Forced to flee the Black Shroud for fear of the elementals and their boundless wrath, the Ixal settled the windswept mountains of Xelphatol more than five hundred and fifty years ago. Since that day, they have labored tirelessly to eke out an existence in these harsh and unforgiving lands, slowly but surely expanding their dominion over the entire region. Yet the Ixal have never forgotten that which was once denied them, and so they seek divine intervention once more─to summon Garuda and beseech her strike down their enemies. In the shadow of the First Mountain, the ritual nears completion, as a brave hero once more races against time to deliver the realm from destruction.

Though long since abandoned by its Sharlayan keepers, the Great Gubal Library does not want for visitants, its halls ever stirring with the voidsent guardians who walk its corridors. With danger at every turn, the fool who dares trespass here would find not wisdom but certain doom. Yet it was not long ago that an intrepid adventurer braved the deepest depths of this forbidding vault of knowledge, returning unscathed and wiser for the experience─a feat of daring that would be sung of the realm over. Mayhap that is why an anonymous individual would beseech that selfsame champion to return in search of long-forgotten knowledge. One can only hope this venture proves yet another enlightening lesson.