Freldo Jabutica's Journal and Letters, Volume One

[SuperMunch]

Here are Freldo Jabutica's journals and letters (link to class correction approval).

• Time has passed and this part of Freldo's life is over.

Lastest update: Journal Entry: Responsability and Duty (/* July 18, 2006 */) Journal Entry: The Story of How I died (/* July 18, 2006 */)  Freldo's Accounts: Account of the visit to T'oleflor Home (/* Mar. 14, 2006 */) More on the origin of the bridges and the T'oleflor (/* Mar. 20, 2006 */) Freldo's Account of the Clearing of the Haven Mines (/* Apr. 24, 2006 */) Account of the Fall of Pranzis (/* Jun. 27, 2006 */)  Archive of Freldo's Corner at the Wild Surge: Turquoise Poetry (/* Feb. 24, 2006 */) Of sailors and dwarves (/* Feb. 19, 2006 */) Fifteen! Fifteen! and the stars (/* Feb. 15, 2006 */) Half-orcs and dwarves (/* Feb. 13, 2006 */) All Request Night (/* Feb. 11, 2006 */) Round 'o Laughs (/* Feb. 09, 2006 /*)

[SuperMunch]

Dearest mother,

I've been in Hlint for two days and I've already gone from a wide-eyed newcomer to a wide-eyed not-so-newcomer.  Hopefully I've made a few friends, but there's so much going on that I really don't know when and if I'll see them again.

My first day here was a bit frustrating, I guess I was up and about way to early in the morning because I didn't get to meet anyone intresting and helpful but I think that my initial shyness was to blame.  I explored the town and ended up learning how to fish.  Yes, I know father will laugh because of this.  Please let him know that around here, you're supposed to cook the fish before eating it, unlike our family's tradition of eating raw fish.

Anyway, I explored the city, talked to the merchants and started to explore the city's underground.  Mom, you won't believe how vicious the rats are here!  Every time I set down the stairs to the sewers a bunch of rats started chasing me down and, on at least three occasions, I was forced to run out in despair but I learned my lesson, exploring unknown areas are best done in groups.

However, I didn't learn that until later on the first day.

As I explored the country side, I noticed a goblin archer on a nearby hill, taking advantage of Eldar's crossbow and archery lessons, I and managed to get my very first kill!  As I celebrated I looked down the hill and saw a hoard of undead following a group of very powerful adventurers.  Seeing that I wasn't of any real use in fighting them on the ground, I took to shooting at them with my crossbow and running away every time one of them got near.

Mother, you can't believe how confusing the frey was!  I ran around trying to avoid the undead while pummeling as many as I could from a safe distance, I managed to destroy one of them (my first undead kill) and hurt quite a few others.  During this battle that I learned my first and most important lesson so far, parties of adventurers are a must when exploring the wilds.  I also noticed that, for the first time, my abilities had become keener and I felt that I had mustered enough energy to evoke more elevated magical abilties, not to mention that my song was now stronger.

Well, after the slaughter (of undead) I hung around the group and tried to understand what they were talking about.  Unfortunately I was lost in the greater deeds of the noble party but I found a quick friend, Korvlok, a half-ogre.  While the weathered adventurers talked of Bloodstone and his generals, we were caught up in a lively conversation on the subject of bunny soup and stew, mostly because I was scared beyond all reason of what I had just seen.

After a while, the group separated and I wen't my own way again, this time I resolutely adventured into the sewers again, this time determined not to get seriously injured with a good reason.  After a little while of exploring and killing rats, I heard a roaring noise, that like a rolling thunder and, out of the blue, a massive man, the size of a small giant appears out of nowhere and destroys the rats that were harassing me.  With him, I confess I forgot his name and I'm ashamed of this, there was Siabo the halfling and Korvlok the half-ogre!  Together we adventured deep in the sewers and recovered the book (that we were sent out to retrieve) but our friendship didn't end there.

Next we took on the goblins in the outskirts of Hlint (we had been comissioned to exterminate them by the town's quartermaster) and once again I felt new powers surging through my veins and now I noticed that my ability with my crossbow was reaching a new high because now I didn't feel intimidated any more while using my crossbow in close-quarters combat.

After the goblins we split up, mostly because I was exausted after a long day of adventuring.

Early yesterday I set out on my own again, this time avoiding unnecessary fights, to explore the region.  While I was taking a break I was approached by a young sorceror, Habril about a trip to the city's crypt.  Underhanded as we were, I invited a brutish half-giant, Anderogg, to acompany us while Habril talked to a powerful cleric (I forgot her name, I must start taking notes in my journal!).

Our impromptu party took to exploring the crypt and it was the first time I was exposed to the vile undead.  Fortunately the cleric was strong enough to eliminate the undead almost on her own, good for us, weaker members, but I know I missed a chance to learn how to better eliminate them.

After our excursion, Habril wanted to find the ears for the quartermaster and we took to the goblins again.

While there the cleric told us about the different professions in Hlint, especially that of Alchemy and I must confess that I was very intrested because then I could save money in the purchase of healing.

During that excursion, I noticed that my singing abilities grew once again, this time not as much as before but I also noticed that now the weave is even stronger in me, almost as if I was tapping deeper into the powers of the world.  Thank goodness!

I'm really excited for being here, mostly because of courteous folk and travelers in of Hlint, I  usually find myself in circles of friends talking about bunny soup and other amenities.

Anyway mother, that's about it.  I'm very happy here, I hope all things go well at home.

Your loving son,
Freldo.

[SuperMunch]

Things to do:

1. Remember the names of the half-giant from the sewers and the powerful cleric from the second adventure.

2. Learn new skills in alchemy.

3. Explore the region a little better.

4. Try to find a group of adventurers to explore more dangerous regions.

5. Write shorter letters home!

[SuperMunch]

I awoke today, my third in Hlint and decided to find something to do, unfortunately there was precious little to do since the weather wasn't very good.  A few fellow adventurers were sitting around the traditional location near Hlint's pond and one of them, Ashand and his friend Micheal decided, on the spur of the moment, to adventure in the Red Caverns to resupply their greenstone reserves.  I asked to tag along, mostly because I really had nothing better to do and lo and behold, a brand new adventure opened up before my eyes.  Note to self: Remember that I wanted to start to take a possible intrest in asking myself to get involved in alchemy?  Yeah, add an *urgent* mark next to that note.  Anyway, while Ashand and Micheal destroyed every goblin in site, they allowed me to grab anything I could find on their corpses and, for some reason, I got lucky and collected about 80 pieces of gold when my luck too a change for the best, a pretty elven lady, Elhara, showed up needing to pick up some copper from a lower depth.  Not being one to run away, I asked to tag along and act as guard.  Well, I most humbly knew that I was going to be more of a bother than of help but since I could tag along with a powerful warrior, I'd help with my songs and with my bow.  Lo and behold, upon reaching the first room rich with mineral deposits, we were surrounded by a hoard of goblins and, suddenly I didn't think it had been a good idea to venture into the deeper caves when suddenly Elhara ripped apart the goblins in a most vile way, surrounded by 5 or 6 goblins she managed to cleave a hole through thier lines with a single fell swoop!  I was stunned...  As a matter of fact, I still am stunned.  Well, I humbly took to guard her back while she mined the copper ore and I like to think that I helped her out by singing for her, but I'm not to sure that my humble song was enough to help her tear the ore from the rock.  Anyway we stayed there for a little while talking while she worked... come to think of it, I might have annoyed her, if I did so I really must apologize.  Anyway, after she was done she was too overloaded with the ore and I offered to help her carry it, after all my picking of the dead goblins had already given me quite a bit of gold.  Elhara then offered to take me to the deepest parts of the cavern so that I could really get good pickings and, not wanting to miss an opportunity like that, I went with her.  After a very deadly trip to the bottom of the pit, she asked me if I wanted to adventure further, into the really dangerous bits.  After a moment of hesitation I came to grips that if I didn't explore any further, I might regret it, after all, danger is my middle name!  (Not really, I don't have a middle name)  In a few battles that I really didn't get involved in (mostly due to her superb axemanship) we took the head of their leader and fled to the surface where I helped her take her ore back to Hlint.  A fine lady she is, gentle but terrible, I must remember never to make her cross.  After that, I summoned a little more courage and, sticking to the main roads, traveled to Fort Llast and Haven, not very intresting towns for the meanwhile as I'm sure I'm to novice to be able to help them out in their woes.  That's about it for today's journal.  Looking back on what I've written, I noticed that I'm writing to much, as it goes, I'll run out of paper in no time.

[SuperMunch]

Oh my...  Oooh my...  Where to start...  smugdes  Alright, ignore the smudge above, I'll start here.  Today started as a normal day, the weather was fine, the birds were singing and the mosquitos were biting, not that I have to complain about that since I did sleep near the pond.  So there I was, fresh and ready for a new day when, passing the sewer's entrance I see a man showering a young man with many different enchantments.  I was going to look the other way since such show of affection is quite... strange... at such an early hour but I resisted and greeted them.  The man was Nex a kindy wizard and the young man was Trance, a relative newcomer to Hlint.  As we were talking about making an excursion to the Crypts, since Trance was ill equiped to handle the undead by himself, a fellow by the name of Kroeger appeared out of the blue and, upon my invitation and Trance's approval, he joined our little party but we changed out plans, instead of heading to the crypts, we took to the sewers to help Hlint get rid of those nefarious rats, after restocking ourselves with supplies.  To make a long story short, the sewers were a difficult trip but we survived whole.  After the sewers the natural choice was the Crypts and, on the way there we met the elven lady Elhara, of whom I already had an enormous debt of gratitude for.  I greeted her and told her that my new companions and I were headed towards the crypt and we left.  To my utter surprise she shows up at the entrance and beckons to join us!  Ilsare, or the elven gods, be praised that such people exist in the world!  We entered together and, after dealing with a lot of vile undead, we managed to reach the core of the infestation and rid the crypt of the evil.  Oh, the lady Elhara had found the necklace of that young lady Ragrian!  I was overwhelmed by her generosity, I really must dedicate a song for her and it must be a good one, no, it must be my first masterpiece.  Upon reaching the surface, shortly after splitting up, a demon, a balor (as lady Elhara told me later) - the first one I ever saw, appeared out of thin air!  I paniced and ran away, as I must confess, after all, how could I confront a demon!?  I returned and tried my best with my bow to injure him but it was to no avail, luckily, a strange, dark figure, Ozymandias Llewellyn or Oz or Ozzy, as some called him, unleashed some strange fury upon the foul beast and forced it to fly away.  I stayed around during the aftermath and learned of an orb the evil being was looking for and of great deeds that must be done and other things, of which I understood very little of.  Almost all of what I heard had come from Ozymandias.  In my naivete, I approached Oz and, before such a powerful man as I could guess since his song was still strong in me minutes after the engagement, forgetting my manors I asked him about bardish instruments.  I should have been struck dead then and there.  For shame.  No, really, I am now ashamed of not, in the very least, having introduced myself and taken apropriate measures to show my humbleness to him.  He kindly told me that my voice was the only instrument I needed and proceded on his way.  In my awestruckeness I sat with lady Elhara and gave my impression of Ozmandias and, I was so scared by the encounter that only then did I notice how frightened I was of him, such a generous man yet I spoke ill of him.  I must apologize for my stupidity, which is very unbecoming me.  Anyway, at least I tried to make amends with him but failed again to make a good impression because, in my haste to try to make a good impression the second time around, I also forgot to introduce myself.  In his generosity and quiet contemplation, he gave me a few tips and told me that "power can be analised thru freedom, something I lack."  I must contemplate better these words and try to gauge their meaning.  On first reflection, I fear that I may have heard something terrible about that great man.  Maybe he has lost his freedom and all because he has attained great powers, maybe it is better to be a humble man than to reach such towering greatness.  After these words I returned the necklace to the young bard and she was very gracious to me, as most of these people are without my even deserving it, as far as I can tell.  That's about it for today, tomorrow I'll try my hand at alchemy or another of the crafts, I finally feel I'm up to the task.

[SuperMunch]

You know, I'm starting to think that Eldar had a very peculiar sense of humor.

I got the impression that the noble profession of heraldry and song was a fruitful one with bountiful pleasures, treasures and adventures but the cruel reality is that it's not so easy.

I'm not an impatient man...  Oh, alright, I am impatient, but that's beside my point...  After taking to heart how foolish it is to explore the wilds alone, I took to exploring the wilds in groups but, for some terribly unfortunate reasons, I'm still getting beaten up into a pile of soft and gooey jelly at every chance encounter!

Either I must start exploring with gentlemen and ladies of highest nobility (like the fair lady Elhara) or I must reduce myself to the role of bard at the local inns.

Then again, come to think of it, I might also invest in some heavier armor - it'll surely reduce slightly my knack for getting to meet the lords of beyond but at the price of my agility, not to mention that clanking metal isn't a good rhythm instrument.

Well, that's about it, I think that tomorrow I'll adventure further than I've explored so far but I'll stick mostly to the roads.

[SuperMunch]

Dearest mother,

I have found a wit sharper then my own.

I know you and father have always been upset by my ways but it has always suited me but now, I must take a step to the side and humbly admit that one of greater value exists in the world.  Mind you, I know of very few people in the world but I'm so sure of what I say that it's uncanny.

Her name is Acacea Thistletounge, a lovely halfling lady that insists that it is us, humans and other beings, that are of the wrong size and that she is of the correct size.  I'll not try to point out the opposite because I'm sure others have tried and yet, none have convinced her to the contrary.  Last night we spent quite a while talking about many a mundane thing and yet it made so much sense that I almost feel that we've know each other for a long time as her humor, wit and fast tounge were of equal match to my slighty off ways.

I was so impressed by her that I almost forgot the other incidents of yesterday, many were extraordinary but she was the most.

I've promissed to keep these letters down to less than ten pages so I'll try... mind you... try to be brief.

I awoke in Hlint still reflecting upon my previous errors but soon I understood all my foolishness and decided I needed better protection and a keener weapon and that's just what I did after practicing my skills of gem crafting.  Yes mother, I'm trying my hand at things other than jesting, drinking and singing.

I bought a very nice suit of Scale Armor and tailored it's colors to my liking (turquoise, as usual) along with a new shield, of a larger size and a brand new rapier - my old sword was very useful but the rapier has a better feel in my hands.  After that I decided I'd try to get back to Leilon for a courtesy visit back home.

Unfortunately I got lost, at Fort Llost...

But, in a merry turn of events, I met my first "quickling" as they are called or, more simply "quarterlings" as their size are half of that of a halfling, maybe even smaller.

She was a pretty little thing, by the name of Mille Mooneyes.  She was quick to blush and a very charming little person, so small was Mille that she could easily fit in my coat pocket - if she so wanted, which I doubt.  She was accompanied by companions but the only one I managed to get the name of was Grogan, a powerful warrior warrior and amoung their ranks there was a strange fellow, of dark elven origins I believe, that looked pretty nasty at me - I bet that their race is not know for being very hospitable.

After losing my way at Llast but meeting the charming Millie, I ended up in the middle of a broken forest where, to my surprise, the fair elven lady Elhara was battling the undead.  I could deny helping her and I took a shot or two at the undead and tried very hard not to get in her way as she probably didn't need any help anyway.  Amoung the trees of the forest she pointed out that there was an old oak tree of which I might fashion a new bow for myself and, with her patience, I notched out two pieces (I dared take no more to not aggravate the dryads) and she led me to Krandor, a lovely lakeside town with humble folk.

We parted ways again and I stayed in town for a little while and explored the surrounding area.

After the a break for rest I headed back to Hlint, giving up my trip back to Leilon, and met with a most noble paladin of Toran, Trenton Wetteel, a very kind man that allowed me to accompany him back to Hlint.

On our trip we met three other travelers, Lucius Elevefius, an honored monk of Toran, Tiden, the first druid I've ever met and Adderinn Swift a fellow bard that I had seen many times before but never appropriately introduced myself to.

As we headed back to Hlint, Lucius and I stayed behind for some reason that I cannot recall because, as we reached the gates a wild pony dashed from out the gate followed by the charming Acecea.

Oh, it was a grand day, new fellows were met, a new place of danger found yet only a few arrows needed to be fired!  It wasn't just a grand day, it was one of the best days so far.

Mother, tell Reylia that I'm going to start practicing all the dancing she taught me to start weaving in an out of close combat.  She'll be disapointed her teachings have been used for such ends, but I fear it must be so for I lack the strength of warriors in battle.

Kisses on you, father and all my siblings,
Freldo.

PS. I wrote too much again...  Sorry.
PPS. I would have enclosed a beautiful bonet I found for you, but I've already sealed this letter.

[SuperMunch]

Dearest mother,

I'll leave this quick letter tacked on our door in Leilon because, well, I'm in Leilon tonight.

I spent most of the night at the Leilon Arms performing with that charming little Acacea, my skills with the piano have gotten better but I really wanted to go to the inn to unload some oak I've come across, a shame nobody wanted it.

Anyway, it was a most pleasant night Acacea has an extraordinary talent, so much so that I won't even start describing them here, I'll tell you more about here during my next furlow - now that I know the way home, I might be coming more often.

Give everyone a hug for me,
Freldo.

[SuperMunch]

Oh boy, a very long night...

After returning from Leilon I found little the adorable little Mille and Lucius outside the Wild Surge and, wanting to investigate the rumors of a dragon to the north we boldly and foolishly went exploring the area but there were no dragons, a shame though.

After that Mille suggested that we take on the Will o' Whisp in the bogs seeing that we were in superior numbers and quality, it was a good fight and we surprized the Wizard of Llast with our deed, it was an intresting fight, to say the least for many lizard folk also set upon us.

Let's see, we also explored the crypts again, mostly because little miss Mille needed to recover the spirit of the shade for the Undertaker (I've heard he has a powerful tombstone piledriver, but he must keep it hidden away in his hut).

Oh yes, just before turning in for the night, we went to the old hag in the bogs to give her the skelly knuckles she wanted for a creepy necklace, which I identified as being powerful against undead, and had asked miss Mille for.  Graciously she also made a necklace for Lucius and I.

That was about it, now I'm off to the crafting house to try to get some practice on the loom

[SuperMunch]

It has been a week already here in Hlint and I'm stumped.

I'd like to think that I've progressed over the past few days, as I really have but now, progress is so slow that it's almost unbearable.  I lack the skill of arms useful for war, I lack the stamina for surviving endless pumeling and I lack the power of the Weave for spells of combat - the only thing I excel at is song but the beasts' hearts are not calmed by it.

I will stick by my path as it has served me well in the past but I know that I must be brave to face the adversities of my choice.

The past two days have been generous in the throngs of friendship and plentiful in the ways of words but, unfortunately, little can words and friendship help me when I am alone in the woods of the world.

I have traveled a bit further than before, I even encountered a mighty griffon near a place called "Harmony Grove" but I had to flee for my life as it's talons where longer and sharper than my humble rapier.

Oh well...  Here I go adventuring again!  Best of luck to me as I'll need it.

[SuperMunch]

Yesterday was a bad day.

My downward spiral is gaining speed as things continue to not work out well for me but at least I have the Wild Surge every now and then.

So, there I was at Hlint, trying to pick up a party to retrive the oil for the horse master of Fort Llast but, despite the numerous adventurers, none wished to go, as a matter of fact, most didn't even acknowledge me with a reply, a shame.

Finally, I decided I'd take on lesser tasks such as reexplore the crypts and the orcs to the north but, to my sheer amazement, I was struck down twice during the conflict with the orcs but, I left the forest to escape more needless deaths and ended up finding good old Ax and we left for the Grey Mountains together for a bit of sport and recklessness since there were no more volunteers at our ability level to go with us.

Oh my...

Upon reaching the mountains we stumbled upon a crypt and, as usual, I was severely wounded but, luckily I survived thanks to Ilsare but I missed the whole encounter which surly would have been an excelent experience for me.

After escaping the crypt in a hurry we rested and took to the mountains and, on reaching our first plateau, we were started by a nasty group of ogres that, to my dismay, killed me outright with a bottle of fire.

I awoke at the temple of Ilsare and, after recomposing myself, Ax and I returned to the Ogre Vale to give it another try but this time the results were a bit different but not by much.  We took on the ogres at the vale and moved on and were stopped by a pair of VERY nasty ogres, we survived by dumb luck, mostly because the ogres were easy to fool.

We talked a bit and decided it was in our best intrest to return to Hlint since we were very under powered but, upon returning to the ogre vale, we saw a massive group of two headed giants and massive giants battling it out with a group of hardy adventurers.  Ax and I managed to be of some use to them and after the battle we returned to Hlint.

All in all, it wasn't a very good day but at least this time I was able to pick up a few gold here and there, twenty more days like this and I'll be ready to handle a single skeleton on my own.

[SuperMunch]

For some reason yesterday, I was in a slightly silly mood.  Maybe it was because I realized how lucky I was about not becoming a giant's toe-mush or it might have been because I got a few things off my chest, literally and figuratively...  I got rid of a lot of dead weight and talked to the mayor about providing a few tents near the temple for us to sleep in.  After a stop to unload quite a lot of useless garbage and fishing the pond dry of carps (seemingly the only beings that I strike fear into), I went out to the camping area outside of town to light a fire to cook the fish because unattended fires in town tend to be dangerous.  There I was, dancing and being silly when a queer fellow with a nasty habit of skipping articles, came over and promptly fell asleep, almost with his head in my fire!  When he woke up, I gave him a fillet 'o carp, it's not as good as seabass but it's quite tasty.  For some strange reason he gave me a handful of bolts and two big hunks of deer meat!  I cooked the meat and gave one back to him before he took off again.  Strange fellow, I didn't even catch his name.  After dousing the fire I was on my way back to town to take on the crypts when, rushing along the highway, a fellow by the name of Glenn, who must've seen me posting one of my petitions for an unfashionable bow, asked me if I was intrested in having him make me one.  Of course I was flattered, I had asked for an unfashionable bow and someone offered me a new one!  Knowing how precious his time was I asked him if he'd accept my two branches of oak as part of the payment and that brought the price of the bow down quite a ways.  I have him the branches and he went off to make the bows and I was following when I happened to come upon a couple of the fine adventurers Ax and I met near the giants and I finally caught their names, without the excitement of the kill.  They were Brisbane, a lovely half-elven lady and Elladan, a half-elven knight of the highest possible nobility.  I thanked them and apologized for being so... let's say... overly energetic the previous day, they were most gracious in forgiving me.  Before the couple left I comented on how the lady looked good in her tree-like garb and, as a parting gift, she blessed me with a stonelike skin that lasted the rest of the day.  It didn't feel too unconfortable, but it did feel a little strange when I scratched my arms and legs.  Well, back to the bow story, I met with Glenn again and we exchanged to gold for the bow but I felt it was a bit too soon to take on such a powerful weapon, I felt I had to gain a little more experience in the world before using it, which was a pitty considering how much the bow was despired.  We parted ways and I decided to try out my stone-like skin on the camp of mercenaries outside of town but when I arrived, a fine young lady by the name of Anna had already finished off the group.  We exchanged pleasentries and she told me about her husband Quantum, a paladin of toran.  Come to think of it, I think I've already met him, the very I met Tien, Lucius and Acacea...  Yes, it was him, a shame I didn't remeber it at the time.  Also, dare I mention, that most of the ladies are already taken by some nobler men, I guess I'll have to stick to my bachelor ways.  A true shame for all I want in my life is a single muse to come home to, to cook for, to sing songs of and to write epic stories about how undying my love is for her.  Oh, I'm really funny, I almost convinced myself this time.  So, back to where I was, I left for the fens nead Hlint for a little R&R (wRestling and Rummaging) amoung the lizardfolk.  Might I say that the stoneish skin saved my life many, many times.  I couldn't resist the temptation to scrounge around for as many lizardmen as I could to gather some more gold now that my reserves were lowered a substantial amount after the aquisition of my new bow.  After a long day adventuring and killing a lot more lizards then I expected, I returned to Hlint and had a very, very peaceful night's sleep.  I must remember to ask lady Brisbane for another one of those stone-like enchantments, it was so very helpful that I'm almost afraid to admit it.  Well, that was a good day, luck shined on my fragile little body, I hope it builds strength and keeps on shining!  --- Correction: I have not yet met Quantum as a I previously mentioned, not yet at least.

[SuperMunch]

I think an unusual and unlikely pair has been formed, I think...

I've already written of Ax, a half-giant that may not be very smart but he certainly is one of the kindest to walk Layonara in this age.

Well, yesterday I woke up and Ax asked me to join him in another excursion into the Grey Mountains.  Of course I let him know that it wasn't a very good idea, especially after the events of the other day but Ax told me he had learned a whole bunch of new tricks, some he had learned especially for the ogres in the mountains.

So, once again throwing caution to the wind, I look up his offer and...  Well... Hit the mountains full of hope, courage and a lack of common sense.

We actually had a good excursion, we slipped past an ogre mage (first one I ever say, I never thought that ogres could be mages) and entered the deep mountains but that's where we stopped, there were just too many of them!  Ax would climb down the valley and attract an ogre up the stairs and, at the top, I'd pummel the ogre with arrows while Ax would strike at them with his massive axe and then I'd heal Ax and we'd do it again, rinse, repeat.  We kept at this until both of us finally got tired of not making any headway, pummeling ogres from afar is nice and all but we couldn't progress on our quest so both of us thought it better to return to Hlint and pick up a few more hands.

The trip was an exciting one and, at the end, despite not being able to pick up to much gold (as Ax would kick the bodies down the cliff face before I could search them) I thoroughly enjoyed it.

So, after returning to town I decided I'll cast my spell of death amoung the feeble fishies of the pond.  Oh, how I struck fear into their little fishie hearts and I made them cry for their mothers while I launched a thousand arrows into their tiny little bodies.  Yes, the fish FEAR me, oh yes they do!

Anyway, after all the fun attempting to genocide the fish, I distributed a few and, on a chance encounter, I met Viralax and a short little fellow with a most delightful hat that didn't give me his name, but let me call him GuyWithHat.  We had a pleasant talk and I offered GuyWithHat some of my fish but he was a bit hesitant to eat it so I took a bite to show him it was alright.

What happened next is worthy of lore...  I screamed out in pain and fell over, feigning death.

The look on GuyWithHat's face was worth all the gold in the dwarven mines.  Poor fellow, I expect he'll be even more cautious when I'm around.  In the end, I convinced him the food was alright and he ate some of it, a nice fellow, a bit colorful but that's alright with me.

One thing that he told me of was the crafting stations in the back of the common crafting room.  He told me that he made his hat there and I was honestly impressed so I took a gander and personalized almost everything I had!  I modified my shield, rapier (it looks really good now), armor and every day clothes.  I changed my armor very little, I just wanted to change the colors around a bit and now it looks very, very, very nice!

I hope people notice the changes...

[SuperMunch]

I died twice today.

Normally, that's not a very good way to start an entry in my journal but that's the truth.

Once I died but was resurected and the other time part of my innocence died.

There truly are older and fouler things in the world, as my latest scars can atest, despite the experience gained through such a great adventure, it will be some time before I fully understand what my eyes saw, ears heard and body felt.  I now know that one should not ask for more than one is able to reach and for now, I'll stick to Hlint and region for my adventures.

It all started with... an indecent proposal by a fellow, by the name of Cole, that enjoyed one of my tall tales.  He offered me a spot in his party in exchange for a few jokes.  Little did I know the perils I had signed up for.

I met Cole last morning and he promptly took me up on the offer and I got to meet some members of the party but only later did I catch all their names.

The party was comprised of:
- Cole, a mighty warrior
- Yossarian (Catchy name, isn't it?), a wise cleric
- Ael, a swift martial arts expert
- Abi, the party's scout
- Yard, a powerful, scary mage
- Gunter, a warrior dwarf
- Jil, a swift attacker, good with a bow
- Daren, another noble cleric
- Lokri, a warrior dwarf, that didn't take kindly to me, which is to be expected after the dwarf jokes
- Rane, a most beautiful elven lady that I managed to upset
- Me, the dead weight.

Our group left, via portal, to North Point where we left for the deep forest, a perilous place but at least I managed to get a grizzly bear pelt, it might come in handy later.

From the forest we sailed to a mountainous land called... errr... I don't know, but the mountains was that of Firesteep, that much I knew.  Upon landing I managed to upset the boat's captain by leaving some bear meat on the ground for him but I was scorned by Rane for littering, an innocent mistake that I'm afraid of ever repeating again.

So, off we went, slowly to keep the group together...  The enemies were small and terrible, kobolds, I believe they are called and some powerful elemental spirits appeared, some of fire some of earth and I was devastated by their overwhelming resistence, a hail of blows fell on each enemy before it fell, I managed to score a shot or two and I always tried to maintain the group under my song for every little bit might help at a time like that.

At a certain point, shortly before reaching a fortified dwarven house, I was felled by a hail of magical missiles shortly after my spell of resistence to such enchantments had run out.  Yossarian revived me through some powerful work of divine intervention and we reached the house to rest, before adventuring into the dark cavern.

We recovered and stepped outside when, suddenly, a fierce cry sounded through the valley...  I froze, as did some others.  The mage Yard said that... the wyrm was coming.

A WYRM!!!

Quickly I rushed into the cavern to avoid swift death and as the group reformed, it was noticed that a few had not entered when suddenly they rushed in and told us that it had arrived.  I confess that I felt a need to go out and take a look but my curiosity was squashed by the possibility of become not only Giant's Toe Mush, but become a light snack for a wyrm of legends.

Onward we went, close together to maintain our powers concentrated until we reached our goal...  A rich vein of cobalt and adamantium, the very precious of minerals used by skilled smiths and tinkerers to make items of powers way beyond my abilities.

After mining...  Well, after the mining was finished, Abi suggested that it was better we move off as there was precious little protection for our party when suddenly Cole shouted for us to run and I did just that!  I ran as fast as I could to the safe spot we had encountered earlier.

I arrived but the group was caught up and rapidly were being felled by waves of enemies and I couldn't resist the temptation to join them and off I went, whisked away to Hlint.

I briefly met with Rane, as she managed to return to Hlint swiftly but was in to much of a rush to stop and talk - I was not going to try small talk as I had much to reflect upon after those adventures.

Of it all, I confess that I gained a keener understanding of how to use my rapier with greater agility and now I feel that I can actually use it in combat without fear - not to mention that my song is slightly more powerful now as the harp in the dwarven house helped me in tuning my voice - a good thing.

However, I came to understand that the world is to much a dangerous place for an ordinary bard like me, I must strive for greater abilities before I accept such an invitation again but I still must thank every member of the party as soon as I find each one again.

[SuperMunch]

Dearest mother,

I might be in Leilon tonight, if I do, I'll leave this letter in your hands.

Yesterday started off pretty good, I awoke with a new disposition after the previous night's encounter with death (I'll tell you about it some other time but know I'm alright) and, wanting to prove the new found strength in my fragile, girly arms, I took to the crypts of Hlint.

After cleaning house and delivering a large barrel of bone crunching death to the skeletons, I went down to the next level, to clean up on the ghouls - once again throwing caution to the wind, you and father never taught me to be responsible, so you're to blame for this.  Just kidding!

Anyway, there I was, running down the stairs when I heard the sounds of battle, I arrive just in time to see a fellow that I had met before, but not explored with, by the name of Renji in heated battle with ghouls.  At once I also took up arms and we quickly vanquished them.  We formed a little party to explore the rest of the crypts when an unearthly quake took hold of the crypts, in an instant, we turned around and fled out of the crypts.

Outside we gathered ourselves and decided to separate rest a bit.

When I came back Renji wasn't there at the moment but an elven fellow, Leneas came rushing by.  I managed to stop him an instant and asked him where he was off to and he told me about the goblins so I offered to help him when Renji came and we agreed to help Leneas on his quest.

Once out the gate we easily cleaned up those pesky goblins now that I'm actually of use.  While talking about greater and lesser things a noble knight, by the name of Justain came looking for something to do as Hlint was a bit slow.  I remember having talked to him before and having skimmed some of his works, one was a fable (of which I'm sure you remember, I'm no fan of) but the other was a great piece about nobility and a noble man's purpose.  A very dignified work and I told him so, I know how a little incentive can go a very long way.

After talking a few minutes, a stout dwarf Zargo and a big black panther show up also looking for adventure.  After battleling the next gaurd of the goblins, we took to the Red Caverns for some fresh excitement.

Mother, let me tell you, our companions, including that smart cat, just ran and ran after the goblins, no looking back and no stopping for rest.  I tried not to stay too far behind but it was inevitable but Zargo was also a bit slow, no offence to dwarves, of course and I managed to help him out a few times.

The companions were so fast they took on the entire goblin garrison without blinking!

Also, without blinking they rushed up to the surface again.  Darned fast folk!

So...  Finally, on the surface, we said our goodbyes and parted after I told Zorag and Leneas to take the head to the wagonmaster since he has a collection of goblin heads, or something.

Upon returning to Hlint I saw Erag standing on the elevated platform near The Old Tree and tried to convince him to come down but that fool just stood there, looking at me like I was an idiot!  I may be an idiot but that's no reason for him to kill himself.  I gave up seeing that he was enjoying the view and went to rest after smashing a few perfectly good gems into perfectly good powder.

Anyway mother, I've come a long way.  I hope to be in Leilon tonight to give you this letter in person.

Kisses,
Freldo.

PS. I think we forgot the black panther in the caves...  If we did, I won't forgive myself.  I must talk to the animal friends to see what can be done.

[SuperMunch]

Last night, during the Gypsy Auction at the Leilon Arms, I had the best time of the past months.

Really.

The folks didn't have a union authorized musician on hand to handle the piano so I took the position and in no time, I was drawing laughs, applause and tomatos from the crowd.  It was a truly great experience, even Kali, a gorgeous little elven lady, the auctioneer asked me to come back and I think I will, just to help out.

But that wasn't the high point, Kavil, a powerful and quiet master and I started bidding on a bag of bardish tools and, despite his victory over me, he just gave me the back, along with all it's contents, once the auction was over, a very kind man, he is.

Great things happened at the Inn, a scythe the size of a house was sold to a half-elven lady, Addison and a ring of warding.. or was it something else... was sold to a dwarf after a bitter bidding war with a hooded individual that almost started a bar fight.

Upon receiving the bag from Kavil, I noticed that the violin was of abilities much higher than what I'm used to so I've already contacted Kali for an exchange for a lesser violin.

And that was it, today I spent the day searching for the legitimate owners of a large amount of mail from the postmaster of Hlint (Vale) and of Krandor (Valquirie) to the corners of the western hemisphere.  I got to know a few new places, some of peril some of intresting qualities.  Hopefully I'll remember the paths I took to get to those places.

That's about it for tonight, I'm much to tired to write any more.

[SuperMunch]

Dearest Mother,

I have it on good word that a low profile in Leilon in these days is for the best.  I cannot go into details but know that things might not bode well in the city's political realm.

Well, now that that's out of the way, let me tell you of my recent forays, the first of which was with the fur merchant of Hlint - a strange fellow that stinks of tanning acids and other nasty things but of decent value.  He had sent me out to gather a few pelts of different animals, the first few were easy but... alas, the final three skins were of such dificulty that I went grudgingly.

Of the final three, one was a cougar - a large, fast, spotted cat that live in the souther regions of Mistone.  Trapping one was rather straight forward - I taunted it and after chasing me down, I'd run away very fast until I could manage another shot at it from a safe distance.  It was a hectic race but, in the end, I took one down and skinned it before others of it's kind came after me.

The final two were of the same type, a brown bear's pelt.

Mother, I had ventured into the deep High Wood before but was scared back by the griffon, this time I had to go deep into the forest after the fabled brown bear.  Luckily, I've learned how to conceal myself and I took advantage of this until I found the brown bear.

Another hit and run, run, run, run battle took place but this time I was so injured that I had to retreat and tend to my wounds before trying to confront it again but, after a lot of lost blood, I emerged victorious.  Returning to the fur trader I was greeted by the joyous news that I had to get another brown bear pelt.  So happy I was, I ran off to try to avoid it.

In this avoiding, I met up with the ladies Rane and Elhara, my thrice savior.  After quite a bit of chatting I felt relaxed enough to go after that awful second brown bear pelt.

Luckily, upon spotting one in the distance, I managed to land a precise arrow to it's head and score two deep rapier stabs into it's heart.  I was very lucky and I thanked Ilsare for the gift of a keen hand.

Upon returning the the fur merchant I was greeted by a cloak he had fashioned from the pelt of the previous brown bear I had taken down - a very nice prize for such a hard task.

Oh, I was forgetting, I made a new friend today, Grympint a dwarven cleric of considerable friendliness.

Anyway mother, that's it for today, thank you for the cookies you sent me, they were, as usually, delicous.

Freldo.

[SuperMunch]

You know, once in a while bad things happen to good people and less times good things happen to bad people and in a very rare once in a year, good things happen to bards.  Yesterday, I was lucky...Lucky...LUCKY!  Not just lucky...LUCKY but so phenomenally LUCKY that no good that good will come again in quite some time.  We formed a quick party of explorers, led by Lady Elhara, that was to explore the Havens Mine...  A foolish thing to do, but worth my chance of death to explore a new place in the world.  The party was composed of the usual suspects, Renji, Grympint, Ash (she REALLY hates me, for some reason), Exodus of the StoneCutter clan and a few more folks, not less important but that I really don't recall.  Anyway, off we went to the mines...  and out we came with two dead and a whole wheelbarrow full of gold.  In we went again after the graves of our fallen comrades and out we come again, this time with one less dead.  After such a grueling trudge into the very bowels of the earth, Renji and I were returning to Hlint when a lordly fellow, by name of Asher, asked us if we'd like to explore the mines again because he had to mine some iron ore and amethyst minerals.  We went along for the ride and we were acompanied by Exodus, who had been alerted by Renji when we ran off to the bank to deposit our meager earnings.  So...  Down we went, into the belly of the beast, this time, said Lord Asher, to the very lair of the ogre chieftain!  Which was good because I had been comissioned to retrieve it for the lord of Haven Castle.  None of us were felled thanks to the swift sword of Lord Asher.  Ogres fell so fast that piles of dead were gathered around Asher - a sight one must behold to understand and down we raced into the caverns until, at the Chieftain's Lair, Lord Asher told us weaker folk to stand back and offer covering fire, which I gladly did.  The battles were swift and I did manage to get a few notches on my belt and armor by the time we came up to the surface again.  The gold recovered at the end was substantially larger than the previous descent and well worth the risk of decapitation.  We bade farewll and I remembered that I had a mineral amethyst in my vault at the bank, the same one that held a few fish a few weeks ago and really stunk up the whole vault, as I'm told.  I gave Lord Asher the mineral as thanks for the help and ran off to sleep...  It was a most tiring day.

[SuperMunch]

Yesterday I had another trip to the Haven Mines in almost the same party as before but this time there were a pair of ladies, that I didn't catch their names, that spent about as much time playfully annoying eachother rather than strive to stay alive.

Silly pair, must be in love in a way that one must not speak of.

Anyway, at the end of the trip down, led once again by the powerful dwarven-raised Lady Elhara, we split the loot, or whatever there was around of it and again I managed to make a mess of things, mostly because NOBODY ever says "Oh, I don't want any" or "No thank you, you poor folks should split my share".  All I hear is "what?" and "huh?" and "where's my cut?".  By the looks of it, splitting the gold is a very trying task as most folks just ignore me, that's their problem I guess.

Well, during this trip I found that my powers to tap the Weave had grown a tad and now I was able to unleash a few more enchantments of power (!?).  Not to mention that my rapier and bow are a bit quicker to hit, must be my vision that's a little bit less blurry because I don't cry in panic anymore.

And that leaves me to my second quest last night...  But first, an interlude.

Once again I was talking about how bears hate me when a bear appeared out of thin air and started chasing after me so I just played dead but forgot that dead men aren't supposed to talk so loudly so... there I was... blabbing about the weather, getting pokes and kicks from the folks around until, out of the green, a SNAKE came after me!  If it wasn't a deadly bear wanting to maul me, now I had a snake!

I never get any real breaks - just broken bones I guess.

After the interlude, Renji, Tiden, Grympint and a few others, including an impatient dwarf, a fellow human and ... a nasty fellow by the name of Kerwyn... set off to the Moors of Hlint in search of the essence of the Will 'o Whisp under the standing idea that I would loot the bodies and divide it amoung ourselves.

The excursion was nice and simple - the lizard men no longer frighten me, except maybe when I'm alone, but even then I'd have to be caught in my underpants and tied down for them to actually frighten me.

However, that Kerwyn fellow ruined it for me or at least tried to ruin it for me - he'd pick the bodies dry, even taking their bones in some cases, and just run off.  Seriously, he's not a team player and I really didn't like it and told Renji and Tiden as much - I won't take any more quests with him around, I prefer to not go than to have a dirty, backstabing cutpurse around.

Well, that was about it, I did manage to practice a little instrument making last night, something a little different from what I'm used to, running away, but I think I'll manage.

[SuperMunch]

Dearest mother,

Once again this letter will probably be slipped in under your door in Leilon.

I haven't told you this before but I had contracted two terrible diseases but as of yesterday, I'm over them... I think.

The first one involved bears.  I still hate them and I'm sure they hate me but I'm no longer irrationally afraid of them.  It all started one day a little while ago when Hlint's fur trader sent me after a brown bear pelt and I thought "this'll be easy" but, when I finally spotted the bear, it was a crazy drooling mountain of bard eating flesh with teeth as big as VERY large nails!  I took it down with great sacrifice and returned to the fur trader triumphant, but that evaporated quickly when he told me I had to fetch another bear skin.

Son of a beep.

I got that over with but I was so stiff when shooting him that I kinda... sorta... really... got scared of bears.

But that's over with since folks here have started showing me that not all bears are bad, just the ones that attack bards for no reason except sport.

So, I'm over my initial melissophobia...  Now for the other one...  Dendroaphenpphobia.

Acacea calls druids and rangers "tree huggers" so I'll call them "Tree Touchers" or dendroaphenpphobia (all those lessons in obscure languages were worth something in the end, don't you think?).

I must have told you about the Lady Ash, the crazy elf that wants both of my ears.  If I didn't, she's a crazy elven ranger that wants both of my ears for some reason, she also hates me, the very sight of me is enough to drive her into a blood lust - no need to worry mother, she's "civilized" and she wouldn't do anything to me if someone else was around.

So, thanks to Ash, I was deadly afraid of rangers - snooping about in the woods and defending bears - and druid - also snooping about in the woods and defending bears and otters.  But then it dawned on me yesterday, Renji's a ranger and Tiden's a druid and they're both agreeable folks.

You know, the problem isn't the professions but the person, so there.  Done with that irrational fear.

That's about it for this letter mother, I'll try to stop at home before going over to the Arms Inn.

Love,
Freldo.