3. Elaine's Scattered Journal Pages

Elaine's Scattered Journal Pages


  • Belonging

    Hello, journal!

    I always wondered where people find time to write journals. Between frolicking through the forest, living adventures, or spending time with friends, there's barely any time left to eat and sleep. But here I am now, not having much to do other than eat and sleep, both of which I do a lot these last few days. I'll come to that in a later entry.

    What can I say? After many years of having my hands full raising Asha, travelling through the world, especially to Silverymoon and back, and a bit of a dark phase in which I just lost myself in the forest, living as a cat more than a person which I prefer not to write about, I have found my way to new adventures, and opportunities.

    The first thing that I have to be grateful for is Jonni. Even through all these years, some of which he didn't even get to hear of me, he remained loyal to me. And not because of lack of opportunity, I've known. He didn't have to wait for me; I couldn't have blamed him in any way. I would have painfully accepted his choices in his quest for well-deserved happiness. But he gave up on any chances he had to lay in another's arms in the hope that one day he could again be in mine. I have always been described as whimsical, flighty or fickle, but my feelings for Jonni and my wishes to stay by his side, I feel, are one thing that will never change. Only seeing him makes me feel like I belong with him.

    Some things have changed, of course. It seems like Jonni is now a Baron and has his own Barony, which contains our Inn and some lands around. At first, I was thrilled because that meant he is important and accomplished, and I was happy for him. The fallout of that is that I am a Baroness, and I am expected to follow some rules made by people who think they can own the land and give it or take it away - also accept the fact that the Inn we put so much work and love into, to make accessible for everyone in need, now actually belongs to a King that can use or dispose of it in whatever way he wants. The realisation of those implications came when the King himself visited the Barony and forced all our friends and guests out to have the place for themselves. They even kicked our staff and hired people of their own choice... permanently!

    I just wanted to behave and keep a low profile, as I was carrying this feeling that I really am in no position to speak up about anything yet, having recently returned from my extended absence, but I kept screaming inside at the feeling of having our own home seized and purposed to the bidding of some entitled outsider, while I could do nothing about it.

    Jonni tells me he has it under control, that I shouldn't worry, that the King really was just passing by, and he won't bother us again. That King will go, another will come, and we will perdure, as we always have. His words soothe me, but they do not change my mind on the matter.

    Back on the topic of old faces, some I haven't seen, like Vash't or Nica, who I hope are both happily doing great together. I have not dared to dig much into that... best news are always the news that were great when you knew the last of them. I suppose Jonni will mention it at some point. Some of my old friends are not around these days, either. Willow, that wiry bundle of bliss, or Artemis, amongst many, many others.

    I met some of my old friends, and I am making some new ones, which is something that makes me very happy. Isolde is about, she has her own investigator's agency, and I was really happy to reunite with her. My Sunite friend is as radiant as ever, and she doesn't seem to have aged a day either, so when we are together, it's as if I had never left. I enjoy her company, not because it's like the old times, but because it's the new times, being as good or even better than the old ones were. She lives happily in the truest love with Nate, which is amazing and makes me so happy for both of them. She also works with Roslyn, another person I have memories of. She is quite down to business from what I've seen and gives out a kind of motherly aura that I feel comforted by, even if she does not mean it.

    There is also Reyhenna that now is princess Elisabeth Fisher. She doesn't seem to care much for that, and lives her life in the way that pleases her. That makes me instantly like her a lot. She is also quite the warrioress, as she showed me the path to Blackbridge, which was plagued with giants, undead, and other very dangerous creatures that she just cut through almost effortlessly, aided by just a bit of my magical touch.

    Aoth, I have faint memories of before leaving. We sat together, talking about someone we both knew well, and that kind of brought us closer. I felt instantly connected to her, maybe because of our bonds with nature, maybe because she made me feel like she would listen and she would not judge me. I shared a... big worry of mine with her, one I am not even ready to write down here yet. All I can say is that I am very glad to count her as my ally, and if she feels the same way, my friend.

    I met Salin too! Both the one I always knew and his son, whom I managed to mistake for his dad at first because he looks almost exactly like him, only a bit younger and wearing a goatee instead of his majestic stache. I was very happy to see him, and he was kind enough to gift me a Smiling Monkey card of Isolde. My very first one!

    Others I have enjoyed the company of include George, a fun marine with an attitude I like. Jonny, a Selunite priest that has a name too close for comfort to the one name that means everything to me. Cormac, Raazi.... just so many faces, so many names that make my head hurt.

    And avoid it as much as I want, there is, of course, Leena.

    Leena seems to have taken her turn in merging into the wilderness, perhaps in a quest for greatness, for reaching the top of the world and becoming one with it, as dad did, and where mom followed. I do hope with all my heart that she will still be around for us and for me. Selfish, I know, as I wasn't there for her in her times of need. But I do need her. Lorelai and Jerrick, or as I call them, mom and dad, found their path to the next life in the way they wanted, on their terms, but I really hope that Leena will still stay around a little longer.

    She made some of the best friends I could imagine, and from what I gather, became really important to the safety of the land, a guardian of sorts. Being strong head and stubborn as she is, I can see how that would happen. Aoth explained some of the hardships Leena went through, some of her triumphs and her falterings. It broke my heart to think that she had to go through a lot of that without her loving twin sister by her side.

    And now, maybe I deserve to go through my own hardships without her by my side. It is daunting to think how big are the shoes she left for me to fill, and I have already experienced some of that. Many mistake me for her, and others expect me to carry her legacy. The worst feeling is that for how confident and full of myself I often am, I don't know if I am good enough. I can not be Leena, but I hope those that loved her or relied on her will find Elaine worth loving and relying on.

    And I will wait for her, right here, where it all started, at our treehouse in the Rawlinswoods, in the land of Narfell, where I belong.


  • One Night More

    It's been a while again, and I'm starting to forget things or details what has been going on. Let's write it down.

    The truth is that I have been again struggling with "evil". To many of those I travel with, even those who are closest to me... evil people should be removed, so they can't do any more evil. I see the logic in that but... there have to be many scales of evil, right? I've known evil guardsmen, evil druids, evil senators, evil adventurers I've travelled with. When it is evil enough to kill them on sight? Or is it "vampire" the kill on sight trigger? Is it "bandit"? I struggle, and I feel most others don't. And that's fine. I trust my friends, and I know they want to keep everyone safe, so how can I blame them? How can I even be mad at them for wanting to keep -me- safe?

    Still, it's difficult for me to think that killing someone because they are evil is nothing but the laziest way to remove the fleeting threat in front of me while really solving nothing. And even then, I constantly participate in these slayings, so am I even trying hard enough, beyond whining about someone being about to be killed without really doing anything about it? In the end, I'm still being part of it, and then I'm just as bloodthirsty as we've all been trained to be by the world we live in, but on top of that, I'm also being hypocritic, trying to convince myself that I believe that there is a better way, just to feel better about myself. And that saddens me a lot. I feel if I really want things to change for the better I must try harder. If I can't change the world to be a better place, at least I can change myself.

    Anyway... vampires. In a way, I find them deeply fascinating, unique, sometimes colourful. Each has their own character, approach to problems and situations, their own dreams and ambitions... not much different than anyone alive. But they are "evil".

    A big part of me wants to sit with each of them, pick their minds out over a moonlit walk through the forest, to try to understand what they think, try to get a glimpse of how they feel, what moves each of them, what scares them. What does the touch of a loved one feels like or how compelling is it to follow an alluring scent. How is it to deal with their craving for blood, how they cope, and how they deal with it. How pleasant it is to satisfy that thirst. I am sure I could understand and relate somehow, having my own monster quietly growling in slumber within myself.

    But the ones I have seen lately have been less than willing to talk, let alone share a peaceful moonlit walk with me. It is also true that I wasn't alone, and they were generally trying to capture or sacrifice someone my friends and I cared about, so it wasn't the best setup for a lovely, friendly conversation.

    First of all, Isolde received a tip from an acquaintance of hers, a devil-turned-nice of sorts that is on good terms with her and seems to be helping around now and then (if that doesn't prove that evil people can be helped, what does?!). George and I were with her, so the three of us decided to follow the lead. We slipped through the blockade at the residential district and made it down a secret passage that led underground, a tunnel system across the Icelace, and there, our informant explained that the suspicious activity was happening just ahead. She could not risk further involvement, so she waited out while the three of us pushed forward.

    Through good stealth, we made it into a cave opening where we spotted a large number of human mercenaries, but the perimeter was really tight, and we couldn't slip through safely. To make it worse, one of the patrolling guardsmen was coming our way, and we decided that I would attempt to capture his mind, so I could use him to infiltrate them.

    That worked like a charm! (I'm glad Aoth can't read my journal) and I could use my new best friend to walk into the thick of it and learn everything I could through him. We could find out that there were three outstanding entities in the scene amongst a large number of human guardsmen. One was Amelia, the vampire that had been to my treehouse not long ago, demanding that we deliver the branches to her. The second was another vampire, we learned later as he was addressed by Amelia, by the name of Silas. His back was turned, though, so I couldn't get a good look at him. The third was a strong-looking devil shrouded in chains and spikes that stood within a summoning circle.

    These three were discussing dealings in which a faction of devils would set up and provide a blood farm in the Icelace for the vampires, and in exchange, the vampires would supply mortal souls to the devils. That sounded terrible on all accounts, so we were ready to leave with the information, but just then, we got a bit greedy and decided to have our befriended mercenary approach Silas to take a good look at him, so we could have a good idea of how he looks. Still, the vampire did not hesitate to behead the mercenary the moment he stepped within his reach. I was a bit worried we could have been found, but at least we did learn that this Silas is a martial type of vampire, considering how swiftly and cleanly he killed the veteran mercenary.

    At that time, the vampires prepared a teleportation spell and moved to another location, but using the magical signature left by the spell, and with the help of a scroll from the ever-resourceful Isolde and my magical scrying mirror, we managed to follow the trail, which showed us an image of a tunnel that led to a rocky beach in the Icelace where a ship was mooring with a coffin on it. We suspected this was Silas' coffin, and he was moving in to carry out these "farming" operations. Still, just as I was trying to get a clearer view of it all, maddening laughter began to echo in my thoughts, so oppressingly and disrupting that even as I tried my hardest to ignore it and keep focused, I had to give in, and we lost the scrying sensor.

    We did know that place is not far from Peltarch. And as we learned, we are having another powerful martial vampire moving in, probably one of A's children, considering the mental assault we all received. The vampires are setting up a blood farm with the help of devils, which will receive souls in return. We should prepare an expedition to visit this location as soon as possible.

    The plague goes on just as well, and even as I feel it in my flesh, so do other Selunites, in different ways. As an example, not many moons ago, we barely managed to keep Asha from being snatched by a retriever that appeared in the middle of Peltarch through a gateway to the Abyss, we think. Thankfully a good bunch of the ablest people in Peltarch, including Isolde, Nate, Meadow and Roslyn, appeared in the scene, amongst others, to keep the horrible thing from taking my daughter away. After the Retriever, a very beautiful, angelic being manifested, offering us rewards for defeating the Retriever... Asha and I felt extremely compelled to approach and throw ourselves into the gate; had not Isolde and Nate intervened with magics to make our sight true and clear our mind, we both would have fallen to this trap... I have both of them to thank for keeping us steered. And I have Parnell to thank for tipping us off and allowing us to be ready, though I would love to know what she has to gain from it.

    I suppose as we dealt with the Retriever with relative ease, they began to target less resilient Selunites, and not long after that, Mildy once again let us know that two other priests had vanished. By scrying at the Lighthouse temple, we learned that they were still alive at the ruins of Mintas Rhelgor. George guessed very cleverly that they were probably waiting for the Full Moon to sacrifice them, so we had to make haste to the place, as we were just two moons short for that happening. One of the priests was a cousin of Mildy, the other was a woman called Shona, I believe, and it turns out that a vampire hunter named Rayla works for her, and we precisely found this vampire hunter in Mintas. She had found that Shona was in a different location from the Dunderstone, and she agreed to take care of rescuing Shona at the tower by the north of the ruins where she was being held. Meanwhile, we headed to the main building, where Mildy's cousin had been taken.

    At the bottom, we found a steamy throne that looked pretty suspicious, but before we had time to examine it well, some members in the group were already rushing upstairs, so afraid that they might get in trouble we had to follow to catch up with them. At the top roof, there was a figure sitting on a throne, with the Dunderstone girl suspended in the air, escorted by several magical wards. There was a lot of hesitation, and the figure wasn't speaking either, so I stepped up to ask her who she was and if she would let us take the girl with us. She introduced herself as Jubal the Incandescent, and she would not let go of her hostage. She considered her an asset that she would only trade and not give up freely. She warned us that there were potent wards around her, and at best, she would allow me to change places with her.

    It seemed like a good deal to me since I know a few tricks that can get me out of a sticky situation, and even if they managed to kill me, I'm not a priest, so if what we believe is true, the plague would not get worse. And anyway, Isolde was there, and I know she wouldn't allow anything to happen to me. So much is that true that she flat out refused for me to trade places with the priestess, even at the risk of the priestess dying. Since we had to act fast as the moon was beginning to rise, I agreed to Isolde's own plan to try to blast the wards and hope for the best.

    Our dispelling hexes were launched with coordinated efforts, and their combined powers managed to disable the wards! But the young Dunderstone was still floating mid-air, and we didn't know how to get her out, as Jubal was unhappy about our course of action, and everything escalated. Everything was a bit chaotic as Isolde stepped up to use her belt to send Mildy's cousin to the Ethereal, thinking that would keep her safe while we dealt with Jubal, but Jubal followed into the Ethereal Plane with her own spells. I recognised the divine wordings and traces in her incantations, meaning Jubal is a powerful priestess... of Shar? Remains to be seen.

    As we all tried to figure out how to rescue the Dunderstone girl, an elf that travelled with us called Myrcella realised that the braziers around the roof were some kind of focal point. If we destroyed them, we would undo the hostage priestess' bindings, so we did just that, as Jubal and the Dunderstone girl herself materialised back into the prime. As it happened, everyone was so ready for it, and most in our group targetted Jubal with their strongest spells and strikes, which forced the vampire priestess to withdraw in her mist form. And so Mildy's cousin was safe! Phew.

    Afterwards, we went to check for Rayla and Shona too, but the tower was in shambles, so we guessed she had managed to get away with her own plan as well, despite the shadow creatures that tried to stop us from even trying to get in.

    So, a victory, you'd think, as we all made our way back to the city through the dangerous Mintas Forest. I still feel as if we gained nothing from that other than delaying their plans. I still feel sick, and it's not getting any better. The plague is still a thing, and it's not getting any better.

    And just last night, they tried again. After we were assaulted by a whispering vampire that I think Isolde called "Grundle", Isolde, myself and a shifty stranger I can't recall the name of were snatched in plain sight when reading a signpost in the Residential District... it must have been some sort of triggered magic. Sebrienne and Aoth were with us, but they didn't get snatched, so they must have been able to see through it... either way, it was Jubal, again, and this time she demanded that I give her the branches of the Negative Energy Plane tree. What is more troubling is that she could tell right away that threatening me would get nowhere, and so she had three innocents chained, ready for execution if I would not meet her demands.

    It's challenging to think of a more terrible situation, knowing that she would kill three innocents if I didn't tell her what she wanted. If I did, it's hard to tell how many people would suffer and die for it. Isolde reminded me of this as I began to crumble, giving Jubal snippets of information, hoping to gain some time, to find an out... but she ordered one of the innocents to be executed by her loyal minion. Right in front of me, the person turned into dust, and one of those rot soldiers rose in his place to do their bidding. That was only because Isolde was fidgeting with the lock of her cage while Jubal was interrogating me.

    Luckily the out presented itself in the beautiful shape of Nate, that with Sebrienne, had found their way to us and created a distraction for us all together to turn the tables on the situation. Sadly Jubal and her minion vanished, not before killing the two remaining innocent victims and leaving us a bunch of those terrifyingly strong rot-soldiers to deal with. After we managed that, we had to excavate our way out as we were first blockaded in with that dangerous looking water and then barely survived through a wave of more of those strong rotten soldiers.

    Finally, we made it to the surface, just after dusk. Not the best time to emerge in the middle of the old Jiyyd plains when vampires are what you are dealing with, so we hurried to safety - which we wouldn't find without being assaulted, once again, by a bunch of rot soldiers. That was a fight we could not take anymore, so we had to run for it, hurrying across the lake to put as much earth and water as possible between them and us.

    So we made it, and we survived, this time thanks to the timely intervention of Nate and Sebrienne, but I feel if we don't do something about all of this soon, it won't be long before they eventually succeed. I think we need to be proactive and, for once, take the initiative and force them to react to us instead.

    This feeling gained even more emphasis after yet another vampire named Quintus visited us at the legion camp, this one very polite in his approach and manners... inviting us to give the branches over to one of the vampire factions. His reasoning is that in choosing which one of them would be most powerful, we can tip the balance and, in a way, "pick our poison". Unappealing as that sounded, I felt Nate and Isolde were giving it real consideration. Is it possible that we may have have no choice but to accept a lesser evil? I surely hope not.

    Nate suggested that we destroy it all. The branches, the leaves, the tree, all of it. I think that would be a good idea, but if father and Leena didn't do it, there must be a reason. Probably it's not as simple as just putting those things to the torch and hoping they vanish in ashes... there was mention of taking these items to the positive energy plane, hoping that they will cancel out or just cause the tree and its branches to cease to be, but so many things are uncertain.

    For now, I return to the forest, to rest, to lick my wounds, to hope, and to survive; one night more.


  • The Blood Moon

    I found some more time for quiet, which means more time for writing.

    I am in a bit of pain, so it won't be the most exciting entry. I am sorry for that, dear Journal. The good news is, I just arrived from a kind of fey carnival where I shared a lot of fun and laughs with some of my best friends and my daughter. I will talk more about it in future if I find the time. Also, about the whole "Far Realm threat" that I've tried not to worry too much about for now, what with Jonni having a "dark twin" of sorts called Inno. Same with Isolde, Aoth, Reyhenna and others.

    It is a complicated topic that will need several entries of its own.

    The Blood Moon, then.

    I found myself spending too much time just sleeping and eating lately, so I decided to take a stroll out, maybe find some of my friends, do something to keep distracted, and not think about how hungry I am and this sickness I have. I was afraid of going to Peltarch and finding Mildred and getting arrested, so I snuck in invisibly, just to scout who I could find.

    It wasn't long before I found Isolde and George talking; their topic was, of course, the whole plague thing, and George was trying to get Isolde up to speed with the events, as she had not been present for the entire... me drinking plagued blood and fleeing the city and all of that. They were pretty out of the way, so I thought to appear briefly and hope that they would agree with going elsewhere safer for all of us to talk - they were happy with that, and we moved into the Park.

    We sat to talk about what happened, what we knew, and possible plans moving on. I explained how the disease can be neutralised temporarily but not fully cured, at least not with the typical means we carry. Then Isolde mentioned that being a Sharran ailment created from the sacrifice of a Selunite, the temple of the Lighthouse might be familiar with it or have some insight on how to fix it. That sounded like a good idea, so we thought to head there when we were interrupted.

    Someone was spying on us from atop the battlements around the Park, and shortly after she revealed herself, she jumped down to greet us. She had crimson eyes and hair and was strangely beautiful. She also seemed quite fun and spontaneous in speaking and in her body language. Isolde quickly recognised her and introduced her as Parnell, at first using taboo words such as "Vintage" or making fang gestures with her fingers. It was then easy to tell that she was a vampire.

    Parnell mistook me for Leena, as some others have been doing lately, but I pulled my hair back and posed in my own charming way; that usually does the trick. If I didn't know better, I'd say Parnell was actually beguiled for a moment as she took me in and then began advancing towards me with an amiable attitude.

    She had a deal to offer - she could cure my disease in exchange for something. But first, she wanted us to go to my treehouse in the Rawlinswoods. I was already dying to get out of the city, so the idea of going back to a more natural environment was very appealing.

    Isolde warned me thoroughly that although Parnell is quite independent for a vampire and friendly at times, Leena had tried to destroy her several times; she is still a vampire, unpredictable, and potentially dangerous if her master forced her to act in any way against us.

    I heeded my friend's warning as I looked around; many others had been trickling in as we talked with Parnell. I guessed George or Isolde were carrying one of those locating scrolls. I remember Chea, Cormac and Aoth, but my memory has not been the best lately. I do remember that the party chose to teleport with the aid of Chea, while I, as always, preferred to actually make the journey. Few things make me as sad as skipping a journey just to get to the destination.

    I feel that when you skip the journey, you miss everything that could have happened in that journey. Sometimes new paths open, new discoveries that you never expected. Sometimes the journey becomes a destination in itself. And this was one of those times.

    As I flew south in my hawk form, I spotted a peculiar white stag. I learned as I was raised to respect and honour white stags. They represent purity in nature and, at times, are the bearer of news or omens. As I landed to offer my respects to this particular one, the majestic creature looked into my eyes, and I experienced a vision.

    A female monk that I could not recognise appeared in the vision, settling on a Full Moon stance. Then images flashed through my head, rapidly but clearly - Nicahh, Melody, Oreth, Fadia... even my father, and my aunt, Tindra. I saw images of the Gypsy Camp, Jiyyd, and the image of the monk, flashing through now and then. When the images stopped flashing, I felt as if the White Stag pushed its own message into my mind.

    I saw a venomous viper coiling around a black cat. They weren't fighting, it felt. They were as if dancing twistedly, and both felt to somehow mean ill as if they meant to do wrong, and their dance just made it worse. As they danced, the moon above them turned pale and then sickly red. There was an intense background of violence in their intent... towards Selune and the land itself.

    The vision then ended as the white stag bowed out. I bowed back to it, and I must say, from here on, my memories become a bit blurry, so hopefully, my writings will still be of some value. I remember stumbling my way towards the treehouse, where everyone had been already waiting for a while. It was almost dawn, too, and the one thing I remember the clearest is Parnell alarmed asking me to let her into the treehouse.

    I invited her and everyone else inside. At that time, I felt it would be a good host thing to ask Parnell if she minded that all the others were present, as I didn't know what she wanted to talk with me was private. She seemed fine with it, although Isolde grew a bit worried that I was too cooperative with the Vampire. I can't blame Isolde for being wary, as I also was still feeling a bit out of myself because of the vision I just had, and everything felt floaty in general. Besides, I was starving again, so I went to scoop as much food as possible until Aoth put me at ease with one of her remedies.

    As for the deal itself... Parnell wanted something that my father, and then my sister, had been guardians of, and it appears I inherited - the branches of a negative energy tree of great power. In exchange, she would cure my disease permanently. I wasn't much aware of these branches at the time. Still, seeing the reactions of Leena's friends and allies, I understood that these items were way more important than my own health, so I refused the trade. Parnell seemed disappointed and about to leave, but Isolde came up with an alternative - what if we got Parnell a vial of her sire - a vampire by the name of Lillia?

    Parnell seemed to entertain that thought, and although she warned that it would be nearly impossible to get ahold of that, she would see it as a fair trade - a vial of Lillia's blood for my cure that she assured does not involve me turning into a vampire myself. Far fetched as it sounded, at least it offered us an alternative to find my cure. But before leaving, Parnell warned us that others like her but much less friendly knew that the branches were still around, and they would come knocking to ask for them.

    Said and done, Parnell vanished with the nightfall. Shortly after, a woman identified as Amelia, escorted by one known as Seven Twenty, appeared at the treehouse. I was told that Amelia is another vampire, Seven Twenty being some form of mortal emissary. They made demands for the branches to be turned over to them when Raazi, a weird woman that seems to be in some sort of relationship with Cormac, bumped into the two women, trying to push past them. Amelia didn't take it kindly and turned her into stone.

    I don't feel like diplomacy would have gotten us anywhere since we would not give them the branches anyway. Still, now Cormac was raging and screaming death to the duo, which did not make things any better. The pair walked away, threatening us to prepare, for we were about to be assaulted by an army of darkness. As they were leaving, Cormac chased them to strike them, which ended up with Cormac being another stone statue.

    Luckily for the two statues, our allies had the means to un-stone them. Raazi left as soon as she learned that there would be trouble, while Cormac actually stood to defend the treehouse, and with it probably most of Narfell, in preventing the vampires from getting the branches. The undead assault was quite strong, with shadowy creatures and accurate skeletal archers wave after wave. At the same time, I think I caught with the corner of my eye, Amelia weaved in and out of the conflict casting some spells. I think she really disliked Cormac, as I saw him turn to stone two or three more times. But we had a capable group, and through enhancing magic, inspiring songs, and accurate strikes, we made it through the night as safely as one could hope.

    With the dawn, Seven Twenty returned, simply as a messenger. We decided that it would be good to listen, as harming Seven Twenty really would not get us anywhere. Other than Cormac, that was still raging and barking, but I was ready to stop him in his tracks if he tried anything stupid this time. Thankfully he didn't, as Seven Twenty spoke, three threats that would be prevented simply by delivering the branches to her or her masters.

    • The first threat would be that her vampire lords would lift their protection over Norwick, potentially unleashing other threats they had been keeping at bay. I was told later that this includes a number of bodaks that the vampires had in theory held at bay for some time and now could return freely to terrorise Norwick and the Rawlins.

    • The second threat would be that her vampire lords would begin the corruption and profanation of the Rawlinswoods. I assume this meant causing vegetation to wither and die, and spreading their undead corruption. This one particularly hit home for me.

    • The third threat would be that her vampire lords would strike a deal with the Zhentarim to lay siege on the land of Narfell and claim it. This seemed far fetched, maybe a bit of a bluff... but also something to keep in mind.

    After hearing Seven Twenty, she asked once again if we would turn the branches over. At this time, I felt a sense of responsibility that I rarely had, if ever, felt before. Either I am maturing, or just the fact that my father and sister aren't around to pick up the slack for me is changing me. Still, the truth is that I knew at that time that my words had weight. They had to be worthy of those that guarded the branches before me - And so I told Seven Twenty, that the branches would not be turned over, and we would deal with these threats as they came. And then, I also delivered my own message to Seven Twenty, to carry to her masters.

    Vampires, they live eternal unlives and thrive in their underworlds. If they so choose, they have all the time of eternity to carry out their plans and entertain their needs, desires, and ambitions. They could achieve everything they wish and outlast anything that does not happen the way they want to. That eternity - that is their boon, and that is what my friends and I will take from them if they dare to harm Narfell, the Rawlinswoods, or the lives of those we care for.

    Seven Twenty nodded and walked away, undisturbed, as did most of those gathered, each to deal with the aftermath the best they could. Some of my friends still remained, to offer support, and whatever insight they had on the matters at hand.

    I found myself finally with a moment of peace as I tried to catch my breath. And I felt sick, exhausted, starved and overwhelmed by responsibility.

    But also incredibly proud of being a Rayfe and a friend of my friends.


  • The Waning Moon

    Back to my hunger then.

    I am sick. This is why.

    There have been rumours of a Plague in Peltarch for the last few tendays, and some of us have been trying to learn as much as we could from it. What was interesting about this Plague is that it only hit the Residential District, which is where the wealthy live. That is weird, right? If I know anything about diseases, they spread more easily through filth and crowds. That's what there is a lot of in farms or docks and nearly nothing of in noble estates.

    When we made it into the Residential District, at first only Isolde and myself, we decided to check on the temple of the Triad. We found two people who claimed to be priests of the Order of the Saint Sollars, or... something like that. I think it's another name for the Yellow Rose, an Ilmateri Order; they were wearing kind of creepy black outfits with a beak mask and acted very dodgy... as if they were improvising and not really knowing much at all about diseases. They gave evasive answers when we asked about symptoms and how the condition spread. They also didn't want to let us into the temple, instead directing us to the tourney grounds, where there would be tests to check if we were diseased.

    Shortly after, a lockdown was announced, as others joined us, and we learned that an elder of the Makere family had been quite sick, and we went to check on her. George went inside, and after a while came out saying that the woman had common disease symptoms and was cured with a regular blessing to cure diseases. After that, the elderly woman was happy to even play some card games with him!

    We found another beak masked priest on the way out, and both Isolde and Meadow went to question her. Still, she was... less than cooperative, so I invited her to be more helpful by getting into her head and opening her up a little. Turns out their minds are pretty resilient to my poking, but with a bit of concentration, I managed... and the priest began to talk.

    She spoke of a plague that they were looking for, isolating cases they found. Also, another case of a diseased person was known in the nearby Je'laan estate. And so we headed there. However... the Je'laan weren't that cooperative. They refused to be interrogated even by a city officer like Meadow. Insisting only got us into trouble, as the guard was called to the estate to evict us all.

    Without learning much, we decided to go to the tourney grounds to see how the tests were going, with our "friendly" priestess in tow. They kept saying that the sick people were being isolated... but we didn't know what they were doing with them. It also didn't make sense to take blood samples from everyone! Isolde mentioned at one point that vampires are still loose in the land. They have been known to use blood to gain power over people... especially those who are most influential, like the residents of the noble spheres of Peltarch.

    So suspicious as we were, I decided to manipulate the results, to show George as being infected, so he could learn as much as he could... and afterwards, when they put him aside, I feared for him. So I also made them believe that I was infected, so he wouldn't be left alone. There was a chance that the two of us together could maybe find out more!

    But then another priestess arrived. This one walked with a different posture... she seemed to be in charge. When she was told that some of us were diseased, she saw right through it and dismissed the possibility of any of us having the Plague. It was then that Aoth, with her deep knowledge of healing, and her persuasive, logical thinking, managed to convince the leader of the beaky priests to share an infected sample with her to examine it.

    While the priestess agreed, and the sample was given to Aoth, there were some... disagreements in the approach the priests were taking, and Isolde managed to convince everyone who was taking a test that those tests were dangerous, and possibly a scam - they should leave before they were taken advantage of. Isolde can be very persuasive, and I think not a single patient stayed for the test as they all headed home to the frustration of the beaky priests. There were accusations of being in league with Talona thrown back and forth... and as Aoth and the rest of us walked away with the blood sample for Aoth to examine, the guard caught up with us, demanding we give the sample back.

    Aoth refused - the sample was given to be returned after examination, and she had no time to examine it yet! But the guards pointed out that the priests backed out on their offer, and they wanted the sample, now. There was a bit of arguing about who had the right to keep the sample and for how long... but it was clear that it would get nowhere. The guards had made their mind up, and they wouldn't walk away without the sample, so with a nod of knowing complicity to Aoth, I offered to be the one carrying the vial to the guards.

    Aoth already knew, or at least suspected, what I was going to do with the sample... we needed a test subject to determine what the disease is and how it works! And well, as the guards relaxed thinking we were going to deliver the vial, I just uncorked it and drank it whole.

    The guards were socked! I saw some in our group thought that was a terrible idea. Others were proud, I feel... but in any case, the guards backed off, afraid that I would give them the Plague, and told me to slowly walk with them as I was arrested. Hah, not a chance. I changed into my Hawk form and flew off down south as fast as I could. Aoth would know where to find me, and with me, her very own Plague test subject.

    When I arrived at my treehouse, I first noticed that I was starving. I blamed that on the adrenaline rush of having just done what I did and rushing full flight speed from Peltarch to the Rawlinswoods. So I ate and waited. A few hours later, Aoth and a few others arrived and asked me how I felt. The truth is... I was feeling alright. No cold, no chills, no fever... only extremely hungry. Thinking of it, I had spent all the time waiting pretty much eating anything I could find in the house, and I was still hungry.

    Aoth took a blood sample from me and by feeling its scent in her wolf shape, she confirmed that I had the same disease that she found at first in the vial that I drank. She then explained that they learned more from the Ilmateri priests at the temple of the Triad; it is called the Waning Moon, and it is a potent disease created by Sharrans out of the ritualistic sacrifice of a devoted Selunite. How fitting, in a twisted, horrible way, that I am Selunite.

    But that wasn't all. More research was needed, but as Aoth browsed through Leena's own healing notes, she explained that one of the symptoms is severe hunger that never really ends. The subject feels more and more hungry but can not receive any nourishment from eating.

    And then, I began to get really worried. I pondered if I should let the symptoms develop to learn more about them and how to cure the illness itself. Still, it was dangerous already, so Aoth used a potent curing remedy on me, and just like that, the hunger went away. I celebrated that, as Aoth seemed pleased. We found out what the disease was, where it came from, and that it could be cured. So, all in all, barring maybe having to hide from Peltarch's guard for a while, I counted this as a complete victory. Even then, Aoth offered to stay overnight for observation, just in case.

    That seemed like a good idea, so I just fell asleep near the cushions, and the last I saw of Aoth was her sitting on the couch, studying some medicine books. When I woke up, the first thing I felt was a ravenous hunger... I needed to devour whatever I could find. Luckily Aoth staying over had proven to be a good call by the druidess! She was there to make sure I wouldn't go crazy and managed to soothe me again with her remedy.

    That's the bright side. The not-so-bright side is that now I am dependent on being given these remedies regularly because if I am not... I don't know what will happen. I don't think either of us does. Someone mentioned I might become a shade because that's a Sharran thing. Others said I might get so hungry that I begin to eat raw things, even live animals or people. Either of those doesn't sound good at all.

    There might be a permanent solution, but this entry is getting too long, so I will write about it next after I eat some more.


  • Smiling Monkeys

    The first entry was a bit heavy, so I'll go with something short and light hearted here. In this entry, I want to talk about something else that came before my unbridled hunger for food - my unbridled hunger for cards. Yes, of all the things, cards! I don't know what is so appealing about it, but just having a carad with a pretty picture of a person and a place, and some playing stats feels so good. Especially when some of that cards are made after places you know, or even people that are close to you.

    I first learned about these was by Peltarch Commons, when I was having a casual talk with Jonni, Isolde, Aoth, George, Reyhenna, Meadow... and a Card Trader offered some of the "rare" cards he had, going up for crazy prices like thousands of gold pieces. I recognised some of the people in those cards, and I felt instantly drawn to them. Lucky for me, Jonni and Isolde both showed interest, so I felt so relieved at that I wasn't alone! So they are into it too, phew. It's true that there are others who are not so much into it and consider it a scam or a waste of money but that's their choice!

    I dived full in, with what little gold I had, which was enough to get a starter pack. I got a few interesting ones, including one that I was told to be quite rare, of the Defender Talbot. That got our group talking about cards as Jonni himself purchased a couple of pretty expensive ones, and the Card Trader mentioned that the Smiling Monkey, the company behind creating and printing these cards, was dropping crates with some cards around the land, with rarer cards being in deeper, more dangerous areas.

    We had a quite competent group, and I was aaaaaching for adventure, so it didn't take much convincing to get us rolling and chasing cards! It was a grand adventure and went through gnoll lands and into the norther reaches. The last bit was quite dangerous too, as we went through some poisonous ravine with a huge hydra guarding a stash and the rarer card box, but it was great to feel that adventuring spirit rush through my veins, in the company of some of the people I care the most.

    When we returned to Peltarch, Isolde was so excited to get one particular card that was missing in her collection, that I couldn't help but playing a little prank on her. As my turn to pick was just before hers, I scooped it up just to see her pretty flustered face grow with disbelief, and I swear I felt evil for a moment, but it paid off when I actually gave it to her and she shone with joy, always having known that I couldn't have possibly done that to her. I also gave George the Talbot card I got in my starter pack, as he made mention of wanting it and well... I guess I'm just that soft.

    Later we met the person who I'm told makes the cards, an interesting boy by the name of Danson! He seemed quite peculiar, I can't wait to know more of him.

    In the end, after some back and forth and trading with the Card Trader, Jonni got a couple of deals that increased both mine and his collection. He also seems to be after the one exclusive card of someone called Kanen Hightower that goes for 200,000 gold! Some sort of Knight of old, I think.

    For now, this is how my collection looks:

    Anna Blake
    Attentus
    Enenan Snydders
    Frederick Del'Rosa
    Isolde Garibaldi (Signed!)
    Jonni Aelthasson (Signed!)
    The Bard College
    The City of Peltarch
    Whisper

    Not a lot, I know! But I will keep looking!