Martek's Warning
The archmage Martek was a powerful wizard living in the Raurin desert a millennium ago. He was noted for his defence of the area and his opposition to the forces of evil, beating back dark foes on several occasions. He saved the entire area now known as the Raurin Desert from a terrible evil that was endangering it and causing an immense cost in human life, livestock and goods. The few surviving records of the era do not record what the evil was, only that if Martek had not intervened every living creature in the realm would have been slaughtered or enslaved.
Shortly before his death he sent a message to five separate local rulers: governors of major towns, the sheik of the largest desert tribe living outside the fertile zone by the river, and Pharaoh Amun-Re himself. In each message he instructed them to safeguard the huge gem which accompanied the letter and to preserve it for the future, when it would become vital to the survival of the region.
Martek's message warned each of them that the terrible evil he had defeated was only imprisoned, not destroyed, and it would not remain imprisoned forever. In a thousand years it would break free and start to ravage the land again, even worse than before he had defeated it. However, hope was not lost: a band of heroes would be found. They would locate Martek's Sphere of Power, safely concealed and waiting for the day of need, and the evil would be defeated once and for all
The letter spelled out portents which would be seen before the evil returned, and characteristics of the heroes to watch out for. It ended by reminding them of their duty to their people, and thanking them for their aid to him as he protected the region.
Although the letters have been lost, fragments remain between oral histories and a handful of records that were created before the Raurin Empire fell shortly after. They have been preserved to the present day by the surviving Raurindi people, and the wizard-sage Aman Al-Raqib was able to piece together enough of them to identify the heroes when they arrived in Bralizzar.
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