How long it is since my last entry I'm not sure. I have some time now, for despite it being an intrusion of the 13th Hour we appear to be safe inside the walls of this hostelry.
Like most of my diary entries I seem to be starting at the end rather than the beginning, so let me return to what I can remember happened after I stepped into the Logrus.
Well I was
forced to change shape, slowly at first and then more rapidly and into
ever more bizarre forms. At some point my Id became seperated from my
physical body. At first I could do nothing but watch as my body was
contorted into ever stranger shapes and forms, but then a realization
came upon me. If this was some form of test then why should I be forced
to do what this logrus wanted, it was my body after all. I tried to
take control but it resisted. Slowly I exerted my self, taking control
of my cells one by one. It is the most tiring thing I have ever done
and I thought I would never succeed.
As I gained control I could sense the presence of my mother and she
seemed to be talking to me. I cannot consciously remember what she said
but at least twice since my return to normality I have been able to
retrieve information I appear to know without knowing it. My new
comrades appear to view me with great suspicion because of this,
although Charity seems to be more forgiving. I wonder if she is hiding
secrets of her own?
How I ended up with them I'm not 100% sure. I remember my mother saying goodbye and that she was sending me to some people who needed my help and in return to aid me in my quest to save my Kingdom, but I was barely if at all conscious at that point and blacked out.
When I came too a female, who I later learnt was Charity, was bundling me into some clothing, for it seems the Logrus discourged me naked, my clothes and armour just shreds and tatters. We then seemed to take a short journey on a horse before stopping at an inn. I was much recovered by that point enough to know my sword was missing. The arrogant one who seems full of himself, Allagahn, said it was safe and he refused to return it. Somehow I knew how to sense for it as if it was connected to me, and found it on his person. When I told him where it was he still refused to return it until Charity insisted he did so - it seems she is leader of this group and has skills the others do not. Certainly unlike the others she is very guarded in what she says but it seems she has walked the Pattern of Amber and knows of Trump. I chose to keep the knowledge my mother gave me on these subjects to myself.
After a few
hours rest, we set off, although I was forced to ride double with
Charity. Perhaps I should have ridden double with the Gnome, Alfred,
for he did not look at all well and had to be tied to his saddle to
keep him on the horse.
We rode all day apparently searching for an abandoned horse and cart.
Charity had let Allagahn lead, and then appeared to spend the day
quietly fuming to herself. Certainly after we had dug the horse and
cart out of its mire she refused to let him lead any more and seemed to
be in more of a hurry, driving the horse team at an unsustainable rate.
She is also another shape shifter but I've yet to determine exactly how
good she is.
Shortly after
we got underway we had a 13th Hour incursion and
Charity froze with the rest of the world. This is most strange as none
of the rest of us did. Allagahn seem especially jumpy and paranoid. he
seems to be of the opinion that the demons are deliberately hunting us,
following us even. I don't have enough information yet to determine
whether he's correct or whether he's got a persecution complex.
When the world return to normal Charity seemed unphased as if its
common that she freezes. If this is true what is it that makes her
different from the rest of us?
We have
travelled and rested several times since then although this the first
inn we have stopped at. The culture here is quite different than my
own. Charity describes it as "Oriental" and it appears a necessary
point on our path to a Golden Circle realm called Nancheng.
We are now nearing the end of another 13th Hour
incursion. Allagahn is still as paranoid as ever. He did suggest if I
found out if any of my powers worked here although I actually failed to
properly manifest either the Logrus or gain control of a tendril. Still
it was only my first attempt and there appeared to be no reason, other
than complete lack of skill, why I couldn't.
It's difficult to track time as we travel and I have nothing to reference it by. We have now stopped at another inn. It appears Allagahn is more confident if we are inside buildings when the 13th Hour intrudes. Personally I'm not sure it makes any difference, but it's nice to have a comfortable bed even if we do have to sleep on the floor. As well as time its difficult to track distance, especially as for bursts of a couple of hours the world seems to swim about us changing from one stride of the horses to the next. Charity says we are now quite close to Nancheng and should reach it sometime tomorrow. Allagahn is getting more friable, complaining about the inadequacy of his weapons. He seems to want to head off into shadow and acquire a better sword, although the one he's got looks quite serviceable.
What an amazing city. i've never seen anything quite like it. The architecture and building decoration are magnificent. We have managed to find rooms at another inn of good standing. How Charity manages to find purses of money the way she does I do not know but without it I'm not sure how we would live as I have nothing but the dress she gave me and my sword and I'm not in a position to part with that. Allagahn has gone off in search of his sword and the rest of us are enjoying the hospitality of the establishment. According to Charity's magic box, Orac, we are due another 13th Hour incursion shortly. If nothing untowards happens I shall go shopping after that and buy myself some more suitable clothes, and a suit of the armour I've seen the soldiers wearing.
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