51052 Early Rain - Intro: A Dinner in Blackmill
Talo Eldertree, ex-Grower of Rictoris and now Grower of Blackmill, walks into the Mayor’s House of Blackmill, an ashen gray stone mansion, its inside adorned with the preserved body parts of long dead monsters. Phennon stands up, and extends his hand. Talo shakes, sits down and explains what happened at the battle of Arrowhold.
“So Arrowhold is not ours yet then?”, Phennon asks.
“Indeed. The battle got stalemated by another Grower. Mirk’tanin most likely got lost, along with many soldiers.”, Talo replies with concern.
“This is worrying indeed. Is there any good news at all?”
“Yes. I’ve captured the Keeper of Toth. Leora Kytterak.”
Phennon rolls his eyes and frowns deeply: “Toth? TOTH?! Isn’t that a hamlet far to the east? How is she relevant?”
“Not anymore, Sir! I’ve discovered that they have moved west, and that they are building a new Toth, just to the south of here in the central valley.”
“Interesting…”, Phennon adds ,”I suppose that without a Keeper that settlement may be easier to take than Arrowhold.”
“Indeed it may be sir.”, Talo replies with a smile, “I do wonder about one thing though: what shall we do with her?”
“Let her rot in a dungeon, Talo.”, Phennon proclaims brashly.
Talo nods, stands up and makes it so.
51052 Sun, Fog, Wind - Leora’s story
Destined to be a heroine, Leora became the Keeper of New Toth at a very young age. Initially she is sent northwards by the Lady of the Valley, where she finds allies in Arrowhold, but ends up being captured herself by Talo Eldertree during a siege of Blackmill troops on the hamlet. Talo subsequently takes her back to the town of Blackmill, where she is imprisoned in a dungeon. With the town of New Toth unprotected, Phennon decides to make a move to occupy it during the (late) Rain season of 51052.
When the Sun season commences, Phennon requires funds to hold off the Kazamer Legion, maintain control over New Toth and draft in more citizens and conscripts from the Jackals. With Talo’s consent, he assigns Talo to deliver training to Leora, giving her the perspective to rise in the Kazamer ranks and reclaim her freedom. Weeks later he sells her off to Kazamer Slavers for the hefty sum of 15,000 crystal coins, giving her a slight perspective and Phennon some much needed funds..
In the weeks after, Leora gets deported to the City of Kazamer, where she attempts to escape from imprisonment. Although initially successful, she runs into an ambush set up by soldiers from Garathor the Unclean, a gladiator who sometimes has a side-hustle with the Kazamer army. Garathor is impressed with her battle prowess during the capturing attempt, and agrees with Lord Drennon that he will take her in as a gladiator, along with some other less skilled and obedient soldiers. Lord Drennon agrees on the condition that Leora will be dead by the end of the year (51052). A few days later, Garathor takes Leora and the others along to the Marbledem Arena. After arriving in the Marbledem Arena, Leora fights her first tournament in a matter of days. She wins the first round of the Wildlands Plate Tournament with the help of Hugo Antillez, but a large fire and uprising breaks out in the second round, allowing her to escape once more: this time with a wooden weapon.
At this point, several months pass, and we fast-forward to the Wind Season of 51052. Hugo Antillez convinces the arena manager Garathor to lend him 50 gladiators and monsters to initiate a campaign to reclaim New Toth, while the Arena itself is being rebuilt. As part of this initiative, Hugo succeeds in tracking down Leora, who fled after the Arena fire. Leora realizes that not only this is her way to freedom, but also that this campaign can help her to liberate her hometown and become Keeper of New Toth again.
Her winged mount Sparrow is currently imprisoned by Exolom, who uses the creature for his Growing experiments.
AI Artist's impression of Leora, Wind Season 21052
