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On the 30th of October, 1104, Lord Ozzie fell victim to the tests of the dragon Arral and was imprisoned by the magic of Arral's lair. Now, it has been over a week and Edric has agreed to help retrieve the friendly half-orc.

The dragon Arral is neutral in alignment to the point where he never interferes in the affairs of the world, nor does he care to whom his knowledge is given if that person is worthy of it. Many times in the past, people have come to test their skills and gain the rewards Arral is capable of giving. Most find the tests too hard; Of those, many never return.

The history of Arral is of interest here, because the fate of Lord Ozzie is not as it seems. Near the end of the second age, the kingdom of Arral was the most powerful kingdom in the world, yet to the peoples of the Northern continent, it was just a jungle kingdom whose real importance was obviously very little indeed. As justification for this belief, the 'civilized' peoples were quick to point out that Arral had not shown any military superiority over them, nor even any military power whatsoever.

However, it was the neutrality of these peoples that kept them away from the northern lands, not their weakness. In Arral, the three original magics: The Spell, The Rune, and The Voice, were known, whereas in the north, only The Spell Magic remained. This alone made the leaders of Arral significantly more powerful than the kings of the North. It was through this magic that on the fifth of August, 1928, the high priest of Arral learned of an impending disaster that would cause the imminent downfall of the world. In haste, the priest, the king's magician, and the high king began the conjurations which summoned a young dragon to their mountain. With their magic, they fed it all the knowledge they possessed and gave it the name of their kingdom. Finally, they placed the dragon in the caves where it lives to this day.

The caves, themselves, are very special indeed, as they surround the chasm which is the tear in the planet made by the gods at the end of the first age to drain all the magic from the world. This chasm is the source to all of Arral's power, and so the dragon never strays from his caves. In fact, Arral does not live as mortals do, and has not aged for over one thousand years.

Below Arral on a parallel plane of existence are the dungeons of the Eternal Prisoner. This man guards all of those that have been killed or imprisoned by the tests of Arral. The dungeons are not unpleasant, but there is no way out once inside. The Eternal Prisoner is, in fact, Arral in a different guise. However, due to Arral's vast mind, the prisoner is truly a separate being. If somehow killed, Arral's personality will correspondingly change, and he may feel (for the first time) a compulsion to travel in the world and see with his own eyes what he had only before seen with his magic.

Statistics for the two are as follows:

ARRAL : AC -6, MV 18“/30”, HD 16+, hp 250, #AT 3, DAM 3d6+8/3d6+8/5d8+8 (+3 to hit), SA Breath for 20d6 fire and 20d6 Lightning, SD All saves are 2, MR 75% (absolute), INT 25, WIS 25, SZ L(50' w/o tail)

THE ETERNAL PRISONER : AC 0 (No armor), MV 15“, HD 20th level Fighter. hp 150, #AT 5/2, DAM d8+8 (+6 to hit), SA Magic Powers, SD All saves are 2, MR 75% (absolute), INT 25, WIS 25, SZ M(6½' tall)

The Eternal Prisoner processes all incoming prisoners personally by giving them a test based on which test they failed. In this case, Lord Ozzie failed the test of Wisdom, so this test will be again of Wisdom. If this test is failed, then Ozzie will be placed in stasis just as an imprisonment spell. Otherwise, he will be allowed to walk freely around the dungeons. Both before and after the test, Ozzie will have none of his original equipment, these have been taken from him and placed in Arral's extra-dimensional treasure chamber where he keeps the gifts that he will later give out. Only by completing the tests above and asking Arral for them back can his equipment be retrieved.

The test of The Eternal Prisoner:

Lord Ozzie will be placed in a situation from his past where he originally made a stupid mistake. If he repeats the mistake, he fails the test. If he solves the problem in another fashion, he will pass. The situation is that of the Derghodaemon at the base of the broken Spire in The Spire Tomb. Ozzie will be of a lower level, he will be wounded, and he will be carrying the same equipment that he carried at that time. With these, he must kill the Derghodaemon.

DERGHODAEMON (AC0, MV12”, HD11+22, #AT5, DAMd4+8(x4)/d8+8, SA Grabbing (if the first two claws hit) gives +2 on all other attacks, SD Parrying vs. one attacker to give AC-8, MR80% to first level spells, SZ L(8' tall)

To lure Ozzie forward, the situation will be slightly different than the original: Beyond the Derghodaemon will be a magical field just as in the original, but instead of a Demonwraith's sceptre inside it, there will be the bound and gagged form of the Archmage Edric.

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