| Moranfauglor |
| "Deahtly Desert" |
| This vast, immense desert area partially borders the Kingdom of Vanyanin Aran'dor. It is exceedingly dangerous; it is called "Deathly Desert" for a reason: because it is. Those who are not of or from the desert, will become part of the sands should they put so much as a toe onto it. They will literally dissolve into the sands, themselves. Instantly. No warning. There are those who claim it has been magicked by evil; then, there are those who claim it has always been thus. Who is to say? Who is to know? One such story explains there was an old beggar, a withered old man, ugly and deformed. He wandered the countryside, looking for food, shelter, any handout he could find, in hopes someone would be kind enough to do so. He was met with, more often than not, rude gestures, comments, and glares. Eventually, he happened upon a small village. Upon entering, he was greeted with kindness and sympathy. Not a harsh word was said of his begging, nor of his condition. Years passed, and he became a beloved member of the village. Once it was proved that not one person in the village had ulterior motives or thoughts, he finally revealed himself for who he was. He was a god (though this bit of the story has become lost, no one knows which god he was). The people of the village, who had accepted the facade of the beggar, did not change their attitudes. He was still welcomed. He lived peacefully within the village for many years. Then, a neighboring village heard of the happiness and kindness of the other village. They became angry, and sought to have it for themselves. They declared war upon the other village, and attacked without warning one dark evening. The god, knowing of this, put a spell upon the village. If it were to be destroyed . . . then the ground upon which it stood would become deadly; a destroyer, itself. The neighboring village did not heed this warning. They ignored it completely, refused to believe it, and destroyed the village in one night. And where the remains of that village turned to ash . . . a vast, dangerous desert began to grow. It spread to the warlike village, and turned them, too, into sand . . . And so it continued for centuries, until the whole of the Death Desert became. And, every few years, it seems to get just a bit bigger from all those who have wandered recklessly onto its sands. No one who has ever traveled into the desert has returned. It is a dangerous place. However, there have been stories from those who have sailed high above the sands, that the desert is home to several beasts. Desert Dragons, great wyrms, are said to travel under and around the sand, as if it were the sea. Rock golems, large creatures made of stone and rock, are said to stomp around in various areas of the desert. No one has ever gotten close enough to find out whether or not these . . . creatures . . . are intelligent. Then there are the desert goblins; hideous little deformed creatures which roam around and under the sands. They seem to be scavengers, searching and picking in every nook and cranny available. Finally, there has been talk of a race of Desert Elves which reside under the surface in a vast maze of caverns. How this rumor got started, we may never know. For your own safety, please avoid the desert at all costs. |