A Hatred Repressed/Dialog

Here is the script of the conversation between Maladict, a Necromancer of Freeport, and Tanath L'Vec, an operative of the Priesthood of Innoruuk in the Loping Plains:

Maladict says, "Hail, Tanath L'Vec"

Tanath L'Vec says,"Maladict?"

"Yes."

"I am Tanath L'Vec. There is much work to be done, but first I would enlighten you as to our purpose. I hope you do not mind. I'm sure Xilania has told you that I am searching for an artifact. Perhaps as important as the artifact itself is the reason it resides here in the Loping Plains."

"What makes that important?"

"I'll tell you if you would listen. This is a sullied land. Chief in our interest is the relationship between the Sareth'Tal and the dwarven legions. The Sareth'Tal were an agrarian tribe of gnolls in this region. Eventually the dwarves, expanding their influence, came to the Loping Plains. With little care to the Sareth'Tal, the dwarves scoured the land in search of precious stone. Naturally this upset the Sareth'Tal, who had been using this land for generations."

"What did the Sareth'Tal do?"

"That's the good part... they did nothing, Maladict. Nothing. They tried to be diplomatic, but the dwarves cared little for the concerns of mere gnolls. Ranthok Redbeard, the dwarven leader in the Loping Plains, was charged by King Stormhammer to establish military outposts and prepare for war, though the king also ordered Ranthok to attempt to reach a settlement with the gnolls."

"Was a settlement reached?"

"Ranthok didn't even attempt it. He saw the military orders and little else. Without provocation Ranthok's army swept through the Loping Plains, slaughtering the Sareth'Tal."

"They didn't fight back?"

Tanath L'Vec says, "They had no army, they could do nothing. They were decimated. This act, and the subsequent punishment from Brell--releasing the Avatar of Below upon the dwarves and opening the earth to swallow Ranthok's army--left the land scoured of life yet thick with hate. And this hate lingered; it was not, could not be acted upon, and it lingered."

Maladict says, "Why couldn't it be acted upon?"

"They were dead. The Sareth'Tal and their hatred of the dwarves: dead, unable to act. The dwarves, and their irrational hatred of the Sareth'Tal: dead, unable to act. Some dwarves even hated Ranthok. They, too, were dead and unable to act. Their hatred defined them, and it came to rest over these lands. It affects all who come here now."

"And that ties into the artifact."

"It does. The artifact is no gnoll trinket or dwarven forged steel. It is a sacred relic to our people, and it found its way here. It sought out this hatred, it wished to bathe in it. And so it has, and now we seek it out."

"What will be done with it once it is found?"

"We will sing to it, Maladict. Find a hatred with which it will resonate, and see what powers can be derived from it. We will study it. But first we must find it. There was another, in the past, also searching for it. His journey was cut short by his death. I believe he has long since died, but his journal will tell us more."

"Where do we get his journal?"

"I have it, or most of it at least. He was a passenger upon a ship that brought him here and dashed his body upon the shore. It is there--the moors to the southwest--where I believe you can find the missing sections of the final three pages of his journal which will I am certain be enlightening. Bring them to me."

Maladict says, "All right."

You fetch the pages and return...

"Hail, Tanath L'Vec"

"Did you find the pages?"

"I did."

Tanath gives you A Passenger's Journal

"Good. Take a look at this journal. Talk to me once you've read it."

"All right."

You read the book...

"Hail, Tanath L'Vec"

"Have you read it?"

"Yes."

"So you see what happened to the previous seeker. He was a relative of mine. He had a device known as an Essence Culler. Once powered by the Ulteran Spires, it would've allowed him to deconstruct and reconstruct the spirits of the Sareth'Tal. These reconstructed spirits could then be released and they would have lead him to the Dark Beacon. Clearly enough this didn't happen."

"So I should head to--"

"The spires, to start with. We don't know how far the culler got, but given the state of these lands I do not expect it to be far from the spires themselves. Once you get it, take it to the spires, there you can empower it. Once empowered, you can use it on the Sareth'Tal to find the Dark Beacon, which you can then bring to me."

"I understand, I will return."

Once you have the Dark Beacon, you return to Tanath

"Hail, Tanath L'Vec"

"Did you find the Dark Beacon?"

"Yes, I have it."

"Ahhh, beautiful, beautiful. After so many years it is finally back in our hands. Tell Xilania we thank her, hah!"

"We?"

"She'll know. And you, Maladict: we thank you as well. Goodbye!"