Elessar's Notebook

== Chapter 1, The Rules, Lore, History, and World of Magic. ==
The World of Magic
The five elements
The Laws of Magic
== Chapter 2, Stories of my Travels ==
Afraid of your own Shadow? Good, you Should be.
== Chapter 3, My Experiences with Death ==
Death's Vassal
Raslin, Torun, and the Gang
== Afraid of your own Shadow? Good, you Should be.Category:Adventure Log ==
The library was on fire, and it wasn't my fault. It was near midnight, and the place was deserted. I didn't like working with people around. I was reading through some old scrolls, hoping to find something, anything about the noose. 
"AHHHH!!" I screamed in exasperation, throwing the last scroll back into its compartment. "Son of a half-Troll Kalshna Breva Barzul Torne!! I come all this way to the flipping Library of Alexandria, the biggest library on the planet at this time, and they still don't have anything on him!?" 
I had been hunting Nicodemus for just short of 14 years now, and apart from the Swords of the Cross, I still had no idea how to kill him. If he were just any other demon possessed human going on a rampage, I'd just throw a few fireballs, With that accursed noose around his neck. So, lacking knowledge of how to kill him, I went to the greatest collection there was, the library of Alexandria. Unfortunately, Nicodemus had made a bad habit of burning any records of himself, and what few did remain were sketchy at best. I threw the last scroll back into its compartment and was about to blow out the candle when I noticed a scroll I hadn't seen before. I pulled it out and laid it across the table. I thank the Gods I didn't read it out loud, if I had, I don't think I would have ever caught Nicodemus again. The scroll was in ancient Hebrew, which was one of my less fluent languages, but I was able to understand enough to tell it wasn't about the noose, or even Nicodemus. Instead, it spoke of Anduriel. It called him "the Master of Shadows" and spoke of his abilities as one of the fallen. Most I already knew. When he took a host, he usually manifested in the form of a second shadow, which could grow and move of its own will, and even take physical form. He couldn't cast much magic, but that hardly mattered, as most if not all of the fallen he commanded could. I was beginning to loose hope again when I read the last section. And then I knew why Nicodemus always managed to stay 2 steps ahead of his enemy. No matter who they were, no matter how well prepared or skilled they were, he always seemed to know their plan and be ready for it. Anduriel was The Master of Shadows. He had the ability to look and hear through any shadow under the sun. Where ever his enemies were, whatever they were planning, he would know. I kept a blank face but I couldn't help glancing at my own shadow, could Anduriel be watching me right now? I rolled up the scroll, doing my best to act like it was just another dead end. If Nicodemus could watch my every move, I would have to be a lot more careful about what I said and did from now on. I tossed it back into its compartment, picked up my staff, went to blow out the candle and- an explosion from the wall at my back knocked me off my feet, over the table, and sent me crashing into the wall of scrolls. I was dazed and confused, but I managed to clear the black spots out of my vision in time to see two, things, step out of the hole in the wall. A giant six legged blood red bear with two sets of eyes, and a seven foot tall woman covered in dark red scales, with black hair as long as a snake whipping about, slicing clean through anything it touched. Ursiel and Deirdre, the fallen were here. My head was still scrambled from the explosion, I wasn't going to be casting spells any time soon, and there was no way I could take these two in a head to head fight. So, naturally, I cheated. I threw my cloak over me, and tapped the broach on my neck, then stayed perfectly still. I was never sure if that Haradrim trader in Ithilian had been telling the truth, but a few seconds after I touched the glass chameleon's eye, my cloak shifted around and changed color to what I presume was its best impression of the surroundings. "Find the wizard," said a voice as smooth as a knife's edge, Deirdre. "He is here somewhere." "What do we do with the scrolls?" Asked another, this one deep and gravely. "Standard protocol, burn them all." I just had to wait for them to leave, then I could jump out and get away. I heard someone chant something I didn't catch, and there was a flash of light above me. I stayed very still, not daring to breath. I heard footsteps walking around me. "Guard the entrance, make sure he doesn't escape." there was a deep rumble that I later realized was a growl. "If I want you to be a guard dog, then that's what you'll be, or would you rather explain to my father, why we failed to catch the one person who might know his secret." The rumbling died abruptly. "That's better. Now, stay, dog." The footsteps began to recede again. I could feel the heat of Ursiel's anger and frustration. "Come out, come out little elf, we won't hurt you." There was a crash as a shelf fell to the ground. My heart began to race faster than Areion. It was stifling and hot under the cloak, but I refused to move or even breath. Another crash of falling scrolls, I swear it was getting hotter every second, I couldn't take much more of this. Another crash, this one loud and strong enough that I felt the tremor under me. Suddenly, there was a white hot searing pain on my leg, I screamed in pain and surprise and jumped up and out of the pile of now burning scrolls. The good news, the sharp, abrupt pain had been enough to clear my head. The bad news, I now had a three ton demon Bear whose teeth were about to demonstrate their opinion of my face. I had half a second to react when Ursiel charged, not enough time to call up a full spell. So, once again, I cheated. On my left hand, I wore a silver ring deep blue stripe through the middle. I had enchanted it to store up a little kinetic energy whenever I moved my hand. It hadn't been used it in months, and I had done a lot of walking. I thrust out my arm, focused on the ring, and a wave of solid force stronger than a charging Troll, slammed into Ursiel just before he jumped onto me. It hit the bear square in his chest, and knocked him back 20 feet through the hole in the wall. I didn't stick around to see the aftermath, likely I had just ticked him off, and there was still Deirdre to worry about. I ran past the burning scrolls to the main exit, not bothering with stealth, Deirdre already knew where I was now. I turned a corner and saw the door. "Just a little further" I thought. I made it about half way there, when a 
== {Fight with Orcus} ==
Valkyrie, Banshee, Me, Orome, The Furies, 
== The Four Suits ==
The number 4, seems to be something of a reoccurring pattern, when it comes to the world of magic, and I believe this to be no exception. It surprises me that I haven't learned of these beings until now, considering the magnitude of their influence on the universe. I thought I knew every single god and primordial being there was, but apparently not. Anyway, The four suits, Amar (Hearts), Noli (Spades), Impotentia (Clubs), and Adagnitio (Diamonds), Represent Love, Fear, Ambition, and Knowledge respectively. They are somewhat of an oddity, being not quite gods, as they are the embodiments of their domains, not simply rulers of them, and not being quite primordials, as they have a purpose, a task, they don't simply exist. Zeus is not the sky, he is its ruler. Gaia is the earth, but she has little purpose beyond that. I'm not entirely sure what to call thes I'm getting off topic. My brother claims that the four are manifestations of Love, Fear, Ambition and Knowledge, and only that... But I can't help but think they may be more than that. Magic works with sympathetic energies. Things with similar concepts, functions, and purposes, will have similar energies surrounding them. And it works with more than just objects, it also works with ideas and emotions and the like. As far as I can tell, the suits have been around since near the dawn of time, far, far before the wakening of man. So, what were they before? I believe that the 4 suits, may also, at a more basic, fundamental level, be embodiments of the four elements. Amar, who is Love, would be Fire. Adagnitio, who is Knowledge, would be Earth. Noli, who is Fear, would be Water. And Impotentia, who is Ambition, would be Air.