Skara Thrae
Skara Thrae is a cluster of islands off the coast of Saarland. The main island is surrounded by cliffs and has no real harbor. The population is divided into five clans: Arran, Barra, Kallan, Traiga, and Rannoch. There was a sixth clan, the Haggas, but they were exiled from the island hundreds of years ago. The Warlord Ryde leads the Thraen Confederacy of the five clans. Ryde is from Clan Kallan. Ryde’s wife is Seressa, and he has two children, Talbot and Celestine. The family has two royal wolfhounds: Cynwulf and Valhund. Their home is Lugershall on the island of Andover, southeast of the big island.
The Thraen government consists of Ryde the Warlord, Usk the Axminster (executioner, enforcer, and sheriff), the Sage Lang Regis, and the Confederacy Council. The Highlanders in the northeastern part of Skara Thrae are not part of the confederacy. They are a loose collection of smaller clans that swear fealty to no central leader.
Thuro, of Clan Traiga, is Ryde’s main rival. Thuro’s home is the castle Tantagnel, at the northwest corner of the main island.
Ryde has maintained an isolationist policy. The island has two exports: the Poma dogs, and horses. The Thraens only rarely import various necessities.
There is a rare form of hybrid gate on the island in the ruins of Draken Cor in Grimthorne Swamp. It is both a Landgate and a Worldgate.
The Dirgelord Molid
Molid was the last of the Mhoul created by the Lucca. Molid, through single-minded ambition and ruthlessness, has risen through the Mhoul ranks to become their leader, the Dirgelord. Although based out of Mogda Thal, Molid coordinated the invasion of Skara Thrae by the Haggas. Molid’s first encounter with Morgan and his companions resulted in the sinking of Molid’s flagship. The Dirgelord has vowed revenge for the initial defeat and devoted considerable Mhoul resources to locating and capturing Morgan.
Princess Celestine of Skara Thrae
Celestine is the daughter of Ryde, the Warlord of Skara Thrae, and Seressa his wife. She has an older brother named Talbot. Celestine received her basic education on the island of Skara Thrae, which included weapons handling and riding. As a young woman, Celeste traveled to the centaur city of Carnac, where she studied under the Baron Serenus. Her areas of special emphasis were the Ha’ashtari culture and the ecology of the Waste. After leaving Carnac, she returned to Skara Thrae and remained there until the Haggas invasion. Escaping the Haggas, she fled to Androssar and sought aid from Rulda, the Sagamore of Androssar. After Rulda refused her, she went to the Demented Boar, where she met Morgan and Max.
Celeste is a slim, athletic woman with long brown hair and a regal bearing. She is beautiful, with slightly slanted deep blue eyes that give her an exotic look. Her skin has been bronzed by her love of the outdoors. She is an independent, very intelligent person with her father’s temper. She also has a wicked sense of humor. At court, she had many suitors, but found them boring or too overbearing and dominating. Her father had begun to doubt he would ever find a husband for his fiery daughter. She is a woman of strict morals and has chosen the worship of Iosus over the pagan rites of the Maenor, the ancestral gods of her people.
Morgan and Celeste are attracted to each other and could fall in love, given the time and opportunity. But events have conspired against them and each has obligations they cannot ignore. Will true love ever find a way?
