Ghyll:Eixis Anos

Born -464 EC and raised in the northlands near Alezan ("in the shadows of the twin spires of Alezan," according to Dashpine, her husband and biographer), young Eixis Anos was a brave and fearless explorer. She was willing to venture further into Alezan ruins than any of her friends, and often came back with trinkets and treasures from the ruins she discovered. A number of the artifacts in the Palace of Lost Souls, including the Stelbin vorpcara, are attributed to Eixis Anos' explorations.

Eixis was a gifted fencer with the horreld blade. Her mastery at several local tournaments got her into the Triannual Dagger Games, where she attained a quispic medal and was subsequently offered an officer's commission with the border guards of Threel.

After only a short period of service with the Threel Border Guards however, she recognized the futility and basic uselessness of their postings, and sought other, more important work. She sought a place in service to the King (Leverznod the Sibilant, father of King Harandraff the Great), but was rebuffed because of her low status (Triannual Dagger Games medalists were not accorded the acclaim that many of them realize in today's environment).

With little but training to be done in Threel, Eixis began developing her system for horreld fighting. She found herself in several duels with high ranking Threelians over perceived insults, which added further practical experience to her system. In -433 EC, the first edition of her Quarters of Horreld Fencing was published. This system for swordfighting was revised and republished eight times over the next two decades. As Eixis ascended through the ranks of the Guards, more and more officers begn to study her system and to teach it to their troops. By the time she was promoted to colonel in -419 EC, she was the preeminent military theorist in all the land.

In -431 EC, Eixis married the poet and brewer Dashpine, and together they lived a rather uneventful (or at least unrecorded) life. Dashpine published nearly 50 books of poetry in the next twenty four years, but the only pieces that seem to refer to Eixis are two haikus from The 64 Beer Coasters:

horreld blade rises

new colors join detached arms

tumbling slowly

doorway suddenly

fills with graceful strength and turns

time to dine, Eixis

After the publication of King H. is a Ninny and So's His Family Too, King Harandraff asked his advisers who he should get to lead an army against the upstart intellectuals in Bute. Unanimously they told him "Eixis Anos," but he mistakenly called Exis Ehnos before him instead, and the foolish Exis of Whunn assembled his notorious force.

Angered by the slight from the King, Eixis Anos joined the scholars of Bute and led the defense of their town against the Army of Whunn. Long years of experience with the Threel Border Guards and familiarity with the pallisades taught Eixis the defensive value of tall walls, and she ordered the gates closed, saving the city and leading to the siege of Bute. After the siege was broken, Eixis joined the rebel side in the Civil War and served with great distinction.

Eixis died in -388 EC and was given a full military funeral in Bute.
The athletic facilities at Bute University are named in her honor: Eixis's Fields.

Citations: Bute University, Horreld blade, Palace of Lost Souls.

--Brother Arfrus 15:16, 16 Jun 2005 (EDT)