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Marlysa |
Naria was brought to her father, who, after his rage had died down, eventually decided to call off the search for Marlysa. But then another disaster took place. The Master got involved in a heavy fight with a Melkotk and came out of it paralyzed. At that time the shadow, the healer, grabbed his change for the throne. He drugged and manipulated the paralyzed king and he did the same with Naria. How he forced the girl into doing the things she would be later so feared for is not known. But Naria became a killer, dressed herself in the Kings clothes and would rule in his name and under his name. And this time, the hunt for Marlysa was on again.
Marlyse was kept hidden.
It was clear the dark master, Naria now, would not rest before the other child would be dead and it was decided by the people who kept her hidden that she would be brought across the Sea of Nebulas to the world of Tolen. When Marlysa had left the land she was born in, she didn't leave the hearts and minds of the people who had cared for her. And old and almost dead legends, written down on parchment, that told about a masked queen that one day would return, became alive again. The masked lady was destines to became the queen one day, after having overthrown the dark ruler that had fortified himself in the royal castle now and for the years to come.
The baby was brought to a stable in Toldendorp, nearby the Forest of Morjeal, and was abandoned there. She was found by Randin and he and his lady Telsi decided to keep her and raise her. At first they are taken aback by the scars on her face. Everybody who sees these markings instinctively understand that this girl carries an enormous burden and a secret not to be spoken of. At first the villagers find it strange that the little girls face is always covered. But in time Marlyse proved to be a loyal friend, a formidable warrior and a gorgeous lady. She alse learned to ride a Valmak when she was very young. Among her best friends were Tatrin, whom she once saved from the claws of the Lods in the forest of Morjeal, Cilia and Ossia. When they came of age they got their training in combat and survival. Strangely enough, disaster and bad luck seemed to follow Marlysa and her comrades. One time the people who had raised her, Randin en Telsi, were lost or missing in Dompour and Marlysa and her friends set out to find them.
Some times a path of fate cannot be altered. Certain decisions can set in motion an important chain of events, events of such weight and mass that nothing can push them in another direction. When Marlysa and her friends set off to the city of Dompour they started on a trail that would lead to enemies and allies and to enemies turning in to allies, a trail that would lead to forgotten knowledge and wisdom and that would ruin the lives of many, but a trail that above all, inexorable would lead to a clash between the pure and open Marlysa and her behind dark garment and iron hidden sister. A clash which outcome had been as certain as was the direction of the road they followed to reach it. Legends don't lie. It was here that Marlysa first met her sister who had been a tyrant and a prisoner in herself.
And great men and women can be recognized by the their actions.
Marlysa could have taken the throne, but she handed it over to Naria
Artwork taken from vol. 1 Het masker (Le Masque), vol. 2 De schaduw van Dompour (L'Ombre de Dompour), vol. 3 De overzijde (l'Autre côté), vol. 4 Bragal (Bragal) and vol. 5 De wonderdoener (Le thaumaturge)
