Overview
Zal'therak is the god of veils and illusions, bound to Silas / Malcairn through a diamond-like shard. He first comes to the remnants of Malverand as the darkness threatens their survival, offers them his essence, and later joins Xelthys, Tianlei, Xoh'Tenol, and Nahm in the alliance of gods against the darkness and Xol'Zahir.
After Zharrek traps him in a crystalline prison and uses his captured essence to transform Malverand's remaining citizens into essence shapers, Zal'therak remains imprisoned beneath Maraveth for centuries. Malcairn frees him, takes his shard, and becomes the wielder later known in Xalmyrra as Silas Kaine.
Appearance and Manner
Zal'therak takes forms made from shadow, veils, and void-like darkness. His forms include a half-man, half-shadow figure with reality wavering around him; a split figure with black eyes and brown hair on one side and impenetrable darkness on the other; and a half-obscured middle-aged man wrapped in shadow bands.
He is direct, watchful, strategic, and often cryptic. He accepts harsh costs in pursuit of the plan against the darkness. He warns Silas about danger, timing, and the limits of their knowledge.
Abilities
Zal'therak commands veils and illusions. His power hides Silas's shaper body, lets him pass as human, conceals movement from observers, creates false bodies and replicas, and infuses illusions with force when Silas fights.
His shard also gives Silas access to the edge of the void. Zal'therak teaches Malcairn to move close to the surface of the world through that space, which lets Silas cross long distances, evade pursuit, carry passengers, and open small breaches. The method depends on route knowledge, and it fails where there is no usable void path, such as Varnhallow.
Through the shard bond, Zal'therak speaks to Silas, projects his voice beyond Silas, and communicates with allied gods and wielders. He teaches Silas to create black orbs, lends power to activate the Malverand heart for Eira, and later adds his power when Silas drags Zharrek's falling asteroid into the void.
Crystal Prison
Zharrek and allied scholars trap Zal'therak in a crystalline casing around his diamond-like shard after he refuses to continue the essence-shaper transformations. The prison stood beneath Maraveth during Zharrek's use of captured essence for shaper work; Malcairn later breaks it, takes the shard, and becomes Zal'therak's wielder.
History
Zal'therak arrives near Maraveth during the remnants of Malverand's search for a way to survive the spreading darkness. He calls himself the god of the veils, accepts Malverand's faith, and offers his essence as the scholars begin researching how to bind essence directly into the body.
Malcairn undergoes the first full essence-infusion procedure with Zal'therak's essence under Zharrek's oversight. The procedure gives Malcairn immense power and leaves him dependent on essence and unable to survive the darkness for long. Zal'therak rescues him and ends the project, refusing to take part in transforming more people.
Zharrek and allied scholars trap Zal'therak inside a crystalline casing around his shard. They use his captured essence to transform the remaining citizens into essence shapers, and Zal'therak remains contained in the black tower beneath Maraveth during Zharrek's continued experiments with his remnant power.
Centuries later, Malcairn returns to Maraveth with Krexyn. From inside the prison, Zal'therak directs Malcairn to break the prison and take the shard because someone has arrived who can wield Xol'Zahir's shard. Malcairn frees him, the shard merges into his hand, and Zal'therak carries him away through the edge of the void when Zharrek tries to stop them.
Zal'therak guides Malcairn through Hengvaris and toward Xalmyrra as part of the divine alliance around Xelthys, Tianlei, and the plan for Eira. In Keldara, he teaches Malcairn a human disguise, local movement, and black-orb creation before directing him to Aldar in Irrathis.
As Silas's bonded god, Zal'therak and Silas protect Eira, hide Silas's shaper body, share information with Aldar and allied gods, and monitor threats across Xalmyrra, Thalassai, Shroudvale, and the void. During the Shaper Attack on Rimvold, Silas defeats Zharrek and then uses Zal'therak's power to pull Zharrek's falling asteroid into the void, saving the city and stranding them in the void.
Zal'therak later reconnects through the gate network and guides Silas during later journeys through Thalassai and Varnhallow. In the Malverand Intergalactic Empire, Silas and Zal'therak are preserved together in one of the empire's capsules.
Relationships
- Silas / Malcairn is Zal'therak's bonded wielder and closest partner in veil, illusion, and void magic.
- Zharrek imprisons Zal'therak, exploits his essence to create the shapers, and later tries to reclaim the shard.
- Xelthys, Tianlei, Xoh'Tenol, and Nahm speak with him through shard bonds and oppose Xol'Zahir, Ozaith's faction, and the darkness.
- Eira, Thalena, Jin Leiyun, Sigurd, Krexyn, and Lythariel intersect with Zal'therak through Silas's work against Xol'Zahir, the Shroudvale breakout, the Skarnheim gate bargain, the search for Eira, and the campaign to defeat the darkness.
- The crystal prison held him beneath Maraveth, void travel is his travel method through the shard, essence shapers come from Zharrek's use of his captured essence, Shroudvale grows from those shapers, and the Malverand heart is the artifact he lends power to activate for Eira.