Paladin's Tale:
When her life takes an unexpected turn, a young Aasimar Paladin finds herself in a world she was unprepared for.
Chapter 1
Natheran stretched as she stood on the docks trying to get her bearings. She turned as she heard the others come up behind her. What a strange group they must look, an Aasimar, a Tiefling, an Elf, and a Dwarf? She imagined that their races were rarely seen in the city and wondered what kind of welcome they would get.
"So lass, where's this inn you mentioned? I can't wait to drown myself in ale instead of seawater," grumbled Khelgar. "I never want to get aboard such a sorry excuse for a boat like that again, even on pain of death."
"I thought dwarves were tough but you're quickly changing my mind," snipped Neeshka. "Who would have thought they get seasick?" she snickered.
"Step over here and say that again ya petty thief, I'll show you tough," the dwarf fingered the axe at his belt. "Dwarves don't get seasick," he harrumphed.
"My Uncle's inn isn't far, let's go." Natheran started walking with Elanee close behind. She heard the other two bickering back and forth behind her and smiled, knowing that they did it for entertainment more than anything else. It was quite amusing sometimes the way they kept trying to insult each other. Those who didn't know better would think that they didn't like each other, which given the dwarf's prejudices was a possibility. However, she knew he secretly liked the tiefling even though he'd never admit it.
"You all right? You look a little peaked yourself," Natheran turned to ask the elven druid.
"I'll be fine. I've just never been to a city before and it feels unnatural," Elenee replied. "How about you?"
"I'm fine. To be honest, I wasn't sure what to expect as I'd never been outside West Harbor before. I think I rather enjoy sailing. There is a sense of freedom out there with just the sun, wind, and water all around," she laughed.
They walked a little further not saying anything and soon Natheran saw a sign reading The Sunken Flagon. "Here we are, and hopefully I'll have some answers soon."
Pushing open the door she stepped inside, her eyes quickly adjusting to the dim interior. Looking around she spotted a half-elf towards the back looking at her, surprise etched on his face. Guess it's not everyday an Aasimar walks into a bar, she thought.
"Welcome to the Flagon, what can I get for ya?"
"I'm looking for my Uncle Duncan. Daeghan sent me."
"Daeghan eh? I can probably guess why you're here but why don't you tell me anyway."
"He was a little vague. He gave me his shard and told me to come here to get the one he gave you. He said you would be able to help me find out more about them"
"He did huh? Well I don't know anymore about them now than I did before. Had Sand look at them long ago but he turned up nothin'. But that's no surpise, that sharp eared viper is barely more than a charlatan. I suppose he could look at them again for you but don't pay him any coin in advance or..."
"Ah it seems I have arrived just in time to deflect the usual barrage of slander from the local innkeeper," a smooth voice said. Turning, they watched as a moon elf walked towards them dressed in the simple robes of a wizard.
"Sand," said Duncan. "What brings you here, you usually avoid this place like the plague."
"I see you're still sober enough to recognize me, despite evidence to the contrary," Sand sniffed the air a little bit, an expression of distaste crossing his face. "As for why I'm here, I saw some unusual people walk by my shop and I have to admit to a great curiosity about them," Sand replied. "Are you going to introduce me to your guest Duncan? She has the smell of a Harborman about her," he sniffed the air again. "Faint, but there."
"This is my niece, Natheran, and we need your help concerning the shards," Duncan replied abruptly.
"Niece? I don't really see the family resemblance," he mused. "And are you talking about that junky piece of silver you showed me so long ago. Because if you're looking to pawn it to me again you're out of luck, I'm no longer interested."
"Hmph. We need you to look at both of them again, properly this time," retorted Duncan, scowling at the wizard.
"Very well. Give them to me and let me see what my keen arcane senses can determine." Taking the shards in both hands, Sand closed his eyes and chanted a spell for scrying. Suddenly, there was a loud bang and Natheran found herself on the floor, her ears ringing. Struggling to her feet, she helped the wizard up and looking at him she could see he was just as surprised as she was.
"What did you do to them?" she asked angrily.
"Nothing," the wizard retorted. "Apparently they have some resentment to being scryed, which is definately different from last time. The power in them is much stronger than before. There could be something about you that causes them to resonate, but why that is I don't know. Maybe because you are an Aasimar?" he mused.
"So what do we do now? I need answers, and I need them fast, because I have a feeling I won't be safe until I do get them," she snapped.
"The only one I can think of who might be able to help is Aldanon," said Sand. "But getting to him will be difficult because he lives in the Blacklake district and now he's trapped there. The Watch has it locked up tight and they are not allowing anyone in or out."
"So how can I reach him? You must have some ideas, seeing as how you seem to know alot about it," Natheran replied in a more coaxing tone. She saw Sand smile slightly and a gleam of pleasure came to his eyes.
"Well, you either have to be a member of the Watch or know a secret route into the district," he told her. "And since neither applies to you I guess you'll just have to let me hold on to the shards and examine them at my leisure."
"Wait, watch or secret route, not bad ideas" Duncan spoke up. "You can speak to Marshall Cormick at the city watch post. Being a harborman like yourself he should be able to take you into the watch and from there it shouldn't be too hard getting to Aldanon. Otherwise, you'll need to find someone who knows a secret route into Blacklake and that means dealing with Moire and her thugs."
"Dealing with dock rats, a good way to soil our honor," Khelgar spoke up. "I'd sooner spend my life aboard a ship than that."
"Obviously you've never dealt with the watch in Neverwinter before Khelgar, dealing with Moire is probably our best chance. That's my opinion," retorted Neeshka.
Natheran saw that they were about to get into a heated argument over it and quickly spoke up, "I want to join the Watch and perhaps I can do some good while I'm at it."
"Great, I hope nobody I know finds out about this or I'll die of embarassment," groaned Neeshka, looking at her friend in chagrin. "But you helped me when others wouldn't, so I'll stick by you no matter what. I do owe you still."
"Thanks Neeshka, I appreciate it." Natheran smiled at her.
"Well, since I'm no longer needed, I'll just head back to my quiet little shop. If you need my expertise, just ask." With that, Sand abruptly turned and walked out.
"I have some rooms at the back you can use, and any friend of yours is a friend of mine, so they're all welcome to stay here as well," Duncan said looking at his niece. "It's late, why don't you get some rest and start out first thing in the morning."
"It'll be nice to sleep in a real bed for a change. Haven't been able to do that since I left West Harbor," Natheran sighed.
Picking up her pack, she headed to the back to her room. She needed some quiet time away from the others so she could think about all that had happened and try to make some sense of it. Was Sand right? Was there something about her that made the shards magic resonate? And if so, what could it be? For some reason these questions sent a chill down her spine.
Setting her pack down in her room, she walked to the small window to look out at the city. The air was cool, with the strong smell of the sea on the breeze. Looking up at the night sky she thought about how different her life was turning out. She had talked at length with Brother Merring about following the path of a paladin. Even though he served Lathander, she had always been drawn to Helm. Her plan had been to travel to Helm's Hold after the fair, to enter his service and learn more about what was expected of someone who served Helm. Even though all paladin's believed in the same things, such as duty, honor, and loyalty, each god had their own requirements to be met and she knew next to nothing about what Helm might expect her to do. Sometimes she thought she heard Helm speaking to her but wasn't really sure. Merring had said that it was unusual for a paladin to have the powers she did without formal training. He had put forth the theory that it might have something to do with her heritage. Daeghan had not been able to tell her much about that or anything else. He seldom spoke to her about the past or her mother, and what little he had told her didn't really help much.
Now everything was messed up and she felt a little lost and alone, despite the presence of her companions. Elanee couldn't come up with any answers for her, despite having watched her for as long as she had. She felt like she was a pawn in some game, with rules she didn't understand. She also sensed that there was some malevolent force out there looking for her. She knew that whatever the shards were, they were pretty important to those strange creatures that hounded her. They wanted her dead certainly and weren't ones for negotiating. Hopefully, this Aldanon person would have the answers, or at the very least be able to point her in the right direction.
Getting undressed she climbed into bed. However, sleep eluded her for a long time. Her thoughts kept going back to that horrible night when her friend Amie had died. Finally, she was able to let go and cry for her loss. No matter how long it took, she would find the mage who took Amie's life and make him pay. With that thought going through her mind she fell asleep. She had no idea how much more complicated her life was about to become.