If I have learned anything in my years spent on two worlds, it’s that nothing remains the same forever. Each and every living thing, inanimate object, and even institution must undergo some sort of change during its existence. Not even the most constant, seemingly immutable things can avoid this. Such a fact was discovered not only by the Virindi, but also by a specific member of their race named Aerbax.
Aerbax began his existence as all Virindi have, as an insignificant fragment of the collective consciousness called the Quiddity. The Quiddity was and, from what we can surmise, remains the epitome of stasis–a single, overriding intellect existing in perfect harmony with itself, with no internal conflict or doubt, going back to the beginning of all things. However, in order to explore the strange world of Auberean of which it had become aware, the Quiddity knew it had to undergo a significant change. Perhaps for the first time, it partially sundered itself, sending out small pieces that were to carry out the wishes of the whole. These entities, the Virindi, arrived on Dereth with no sense of individuality, no self, no desires but that which the Quiddity had ordered. This too would soon change.
No one knows the exact cause of what transpired next. Whether it was the prolonged separation from the Quiddity, encounters with the countless strange beings that dwell on Dereth, or exposure to the sheer mystical nature of this world, many of the Virindi upon Auberean began to alter. Gone was the unquestioning loyalty to the Quiddity and the overriding mission of exploration, to be replaced by individuality and, in some cases, crude emotion. The Virindi were becoming truly alive, and many of them enjoyed the possibility. The Quiddity saw these altered Virindi as aberrations and deemed them worthy of destruction, and the individualized Virindi rebelled and sought to permanently sever themselves from their brethren. So began the New Singularity rebellion.
One of these rebels was named Aerbax. In order to further the New Singularity’s efforts into individuality, Aerbax experimented upon various creatures captured by his associates, partly to create an army to serve their ends and partly to determine just how biological organisms functioned. Over the years, he created countless altered minions, augmenting the strength of various Drudges and Banderlings and setting them loose in the Valley of Death, increasing the intellect and magical abilities of a Tusker and creating King Bobo, and even fusing a fellow Virindi to a human and unleashing Candeth Martine upon the world. All these efforts were for nothing, though, as the Quiddity overcame the New Singularity, with some unwitting help from we Isparians. Every rebel who survived the initial struggle was returned to the Virindi home, the Singularity, for subsequent examination and destruction–every rebel, that is, but Aerbax.
Prior to his return to the Singularity, Aerbax encountered an unknown source of energy along with an unknown entity within a flux of portalspace. Using the power granted by this energy source, he was able to fool the Quiddity into believing he was untainted by individuality and allowing him to return to Dereth. Then, along with the entity he dubbed his “mirror”, he exposed other creatures and even fellow Virindi to the energy source. Soon, with this army and his “mirror”, in truth the Shadow General Ler Rhan, at his side, he drove the untainted Virindi from the Singularity Caul and covered the island with his own horrible creations, establishing a base of operations. His ultimate goal appears to be merging the Quiddity with his energy source, creating an entity of unimaginable power.
Since taking over the Caul, Aerbax has gone into hiding, apparently biding his time and planning his next step. Recently, some of those plans have merged. A clan of Tanada assassins, the House of Water, has emerged, and both their strange appearance and the Virindi residing in their base infer that Aerbax has emerged. It’s only a matter of time before Aerbax makes his next move, and it is only fitting that someone upon whom the world has inflicted such great changes could prove to be the greatest agent of change of all.
