Loralkas Crater
This cave was dark, and every few feet it split off into multiple other passages, twisting around each other like the roots of a tree. It wasn't long before I started seeing sunlight at the end of the tunnel. When I stepped out of the cave entrance, it was too bright for me to see. I did spend a year in the Realm of Feylisa in much dimmer light.
My eyes adjusted in a few seconds, and I was met with the sight of a massive blackened violet scar in the landscape. Beyond that were snow covered mountains in every direction. It was cold here, but also oddly satisfying. I could feel the ancient energies of this land flowing through me, as if I was gaining power and knowledge just by being here.
This was not where I expected to go though. I turned to Ithonida and asked her why we were here? She laughed and said "You almost died in that desert, remember? I brought you to a different entrypoint in Vreathe where you have a much higher chance of finding a nearby settlement." She wasn't wrong. I still don't know the way out of that desert. But it isn't like I know where I am now. I asked her where we were.
"In the Mountains of Cil," Ithonida responded, "about a week from the town of Abgrund. We are at the final resting place of my ancestor, the God Loralkas. The Great Black Dragon of the Silver Age. It has been an age since I visited this place..."
Ithonida fell to her knees, speaking that dragon language I barely understood. I kneeled down as well and stayed silent, listening to her prayer. By the time Ithonida was done, her voice was cracking and tears were flowing down her face. I stood up when she finished speaking and helped her to her feet.
Ithonida cleared her throat and took a deep breath, "We're fast approaching the point where we part ways, but there is one final thing I need to teach you. For that, we need a Black Lore Crystal. Search the area. You will know what it looks like when you see it."
- Renelle Vernador
Impact Crater
The Loralkas Impact Crater is roughly a mile in diameter and a quarter mile deep. Located in the Mountains of Cil, it is a location sacred to all dragons and considered dangerous to everyone else. It was created many thousands of years ago in the Silver Age by a dying dragon named Loralkas. His death forever altered the landscape in this area.
The crater appears as a blackened, slightly violet scar in the landscape. The energy released by Loralka's impact altered the very earth around it. Rivers that ran through the area carried this altered earth for hundreds of miles away from the impact site, tinting the water and earth a violet color. Grass and trees are also tinted with this magic, as if the dragon is still affecting the landscape long after his death. Animals and humans are unaffected, but this part of the world is so remote that nothing lingers long enough to feel the effects of this dragon's magic.
History
Loralkas was a colossal black dragon that lived during the Silver Age and was a terror of the Olimyans of the Mountains of Cil. He was considered to be one of humanity's greatest threats for thousands of years, though the dragons would tell you different. The Silver Race eventually sent a massive army to stop him. The Battle was said to have lasted for seventy seven hours. When the battle started to go poorly for Loralkas, he flew up into the heavens to escape, but a Flying Fortress was waiting for it.
Silver Age flying Fortresses are each equipped with a different type of magical weapon, strong enough to kill a god or god-like being weak to the particular energies. In this case, the fortress was Targolund, which had a massive Aethercite powered cannon. It fired a powerful beam of Arcane Mana, powerful enough to pierce Loralka's thick hide. The Dragon was dead, and was sent crashing back to Vreathe, where it slammed into the Earth at such an impossibly fast speed, it shattered four mountains and burned all the trees for a hundred miles around.
Sacred Site
The site is considered sacred to all dragons, especially Aetheric Dragons like the Therians. In past ages they would come to the site of the black dragon's death at least once every hundred years. Other dragons did the same. To Dragons, Loralkas was a God, and was among the greatest of Segra's Spawn. He taught the Therians many things in his long life, and was their protector.
The practice stopped during the Bronze Age, when an excessive number of warriors started coming to the crater, looking to challenge a dragon for death and glory. Most dragons, respecting strength and willpower above all else, would answer the challenge. The bones of thousands of men, elves, and dragons are buried under the snow surrounding the crater because of these battles.
Eventually, dragons stopped coming to this location and forbade their children from doing the same. Due to the remote location, and boredom of waiting months for a dragon to show up in the frozen mountains of Cil, humans stopped making their way out here as well.
Now, the only ones that generally make their way out here are knights of the Order of the Abyss, looking for moissanite crystals to make their armor. Therians also occasionally make their way out here, as one of the caves in the area is linked to the Realm of Feylisa where they live.
Our Father, Loralkas the Pure,
Hallowed be thy name,
Divine be thy life,
Godly be thy deeds,
Holy be thy body,
Sacred be thy tomb,
Great be thy death,
Protect us and watch over us,
be they faithful, be thy children,
be they sinners, be thy traitors,
Rest in Peace, thy will be carried forth,
For ever and ever,
Hallowed be thy name,
Divine be thy life,
Godly be thy deeds,
Holy be thy body,
Sacred be thy tomb,
Great be thy death,
Protect us and watch over us,
be they faithful, be thy children,
be they sinners, be thy traitors,
Rest in Peace, thy will be carried forth,
For ever and ever,
- Therian Prayer
Lore Crystals
Lore Crystals are what the Therians call any type of crystal that can store memories. Quartz is the most common variety, but when it comes to the dragon Loralkas, Moissanite Crystals are what they mean. Moissanite Crystals especially are scattered all over the Loralkas crater, and are found rarely all over the Mountains of Cil due to the impact many thousands of years ago. According to the Therians, lore crystals originally made up the scales on the hides of the Dragon Gods, and contain great amounts of his magic, as well as their memories. Using them in a certain way allows someone to access the past and channel the power of the Dragon Gods.
"Found one!" I yelled. I found a large, fist sized crystal. I could feel the energy emanating from it before I even picked it up. I held the crystal in both my hands, and started charging it with mana. I opened my mind to the crystal, as Ithonida suggested. At first I felt nothing, but then I blinked my eyes a few times, and I realized I was in the body of someone or something else. The memory was fleeting and disappeared as quickly as I saw it.
The memory in the crystal wasn't as important to me as the power I gained. I cast a spell of fire that covered me in a bright glowing veil. The veil then started to take the shape of a large dragon and I was floating in the center. I felt powerful enough to take on a god. With this, my worth to Cassel can finally be proven!
- Renelle Vernador
by mariusz jbie
"We're not alone," Ithonida said. I dropped the lore crystal and broke my concentration. My dragon veil disappeared and I landed back on the ground. Ithonida pointed her arm and made a motion with her hand as if grabbing something. She lifted her arm, and suddenly a lightly armored person was lifted into the air. Ithonida pulled her hand close to herself, pulling the levitating person towards her. The person hit the ground with a thud, but immediately jumped back up, weapon drawn. His face looked familiar....
"Arden?" I asked. The boy visibly flinched at my words. He raised his greathammer, "Stay back dragons!" He yelled. He started charging his hammer with a magic I couldn't identify.
"You don't remember--?" I was cut off by Arden, he quickly replied, "Renelle Vernador died in the Olimian Wastes a year ago. You are a Dragon Cultist, playing a trick on me!"
"Can a Dragon Cultist do this?" I dashed towards Arden. He raised his hammer but wasn't fast enough for me. I closed my hands into a fist and quickly made contact with Arden's face. He fell on his back. The earth enchantments he has in his skin sure hurt, but they were never a match for my fist. "Do you need any more convincing?" I asked.
Arden sat up, grabbing his nose. "Only one person can break my nose...It's been a long time, sister."
"Yes it has, brother." I offered my hand. Arden grabbed it and I pulled him to his feet. "What are you doing way out here?"
"Getting a crystal for my void ar--, wait, what are you doing way out here?!?" Arden asked me. I didn't have a quick answer so I stayed silent.
"Right on time, Arden Vernador!" Ithonida said as she walked between us. She turned towards me and put her hands on my shoulders, "And with this, Renelle Vernador, I leave you now. Good luck. May you prove your worth to your kingdom."
...I knew this was coming, but I enjoyed living with the Therians, learning about the dragonfolk. Ithonida was like a mother to me. I wiped the tears from my eyes and said goodbye. Ithonida laughed saying it wasn't goodbye. She pulled me close and hugged me. Then she let go and disappeared into the cave we walked out of.
- Renelle Vernador
The lore crystals are a very interesting artifact. I especially love how they store memories.
Adazuri: A shonen-inspired magitech fantasy world home-brewed for 5e.