Sorventh the Ice Queen (sometimes referred to by her humanoid name Skelya) was one of The Ten Heralds of Tiamat. Specifically, Sorventh awoke in Pteris in the year 713, a time when the realm was already in a crusade against all of dragon kind.
History[edit | edit source]
Friend of the Cult[edit | edit source]
After awakening, Sorventh discovered a faction of dragonborn and draconic sympathizers operating in secret in Pteris, this faction of the Cult of the Dragon was forced to work in unmapped wilderness as the Second Draconic Crusades had recently begun, and members of the dragonborn race where being forced into seclusion.
As a dragon in the Holy War, Sorventh operated a large faction of Dragonborn and held them closely to her heart as loyal followers. The crusaders had to be stopped and the dragon killing religion of Kragnux would need to be shut down. Sorventh hatched a plan that would take several decades to unfurl.
She began by infiltrating the local chapter of the Cult of the Dragon by seducing the group in the form of a beautiful woman. Going by the name Skelya, she revealed secrets about Tiamat and prophecies of the great draconic return. Skelya promised the group great power, but they would need to increase their numbers quickly. To do this, they turned to the only other sizable group of Dragonborn in Pteris, the The Draconic Redeemers.
Ally of the Redeemers[edit | edit source]
Sorventh, now properly masquerading as Skelya, organized a secret meeting with the Darastrixas clan, founding members of the Draconic Redeemers. She introduced the Darastrixas to the dragonborn members of the Cult, claiming that they were "desperate dragon-kin in search of a new god to promise them sanctuary from the crusades". The plan worked, and soon the Draconic Redeemers brought the members of the cult into their sanctuaries. Skelya herself enrolled in training within the church, learning how the religion operated and why their savior "Kragnux" was worshiped. She would use this knowledge to manipulate the group from the inside and drive them into a war with the other factions of the church.
Head of the Church[edit | edit source]
During one raid on the Redeemers by the Friends of Kragnux, Skelya feigned an undying loyalty to then-pope Xoniface. Xoniface was charmed by Skelya's unnatural beauty and invited her to stay by his side as they continued to work against the Redeemers.
In 723, Skelya and Xoniface publicly announced a pregnancy, an heir to the church was going to be born and would eventually be named the next poope.
In 724, Skelya gave birth to Xoniface's son in a secluded spot known as Wyvern Mountain. At the site of the birth, Xoniface discovered his new son was a dragonborn. Questioning what sort of curse or disease afflicted his child, Skelya revealed her full form as Sorventh the Brass Dragon. Xoniface, as well as the midwives and other witnesses, were slaughtered on the spot, and her real child was delivered to the Cult of the Dragon to be raised as the first new child of Tiamat since the Holy War.
To keep up appearances, Sorventh abducted a child from a nearby hamlet and arrived in Zobeck with her new human child, Felix. Upon her return, Skelya was the appointed head of the Friends of Kragnux. During this time, she was not the Pope, as her son Felix was officially passed the title on his birth. Followers of the church would refer to Skelya as The Queen-Mother of Kragnux, or colloquially "The Ice Queen" due to her stern demeanor
As the leader of the Church, Skelya made several commandments of her own, pushing for followers to take on an aggressive and nearly suicidal lifestyle. The mantra of the church had always been "There's no room for caution in a life lived to the fullest". Skelya made several (false) declarations that Kragnux thought the realm was "being too cautious" and warned the followers to exercise less caution, leading to record rates of fatalities among the clergy, plummeting the follower numbers to the lowest it had been in over a decade, and causing the death of many notable religious leaders around the realm.
Life of Seclusion[edit | edit source]
Return of the Dragon[edit | edit source]
The combined forces of The Fingers of Kragnux, The Heritage, and The Best Around finally confronted Sorventh in her hideout in Wyvern Mountain where a lethal and legendary battle was held against her and her dragonborn followers. By the end of it, Torna, Captain Seaworth, and Xerda, as well as several crusaders, gave their lives in the process of finally slaying the dragon.
Sorventh's favorite relic, the Rod of Wonder, made its way into the hands of the crusaders, where it would be safely stored among other relics at the headquarters of The Friends of Kragnux.
