How long it has been since i relayed my life to this journal! But in truth although the time has been there to do so, i have simply not taken it. As of late my life consists of only two things: guarding the healers guild, and learning the craft of the whisperers.
If it were not for the events of this evening my journal would probably remain stagnant, because even the beginning of my guardian shift at the healers guild was terribly boring. I don't technically mind the solitude, since it affords me the opportunity to listen - not only to the songs and speech of the animals around me, but to the murmurs of people around town. There was a lot of the latter as visitors to our lands unquestionably ended up at the hall of heroes which is just across the square from the guild. The former, however, was very limited because we sit in the middle of town. Listening is much more lively at my tent site.
There was however going to be a meeting of the earth guild's healers and guardians (i am no longer the only one, thankfully), so i knew i would be expecting company soon. Eventually aunt cyn and naomi and others did approach, so i opened up the door (it had been shut to keep mosquitoes out) and joined everyone inside. However my expectations of a formal guild meeting were quickly corrected by aunt cyn - members of the order finis autem magicka were arriving soon, with «our mutual friend» in tow. I was uncertain of who this referred to, but before i could inquire further, my cousin banradi asked to speak in private and recognised me into the earth circle. He took a blade from where he had stashed in behind some shelves and began to tell me about its origins, involving some dark selunari from terna (the continent that he, aunt cyn, and others originally came from).
His explanation was cut short, unfortunately, by the arrival of the members of the finis order. Radi recognised me out so that the finis representatives and their patient could be brought inside. The mutual friend was a dark elf who i recalled vaguely, having only ever seen him from afar. It was ko minmatsu, count of augustus (that portion of the eastlands that governs the baronies of koroshi and valbridge). The order explained that the count had been trapped in his mind and slowly dying, due to the influence of one of the many magical artifacts that finis autem magicka has been trying to destroy. I had heard mutterings about people encountering so-called shadow kos, and indeed the finis order confirmed this.
They did not have a cure, but a treatment, which would require members of our adventuring community that had a close relationship with count ko. Among the representatives from finis was a biata, who informed naomi (apparently a long-time acquaintance of the count and quite concerned about this treatment) that he could use his mental powers to tether her, and up to seven others, to ko's mind to help him emerge from his mind prison. This would allow him to temporarily resist the influence of the artifact and pause his mental deterioration, but it would have to be done every month until the artifact was destroyed.
At a look from aunt cyn i politely ushered anyone not associated with the plan out of the earth guild and apologised that the healers would be unavailable for a short while. As i was doing so, ardos told me to make sure i kept myself safe and suggested i go to the tavern, but i told him as long as aunt cyn and the others were going to be here in the guild, especially if they were going to be in another mind, i was needed to stay and protect them. Looking back now, i can see that ardos was trying to tell me something else and was unsure if i shared his knowledge about the very recent attacks that had begun, but due to circumstances i had known nothing about the siege that had begun, and i missed ardos' vital warning.
Once i had been assured that everyone had left the vicinity outside of the earth guild, and reported such to aunt cyn, the finis representatives and the healers and adventurers assisting with count ko's mindblock quietly filtered out of the guild building! I had thought they would be remaining, but the biata wanted to take them to a more secluded and private location to perform the ritual. Uncertain what i should do at this point, i determined that i would at least remain at the guild and let anyone who might arrive in need of healing remain safely inside the hall until they returned. Aunt cyn nodded thanks as she finished out the party leaving.
Briefly i considered taking my normal seat just outside the building, but some sort of intuition told me if i was to remain here, i should remain inside. After quite some time, though i heard no steps approaching, the door of the guild was flung open and i immediately asked what help was needed or if i could be of assistance. From the darkness of late evening emerged the figure of a dark elf wielding a spear, who replied, «yes you and all surface dwellers can assist, by dying» and proceeded to attack me! Fortunately my weapons were already drawn and he was still outside the hall, so i was able to leverage and pin his spear against the doorframe with çerhêni while attacking his body with dszeni, and after a few blows landed he cursed me and retreated into the darkness. He had managed to get me a few times too and decreased the effectiveness of my limited armor, so after i shut the door tight i quickly took a minute to adjust and refit my bracers, sheaths, and beltstraps.
The timing worked well, for after my refit was complete i still had 30 seconds or so before the dark elf opened the door again, but tried taunting me into coming outside. I saw no reason to do so and informed him of the fact; his insults fell flat, trying to say i had no honour («i don't care about honour, i need only fulfil my duty as a guardian») and calling me a filthy sun-dweller («i am a proud child of the stars»). He half-heartedly tried to lunge at me a few times, but i still had the advantage of the doorframe between us. Then he backed up and said, «well come on then, come and finish us.» Even as i noted the plural and asked cautiously, «us?» a second dark elf stepped out from the side of the building and threw a gas globe at me. I couldn't help but inhale the potent gas and my mind grew fuzzy and disoriented, and even as the dark elves approached me i tried to resist but couldn't think how to raise my swords... and then the second dark elf put the point of his sword against my chest and---
--my sense of being returned inside the earth circle, with aunt cyn gently laying a blanket over my naked body. She told me sternly, «nephew, you're not supposed to be inside the circle this way» but i could hear the relief from fear in her voice. Momentary uncertainty and disorientation gave way to a dreadful feeling of shame and even as she asked «what happened?» i said «i failed.»
Naomi turned from a now-conscious count ko and joined aunt cyn in insisting that i did not fail, since i fell in defense of the guild, and asked specifically what happened. As i told them haltingly of the dark elf attackers, count ko (himself a dark elf) sensed another spirit waiting in the circle and did a remarkable quick resurrection of the man, who was also a dark elf but had been killed by the assassins as well. Count ko told us what he already knew about the dark elf assassins, as part of the larger dark elf population in kundirk that lived underground. He also informed us about stone mushrooms which had been planted alongside the roads and paths in the city and were being used as rift devices, and that the assassins would be intending to use them to summon dark horrors as well.
While all this was occurring i retrieved my clothes and weapons from where they had fallen outside the circle when my body dissipated, but i noted with some dismay that i was missing my belt and my pouch (containing all my money and gems), and a cursory search of the guild hall did not turn up anything. Perhaps the assassins had taken it, i mentioned to aunt cyn, who assured me that i would be taken care of if needed. At that precise moment mr smith came in and handed both items to me - he also had been attacked by the dark elves and had been assassinated in the back just as he had leapt into the open door of the healers guild, but by some strange concentration of vaccuum energy his spirit was protected and at the moment his body would have dissipated, he experienced a rebirth. he had found my remains and had recognised the pouch (which i had purchased from his dragon hoard), so he took it for safekeeping.
Assured that i was as back to normal as i could be, i decided to go hunting for mushrooms and assassins with mr smith and robert, but we went to the tavern first to inform people about the situation. Which was, as it turned out, fairly unnecessary, since most of the few people that were there knew the basics about the assassins and had even found some of the mushrooms already. Suddenly i realised that dying had left me quite famished, and when i voiced this in a quiet aside, the batkin i had just met named belfry abruptly handed me a toffee out of her bag, and then grabbed an apple off a table and handed it to me. I thanked her and decided i had better regain my strength before actually venturing into the dark again. We were briefly interrupted when we thought assassins were approaching the tavern but it turned out to be a familia named nikki, a dogkin named mutt, a foxkin named red, and an elf whose name i later learned was dusty. It transpired they were looking for their companion drex, who was in fact the dark elf that resurrected after me.
When all was said and done i ended up guarding the tavern briefly with gideon, belfry, mutt, and dusty, and then upon hearing combat sounds at the earth guild rushed over there (followed by the company sans gideon), only to find that drex and flint had already driven away the two dark elf assassins that had been there. Still concerned about our apparent new siege conditions, i remained at the guild until aunt cyn closed up shop and was ready to return to the relative safety of the well-lit and highly peopled tavern, and after delivering her there i cautiously left the city walls and returned to my tent for the night, too rattled to do any whispering. I will attempt to take some extra time tomorrow to continue my practise.
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