The Trappings of an Old Man

[Deacon]

*The text is scribbled to where it is hardly legible.  It seems to have been written by a hand that was firm in what it intended to write, but age had found a place within the bones of the writer making the lettering choppy and often times the letters have been smudged and written again.*

Hmm, I do not remember the date.  That could be a major problem.  

*Eldóren thinks to himself for a moment*

Ah well, I guess it will not matter as it seems that I will be the only one to see this.  No one really cares what an old man has to say…or do they?  Hmm, yes, it is true that I am old, but I have not lost my fighting spirit or my willingness to learn.  

Or my short fuse…

*he chuckles to himself*

This is what has driven me to record my thoughts…my short fuse that I cannot seem to control.  It is not my fault at all really, simply the fact that others are not capable of doing things that do not anger me.  Let me see, where should I begin?  

I guess the beginning is as good place as any.  I forget now how this group had formed, and it was quite a ragtag group.  A drow, a goblin, a tiefling, an elf, and a few other humans came long for this ‘wondrous’ adventure.  We set out from Hlint towards the town of Haven where a cavern lies just on the outskirts of the castle.

We entered with high hopes of ore and coin, and for the first couple encounters things went fairly well.  We were working together as a team, except for the fact that a foolhardy boy kept insisting on grabbing all the coins he could find.  He is lucky he did not test me or I would let him know I was there.

We went back to the surface for a quick rest before continuing on into the depths.  This time things were more organized, and the party moved quickly.  We made it to the second level without and hitch, and moved on to the third without any problems.  But that is where the luck ran out.  Night’s Embrace was close by as we came to the third level of the mines.

We cleared the first room of berserkers without much delay, licked our wounds and moved to the next room.  These too proved no match, but as we were standing there patting ourselves on the back the ogres were moving…they ambushed us from all directions slaughtering all but three of our group.  We survived on what little food and water we had for hours as we waited for our deaths when finally the spirits of those lost began trickling back into the area.

This time they had brought friends, powerful friends at that.  One was a shape shifting woman who aided us all the way to the bottom of the cavern where we promptly killed the leader of the group of ogres.  So far, not a soul has done anything to anger me, save for that young boy which I promptly forgot soon after he listened to my words.

It was when we returned to the surface that I became infuriated by these simpleton’s actions.   I was in the room when the girl by the name of Sa’kura turned in the head of the ogre warlord to the lord of the manor, but she failed to mention my name when he asked who had assisted her.  He did not believe that I was with her and gave the gold only to her.  I stormed out furiously.

During our trip down into the mines I was stuck with a sudden burst of energy, and I felt some of my old strength returning to my stiff fingers and so I began writing in my spell book.  It was during this time of meditation that I remembered a few more spells, so I wrote those down, lest I forget them again.

I cast one of the spells I had just learned, a summon spell, and to my surprise a book floated before me.  Already fuming from the actions of the fool girl, a book was not what I would have wanted to call from the other planes.  I cast a fireball at the tome, incinerating the whole thing, leaving not an ash to land on the ground.

During this whole ordeal, I have learned one thing.  Death is the only thing that is constant, especially for one such as me.  I know that my time on this plane is limited, but perhaps by embracing death instead of running from it I shall gain a better understanding of life.  I am eagerly pursuing the necromantic ways, preferring the manipulation of life and death rather than some of the other more subtle forms of magic.

Even though I have studied necromancy for years now, there is something holding me back.  Something that is always lingering in front of me, as though there is something held in front of me but it is just out of my grasp.  A little more studying and I shall surely find the answer to what is blocking my way…

Eldóren Grimtongue

[Deacon]

*The words scribbled down seem to have been written with a firm hand and a steady grip.  Flipping back through the pages of the journal, one can see that with each page, the words become more and more readable, as though the hands that are writing them are becoming stronger and stronger with each passing day.*

*Eldóren scratches his head*

I really should ask someone what day it is, one of these days it might become important enough that I may need to record it as well.  *sigh* I've got a lot of writing to do.

Now, back to my short fuse...

It has been a while since I have had my short fuse tested.  Actually I cannot remember the last time my patience was put through the gauntlet, but I am sure that I would have forgotten it already anyhow.  ALthough with each passing day I seem to be getting more memories and more strength returns to my old bones.  I feel as though I could run to the ends of the world...but after running for a while I can feel that running to the ends of the world is just a dream of mine better left to my younger days.

Where was I...oh yes, my short fuse.  Well, as I was saying noone has tested it recently, which is a good thing because I am now able to inflict more damage on my foes than before.  It is true that I am still very vulnerable to attack, especially from attack by multiple enemies, however I am now able to disappear from the sight of those foes with the utterance of just a few short and simple words.  I do not even require any components to utter the words, a feat that I am very proud of since keeping up with which component allows me to cast which spell is mostly just a large headache.

Just the other day I was in the crypts visiting the old friends of mine, by friend I mean the undead, when I discovered just how useful it could be to turn invisible.  I can roam freely among them, I can even taunt them with my words, and still they do not find me.  One of these days they shall pose no threat to me, and I will have dominion over them...but that day has not yet come.  I have been pursuing the ways of Corath, though I have had no contact with any members of the church, and they do not come out in the open very often.  Someimtes I feel as though I should ask the locals at the taverns or in the streets, but if word spreads that I am interested in such dark secrets, I could find myself a bit lonesome.  Not that it matters to me to be lonesome, but I do enjoy corrupting the minds of the young and fruitful.

Which leads me to an event that almost wholeheartedly startled me.  A figure, obviously laden with magic potency approached me and pointed out that I am a student of the arcane arts.  It suprised me so because I had never seen this person before, and yet he knew before I could say a word that I wield the power of the arcane.  Anyhow, he introduced himself as Tath, and he asked if I had anyone to learn from, or if I owed my allegiance to any academies.  Well, I am mostly a self taught man, and I have never been a part of an academy, though it sounds rather intriguing.  He told me of a class being held at the Arcane Tower in the coming weeks, and insisted that I come and see what it is all about.  I have nothing better to do so I feel as though I may enroll at this place, just to whet my appetite for curiosity.

I also came by a new item today, slightly by accident really.  I noticed a man in the town of Port Hampshire with a skull for a head.  I was interested and we began talking about magic and this and that when somehow we stumbled upon the oak staff he was carrying.  I told him the staff was very handy, but I prefer blades, and since my sword has rusted over he offered to sell me his dagger for a decent price.  Without much hesitation I bought it, and he told me to follow him.  Turns out he was leading me onward to Velensk where he was meeting with a couple friends to do battle with the hordes of trolls and dwarves and spiders.  I lost count of the dead, and the blood ran almost to the knee before we were through.  We were bruised, battered and a couple were burned from my fireballs but noone died, sadly.  I would have liked to examine their body for useful parts and extract their blood, but perhaps that will come in another time.

Well, I think that about covers it all...

*Eldóren thinks to himself*

Oh yeah, I almost forgot to mention.  Something big happened just recently, all I made out from the excited peoples of Hlint is that the evil known as Bloodstone has been defeated.  Seems to me that his evil has just begun, and it seems that the very presence of this evil was somehow sustaining all of Layonara.  After the evil was destroyed, dragons emerged, the climes have changed, and even the sky has darkened, almost like the world is mourning for a great hero, yet instead it is a great destructive force that has been driven from this place.  Very strange times indeed...

Eldóren Grimtongue