As in any battle, many things happened in the Arena that day. The five dragonborn combatants, the fighter Devorik Sus, the cleric Brost, the paladin Grimm, the warlock Skaldrax and the sorcerer Shamash battled for the right to a draught from the flask of Io which would herald the drinker’s ascension to a Scion of Io. Only one would be able to drink. Only one was worthy enough.

Once the High Shield of Bahamut, Ne-Chardath, invoked the gods and sounded the horn of battle, Brost made the first move. Pointing to Grimm and Devorik, he named them allies. Both Dragonborn agreed over the crowd’s boos and catcalls. Devorik then charged the warlock Skaldrax, striking him a major blow that wounded him deeply as Grimm and Brost circled the other combatants looking for an opening.

The sorcerer Shamash then blasted Devorik and Skaldrax, searing them both with a acidic poison. Skaldrax is nearly defeated by the blast and the clerics on the sidelines prepare to take the first combatant off the field. The crowd goes wild.

Devorik is never a Dragonborn to leave a challange unanswered. He charges Shamash with another powerful blow. The first blood attack on Shamash is devastating. Meanwhile Grimm moves in cautiously to finish off Skaldrax while Brost performs some minor healing on Devorik.

The paladin Grimm strikes the final blow on the warlock Skaldrax and the crowd erupts so loudly its hard to hear oneself think. Wounded, Devorik makes a tactical move and charges the paladin, leaving Shamash extremely wounded. Brost moves in to attack the sorcerer.

Brost finishes off the wounded sorcerer Shimash amidst the cheering of the crowd while the two warriors trade blows with each other. Knowing it will soon come down to one or the other, Brost withdraws Tamara’s protection over the two warriors.

Soon the battle is decided, with a final blow, the paladin Grimm fells the fighter Devorik. It comes down to the paladin and the cleric. Grimm charges the cleric. Brost calls up Erathis’ blessing on the ground below his feet. The aura around him hurts his enemies while bolstering his health. Although Grimm’s attacks are more powerful than Brost’s, the paladin is gravely wounded while Brost is at full health. The two trade blows until Grimm realizes that the aura alone will fell him during the next turn of combat.

The paladin Grimm surrenders.

At first the crowd is dumbfounded and a brief silence fills the arena. Then deafening applause. Ne-Chardath crowns the next Scion of Arkosia, Brost of House Valdur of Clan Loremark.

Some Dragonborn will look back on the fact that Grimm and Brost were the last two combatants as a reaffirmation of the power of the gods over men and magic and many will say that Brost’s win shows that the paladin should always be a servant of the church. Some just say it was a damned good fight and Brost played his allies as well as any cleric of the God of Life and Civilization, Tamara should.

Later that evening, as the elderly silver Dragonborn Aesthyr begins his work of cleaning the Arena grounds, high atop the Arena, on a landing built for the High Dragonlord, should one ever find its way to Krall, a solemn ceremony took place. Brost Valdur Loremark was brought forward wearing the high livery of his Clan and House. With his family and friends looking on (the first time in recent history non-Dragonborn bore witness to this ceremony), each member of the council of Elders blessed the Flask of Io as it passed between them. Handing the flask to Brost, Ne-Chardath called to the Dragon Gods to raise Brost among the Dragonborn and make him Krall’s Scion. Brost drank.

He howled in pain, almost as if poisoned and curled upon himself. Soon his shoulders began to spasm and a small set of wings burst forth on his back below his shoulderblades. Though too small to sustain flight at this time, the wings will grow. The wings marked Brost as a Favored One of Io, and a Scion of Arkosia.