Beneath the vast canopy of palm trees, heveas and bamboo a relentless maze dwells, ready to consume any who find themselves unlucky enough to travel through The Draining Jungle. The Draining Jungle is shrouded in both mystery and despair. Birds and other woodland creatures have been spotted entering the grasps of the jungle, never to be seen again. None willingly venture into this rainforest of lost pathways, for it has a way of keeping all who enter. And the few who have made it through this dense fortress of greenery struggle to recall anything they discovered while within the jungle. While others cannot even recall their name, age or any past memory they may have had before entering. Many believe the jungle saps the very memory from those who wonder through it, this is how the name came to be. The jungle has many well kept secrets, maintaining them in its massive mazeways of foliage.
The jungle appears to maintain a rather warm climate year round, at least that's the recorded climate of the neighboring towns and villages. Ranging from 70 degrees in the winter and 95 degrees in the summer, and maintaining an 85% humidity year round. The rainfall near the areas of the Draining Jungle is nonstop year round, averaging anywhere from 90-200 inches of rainfall per year. The highest recorded rainfall was in the year 350 T.S. where the recorded rainfall was 425 inches. This overwhelming phenomena flooded the jungle, causing mass deaths to all the surrounding areas. The southern town of Middletown was ravaged, killing nearly all who lived there, removing the very foundation of the settlement and washing away into the Fotia Sea. This great flood would be named
"The Alluvian".
The Draining Jungle may have some form of magic that allows it to be more than just living plant matter. As old as Prototokos, this immense jungle has not grown nor has it shrunk over the many centuries. Those who travel around, or those who dwell in the area claim that not a single leave has ever been seen naturally falling from the canopy. Nor has it ever been noticed that the a new sapling has sprouted from surrounding area. This type of mysterious non/growing manner season to season has left many old sages and arcane experts baffled. Many techniques have been executed to try and discover the mystery behind this jungle, but to no avail. In the summer of 822 B.T.S a group of 5 companions whos names have been lost, wondered into the rainforest in hopes to uncover the enigma of this jungle paradox. It has been said, that they entered through the southern river side of Lion Ridge, packing enough supplies for a 30 day voyage. That allotted time passed, and no sign of the company that ventured inside would come. For it was not until after 6 years later that two of the explorers, a male human wizard and female elf bard, would appear on the northern side of the jungle near Royalburg. They were weathered, aged and blank of the mind...unable to recall their long journey or what had happened to their other companions. The only memory that either of them retained was the date they began their journey. They were escorted to the Bonfire Citadel where they would be sheltered and hopefully have information extracted from their now glum minds. The locals caretakers and priests of the Bonfire Citadel would refer to their current state as being
"Hollow". It was not until after shortly arriving at the Bonfire Citadel that the female bard had fallen asleep and passed away. Leaving just one lonely, mindless explorer left to tell the tale. He too would soon fall into a deep coma, lasting for 4 weeks before awaking again. Several of the handmaidens and nurturers recall the elderly man repeatedly muttering
"The divine shine, The divine shine, The divine shine"...
The last of the adventurers would live for just 5 more months, before passing away in the winter of 815 B.T.S, taking with him any notion of what the Draining Jungle may contain and what him and his comrades discovered. The details of the day to day care of the last adventurer was recorded in the vast library of medical records in the Bonfire Citadel. Many theories emerged over the years of what keeps the Draining Jungle so mystical. Everything from dark magic, to poison, or green dragon power, but nothing is certain. There are many lost tales in Prototokos...stories, whispers and secrets...and The Draining Jungle may know them all.
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