Tidemaster Dexikos

‘Begone, air-gulper, or I’ll ensure the fish you seek instead feast on your flesh.’ – Tidemaster Dexikos For decades, the venerable, tireless Tidemaster Dexikos has maintained order on the shores and in the shallows of the island of Aior. He is a steward of the seas, an envoy from its depths and an interpreter of its will, maintaining a scholarly, contemplative guardianship of an area of littoral waters. These places, where air, land, and sea meet, are considered sacred by many Tritoneans. Because of this reverence, and the respect accorded to them in turn, Tidemasters tend to be proud and authoritative. Few, even among the Tritoneans, have so intimate a connection with the sea. They even claim that the ocean itself, in its totality of water and sand and plants and animals, has a kind of oversoul and a vast primordial consciousness. The sea-spirit blesses and curses in equal measure, and must be respected and propitiated for balance to be maintained. To do so, Dexikos charts the tides and notes their effects on the beaches, performing rites to thank the sea for its steady rhythms. He maintains a detailed map of the contours of the shoreline, surveying any changes brought by winds and storms. He is also an active defender of its sanctity. To step foot upon Aior, and benefit from its rich variety of fruit trees, hardwoods, and wildlife, one must treat with Dexikos and meet his strict standards. Those he deems too acquisitive, disrespectful, messy, or uncouth, will find their vessels wracked by sudden rogue waves and dragged toward the dangerous shoals around the island by inexorable currents. Most islands of the Argolades have a Tidemaster such as Dexikos performing this role, though few are as fastidious as he. Anyone who litters the shore with castoff fishing nets, ropes, or other flotsam, Dexikos reprimands and forces to clean up their mess. Likewise, any who over-harvest Aior’s resources, over-fish its waters, or attempt to alter the landscape without permission, are sure to be swiftly targeted by Dexikos’s wrath. The fish themselves can call upon Dexikos and his fellow Tidemasters for assistance: thanks to their connection with the ocean’s collective consciousness, Tidemasters can communicate with sea creatures through mental magic, cultivating friendships and alliances. If any species of the shallows has a grievance with the land-dwellers and boat—riders above, a Tidemaster will soon know of it. If those grievances are severe enough, or if surface folk are guilty of serious or repeated infractions, Dexikos will take up arms to punish those responsible. With his mastery of hydromantic magic, he invigorates and heals wounded sea beasts and fellow Tritoneans, can cleverly speed and conceal their movements beneath the waves, and smites enemies with water jets so highly pressurized that they out like knives. Dexikos would rather pore over slab-scrolls of nautical lore and commune with the turtles and fishes than fight. But fight he shall, without hesitation, if the need arises.