Where Is Harald Vanir?

[Esterlen 4499]

Fearful rumours had beset the people of Oren that Harald Vanir, a cousin of the Dukes of Karovia, had been attacked and slain by wild animals on the roads. To look even further into the matter, one could uncover the fact that the Karovians themselves were stoking the flames of these calumnies, perhaps in order to purge all memory of their hated cousin, Harald, the only one who had dissented from their heathenous and megalomaniac world view, where in their most lofty dreams they had achieved their life’s aspiration as the personal catamite of King Andrew Vydra. But for the Vanirs this ambition had been cut short when that king was plunged into a vat of boiling oil - and so they had been forced to content themselves with somewhat less important (To them at least) service to King Olivier.
 
The court of Governor Benda in the Aeldinic city of Pronce was silent as one of his many supplicants brought him a thick and rugged leather tome, filled with parchment leaflets which had all been bound together by a cloth sack. Benda, a cruel, beady-eyed man who hated sorcery above all, ruled his province with consummate tyranny and paranoia, and the men in his service who wished to earn his favour knew this perfectly.  
 
“We took it from a hermit in the woods near Marna,” one of the slack-jawed soldiers said, bent to the ground in a kneel.
 
“A dangerous one, he was...some kind of powerful sage, hm hm!” offered the other, his hands clasped behind his back.
 
“He, uh, got away, we couldn’t manage to capture ‘im,” added the final member of the trio.
 
Benda flicked open the book, his flinty eyes scanning through its contents. With a displeased sigh, he closed it immediately after.
 
“Are you ploughin’ daft?” said the Governor, holding his hand up threateningly, “This isn’t a damned spellbook, this is some old hermit’s fuckin’ journal!” His voice was very powerful as he yelled at the soldiers, his head shaking in irritation, “Get the **** outta my court before I rip your fuckin’ legs off.”
 
The soldiers promptly left, and having discarded the journal to the side, one of his courtiers idly scooped it up in his arms and took it to his quarters. Every now and again he would read the book, whose author was unfortunately bereft of the more complex principles of literacy. Despite these flaws, it was still coherant.
 

 

 

 

THE JOURNAL OF HARALD VANIR

 

(The journal's author is clearly barely literate, with there being many punctuation and grammar mistakes throughout.)

 

CHAPTER I: ALEKSANDER

It has been 10 years since the end of the schism, I now live in Aeldin shortly after arriving here with my companions, the marked men. I splitt off from the group in search of a rabbitt I saw and decided to chase and have been living in this cave near Marna ever since.

Living alone has made me reflect on my escape, there are many reasons why I left, but the first one I must speak of is Aleksander. I was a fatherless boy who recently moved to Karovia with my uncles, Aleksander was a good young man when I first met him. He was so innocent, unaware of what would happen to him. From the moment we met the connection was instant, we managed to destroy Alras on our own while my lazy uncles pretended to be sailors.

Me and Aleksander went on to delegate people, manage the workers, we built Karovia in at least 3 saints days, the place that shall forever remain as my home. Aleksander made me his Steward, his personal assistant he recruited people whom I enjoyed their company, John Dystov, Mithius Dalma etc, I always felt my uncles who both had jobs to not be apart of the partnership me and Aleks had.

10 years in to this village that has grown in to a full scale duchy Aleks’ estrangement from himself has begun. Aleksander came to me and gave me a letter, the letter stated his engagement to Lyn Rovin, there were nasty rumours about her but nonetheless I did not believe them I was still an innocent farmer in Karovia.

I did not attend the wedding busy being elsewhere, I return to Karovia and meet this Lynn Rovin, a woman lacking compassion, empathy, even beauty, a utterly distasteful person. She chastised me for missing my best friend’s wedding, but I promptly ignored her. Me and Aleks after some time managed to finish constructing the castle in which he would hold court regularly, I would visit Aleks and Lynn everyday they were not a happy couple, Aleks was a man who was kept to himself, a nice quiet innocent man, Lynn was a hag at best if not a witch. They could not get along, it was obvious when we found her dead body on the river below Atgaard. I go see Aleks on his throne his hand against his face, a tear running through his cheek he didn’t want to be married to that awful woman, now he felt responsible for her death.

It didn’t get better for my old friend Aleksander, his father now gone is forced to take the throne, I was forced to leave Karovia and join in him in Petrus as Lord Steward. The royal rebellion of Maric Varodyr was a sham to its fullest. I was aggravated to see such a humbling man like Maric change in seconds, the scoundrel Edmund Horen and his Renatian buffoons spread lies. “Heartland Rebellion.” It is a known fact that most humans in Athera supported the Carrions, but they had the traitor Jan De Savoie and Symon Stafyr support them. Aleks and I attempted to make peace with Maric Varodyr and Edmund Horen, it was as if we were talking to a wall. They kept making ridiculous demands when we wanted peace such as taking Petrus, a city they haven’t took care of their entire life, horrible men they were. Aleks troubled by this rebellion appointed Varon Kovachev as Lord Marshal an untrustworthy man we all assumed, and we were correct. One day Varon attack Aleksander, Aleks was convinced the Kovachevs were cooperating with Renatus and surrendered Petrus to Godfrey, unlike others I never chastised Aleks for that, he was unready a depressed men forced into leadership as a result of the ongoing stress had to end it, after Petrus I never saw Aleks again.

 

CHAPTER II: THE FOUNDING OF AKOVIA

Now, I lost my closest friend to politics that I was dragged into by him, now I was forced to live with my odd uncles, I liked Vassili, a fine man, and Arik a lazy man who has never done a thing in his life except for these next few lines. I did not lead the house I followed my uncle Vassili who was confronted by Varon’s men, who owned Karovia, Vassili was offered vassalization and got me, uncle Arik and himself privy positions in this new kingdom in Karovia. We called it Akovia is suggested by the master of ships, I was given Lord Treasurer. I have to admit we have to give the foundation to my uncle Arik it was the only time in his life that he actually did something, he managed to get us bannermen and make the city a populated one. The days in the Triarchy were the best in my life, I enjoyed every minute of it. We came in touch one day when we decided to take action against Aesterwald with the Vladovics. I must say they were Akovia’s best ally, no one was befriended back then in the canonist states just us and Woldzmir, many good friends there such as Franz and Stanimir.
 
They assisted us in ridding Invictus and the first raid on Aesterwald, brave men they were. It all rested on us Vanirs and the men of Mount Letholdus, Varon was too mad to do anything, his madness eventually cost him his throne. When Varon was overthrown by my uncles my uncle Arik removed me from the privy and under mysterious circumstances, ephasis on the mysterious made Andrik Vydra a man no one has ever heard nor met before king. They instantly fell in love with him, Akovia from then on became a cult dedicated to his service. My uncles worshipped Vydra for whatever reason. Schism comes, and I found myself surrounded by every canonist state in unision against the invaders. I then see Aleksander return he joins us in several battles, but I am afraid that on the siege on Letholdus he was killed I was unable to save him. Thus ended the life of Aleksander Carrion, my oldest and best friend.

 

CHAPTER III: THE VANIRS

I must say I enjoy some member of my family, I am a difficult person I admit, I maybe mentally challenged but I felt that I was the only one that actually had a formidable personality, someone you could enjoy, only me and my grandfather. I always liked my grandfather despite him always saying he abused me which he did not. Bjorn, my cousin, he was a fairly bland person who never did much who was a good and brave man though. Daggr, he always remained by my side when I did whatever foolish action I did.
 
This leaves me to my two uncles, I shall begin with Vassili. I liked Vassili he was a kind man that always has been a father to me when I never knew my own, but I always felt that he was inclined to listen to Arik too much. A good example will be our religious views, I always believed in the Creator I never enjoyed taking part in the pagan practices Arik created and FORCED us to do, I remember Daggr refusing as well, I pleaded that we begin believing in the creator but my attempts were of no use.

It greatly saddened me to see such ill orders being followed, something that if people found out about, it would doom our family. This now leaves me my uncle Arik. A stubborn, lazy man, a pagan, a charlatan, and the man who may have made me go crazy. I remember the first day in Karovia, the first day after we tore down Alras, I had just sanctioned the storage to be built, Arik contributed nothing to the building of Karovia or destroying of Alras, I asked him to sort out the chests in the storage, and he refused. He is the main reason I left, I must admit. A vile man that has singlehandedly managed to destroy Petrus from the accounts I have received from Aeldenian settlers, he simply gave up after he was so eager to fix it, proving him to be more sloth.

I hold no remorse for my uncle as he holds no remorse for me, if I shall return I shall not greet him with pleasantries let alone greet him at all, I have one uncle as far as i’m concerned and that is Vassili.

Dravo,
Harald Vanir II.

[Ser Paul Ryan 1139]

Arik Vanir cackles evily

"Thsi is all true! 

[Ricky 321]

"The Participants view of events!" Says an angry historian

[Vanir 693]

"Where is Harald..." Vasili would mumble one night in his sleep. "Pednik..."

[3andD 1722]

From afar a man dressed in a garb smiles. He smiles because he had achieved his goal.. He proceeds to nurse his ale, sitting back into his chair.

 

For a moment, he ponders what he had done with his life... Since the age of 6 he had been searching for answers, for his entire life he has lived with many questions with no answers..

 

Then, within a blink of an eye the door swings open. From outside a sharply dressed sailor stumbles in, trotting towards the man dressed in a garb. The sailor sits in the chair across from the man in a garb...

 

"...I've seen him. I know who he is." he states, unfolding a small scroll. The scroll shows an image,

 

For a brief second, the man in a garb gasps. Slamming his finger down onto the table, "This is not him!" he exclaims, "For you have fooled me the last time you joker." the man says, walking to the window. Gazing out, he rests his hand against the cold glass, in one last moment he utters "wHO really is the Esterlane?" he says, jumping from the window.

 

End

[Helios_ 288]

Dagr would sob as his name is spelled wrong.

[Dohvi 622]

Moved to the Archive. It shall be sorted into the appropriate category shortly.