A Dragonlord's Loss
Prologue
August 19th – I have searched Castle Fallen extensively and confirmed the rumors. This place has long been abandoned; I greatly blame its location for that. It is very far north here and so cold that the snow never melts, even in summer! A bitterly cold wind blows without end, the air is never still. If I am not careful, this unforgiving place will be my end. However despite all this, I still take this stone fortress as my home. No one will disturb me here, no one will even know of my existence. Located what must be a mile out to sea; this fortress is easily defended by land. A narrow stone bridge is its only access on foot. The gate is missing, but that can be repaired. Many towers rise to the heavens, destined to hold archers for protecting against aerial attack. Portholes are the only breaks in the thick walls that protect the castle from sea and ship. Rusted cannons poke through the portholes, once providing an offensive solution against enemy ships. Castle Fallen will need serious repair and yes it is unpleasantly cold. But it will serve my purposes well.
September 2nd – I now have several necromancers under my command. Some came willingly, others did not. But I am not concerned in the slightest. I have ensured their continued services; with no one to lead them and with more power on my side they would not dare defy me. I have chosen necromancers to be the bulk of my army, they are numerous, disposable, and each can command countless undead minions. Those too of which, are easily replaced.
None of them have many undead under their command at this moment however; they were forced to stay low lest the paladins discover them and seek them out. I cannot yet risk raiding graveyards, I cannot risk being discovered. What undead they have now will have to suffice. The repairs are well underway, the cells are already completed. It is time to start hunting.
September 13th- My first catch, a paladin, was a complete success. Taking him was easy; the fool was just like the rest of his order. Attracted to the undead I baited him with; he fell smoothly into my well laid trap.I enjoyed watching his face when I took his heart, when I commanded his every action. I couldn't help but laugh at his horror, it was too glorious! When I held his heart, I felt his power increase my own. Just as I suspected, everything was going as planned! At least until I tried to activate Loki's Staff. It wasn't enough. I need more power! I need more people to feed on…
December 30th – I have many others now. I have been careful to take people of varying classes, each powerful in their chosen profession but not known enough to cause too great of a fuss with their disappearance. I even have a pirate now! His ship, the Crimson Tide, is now anchored under the castle in port. I had to make some adjustments in that area; it was not designed for ships much bigger than small fishing boats. A surprise really, when I take into account everything else this castle has in terms of war. I ensured there would be room for three more ships of equal size to the one my pirate has, I plan to send him out to commandeer other ships. I desire to command my own fleet now, how many can claim that? I admit it was not easy or perhaps smart to enlarge the port under the castle. Much of the structural integrity may have been sacrificed by removing the rooms above and around the port, I must repair that. And maybe add a drop gate at the watery entrance… yes. I must find a way to add that as well. My power has grown exponentially since my last entry. Every heart I have taken gives me the power of its owner and yet it is not enough! Far more power than I had planned for is needed to activate the staff.
August 11th – The castle is now fully fortified as I had envisioned. I have eighty seven people under my command. I have at least one of almost every class and art currently known to Lore. I have summoners of various kinds, warriors and mages, guardians and even a dragonlord! I believe the dragonlord to be the key, or more specifically, his dragon. It was only after I captured and controlled the rider that I saw a spark in the staff. I attempted to take the heart of the dragon, to control its power directly, but I quickly discovered that a dragon's will is too powerful for my spell to command. Adding in their natural attunement with magic and it simply cannot be done. If I understand the bond between a dragonlord and their lizard correctly, I must somehow weaken the rider's mental strength and the dragon will suffer and weaken as a result… possibly enough that my spells will take effect!
August 22nd – The rider gave in easily, but the dragon escaped shortly after. Seems the beast would rather leave his rider alone then suffer along with him. I apparently was wrong about the bond between a dragon and rider linked by a dragon amulet, it is nowhere near as strong and as binding as I envisioned it to be. I will attempt to try again, though it was not easy capturing the two of them and I dread attempting to take another pair. However, the only other power source would attract FAR too much attention. I have studied the eight of them well and know for certain just one would power the staff with ease, but I am far too hesitant to go after any of them.
Though I did learn one thing from all this. Another spell I discovered was the ability to swap a person's primary element with its opposite. Unfortunately this spell is very consuming in addition to its low survival rate. Out of all the ones I tried it on, only a single possession survived. The cost is not worth the result; I have lost too many of my living possessions for something that is of little value to me since I do not favor one element over another. I have written the spell, along with my others, in the back of this journal. In the unlikely event that I need such a spell it can be easily accessed.
January 3rd – I was able to capture a second dragonlord, but again no success with the dragon. He stayed with his rider, but I feel it is only out of obligation. He doesn't seem to care what happens to his rider. I won't waste my time with these two. Having them around is a nice addition to my collection, but they will not serve the purpose I need. I wish greatly that one of the Seven were still alive, I have no doubt that corrupting the rider would take the dragon down with them, and vice versa. The bond between them is deep, stretching into their very souls and chaining each to the other. I had hoped before that the dragon amulet would accomplish this as well and indeed it is similar, but it does not reach into the souls of the dragon and rider. It isn't as binding as what I need.
Unfortunately those are rare, few dragons wish to bond so closely to their rider. The Seventh died years ago and her dragon vanished, shame that the pair did not last long. If history repeats, it will be many decades before the Eighth surfaces.
May 15th – Two of my necromancers have started showing signs of unrest. I confronted and… disciplined… them for their little acts. Something in their eyes told me they would eventually try again despite my actions against them. I've decided I will pretend not to notice. They are weak, even combining their powers. Whatever little scheme they try to pull off will provide a little entertainment for me before I dispose of them.
June 1st – I have discovered the Eighth! I never dreamed I would see another pair again in my lifetime! The rider is a human, still a child. She will be easily manipulated. As for the dragon… the dragon is a prize worth fighting for! She is massive and just over two thousand years old so the rumors say! I can hardly contain my excitement, such power she will have! Taking them will be difficult at best, but once they are mine I can finally power Loki's Staff and then be unstoppable! The dragon was a fool to join with a human so young and weak, easily susceptible to manipulation. Her mistake is my gain.
July 10th – Taking the human was easier than I had expected. On her first quest without her overprotective father I sent my dragonlord as her guide, at the time he was still trusted and unsuspected of treachery by the Order. Neither they nor my targets saw the attack coming. I sent two elemental summoners to provide a distraction below while their trusted guide betrayed them with dragons bane from above. I snatched away the girl while the dragon was stunned, then had a personal talk with the lizard to ensure her cooperation. While taking the girl's heart, I made a split second decision to change her element both to shock her into submission and to hide her identity. The last thing I needed was the Order coming here. I trust Castle Fallen to withstand a mighty siege, but I know it is no match for them. Changing someone's natural born element alignment should be impossible, I know they will not pursue her even if she looks and acts similar to the one they lost. Something happened, however, that I didn't expect. The dragon's element changed as well even though I only performed the spell on the girl. An interesting and very pleasant turn of events, now they will simply disappear, no one will think to look at the dark ones I hold now. Once the girl crumbles the dragon's power will be mine to possess.