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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ao the Overkitty" data-source="post: 1520021" data-attributes="member: 9758">Journal Entry of Seth Lochmar - July 7thJuly 7th, 1002    The following day, the second wave arrived.  Miriam, Wallace, Padraic, Galibur, & Leetah all arrived in Miriam’s coach.  Apparently they had a much less eventful trip then us.    Miriam is a soft-spoken woman who left home with her dowry, in hopes of using it to help the family.  She really wanted to help and offered her money for many occasions, but didn’t understand my urging to keep her money for a rainy day.  It certainly came in handy when that rain came.  While she had given a small amount of it to Galibur for his several trips into the city for supplies, there was just enough of it left to cure Arvin of his affliction.  I wanted to make her the family’s Exchequer, but she declined the position.  Arvin seems to at least have the mind for figures.    Wallace is a strong man.  A bit morally challenged and a follower, not a leader.  Though, he seems competent enough to be our Huntslord.  Still he too was quite loyal to the family.  All this loyalty must have come out of pride of some better stock then what runs in my veins.  He’s quick to anger and is not afraid of voicing his opinion of people.  Completely lacking in social skills, I’m not sure which of them does more damage to our appearance, himself or Arvin.  At least Arvin seems to be trying to sound diplomatic.  Still, Wallace is quite good with a sword and brought some much needed silver weapons with him.  They came in quite handy in the fight to retake the manor.    Padraic hails from a monastery in Kantu.  Originally a simple monk, he has taken up the ways of the cloth in a minor capacity, following Saint Michael’s guidance.  He has made the little monastery his refuge and has formed a strong alliance with the guardian of the altar there.  As a member of Saint Michael’s monastic order, he is chiefly concerned with the security of our grounds and manor.  Before he followed his calling into further service with our lord, we were seriously lacking in healers.  Fiona and I could manifest a few weak healing spells, but we had to rely on potions and time for the most part.  Padraic and I see eye to eye on most things.  We both saw that the church was the first place we needed to garner support in; especially due to our lack of healing power.  But they were also the ones hurt most by Troy’s betrayal in the last attempt.  We have also later found out that the last group uncovered some devil worshippers in the cathedral, which lends more to their calling us devil worshippers, trying to cover up their past mistakes.  I believe that Padraic will make a good clan chaplain and will play a key role in winning over the other sects of the church.    Now Galibur is an interesting combination.  At first, he reminded me too much of my grandfather; the useless money squandering gambling drunk.  Never much help around the manor, he came with the sole intent of living it up as a noble, I believe.  But, while we were in jail, he risked his neck to help us get out.  Also, he made several trips to the city, a place very dangerous to members of our family, to retrieve supplies, even though we had not asked.  Of course, he also spent these trips living it up in the city, spending a fair amount of cash.  That is, until he discovered that the family had credit.  I fear to think of just how much in debt the family is because of him.  His heart is in the right place, though.  If only I can teach him a bit of temperance.    I did not know Leetah long or well, for she left not long after she arrived, returning to Speculation on her own accord.  Another one from Speculation, she had a blatant disregard for the law and would fight to the last man against the Sheriff when he caught us on a technicality.  She had no social graces and took an immediate liking to an evil little troll named Olva.  She also did very little to help, always wandering off to do her own thing.  Thankfully, when she left, she agreed to bring letters from Fiona and Padraic back to their families and friends.  I would have wished to send a letter to my sister and cousin as well, but my home was too far out of her way to do so.  Also, she thankfully took that little witch with her.  Too bad she couldn’t take the kobolds too.    Within a few days of their arrival, the Sheriff’s men rode onto our grounds and attempted to arrest us for trespassing.  Since we did not have our papers, thanks to our “friend” Minister Nicene, whom we now knew to belong to the House Risenson, the sheriff had a legal point for doing so.  Of course, they refused to listen to us and set their hunting dogs loose.  This made for an interesting fight, since we had been moving bunk beds at the time.  With only Leetah and myself still conscious by the time a second contingent of guards approached, I was able to get enough out of the guards to know that they were technically in the right and surrendered.  Which was a good thing cause Leetah had started taking shots at the guards.  Luckily, she was just a very bad shot.    We were forced to carry the unconscious members of our family back to Caledon Vale and to the jails.  Luckily, they did not search Taggert’s for Miriam & Galibur.  While we were imprisoned, Galibur was able to procure writs for myself, Fiona and Leetah.  When trial came around upon the eighteenth day of May, we got to meet Judge Highwatch. He is a no nonsense kind of guy, but is fair and willing to cut someone a break when he sees someone is trying to screw someone else in his court.  Seemed to see it as fitting justice that the Sheriff had to pay for incarcerating us.  The Sheriff’s grudge against us roots from the last contingent of Lochmars killing his evil father.  Course, he doesn’t know what his dad had done, so he blames our clan for his death.  At least he has a better reason then most of the people around here that hate us.  From what I’ve read and heard of the last group, they were a less then savory group that skipped merrily along the path of evil.  Hell.. The former family chaplain, Father Troy, not only animated the dead for fun, but he became one of Saint N’s general.  And it’s any wonder they failed.    We spent some time getting our butts handed to us by Kobolds and other things over the next few weeks.  Seems we’d go out investigating, I’d get taken down quickly, then I’d take several days to recuperate.  It really was the complete opposite of fun.  Things sped up a little when my healing powers improved a little.  I was able to manifest a light healing spell, which was the best the family had at the time.  It was about this time that Minister Nicene’s latest little trick arrived.  An arrogant man by the name of Dancin arrived with his little witch of a fortuneteller in tow.  Seems he was destined to lead the Lochmar clan as laird.  Well... That’s what this creature named Olva told him, at least.  Seems Minister Nicene had met the guy and took him under his wing; got him his writs and instructed him on the ways of the city.  Also hired a few guards for him.  Guess he figured this guy would clean my clock good.  Now, when this guy challenged me to battle for the lairdship, I was a little worried.  Here is a guy with a claymore and nice armor, while I walk around with a carpenter’s hammer and a whip and no armor at all.  It didn’t help that my track record in combats to this date was to drop in the first few seconds and start bleeding, mostly without scoring a hit.  Well... I tried to choose the weapon of choice to be song.  That is, who could play the bagpipes the loudest.  He wasn’t happy about it, but it seemed to be working.  Of course, Olva had a trick up her sleeve.  She was armed with thunderstones and was ready to throw them when Dancin went.  But things degenerated before that point.  After we had gotten the Salisbars, some of our tenants, to judge the contest, Dancin got confused and attacked me.  Things degenerated into a free for all, with Dancin on me.  Knowing I couldn’t take on a guy that was well equipped and seemed to know how to use them, I quickly charmed him.  First time I had tried that spell, and was quite glad to see it worked.   Of course, just after I charmed him, a thunderstone, tossed by Olva went off, which deafened both Dancin & Arvin.    She also lobbed an alchemist’s fire, which hit and started me on fire.  I almost burned to death, but I’m told my new friend Dancin was the one to put the flames out.  Olva finally gave up and Fiona got Dancin to formally state that he no longer wanted to take the lairdship from me (before the charm ended, of course).  This was helped by a little prodding of Olva to change her vision of Dancin’s future.  I’m told it took a bit of work to restrain him from killing her.    Once revived, I didn’t want a good fighter to go to waste.  Dancin was sorely in need of a moral compass.  I think he may have actually been more ruthless then Wallace or Arvin.  I convinced him to stay, for glory and honor and the good of the family.  He seemed to buy into it, so I guess it was a good argument.  I had to make sure from now on to include him and Arvin in conversations by writing stuff out for them.  He appreciated this, but Arvin was resentful.  Arvin became even more moody after this, taking to heart even more when I disagreed with him.    Olva, on the other hand, also was thinking of staying, much to the displeasure of everyone but Dancin & Leetah.  She was spineless and “saw in the stars” exactly what you wanted to hear.  I guess Leetah liked that in her.  Regardless, she and Leetah didn’t stick around too long after that.  She never stated a reason, but Leetah decided to just go home to Speculation.  Can’t truly say she was missed.    With Dancin around, we were able to make our first true foray into the Manor house.  Inside, we found a bunch of melted people which I recognized as the weakest of the Devils, named Lemures.  The rest of the group had no clue what they were, so I told them they needed silver to harm them.  Wallace proceeded to hand out his large collection of silver daggers at this point, being the only other person besides me so properly equipped.  This first venture went well, but we were still wounded and decided to retreat for the time being.    It was on this same outing, I believe, that we found the little monastery.  This is a place that Padraic has spent a lot of time at, come of late.  Commanded to guard the altar by Father Troy was a lantern archon.  Not sure why he actually used a being of good, besides perhaps feeling most other people would think twice about harming a celestial.  The freaking ball of light, as we have come to call it, zapped us a few times before we were able to hammer out an agreement with it; we don’t touch the altar, it doesn’t zap us.  Padraic has since established a good relationship with this pulsing ball, and it has been showing promise as a minor priest, which is something we truly needed.  One of these days, perhaps we’ll be able to coax it out of the sanctuary, but for now, we run to it for healing whenever necessary.</blockquote>

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