Nearly three hundred years ago, deep in the Great Inland Sea, there was a chain of islands known as Storm Reef. The people of the islands were skilled traders and artisans. Their widely sought wares and brisk trade brought people from far and wide, making the Storm Reef Islands a great melting pot of cultures and people. As you can imagine, this varied and frequent contact with outsiders only brought additional expertise to the islands in the form of both skilled hands and exotic techniques.

As is repeated time and time again in history, a wealthy safe haven of trade, where our differences are celebrated rather than used to divide us, was met with hostility and suspicion by neighboring kingdoms. Tensions rose. Threats were made. Then, it was too late. The greed and jealousy of the mainland territories reared its ugly head in the form of a devastating war. The smaller and more peaceful island nations fought off the attacks as best they could, but they suffered heavy losses. In a desperate attempt to preserve their way of life and increase their trade prospects, the island nations began the arduous process of crafting a great spell to protect their island paradise.

After a hundred years of careful research and experimentation, the first of the Storm Reef Islands was ripped from the Great Inland Sea and floated gently into the clouds. As the years progressed, its sister islands followed the first into the sky, each to become its own floating fortresses. The islands would be threatened by petty war no more.

Not without their own magical skill and savvy, a pipeline to The Storm Reef Islands was soon established by those left behind. A nearby mountain was leveled off, and the city of Skyport was born. Mages, with the help of enchanters from the Storm Reef herself, created a system of obelisks by which the floating islands, Skyport, and anyone willing to pay a healthy fee, could communicate.

Curious things, the obelisks; they would, upon activation, open magical gates that would transport traders and goods to Skyport. They could indicate whether trade was desired, by which region, and then act as a beacon for the floating islands to safely approach the mountain top refuge. To ensure the safety of the Islands, the activation of the obelisks triggered great works of illusion and elemental force around Skyport, blocking any foot path to the tops of the mountains; a magical precaution to guarantee the continued safety of the skyward paradise.

As the years passed, the floating islands, making a long, lazy circuit, would bring both exotic news and curious wares from around Avalon. As the Island and its people explored the continent, the time between visits from a Storm Reef Island became longer and longer. On the mainland, the old greed and jealousy returned. This time focused upon the Skyport and anywhere else wealthy enough to purchase one of the prized obelisks. Wars and brushfire conflicts were common during these times. Difficult decisions were made. Many regions, rather than face continued turmoil, chose to dismantle or destroy their obelisks. Skyport became cut off from the lower lands and the Storm Reef Islands abandoned Avalon in search of trade elsewhere.

Recently, adventurers have recovered a few of the regional obelisks. Obelisks located in Nadia, The Terran Valley, Alaru, and The Land have all been reconstructed and activated. It has been months since exploration teams were sent by governments, merchant houses, and the interested and wealthy. Skytop was found to be in ruins, the city is weathered and nearly worn to the ground.

Activating the regional obelisks also activated the beacon obelisks in Skyport. Last week, spotters from the Kingdom of Nadia reported a slow moving cloud approaching Skyport. Two days ago land was visible within the cloud.