"We made camp just south of the Godless Northerners' woods, at the very edge of the Osterlands."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 1.
"I can see their camp fires, and I can hear their guttural tongue, their savage amusements, their strange songs."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 2.
"Champion Barix is in fine spirits, though he engages in merriment with measure: libations will wait for tomorrow, be they imbibed over the corpses of our slain foes, or under the eye of Katabaal. We charge at the break of dawn."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 3.
"Victory! The gods delivered us this day. The Godless Northerners fell to our Sylvan steel."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 4.
"I doubted my courage would hold through the charge, but when the moment came, I was like a bolt of ordained divinity, plunging through the flesh of the wretched."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 5.
"I know not how many I trampled under the finely armored mass of my war steed, nor how many I cut down after I dismounted and let the blood frenzy take me."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 6.
"My handsome leather boots seem to be hopelessly stained crimson, and I'm fairly certain I removed a piece of ear from between two plates of my left pauldron. Tomorrow we continue our advance."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 7.
"Champion Barix shared sad news with us today: King Alnor has called off the advance. He is our king and I'd sooner die than question him, but I do ponder the reason for a war machine that declines to make war."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 8.
"The Godless Northerners have plagued our traders and frontier towns for so long. A kingdom that allows its enemies to sever its toes one by one cannot stand."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 9.
"More news from Altarstone Kingdom comes: King Alnor will show the Godless Northerners mercy. We will visit no more bloodshed upon them."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 10.
"They will be permitted to continue worshiping their strange forest gods, who have no names and are numberless as trees. The king wishes for his mercy to be known."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 11.
"He is to be called King Alnor the Merciful. Dare I put to paper how I'd rather term him? Soldiers have been hanged for less."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 12.
"Champion Barix has been in a thoughtful mood lately. We remained stationed at the edge of the Godless Northerners' woods, but there is little to do but clean and sharpen our blades."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 13.
"I hear whispers from the other soldiers, and I have been asked to consider the meaning of loyalty to a cause older and greater than I could imagine. I have considered its meaning."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 14.
"We raided in the dark of night! I understand now the questions of loyalty. Champion Barix gave us the plan mere moments before we attacked, and in my excitement I realized how loyal I was to him."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 15.
"The plan was to raid a temple to their gods: shoddy, wood-and-mud things, where bone-clad priests mutter vile perversions. We'd raid the temple to discover blasphemies to our gods, the true gods."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 16.
"And discover, we did. Crude idols reminiscent of the gods of our folk were piled in a corner, violated by all manner of excrement and refuse, mocked."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 17.
"We retrieved them, to present to King Alnor. All blasphemers must perish."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 18.
"I feel faint. I've held my composure while in the midst of soldiers with guts cut open, entrails strewn about, but what I saw today causes my stomach to turn."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 19.
"Champion Barix had the incriminating idols turned over to the king's retinue. This was evidence that our gods were mocked, blasphemed against, yet also that we had shown mercy to those who would wantonly visit insult after graven insult upon those we hold dearest."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 20.
"And were we rewarded for our bravery? We were not. Though Champion Barix ordered the raid, the soldier who handed over the idols was immediately taken to be hanged, on the order of Arch Hierophant Anomolis."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 21.
"His body hangs still, picked at by crows. Champion Barix is confined to his tent, under watch of royal guard."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 22.
"A pair of guards stand outside my tent as well. Our weapons have been seized. But my dagger is close. I am still considering the meaning of loyalty."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 23.
"It has been nearly a hexad since my last entry, so my details may not be accurate, though that evening is seared in my mind as if by fire."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 24.
"When night fell, we snuck out of the tent and silently dispatched the two guards with our daggers, under the armpit, between the ribs."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 25.
"Each carried enough arms to outfit three soldiers, and so we pressed on to Champion Barix's tent (we had slain three of our own in the tent before embarking, as their loyalty was not sufficient)."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 26.
"His guard proved to be a far greater challenge. They saw our approach, so by the time we had engaged them, the camp had descended into chaos."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 27.
"In the dark of night, friend and foe became a blur. There were those loyal to Champion Barix, those loyal to King Alnor, and those who were simply confused."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 28.
"I recall pulling Champion Barix from his tent, then slashing at the poles, and stabbing into any moving shape still inside."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 29.
"I recall the thunderous sound of hooves as we broke away from camp. It wasn't until we had pulled clear from King Alnor's troops that I noticed the crossbow bolt embedded in my left arm."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 30.
"There were thirty and seven of us that rode, but our numbers are now in the hundreds. We found recruits among the faithful and pious, among the ordained and the laypeople."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 31.
"We gathered soldiers, squires, herbalists and verdantvoices. The cause was simple: the king has failed to defend the honor of the gods, so it is up to the common folk to take up arms in his stead. Tomorrow we march on Bol Gerahn."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 32.
"Today we are at a standoff. We have traveled to Bol Gerahn to recruit for our cause, but Pontiff Karile, keeper of the Tomb Temple, has rebuffed us. She remains loyal to the king."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 33.
"We wondered how one who had devoted their life to the care of the gods could so easily side with a mortal, so easily kneel to a blasphemer."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 34.
"Pontiff Karile sealed the temple doors, but all is not lost: one of our newest recruits spoke of a little-known escape hatch in the sewers below the temple."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 35.
"I thought I would feel more guilt after today, but my conscience is clear. We have left none alive in the temple."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 36.
"But we have also added to our numbers. We had feared that every living being inside the temple would sooner give their life than join our cause, but after seeing what Champion Barix did to Pontiff Karile, few held their ground, though those that did received more mercy than the Pontiff."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 37.
"Our numbers grow, and our spirits are high. Soon, we will embark for Altarstone Keep."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 38.
"We march east, and our forces grow quickly. Many towns have been eager to lend us every able-bodied fighter, or any who can otherwise assist."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 39.
"Some towns have resisted, but as word of our zeal spreads, so too does the willingness of the faithful."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 40.
"We were once hundreds, we are now thousands. Champion Barix once asked me to consider the meaning of loyalty."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 41.
"When I see so many radiant faces marching for a cause greater than any else, leaving behind land and loved ones, racing toward certain death with courage and pride and purpose, well, I believe I see in this the true meaning of loyalty."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 42.
"The Gallard River cuts north and south through the city of Altarstone, separating the sprawling lower city to the west from the upper city and Altarstone Keep to the east."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 43.
"We all expected deadly resistance. None of us expected that our divine uprising might have had such a profound effect on the kingdom."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 44.
"Champion Barix feared that our cause might be a lonely one, but our reception in Altarstone proved otherwise."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 45.
"City gates swung open as we approached, revealing empty streets. The body of a royal guard hung in a square, pages of divine scripture nailed through his flesh."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 46.
"Here and there a child would emerge from an alley, thrust some thing of great spiritual importance into the arms of one of us, then scamper back as quickly as they came. There was a tide of divine judgment, and it was carrying us home."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 47.
"When we crossed the Gallard, there really emerged in us a sense that there was no turning back."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 48.
"We would seize the throne in the name of the gods, and no more would mortal rulers see the gods blasphemed. "
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 49.
"We would seize the throne or die trying. We would hold the throne or die trying. I write these words now, but our assault on Altarstone Keep begins soon!"
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 50.
"It has been two nights since we took Altarstone Keep, and perhaps the first moment of rest for me."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 51.
"If ever there had been any doubt of our divine ordination before, it is now a thing long of the past."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 52.
"The gods' devoted are truly everywhere! We'd charge a dozen guards, but face six, as three had already backstabbed another three."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 53.
"We'd prepare to batter down a door, only to have a faithful servant let us in (and nearly get their little brains bashed in!)."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 54.
"Deadly traps were unattended, or attended by lifeless corpses, throats already slit by those whose love of the gods matched our own."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 55.
"I think we lost a hundred and gained a thousand. Yet Altarstone Keep is massive, so for two days we dutifully swept the place, welcoming the faithful, and faithfully dealing with those whose loyalties were conflicted."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 56.
"Unsurprisingly, we found neither King Alnor the Toeless, nor Arch Hierophant Anomolis."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 57.
"There have been quite a few hexads since we took Altarstone Keep, and rule has not been easy."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 58.
"Our army of zealots is a costly thing to maintain, and at the same time, many of the realm's laborers have been displaced."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 59.
"The royal advisors who are now loyal to Champion Barix have aided us in administering new levies, but this has only revealed how frail faith is for so many (though it must be mentioned that those of little faith always manage to find it again with the proper motivation)."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 60.
"But unrest doesn't worry us nearly as much as word we've recently received: King Alnor is returning."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 61.
"Scouts return with word: King Alnor the Toeless marches south to Altarstone Keep. His army is greater than ours, certainly better trained than ours, perhaps better equipped than ours."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 62
"Champion Barix knows the gods will protect us. I fear my faith is not as strong as his."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 63.
"The siege has begun. We had sent forth a contingent of twelve mounted paladins, each clad in magnificent plate and wielding warhammers of solid Sylvan steel; they were to demonstrate to King Alnor's army our divine ordination."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 64.
"Instead, they fell to Alnor's Champions; the last to fall had his skull crushed in by his own warhammer, to the laughs and jeers of Alnor's brutes."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 65.
"The army of Alnor the Toeless is now at our gates, tainting these sanctified walls with its perversions and blasphemies."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 66.
"The outer wall has fallen, and King Alnor's army of defilers pours into the keep grounds."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 67.
"I go to arms soon; if this is my final word, it has been my life's greatest work to have become an instrument of divine action."
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 68.
"A curse on King Alnor the Toeless, blasphemer of the gods. A curse on Arch Hierophant Anomolis, desecrator of the divine. May their lineages be blotted from time itself. To arms!"
- Unknown Soldier's Diary, l. 69.
Added complete list of entries for the Unknown Soldier's Diary
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