Today, I again spent my day in the Ghostlands. Today’s events were generally spent in Zeb’Tela and Zeb’Nowa; some Ranger at the Farstrider Enclave was trying to free up Rangers for an attack on Deatholme, and so paid me a healthy commission to kill Trolls, and take loads of their weapons. I killed a good deal of them; they were powerful, but the training I received yesterday at the Warlock’s Academy in Silvermoon aided me. My illness prevents me from using Traditional Warlockry anymore, so I’ve had to re-learn Warlockry the clean way, which requires less magical exertion. It’s a long process; it essentially demands I relearn every spell that is with new verbal components, new somatic components… It’s infuriating!
Hopefully, the rest of my training will go quickly. The study takes hours in front of that tome in the Warlock Academy, mastering spells, before speaking with the trainer to get my certification. Whoever developed beauracracy deserves to be dragged into the streets of Murder Row and put before a firing squad. I’ve been a Warlock longer than some of these idiots at the Academy have been alive, and I still need to get certified to use a spell. I throw the certificates away immediately after getting them; they know this. They watch me do it, Hell, one of them even helped me do it, and yet they keep insisting I get the certificates. By the Gods…
After I hunted the simple Troll soldiers, I grouped with a Hunter named Arnbyk and a Rogue named Harlohck. They, along with me, had been commissioned by the Rangers t0 kill the leader of the Trolls in Ghostwood, Kel’gash the Wicked. Kel’gash lived in a small, isolated hut a hundred and twenty yards away from Zeb’Nowa, helped by only a few guards. Arnbyk and Harlohck were not as experienced adventurers as I, so I lead the charge, Zangzazt flying ahead and plunging his shadowy arm through the first Troll’s chest; due to the gaseous nature of his body, it didn’t do the damage it would’ve had one of us done it, but it did plenty of damage. Arnbyk put three arrows in the same Troll, as Harlohck knifed him in the back. That Troll collapsed as Zangzazt blasted the second of the four Trolls with a gaseous spell; there was no damage, but it angered the Troll greatly. He turned his attentions to Zangzazt, as Arnbyk and Harlohck began slicing away.
I was not idle during this time. Rather, I had been busy psychically corrupting the minds of the third Troll with a spell known as Fear. It’s a spell not generally accepted by outsiders to the Warlock’s Circle, because it involves twisting a being’s mind into believing things that aren’t true; making them see spiders when they’re arachnophobic, making them see their family members dead all around them… Ethically, it’s a horrible spell, but against Trolls who are no better than vermin or demons, I have no qualms.
Once the third Troll was incapacitated, I turned my attentions to the fourth. He was a spellcaster; I could sense from the way he shied away from the battle, and also from the lack of a cat at his side, as with the other three Trolls. He began casting a spell, but I wasn’t interested in letting him.
I raised my hand, and cast a swift spell, driving a bolt of pure shadow into the Hexxer’s side. He stumbled back, and charged at me. I rose my hand, and cast a pair of spells; a Curse of Agony, and a Corruption. He slowed, only for a moment as the pain began to enter his mind, but he came back after a moment, swinging his staff at my side. I let go of my cane; my leg crumpled beneath me, I gasped in pain, but I avoided taking any damage.
By this time, Zangzazt had been freed from his previous engagement and he came to my aid as Arbnyk and Harlohck moved to slay the Troll I had cast my Fear upon. Zangzazt gained the attentions of the Hexxer as I drew my dagger.
I focused for a moment, and pointed my dagger at the Hexxer; with a final word, he burst into flame, and I began ruthlessly attacking him with my dagger. The battle only lasted a few more moments.
We continued through the hut, an easy affair, before we finally came to Kel’gash the Wicked. He was a vast Troll, clearly with a powerful control over the elements and over his body. Zangzazt and Arbnyk’s pet raptor Abbadon attacked Kel’gash, and he cast a Lightning spell at Zangzazt. Meanwhile, I cast an Immolation, a Corruption, and a Curse of Agony, as Arbnyk began putting arrows into every exposed bit of flesh she could find. Harlohck did his Rogue thing at the same time, driving daggers through, under, over, and in between the cracks of the Troll’s armor.
It was difficult and messy; Abbadon fell in the process. We had a short funeral, and then Zangzazt tore the head of the Troll clean off, and tied it to Harlohck’s back. Harlohck was most upset, but an intimidating stare from the Voidwalker silenced his complaints. The four of us made our way north from there, traveling through Zeb’Nowa, slaying whatever Trolls dared to take us on. We traveled from there to Farstrider Enclave, and Harlohck was relieved of his grisly charge. The Rangers gave Arbnyk a longbow, Harlohck a sword, and I got a nice staff out of the deal. Unfortunately, due to my cane, I can’t really use staves, and so I pawned it for a pretty penny.
I made my way back to Tranquillien afterwards, and bought a bed at the inn. It had been a long day.
And then I started writing. And now I’m writing about writing.
Dear, I am getting old!
Anyway, I suppose I should go to sleep soon. Hopefully I won’t die tomorrow.
–Lord Gefjon Kath’demaros Shadowielder
