by Terry Brooks
Unlike the barren mountains above, life within the Crake is abundant. Ferns of all types, sizes, and colors grow in thick profusion. All manner of insects from foot-long slugs to brilliantly colored butterflies feed on the plants, while brightly plumed birds feed on the insects and various animals feed on both.
Perhaps because of the relative isolation, within valleys like the Crake live creatures that exist nowhere else on the peninsula. The largest and most dangerous of these is the lizard-like creature natives call the Graak, which can grow to a height of over fifteen feet at the shoulder. Resembling a cross between a dragon and a lizard, the Graak is carnivorous and dominates the food chain of the jungle. Equipped with huge jaws of needle-sharp teeth, thick, crusted skin, and clusters of horns on its head and spine, it is a formidable predator. Its slick, mottled skin provides perfect camouflage for the shadowed depths of the rain forest, allowing it to blend seamlessly into its surroundings.
Despite relatively short, stubby legs, the quadruped Graak is capable of speeds in excess of that of a fast horse, even through dense jungle terrain. Once prey is cornered, powerful leg muscles and huge talons allow the Graak to lift onto its hind legs while slashing its prey with its forelimbs, though it usually prefers to grab smaller prey in its jaws, crushing them until it can suck the meat and fluids from their bones.
Graaks usually mate for life, but lay eggs only once or twice a decade, raising their young until they are old enough to fend for themselves. Once they reach adulthood, younger Graak usually leave to find their own mates and territories.
These great dragons were once the most feared predator in the region, but a new danger was unleashed by the Morgawr. Determined to capture Grianne Ohmsford and gain the magic of Antrax, the Morgawr used his dark magic to create cauls to hunt his human prey.
Cauls are natural creatures that have been forcibly transformed by magic into ferocious, magic-enhanced predators. The first caul in Parkasia was created by the Ilse Witch, who transformed a wolf into a Jachyra. Once she was no longer in a position to control it, it continued to mutate until it became much larger and developed poisonous venom. That caul went mad and tried to turn on its creator, only to be killed by Truls Rohk. While predatory animals are usually preferred as the basis for cauls because of their sharp natural instincts, the Morgawr used human prisoners, creating fearsome killers with monstrous wolf-like bodies and human cunning.
The Morgawr, Dark Power of Deceit
Mentor to the Ilse Witch, the Morgawr was a power-hungry warlock who used his dark magic for control and manipulation. Claiming to be related to the witch sisters of the Wilderun, the Morgawr more closely resembled a Mwellret and was most comfortable with them. While he had the ability to shape-change at will, his natural appearance was that of a large, scaled, reptilian humanoid.
The Morgawr, hungry for power, preferred to work in secret. He was responsible for kidnapping and subverting young Grianne Ohmsford, turning her into the Ilse Witch and manipulating her magic for his own purposes. He also arranged the rise of Sen Dunsidan to the position of Federation Prime Minister by murdering his rivals. He was the first magic user known to create cauls, an abomination of nature and magic, though he taught that skill to the Ilse Witch. Mwellrets served him willingly, but he controlled his human slaves by devouring their minds and souls, creating a force of mindless, walking dead.
The Morgawr was killed by the spirit of the keep on the island of Mephitic after a pitched battle with his former student, Grianne Ohmsford.
The Morgawr.
Once transformed, a caul retains the memory of its past life as well as the horrendous pain of the transformation. They are forever linked to their creator, but can be controlled only so long as that creator maintains the binding magic. Released from control, the caul will usually attempt to turn on its creator. Left on their own, cauls often continue to mutate, slowly going mad from the pain and the horror.
Some cauls remained when the Morgawr left Parkasia. Only time will show what damage they will do as they mutate and lose their minds.
The Jerle Shannara never penetrated beyond the Aleuthra Ark range, though its crew made tantalizing discoveries that hint of a broad new land beyond those so far discovered. One of the brave voyagers, the Dwarf Panax, remained behind to travel with the Rindge into the northern grasslands, choosing a life in the unknown wilds of Parkasia over the one he left behind. Perhaps in time, others may follow in his footsteps.
The Druids of the
New Order
If the Four Lands are to find peace, we as Druids must help them find the way. —Walker Boh
ruids have always been a part of the Four Lands, but the Druid order disappeared almost entirely during the years of the Second Druid Order. After the Shadowen Wars, the Druids became more myth and legend than reality. Once the Shadowen were defeated, Walker Boh, the last of the Druids and sole living representative of the order, retired to Paranor and disappeared within the great keep’s imposing walls. For many years, Paranor remained silent. Walker and the Druids faded into myth. Paranor and its treasures were all but forgotten until Walker suddenly emerged, decades after he had withdrawn, with no sign that time had touched him. He had been born well over one hundred years before, but appeared to be only half that age. To most of the people of the Four Lands, his return was a miracle wrought by Druid sorcery. Those aware of the Druid arts knew that he had emerged from the Druid Sleep.
The Rise and Fall of the Third Druid Order
Walker spent the next thirty years in desperate pursuit of his lifelong goal: rebuilding the Druid Council. But he had no interest in simply re-creating councils of the past. Walker envisioned the new Druid Council as a body made up of members of each Race but completely independent of all nations. A council of adepts would work to unlock the secrets of life’s most difficult and challenging problems, while striving to improve the lives of all the peoples of the Four Lands. Unfortunately, the governments of the lands were caught in a precarious balance of power, and none of them was willing to relinquish power or autonomy to Druids. Walker’s long absence from the lands meant that people had forgotten all he had done. The fear and distrust of the era had, in turn, given them reason to fear anything they did not understand, especially the magic commanded by a Druid. Even the Elves, traditional friends of the Druids, feared a strong and independent Druid Council. Queen Aine Elessedil fervently opposed the formation of Walker’s council. Her successor, Allardon Elessedil, though more sympathetic to Walker, supported his mother’s choices.
Faced with failure at every turn, Walker became desperate. He wrote in his journal, “If the Four Lands are to be united in peace, the magic must be controlled by a Druid Council that is answerable to no single government or people, but rather to all. If I cannot find a way to convince at least one of the nations to back my Druid Council, I will be the last of the Druids for all time.”
The tide suddenly appeared to turn when a Wing Rider found the lost Elven Prince, Kael, and a map, which the Elf King Allardon was forced to ask the Druid to decipher. Walker used his skills to translate it, recognizing his chance to trade his services for the backing of the Elven King. He knew the Elves would be hungry for the magic promised by the ancient parchment.
He was not disappointed. In a private meeting held in the Gardens of Life, in the Elven capital of Arborlon, Allardon renounced his opposition to the Druid Council and promised the support and blessing of the Elves. Walker agreed to spearhead an expedition to seek out the answers promised by the mysterious map. The agreement was predicated on Walker’s return from the expedition with the promised magic and the lost Elfstones. All spoils were to be shared fully between Elves and Druids, but Walker insisted that the Elves would share only in magics they were able to use and understand. Anything beyond their understanding would be controlled by the Druids. Since all known magic had originated with the Elves in the time of Faerie, Allardon agreed.
Moments after the conclusion of that historic agreement, assassins
attacked the Elven King and the Druid. Walker was able to deflect and neutralize the assassins, but was unable to save Allardon from his own guards. An arrow fired at the assassins by a member of the Home Guard caught the King in the chest. He lived only long enough to ensure that the agreement was properly inscribed and witnessed. Walker was to lead the expedition. If and when it returned, the Elves were bound to support the formation of a new Druid Council.
Walker Boh did not survive to see this become reality. After living more than 150 years, he died an ocean away from his home in Paranor without fulfilling his dream. But before his death, he managed to pass along the Druid legacy. In much the same way that Allanon had passed it to Brin Ohmsford, Walker used his last moments to pass his calling to Grianne Ohmsford. Such a choice would have seemed quite appropriate, given her wishsong magic, except for the fact that she had spent her youth as one of the most feared creatures of the Four Lands: the Ilse Witch.
Grianne Ohmsford, From Villain to Hero
Born with the Ohmsford wishsong and raised with dark magic, Grianne Ohmsford spent most of her life in a battle between good and evil. The daughter of Araden and Biornlief Ohmsford, she was orphaned at an early age and taken in by the Morgawr. This dark creature encouraged her to believe that the Druid Walker Boh was responsible for her family’s murder, and used her thirst for vengeance to shape her for his purpose.
Under the Morgawr’s training, Grianne became one of the most feared creatures in the Four Lands, and was known as the Ilse Witch or “Singing Witch.” All compassion died in her when her family died, killed in part by her self-loathing at her failure to save even her young brother, Bek. As the Ilse Witch, she manipulated and killed to further the Morgawr’s plans for domination of the Four Lands. Many believe the Ilse Witch was responsible for the attack on the Elf King Allardon Elessedil. Her own magic, enhanced by the sorcery she learned from the Morgawr, made her almost invincible. Many officials throughout the land owed their positions of power to her dark gifts.
As she approached adulthood, she became determined to free herself of the Morgawr. Now that she was no longer a willing tool, he, in turn, plotted against her. In an effort to rid herself of him and gain power, she followed the Druid Walker on his quest across the Blue Divide, determined to gain the treasure for herself.
But she returned from that voyage a different person. During the expedition, Grianne was forced to face her brother, Bek, and a powerful truth through the magic of the Sword of Shannara. The exposure to the combination of Walker’s last charge and the magic of the sword of truth drove Grianne into catatonia as she struggled to accept the horrors of her life. Only the love of her brother brought her back.
When she finally returned to herself, she had changed, desperate to atone for her dark deeds. Her first act of contrition was also an act of revenge. She helped destroy the Morgawr—the creature responsible for her seduction to the dark.
On her return to the Four Lands, she took up the mantle of the Druids, as Walker Boh had demanded, becoming Ard Rhys of the Third Druid Council. During her tenure she rebuilt the Druid order, became the first human to set foot in the Forbidding, and eventually managed to negotiate an end to the Federation–Free-born war.
The Rightful Ard Rhys, Grianne Ohmsford, returns home to face her enemies.
She was shaped by the Morgawr’s darkness into the Ilse Witch, and by Walker Boh’s need into the Ard Rhys, but in the end she shaped herself to make her own destiny.
Grianne Ohmsford was a powerful sorceress, heir to the Ohmsford magic and trained by the Morgawr. With the magic of the Sword of Shannara and the support of her brother, Bek, Grianne managed to overcome the darker part of herself during the long, arduous voyage back to Arborlon. After her return, Grianne visited the Hadeshorn, where she was reported to have consulted with Walker Boh’s spirit. Days later, she took her place as Walker’s chosen heir.
The Druid calling must be taken up voluntarily. Walker may have chosen Grianne, but she did not have to answer that call. Most believe that she chose her path in search of redemption for her life as the Ilse Witch. She had been one of the most notorious forces for evil, and Walker had offered her a chance to become an equally powerful force for good.
But Walker’s goal, and now Grianne’s, was the creation of a new Druid order, which could not be formed without support from the Elves. Since the original treaty authorizing the expedition specified Walker’s safe return, Ahren Elessedil, one of the survivors of the expedition, neglected to inform his brother, King Kylen, of Walker’s death. By reporting only on the successful events, Ahren used Walker’s treaty with the Elves to force Kylen to support the formation of a new Druid Council. King Kylen grudgingly sent twenty candidates with Ahren to join the Druids. Later, when Kylen discovered the deceit, he banished Ahren from Arborlon.
As Walker had known, where the Elves led, the other Races followed. With the Elves as examples, Grianne soon had talented candidates from throughout the lands at her doorstep. She gathered them together to form the Third Druid Council, and was named Ard Rhys, High Druid, over them. Walker’s dream of a multinational, multiracial council had come to pass. Grianne’s stated goals for the Third Druid Council were to help the Races become strong, independent, and peaceful neighbors, put an end to the war between the Free-born and the Federation, and reintroduce a mix of science and magic into the world for the betterment of all men and women.
Unfortunately, Grianne was not Walker. She led the Council for twenty years but never really managed to attain lasting success with any of its goals. She brought Paranor back to life and filled its halls with Druids, but was constantly thwarted in her attempts to bring peace or prosperity to the Four Lands. Few could forget or forgive her past life as the Ilse Witch. Many of the governments did not trust an order of Druids that was led by the Ilse Witch.
Kylen, discovering that he had been tricked, tried to recall the Elves he had sent, then, failing that, turned the Elves against the Druid order. Sen Dunsidan of the Federation remembered Grianne’s years as the Ilse Witch, whom he had betrayed, and refused to trust her change. With both men determined to rebuff Grianne’s attempts to broker peace, the war on the Prekkendorran continued to rage. The Ard Rhys refused to give up, working for years to convince both men to accept compromise and consider peace. Just when it seemed she had finally convinced Kylen to consider a truce, he was killed on the Prekkendorran and the blame for his death was laid at Grianne’s feet. His son and heir, Kellen Elessedil, blamed Grianne and the Druids for his father’s death, and therefore refused to consider any negotiations involving the Ard Rhys or the Druids.
Tagwen the Dwarf
The Third Druid Council brought life to Paranor, filling the ancient keep with Druids, apprentices, and scholars once again. But a fortress the size of Paranor required a large staff to serve all those within its walls. Chief among the mass of unsung workers was the Dwarf Tagwen, assistant to the Ard Rhys. Though he had no interest in Druid lore or magic, Tagwen knew most of the secrets of Paranor. Grianne Ohmsford chose the officious Dwarf to serve as her personal assistant soon after her return from Parkasia. He stood by her side and helped her rebuild the Druid order from nothing. He often wrote of his job that he wanted nothing more in life than to make the Ard Rhys comfortable, taking over whatever menial tasks might allow her to do her work more comfortably. He was her invisible right hand, content to be ignored by most as long as he could remain close to Grianne. Friends believe that he loved her but was content to do so in silence, not wishing to inflict his true feelings on her.
But the administrator Dwarf was forced to become a hero, despite his lack of ambition or magic. In order to save the Ard Rhys and the Druid order he served, he had to abandon both and go out into the world to find help.
On his quest, Tagwen fought battles, suffered wounds, met the mystical King of the Silver River, and saw more of the world than he had ever intended. He was instrumental in returning Grianne Ohmsford to her position in Paranor, and he stood
by her side until she left that post.
Tagwen the Dwarf, reluctant hero.
Tagwen continued to serve the Fourth Druid Order for many years. Though he insisted he was only an administrator, the leaders of the order relied on him for his invaluable knowledge and wisdom.
Over time, the distrust seeped into the heart of Paranor itself. Many within the order sought to have Grianne removed, though it is doubtful that all had the well-being of the order at heart. Kylen’s death may have been the catalyst that brought matters to a head. Young Kellen’s rebuff marked one more major failure of Druid leadership in the minds of many within the order. It is almost certain that Grianne was aware of the internal discontent. There were rumors that she was being counseled to disband the order in an attempt to start over.
The conflict came to a head one dark night when a renegade band of Druids led by Shadea a’Ru managed to eliminate the Ard Rhys by using a potion, known only as “liquid night,” to send her into the Forbidding. To all outside the group, it appeared that Grianne had simply disappeared from her bed sometime in the night. In the confusion that followed Grianne’s disappearance, Shadea a’Ru became a bulwark of strength to the order. She immediately cast suspicion upon the Rock Trolls charged with guarding the Ard Rhys, feeding existing fears and doubts that had lain dormant, but not dead, since the Warlock Wars. Grianne’s choice of Rock Trolls instead of Elves as sentries had gone against the tradition set back in the time of Galaphile and the First Druid Council. Before Shadea could use that fact to fan suspicions into a flame of hatred, the Rock Trolls left Paranor. Shadea was named as acting Ard Rhys by a majority of the Druid Council and took over its leadership.