On the desert island archipelago Xazywz, populated sparsely by tribes of the Agado, a small race of lizard people, roams the Desert Queen Naraya. At least so the story goes. Once she was a kind and gentle sorceress of the forest.
Naraya had a strong power with the forest creatures, she could call them, heal them, and talk to them all day long. She had great power, but was content to lead a simple life. Nonetheless, she was lonely.
King Careth of To’Nael, the great kingdom to the north of Naraya’s forest began taking an interest in Naraya, which pleased her to no end. They would take long walks, or ride deep into the forest and while away the days.
Finally, the day came when Careth proposed to Naraya and made her queen of To’Nael. There was great rejoicing of the people, for they would now have an heir. To’Nael had long been at war with the Isharti Empire, just to the south of Naraya’s forest. There had been concern that their king could die in one of the frequent battles. The many barons of the kingdom would most likely fight for power. With the country weak, Isharti would most surely take the nation. The Ta’nael would work in the gelium mines as slaves of the insect people.
A great offensive began in the Ta’naelian/Ishartine war. Careth maneuvered great forces around Naraya’s forest and drove the enemy there and laid siege, unbeknownst to Naraya, who kept in touch with her beloved while she stayed behind at the royal palace. About this time Careth persuaded Naray via messengers that her forest was not safe from the Isharti, who were killing her beloved animals and desecrating the most serene of glades in the woods. She used her magic to raise a barrier around the forest that prevented Isharti from passing it, either leaving the forest or entering it.
Careth’s ultimate plan had worked. He had used Naraya solely to trap the massive Isharti armies. He then ordered her precious forest burned to the ground. The Isharti magically trapped within burned to death. Victorious, Careth cockily set back home. He anticipated anger from his new wife, but with everything she had ever known destroyed, she would come to live with what was now her lot in life. So he thought.
A lone hawk escaped the blaze and flew hard through day and night to reach Naraya days before her husband returned. Weak and exhausted, it cried the story of their home before it collapsed, dead, in her lap. The always beautiful Naraya’s face flushed, then drained of blood. It is said her gorgeous, long blonde hair went to silver that day as if a part of her life left her. A dark, endless void of hate and despair opened in her soul, bubbling up into her eyes, making them entirely pitch black.
Screaming like a banshee, she flew across the skies and landed in the road before Careth. Sorcerous winds whipped her silvery hair about her, her stark white linen dress flapping about her narrow frame. With all her might, Naraya unleashed the power of the arcane she had within her at Careth. His hair whitened, then fell out as his face went ashen. Hardened troops near him screamed and ran. His skin went yellow, then dried, and his body sunk in as it crumbled to dust. The death and destruction did not end there.
Naraya let death flow from her. Angst. Vile hatred. It killed everything in sight for miles. Her once beautiful forest, the Isharti homelands, all of her late husband’s kingdom turned into a giant wasteland. An unnatural desert where no plant or creature could thrive.
To this day the isles of Xazywz are barren, though a few small plants and creatures have learned to survived the dryness and heat. It is said at night you can hear Naraya’s mournful cry as she weeps for everything she lost. She still roams the deserts in her white dress, full of hate and sadness, ready to lash out at anything that she encounters.