Day 1

I've finally done it! I tracked down one of the infamous teardrops of light, and the tales were true! There truly is an entire world on the other side.

As I reached out to touch the teardrop, my vision was flooded with white, and the next thing I knew, I was standing in the middle of a vast desert. It was not a lifeless desert, thankfully, and I was able to collect some food, water and wood from a berry bush, a well, and a cactus. There are many of them, so I don't feel bad for taking the resources, though I did have to kill some sickly looking squirrels, gaining several hazelnuts in the process.

Near the well was a grand, magical stone, and I could feel the divine energy emanating from it. This would be a wonderful spot to pray, and I did spend a few minutes in prayer to Yourick, hoping he would guide me with knowledge of this new land, and how to survive it.

After my prayer, I decided to travel west, and I met my second creature of this place. At first glance, it seemed like a wolf, and I was instantly alert. Papa had told me many tales of man eating wolves, and though I had been an adventurer for several months, I was still inexperienced.

But upon drawing closer, this "wolf" was far too small, and in fact, had a rather bushy tail. It reminded me of the foxes that would steal from my traps. Fortunately, it was quite weak, and I felled it in a single strong blow. Huh. Was I just lucky, or was I becoming stronger?

I travelled westward for a while longer, and the mountains looming in the distance drew closer. I was unprepared to travel over a mountain, so I headed north instead, and saw some small, fast white blurs amongst the sand.

I crept closer, and to my suprise, it was a snowy white rabbit. A good source of food, though it seemed rather out of place in this desert. I was able to kill 2 of them, and they were carrying coins in their mouths, which was rather bizarre.

But I took the coins, and decided to find a place to rest, as it was starting to get dark, and I was tired. I spotted a soft light in the distance, and to my shock, it was a building! So other people were here, I wonder if any are inside?

I stepped through the door, and the building appeared to be an infirmary. There were many beds, separated by curtains, and several bloody bandages and empty syringes scattered about.

Strangely, the building appeared aglow with light, yet I could not see a single torch or candle anywhere in sight. Perhaps there was some healing magic at play here? I am not very familiar with magic, having only heard of it in folktales, or the cheap party tricks from the occasional travelling minstrel.

Either way, the building was...calming. I bandaged my wounds - one of the rabbits had gotten a nasty bite in on my leg, and the coarse sand had left several scratches along my skin.

But now, the sun has fully set, and I am feeling tired. I will explore the desert more tomorrow. Perhaps I could make a bestiary? The creatures of this place are fascinating, they are similar to home and yet so different. I wonder what other beasts call this world home?

Day 2

I woke up early in the morning, feeling well rested from sleeping in the infirmary. I ate a small breakfast, before venturing outward.

To my shock, right next to the infirmary was a large cavern. I hadn't seen it yesterday, as it was already dark when I reached the infirmary.

From what I could see, it was pitch black inside, and I could hear strange growls coming from within.

Unnerved, I avoided the place, which seemed like a breach through the impassable mountains. Who knows what lies in its depths?

I headed back west, though more south than before. On my travels, I hunted down another white rabbit, and after a few hours, stumbled across an oasis. Finally, some water!

I filled my containers, though the water level was lower than I'd expected. As I was gathering water, two squirrels suddenly leapt at me, so I jumped backwards, quickly grabbing my blade, and attacking the one on my left. I quickly killed it, but the other one attacked me from behind.

Like the others I'd seen, it appeared sick, but this one must have been stronger, as it dodged my attacks twice, before I finally got a glancing blow. However, the squirrel was still alive, and bit down hard on my hand. I gritted my teeth before finally killing the pest.

I slumped to the ground of the oasis, annoyed that it took such an effort to kill some sick squirrels. I dug up the acorns they were guarding and decided to wait and rest for a few hours.

Around midday, I headed out again, travelling south of the oasis, as there were several large boulders blocking my path west. But as I rounded the corner, I noticed two buildings. It was a shop!

I eagerly ran over to the shop, and the shopkeeper seemed surprised to see someone, but greeted me warmly and showed his wares. He sold potions it seemed, red and green ones. They were a surprisingly vibrant colour, though I had no idea what they did. I didn't know much about alchemy.

I asked about the red ones, and apparently they could magically heal wounds! That would certainly be useful, but I was hesitant to buy one, as they were quite expensive. I decided against it, and left to check out the other building, an empty market stall.

However, as I drew closer, I noticed two grey foxes surrounding the stall. There was no one arround, and they appeared to be scavenging for food, but the only thing on offer was some rotting hazelnuts.

I crept closer, to get a better look, when one of them spotted me, so I ended up fighting them.

It was a difficult fight, as they were very nimble and could take several hits, but I eventually killed one of them. Seeing its dead friend, the other fox whimpered and ran off into the desert.

However, the foxes had given me several large scratch and bite wounds, so I decided to go back to the shop and buy a life potion.

I celebrated my victory with a feast, and I ended up overeating, which was probably a mistake. Now feeling quite full, I decided to walk off the food by heading further west, though the mountains quickly hampered my progress. However, I then noticed a small passage to the north.

At the end stood a large man, who demanded payment of 20 coins to pass through. I hesitated, but ultimately, my curiosity got the better of me and I paid the toll.

The man was guarding a long, thin, winding trail, and at the other end was a vast plain. It stretched on for miles, and in the distance, I could see strange humanoid figures. They looked to be made of bone...are they walking skeletons?! What foul magic could do such a thing?

I was curious, but I also wanted nothing to do with dark magic like that. By this point, I was very tired, and it was getting late, so I set up camp near the mountain pass, debating whether I should venture out into the plains or return to the desert tomorrow.

Day 3 and 4

Finally, I'm back to safety! Yesterday I made the foolish mistake of venturing out onto the plains, confident that I could at least kill a few of the skeletons. How wrong I was!

Not only was the plains harder to traverse than the desert, but the first skeIeton I encountered was incredibly strong. Although it's attacks were slow and easy to dodge, my sword did little damage. I suppose that makes sense, since I can't exactly cut bone, but you'd think it'd be a little frailer! It's body must have been held together by dark magic, it felt like striking armour, not exposed bones!

In the end, I was fighting that skeleton for several hours, locked in a slow back and forth. It took 8 strong blows to kill the creature, and by then I was exhausted and injured.

I decided to head back to my camp at the gorge, but to my shock, several skeletons were following me! They must have been attracted by the noise of the fight.

Terrified, I quickly gathered my things and rushed it through the narrow valley. The journey took me all night, and I stumbled back into the desert as the sun was rising.

The man guarding the entrance had the audacity to laugh when he saw my exhausted and injured state, but gratefully handed me back my 20 coin payment.

"Maybe don't rush ahead next time, love? You never know what foul beasts are ahead."

I scowled at him as I walked past but he just grinned at me. The trek back to the shop area was short, and I killed another grey fox on the way. This one's claws were undamaged, so I happily looted 2 of them. I wonder what I could use them for? They were very sharp.

As soon as I reached the shops, I set up a little camp, and collapsed to the ground in exhaustion. I hadn't slept at all last night!

But before I was lost to sleep, I jotted down the location in my journal, like I should have done before. 25, 11, that was the coordinates of the shop.

Now finished with this entry, I will gladly sleep. I suppose I had to learn things the hard way...

Day 5

After yesterday's ordeal, I decided to take it easy. To start with, I was absolutely starving. I hadn't eaten anything at all yesterday, and only breakfast the day before!

Realising this, I made a small campfire and cooked some of the rabbit I had hunted previously. It was delicious, and I ended up eating too much again...oh well.

Now feeling very full, I packed up my little camp, waved goodbye to the shopkeep and headed back out into the desert. I took a slow pace, simply enjoying the sights and the sun.

Soon, I spotted a grey fox in the distance. It was pawing at a gap in between some rocks, likely a rabbits burrow. I crept up on the beast, and leaped. It barely even realised what happened before I was on top of it, and I managed a clean stab through the head.

However, it suddenly bucked upwards, its head hitting me right in the stomach, making me vomit. Eating so much this morning was a mistake...

Now feeling quite ill, I took a few moments to gather my breath before I inspected the body. Sadly, the claws were too blunt to be of much use, and it's fur was very dusty and matted, so I didn't harvest anything.

Despite my upset stomach, I was quite happy with the quick kill, so I continued meandering through the desert. I decided to head south behind the rocks that the potion shop was built against. As I rounded the corner, I noticed some smoke in the distance. Another person?

Curious, I headed over. In between some large boulders, was a small hut, and inside, was a large cauldron, which was spewing an impressive amount of smoke.

Surrounding the cauldron were various strange ingredients, I could barely name any of them, but I spotted several strange plants, bottles of eyes and various other jars, several of which were above small fires.

There was also a woman (or perhaps an elf?) standing over the cauldron, humming slightly. She notices me as I approach, and exclaims, "Oh, a traveler! It has been a while since I had visitors. The last group passed though...oh I don't know...20 days ago?"

"Another group?" I asked, curious.

"Yes, yes, they were quite the unique bunch. A dwarf named Yu, a man named Hawl, and a woman named Svetlana, who had these bizarre horns. Oh, it was quite fascinating! She avoided my questions though..."

So there were other travelers out there! Perhaps I could meet up with them someday? But 20 days ago....they are likely far gone from this area.

The alchemist cleared her throat, taking me away from my thoughts. "So, do you need anything? Some potions, perhaps some oil?"

Intrigued, I replied, "Oil?"

Perhaps I could use it to make a torch! Then I would be able to explore that cave near the infirmary.

"Ah, the other group was the same. Something about needing a torch? It’s a magical kind of oil, one that'll never burn out. Quite useful! Either way, I'll give you some in exchange for...hmm, let's say, 50 acorns?"

"Acorns...?" I muttered, confused. My expression must have been comical, because the alchemist just laughed.

"Yes, seeing all the squirrels and rabbits out there give me quite the craving for them! And they can be rather delicious, you know. Ever had acorn roasted rabbit?"

I simply shook my head, silently questioning this alchemists culinary choices, before turning to leave. "I'll be back when I have them, then."

She tutted at me, before turning back to her cauldron. "You do that! And don't take too long!"

I waved goodbye to her, quickly marking the location on my map, 25; 3, and started debating my plans.

The oil would be essential for making a torch, but I would also need some strong branches, and something for the fire to catch onto. Perhaps some wolf fur? It would have to be of a good quality though, and not dried out. The natural oils would help the flame burn stronger.

With my plan figured out, I decided to spend the rest of the day stocking supplies. I headed back to the oasis at 15;5 and gathered some water, and speared some fish with my sword. They were so plentiful here that I didn't have to try hard to catch them.

The sun was now setting, but I noticed a slight purple glow in the distance. Of course, the prayer stone I saw on the first day! It had been far too long since I last prayed. I had neglected my daily prayers to Yourick, too caught up in the excitement of my adventuring.

The prayer stone wasn't far, only taking me half an hour to reach. I knelt down and prayed until the sky went dark, repeating my apologies for forgetting until now.

As I stood from my prayer, I felt...relieved, like a weight had been taken off my shoulders. Thank goodness, Yourick must have forgiven me for my oversight.

Smiling, I ventured back to my camp at the oasis. I had lit a small fire before I left, which acted like a beacon in the dark night.

It was quite unnerving, that pitch black darkness. There were no lanterns, no set paths, only scattered buildings, people and starlight to light the way. I suppose that's something I'll just have to get used to.

I reached the oasis and kicked sand over the fire, wary of attracting any foxes in the night, before going to sleep.

Day 6

I woke up late in the morning, feeling quite refreshed after my easy day yesterday. I decided to leave my camp set up, as I needed to spend a few days in this area to gather everything I needed.

Before I left to go hunting, I spent several minutes praying to Yourick, thanking him for his forgiveness, and hoping I could easily find everything I needed for the torch.

I stood from my prayer, this time feeling no different, but that was expected. Gods can't listen to every prayer.

I set out into the desert, but I couldn't see anything with the bright glare of the sun. I decided to survey my surroundings with the help of my summoned falcor.

I had discovered I could summon the beast several days ago, but had no use of it until now, as it was quite draining to summon. I also couldn’t keep it around for long, due to my inexperience with magic.

The falcor flew high into the sky, its white colour acting as natural camouflage. It didn't go far, circling in the air a few times before vanishing.

I headed towards the position it was signalling, taking cover behind some rocks. There were two squirrels huddling around a dead bush, likely looking for food.

They were very small and scrawny, and I killed them easily, although I couldn't find a stash of acorns or hazelnuts nearby. However, the bush they were searching had two strong branches, which I cut away using my sword. They would form a strong handle for the torch.

I looked around the area for a little longer, finding several animal tracks. I studied a set of larger prints, which seemed to match up to the foxes I had seen. There were two distinct tracks, one set of pawprints far larger than the other. Perhaps a mother and cub?

I decided to follow the tracks, which went on for a long distance, eventually ending near a small gap between boulders, likely a den. I couldn't hear any sound coming from inside, so I decided to wait.

An hour later, now starting to get very bored, I finally saw a shape in the distance. It was quite a small and scrawny fox, and I leaped down the moment it passed underneath the rock I was standing on. It didn't even have time to react.

I knelt down to inspect the body when I heard a loud growl. Turning my head, I saw the outstretched jaws of a very large fox. I quickly threw my arms up to protect my face in time, and the fox bit down hard on my arm, making me drop my sword.

Stifling a scream, I tried to shake it off but it wouldn't budge, so I kicked it as hard as I could, feeling the awful pain of its teeth tearing out of my skin. I threw myself to the side, trying to grab my swort, but it was ready, leaping at me and biting down on my leg. This fox was far smarter than the ones I had faced before.

Now slightly worried, and trying to ignore the pain, I kicked it away again and braced in a defensive position. The moment it leaped at me, I dodged and ran to sword, finally picking it back up.

It leaped again and this time I dodged and stabbed it in the side, but it only growled louder at me before attacking again. It was relentless!

This back and forth continued for some time, neither of us willing to back down. But I finally had an opening as I dodged another leap, slicing its back legs. The fox whined and crouched down, turning to look at me, its face scrunched into a snarl.

I attacked again and this time it couldn't dodge in time, so it faced my sword head on, catching the sword sideways in its jaws. But I wouldn't give in, I placed both my hands on the blade and pushed with all my strength.

The blade sliced into its head, and the fox collapsed, dead. I also fell to the ground, panting heavily, and covered in wounds. What a tough fox! But I prevailed.

Happy with my victory, I crouched next to the body, harvesting 3 of its large claws.

I turned to inspect the smaller fox as well. It's fur was good quality, not damaged or dried out. This would be perfect kindling. I spent some time harvesting the fur, before deciding to head back to my camp at the oasis, where I could heal my wounds in peace.

On the way back, I passed by the potion shop and the market stalls. I bought a small life potion, and watched I fascination as my smaller cuts and bruises healed instantly, the larger wounds now looking several days old. Magic really was something.

The market was empty like it had been before, though there were no foxes here this time. Those hazelnuts were still there, perhaps I should buy them?

Inspecting them closer, I sorted out all the rotten ones, counting 14 good hazelnuts in total. They probably weren't worth buying, but it would speed up the process…

In the end, I decided there would be no harm in it. I had collected over 60 coins from my hunting, after buying that potion. Placing 14 of them on the stall, I added the hazelnuts to my growing collection. 33 out of 50, I was close to being able to buy that oil.

Humming a soft tune under my breath, I walked the short distance back to the oasis, and went to sleep for the night. Hopefully I can find everything I need tomorrow, then I can explore that cave. I wonder what lies inside?

Day 7-9

The next few days passed quickly. I spent my time hunting squirrels, in hopes of finding their stashes of acorns and hazelnuts. It took longer than I'd hoped, as most did not have any, unfortunately, but the rare few had large hoards.

By the third day, I had everything I needed, so I gladly headed back to the alchemist.

The door was open when I arrived, so I hesitantly stood in the doorway until she caught my eye.

"Finally, what took you so long! Was hunting squirrels really that hard?"

I scowled at her. "Most of them were sick and starved, there weren't many with stashes."

"Eh, whatever, just hand them over." She replied, holding out her hand.

I placed the pouch of 50 hazelnuts and 30 acorns in her hand, mumbling, "You could be a bit more grateful."

She huffed at me, before turning her back to grab the oil bottle. "Here ya go, then. Don't use too much! It lights quickly, and is very hard to put out!"

I nodded at the warning, before bowing my head slightly in thanks. She didn't seem to notice, already back to stirring her cauldron, so I slipped out the door.

I headed back to my oasis camp, and spent some time crafting the torch out of branches and wolf fur. I was quite proud of my creation, it looked like something a woodcarver would make, and I had such limited materials! Though I may be slightly biased.

But sadly, it was too late to rush off to the dungeon now. Perhaps I would have done so several days ago, but I've learnt my lesson about rushing ahead.

I spent the remainder of my evening fishing and foraging for some supplies, as I was running low on food, before heading to sleep.

Though, as I lay in my bed roll, I start to worry about my chances. There are likely to be strong monsters in the cave, can I really take them on all by myself? Perhaps I should try and find some other adventurers.

But how to find them? Maybe leave the fire lit during the day? Adventurers are a curious bunch, they'll head towards smoke, right? Eh, it was worth a shot.

But all of that can wait for tomorrow, tonight, I'm going to get an early night's sleep. I'll need my energy if I'm going to explore a dungeon.