Posted by Irzen, Willow, Serna & Scribe
on 6/24/2009, 9:41 pm, in reply to "Re: A Brief History of Aurilaz & The Talisman"
War Scribe furrowed her brow as she turned a very large page, "From that point onward, the records are really fuzzy guys. For example, there is no record of how Aurilaz got her hands on the Eleventh Talisman. But many believe that Aurilaz is in possession of it and this much is known: She now resides within The Topaz Mountains. She seized the place from a colony of Dwarves about a hundred years ago and on more than one documented occasion has been seen fighting off other evil dragons who have tried to move in on her territory. Legend has it that she is breeding a brood of black dragons who have matured to the point that they can take on human form. Legend also has it that she has traumatized a town of Humans who lived in the shadow of the Topaz Mountains so badly that they now worship her as a goddess. Yep! That's right, Aurilaz has a cult following and they are so diehard in pleasing her that they are known to sacrifice their youngest males to her once a year in a blood ritual to keep her from flattening their village. Correct me if I'm wrong, Alyson, but didn't your latest Dwarven friend, Myron Ironbane, come from The Topaz Mountains? If he did, he might be able to help you guys sneak in and out of her lair without getting turned into a pool of acid."
"Uh, I didn't ask where Myron was from at the time. You know trying to relax, and dodge teeth and claws from a horde of werewolves. Not to mention trying to avoid horn-head." Alyson said after taking a breather.
"Adventure and excitement are poor excuses for not getting to know the company you keep," admonished War Scribe wagging her finger at The Elementalist.
The Drowling closed the book and opened the second one to a book marked page which featured a drawing of The Eleventh Talisman as a bright golden amulet as big as a discus with two dragons--one Oriental and golden in color while the other was Western and black in hue--intertwined around each other in a circular pattern.
"As for the Eleventh Talisman," continued War Scribe, "Most of what is known about it is that it grants the bearer the power to command Dragons--ALL of them--good and evil alike. The rest here is pure conjecture. Some say it expands consciousness. Others say it prolongs life. Still others say it connects the bearer to all Dragons living and dead across all planes of existence from The Dragon's Graveyard to The Realm of Dungeons and Dragons to Dragonwyck and beyond. Yet others say that the Talisman changes the bearer to such an extent that he or she becomes a dragon themselves. But all accounts agree on one thing: The Eleventh Talisman gives its bearer the absolute power to control Dragons--no exceptions!"
The Drowling closed the book, "Anything else, guys?"
The Gamer looked thoughtful. “Some of that sounds vaguely familiar. And there's something odd there. Why would she be fighting off Dragons if she had control of the Talisman? What references do we actually have to Aurilaz possessing the Talisman, and do any of her documented fights with other Dragons happen after those references?”
Seriah noted, "Perhaps, this black dragon is the guardian of such a talisman. Chosen by, most likely, Tiamat herself, to keep it from from any humanoid crazy enough to try and take it."
"Because maybe it's not meant for Dragons to have the power," Kana agreed with Seriah. "Dragons can only be the guardians, so that could be why Aurilaz only has it but can't use it. The maker of the Talisman was humanoid."
"That makes about as much sense to me as anything, Mistress Kana," added Serna hunching her shoulders.
"This Terenor the Terrible probably set the Talisman up so that only his kind could wield it," confessed Neven, "It would not make much sense for him to create something that ANYBODY could use, right? After all, he did hate Dragons."
"With a passion it would seem," Irzen folded his arms across his chest, "But how on Earth did she get her hands on the Talisman in the first place? Was she entrusted with it? Did she steal it? Or did she just run across it by blind luck?"
"How she may have acquired the Talisman may matter little, Lord Irzen," Willow Bark concluded, "What matters is that she has it but apparently chooses not to use it or cannot use it. Either way, her inability to access the power of that artifact is an advantage in our favor. We may have to face Aurilaz and her brood, but thankfully, we may not have to face any more dragons than that if all goes well."
War Scribe thumbed through a few pages of her second tome, "In answer to your question, Tommy, the references to Aurilaz possessing the Talisman comes throughout different points in the Realm's history. It has also been documented by my predecessors, The Chroniclers of Validor, before my order was betrayed by one of our own. As for her battles, Aurilaz has been challenging both good and evil Dragons to showdowns before and after she acquired The Eleventh Talisman. Sometimes she fought in self-defense, other times for blood, still other times for revenge and still more times for conquest. Say what you want to say about her but she has racked up an impressive winning streak. To date, she has never suffered a documented lost to an opponent. Not bad, huh?"
The Drowling asked once again, "Well, anything else you guys would like to know?"