Gideon Blackmane's Journal

[Urchon]

Of gods and worship...
How many are those who pay lip service to their gods? Men and women who masquerade as true servants when in fact they only serve their own sense of self and greed. Another day spent in the area around the Friendly Arms Inn has taught me a valuable lesson: few indeed are those who follow a sane code of morals. Most tend to have a very deluded view of what a paladin is, as well. We are not tenders of faith, we are warriors. We are not caretakers of a singular faith, we are protectors of innocence and justice. We are not merciful to the wicked nor the vile, we are the ones who end their lives. How hard can this be to understand? We come from many different backgrounds, some are knights before they are sworn to protect the faith, others are the sons and daughters of farmers. One thing unites us all in the end: we kill. We kill for our codes. We kill for our faiths. We kill to protect the innocent.

Of the vile...
Norkul. An orc. He explained to me he fights against his own kin because he is not of the same "kind". He had hatred in him, focused inwards. He could've turned from his dark path and perhaps been given a chance to save his soul from the gods of the orcs. A few elven arrows put an end to that. We had been fighting some vile power within the forest of Sharp Teeth, or whatever that place is called, when some elves said the forest was theirs. Then they killed the orc after he had helped them rid "their forest" of the vile power. This, in itself, did not cause me to draw my sword against them. Killing someone with evil in them is not something a paladin will stop. However, the manner in which they cornered and killed someone who had just helped them spoke of cowardice. It also spoke volumes about the minds of elves. In my time I've seen nothing but spite from the elves; Eldreth Veluuthra, the Sharp Teeth forest incident, angry glares... People say the elves have beauty. Aye, a cruel beauty indeed.

As for the orc, I know not which path he has chosen. If he was raised from the dead by his own, he's most likely lost forever. Whatever hopes he had for redemption are most likely lost thanks to the impulsive hatred of the fey-folk. Then there's the hatred of mankind as well. I've heard rumours of some orc-hatred group forming in Baldur's Gate. Half-orcs being beaten? Many of them have a savage streak but so do regular humans. The forming of such a group is proof enough. Like a pack of wolves they'll band together to fuel their fires of ignorance and malice. It is good that my faith in humanity, the ideal not the race, is tested time and time again. Each time I come through unscathed, knowing that there are specks of light in the blackness. Just like a night sky. But each time I am also growing ever more weary of fighting the very same fight time and time again. It's like one of the crusades where you're left to stomp some sense into the ignorant savages.

As a last note, I've heard of an orc priestess called Kaltyra. Or was it a shaman? Apparently the dukes gave this orc permission to roam freely within Baldur's Gate, receive the same treatment as its citizens and be protected under the same laws... I would very much like to speak with this orc. Hopefully, I'll learn something new.

[Urchon]

Finally taking time to sit down and write, Gideon opens that dusty journal of his with only one page yet scribbled upon.

Well, my time here has been filled with danger and insanity. As is the norm when arriving in a new land with new ways... So many things have happened and it would be foolish to attempt to recall all of my doings. Yet some are recorded and can not be written on these pages, should my journal be stolen.

Eternal rest...
Sir Uther. A knight who died in service to his god many years ago. Risen as an apparation and now finally put to rest by a group of knights and various commoners. Finally a simple task, even though completing it was far from simple, we saw the evil and we vanquished it. Refreshing. People showed remarkable strength of will that day, following into a dungeon utterly corrupted by evil. Few apart from paladins can stand such a presence. Sir Uther rests once more and hopefully his soul stands vigil by his god's side.

Sycophant...
The Order has been in some turmoil, the Red Wizards and their ways proved to be a quicker solution to a problem the Dukes had. So they saw fit to give the Thayans the right to do as they pleased... I called the Dukes incompetent and from the glares I received I can tell that my head was about to be placed on a pike. James White sent me from the Duchal Palace, however... But what do they expect? The Dukes call for a meeting with the two knightly Orders of these lands and expect both to simply bow and smile in the presence of such obvious evil. If handing people over to Liches is the way the Dukes want things done then by all means call for the exclusion of paladins from Baldur's Gate. Fools. No true knight would bow to such blasphemy. Lords be damned, our codes come before the stupidity of a glorified mercenary and three pompous oafs.

Friend or foe...
It seems I might have been tricked. The ongoing war between the elves and the orcs has been a constant irritation, these two races hate eachother to the point of obsession. One side craves the utter annihilation of the other, good deeds be damned they just wish to rid the world of one another. Some individuals have shown to be a greater moral calibre, however... Yet now I am called to question those morals. Especially those of one. The elves believe there to be no good orcs in the world. While I am inclined to believe those words, I can not cut down those that say they want something other than bloodshed. But when claims are made that those I have chosen to trust are in fact dealing in dark matters I am forced to act. I must speak with the orc.
Damn her if she proves the spiteful elves right.