the wild creatures of Lore was not a common one.

(Page 3) One one particular occasion, Willow was out walking with a tog, talking about running away and finding his own way in the world. Even as he spoke, he knew it was foolish. He was just a small Moglin, and not very likely to be able to defend himself. Suddenly, a loud roaring could be heard, from the direction of the Moglin village.

Willow ran as fast as his little legs would carry him to the top of a small hill where he could see smoke rising from the burning homes of his village. Tog agreed to let Willow ride, and they raced for the village as fast as the tog could run.

When they arrived, alas, the village was empty. All the Moglins had been rounded up and carried off. Willow was devastated. What could he do to help? He was the smallest Moglin ever, and now he felt smaller than ever before.

(Page 4) Willow was a capable tracker, and Tog agreed to help. So with Tog leading the way, Willow set out to find where the Moglins had been taken. Throughout the day and well into the night, they followed the trail. As they did so, Willow kept asking himself "Willow, what are you going to do even if you DO catch them? You're so small those bandits could just step on you." But Willow had no answer, he only knew that a good Moglin NEVER gives up on his village.

It took several days, but Willow eventually found the Bandits. He climbed a tall tree so that he could get a good look at the camp. You might not know this, but Moglins are natural climbers, and Willow was surprisingly good at climbing. From his vantage point, Willow could see the Moglins of his village, all being held in some sort of corral. The healers, however, were not there.

(Page 5) As I said before, Willow was small, but small doesn't mean stupid. Willow realized at once that the other Moglins were being held to force the healers to cooperate. Willow sat in the tree watching the camp all day. All day he thought and thought. How could he help his friends? Try as he might though, he kept coming back to the one important part; he was so mall. How could he help his friends?

Willow climbed back down the tree, checked to be sure he wasn't seen, then slipped off to the river. There by the river, Willow made camp. Willow sat by a small fire eating berries and making a small model of the fort. He planned out idea after idea, but there was just no way he could free them on his own. He briefly considered asking his animal friends to help but still, he knew there was no way he could get enough help to do much.

(Page 6) Willow resolved to find help, and so he set out along the course of the river. Humans were often known to build settlements near rivers so they would have a handy source of water. Willow walked along the river for more than half a day, growing increasingly sad. There was NOTHING. Nobody was there.

Willow flopped down next to a waterfall, and there he wept. It was hopeless. He could do nothing to help. That's when he heard the voice. "Why so sad, young Moglin?"

Willow looked around, but saw nothing. Still, when someone asks a question, it's polite to answer, so he did. "I'm sad because the Moglins of my village have been taken prisoner, and I'm too small to do anything about it."

(Page 7) The voice chuckled. "Well, little one, let me assure you, you have a gift that very few Moglins have EVER possessed."

Willow sat and thought about it, but he couldn't make heads or tails of this puzzling statement. "What do you mean?" Willow asked. "And who are you?"

Suddenly, the waterfall parted and a giant head slipped out through the water. "Why, my name is Amaranth, and as you can see, I'm a dragon." The giant head turned towards the little Moglin. "You see, little Moglin, you can understand me. This is not a common gift. Your size, always holding you back; I understand you as well."

(Page 8) With that, the dragon slipped out of the waterfall and stood tall and proud. Sort of. The dragon, too, was small for his species. "Like you, little Moglin, I am small. However, I suspect together, we can be mighty."

"You wish to free your village." The dragon continued. "I wish excitement and a rider of my own." At those words, the dragon laid his head and neck on the ground. "Climb aboard and hang on! Let's go free your friends." Willow clambered onto the neck of the dragon, seating himself comfortably behind a ridge. With that, the dragon pumped it's mighty wings, and soared into the air. For the first time in his life, Willow was filled with true excitement. To be so high above the ground! To fly high with a friend. What a feeling!

(Page 9) As they made their way to the bandit camp, Willow quickly planned their strategy. When they arrived near the camp, Willow had Amaranth drop to the ground and they moved that way for a time, seeking out a tribe of gorillaphants that Willow had come to know.

Willow spread the word quickly, contacting all his animal friends. It may well have been the strangest army Lore had ever seen. Wolves and gorillaphants marched in packs and quickly surrounded the bandit fortress.

Inside the fortress, the bandits were racing around in confusion. What was this? What was happening? Where did all these creatures come from? As they came out, armed to deal with these monsters, a pack of gorillaphants parted, and the dragon stepped out, Willow riding high on his neck, holding a spear.

(Page 10) "Bandits!" Willow cried. "You have taken my friends and family hostage. Moglins are a peaceful race, but we will fight to protect ourselves! You have one hour to release my friends!" Willow nudged Amaranth, and up he flew. "See our power!" Shouted Willow, and down Amaranth streaked, shooting his breath at the gate of the fortress. Water struck the gate and he drove the gate clean off its hinges and back nearly twenty feet.

Amaranth hovered over the encampment, watching the bandits scramble to free his Moglin friends. The bandits may be dangerous, but they were smart enough to realize that this was a fight they might not win.

(Page 11) Little Willow and his friend Amaranth had won. Willow decided that the old village was unsafe since the bandits knew where it was, and so he led his friends on to build a new village well away from the territory of those bandits.

Amaranth stayed with his Moglin friend, and together they were the protectors of his village, the smallest dragon, and the smallest dragonrider.

Le cheile an beag a bheith laidir.

quote:

The Study of Forbidden Magicks
Classic Bestseller Edition: includes original author's notes!

(Page 1 - Introduction)
Greetings, Dear Reader!

I am proud to present to you this collection of books on the topic of Forbidden Magicks, sanctified by the Magesterium themselves.

It was my utmost pleasure to traverse our lands, listen to folk tales and compile this repository of knowledge as means to educate and to warn the current and future generations of our glorious country about the magicks that have been deemed "forbidden" by the illustrious Magesterium.

(Page 2)
We all know of the wonders of magick, about all of the amazing things it has done for the Empire, but we must also stay cognizant of the magicks that the Magesterium themselves forbade us from practicing, as they care about all of us greatly.

Creativity is humanity's greatest quality, but it is also its downfall. The magicks described in this collection are examples of people's hubris and perverted thirst for knowledge, as they stray away from the Shapeless and toy with unknown forces.

(Page 3)
As this is the first book in the series, I would like to go over some of the despicable Forbidden Magicks, as to not bore You, Dear Reader!
Please note that these tales are in no particular order.
I am sure we will have splendid time together, delving deeper and deeper into the minds of the folks that turned their backs on the light of the Shapeless.

It is imperative for me to state that You, Dear Reader, must under no circumstances attempt to recreate any of the magicks mentioned in this collection!

(Page 4)
Forbidden Magicks are known to tear your very own soul apart, tainting it, and twisting it beyond recognition, if not outright unravelling it.
And with a tainted soul, a broken soul, you have no chance for the afterlife that the Shapeless promises you.

Please, Dear Reader, heed my words and enjoy this knowledge that I am about to burden You with.

Let us begin!

(Page 5) Seal of Ativa
This Forbidden Magick, as the name suggests, was created by a woman named Ativa. I was led to believe that this individual, in her life, was a very secretive person. Numerous accounts have stated that she led a double life, but I find that hard to believe. After all, if people know your secrets, you're not that secretive.

In any case, Ativa attempted to craft a way to lock any object imaginable by using souls of others, by any means necessary. At the cost of tearing her own soul as well.

(Page 6)
She was dooming her own salvation by doing this, after all.
Tainting her own soul as a means to keep her secrets hidden. Despicable.
Secrets that were revealed in due time after her death, however, as the people whose souls she used died, and her misdeeds were brought to light.
As you can see, this was all for naught. Her soul gone, she herself ceased to exist from this world and the next.

(Page 7) Precious Sight
This Forbidden Magick, as I've learned, was supposed to grant the caster the ability to turn everything they see into precious jewels.
Sadly, it didn't turn out that way for the founder of this spell, as they died, naturally, and the discovered body had diamonds in their eye sockets.

I haven't discovered much about this person in particular- there aren't many people who have recollection of these events, nor who knew this individual.

(Page 8)
If I were to make an educated guess, I would say that this person was poor and wanted wealth, and so they decided to turn to developing Forbidden Magick.
As You can imagine, Dear Reader, they got what they deserved. They wanted treasures, and all they got was eternal damnation.

Chamber of Elbaba
Elbaba was a well known figure of old throughout the Shapeless Empire. She was a very powerful Magester, whose empathy magicks had helped many people of our lustrous country.

(Page 9)
Sadly, years and years of taking the negative emotions of others upon herself broke her. Through experimentation and dedication, she sought to craft a spell that could purge her of any and all emotions.

But, as You can imagine, Dear Reader, her fate was sealed the day she began this endeavor.
In her experimentation, she didn't just lose the ability to feel, she lost all of her senses. And living without the beauty of sight, the blessing of hearing, the allure of taste... without any of them at the same time, it was too much.

(Page 10)
She was trapped in her own body, a chamber devoid of senses, with all of the accumulated emotions of the Empire, and no means to communicate with the world.

She took her own life, and her soul, tortured and pulled and torn, unravelled.

And while she forsook the chance for an eternal life in the great beyond, the Empire remembers her devotion to the people.

Let this be a cautionary tale.

(Page 11) Yarek's Wish
Yarek, as people who knew him have told me, was a gentle fellow who wouldn't have hurt even a fly. However, because You are reading about him in this book, Dear Reader, You can deduce that he was a foolish boy.
Yarek was fed up with the wars that were ravaging Azaveyr at the time of his life, and all he wanted for people was "just to get along", as my sources tell me.

A very noble outlook on life, indeed.

(Page 12)
And so, as a foolish but talented young mage, he tried to solve the problem himself.

He spent time locked away in his study, ignoring his mentor's commands, and wove a Forbidden Magick that would seal his fate. He attempted to create a wish magick with a very specific purpose.

He wished for peace in Azaveyr.

To this day, pieces of him are being discovered all over the country.

(Page 13)
That's all that remained of him. The Shapeless couldn't save the soul that the boy himself so foolishly tainted.
Dreams and wishes are to be pursued and worked for. There are no shortcuts in ambition.

Fool's Sacrifice
This Forbidden Magick may seem to some as useful, but it is of course, deadly.
You see, Dear Reader, there was an age in our Empire's vast history, when magicks such as these described in this book were common and widely practiced.

(Page 14)
The Magesterium did all they could to curtail the proliferation of such magicks, and as we now know, they were successful.

The horrors of that period are thankfully largely lost to time, save few, such as the one described here.

If I am to believe the rumors, during this time, a mage from a foreign country was staying in the Shapeless Empire's crown jewel, the glorious capitol, Nieboheim.

(Page 15)
This foreign mage, as I was told by a source who claims that they are a descendant of someone who witnessed this, was studying Azaveyr's soul-based magicks.
This mage, fascinated by our cultural and magickal advances, wished to bribe his way into the Magesterium by solving this "Forbidden Magick" problem.

I don't have to tell You, Dear Reader, how presumptuous this was.
The mage, after believing he had learned enough, proceeded to develop a "magick to stop all magicks".

(Page 16)
He attempted to create a Forbidden Magick that was able to completely nullify the magickal effects of any and all spells. "What utter nonsense!" wouldn't You say, Dear Reader?
Well, this mage succeeded in his endeavor. He was able to nullify a single effect of a Forbidden Magick that had been plaguing the Empire (which I will describe in later books), but in doing so, his own soul was tainted. Violently and brutally. And though he was a foreigner, know that all pure souls go to the afterlife, guided through the directions of the Shapeless, as it does not discriminate.

(Page 17)
But this fool, in order to impress the Magesterium, died, and faded into obscurity due to his hubris.

True, the Forbidden Magick that he was trying to dispel was indeed weakened, but he broke the taboo. The fool sacrificed his soul and afterlife not for the greater good, but for personal gain. And before You, Dear Reader, think that you may have what it takes to sacrifice yourself for the Empire, may I remind you that this is no longer the ancient past.

(Page 18)
If you find yourself having such thoughts, locate a Magester and declare your intent. For they will be able to guide you into such service for the Empire, without resorting to these soul-destroying magicks.

Let this be a lesson in humility for all of us, Dear Reader.

And now, let's move onto the closing Forbidden Magick for this book!

(Page 19) Tanislav's Last Will
From the history books, we know the fate and stories of the "ghost town Mortem". About how the entire population of the town vanished one day. Of course, currently Mortem is a cozy little town in Tkaanie, bustling with life, but the events of that fateful day in our past shook even the Magesterium.

It wasn't known what exactly happened there back then until recently, and I shall share my findings with You, Dear Reader!

(Page 20)
Recently resurfaced facts state that what happened in Mortem was, in fact, due to Forbidden Magicks!

The titular Tanislav was a ruler of Mortem, back then. Not many people remember him, and none can remember what sort of a person he was. But I have learned that he cast Forbidden Magick in order to save his child.
"Was he justified in what he was doing?", You ask?
The answer is: No, my Dear Reader.
There are no justifications for using Forbidden Magicks.

(Page 21)
I was not able to find out the exact nature of the Forbidden Magicks, but its effects are known by all. By casting it, he not only doomed his own life into non existence, but also doomed everyone in the town, every single person, even his friends. This magick was the cause of the "ghost town Mortem". He sacrificed his own life and the lives of all of the people of Mortem, for his son.

(Page 22)
His son, who died shortly after what his father did for him. Those who do not heed the word of the Shapeless are led into misery, and thus perish.

I believe You are now starting to notice similarities in these magicks, Dear Reader. Forbidden Magick NEVER ends well. It always comes with a price.

(Page 23)
Thank you for reading this first book in the collection about Forbidden Magicks!
I would like to also thank my good friend, Perci, as he was the final push I needed to start this series! Thank you, wherever you are! May our paths cross again one day.

As for You, Dear Reader, I am glad You chose to follow me on this journey, as I travel across the lands in search of Forbidden Magicks and inform people such as You about their dangers!

Til next time~

Olizabeth Danao

quote:

The Journal of Voyna, the Angel of Azaveyr
Select Transcriptions of Recovered Writings, by Loremaster Teka

(Front Endpaper)
A restoration and transcription of the recovered and damaged pages of the journal of Voyna, the Angel of Azaveyr. Transcribed by Loremaster Teka.

N.B.
There were only a few pages recovered that were not damaged beyond recovery. It is likely that there were many more entries in this journal that simply no longer exist. As a result, the entries here are listed in order, although significant amounts of time may have passed between them.

(Page 1)
Entry 1

Three dragons flew over the town today, toward the coastal settlements. I thought they were majestic, but Yarek thinks it's a "show of force". Or maybe, Yarek, maybe the dragons wanted to go for a swim in the ocean! Grandfather says that back in his day, before the eruption, we wouldn't have stood for something like "this", whatever that means, and that we should pray to the Avatars.

(Page 2)
Entry II

I graduated warrior training today. Yarek came by after his mage ceremony, but he seemed distant. He kept muttering that he was right, that the dragons were up to something. I asked around, and apparently one of the speakers at the mage ceremony gave an impassioned speech decrying the rule of the dragons. Yarek always liked Grandfather's old stories, but now I worry.

My mask is

Transcriber's Note: The rest of this entry could not be recovered.

(Page 3)
Entry III

They flew past in the night, and attacked the coastal towns. Many ships were lost before the dragons were taken down. Yarek and I have been called to arms. Yarek is ready, and so am I.

(Page 4)
Entry IV

Yarek was captured in the last battle. I couldn't protect him. We slay the few we can and the settlements are safe for now, but it takes so many of us to stop so few of them. There's talk of returning to the old lands, across the sea, in search of something, anything, among the ruins that could turn the tide.

(Page 5)
Entry V

We managed to free many prisoners today in a surprise assault on one of the dragons' caves. Yarek was among them. We barely recognized each other. Least of my worries. In the battle, a dragon mangled my leg real bad. With magic, I can stand and walk, but I'd have to make it back to the settlements to get proper treatment.

(Page 6)
Entry VI

We're not going home. We've gotten word that a team of high ranking mages has set out across the sea to scour the ruins for something that could stop the dragons. We're supposed to slow the dragons down until that happens. Yarek smiled again today. I haven't told him the news yet.

(Page 7)
Entry VII

It's just us, the injured and weakened left to buy time for our people. "Heroes." We are to hold this mountain pass until our bones give out. Yarek is taking this well. He's making jokes. What's left of my leg hurts.

(Page 8)
Entry VIII

Had the dream again. I, victorious over the dragons, my body whole, my people saved. But there is little time to dwell on such fantasies. The dragons are coming, and my duty calls.

Transcriber's Note: This seems to be the final entry of the journal that was found.

(Page 9)
Entry ???
Written by two different hands. The first is not Voyna's, while the second matches the rest of the journal's entries.

Style One
The winds of winter
come warmed by dragon fire.
I prefer the cold.

Style Two
The weather is nice.
Yarek should just relax more.
Five syllables here.

Style One
Spring brings forth a calm.
Truly a beautiful sight.
And not just flowers.

Style Two
Shove it, Yarek.