2001-03-07: The Lizard’s Revenge
Several months ago our own Galyd Kedewyr was sent to report upon a strange occurrence in the jungles south of Trinsic. A mysterious green stone known as the Eye of the Lizard had unearthed itself in the midst of a small village, its purpose and power unknown. With this stone came hoards of lizardmen, and almost constant battle for the Knights of the Alliance Village.
It seems this jewel was a religious artifact, the most sacred object known to the lizardmen. Once every hundred years the Eye rises from the earth and draws the lizards to it. To the dismay of all in the village, it did exactly that. For over a month the lizardmen poured steadily from the far reaches of our lands to the Eye. To make a volatile situation even worse, the lizardmen found the colony of humans settled upon what they considered Holy Land to be an affront.
The long battle that followed took its toll on both sides, though the lizards lost almost all who journeyed to visit the Eye. Seeing his people drawn to death by the very object of their faith prompted the lizardmen’s High Shaman to take action. With the help of the villagers he devised a plan to relocate the Eye to a safer location, for both lizard and man. On the appointed eve, accompanied by two acolytes, The Shaman performed an ancient ceremony, (a ritual used only once before when a great flood sought to rob the lizards of the Eye), to move the Eye of the Lizard to a clearing north of the Shrine of Honor. The ritual was known to the Lizards as the “Bloodbond,” The Shaman bonding himself to the stone, and then spilling his blood upon the ground in the new location transported the stone. There the Eye sat for a great while, before it once again sank into the earth for another one hundred years.
The villagers could not have guessed that the sinking of the Eye would once again bring the wraith of the lizards.
According to an old hermit, who reputedly lived among the lizardmen at one time, the death of the Shaman left the lizardmen without a spiritual leader. One of the few acolytes was chosen to replace their fallen master. Perhaps fate or simply bad luck left the Alliance Village to face a warrior shaman ’ one who fiercely opposed the Shaman’s decision to move the stone. One who still sought vengeance for his fallen brothers ’ those who had been slain by the Alliance and others, many months ago.
With his lust for war, and feeding off the embarrassing defeat of his people, the new shaman united the lizard clans against the Village and any who would stand by it. Unlike the previous encounters, these recent raids are more organized, with far greater numbers of lizardmen attacking from multiple directions. The lizard forces are now even supported by swamp dragons ’ singular and formidable creatures, according to those who have faced them in battle.
The Village, however, has not fallen. It remains in relatively high spirits, and many have come to its defense, including a mercenary army. And as luck would have it, the village is not without some source of information. They are often warned of coming attacks by the old hermit who walks the jungles. Much insight into the workings of the lizard society has been gained thanks to him, and perhaps he will play a pivotal role in resolving this horrible conflict.
