From: foleye@CS.ORST.EDU ("Stilt Man" Eric Foley)
Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn
Subject: [Shrouded One] Re: Kirkil Takes the corner
Date: 6 Oct 92 00:54:32 GMT
Organization: Computer Science Dept., Oregon State University

In article <jpesonen.62@viikki.Helsinki.FI> jpesonen@viikki.Helsinki.FI (JORMA JUHANI PESONEN (EKT)) writes:
>
>	Kirkil sits on the corner table.
>	"'zs I seed, pliiz tell mi abaut thiis Arceina Dorwual 
>ccahratecrist. Kryalla?!"
>	Kirkil starts to frown. Somethings not right in here. His frown 
>deepens as he seems to understand the situation.
>	"Ouh, soo. All Gounn to duu zomee attackink figures. Letss see..."

The Shrouded One sees that her attention to Blade is superfluous, and returns
to the table in the corner as well.  She does not know what has become of the
thri-kreen or the illusionist (the thri-kreen attacked Blade; the illusionist
seems to have gotten lost in the shuffle.  She begins the story.

"Arcania Dorval was born to a wizard and a nymph as the crown princess of the
Empire of Thyaris.  The empire is divided on the national scale into two large
provinces, the Heartland of Thyaris and the Duchy of Turgay.  Arcania was
pressured by her father into marrying in order to rule the empire, and turn
rulership in all but name over to her husband, as was the tradition.  She had
no such intention, and rather than have to meet some imbecilic foreign prince
at the alter (and in her bed), or watch the empire's crown fall to her hated
uncle, she assassinated her father and fled the empire to find the mystical
means to do away with her uncle in a similar way.

"She outmaneuvered the agents her uncle sent to intercept her, for she is a
brilliant stragtegist.  She attained incalculable powers of magic and returned
to the empire, overthrowing her uncle's rule over the Heartland.  Her uncle
took his Council of Mages in Turadni and prepared for war, but Arcania then
sent some unspeakable catastrophe to engulf Turadni and her uncle's council,
leaving a huge hole in the earth that was greedily claimed by the sea, finally
forming a great gulf in the continent.  Her enemies demoralized by this fell
Cataclysm, Arcania then fought the remainder of her uncle's forces, slaying him
and his followers in a battle of titanic proportions, annexing the Duchy to
the Heartland once more and reuniting her empire under her iron hand.

"She was overthrown by her daughter with the aid of a treacherous foreign
wizard, and they created a Signet which prevented her from controlling her
daemons.  Only the Necklace of the Crescent, the masterwork of Arcania's magic,
could destroy the Signet and restore her command of the daemons, and this was
given to the foreign wizard as per his bargain with Arcania's daughter.  Her
daughter was found dead soon afterward, seated in an opulent chair before a
mirror, her ensorceled hands continuing even in death to draw the silver chain
tighter about her neck, leaving her to watch her strangle herself.

"Arcania waited for many years, for the Signet was lost after her daughter's
death.  Allowing her enemies to believe her to be dead, she hid in seclusion,
waiting for the time when the Signet would be found by her descendants so that
she might strike at the wizard who held her Necklace and use it to destroy the
Signet in one single campaign.

"At long last, the White Wizard, a single-minded crusader who would stop at
nothing to rid the world of evil, appeared in the region with an army of elves
and dwarves to strike.  Coinciding with his arrival was the recovery of the
Signet by Arcania's heir.  Arcania joined the White Wizard's army, aided them
against the wizard who held her Necklace, and deserted them once it was in her
grasp once more.  She returned to her capital of Dabar Roc, destroyed the
Signet, and regained control of her daemons.  She then launched a responding
campaign to the White Wizard's excursion, and destroyed his army utterly.

"Three years later, an eclipse of Arghan's two moons of the sun occured
simultaneously.  This enabled, along with the blood of the sun god's high
priest's unborn child, Arcania to strike at the sun god himself and tear the
heavenly light out of the sky, casting the entire world into darkness.  She
would have won the war to keep such awesome power under her grasp, had not her
lover betrayed her and released the sun god from his prison.

"In subsequent years, Arcania has fended off other armies who struck at her
empire, holding it fast against all comers.  I fear that direct conflict
against her will not work, but neither is she strong enough to launch a strike
against the world of Arghan, for the forces that would array themselves against
her in such an event are too strong even for her might.  However, no one will
trust one another in an offensive war against her, and as such the balance
is maintained.

"However, Arcania has sent her daemons into the world to find a great tome of
magic, the Book of Might.  It has been kept from her over the years by many
individuals, and was the source of her uncle's power to resist her even after
the Cataclysm of Turadni.  If she obtains that Book, I fear the power she would
gain would make her unstoppable.  However, it rests in the tower of Siras
Cuntho in Philinost, in the keeping of the Fellowship of Wizards.  It remains
safe so long as she cannot infiltrate the Fellowship."

Having finished with her story, the Shrouded One pauses to sip her mistwine.


+=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=+
+	Kryalla Simuel the Shrouded One			  +
+=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=+
+	foleye@storm.cs.orst.edu			  +
+=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=+
Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn