Year 3 A Second Chance

A week had passed since being dismissed from my post and stripped of my Knighthood. The corporal had said I would hear the duke's decision on me within a week, and that week was up. Nervous as I was, I was determined to face what I'd done and accept the consequences. I could not remember what I'd done, but I knew my beloved Torcher had been one of my victims as I still had his bloodstained piercings I found in my pocket, and I knew he couldn't have been the only one I'd hurt. Whatever the Duke decided to do to me, I knew I'd deserve it.

It was midday when the soldiers came. The duke wanted to see me. I was in a meeting with my good friend, Jacob Swift, and brought him along to be witness. In truth, I was afraid, and did not want to face my fate alone. Were I to be executed, I would be glad to have such a friend at my side.

When we were brought into the palace and stood before Duke Galverson, the meeting was far from what we had expected. I was humbled by Galverson's forgiveness. He talked about all the work I had done for the city and for the Merchant District, and to my surprise, expressed his gratitude. I was so thrown by his response, I barely knew what to say. Even my work in the CJH had not escaped his attention, and what was the biggest shock was when he offered me the barony to the Merchant District.

I was speechless. I had thought I was heading to my execution, instead I was being given a second chance. I have never appreciated any man more than I did Galverson that day, and I vowed to myself at that moment that I would not let him down.

I would say that meeting Galverson in his palace that day was probably one of the single greatest experiences of my life, second only to the day my daughter was born. I suppose after the meeting, I was grinning like an idiot, and my dear friend, Jacob, shouting all the way back to the Baronial Estate as the elites escorted us, about the new Baron of the Merchant District. I had been given this second chance, and I did not intend to waste it.

I got right back to work, seeking out hopefuls for the Merchant District Guard(MDG) and seeing to other important matters of the district. Things started to really look up for a short while, and I had even had my love returned to my by the grace of the gods. Even Torch had forgiven me for what I'd done to him while in the cult and we were wed that year. Good times, as a rule, however, rarely last, and this was no exception.

It is always the calmest before the storm, and this storm's name was Zeer. The sharran mage responsible for corrupting my friend and former baron, with her at his side, they set on Cordor a war that cost many their lives. Zeer and Cameo, now no-longer hiding their nefarious ties to the Lady of Loss, sent monsters rampaging through the city. Fire giants from Red Dragon Isle did plenty of damage, wreaking havoc throughout the duchy.

Then their major assault came. The former barons had struck and alliance with the Black Widow barbarians in the Spires and sent wave after wave of barbarian women and giant spiders against our walls. The onslaught was so fierce that even Sergeant Reginalli had begun to panic, and at that point, I myself took control of the city's defenses, as none of the other barons could be found. I did my best to organize a defense in the outskirts, but Zeer employed a feint, keeping us busy at the north gates while a force got in through the west gates and made its way to the royal palace, abducting our beloved Duke Galverson.

Following the attack, when it became known what had happened, panic struck the city. The people began to riot, attacking each other randomly. Seeing a need to restore order, I saw no other choice than to agree with the suggestion to call for a temporary Martial Law. I then called for a gathering at the foot of the palace and spoke to the people, urging for calm and assuring that we would recover the Duke at all costs.

Order returned to the city after the speech, and so we set about searching for the duke while fortifying our own defenses. We waged the war on for the rest of the year, the Elites throwing Zeer out of the city time after time on his attempted invasions. We were holding our own, but this year, like any other, would not end on a good note. As ever, Cordor had more than its fair share of hard times ahead of it.