[Flynn]

The 18th of Pharast, 4710 A.R.,


I had not suspected my time here in the Stolen Lands would see me becoming somewhat of a monster hunter but over the last week that is precisely what has happened. At Oleg’s, I happened across an old hunter named Vekkel. Apparently this man is somewhat well known as one of the best in his trade around these parts. Despite his supposed skill, he came to Oleg’s seeking someone who could rid the Stolen Lands of a particularly nasty boar by the name of Tuskgutter. Interestingly enough this talk of monster slaying must have inspired Oleg to put out a contract on two Tatzylwurms that have been ravaging the countryside. These contracts piqued my interests. My mind was tickled by the idea that perhaps the tatzylworms’ lair was a site of ancient magicks. On top of that, Vekkel promised his masterwork bow as a reward for killing the Tuskgutter, which is one of the few things my servant Mr. Bydon could make good use of. With that, Mr. Bydon and I set off to cleanse the lands of these creatures and pave the way for civilization and routes of commerce!

Mr. Bydon lived up to his title as my Guide to these northern parts of the stolen lands and was able to find the Tuskgutter’s lair quite easily. A truly savage creature, this Tuskgutter. As we approached its grounds we saw many deer that seemed to be killed simply for sport. Unfortunately, I did not sense any magic emanating from these grounds and I knew that this boar was mundane and therefore no match for the greatest wizard of Brevoy. Despite being able to masterfully sneak up on our Tuskgutter, the beast turned with a look of surprise and rage, and began to charge at Mr. Bydon and myself. For some reason, fear flushed over my servant’s face, as he knocked his arrow, asking me what he was to do. Apparently Mr. Bydon’s fear got the best of him. I instructed my servant to strike the boar’s eye, but his arrow went wild, not even coming near the beast. Unfortunately, Mr. Bydon’s lack of finesse caused him a great deal of pain, as the Tuskgutter gored my servant straight through his torso, lifting him off the ground and sending him to his back. Luckily, I had been expertly tracking the beast’s movement with my musket and let out a devastatingly accurate shot at its head, killing it instantly and nearly causing decapitation. Mr. Bydon was in quite a bad way, as he lay on the floor, unconscious, losing blood quite fast from a 2-inch hole in his chest. My knowledge of first-aid was able to stabilize him but unfortunately I knew this would not be enough to ensure his safety on the route back to Oleg’s.

Earlier Mr. Bydon and I had an argument about the potion I gathered from the magick water at the Elk temple. My intuition told me that such a potion would work better on those magickly adept and I insisted we should save it for my own use. Mr. Bydon insulted my arcane knowledge by claiming that he believes it would work equally on any man. Fear not, dear readers, for I set Mr. Bydon straight and threatened him bodily harm were he ever to insult my knowledge again.

Despite all this, as I looked at the hole in Mr. Bydon’s chest, I knew I could not let my servant lose effectiveness in the upcoming days, for there was cleansing to be achieved. Reluctantly, I let Mr. Bydon drink my potion and watched in awe as his wound underwent a few days’ worth of healing in a matter of seconds. With that, we set off back to Oleg’s with Tuskgutter’s severed head to collect our reward and let Mr. Bydon’s wound finish healing.
Vekkel lived up to his end of the bargain and bequeathed to Mr. Bydon his masterwork bow. Perhaps this will ensure Mr. Bydon does not miss again in the future. Thanks to some healing magicks from my acquired friend, Jhod the priest of Erastil, Mr. Bydon was healed and we were ready to venture forth to continue our cleansing.

This time we were to find the lair of a particularly vile creature, the tatzylworm. I had read a great deal about these beasts but never had the opportunity to see one in the flesh. As you might imagine, I was excited for what curiosities awaited me. While we travelled I grew weary of the mundane nature of the previous few days and I sought to make contact with the faeries that I met last month. Unfortunately, they were nowhere to be found. Eventually, Mr. Bydon and I approached some sort of stone ruins. I had glorious visions of ancient knowledge being sealed away within these ruins and convinced Mr. Bydon to accompany me as we scouted the area. It was pitch dark at that very moment, so I created some magickal lights that managed to light up and great portion of the ruins. To my awe I saw a giant frog-like creature emerge from the ruins and being charging at us. For some reason Mr. Bydon looked frightened and cautiously drew his bow.

Before I could draw my musket, atop another section of the ruins appeared a humanoid shape, who began shouting orders in a tongue unknown to me. This came as a shock, for I know a vast deal of tongues both new and old. As the figure stepped closer atop the rampart I saw it to be a boggard. Thankfully, I recalled a wealth of information regarding boggards from my time spent reading Creatures of the Swamps and Undergrowths by Marcus Finneas. Boggards, though prone to violence, are not an evil race per se. These frog-men are usually addicted to hallucinogens found in nature but possess great physical strength. I quickly “surrendered” to this boggard and threw my hands in the air, seeking to converse with the creature. I found the creature spoke broken versions of both the common tongue and the goblins’. A curious member of his species, this one was named Glenrum, an exile from a nearby boggard settlement. Glenrum supposedly stole some sort of strength-bestowing magickal firefly from his compatriots and was kept captive by his people. I took mental note of this magickal firefly, for I would take great joy in finding one and studying its properties. Glenrum was able to escape captivity with his massive frog creature whom he calls Slurk. He treats this Slurk as we humans might treat a horse, and he even says he has ridden Slurk into battle. Due to boggards’ well below average intelligence, gaining this one’s trust was quite simple. I let him show me the ruins that he called his “kingdom” and complimented him at every turn at his ability to “rule” these parts. Unfortunately, these ruins did not house any magickal knowledge or ancient secrets as I had hoped.

Seeing that Glenrum possessed great physical strength I asked him to accompany me and Mr. Bydon in finding the tatzylworms that I knew must be nearby. I convinced Glenrum that the tatzylworms’ lair is home to hallucinogens that are stronger than any mushroom or swamp whiskey he has ever consumed. He said he would come with us if I let him have all of the “feel-good” plants that we found. Of course, I agreed. Now, it is unlikely that the tatzylworm lair even has any kind of hallucinogenic plants, but this clever lie has gained Mr. Bydon and I a powerful ally in our upcoming struggle against the tatzylworms. Glenrum even offered to let us sleep in his ruins for the night. Mr. Bydon did not like this idea nor that of us lying to Glenrum, but I assured him that Glenrum is unlikely to survive the encounter with the tatzylworms. I seek to use the frog-man as a sort of expendable soldier, who can lead the charge into the tatzylworm lair.

I write now from Glenrum’s Kingdom. A modest kingdom with a population of three; Glenrum, Mr. Bydon and I. Though I jest here about Glenrum and his odd definition of kingdom, I cannot deny our good fortune in finding him and in my guileful success in recruiting him to our cause.

In the upcoming days I know that we will slay these beasts and further our successes here in the stolen lands.

Fear me, beasts of these savage realms; for any who threaten the growth of civilization will fall before Randall Eugene Wainwright, the greatest wizard of Brevoy!

- R.E.W