When I first set out to write the story, I calculated when the syzygy would happen and started writing the story to be set then (i.e., now). But there were some things not working as well that way, so I changed my mind and advanced the story to be set later (presumably at the next syzygy), which made it work better. Though if you look closely you can see a few things that reflect its originally intended time setting, that I didn't adjust because they felt like they still worked anyway.



You missed the point -- they didn't know what the Aquamancers were doing, and didn't care. Like the villains of countless other swords-and-sorcery stories, and also exactly like the actual people in the same roles in the game at the time, they were so full of hubris and so taken with the power of strength of arms, that they dealt with every problem the same way. This was the first time, ever, that it wasn't going to work; and the fact that it always worked before kind of proves that their hubris was justified. Why not always rely on that if it always works?

Actually, I felt kind of bad about it. Lemnos is an obvious parody of Rhysus, but the Warlord isn't even a parody of Daevos. But he didn't have enough screen time for me to give him any differentiating personality traits.

The point of the story is that you can read it from almost any viewpoint; everyone gets to be the good guy and the bad guy at least once. That's why, unlike almost all my other stories, there's no viewpoint character.