Entry 2 – Godsday, Flocktime 4, Common Year 613

Currently half of the others in this band are both incapacitated and recovering slowly or on the verge of expiring all together. No matter. It will not be long before I have gained the power necessary to compel them to serve me even in death. For now, I will tend their wounds, and continue this masquerade as a cleric of Palore, even if I do despise the channeling of spells of that domain. I can see that under my subtle guidance they will make excellent tools in the Great Culling that will ensure and solidify my rise amongst what little remains of Nerull's theocracy. As soon as I have usurped control, I will bend all of the Reaper's followers to my will and compel them to do his biding in a most organized and methodical manner. We will then be a force to be reckoned with... we’ll just leave that part out of my reports however.

All in this rag-tag party interest me. Since I have plenty of time to write, being that we are forced to recuperate a few days, I will write about what I know of each of them:

Shandala, a priestess of Mishakal (Goddess of healing, life, compassion, and love). Of elven decent, the priestess stands against everything that Nerull stands for. She is in essence my mortal enemy, yet I could not bring myself to end her life when left to tend her as I could not bring myself to heal her when the battle was over. After pondering this I realized that there must be greater powers at work. Currently, there is more use in keeping her alive. I will enjoy twisting her to suit my devices. I still can not bring myself to heal her, else she discover who it is that I truly serve. Yes, I will have to watch that one.

Melissa, the priestess of Mishakal’s sultry sister. She seems quite different than her more devout sister. I will enjoy watching this one, as she is quite pleasant to look upon. I believe she follows her sister out of love if nothing else. Had we met under different terms she may have joined me outright at the assurance of wealth and power to come. She also has the look of someone hiding a secret, trying hard not to catch too much attention at times.

Jackson, a tall, mountain-man, seemingly more at home in the wilderness then in civilized lands. He has proven to be quite the tracker and survivalist. Whether he deals blows with his ax or showers death down upon foes with bow and arrow, he is always calm, quiet, and efficient.

The three sell-swords we picked up in town. All seem to be mercenaries if I have ever seen one, though perhaps they are new to this sort of work. Not as personable as the others, they are careful not to drop their names so I will just make three up so as to have something to distinguish them apart from each other. They seem to know each other though; perhaps they were all raised in the same area. I would not be surprised if they are also all wanted men. Jacob, adept at wielding two weapons at once, is apt to follow orders and leap into combat if given the opportunity. Joel shows some promise with tracking and hunting. I am assuming he was the son of a woodsman or trapper. He also has proven to be very tough, able to remain standing after taking wounds that would kill most others. He could become quite useful should his skills improve. The last of the companions, Jason, seems to be akin to Melissa judging by his movements and mannerisms. His ears always perk up at the prospect of riches. Not much else is known about these three, though I expect to learn more about them as the days pass.

Damian, an obvious paladin of Eli, The Platinum Dragon. (Chief of the Gods of Light in his pantheon and believed to be the creator of the elves. He sires a few other Gods via Mishakal and is also the patron of the Knights of Solamnia, specifically the Order of the Rose. His colors are silver and white. He is the patron god of charity and he influences order, hope, light, rulership and guardianship, as well as law, wards, thought, and war). Damian shows all the signs of one who is trained as a leader. He is charismatic, has a take-charge attitude and is unafraid to take risks; the definite leader of this band and just the type of person that I am looking to pull the strings for. It is amazing what a few well placed suggestions coated in the honey of manipulation and roasted over the fires of desperation can do for you!

I have not spoken to the cleric of Eli and I am not to keen to get to know her name. I will call her Poppet. Though she shows to be devout in her faith, she places Damian, the paladin in great trust. After seeing how she steals glances at him when he is not looking, I believe that she may not be following his orders as blindly as I first believed. There may just be something else glimmering in her eyes other then faith when she looks at him. Most intriguing.

Kavae, a plainsman of sorts. He is much like Jackson, though he is even stranger to me, wearing little clothing and as at home in the wild as a lynx. Full of many unorthodox ideals and ideas, I have observed him strip down to nakedness and cover himself with mud just to blend in better with the night. I will not underestimate him or his ways, however, as I have seen just how deadly he is with a bow. He follows Damian without question. I later discovered that this is due to a "life-debt" owed to him.