A little ways from the clan's lair lies the lake called Erie. Nobody knows what business a lake has doing in the Starwood Strand, and nobody's eager enough for amputation to find out. To be fair, the lake really doesn't look like a place for a picnic. It's creepy, it's marshy, and it's foggy enough that you just know there's going to be a monster lurking around in there. Thus, hatchlings, despite knowing the lake is there, have been warned to stay away from the "monster of the lake." Who knows what horrible, hatchling-eating terror lives in there with the bones of its previous victims?

The "monster of the lake" would like to kindly point out that he neither eats hatchlings nor lives with the bones of his previous victims. Well, there's a skeleton down there belonging to the previous monster of the lake, but the only thing that monster had been able to do was ambush Erie and get turned into a skeleton, so Erie doesn't really think that counts. In fact, it's pretty boring at the bottom of the lake, and at every other side of it. There's no monster, no creepy tome, and certainly not anything that could kill you. Nope, there's just Erie and a large body of water that has never once done anything interesting. That's all. If you want to go treasure-hunting, this is the last spot you'd want to look.

As for Erie, he is but your simple Guardian, swimming happily in his Charge the marshy lake. Once upon a time, he told his clanmates that he would be leaving to be with his Charge, so they needn't worry and can come by for picnics once he defeated the horrid monster of the lake. Sadly, it was right after a huge party, so his clanmates were a bit too drunk to remember exactly what he said and only noticed he was gone a week later. By then, rumors were already flying. Some claimed that Erie had ended up by the lake and had been dragged into the deep by the lake monster. Others whispered that he'd achieved enlightenment and ascended to the heavens as a god. Still others believed that he was hiding, and thus pretended not to care in hopes that he'd come out of his hiding spot. Whatever the case, nobody ended up going picnicking by the lake. As time passed, his clanmates began referring to the lake as Lake Erie, in honor of their (not really dead) clanmate who mysteriously vanished near it.

By the time Erie figured out the whole "oops we forgot you told us you were going there and now we think you're dead" thing, it'd been several months since his clan had moved to another part of the Strand. In their place was a new clan, led by a Tundra and a Fae that looked to be more of a researcher than a real leader. Erie was too shy to approach them and the clan, as it grew, became too afraid to approach him. Erie didn't mind that last part, but he really wished that those Arcane dragons could, for once, not take caution and just talk to him. Sadly that hasn't happened yet, so Erie's been forced to stand on the sidelines as he watched the clan grow. Now, a magnificent little village stands where his clan used to be, and the bustling activity and noise is almost enough to take away the emptiness of his clan not being there. Almost.

For now, though, before Erie musters up the courage to go speak to this Arcane clan, he's content with staying at the bottom of the lake in all his solitude. He doesn't mind the silence and lack of company, since he has plenty of time to daydream and slowly redecorate his lake. His inability to move away from his Charge makes it difficult for him to find materials to renovate with, though, so he's had to resort to digging up crystals and dragging entire trees into the lake to make do with. (This has led to more rumors about the monster of the lake, which so far has only led hatchlings to bury their crystals nearby in hopes the monster would take it instead of them.) Perhaps one day, the lake will look mild enough for one of those clan dragons to approach.

Then, Erie can finally have a friend again.