Excerpts from the journal of Arkolio de'Averlain

[Pseudonym]

*Arkolio notices his journal sitting atop the armoire, a thin layer of dust blanketing it's cover*

*He muses aloud*

Haven't written in that for a while...

*eyes grow distant as he remembers events of the recent past*

I should write down about that trip into the necromancer's lair before I forget...
(// mixafix's Seeds of Change quest)

*smirks*

I swear I have never laughed harder than when Jser walked into that trap . . . actually but for the time I laughed even harder when he did it for the second time!

*his keen hearing picks up soft footfalls from the hall outside his room and through the partially open door he catches a glimpse of Akki walking past. She is wrapped in a towel, her hair dripping wet from the bath*

Ummm, sorry journal, maybe i'll get to you later...

*he addresses the journal with an apologetic shrug before scampering after Akki's retreating form*


EDIT: Typo

[Pseudonym]

Things are going well with Akki.
She is smart, funny, entertaining and beautiful.

It’s a very different relationship to the time I shared with Muireann.  With Akki we have fun whenever we are together yet neither of us seem to feel the need to spend every moment of every day living out of each other’s pockets. There are no explanations required for my absences and no accusations made about my behaviour. Physically, she is stunning. Beyond words. Emotionally, she is not demanding or needy (apart from her little meltdown at the Wild Surge a few weeks back) yet free with her friendship and support when she feels it is needed.

Akki asked that I teach her a thing or two about lockpicking. I definitely have the knack for getting into places where others would have me ... not be, but i’m not sure how i’ll go at being a teacher. I can only try. I’ve been thinking about getting Akki to teach me a thing or two of music and singing in return ... I have no great gift for this but I am generally pretty good at picking up most things to which I apply myself.  Unfortunately applying myself to anything has never been one of my strengths!

Spent some time with Muir the other day on a trip that she had planned to gather materials for scribing or some such.  She is looking pretty good - her son is about one now I think. A couple of times there were looks shared between us that were absolutely NOT the looks shared by two platonic friends. I’d been down this path once before with disastrous results and was not keen to put myself through the grief again. However ... one more for the road never hurt anyone? Did it?

Everyone’s favourite paladin Tarradon Duvall sent me a letter the other day asking whether I was interested in a trip to Dregar that he was planning for some do-gooder crusade. I didn’t much care about the morality of such a trip, as long as the likelihood of gold is promising ... I am in!

[Pseudonym]

// Should’ve really gone into the last entry - same time frame.

Both Akki and Muir have told me that Eghaas is hurting over all the time that Akki and I have been spending together.

To be truthful, my first inclination was to step up our public displays of affection a notch and really rub his nose in it . . . not that I really enjoy making others miserable, but come on. He and Akki had . . . whatever they had was months and months ago . . . get over it son, move on. Go out and find a nice, quietly spoken, meek as mud, Aeridinite, wannabe-druid, Elven sorceress out there who thinks that you are her soul mate and settle down and having boring little pacificist elven kiddies together.

It’s not that I don’t like Eghaas. Really. I count him as one of my few friends that I would actually trust. Make that one of the VERY few friends that I would trust . . . but enough of the doleful, heartbroken looks already.

[Pseudonym]

Met a newcomer to Hlint, a fellow by the name of Kerrin ... Killon ... something like that anyway. I don’t normally bother committing to memory people’s names that are of such limited utility to me but I do remember it was something like that.

I encountered this fellow as Eghaas and I appeared next to each other at the Bindstone in Hlint - a less than successful venture into the Black Ice caves - blinking at each other and thinking ‘What the heck just happened!!?’.

I noticed this other chap exiting from the rat-infested crypts nearby covered in telltale bites and wounds. I didn’t know the guy. I healed him with one of (my many) potions for healing minor injuries.

Why did I do it?
A newcomer to town ... in my debt.
The startled look on Eghaas’ face ... amusing.
I could demand inflated payment after ... profitable.
Showing off ... it really cost me nothing. What’s a potion like that worth to me? If I dropped one on the ground I don’t know if i’d even bother to bend down and pick it up.
Maybe I did it on a whim?
Maybe I’ve been spending too much time with Tarradon Duvall.

[Pseudonym]

Took a trip to Lar with a group of folks the other day, Alleina, Akki, Ireth, Eghaas (whom I have taken to calling 'E', the look of annoyance on his face every time cracks me up!) and a couple of others.

The trip was pretty much without incident, one of the travellers - Kerrin, the new guy I had met the other day, was killed by an ogre mage. This wouldn't normally bother me even a little but he had been nominated to retrieve the valuables from any creatures or monsters that we slew in our travels. Ireth picked him. I said, not unkindly I think, can we pick someone else who is less likely to be horribly slain? I'm quite sick of seeing half my loot disappear when some inept fool is killed. Did anyone listen? Nope. Ireth, for all that she is a seasoned warrior, really has no idea sometimes.

I am yet to totally work her out. Ireth's pretty enough I suppose but, to be truthful, I wouldn't even bed her if I could get away with it. There is just something about her that grates on my nerves. It is her superior attitude. It is her disdain for opinions other than her own. It is her arrogance. Mother and Father once had some friends, the Westans. Missus Westan was okay I guess and their daughter Cyndary was better than okay, but Mister Westan ... well he reminds me of Ireth. We couldn’t have a new milking cow without Mister Westan pointing out that he also had a new cow and his was yielding more milk. Mother would have them over to our place for dinner and Mister Westan would be admiring a boar on the spit that Father and Haugrim had hunted but just wouldn’t be able to help mentioning that he had caught one a few days before which was of course bigger and somehow tastier. Ireth reminds me of Mister Westan. It annoyed me then and it annoys me now.

Ireth aside, it was nice to spend a few days in Lar with Akki. Well, we didn’t see too much of Lar to be truthful. I can, however, say the inside of the inn was nice!

One last point of note. On the way to Lar, somewhere in the middle of the Grey Peaks, our group had just fought off a band of ogres. Upon one of their bodies was a case that somehow, when you placed items within it, would lessen their weight. Akki commented that she found such things useful because she always had to carry around so many spell components. Anyhow, it was decided for whatever reason that someone else got the item.

Now, I have three lion skin bags in my possession (that also have this ability of lowering the weight of whatever you put in them). I traded for them a couple of years ago and occasionally have put them to use in my travels.

Of course I didn’t volunteer that information to Akki at the time. What sensible rogue would? Then, several days later, we were standing in the hills above Lar together and I happened to look over to Akki beside me. She had snowflakes in her hair, a red nose from the cold, yet I have never seen her looking more beautiful. Wordlessly, I reached into my pack and handed over two of my (expensive!) lion skin bags to her. She didn’t know what to say. Frankly, nor did I. By the senile Gods, has there ever been born a bigger fool than I?

[Pseudonym]

A couple of days ago I stood in Krandor with Muireann. We had just finished an impromptu trip through the forests surrounding the township and we were about to part company. She had recently, for reasons that I don’t really understand, risen in favour with her Goddess and she had been keen to unleash some new spells that were now within her ability to cast. I had tagged along with little better to do.

Anyway, we were just in the process of exchanging our farewells when there was a . . . moment. Nothing happened. It just . . . could have.

I was confused. I’m normally a man of pretty straight-forward motivations but this time there was a little internal conflict going on. Not really about the moral rights and wrongs of  an ‘encounter’, or that possibly/probably another man, the father of her child, might be hurt. Really, who cares? I don’t know him and from what little I have heard, he sounds like a boring tree-hugger who won’t hold on to her for very long anyway. No, at the time when I am normally only receiving my instructions and commands from ‘little Arkolio downstairs’ and good sense is rapidly fleeing, I started having a conflict of . . . self.

I didn’t want to hurt Muir and more confusingly, I didn’t want to hurt Akki. It was as if there was a little celestial on one shoulder and a little infernal on the other, both whispering their advice to me in the middle. Perhaps 99% of the time, I choose to heed the little infernal. His whisperings are a usually enormously more fun than those of his counterpart on the other shoulder.

This time . . .  by the senile Gods I am a fool . . .  I headed back home, via the florist to buy Akki some roses, and went to bed early. Alone.

[Pseudonym]

// (Dezza’s quest: The Lair of Bricket the Journeyman) //

Last week I was called upon for yet another job for The Red Bear. This time our mission was to locate the final resting place of some gnomish bard, Bricket the Journeyman. Bricket supposedly traveled the world centuries ago (decades ago? I can’t remember exactly as I was checking out Eldarwen at the time (Hmmm, should I have a go there?) when Red Bear’s off-sider was telling the story) looking for interesting communities with rich oral histories to learn their stories and compose new ones in dedication to them. Yawn. Anyway, the pay offered, as always, was good so I decided to head off into the great blue unknown.

As it turned out the great blue unknown this time was actually a dangerous journey into the lands of the Iceweavers, pirates of the Southern polar regions. Brrrrrr. The Red Bear needed something that it was rumored Bricket had in his possession when he travelled to the lands of the Iceweavers.

A group of us barely escaped from the clutches of some irate guards in Karthy that Kobal had aggravated in some way before rowing out to the Sea Tiger where it was at rest in a hidden cove near Karthy.

After that we set sail as fast as we could to evade any potential pursuit. For over a week we sailed south as fast as possible to avoid the ever-worsening winter and trying to avoid being caught in the ice as it solidified beneath us.

Eventually we reached the shores and located the pirate enclave of Haran’s Rest. Here we docked and met Hirupp the kobold, steward (of sorts) to the small settlement. After AnnaLee offered a story as payment the we were allowed to leave the compound and also bring the sick crew into the building where they could be tended.

We set off into the icey wastelands and immediately discovered one of the pitfalls (excuse the pun) of the area.  Ferrit fell into a hidden chasm within hours of our departure, plummeting to her death, despite AnnaLee’s best efforts. While Annalee tried to save Ferrit the rest of us fought off a horde of Frost giants and their minions in a furious battle.

Losing the taste for the venture, half the party returning to Haran’s Rest which left only a few hardy souls well enough to strike out deeper into the icy wastes.

After a number of lethal encounters we stumbled upon a frost giant city. Using caution and stealth we tried to skirt the city however a few of us were spotted (bloody fighters!) by the sentries and a large scale battle ensued. A number of us, most notably me, were captured and the rest scattered across the icy landscape.

Battered, bruised and despairing the remainder of the party, incompetent boobs that they were,  managed to locate each other and build a shelter against the harsh conditions just so they could survive the night. Only Talan attempted to sneak into the Frost giant city, located me somewhere in the city dungeons and we managed to escape before the next morning.

Eventually we located a cave we believed to be the resting place of Bricket. Entering the cave we found it inhabited by ice spiders and a devestation centipede amongst other unpleasantness but by the time we reached the lower levels the place was deserted and oddly warm.

Here we finally located the resting place of Bricket the Journeyman and claimed the casket that the Red bear wanted before making our way slowly and uncomfortablly back to where the ship waited.

[Pseudonym]

All hail Arkolio - Arena vanquisher of Celgar!!

Sure, I won by default because he broke the rules, but a victory is a victory!

But how we got there is a long story . . .

I had agreed to purchase a couple of rings from Angela (of Raven Trading) the other day. Rings to enhance my strength and general fortitude. Not cheap I might add! Their purchase pretty much cleaned me out of true. Truthfully, I was about 5,000 short but I had fortunately overheard Talan Va’lash in Hlint the other day talking about his need for gold nuggets. As such, I organised a trip into the 'xxxxxx' Hills to the gold mines I knew existed there. Accompanying me were Axeman, the crude simpleton (yet undeniably effective in battle), Rose, Jorad (Jonad? Jonas?) Somebody and Christine. It was a group that I was confident would be able to handle the perils of the mining expedition.

And so it was, a few days later, our group returned to Hlint laden with 30 nuggets of the precious mineral! At the price that I had agreed upon with Talan per nugget it was just enough for me to be able to afford my new rings. Little problem. I had enough for my new rings - but ...  and a big but ... only assuming I didn’t have to share any of the sale proceeds with my 4 travelling companions. We had spilt the loot from the journey fairly and there had been no discussion or agreement about the proceeds from the sale to Talan. Bad luck to them. I hadn't actually given any undertaking to share the sale proceeds of the nuggets, they had just assumed. Christine was fit to draw blades and have a go, Rose the same ... even poor, slow old Axeman was contemplating my reasoning with a look of suspicion growing upon his dull countenance.

Before long, with trouble brewing, along comes Ireth and Celgar who both seemed determined (for some reason, seemed odd behaviour for so-called champions of good!) to want to step in and escalate the situation. Really it had absolutely nothing to do with either of them ... neither were party to my negotiation of terms with Talan, neither were present on the actual mining expedition yet Ireth (as always, wanting to be the centre of attention) couldn’t help but want to be involved.

Anyway, I advised Rose and Christine to go to the courthouse and seek legal counsel as I couldn’t be held accountable for their stupidity in not seeking clarification on the mining proceeds split at the start of the expedition. I could see both wanted to take it further but, hey the laws the law! Did I just write that?!? Well, the laws the law when it suits me!

Cutting a lengthy story only slightly shorter, as tempers were getting heated we took our argument outside the gates of Hlint. I didn’t need to guess whose side Garent would take if a fight broke out.  Somehow, not five minutes later, i’m standing outside Hlint, argument with Rose and Christine forgotten, somehow accepting a challenge to an arena fight with Celgar!! How did I get there? Seems Celgar took offense to me saying to Ireth to mind her own business. Hmmm, hardly provocative enough to have him challenge me to an arena duel I would have thought, but who knows his motivations? Maybe, like Talan, he is yet another fellow who seeks the favours of her bed?

Axeman also seemed to take umbrage at Celgar’s involvement in a matter that didn’t concern him in any way. Axey certainly didn’t appreciate when Celgar summoned some sort of automaton made of mithril to stand threateningly right next to him! And so it was, Celgar challenged myself and Axeman to a duel in the arena of Velensk with the druid Brisbane to preside as judge.

After the trip to the arena, it was decided that I would be first up against Celgar. Bris stated the rules very clearly - no spells (suited me as I can’t cast any!) and the fight was NOT to be to the death . . . just near it. Everyone understood and the battle commenced. What does Celgar go and do straight away? Cast some kind of death spell and I am killed within seconds. Ha! He broke the rules on two accounts and Bris judged me the victor due to Celgar breaking the clearly stipulated rules. He challenged me to an immediate rematch however I declined. I now had a 100% victory record to preserve!

Then, almost as good, in the next round, in a toe-to-toe fight where Celgar actually abided by the rules, Axeman won anyway! I swear I have never rejoiced in a victory (but for my own of course) like I did when Axey laid the mighty Celgar low. I laughed and laughed. Then, even funnier, after he had just gone down two to zip, Celgar asked if we had learned our lessons today!?! Assuming by learning our lessons, he meant did we learn what it was like to see a powerful mage humbled by a lowly rogue and a fledgling fighter, then yes, lesson learned!

[Pseudonym]

What next for me?

I have a home of my own. My skills have reached a point where I can travel the length and breadth of the lands without fear. I have a beautiful woman to share my bed. I have friends, family, wealth, magic, influence and power. I have already surpassed all expectations that I ever held for myself or i’m sure that anyone else ever held for me.

Why then am I not happy? It is a thought that has been haunting me these last few weeks since I was in a conversation with Eldarwen and Ozy. We were talking about something metaphysical - to be truthful, I had kind of switched off to the chatter and was only listening with half an ear - when all of a sudden the two started discussing the topic of the multiverse’s greatest treasures. To sit and watch these two pillars of the world casually banter about the hoards of kings and the treasures of Gods as if it were of no import ... I felt a rage build inside of me. They were so casual, so flippant about the power they held.

For too long has such power, such majesty, such destiny lay in the hands of the undeserving.

Standing on the humble main street of Hlint, I had an epiphany.
A moment of clarity.
I knew then the answer to why I was not happy.

It was past time for the new breed of hero. Past time for those who would not squander and waste their power, their wealth and their might. Past time for those who were not bounded by the irrelevant moral restrictions and limitations of the common folk.

It was the time of Arkolio. I will climb the ladder of the Gods and woe be to any who would attempt to stand in my way.

[Pseudonym]

I am not normally given to prolonged periods of introspectiveness or self analysis but I have, of late, been in a contemplative frame of mind.

Wealth and Power.

They are the keys to happiness. It is really very simple. There are things that make everyone happy. Friends. Food. Wine. Respect. Possessions. Laughter. Combat. Whatever. Different things bring pleasure for different people. I don't judge other people by whatever makes them happy. I know something that others don't however. It is all ephemeral. All these things, they can all be given, and they can all be taken away ... by those who have power and wealth. It motivates. It corrupts.

There is another thing I have realised. Wealth and power, the cornerstones of true happiness, they are both easier to obtain and easier to keep when one doesn't care who gets hurt in the pursuit to get one's hands on them. It's taken me a little while to realise all this, but now that I have . . . . I have plans.

// Rubs his hands together in anticipation of CDQ!

[Pseudonym]

A wise man supposedly once said “Money cannot buy happiness”.

I love that! This axiom was surely created to establish an illusion in the minds of the poor that their unhappiness was -NOT- due to the fact that they did not have money. I honestly think this ‘wise man’ must have been a bigger rogue than yours truly in what amounts to a truly fantastic device to pacify the poor.

May the poor ... the masses ... the great unwashed never find out the real truth.

My statement,  that of "Money can and does buy happiness" can be true both directly and indirectly. Money, importantly, buys all things material. Possessions. Carnal pleasures. It also buys you freedom and power. Freedom and power, in turn, is what makes humans happy. Freedom to do what you want. Freedom to eat and drink what you like. Freedom to go where you want. Freedom to possess what you want. Even the do-gooder priests and paladins should surely get this? It gives you the freedom to be generous. You cannot be generous if you don't have money.

I now realise that anyone who says they are not interested in money must surely be hypocrites and liars. They are usually the ones who hanker the most after money and say that they are not interested in money only to mask their real intentions.

Perhaps I am the most honest man in all of Layonara?

[Pseudonym]

In my life there have been two women that I have been unable to put in the … neat little boxes in which all my other conquests are stored and remembered.

Muireann, the Priestess of Mist.

Akki, the Bard of … well, the bard of herself really.

Today, I was able to find a box for Muireann. To be honest, it was a category in which I did not know this woman, any woman, any person for that matter would ever find a place, the category of friend.

(// Conversation partly copied from chat log with permission from DMOE)

We found ourselves on the small hill in the Goblin wastelands that overlooked the badgers. How any person finds them cute and worthy of defense is beyond me but anyway, I digress already …

Me: Well Muir, just you and I
She: Indeed
Me: Like old times
She: (with a wistful smile) Aye
Me: (with a leer) Except we are clothed!
We sat in a comfortable silence for a little while.
Me: Do you ever get the feeling that one day ... one day ... you’re not going to be here ... and the world won't even notice?
She: No....But then I have the church and the mark I can make there. If nothing else I will be remembered in Haven.
Me: In a generation or two you think you will be remembered? You overestimate the common folk Muir.
She: Maybe, maybe not … but I'll hardly be around to care in two generations time … and I didn't do it to be remembered.
Me: Why do we do anything Muir? If not to be remembered? If not to leave your mark?
She: I did what I did in Haven because it was Mist's will. I do it for my Lady of course … and she will never forget.
Me: Some of us don't have a Lady Muir …
She: I know Ark.
Me: Some of us need to make our difference another way ...  My time is coming Muir.
She: Has it not occurred to you that I have seen this within you from the beginning? That for all the words I think you meant at the time ... you would never have been happy with just me as your life.
Me: Do you know Eldarwen, Muir?
She: I have seen her. I don’t really know her.
Me: I was talking to her a few weeks back and I realised something …  All my life I feel as if I have been chased by something …  Something has been just behind me ... driving me forward ...
She: The desire to be remembered?
Me: It's the spectre Muir ….  It's the Spectre of Mediocrity …  The desire to be remembered …  to be great …  to be rich ... to be powerful … to be … remembered.
She: It's why I’ve never believed you when you told me you'd be happy to just be with me Ark. I’ve known this from the start.
Me: Want to know why I know I will be remembered Muir? There is nothing that I will not do Muir to be remembered. Nothing. No-one that I will not crush, if necessary, on my climb to the top of the mountain.
She: (smiling softly) I know Ark … probably better than most.
Me: (whispering) I don't want to do that to you Muir ...
She: Well then I'd better help you and you won’t need to …
She: Do you understand why we have pushed each other away till now?
Me:  I think I understand very well.
She There is nothing I won't do for my Lady.
Me: Just as there is nothing I won't do for me Muir ….
She: We are very alike Ark … We will either find the balance or destroy each other.
Me: I think I know myself better than ... before …
She: Was there ever any confusion?  You always seemed very confident to me.
Me: Confidence? Aye ... I have never lacked for a large measure … but … know, I just know myself better.  What I must do.  What I will do.
She: Ark ...(gently touching my chest above my heart) I can be here … without being there (nodding towards my groin)
Me: Years ago … I would have said why bother? Now, I welcome this Muir.
Again we sat in silence for a while, our arms around each other … in friendship only.
Me: The time draws near Muir ... when I will call for your help (// Come on Talan, get the CDQ happening!)
She: As long as it's not bedding you … you have many others who will oblige!
Me: (with a grin) Rhynn? She wanted me bad!
She: As long as my Lady does not need me or you go against my Lady … I will be there.
She: *looks at him a moment* I am curious … in Saudiria … Why did you walk away … And if you've never spoken the truth to me before and never speak in to me after … speak it now.
Me: The intimacy … Muir … I wanted you ...  I did ... I do still ...
She: But?
Me: The … 'other' … the other is too important.
She: Other?
Me: You are my reminder of who I am . . who I must be.
She: I am? How?
Me: If I can refuse myself you Muir ...  there is nothing that I will not do to achieve my goals.
She: You desire me that greatly Ark?
Me: I desire to be remembered Muir ... I desire greatness … What I felt for you, it is that which will prevent me from getting there. I do love you Muir … almost as much as I love me. Almost.
She:  That is all anyone could ask of ones such as us Ark.  Can we stop trying to score points of each other now?  Can we accept how we feel about each other and help one another?
Me: I think that is a very good idea Muir.
She: I do so need a friend Ark.
Me: I think you are my first friend Muir!
She: Well unless I am silly enough to stand in your way and then I'm asking for it!
She: I think ... truth be told … you might be my first true friend.  We walk our own path but aid each other … I pity the person who crosses one of us.
Me: Aye ... I almost do too … they will die.
She: (reaching her arms out for a hug) You know ... I might want the occasional cuddle if you can resist me …
Me: Cuddle? Why? Aren’t they are a means to an end?
Me: Goodnight Muir
She:: Goodnight Ark, fare you well.

Wow, I have a friend. Feels ... interesting … good. Now I just have to work out where Akki fits in to the big picture.

[Pseudonym]

You know, whenever I walk into any room, I am quite comfortable in assuming I am the smartest person present. Every so often, not a hell of a lot, just every so often, I really outdo myself and amaze even me. Today was one of those days.

I was at the poison tables in the craft hall of Hlint … as per my wont, I had ensured there was no-one around to watch me at work before I began before setting forth on my manufacturing. There is nothing like making vials of potent poison to bring out the condemnation and disapproval from any do-gooder priests and paladins in the vicinity. Lo and behold, there I was, engrossed in the task at hand when the biggest do-gooder of them all, Eghaas, wanders right in to say hello …

It was then, in the middle of a vehement denial about what I was doing, my moment of brilliance happened! It seems the only way to make any true in these parts … well, until my grand plan comes to fruition … is by crafting. Making stuff that other people, like me, are just too lazy or incompetent to make themselves. My little problem, the only thing I am even halfway decent at doing is distilling poisons and this is a product that very few people seem to wish to purchase. There is a stigma … a perception … a misconception that poison is the tool of evil-doers. This misconception is quite probably reinforced by the undeniable fact that the people who seem inclined to distill poisons are generally evil-doers themselves! What I needed was a person of high moral standing … above reproach … above suspicion … above the possibility of condemnation to be the face of Arkolio’s Poison Sales Inc.!

Eghaas and I emerged from the dank, oxen-smelling interior of the hall into the only slightly less dank, oxen-smelling surrounds of East Hlint.

My sales pitch on the idea began …

Me: E (my little nickname for Eghaas)... I got a question for you ...
E: What is that?
Me: Are ... say ... knives evil? Swords? Clubs? Arrows?
E: Well not evil ... I don't think so. It depends I suppose, personally I wouldn't use a bladed weapon.
Me: Is it not the hand that wields them the relevant thing?
E: Agree.
Me: What's the difference? A club that crushes a skull versus a knife that slashes the throat?
E: Well with a club ... if i hit you, I guess it doesn't draw blood.
Me: (Gods Eghaas, you couldn’t even lift a club you weak pastry puff) You think i'd care about the difference? Lying on the ground ...
E: A club or staff is not typically a maiming weapon. I mean I could knock you out but I would hard pressed to kill you with it … or permanently maim you.
Me: I think you're splitting hairs there E, If you were strong enough you certainly could. Monks kill with their bare hands. The means is not relevant ... the ends is the important thing is my belief.
E: That’s true, but then it goes to your argument about the hands that wield it.
Me: No argument ... I one hundred per cent think that is the important factor ... Which leads me to my next point … Poison. It's just another weapon
E: I think the largest reason poison is frowned upon ... is because of the people that generally use it are (his voice trailed off, I knew he was about to say evil) … well, that’s the perception anyway.
Me: Aaaah … generalisations
E: Mind you i am not saying that you are one of them (but I am Eghaas!)
Me: I find generalisations are dangerous ... unworthy of the individual (yet normally true!)
E: For me personally … I would not want to see the use of blades or poison if one can help it.
Me: I'm not trying to convince you of anything E ... (Yes I am!) To me ... just talking about my own beliefs I might point out ... it is just another weapon.
E: It?
Me: Poison. Like your staff ... or your spell ... or my dagger. It can weaken foes Eghaas ... Foes who may possess evil intent Eghaas. Foes who may threaten the innocent (was I laying t on a bit thick?). It is the lesser of two evils would you not say?
E: If you can come up with a poison that can slow down someone then i would think that is a good poison (Come to papa) because it doesn't take the life of that person.
Me: (mentally rubbing my hands together) That's exactly what it does ... You are right ... it is probably better than a blade. It is non-lethal. (Eghaas was smiling at this point – the sucker!) Eghaas ... I have an idea.
E: What I would be against are those poisons that slowly kill a person or cause undue pain and suffering.
Me: That goes without saying of course. (Ooh, I’ll have to look into some of those types) As you so accurately pointed out Eghaas ... poison has a perception problem ... It is ‘seen’ as evil … when as you just told me it is less evil than a sword or dagger, yes?
E: If it is the correct poison yes. (Ha, I’d just got him to start using positives and affirmations in the same sentences that he was saying the word poison. He was almost there) the one that slows people down. What are you suggesting Ark?
Me: People don't want to buy it because of the incorrect generalisations that the many folk make … like you pointed out ... the perception. (I think I pointed it out first but slowly, softly make out as if the idea was coming from him)
E: Hmmm (he was nodding)
Me: People don't trust me, I don't know why ... (//metagamers!) but ... but … People trust you Eghaas. You have a well founded great and honest reputation. People know you are reputable. Honest. Considerate.
E: You want me to be a front for you? (at least he was still smiling when he asked this)
Me: If they know the benefits ... as you see them ... they’ll be more likely to buy them from you than me ... yes. There will be less people killed ... more people … slowed down as a result. A good thing yes? We could call it Eghaas' Non-Lethal Weapons Shoppe! I like the sound of it! Maybe we could call it the Aeridin friendly weapon shoppe?!?!
E: Whilst I appreciate your point of view... I cannot see how I can promote using poisons that would be used in battle. You see, the more that i sell, it would mean that it would mean people are fighting more.
Me: But E, it makes battles LESS lethal. They'd be fighting anyway.
E: Battles should never happen at all.
Me: I agree (as if!!) ... one step at a time however Eghaas. First, we make them less lethal ... then we worry about removing their need altogether. (Could he really be buying into the absurdity of what I was saying? I surely think he is)
E: It’s an interesting thought.
Me: Think about it at least?
E: Definitely.
Me: For the sake of less bloodshed ... at least think about it.

For the sake of less bloodshed? Senile Gods, it was all I could do to keep from cracking up laughing!

[Pseudonym]

Well, Eghaas did think about it ... and his response was no. Actually, maybe I should have used capital letters there, NO. It was as emphatic as that. Seems Allei, whom Eghaas follows around and obeys like a good little lap dog, was consulted and boohoo'ed the whole idea.

I have to come up with an alternative plan. Ah hah! An idea is born!

http://www.layonaraonline.com/forums/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=34062&posts=17&start=1

[Pseudonym]

Last night, lying in bed, I asked Akki to teach me elven. I've picked up a few words here and there over my years but I had the thought that if I could diligently apply myself to learning this tongue, it certainly would come in handy. It annoys me beyond words to not know what is being said in front of me, about me, about someone else, about anything when it is being spoken in another language!

I think Elven (Elvish?) would be the handiest language to try and pick up for a few reasons. One, I have an elven teacher living under the same roof who is willing to teach me (although she seemed excited last night having me as a student, we will see how long the enthusiasm lasts). Two, Elves seem the most populous of the non-human races that I encounter and the alternative language I hear most often. Three, elves, being the generally arrogant race that they are (Akki excluded of course), are the ones most likely to rudely start speaking their own language in front of you ... and normally it's about you! Ireth did it to me again the other day and that was the straw that broke the camel's back. There was a discussion ... well, ok, there was an argument taking place on the main street of Hlint and Ireth goes and starts talking to some of the others present in Elven and they all look at me and start to snicker. I can't retort if I don't know what is being said! Akki is not always there to either translate or stand up for me in her native tongue. All I could do was silently fume.

Anyway, the language learning process began last night. On second thoughts, I'm not sure if the bedroom was the best place to begin the instruction.

Thus far I have learned the elven words for '*#*#*#*#*', '*#*#*#*#*', how to '*#*#*#*#*', my '*#*#*#*#*', her '*#*#*#*#*', a few alternatives for '*#*#*#*#*', a couple more to describe '*#*#*#*#*' and although I couldn't quite believe it at the time, she knew a few synonyms for '*#*#*#*#*' as well! A couple of times she screamed something that I think translates as '*#*#*#*#*' but i'll have to check up on that. Maybe I should ask Eghaas?

The Red Bear is seeking a few hardy souls for another one of his excursions against the slavers. As always I am a bit low on true, I think i'll sign on again, he has always been a generous employer previously. Then again, thinking about it, I haven't actually enquired about how generous the slavers might be with a useful employee ... food for thought.

*Arkolio closes his journal, forefinger absently tapping his pursed lips, deep in thought*

Edit: Typo

[Pseudonym]

*Aboard the storm-tossed vessel of Lion the Brutal somewhere in the treacherous archipelago south of Molten Island*

Arkolio, Arkolio, Arkolio. You handsome and devilishly clever bastard!

Hmmmm, it all seemed pretty simple a few weeks back. A trip for the Red Bear ... plenty of easy gold, maybe kill a few slavers, a pleasant ocean voyage with Akki, little risk to yours truly, all in all, an enjoyable few weeks where everyone’s happy and everyone wins. Actually, Arkolio’s happy and Arkolio wins, that’s really the best bit.

Where did it start to go wrong?

Would it have been when I found out Ireth was on board the same ship?
Would it have been when we found out that our mission was actually to rescue Captain Liselle (the woman who was singularly my best hope of furthering my ingratiation with the Red Bear) who had been captured along with her vessel by the Silver Crescent slavers and was presumed dead?
Might it have been the first battle we suffered when Akki was killed and her body thrown overboard?
Maybe it truly started going bad when we finally arrived at the slaver outpost where our information led us to believe Liselle might be, only to be smashed in battle by a combination of lizardmen slashers, beholders, slaver weapon-masters, duergar warriors and death-spell hurling evil mages?

I think perhaps it really hit rock bottom when one of our group was charmed and led the rest of us into an ambush where everyone, except myself (who hid underneath a corpse as the beholders swept the battlefield) was either killed or captured.

I really didn’t fancy returning to the Lion’s ship with news of our groups failure. He struck me as a man who didn’t seem inclined to tousle my hair and call me a crazy scamp when I returned without Liselle.

It was then, hiding as still as a gin-making machine (// great time for a nat 20 on my hide check!) in some brush, avoiding a search party of lizardmen, when I was struck with another of my moments of brilliance! I remembered something someone far wiser than myself once said, ‘Fortune favours the bold.’

So, from the precipice of admitting our dismal failure, I decided to turn all of the above to my advantage. Taking a slight detour from where we were meant to rendezvous with Lion’s ship, I headed instead to the fortified hold of Zithgarlock, Slave Master.

I won’t repeat the whole conversation word for word here, but here’s the gist.

Nervous Ark: Hello, Zithgarlock, I am Arkolio, trusted lieutenant of the Red Bear.
Lizardman-Demon thingy Slave Master: Hello Arkolio, do you have a death wish?
Very Nervous Ark: No, Zithgarlock, I have a proposition.
L-DtSM: What could you possibly offer me?
Hopeful Ark: I can offer you information that only a person who was in the confidence of your greatest foe would possess.
L-DtSM: Why would you do that?
Cocky Ark: Because you will give me the survivors of my party AND Captain Liselle AND large amounts of gold to do so.
L-DtSM: You think I care about the Red Bear? I think I might just kill you now.
Nervous (again) Ark: Errr, preferably not.

Enter the saucy temptress, Madame Tikiri, former head of the Black River Pirates

Saucy Temptress: Wait Zithgarlock!
L-DtSM: I rule here Tikiri! Do not forget!
Saucy Temptress: Yes, yes, he cannot have any of your prisoners of course, but I wish to speak to this one.
L-DtSM: Do with him as you will, but none of my captives leave alive!

Exit Zithgarlock

Saucy Temptress: So ... Arkolio ... I know all those the Red Bear holds in his confidence and your name is NOT one of them. I remember you from my capture, you are a useful tool for the Red Bear, but that is all.
Smooth Ark: Yes Ma’am, but imagine how highly they will regard me when I return to them Liselle, the True Flight and ... *remembers comrades* .. the others.
Saucy Temptress: What do you know of the Red Bear’s movements? His whereabouts? His strength of numbers? His intentions?
Double-crossing Ark: *Tells all he knows*
Saucy Temptress: *hands Ark bag of true* There will be more of this when you have more to tell.
Hiding-his-glee Ark: There would be more to tell if I could be the noble and valiant rescuer of Liselle, the True Flight and .. the others, but, Zithgarlock has spoken.
Saucy Temptress: Do not worry about Zithgarlock, I will get for you Liselle and arrange a place and time where you will ‘encounter’ the others. Giving the whore Liselle back is a small price to pay for the ‘friendship’ of a fellow with such useful information as yourself.
Last-piece-going-into-place Ark: I will lead the rescue team back for the others. Lion will not come himself for fear of a trap anyway. I’ll be at the spot where the others will be at the agreed time.

And so, several hours later, I find myself at Captain Lion’s and Kayid’s ships, complete with not only my bag of slaver gold (less the bribe I had to pay to Seroga the Beholder to gain entry to Zithgarlock’s fortress) but also the prize of the drugged, unconscious, tortured ... but alive Liselle. All hail Arkolio, brave and noble rescuer of fair pirate maidens!

Lion, almost smiling for I what I would guess was the first time in his life asks,  “Did you find Tikiri?”
Me, crossing fingers behind his back, “No Sir, no sign of that evil woman!”
‘Where is everyone else?’ asks Lion, looking perturbed and angry.
I answer, truthfully, that they are still back on the island, prisoners of the slavers.
I offer my services to lead a small team of the Lion’s men to rescue the others and sail the battered True Flight away.
Lion agrees.
I remind Lion of the little matter of the reward for the rescue of Liselle and her ship.
Lion scowls but Lion pays. I add this bag of gold to my other bag of gold.

Now, as I prepare to be the rescuer yet again, I can only hope that Tikiri will live up to her end of the bargain and the others will be where they are meant to be.

[Pseudonym]

I have made my decision. The die has been cast.

Why did she have to be there? What was she doing there? She was chattering away as she does, her melodious voice almost, but not quite, drowning out the sounds of the dying Toranite paladin. It was a dark room, full of dark souls. What was she doing there? Mother Kithnalu, unamused by her manner and her witty banter, cast a spell that drained Akki’s very soul. It happened right in front of me.

What could I do? Why in the hells was she there in the first place? What could I do? Should I have attacked the lich or the Dread Priestess first? Maybe I should have hurled myself at one of the several grim-faced guards scattered about the room?

The thoughts that raced through my head.

Power versus Love.
Self versus Other.
Greed versus Compassion.

It was as simple as that. I knew one day the choice would come between my feelings for Akki and my continued journey on the path to greatness. Here and now it seemed was my time to choose. Why did this day have to come so soon? The Priestess saw this moment in her foretelling. I loved no other like I loved myself. My family had taught me this. Muireann had taught me this. Every companion with whom I have ever travelled has taught me this. Now it was Mother Kithnalu’s turn to continue my lessons.

I have made my decision. The die has been cast.
Who could love a man that trafficks in slaves? Who could love a man that trafficks in poisons? Who could love a man that will always place the desire to advance himself above his desire to protect? I don't need it. Love is an anchor. Love is a shackle. I don't need it.

Akki, why did you have to be there?

[Pseudonym]

Earlier today I found myself sitting in my room in a rare moment of serenity. I had just finished reading a book written in elven that Akki had put her hands on for me. At first I was embarassed that I was reading a book that had been designed for the enjoyment of elven toddlers but after my pride dealt with that, I did find it quite helpful. I now know the very useful elven phrasing for cats sitting on mats, how to describe a dog named Spot run and, although I can’t see it ever coming up in conversation, the words for moss-coloured eggs and edible parts of swine.

Anyway, enjoying my rare moment of serenity, I happened to catch from the corner of my vision a small spider that had made it’s home in the junction of wall and ceiling. For close to half an hour I watched the very busy little spider spin it’s web, anchoring strands here and there, slowly building an intricate web.

The symbolism was not lost on me.

My strands are being cast. The web I am building is taking shape ... and my prey is profit. Money has no morality. It does not see good or evil, chaos or law. The strands of my web bond to the surface of ‘evil’ as easily as they do to ‘good’. What do I care if my gold is passed to me by the hand of a Corathite or an Aeridinite? What do I care if it is covered in the blood of slave or slaver?

It all washes clean.

[Pseudonym]

Akki and I tried to have a 'relationship defining' conversation last night.

I was reminded of the time when I was first called by the dragon and newly arrived in Hlint. I spoke to the bard in the Wild Surge Inn who had misplaced her necklace (again) and ventured off into the Sielwood to retrieve it for her. After a fierce battle we recovered the bard's necklace from the insides of a gelatinous cube. In order to send an object message to the kobolds of the caverns that it would be unwise for them to try anything of this nature again, I had the bright idea of nailing the remains of the gelatinous cube to a tree outside the cave entrance.

I couldn't help but be reminded of this incident during our conversation last night.

[Pseudonym]

Contrary to what my actions must seem to say about my state of mind, I really don’t enjoy seeing other people hurt.

Okay, I like the finer things in life.
I like privelege.
I like excess.
I like power.
I like indulgence.
What’s the crime?
Doesn’t everyone like these things?

It is my desire to have these things. That’s all. It’s not my preference to have these things at the pain and expense of another. Not my preference at all. If that’s the way it has to happen, so be it, but it is certainly not my pre-meditated approach to self advancement. It is unfortunate however that this seems to be the way, more and more often, that events are taking place.

This week? I had no desire to tell the Silver Crescent slavers the particulars of the rescue attempt out of any perverse pleasure of knowing that people would die as a result. None whatsoever. I’m sure some of the people attempting the rescue are terrific folk. Chances are good that they are.

It saddens me that some (all?) of them will die.
Is it my fault that the Silver Crescent Slavers pay so well?

My lessons in the elven tongue continue. I got very excited when Akki said to me yesterday that we were going to do some conjugating. I had never dared hope THAT was an important part of the process. I was already half undressed when she (unfortunately) explained what she actually meant.