Athian's Journal

[Ausar]

Day 65 of Year 4 of the Fourth Age

The expedition High Priestess Mariah asked us to undertake on behalf of the temple was a success. I was positively surprised at how many people showed up to help, once the practical side of things came into motion. Lira and Naz where there, as well as Lady Miriamella, Radem or even Cena, the chaotic Valentine girl Navaru once saved from the mob. Add to that scouts, rangers and druids from the temple and we had a nice, well rounded team. I was mostly there as a diplomat.
Most of us traveled by gryphons, but some had wings of their own or magical means to ease the burden on the flying beasts. The information gathered with that magical scan proved to be correct. We found an island teeming with plant and animal life. It had a distinctive lake in the center and we decided to make that our waypoint. On our way we got intercepted by the natives, creatures that resemble a mixture of plant and mammal. We managed to convince them of our peaceful intentions and impressed them to the point where they wanted to introduce us to the guardian of that island, apparently the equivalent of their local leader.
After a brief stroll through the woods we arrived at the lake, where the guardian holds court. His name is Fang and he is a very bright man, having been appointed guardian by his goddess a long time ago. It seems he was not only already aware of our presence, but had been spying on Lismore for some time. He wasn't really opposed to what he learned about our intentions and it was just a matter of a few choice words to convince him that his gathered intel was correct and we both had lots in common. Admittedly it worked in our favor that he seemed to have taken a shine on the druid Spring, who remained with the guardian after our talks to further improve diplomatic relations.

I wish all things could go as smooth as that expedition. Poor Xahu probably has his work cut out for him in regards to his daughter, Princess Yuna. The girl has developed a knack for ice elemental magic, to the point where she is freezing objects left and right. She lacks the skill and discipline necessary to control this gift, though. I hope Xahu will be able to set her up with proper teachers before she is bound to harm herself or anyone else by accident.
What worries me is Kleopatra's reaction to it all, though. She confirmed the obvious suspicion that Yuna's magic abilities are inherited from the late Edhel Valentine. But she was convinced that without a proper power core there was a high chance that, even with training, Yuna would be unable to control her powers and grow to be a dangerous threat for all around her. Anthony repeated the very same misgivings in a later conversation.     

There seems to be no new advancements in Zeela's acquisition of the tavern. I was around when Lady Dru rejected to proceed with the deal herself and put her son in charge of selling the Rabbit Hole. From the looks of it, Zeela and Lord Xahu are not going to find common ground anytime soon. I hope hanging in Limbo will not prove detrimental to the day-by-day business of the tavern. That place has deserved better... much better.  I will probably seek out Aryn and ask him for his insight. 

Work at the farm and granary goes well. We have another helping paw around: Amon Valentine. Lord Xahu sentenced him to work with us for a year. Finally someone who has some skill at cooking and baking stuff. I am going to take my time with testing out his skills and sampling the produce. I hope Radem will warm up to him, too, despite his demonic heritage. I also need to spend more time with Radem at the stables to learn all the names he has given to the animals under our care. I know most of the pigs names by now, as I am keeping a close eye on our local meat production. It amuses me that our fattest porker by far is our breeding boar, Louie. He got really spoiled with all the leftover food from the winter celebrations. I sure hope his piglets will inherit both his size and that healthy appetite.   

Last, but certainly not least, I have to mention what a skilled blacksmith Nina Farwell is. She delivered my new greatsword recently. A very fine piece of work, I will put it to good use.


Athian Lavyas Hoggard

[Ausar]

Day 101 of Year 4 of the Fourth Age

A lot of interesting newcomers these days and some really happen to show around Lismore in the weirdest of ways. The one who's name has the most cloud would be Ronin Ninetails, a kitsune that claims to be one of the sons of the late Lord Ashtyn Ninetails. Like his father he hails from Nippon, but has done a lot of traveling in the almost 400 years of his life. Unless he wants to show it, you would never guess his place of origin by the way he talks and acts, though. He recently lost his mother who ascended into a higher state of being. Nowadays he claims to be on a search to find himself and he considers learning more about his father to be one of the steps along the way. His appearance brings back some memories to all those who personally knew Lord Ashtyn - especially Radem, who was his lover. There is also some worry that certain elements could be interested in using Ronin as leverage in political campaigns against the Fu-Shengs, though there is hardly solid ground for any claims to the throne, given that there was no proper right of succession in place back then.

Then there is Varessa, a woman following the noble path of the healer. She is a hybrid between a horse and some large saurian species, probably even a dragon. Gives her a rather interesting appearance with that mixture of fur and scales. It reminds me a bit of that 'dranny' Zelius I once met down at the Phoenix. She has the impressible physique of a valkyrie from the legends of old, though she seems a lot softer and more approachable. Being the epitome of health that I am I hardly ever have need of a healer, but I certainly would consider her, should the need arise.

Last, but certainly not least, there was the guy that very literally fell out of the blue... right from the sky on top of the roof of our tavern. Luckily Ryo, Anthony and I have been standing nearby chatting on the streets. The sound of his crash landing accompanied by a row of curses quickly alerted us to what was going on. We've been able to offer the canine a helping paw at making it safely back to the ground. His name is Matthias and he seems to have been the custodian of a brotherhood that calls themselves the Dark Wardens. While handling an artifact he got transported through space and possibly time. At least that is what Matthias keeps claiming. He once spend a certain amount of time living in Lismore, but that was way back in the Second Age. So for the most part he has to experience Lismore in a whole new light. I usually enjoy out talks, because he has a keen interest in lore and artificing. There is also that spirit bound to his arm armor that kinda intrigues me.

Ryu has  moved in with the Vance family now. It seems he has some shapeshifting abilities, because the last time I met him on two paws, rather than all fours. He is quite a beauty in his anthro form. Going to turn a lot of heads all over Lismore. I hope Anthony and Kleo will be good company for him. I am a bit worried, because Kleopatra clearly still idolizes her father, turning a blind eye to the reality of things, while Anthony has proven time and again that there is little he can do to keep her in check. In that regard they are very much like what I've seen and heard about their parents. I would really like to see them choose different paths, setting them apart from the life their direct family has led in the past. But I don't see much of that in their actual deeds. What is Anthony's response to worries of foxramau breeding habits? Claiming his sister as his wife and starting at reproduction, of course.

Not to dwell on that I rather think of my last visit to the palace tower. I caught the whole family in one spot, Xahu, Ewyllyn, Yuna and Valric. The young prince is such an adorable pup. Was playing sword games with Lord Xahu, defending the realm of fire imps, ogres and whatnot. Aside from the delightful company I got a decent meal out of the visit, too. It seems our work with Rosie is bearing fruit, she finally starts to cook quite tasty things. She doesn't have much sense of proportions, though, so she cooked for like a whole royal banquet rather than just the royal family. Personally, I don't mind that at all, if it means that Lord Xahu will invite me over more often to take care of the leftovers. My reason for being there was the discussion of a greenhouse I want to see build for the granary. The general idea met with approval and I will go ahead and have proper plans drawn up so that my emperor can make an informed decision.


Athian Lavyas Hoggard