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| - Tralin stood in the center of the room, the others gathered around him in concern and confusion. His face was extremely somber, lacking completely his normal emotionless cast. "Well, Tralin," Draynor said, "I believe you have our attention rather fully. I think it is time you reveal what it is you know. What is happening here?" "It is a battle older than time itself. A conflict that stretches beyond anything you can imagine. The forces that direct these undead armies represent a corruption of all the elemental powers." "I do not follow. The Dark Lord does not direct them?" Darin asked quietly. "I can answer that myself," Xander answered quickly. "No, the Dark Lord has no control over these creatures, neither the undead nor the Brilhado." "Nor the Kresh nor the other forces that align themselves with this evil," Tralin completed. "The Kresh, Brilhado, and several others represent creatures that sided with this power in time immemorial. The undead are relatively new to come to this conflict, being relatively easy to come by and quickly increased in number." "I think, Tralin," Draynor responded, "we need to know who this creature is and what his purpose is." "I for one wish to know how he knows it as well," Darin stated boldly. "I trust Tralin himself, even with my life, but I do not know of those he associates with..." "Really, Darin. He is the prince; that’s no way to..." Draynor began, but Tralin raised a hand. "My lord, Darin is quite in his rights to ask. He speaks with wisdom, not hostility, and therefore he deserves an answer. While I cannot tell him everythingm I can elucidate the situation to a degree. The undead are led by a force some call the Devourer Uncreator, what the Drakel know as the Uncreator. Drakel mages deduced his existence years before he arrived. A primal response to creation, he can be seen as a corruption of all that is within it. He seeks his own advancement by nothing less then destroying creation and remaking it in his own image." "I don't understand. Is the Uncreator a god?" Xander asked. "Yes and no. Certainly he is a god by any common definition, but he is at least as far removed from the forces you consider the gods as we are from the powers. He routinely undoes their work with a laugh. When he has come before, destruction has followed." "This is truly incredible, Prince Tralin," Xander responded, "but how do you know this?" "I am T'Palo." "T'Palo?" "A special emissary of the Drakel. T'Palo are cast off from Drakel culture in order to serve some specialized purpose or purposes. I myself am a researcher of magic and humans." "So your loyalty is ultimately to your people, then? You are a spy?" Darin asked. "Did you not listen? I am no more a spy than you are a traitor for joining Draynor's court. T'Palo is an honor but it is not voluntary. Unless the end of the age comes in peace, I shall never again live freely among my people. I would either go mad or find friends and family among my new family." "That aside," Xander asked, "how do the Drakel know of this thing?" "As I said, our researchers posited his existence long before humans walked in this land. We have since come to believe that he came before even we walked the world, but of our predecessors we know nothing; we can only assume they were all destroyed. When the Devourer came, we walled ourselves in cities we built to await the end. We did not believe we would win but we would hold him for as long as we could. Some few others went to ground in their own way, suspecting his malice. Others such as the Kresh and Brilhado joined with him in his fell purpose. The others... they died... or worse. Their cultures, their beliefs, their art, their cities, all of these fell. From the smallest microbe to the largest tree. Every living thing not hidden was twisted or destroyed. The Drakel waited for the time that he would turn his attention to our cities, but our magic held, the magic of thousands working in unison against him. Servants of all elements. The Drakel outlawed elemental specificity in order to protect us behind a front of unity. Some few, my family among them, resisted, clinging to their ancient alliances. In the end, however, the battle was won. The Devourer did not even perceive us. Slowly the others that went to ground came out from the darkness. For a while the Drakel did as well, but the world we found was empty, corrupted, a whole. So we returned to our cities except a few, the T'Palo who watched in the far distance. Then the other races began to appear and repopulate the world. In those days, the powers themselves were said to walk on the face of the earth. I myself never saw them..." "What?" Darin interjected. "Are you suggesting you were alive when this happened? Histories go back at least 4000 years. You would have to be... ancient." "No. I was not personally alive but a Tralin was... I cannot say more than that to you now. In time... maybe. Anyway, the T'palo were recalled for more instructions. The discussions took well over 2000 years. In that time, we stayed in our cities. The original T'palo were too old to send out and new ones needed to be selected and trained. That process took nearly 1000 years itself. " "Now wait. So how old are you...?" "I am 160 of your years old." "What is the average Drakel lifespan?" "About 300 of your years. But there are complications I cannot explain. Suffice that we are from an older creation and the patterns of our lives are not exactly as the patterns of yours. In the end, some 500 years ago, the T'palo began to be sent out with the instruction that they may not again live within Drakel society until the Devourer was defeated or the world came to an end. We knew that he would return, as he must. Creation returned, the Uncreator would as well. Finally, the other emissaries began to appear. My own people were driven out as well, completely unable to accept the unification. I myself sought supplication and was return to Drakel society for a year, on the condition that I become T'Palo... and I did..." "Many years passed, but now the Devourer returns. There can be little doubt. He seeks something. Even as the Drakel seek something. Though perhaps somethings would be more appropriate in both cases." "What things?" "We do not have all the answers. The Uncreator seeks to advance his position. Some places he seeks artifacts. And in others, such as here, his purpose is more sinister. He seeks to corrupt and take followers..." "Myr..." "Indeed." "May the gods have mercy on his soul..."
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