Hidden deep in the interior of the Bright Desert, this verdant oasis is famed for the lush vegetation that grows thickly about its single spring-fed pool of pure water. The pool and its spring are said to have never failed, even in the severest droughts. Tales preserved in the oral traditions of the Flan nomads of the Bright have it that the goddess Geshtai herself created this sanctuary to save a small band of Baklunish slaves brought here after the Twin Cataclysms by their Suel masters. During the fighting between native Flan tribes and the Suel invaders, the slaves won free and beseeched Geshtai to aid them. The legends relate how a creature of pure, simmering water led the Bakluni to a hidden valley wherein the goddess appeared to them and created the bountiful paradise seen today. The Bakluni settled there but have long-since died out. Only the fruits of Geshtai’s mercy have endured.

More reminiscent of a tropical jungle than a desert oasis, towering vine-shrouded trees provide cool shade and welcome relief from the heat of the day. Beneath the canopy, abundant vegetation yields up uniformly succulent fruits that are occasionally harvested by the brajals (druids) of the Flan tribes. The Flan tribes consider the oasis holy ground and, although they do not venerate the Daughter of the Oasis, they do not suffer the trespass of outsiders here. The Flan hold this place sacred with good reason, for magic undeniably flows within the waters of the spring. Those drinking from the spring report that the waters bestow magical effects upon the drinker. However, any outlander caught drinking from the spring is mercilessly hunted down and staked out to die of thirst in the desert. Rary is no doubt aware of the legends pertaining to the spring’s magical properties. So far, however, he has not sought to publicly violate the sanctity of the oasis, perhaps fearing that to do so would jeopardize the loyal service of the desert tribes.

The nomads claim that the goddess Geshtai once visited this place, blessing it and causing what was once a bare patch of desert to bloom, put forth lush greenery, and produce pure, cool water. Doubtless, the spring is a place of rare beauty, resembling a small tropical jungle in the deep desert, but the nomads of the region hold it in such esteem that they do not allow outsiders to visit it. Rary has so far chosen not to violate the spring, but the tales surrounding it make it intriguing, including the legend that its waters have mystical effects on those who drink them.

Bright Lands
Bright Desert