It isn't only the dragons who have brought heretics into our midst, you know. Five hundred years ago, another heretical sect gained traction among the smallfolk of Ishgard. The heathens adopted the customs of the Near East, bathing themselves in perfumes brewed from strange flowers and forging idols from rare metals that they used in their bizzare and unholy rites. Naturally, the Temple Knights were quick to clamp down on the sect's activities. Its leader, a peasant who styled himself the great guru Gandarewa, fled to the next holiest place he knew--the sacred mountain of Dravania. There he supped on the blood of a dragon, and was forever changed...

  Most heretics are drawn from common stock, but there are more than a few nobels among them too. One such fellow was the husband of a lay Temple Knight–unbeknownst to her, he abused his position to steal the order's secrets and feed them to dragons. For years the nobleman passed sensitive information to the Horde, until the day he grew weary of his double life and supped from the scaly cup, transforming himself into a monstrous scalekin. His plan was simple–to slaughter his family, feign his own death, and join with the dragons. Thanks to the timely intervention of the order, the former parts of his plan were foiled, but the beast broke their cordon and succeeded in fleeing to Dravania. It was one of the Temple Knights who put the bounty on his head–the very lady who was once his wife.

  Do you know the story of Saint Valeroyant? Ten score years ago, he served as an Azure Dragoon, and won glory by driving away the great wyrm Nidhogg. This very square still bears his name, though his image has seen better days. He was an unrivaled warrior who dealt death to dragon after dragon, but there was on that always managed to slip his cluthes–Agathos, feared across the land as the Black Death. Naught has been seen of the creature since Valeroyant's passing, but in recent years, rumors have been spreading of a shadow of Agathos's size and shape appearing in the clouds above Dravania. Could this be our change to bring Valeroyant's legend to a close?

  As wyverns grow, they progress through a number of developmental stages, their bodies becoming more and more streamlined with each change. In their final forms, even their horns drop off, leaving them with a sleak shape perfectly suited for flight. It is one such elder wyvern that has been marked for death by a certain nobleman. It seems that the beast has taken something of a fancy to the fellow's son–a pretty young thing I wouldn't mind gobbling up myself. Mayhap not in the same manner at the wyvern, though... You should be able to spot this monster easily enough–its sleek, shiny scales have earned it the name "Scitalis," after a legendary dragon with similarly lustrous skin.

  Not long ago, a party of Temple Knights headed into the foothills of Sohm Al to spy on the dragons' activities. However, a few days into their mission, they disappeared without a trace. A rescue party was dispatched to find the knights, and find them they did. They discovered their missing comrades standing over the body of a vinegaroon–a fearsome scaleskin in thrall to the dragons. But as they approached, the monster suddenly rose to its feet and sprang at the would-be rescuers, slaying several before they could ready themselves. The Temple Knights were all dead–the Scarecrow had propped up their corpses to lure their rescuers into a trap. After taking its toll on the rescuers party, the monster fled up the slope of Sohm Al, and naught has been seen of it since. We believe it may yet be hiding in the Churning Mists.