Cald's Place | Artifacts | Scholars | Sphinxes |
Nice to meet you Calderon. I suppose you are wondering why I'm spying on these cyclops from afar?
Somewhere in that gorge to the North is a cyclops named Cyrek. He is one of the leaders of a group of cyclopes that wish to rule over all they see with an iron fist. They wish to conquer and enslave all other sentient creatures in Aerus! They even seek to enslave those among their kind who don't wish to be a part of their group and do not share their will to conquer!
Cyrek is a wretch! He revels in displaying Jacinna's Sash to all centaur he sees, mocking us! Ahh, well, you probably don't know what Jacinna's Sash is do you? It was an item that once was very vaulable to centaur kin. It has been mostly forgotten now, but my family continues to pass its story down from one generation to the next.
Jacinna was a young Atlantean who was friends with the centaurs. Every day she would brave the dangers of the planes to travel to Aerus and spend time with her friends. There was one centaur she was particularly fond of for he would take her on rides upon his back. Jacinna wanted to give him a present to show her gratitude for his friendship.
Jacinna took a length of a fine fabric and stitched designs into it, creating a sash imbued with magical properties that would increase the wearer's natural abilities. Jacinna was on her way to deliver the present to her friend when she was attacked by a cyclops. Although she fought hard, the cyclops was stronger than she was and killed her. It took the sash meant for the centaur. That centaur is one of my ancestors! The sash has been stolen by one cyclops after another through the ages. The cyclops see it as a trophy and they use it to incite brawls!
It is no secret that Centaur and Cyclopes do not get along well. Generally we keep our distance from one another but some Cyclops and some centaur enjoy going out of their way to taunt each other. My kind used to care deeply about the sash and desperately wanted to wrest it from the grip of the cyclopes. The quest to take it from the cyclops cost my family and many other centaur their lives.
The truth is that Jacinna's Sash no longer means very much to me or my people. But I still don't want to see it in Cyrek's hands. He is such a fool! He parades to each centaur encampment in the forest with his entourage of brutes just to wave the sash around in front of centaur trying to goad them into starting a brawl. Now, more often than not, the centaur just stand around staring at him. This sends Cyrek into a rage causing him to attack the encampment. Cyrek's little jaunts out of the gorge invariably result in bloodshed.
I believe that if he didn't have the sash in his possession he would stop taking his little trips out of the gorge to pick fights. I've been searching for a way to sneak into the gorge to steal the sash. I have not been successful in thie endevour. The cyclops have an uncanny ability to detect an aggressor before they even get close! It is like they have some sort of precognition! All I want is for Cyrek's madness to stop!
If I get anywhere near the gorge I am attacked by all of the cyclops standing just yonder. I've managed to sprint past them before but as I rounded each corner of the gorge the cyclopes in the next turn were already standing fast waiting for me! I made that run in the dead of night when I thought my chances of sneaking past them would be best! I was very lucky to escape with my life...
I have given up hope of sneaking past them. I believe it is necessary to fight your way in, but I can't muster the forces to do so. Most of my kin do not believe that acquiring the sash from the cyclopes would help anymore. No... instead they plot on how to completely eradicate the cyclops.
Most centaur chiefs believe that the only way to achieve peace in Aerus now is to completely destroy the cyclops. Unfortunately it is the free cyclops who suffer by these chieftain's hands. The cyclops lords are too organized and too strong for the chieftain's forces to slay. So they end up only attacking and killing the free cyclops who in truth have no part in the cyclopes attacks on my kind.
Yes, it is a sad state of affairs in Aerus. There are two groups of cyclops, the first group recalls how their people were enslaved by Atlanteans and are now fiercely independant wishing only to not be bothered while bothering no one else. Then there is the second group who wish to conquer and rule over all cyclopes and non-cyclopes alike with an iron fist. The free cyclops oppose the cyclopes lords but it seems the lords slay any cyclops who do not share their philosophy and don't wish to join their ranks, If only this madness could end!
I don't have the means to get to Cyrek but perhaps you do friend? I only want to see the sash out of Cyrek's hands, whomever gets it may keep it! It would be a wonderful prize I assure you! Please consider this if you have the means... please consider how you might get the sash! I fear that you would have to fight your way in and out, but that should be possible with a well organized force! I just cannot muster such a force myself... Anyways, thank you for listening to me. You better go now before the cyclopes hear our chatter or spot us!