Trophonius

Beyond the world of dragonkind lie realms shrouded as if by a veil from the perception of the living and the sane. Ancient shadows linger in these realms: Restless ghosts in the void that await a fleeting chance to finally fade, lost but potent memories that rebound within the confines of time until they are reduced to echoes of echoes, elemental spirits whose wild power vastly outstrips that of their weaker kin on Sornieth, and tendrils of the Shade and other entities primordial and unknowable. The Eleven alone can walk these realms undisturbed and unafraid, for they exist in all at once.

Dragons may be granted the terrible gift of glances through the veil when their minds are riven by primal terror, or their souls are nigh-untethered from their bodies. Perhaps it is through these realms that the Tidelord grants his oracles their sight, and mayhaps within the Hewn City the concealing Veil is thin and tattered.

Throughout the ages there have been dragons who strove to peer beyond the Veil, or cast it aside and walk the Paths Between. Who can say how many? Few traces of them now remain, save the dwindling shadows cast by their lives as they walked through the mist of the unknown. Only one dragon truly belongs Beyond- she who wove the Veil into the fabric of her being as no one has done before or since. Naomi the Gatekeeper is watcher and custodian of the realms beyond; the shadows her great life casts are deeper than any being's save those of the great dragon gods.

All of Naomi's line exist at least in part within this Veil, although none can claim to possess a sliver of the mastery over the distant realms possessed by the Ascendant or the Eleven. It pervades the magic that shapes their souls.

Trophonius, son of Thorn, always delighted in seeking the mysterious, and possessed a knack for sensing secrets. Naomi's influence made the Veil slightly transparent to his eyes. He could in some fashion see long shadows of the past left behind by time, and follow them to their source- the truth that spawned them- like a hound on a scent. As he grew older and acquired more knowledge, through his talent and by poring over tomes of thaumaturgy and philosophy, his desire to unravel secrets deepened. Like the nameless multitude before him, Trophonius yearned to leave the world allotted to dragons and discover the ultimate truths that underlaid reality.

He embarked on this quest with like-minded individuals he met during his studies. Trophonius was the only descendant of Naomi among them, and they hoped his connection to the Gatekeeper would be the key to opening the door to the realms Beyond. Together they traveled the globe, seeking places whose strange natures defied the normal elemental magic known to dragons, relics believed to be of another world, and myths passed down from ancient days that might hold kernels of the greater truth they craved. They worked heedless of the potential danger to themselves, or to others who by their works might be exposed to horrors unshrouded.

Breakthroughs in their research fanned the fires of their fervor, and gave them not wholly-unfounded confidence. In their arrogance, they tried to claim what was not theirs. They came to believe that the best avenue Beyond lied in the crushing depths from whence came the oracular waters of the Tidelord. No longer content to merely consult with the Sea's seers, they resolved to find the most potent font of prophecy, submerge themselves in its truths, and by stealing its gift pierce the Veil and behold the whole of existence, with its wide and mysterious worlds full of secrets they could claim.

With trickery and cunning they devised the means for them to reach the unfathomable depths of Leviathan's Trench, where the most potent prophecies of the Tidelord roil forth from his Spiral Keep. No exalted sentinels barred their passage, and no Goliaths hunted them through the abyssal gloom. It seemed the arrogant, would-be robbers of foresight would be rewarded with perfect success. But this was not an oversight on the part of the Tidelord, who knew of their coming.

For he is not the Icewarden; he metes out punishment by subtler means. The curse that befell Trophonius and his comrades for daring to steal from the Tidelord was that they got exactly what they wanted.

The desirers of darkness trespassed without obstacle upon the benthic fonts of foresight that flow from the essence of the Tidelord. Immersed in the oracular waters, in the heart of the realm of a primordial deity whose very being transcends all realms of existence, their mortal minds were pervaded and shattered by the immensity of Truth. Thus punished for their greed and hubris purely by the consequences of their quest, they dispersed through the abyss, never to wittingly cross paths again. Trophonius for his part came by dark and twisting ways up the river that runs to the Sea, and following its course came at last to the deep caves whose mouths gape at the base of Greatwyrm's Breach.

He alone was spared utter madness, albeit reduced to a secret and reclusive shadow of his former self. For his own essence went beyond the physical realm. Rather than obliterating his mind, the currents of knowledge poured into his soul, and remain there to this day. About his shadow beyond the Veil, eddies of truth and frightful possibility churn constantly. So great is this burden that the overflow spills out into the minds of those around him, emitting an aura of dread and primal terror. Few can stand his presence for long.

But many try. For Trophonius has learned how to parse the many possible facets of the past, present, and future shown to him, and he may divulge the most hopeful course of action to achieve a certain end. To consult Trophonius, most require great magical preparation- spells of forgetfulness, to live unhaunted by the horrors he exudes, and of mental fortitude, so they may recall what they need however dimly.

Those who tolerate him best are in their own way also linked to realms beyond the veil- others who share the bloodline of Naomi; Water dragons, especially those from the depths near the Tidelord's surging prophecies; others endowed with foresight or clairvoyance; warlocks already steeped in magic linked to the beyond; and those whose souls have been touched by the Shade. Within the clan closest to his deep, concealed cave, those with this capacity include Asphodel Veilschild, a cousin more enshrouded in the veil than most, Ankou Dwimmerede the grim warlock, and Deucalion Eldcairn of the first, most ancient waters.

His lineage traces from Naomi, to Willow, to Thorn, to Trophonius.

Cousin

Emblem by Drytil

Quotes taken from (& lore heavily inspired by) The Last Door, produced by The Game Kitchen.