Golden Chains
The Golden Chains are massive, magical constructs that literally tie the core-fragment of Varys to a number of secondary shards of the plane. The area surrounding each chain is protected by a Chaos-dampening field not unlike that protecting the Golden Land, though significantly weaker - and this effect even extends to the chaos-world beyond The Blaze, making that strange place more stable and allowing the things that form there to linger for a time.
The chains were created by the Karithkaia soon after its arrival on the plane, and are believed to be its attempt to block or even completely counter the phenomenon known as The Blaze. Initially this seemed a very successful tactic - with the fledgling Blaze apparently contained and even rolling back in some places, and the chains themselves forming a relatively reliable way to travel between the core and the lesser fragments.
Unfortunately Hjae Sarria's chaos-crusade succeeded in outright severing three chains and weakening the rest by slaying the Avatar of the Karithkaia and shattering the Shining Gate. When her power manifested itself once again with the eruption of the Heart of Chaos in the Seventh Age The Blaze seemed to be greatly strengthened, allowing it to overcome the slowing effects of the chains and move forwards once more.
In the Eighth Age six chains remain, but most have not have been travelled for centuries due to the ever-growing power of The Blaze. How much longer the chains will remain at all is unclear, as The Blaze now draws near the anchor points for several chains. Many believe that when the remaining chains are all broken that the power of the Karithkaia will be broken and Varys will be utterly consumed by Chaos.
The remaining chains are the Aethrayn Chain to the west of Yhntal, the Daenir Chain north of the Stone Flow, the Naraes Chain south of the Serra Mountains, the Farran Chain in the Death Mark, the Sharas Chain near Garradia and the Tyriath Chain in the Vahla Plains. The broken chains are the Akasta Chain in Bahaeus, the Carana Chain near the ruins of Werekhel and the Rhekan Chain to the west of Carhadhaen.
