Ta'winn Darkwalker - A New Beginning

 Ta’winn Darkwalker - A New Beginning

We are having a break from the arduous training that General Thorrel has us doing and I have a few moments to start this journal. It's one of the quaint customs that people seem to do in this new land that I’ve adopted… is keeping a journal. A journal isn’t something that I felt was necessary in the Shadowfell, but here where life has so much meaning, it feels necessary. Besides, I don't ever want to forget how I felt during these first months in this new world. Where to begin…

I’ve lived my life in the shadows, and, for a long time, it was all I knew. In the Shadowfell, we Shadar-Kai are hunters, tasked with keeping order in a world that rejects it. I’d spent over two centuries roaming that realm of gray and silence, hunting creatures twisted by the darkness. My name carried weight there; “Darkwalker” they called me, a figure who drifted through the gloom with spectral arrows and silent steps. My path was one of necessity, not of choice, and I followed it because that was what my kind did. 

• Duty. 

• Discipline. 

• Pay homage to the Raven Queen

That was life in the Shadowfell.

Yet that life wasn’t truly living. As I’ve come to realize, the Shadowfell bleeds the spirit dry.  As the centuries passed me by, I began to feel a  hunger—no, a yearning—for something more than just the monotony of duty and the grayness of the Shadowfell. The tales one hears about other realms that are so different made me wonder if there was more to life.

Tiffian

About six months ago, the city of Tiffian in Tiberias became my new home. Initially, when I entered the portal to the world of Ennidu, I thought it would be a temporary thing, one that when I found my sister, Tanwalyn, I would simply go back to the Shadowfell. Then… well everything was so… vivid, so different. Colors I’d only seen in dreams, sounds that could vibrate the soul. And there was the scent of the air, something always bright and fresh, though not always nice. 

Being in Tiberias gripped me from the start, and before long, I quickly knew that I had no intention of returning to the Shadowfell. Tiffian, a small city with all its vibrancy and unpredictability, held a strange charm I couldn’t resist. This place was alive in a way I’d only imagined that life could be, and I found myself drawn in, each day promising something new.

Tanwaylin

But my arrival here wasn’t without purpose, and it wasn’t without pain. I came looking for my sister, Tanwaylin. My memories of Tanwaylin are fragments now, but they’re enough to keep the search alive. I recall her laugh, her fierce spirit, and the bond we shared.  She had left the Shadowfell over a century ago, and I had gotten word that she had settled in Tiffian. Then between 20 and 25 years ago, according to everything that I have learned, she disappeared with a newborn son to parts unknown. 

Rumors of a Kalanese noble abound, but no names or other information that I could gather more information about. More than 20 years have passed and sifting through the years is difficult at best. Though one contact warned me that no good would come of me reopening old wounds that her name came with, before I was ushered away from his presence. I was warned not to bother the trader again. I will visit him again if all the other avenues go dark, though it will be at a time of my choosing not his. After that the trail quickly went cold and on my own, I made no further progress in finding her. 

Fortunately, I met a man here in Tiffian, Pierre, who claims to have information regarding her. I’ve been working with him off and on over the past few months, mostly as part of the new Adventurers Guild—which was formerly a Thieves Guild, though I’m sure they’d deny that. Officially, they’re under a King’s employ over in Gosper. Unofficially, they know every alley, every hidden tunnel in Tiffian, and that’s information I’ve found useful.

Pierre says he’ll tell me more, but he’s waiting. Testing me to see who I really am. I’m not a fool; I can see it in his eyes, that glint that says he’s holding back. He watches, weighing my actions, perhaps wondering what I’ll do if I get closer to the truth about Tanwaylin. I can’t deny there’s a bitterness there, knowing that someone else might know more about my sister than I do, but it’s a slow dance of patience and trust. If he knows more, he’ll tell me in time. Or I’ll pry it from him when the right moment comes.

The Guild

In the meantime, I’ve found a new life here, of sorts. The guild has used me on various tasks around Tiffian, and that’s kept me busy. I’m becoming known for my skills with a bow, and the streets and wilds here are not so different from the shadows I once walked a hunter in the Shadowfell. I’ve adapted. I fit. 

Still, it’s not enough just to rely on the old ways. 

A while back, I started experimenting with warlock magic. I’d been dabbling before I left the Shadowfell, drawn by the thought of binding powers beyond myself. There’s a thrill in knowing there are beings out there, Patrons, who can grant strength for the right price. I’ve yet to find one who calls to me—or who I’d trust with such a bond. But I know it’s only a matter of time before a Patron and I cross paths, and the right offer will be made. When that day comes, I’ll be ready. Though, I have a feeling that I will fit more with an Arch Fey Patron than any of the others. But for now, it is better to be patient and wait for the right opportunity than attempt to align myself with one that I will regret later.

Guillermo

Pierre and General Thorrel put together a team of 30 “adventurers” from within the Adventurers Guild and chose me to be on that team. I was told that they believe that in the not too distant future we will be targeting a mad Archmage named Guillermo. He’s holed up in a city called Gardenia. There are whispers from some of the other members of the team that say he’s attempting to start a war between Tiberias and Dalazon. 

And worse that we have been advised by the General, that this Guillermo is close to releasing something old and terrible—a creature called Ymir. Even in the Shadowfell, Ymir’s name was whispered in fear.  I’ve heard enough to know the weight of such a threat. If Guillermo succeeds, Ymir will lay waste to everything I’ve come to love about Tiberias and my adopted city of Tiffian. The colors, the sounds, the life that’s breathed new purpose into me. 

I won’t let that happen.

This mission feels like more than just duty. It has become personal.

I’ve found a home here, however strange that sounds even to my own ears. The streets, the people, the pulse of life—Tiffian is a place worth fighting for, and maybe, just maybe, it’s a place worth dying for too. And Tanwaylin, wherever she is, is still out there. If I can help stop Guillermo, perhaps I’ll earn not only Pierre’s trust but also the trust of the guild. They say the guild is powerful, that they can reach places even the King’s men can’t touch. I’ll need that reach if I’m going to find my sister.

As we prepare and train for this assault on Guillermo’s tower, we’ve been moved to Gosper, which is closer to Gardenia. I feel the tension building within the  others and myself. This isn’t like the hunts of the Shadowfell or even the little adventures around Tiffian; it’s a true battle, with real stakes. And yet, the Shadowfell prepared me for this. I know how to embrace darkness and wield it. I’ve tasted the cold bite of shadow and the scorching heat of magic, and I’ll use both if it means I can stand between Tiffian and the nightmare Guillermo seeks to unleash. I’m not alone, either. There are others here, fighters and mages alike, each with their own reasons for joining this mission. But I don’t need to know all of their stories. My own is enough to carry me forward.

As I pull my hood up and sling my bow over my shoulder as we complete another training exercise, I think of what might come after this battle. Will I find Tanwaylin’s trail again, or will she remain a mystery in the shifting shadows of Tiffian? Will I meet a Patron who offers power that I can truly wield? I don’t have answers. But for the first time in a long time, I’m not weighed down by that lack of certainty. 

 

Tiffian has become my home and I will defend it with all that I have, including my life.

We just received word that we will be leaving for Guillermo’s Tower within the half hour…so it begins.