Overview
The Monastery of Ardidhus was a major Watcher outpost located near the western foothills of the Black Mountains and the shores of Lake Aertos. It combined the functions of fortress, monastery, archive, and early-warning station against threats emerging from the old world.
Architecture and Defenses
The complex consisted of massive stone towers, fortified walls, inner courtyards, gardens, workshops, baths, pigeon lofts, and defensive gatehouses. Though built as a religious community, its design reflected the dangerous frontier where it stood.
Abbot Jaros
The monastery was led by Abbot Jaros, a scholar of immense knowledge and influence. Under his leadership, Ardidhus became a center for study, preservation, and experimentation involving ancient Watcher traditions and the hidden legacy of the Spellmakers.
The Hidden Archives
Among its greatest secrets were the surviving tomes of the Watchers and Spellmakers. These works contained knowledge concerning healing, alchemy, conjuration, the history of Erathe, and the struggle against Broeden. Fearing their capture, Jaros arranged for the volumes to be removed from the monastery shortly before its fall.
Evliit's Assignment
After the trials in Rion, Evliit was assigned as protector of Ardidhus. While there he developed a close friendship with the monk Ebert, learned more of the Watchers, and became involved in the final efforts to safeguard the monastery's most important treasures.
The Fall of Ardidhus
Broeden's forces eventually attacked the monastery. Despite strong fortifications and warnings of impending danger, Ardidhus was overwhelmed. Many monks were killed or captured, Ebert was taken by the Huntress, and Jaros suffered mortal wounds. The destruction of the monastery became one of the defining events leading to the Watchers' War.
Legacy
Though the monastery fell, its influence endured through the survival of its knowledge, its surviving brethren, and the role it played in shaping the Sword Bearer, preserving the Well of Kings traditions, and exposing the threat posed by Broeden and the later rise of Amphileph.