In the Raktam Throne Room...

[CyAdora]

Iceman

In the Raktam Throne Room...   

Monaliza sits slumped on her throne. The intricately carved wood has been polished until it shines to rival the inlaid gold and gems, although in the dimly-lit Throne Room its sheen is muted. A bare handful of the fragrant, vivid crimson candles that would usually illuminate the room remain alight. The Queen broods in the half-darkness of the empty chamber, the deep shadows mirroring the thoughts that blacken her mood, and her hands toy absently with a weathered skull as she contemplates the ruin facing her people. As the skull turns in her restive grip the letters "DLC" can be made out, carved deeply into the forehead.

The Supreme Monarch of Greater Raktam swears feelingly. How to stem the tide of destruction that visits her village day after day? How to halt the implacable outsiders and their relentless persecution of her people? Whether motivated by bloodlust, greed, or misguided beliefs, the results were the same - the Raktami were dying. Like the weed-choked ruins that sometimes loom suddenly out of the depths of the Shartak jungle, Raktam was being swallowed by the creeping, mindless vines of the white men's hatred. Her people and their proud culture were being overrun by the outsiders, and despite all her efforts, their queen could do little but watch their slaughter.

Her fists clench in impotent rage, and a loud crack echoes through the Throne Room. Monaliza looks down at the forgotten skull. A deep crack runs from an eye socket up across the cranium, straight through the legend etched into the bone of the forehead. The queen smiles grimly. There is still strength in Raktam. There is still the will to fight. And even that which seems immutable and unchangeable can be broken.

[Simon]

Original post: http://forum.shartak.com/index.php/topic,3167.msg93498.html#msg93498

[Iceman]

So when do I get my cheque?