Araneid

Araneid is a member of the Infinite Order, known in modern parlance as one of the Elder Gods. A former resident of earth, Araneid became an ascended being like the rest of the Infinite Order.

Araneid was a biologist. She also had training in the social sciences. She created the Drow. She remained important to the Drow, even after the Pantheon's revolt and the splitting of the Drow between Scyllith and Themyrna.

She was attempting to cure elves of their biological dependence on magic when the Pantheon's revolt succeeded.

Unlike most of the Infinite Order, Araneid was favorably disposed toward the human population. Other members of the IO who were sympathetic to the human race aided the Pantheon's revolt, even sheltering them from IO colleague. Several IO members like Tarthriss and Naiya, and even Scyllith, were aware of the Pantheon's plans. Araneid, having a similar benevolent outlook to the elves and humans, may have been forewarned of the changes in ascension which killed most of the Infinite Order.

According to Avatar 01, Araneid continued to use her personal transcension field after the Pantheon revolt. This use was well below her capacity, suggesting survival in a diminished form.

According to Archpope Justinian, Araneid is attempting to return to life.

According to Arachne, who had some intense but unknown relation to Araneid (perhaps being Araneid's high priest), Araneid is undead and in some bizarre state of flux which appears to involve temporal monkeying.

Based on the travails of Mary the Crow and Archpope Justinian, it appears that Araneid has recently been using subtle out-of-sync temporal effects to arrange her return. This effect is not subject to review by Vemnesthesis because it is out-of-sync. The effect appears to have selected certain prominent persons, giving them improbablistic luck and survival to ensure their successful appearance at a moment in the future, probably the great doom or the planetary alignment enabling ascension. Principia unknowingly stumbled upon this effect, when using the Mask of the Adventurer, but did not realize its significance. Archpope Justinian's use of the touch of multiple gods enabled him to visualize the effect as spider webs drawing the protangonists together.

Araneid is one of only a handful of IO members to survive the Pantheon's revolt and ascension. She remained alive and functioning long enough afterward that she was able to register on the transcension field that Avatar 01 could detect. She was also able to construct secret chambers under the ruins of Druroth's fortress which became the Crawl.

Araneid also, uniquely, left a corpse of her undead state. When the other Elder Gods died, their corpses were transformed into the magic field which is the divine plane. Araneid however left behind a golden egg. The egg remained in Scyllithar, the capital of the organized Scythillene Drow run by Scyllith, through the Second Hell War. The egg proved an enormous energy source enabling Scyllith to resist, for centuries, the muddling effect of the new ascension which diffused Naiya's consciousness. The later sack of Scyllithar, and the fall of organized Scythillene Drown society, that Ellilial and Arachne arranged resulted in the egg being supervised by Avei an the Sisterhood under enormous defenses.