Written By Ahmar
June 5, 2019, 11:10 a.m.(3/23/1011 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
Ah Lady Arcadia. You accuse ME of twisting words in your journal.
I stated that no human deserves to burn alive when they are too sick to move. I stand by this. Their status as slaver or slave does not mean they deserve to suffer. I said there is no honor in this, to which he said, "Honor is something people make up to justify their actions."
Your brother asked why I wasn't on the docks to help the people there, when I was busy assisting to save 20 out of 30 souls on the ship that were rescued. So I asked why he wasn't there, since he gets to judge why I was not in three places at once.
He accused me of not helping people because I was busy looting, when it is known I only did that AFTER saving the lives in front of me, and did so at great risk to myself. My desire to save the chests was for possible information on the people we were rescuing, and any valuables will be returned to the surviving people we rescued, if it is indeed possible.
Then he said "It's ok. We all aren't at the docks getting high." Insinuating that I was there to get high, when the truth of the matter was I was there reflecting on the loss of my baby sister who had died not two days prior. I had her bards pin in my hand when the boat came.
That is when I issued the challenge.
THEN your brother insulted the long standing institution of dueling. saying "See, I don't care about the outcome. It is just grandstanding for people with more money than common sense."
Then as if it was somehow related, he defended his reading stating that his books contain information about ancestry, some of which families would not ever want to become public knowledge. Given the tone of the conversation and everything he had said to me up until that point, and it's entirely unrelated nature to the rest of the conversation, I took this as a vague threat to my family. Given I just lost the person I was closest too, I over reacted and did indeed threaten him, but I do not take perceived threats to my family lightly. I have since sent him my apology for this, as perhaps it was indeed an innocent enough comment that I just took the wrong way. But never did I once approach or even point my spear at your brother, but he did not seem to think I was serious about my charge to protect the people of Stonedeep.
So not only are you being quite untruthful with your statements, but you have re-ordered the events of that night to paint your brother in a better light and attempting to make me look bad. After the challenge was issued you yourself "People will know the truth." I asked your brother what was untruthful about my challenge. He said "He thought the statements misleading, but could not call them untrue."
So yes. Indeed people will know the truth.
I stated that no human deserves to burn alive when they are too sick to move. I stand by this. Their status as slaver or slave does not mean they deserve to suffer. I said there is no honor in this, to which he said, "Honor is something people make up to justify their actions."
Your brother asked why I wasn't on the docks to help the people there, when I was busy assisting to save 20 out of 30 souls on the ship that were rescued. So I asked why he wasn't there, since he gets to judge why I was not in three places at once.
He accused me of not helping people because I was busy looting, when it is known I only did that AFTER saving the lives in front of me, and did so at great risk to myself. My desire to save the chests was for possible information on the people we were rescuing, and any valuables will be returned to the surviving people we rescued, if it is indeed possible.
Then he said "It's ok. We all aren't at the docks getting high." Insinuating that I was there to get high, when the truth of the matter was I was there reflecting on the loss of my baby sister who had died not two days prior. I had her bards pin in my hand when the boat came.
That is when I issued the challenge.
THEN your brother insulted the long standing institution of dueling. saying "See, I don't care about the outcome. It is just grandstanding for people with more money than common sense."
Then as if it was somehow related, he defended his reading stating that his books contain information about ancestry, some of which families would not ever want to become public knowledge. Given the tone of the conversation and everything he had said to me up until that point, and it's entirely unrelated nature to the rest of the conversation, I took this as a vague threat to my family. Given I just lost the person I was closest too, I over reacted and did indeed threaten him, but I do not take perceived threats to my family lightly. I have since sent him my apology for this, as perhaps it was indeed an innocent enough comment that I just took the wrong way. But never did I once approach or even point my spear at your brother, but he did not seem to think I was serious about my charge to protect the people of Stonedeep.
So not only are you being quite untruthful with your statements, but you have re-ordered the events of that night to paint your brother in a better light and attempting to make me look bad. After the challenge was issued you yourself "People will know the truth." I asked your brother what was untruthful about my challenge. He said "He thought the statements misleading, but could not call them untrue."
So yes. Indeed people will know the truth.
Written By Willow
June 4, 2019, 6:02 p.m.(3/22/1011 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
Planned to kill someone unarmed and weaker than him?
Even if the claim you make of the spear being gone for were true, you yourself wrote specifically to comment on a heated disagreement in the moment, which would suggest an impulse borne of momentary passion, and certainly the exact /opposite/ of planning.
About lives? Yes, all of them matter equally, slave, slaver, commoner, noble, poet, knight, they are all lives and all sacred. Does that excuse slavery? No. Does that disregard the suffering of those enslaved? I would also say no - in fact, the very position that all lives are sacred and equal is one that makes any act of slavery inexcusable.
Even if the claim you make of the spear being gone for were true, you yourself wrote specifically to comment on a heated disagreement in the moment, which would suggest an impulse borne of momentary passion, and certainly the exact /opposite/ of planning.
About lives? Yes, all of them matter equally, slave, slaver, commoner, noble, poet, knight, they are all lives and all sacred. Does that excuse slavery? No. Does that disregard the suffering of those enslaved? I would also say no - in fact, the very position that all lives are sacred and equal is one that makes any act of slavery inexcusable.
Written By Sina
May 24, 2019, 11:49 p.m.(3/1/1011 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
The burning of books is frowned upon by the Scholars of Vellichor.
Written By Talwyn
May 5, 2019, 9:49 p.m.(1/18/1011 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
After Lady Arcadia demonstrated how she had trained her canary to sing along with a whistle , I am convinced she's actually more of an artist than she claims.
Written By Fairen
April 12, 2019, 3:35 a.m.(11/27/1010 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
Cady, I believe I made it quite clear it would be Captain Grandt of the house guard who would be eating Carrots.
The man has an unnatural taste for rabbit and probably other vermin as well; I swear I caught him snatching a rat away from an old tom once.
(Hullo, Grandt!)
The man has an unnatural taste for rabbit and probably other vermin as well; I swear I caught him snatching a rat away from an old tom once.
(Hullo, Grandt!)
Written By Iliana
April 11, 2019, 8:56 p.m.(11/26/1010 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
Next time, I /will/ chain you to the desk. And I'll detail Emilie to start teaching you about the staff payroll. Just something for you to keep in mind.
Written By Jace
April 5, 2019, 9:10 p.m.(11/14/1010 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
It was not my intention to be as stern with the lady as I was. I just had no desire to see her lose her pet. When a bird of prey is hunting, a canary is just a small snack before the meal.
Written By Edward
March 17, 2019, 6:53 p.m.(10/4/1010 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
It was a great pleasure to reconnect with family. I hope to see more of the wonderful Cady in the days to come. I have already sent a letter letting Elly know her sister is back in Arx. I am sure she will burn her eyebrows off in her excitement.
Written By Willow
March 9, 2019, 4:06 p.m.(9/16/1010 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
Lady Cady, I genuinely like you more than words can convey. You are sweet tempered, vivacious, and warm. Sometimes it hurts to be around you because you remind me of the me I once was, and that is a woman I miss. I am glad to call you friend and want to do all I can to help preserve the gormless joy in your eyes, smiling delight at this moment and that. You make duty feel heavy when countered against your bouyant lightness.
Written By Ajax
March 2, 2019, 3:01 p.m.(9/2/1010 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
Lady Leary,
I'm not a cheap mercenary, skill dictates price. Though, I would encourage you not to be impressed by that show. Many in this city stand that are more powerful then myself. Still, glad you enjoyed yourself.
I'm not a cheap mercenary, skill dictates price. Though, I would encourage you not to be impressed by that show. Many in this city stand that are more powerful then myself. Still, glad you enjoyed yourself.
Written By Elloise
Oct. 8, 2018, 10:20 a.m.(9/27/1009 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
Second to last: Cady's gone. I don't know what caused her to head back to the Leaholdt, but I already miss her. I feel like a terrible sister. I hope she didn't lose a limb -- or an eye -- or something else while I was away.
Written By Marian
Sept. 5, 2018, 11:02 p.m.(7/16/1009 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
Your mentor is wise and you should heed his directions. You can do many things and be mediocre at them or choose a path and devote yourself singularly in excellence. For when you scatter your energies to the wind, they have no force if they are going in all directions. But when you focus all your energies in one spot that is when you're able to punch a hole in the universe and move something, make progress.
I look forward to seeing where this journey takes you.
I look forward to seeing where this journey takes you.
Written By Caspian
Sept. 5, 2018, 10:15 p.m.(7/16/1009 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
Skald teaches us that we all have choice, and that our choices have consequences. That even the act of choosing, whether by action or inaction, will close some opportunities and open new ones.
And of course we are limited in our choices. By the realm of the possible, by our own aptitude, and by the actions, real or potential, of other people. There is no point in fretting that you can not achieve everything you want to do, for the freedom given by Skald is not the freedom to do what we want, but the freedom to do.
So go out there and do something. Just always consider what you're about to do.
And of course we are limited in our choices. By the realm of the possible, by our own aptitude, and by the actions, real or potential, of other people. There is no point in fretting that you can not achieve everything you want to do, for the freedom given by Skald is not the freedom to do what we want, but the freedom to do.
So go out there and do something. Just always consider what you're about to do.
Written By Sina
Sept. 5, 2018, 3:26 p.m.(7/16/1009 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
You always have a choice; to be the hero, or to be the evil wizard.
What defines a hero, and what defines an evil wizard? Well, I think things are a bit more complicated than they may seem, on the surface. Sure, everyone knows what a hero is. A person who is virtuous (or maybe even not that virtuous) but who does brave things, selflessly (or maybe not even selflessly), for the benefit of others (or for glory). A person who is lauded by their peers as someone who has done great deeds on behalf of House, Faith, Compact or family. A hero may give their life in the service of others, or walk away from a battle with deep scars for the rest of his life, but knowing that he has saved many lives in the process. A hero may simply disappear to unknown parts, like Lady Aislin, and no one will know what became of her, though her deeds and legacy will live on because of the great contributions she made while she was with us.
An evil wizard... well, they are a bit more complicated. Sometimes, the evil wizard may even think he is the hero, despite the damage and destruction he causes around him. Sometimes it turns out that the hero, while she may have had the best intentions, can cause unforeseen effects. For example, killing a monster, only to find out that a bigger, more dangerous monster is now freed by that act. The hero is still considered a hero, of course, because in the end, maybe she saved many people, allowing them to live on and fight another day. Maybe she found an artifact that turned the tide in a battle. Maybe she guided a ship home through treacherous waters, or saved children from a burning house. Her cause is just, her intentions good. But the evil wizard... will always be seen as an evil wizard, because of the way he presents himself.
The path of the hero and the villain can be equally treacherous. Sometimes, what we perceive as an evil wizard, may actually be the man trying to save us all, but his methods are so unconventional and strange that none recognize him for what he is. Sometimes the hero we thought we knew turns out to be a wolf in sheep's clothing, hidden in a cloud of deceit only to betray us in the end. And of course, sometimes, maybe even most of the time, a hero is just that - a hero, and a villain is just a villain, and both are exactly as they seem to be.
It is the rare evil wizard, in truth, that actually thinks of himself as evil, I would imagine. Like heroes, evil wizards think they are doing the right thing. They think /they/ are the heroes, the ones who are doing right by the world, the ones who want to make the world a better place, from their own perspective, even if it means destroying or enslaving it. This, of course, doesn't mean that they are right. But in their mind's eye, they are following the righteous path, while we are the ones who are deluded.
So what it all comes down to is your choice, and your unique perspective. Everything you do, whether for good or ill, may have consequences. And people may try to warn you of those consequences, and advise against an action you have proposed. But in the end, it's your choice, whether to heed that advice, or to go on your merry way anyway. The consequences remain, however, whether you choose to consider them or not. And those consequences will define how people perceive you: as a hero, or an evil wizard, or anything in between.
What defines a hero, and what defines an evil wizard? Well, I think things are a bit more complicated than they may seem, on the surface. Sure, everyone knows what a hero is. A person who is virtuous (or maybe even not that virtuous) but who does brave things, selflessly (or maybe not even selflessly), for the benefit of others (or for glory). A person who is lauded by their peers as someone who has done great deeds on behalf of House, Faith, Compact or family. A hero may give their life in the service of others, or walk away from a battle with deep scars for the rest of his life, but knowing that he has saved many lives in the process. A hero may simply disappear to unknown parts, like Lady Aislin, and no one will know what became of her, though her deeds and legacy will live on because of the great contributions she made while she was with us.
An evil wizard... well, they are a bit more complicated. Sometimes, the evil wizard may even think he is the hero, despite the damage and destruction he causes around him. Sometimes it turns out that the hero, while she may have had the best intentions, can cause unforeseen effects. For example, killing a monster, only to find out that a bigger, more dangerous monster is now freed by that act. The hero is still considered a hero, of course, because in the end, maybe she saved many people, allowing them to live on and fight another day. Maybe she found an artifact that turned the tide in a battle. Maybe she guided a ship home through treacherous waters, or saved children from a burning house. Her cause is just, her intentions good. But the evil wizard... will always be seen as an evil wizard, because of the way he presents himself.
The path of the hero and the villain can be equally treacherous. Sometimes, what we perceive as an evil wizard, may actually be the man trying to save us all, but his methods are so unconventional and strange that none recognize him for what he is. Sometimes the hero we thought we knew turns out to be a wolf in sheep's clothing, hidden in a cloud of deceit only to betray us in the end. And of course, sometimes, maybe even most of the time, a hero is just that - a hero, and a villain is just a villain, and both are exactly as they seem to be.
It is the rare evil wizard, in truth, that actually thinks of himself as evil, I would imagine. Like heroes, evil wizards think they are doing the right thing. They think /they/ are the heroes, the ones who are doing right by the world, the ones who want to make the world a better place, from their own perspective, even if it means destroying or enslaving it. This, of course, doesn't mean that they are right. But in their mind's eye, they are following the righteous path, while we are the ones who are deluded.
So what it all comes down to is your choice, and your unique perspective. Everything you do, whether for good or ill, may have consequences. And people may try to warn you of those consequences, and advise against an action you have proposed. But in the end, it's your choice, whether to heed that advice, or to go on your merry way anyway. The consequences remain, however, whether you choose to consider them or not. And those consequences will define how people perceive you: as a hero, or an evil wizard, or anything in between.
Written By Thena
Sept. 5, 2018, 8:49 a.m.(7/15/1009 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
Listen to everyone's advice, smile and nod, think it over, and then do what you want.
Written By Edain
Sept. 5, 2018, 8:30 a.m.(7/15/1009 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
I don't know if this will offer any comfort or encouragement, but I understand your sentiment.
There was a time that I dreamed of nothing more than the open road, the rolling hills, the summer wheat, the forboding forests and craggy mountains. I dreamed of being the proud knight errant that carried the Valardin banner, would be there when my brothers and sister called, and to the hero that brought hope to the hopeless.
Things..... happened and I had to give up that dream and for a long time I am ashamed to admit that in my most private moments I felt very sorry for myself. I have learned something very important the last few years. Even admidst this turmoil or darkness. Our true strength comes not from what we keep for ourselves but in what we give to others.
You will have many adventures yet I imagine, but share in the ones you cannot. Empower others to take those journeys you cannot in your place. Be that to teach them something new, offer them knowledge they will need, or even just your support and promise to sing songs of thier deeds. So take heart and pay things forward and marvel not just at the hero you become, but the one you help others to be.
There was a time that I dreamed of nothing more than the open road, the rolling hills, the summer wheat, the forboding forests and craggy mountains. I dreamed of being the proud knight errant that carried the Valardin banner, would be there when my brothers and sister called, and to the hero that brought hope to the hopeless.
Things..... happened and I had to give up that dream and for a long time I am ashamed to admit that in my most private moments I felt very sorry for myself. I have learned something very important the last few years. Even admidst this turmoil or darkness. Our true strength comes not from what we keep for ourselves but in what we give to others.
You will have many adventures yet I imagine, but share in the ones you cannot. Empower others to take those journeys you cannot in your place. Be that to teach them something new, offer them knowledge they will need, or even just your support and promise to sing songs of thier deeds. So take heart and pay things forward and marvel not just at the hero you become, but the one you help others to be.
Written By Tynan
June 10, 2018, 12:09 a.m.(12/16/1008 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
I'll be curious to find out if you can be 'too hungover' as well.
Written By Elloise
June 6, 2018, 11:22 p.m.(12/6/1008 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
If you could learn blacksmithing, Cady, that would be indescribably helpful. I need an extra set of hands to swing a hammer for this little what-happens-if project I'm working on.
Written By Elloise
June 5, 2018, 1:12 p.m.(12/3/1008 AR)
Relationship Note on Arcadia
Scholar's Note: The young lady known as Lady Elloise Leary ran in making quite the strange noise, calling it "a squeal of the purest delight" before she suddenly fell over after stubbing her toe.
Please note that the scholars may take some time preparing your journal for others to read.