The Oracle of Aal
Oracle of Aal
The Oracle of Aal is an ancient being inhabiting the body of a dragon in Betrayal at Krondor. It can first be visited in Chapter 1.
Contents
Overview
The Oracle is the last of a species with the gift of seeing various possible futures. It claims that its kind is older than elves, dwarfs, dragons, and the Valheru. Recently, it has been reaching out to anyone who approaches Malac's Dragon.
First meeting
When the party visits the statue, the Oracle transports Owyn's mind to its own realm, leaving his body senseless but safe where it fell. After their discussion, he returns unharmed to the party.
The Oracle has expected Owyn's arrival, and knows him by name. It foretells that he will not be the same at the end of his journey, and that if he comes to stand between Rythar and Mythar, he should know that "a time comes for all things to die." Though Owyn now lacks the knowledge necessary to understand any explanation of this prophecy, the Oracle assures him that he will be ready for the full truth when he returns "in years and in wisdom" with a great destiny upon him.
The Oracle states that Gorath is not what he names himself to be, but even he might not know his own heart and is awaited by a great destiny "should he have the courage to renounce his pain." He will be a strong ally to the party and perhaps even a champion to the moredhel who now curse his name.
While Delekhan will never cross the Teeth of the World into the Kingdom of the Isles, treachery will allow him to strike a blow against both the Kingdom and his own people. The Oracle cannot be specific, but states that the deceit Delekhan is engineering with six magicians concerns the Kingdom's fate.
Chapter 2-3
Ghosts (after accepting Nia's quest)
Asked how to put the ghost at Nia's Goods to rest, the Oracle tells Owyn to seek the disturbed spirit's hand in Lyton and return it to its place among the honored dead of Sethanon.
Chapter 3
Murder (before consulting with the Temple of Killian)
The Oracle confirms that the Brass Spyglass and Silver Spider are vital clues, though one points to a murder of which the party may not yet be aware. It advises them to follow the trail of the Spyglass.
Sword (after learning of the Guarda Revanche)
The Oracle says that the Guarda Revanche is hidden in an ancient place feared by moredhel and elves and once home to the Valheru.
Chapter 6
The Oracle denies the book's existence, noting that its spirit nonetheless burns brightly and advising them to learn more at the Abbey of Ishap at Sarth.
The Oracle explains that Pug, betrayed by one he thought a friend, wanders a distant world in search of his daughter but will not find her, instead reawakening forces dormant since the wars of the Valheru. It adds that the Book of Macros is the instrument by which Owyn will save him, assuring Owyn that the way has been prepared for him and that where Pug falters, he will grow strong.
Chapter 8
Pug mentions that he left a dragon with special capabilities to guard a dread secret in the Sethanon Caverns, remarking that even his own abilities would be sorely taxed against a dragon of her age and expecting her, if given cause for alarm, to summon help from a secret garrison stationed in the region.
Chapter 9
Warning!
This article contains plot or ending spoilers.
When the party reaches the northwestern chamber of the Sethanon Caverns, a dragon lies curled on the ground. The Oracle, encountered in person for the first time, explains that it has been unable to reach Pug's mind due to the effect of an amulet worn by Makala, which has weakened its draconic body to clear the way for his attack on the Lifestone's magical defenses. Pug reflects that as reckless as Makala is, he would not seek to cripple the Oracle permanently, and probably found an artifact produced by Lyron-Baktos to control the dragon's flesh when he could not command its mind. The Oracle notes that its inability to see its own future prevented them from taking measures against this possibility.
Assuring the Oracle that they will take further preventative measures later, Pug posts Gorath in the dragon's chamber to guard its body. Though unhappy that such a precaution is necessary, the Oracle accepts it with thanks, warning Pug that he will face great difficulty in the Lifestone chamber.
Epilogue
Pug later explains to Prince Arutha that the Oracle, when asked for help with the illusory final conflict of the invasion, showed him a hidden room from which he took a useless sword to serve as bait for any moredhel who might still believe in the prophecies of Murmandamus.
Trivia
Upon discering the true nature of the Seven Who Ruled, Pug identifies them as "cousins of the Aal."
If the party casts Dragon's Breath to sneak out of the Lifestone chamber after their verbal confrontation with Makala and return to the Oracle's chamber before the game's final battle, no one can be found there, though this is the only way to access the room's three chests.
As the game concludes, a great dragon ridden by Pug appears above Sethanon and, with a whipping sweep of its titanic tail, ends the conflict by appearing to smite Delekhan and Murmandamus to their deaths from one of Sethanon's high fire-blackened parapets. It is unclear whether the dragon was the Oracle or, like its victims, another of Pug's illusions.
A Darkness at Sethanon, the third book of the Riftwar Saga, recounts the Oracle's removal to Sethanon and emplacement by Macros in the body of Tomas's ally Ryath, a dragon whose mind had just been destroyed by a Dreadlord during Murmandamus's attempt to free the Valheru.