The boundless, sapphire-blue sky that crowned Tarantia, Jewel of the West, was darkening. Black clouds loomed over the entire breadth of the horizon, their peaks engulfed in the flames of the dying sun. It's blood-red light flooded the marble and limestone capital, casting dark shades in the alleys that ran like veins through the city. From the North, an icy gale rolled over the green plains. It's passage left the kingdom's main artery, the river ..., foaming and furious in it's wake. The tempest howled over the streets of Tarantia, tormenting every curtain and banner it could find, and shaking the suspended wares hanging in the market stalls.