PaxLair, Chesapeake (PaxLair Times) – October 20, 1998 – by Atlan – Hail fellow citizens, lately, i am very concerned by the actions of the mysterious person (?) that goes by the initial of “N”. He made his first “appearance” by contacting mayor Winfield and proposing a seemingly one-sided deal to him and to PaxLair. With the chests of the Followers of Armageddon abound, he wanted to get hold of the powerful mineral known as blackrock. This material has many magical properties, most of which are yet completly unknown. On one hand, it is said to block etheral waves if positioned right, on the other hand you can transform and recieve the same waves if used differently. Yet other rumors say that it can provide direct passage into the Void and other dimensions. Whatever is truth about these rumors, it certainly is quite a unique matter with the potential to great good or even greater evil. Up to now, it is a secret, what N. wants it for, but as you can tell by what happenend at his second “meeting” with PaxLairs officials and citizens, it can hardly be something benevolent.
I hesitated to speak of “appearances” and “meetings”, as in fact N. never really showed himself in person. He has the habit to send messengers and use crystals of communication to contact us. As he said at the second meeting: “I am somewhat…restricted in my freedom of movement right now”. I know not what this means, but i know he was quite angered by the fact that the PaxLairians could not present him a piece of the blackrock he wanted. With the same breath he used to claim to be a teacher to us, he summoned a horde of vile monsters to punish us. On this occasion, we learned his fearsome power and his wrath at first hand, as well as one of his minions name: Drinrick, the demon. But all this seems to be just a prelude of things to come…
As i am still in shock from the loss of the Device , i retreated into the safety of my laboratory to research further on various subjects. Yet, one of these subjects lead me to other grave news concerning N. With awe, i listened to what the adventurers brought back from the shrines while learning about a cure for Alanna. The last shrine, Spirituality, which is also the shrine to the Balance-Principle of Harmony, warned the seekers of things to come:
Shrine: An ancient foe is afoot, threatening the Principles of Truth, Love and Courage.
Shrine: He, who never shows will turn the Principles down.
Party: N.?
Shrine: That is the one. He is unclear to us. He will turn them down.
Shrine: If it is to your salvation or your doom, is yours to decide.
Shrine: Before this world can be saved, the embodiment of the Principles need to walk the lands.
The shrine made it clear that this means not the Avatar. But i think you can imagine my surprise, that even the shrines speak of this strange N.. As i expected, he can be our downfall, but there seems to be hope. Yet, i fear he may be ahead of all our attempts again. Because the second bit of news i received deems no good. N. has allied himself with the orcs of the Olog-Hai clan, as he sent some of his minions to back them up, along with a note of warning:
“Hail great Gorbag, leader of the Olog-Hai orcs, due to a lucky incident, it came to my knowledge that you intent to march on the city of Britain. At the same time, i learned that one of your old enemys might take advantage of this situation. While your proud clan is away, the elves will try to invade your homes. I advise you to quickly return to your fort and thwart their attack, or else you might loose your marvelous strong-hold to them. Also, i ask you to stand back from any further attacks until we had time to plan and coordinate them. We need to gather our forces and there are things to attend to in the meanwhile… In the spirit of our possible future cooperation, i hereby send you a small troop of men and women dedicated to my plans. They will act as a backup and heal you when need arises. Please await further notice of me before you attempt anything.
Your ally,
N.”
Whatever his plans might be, he has found yet another force to throw at his target: the orcs. Although they shy magics and are looked upon by us humans, they are a force to be reckoned with and this alliance not to be taken lightly. Therefore, stay alert to any bit of information, be it tiny or big, or else we might loose our last chance to twarth his plans.
Atlan, seer and sage of PaxLair.
NOTE: This is part of a continuing PaxLair Player Quest, not a Seer Quest.