"I've had much the same suspicions," Alyssa says, nodding in agreement. "In fact, I have a theory regarding the source of Gyriax's power, though it's rather troubling... I fear that the white dragon may have allies among the demons."<br/><br/>"The creatures of the jungle were more than simply foreign; they were alien, almost demonic. Their appearance and behavior more closely resembled the demons of scripture than any earthly beast. And otherworldly influence could explain the jungle's sudden appearance- even a brief exposure to the Abyss has been said to warp mind and body, and twist the laws of nature."<br/><br/>"Abyssal corruption would also explain the recent behavior of the Rubinovan wards," she continues. "When the Order of Rubin first settled in Orev, they foresaw that the Vermifor Caverns would one day become the source of a great evil. The founding priests laid a series of powerful wards upon those caverns to seal the evil power within, and swore constant vigil should that power ever break free and threaten the valley. Since their creation nearly a century ago, the wards have only faltered twice: once during the first snow of this winter, and once immediately before... the Massacre." Alyssa falls silent upon naming that event, her fingers creeping up to clasp at her necklace. Despite the ten years lying between today and that horrid event, the mere mention of its name recalls every excruciating detail as though it were only yesterday...<br/><br/><br/><div style="padding: 3px; background-color: #FFFFFF; border: 1px solid #d8d8d8; font-size: 1em;"><div style="text-transform: uppercase; border-bottom: 1px solid #CCCCCC; margin-bottom: 3px; font-size: 0.8em; font-weight: bold; display: block;"><span onclick="if (this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div')[1].getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display != '') {  this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div')[1].getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display = ''; this.innerHTML = '&lt;b&gt;Spoiler: &lt;/b&gt;&lt;a href=\'#\' onClick=\'return false;\'&gt;hide&lt;/a&gt;'; } else { this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div')[1].getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display = 'none'; this.innerHTML = '&lt;b&gt;Spoiler: &lt;/b&gt;&lt;a href=\'#\' onClick=\'return false;\'&gt;show&lt;/a&gt;'; }"><b>Spoiler: </b><a href="#" onclick="return false;">show</a></span></div><div class="quotecontent"><div style="display: none;"><span style="font-size: 120%; line-height: 116%;"><span style="font-weight: bold">The Massacre of Rubinova</span></span><br/><br/>Knowledge (history or local) DC 10: Ten years ago, the town of Rubinova was destroyed overnight by a freak snowstorm. Only the Monastery of Saint Rubin remains to mark its passage.<br/><br/>Knowledge (local) DC 15: Rubinova was attacked by demons while it recovered from a late-winter blizzard. The Order or Rubin successfully drove the fiends back into the Abyss, but not before the had claimed the lives of many villagers. The survivors of the attack fled to the valley, leaving the Rubinite monks to stand guard should the demons demons.</div></div></div>