The letter and the earring

"Darabisoz, Vuuldiir (Vatermont) 1000AC


My dear Peregriadoc,

A blue bird told me you intend to finally explore your potential. Great!

The same bird told me you plan to go directly into adventuring - to no less than Darokin! Not so great.

Please use the earring. Yes, now. Yes, the left ear is fine! Read on after you've done so.

Do you feel it? Good. Now you have a slight chance to survive a journey from Home to Specularum.

It gets especially nasty when it comes to the werebeings and other undead. The Grand Duchy of Karameikos can be deceiving, so civilized and wild at the same time, like the two sides of the same coin.

There is another caravan departing to Specularum in 8 days. Wait for that one. Do not go to Darokin - not yet, at least.

Talk to Lina Thinbrow as soon as possible and ask to join the caravan. She will say "yes".

Get the dagger that is hung above the mantlepiece.

Do not forget to bring some rope. Every rookie makes that mistake. Guilty!

I'll meet you at the final destination for your caravan.

Love,

Uncle Cillidox.

P.S.: Do not take the earring off at any time. Ever."

Darabisoz? Where is that? And what is my uncle doing there?

Vatermont? What is that?

And this earring?? I've never felt like that before! I feel... more!

With a little help from my uncle

How did I come to think of being an adventurer? Uh... well... to be a storyteller, anyway, like I told you.

The question is: where did I get this wanderlust from?

This could be an easy answer: "from my uncle." But there is so much more to be told! Cillidox is my mother's older brother and takes care of me like his own son - whenever he's around, that is: he teaches Wild Magic (whatever that is) at the Krakatos School of Magecraft (or Karameikan School of Magecraft, if you like). Pretty fancy, eh?

"Krakatos", "Karameikan"? I'll tell you, no rush! Karameikos is our east neighbouring kingdom. The bosses there (and the majority of the population) are hummies, but my uncle is the sort of fella who gets along well with almost everyone.

I remember he once explained to me how the "Acid Rain" spell works, so I'm happy that he's so good at self-control.   :-)   (I invented these cool thingies I call "faceys" to remind myself of the mood of phrases. Neat, eh? And yes, I talk to myself.)

You see how much I ramble with this pen? I started by telling you about my uncle and finished the above with a horrific spell and faceys. Well, that's Peregriadoc for you, haha. I plan to wander through the realms of the Known World as much as I wander with my thoughts and quill.

Uncle Cillidox has been an adventurer for as long as I remember and has been teaching at the School for several years now. He tells me (and mom) that he sees a lot of potential in me and he would not like to see it squandered in a "simple eating-drinking-smoking-playing the flute" life, as he calls it.

That, on top of the amazing stories from both the School and his adventures, made the idea of going adventuring grow on me. Not only that, he seems so secretive at times that it's fascinating!

The wagons are supposed to leave in a couple of days, so I'm stocking, doing some preparation, writing letters to my parents and siblings, then I will be on my way along with a trade caravan that is going to Specularum, Karameikos' capital city.


Let me see: flute, food, appropriate clothing, pipe, pipe-weed, more pipe-weed, food, some more food... uh, of course! Pocket handkerchief and walking stick! Never leave home without those!

When in Specularum, I'll meet my uncle and - based on the letter he sent me - from there I'm guessing he'll take me to the School.

Maybe I'll even have adventure enough during the trip to write a song!

Super thrilled here!   :-D   <===  See? Awesome or what?

Pipe-weed!

Now I know where to start!

I have recently heard (well... actually, overheard, but nevermind...) that a load of pipe-weed will be exported to the amazing kingdom of Darokin. Yes, Darokin! Beautiful, mighty, rich Darokin! Well, at least that is what I've heard about it.

So with all that excitement, I was about to start my adventuring career in a bold - yet sloppy, maybe even stupid - way.

That's when I got a letter with an emerald earring inside. Right? The whole thing made of emerald? And in the shape of a flame? How cool is that? Well... it might be merely blue-green tourmaline, though.

I wish I knew more about gems... adding that to the things I need to improve on. I have a feeling from now on I'll be seeing lots of gems, me being an adventurer and all... so it'll be a handy skill. :-)

The letter was from Cillidox, a halfling (like myself!) adventurer of great renown and our country hero. Have I told you already that we live in the Five Shires?

Well, the letter did not describe what the earring was. I guess finding out more about it is part of my training, something for me to learn and experiment with. Or a yet another joke of Cillidox's - probably both.

At least, the document brought some really useful suggestions, and... well, I'm getting ahead of myself: first things, first... aesthetics are a must: let me decide in each ear to use the earring. I flip a copper coin and it's... the left ear!

Now let me tell you about my uncle.