The big monster fight that marked the beginning of the new year had ended with a win for Old Spit. The next several days had been unusually cold, with sleet and snow keeping most of the populace indoors and bundled for warmth.
Darkness fell early in the evening, and the minor warmth of blankets and chamber fires did little to stave off the cold and the wind. Even from the reaches of the tower, the sound the wind made caused eerie moans to drift through the streets of Landfall.
Glaxilla could hear the sound of the town crier as they called out midnight, passing through the street below. She could also hear the rising of the wind as it battered and twisted along the rooftops. Even as she was disturbed from her rest, she still seemed remained in that twilight zone between waking and sleeping as the sound of the townsman faded in the distance and the wind grew even louder.
Loud enough to cause her some alarm, but still she could not rise from her bed. When thunder began to sound, and flashes of lightning lit up the interior of the room, she knew she must be dreaming, for there were no thunderstorms in the middle of winter that she had ever known of.
A closer and more brilliant flash of light caused her to blink for a moment, as she heard the sound of the curtains being blown asunder and scattered through the room. A green glow that emanated warmth, and the smell of spring filled the window frame and gently flowed into the room. A voice like the sound of growing plants and rustling trees spoke softly, and seemed not to address Illa, but some unseen force, "Here herald, this is the one of which we spoke". After the glow uttered its phrase, it slowly faded away.
A large claw, covered in fine bluish white scales gripped the window frame, and leveraged the form of what could have been mistaken for a very tall lizardman into the room as another gust of storm driven air blasted into the room. It was not a lizardman, for the head of the creature was that of a dragon, and its eyes glowed with amber sparks. Its form was covered in a golden/brass set of chainmail, and it carried a long staff that seemed to be a cross between a wizard's staff and a bladed spear.
"Glaxilla Odelyre, you walked where none have walked, and you spoke with those not spoken to in ages. On'dayhai, these are interesting times". The creature strode without a care directly to where Illa lay, unable to move. "We have heard your thoughts, and your needs, now hear ours." It looked over its shoulder, out the window, seemingly far into the distance, then turned its toothy maw back towards Illa. "There is an ill wind coming, and it clashes with the winds of the natural order. It is vile, and it fortells the doom of all. It comes in many forms, and has many servants. Knowledge is all that can save you. Knowledge is a sword that cuts three ways. And some things must be kept secret."
The creature turned away from Illa, with a discouraged and doubting look upon its draconic face. "So few rise to the task, will you rise and join us? I am Dragonborn Aetherial Kotal, 57th Herald of Ylath, and I can carry your answer to the Son of Air". As he spoke, the lightning began to slow and abate, and the wind resumed a more natural course. He began to glow with a faint blue fire, and feathery gray wings sprouted from his back as he began to fade from view.
"On'dayhai"