Therion is a thief. And not just any thief — not some pickpocket or cutpurse but a proper master of stealth, the kind of man of whom stories are told, the sort that no walls, no prison bars could hold. Safe for those prison bars during the flashback sequence, of course — but it was ten years ago, and we’re all allowed to be young, even those of us living a life of thieving crime!
In present day, Therion reminisces about the bad ol’ days in a quiet tavern in the city of Bolderfall. He is, in fact, the only topic of conversation in the tavern — a pair of youthful thieves recognise him, and immediately begin recounting some of his more impressive recent jobs. Therion doesn’t stop them, but neither does he join in their conversation. He’s a lone wolf. The only words he exchanges are with the innkeeper — and those concern the business he’s in Bolderfall over.
Not that Bolderfall isn’t ever bustling with opportunity — for skilled professionals like Therion, a city as divided as this could very well be heaven…even if, somewhere deep inside, the thief might feel a twinge of regret for what his home city has turned into.
The dashing rogue had a target in mind, and it was over this target, the Ravus Manor, that he was grilling the inkeep over. The wonky man on the other side of the bar offered the information Therion was after willingly enough, and lo and behold, the rogue dashed forth to scout out the manor defences. While hiding behind a row of bushes and doing his best petunia impression, the gallant sneak spied an unlikely route — the front door!
If there’s one thing Bolderfall does not lack in, it’s crowds of grumbling commoners, most of them unable to take their destiny in their own hands, as this rakish knave did! If there’s two things Bolderfall does not lack in, it is commoners and their counterpart, the snotty nobles who spare not a thought for those they lord over, guarded safely by small armies of sellswords…which, I suppose are the third thing Bolderfall does not lack in. But the fourth…! The fourth is what I–Therion cares about! Merchants, too busy with boasting to notice their valuables picked from under their noses.
It’s at this point that the dashing rogue, making his way to the Manor, suddenly crashed into three ruffled, smelly travelers–a sturdy warrior, obviously a sellsword guarding the pair; a man a few years Therion’s senior, and a–oh, could it be?–a young lady with a bag almost as large as she was, clanking under the weight of scores of different wares. A merchant! What better way for Therion to sneak into the home of the Ravuses under the guise of a merchant, than by having a real one sitting beside himself?!
He put the most sly of his smiles, and– “Hey.”
The handwriting in the journal you currently read through suddenly changes after several lines of unreadable squiggles, some of which might be depicting the scholar Cyrus in a rather unflattering light.
Pish-posh and absolute hogwash! I swear, Therion, if you pollute my journals with your humourless drivel, I will cover your thieving backside with so much fire…!
Ahem.
The road to Bolderfall did not come without its dangers, but the party of travellers, led by the scholar Cyrus, manages to defeat a great deal many strange and curious creatures; the sort of beasts the trio comes upon would better fit a menagerie rather than the countryside–but it is a dangerous world these heroes inhabit. Forgetting that would cost each and every one of them.
But no less dangerous is the city of Bolderfall, fractured as it is by political and social conflict. It’s not a place either Tressa or Olberic have previously visited, and what little Cyrus has read of it does the beautiful city no justice. It’s as if the very buildings have been etched from the stone. It’s in this city that the trio comes upon the thief, Therion. This wiry, white-haired lad did not possess a single smooth bone in his body, much as he’d like to think otherwise; and his curtness nearly made the scholar reconsider his offer of help. Even so, Therion accepted, and let his new acquaintances in on his scheme. It was simple in its beauty; and with Tressa here, it would be all too easy to buy into the angle of merchants come to the Ravus manor to speak with the lady of the house.
The guards, of course, had to prove quite obstinate.
This hurdle out of the way, the four companions snuck into the manor through an open window — “No more front doors,” Therion had said with disdain as soon as the guards behind were out of earshot.
The Ravus Home was…there really is no way around it, a splendid home, truly exquisite in its presentation. It spoke of opulence and great riches, and, if one looked at Tressa’s face, one could almost swear she was considering a change in professions. But no, the dear girl didn’t take anything — and the more power to her! Perhaps she did murmur a promise, to one day build a mercantile empire to dwarf the riches of this place… but who could say such things? They are lost to the annals of history.
Within the innermost chambers of the Ravus home, Therion found no great fortune, no fairy-tale treasure. No, what he found was…a single gemstone. Its outward appearance promised no particular riches. The party of four was less than impressed, as any reasonable reader might imagine.
*cough* ALFRED
This Heathcote then immediately proceeded to pull his sabre out, and the battle was joined! White-haired and wrinkled as he was, the man moved with alacrity not even Olberic was quite prepared for. His first few slashes nearly took entire party out, and it was only the knight’s swordplay — and Therion’s skill with the dagger — that saved Tressa and the scholar.
Once Cyrus had a moment to collect himself, he released torrents of arcane fire, followed by barrages of ice and finally, by a veritable lightning storm! Still, the man refused to back down — until Therion, at breakneck speed, moved past his guard, his dagger skirting past the man’s defences and cutting a bloody path across his ribcage.
But just as victory was in the travelers’ grasp, Heathcote snatched it away. Frowning, Therion looked down at his hand, recognition fast turning to dread.
And that…that’s when Heathcote’s mistress revealed herself.
Soon enough, it becomes apparent that Therion’s entire plan to rob the manor has been orchestrated by the lady Ravus, in her search for a capable enough thief; a man who could discover and reclaim the three missing gemstones that once belonged to the family but have since been stolen. Hardly overjoyed by this turn of events, Therion nonetheless is forced to accept the new job at hand; and his companions are only too happy to help, either for the adventure of it, with the expectation of reciprocity or — in the scholar’s case — the opportunity to research three arcane artifacts of some potency immediately after recovering them.
With this, the adventurers made their way to the outskirts of Bolderfall, only to be surprised by the sudden appearance of Heathcote and Cordelia Ravus. The noblewoman showed unexpected care for Therion’s well-being, and the butler — who, the scholar suspected, was an old thieving hand himself — offered the travellers a precious lead.
What awaited Therion? The answer lay in Noblecourt.
Magnus Commentary: Therion’s story was a lot of fun! And at this point I’m having so much fun with this diary series, can you tell?
At any rate, thank you for reading this, and to all my friends forced to check back journal entry after journal entry – you are far too kind. There’ll be more soon!
The Grimoire Reliquary 