Torra's Tale

My name is Torra , of the Clan Veklok. I was born during the harvest festival in 531, daughter of Varanka, first mate of Captain Mahki Veklok, and Druunda. Although I was born on the isle, mother was the shiips healer so I spent much of my young years aboard ship with them. I was taught to fight, and learned the skills of navigating from Father, and I grew wise by Mothers side. She taught me to read, and write, and how to tend the injured and the sick.

Mother told lots of stories about our home, and the voyages that they had been on. I experienced for myself many of the things that most Vikindran children only heard stories about. Most of the children were raised on the islands until they were grown.

I loved the long voyages at sea, the stars filled night sky and the bleeding light of the moon reflected off the water. The gentle rocking on a calm sea, and the wild storms, both dangerous and exciting, tossing the ship about without regard. I traveled to far away lands and saw many different types of people, and creatures of the sea large enough to devour large ships.

I was nearly grown when Father and Mother died. I stayed on Dourislan for several years. I learned more healing magicks and stories from the elders there, and took a husband, Gorn, a ship builder.. We had three sons and I lived happily as Madhur, but missed the excitement of traveling.

When my sons were grown, and my husband was killed, I traveled the islands. I visited many clans and stayed in many villages sharing stories and hearing legends, and I went to the castle at the heart of the kingdom of Shahkree.

The Turbulent years started in 560, and they brought many changes over the twelve years that they lasted. The death of King Mulrijut was followed by a long struggle for power amongst the clans and freakish weather and strange diseases infecting and killing our people. The shifting of the islands caused many clans to relocate and many other changes occurred over these years.

I traveled through these years, helping where I could, and ended up at the castle with the Jovinra who had lost their homes and land along with most of their clan to the sea. The island they had lived on sank during one of the shakes.

Finally a new king was named and the diseases were gone, and a great gathering was called at the castle. King Rohlmik sent word for all to come, and all who were not at sea gathered for the first time in Years. The Turbulent Years were over, and stability and peace remained for nearly twenty years during this time I continued to travel as much as I could, but I spent a lot of time at the castle.

I knew our new king from the day that he was born. It was I who helped his mother during her delivery. She would surely have died if Garrow and I had not been there. He often had me advise on situations because I knew all the people, and had much respect among them. He was a good warrior, and a good king, but he had never traveled all of the villages as I had. All of the Jarls would listen and talk to me openly. At harvest festival in 582 I was honored and named Grand Mahkur Torra, the oldest living Vikindra at fifty years of age.

The season of death in 591 brought a near total devastation to the Vikindra, killing over half of the total population. The Sessuar were attacking constantly and we were forced to venture from the islands to seek aide. I went with the clans of Veklok and Corrani to Evendarr. Jarl Coran, Ratabjak, Anya, Clovis, and several others traveled to Ravenholt and met Prince Basil Ravenhurst. We set up trade arrangements with the Prince and Lord Isilome, and lifesaving supplies were brought back to the islands.

We made it through the long hard winter and began to rebuild. The Sessuar attacks became more frequent and more organized. They conquered the island of Rojojnik. Within a year of much bloodshed the Sessuar stormed the castle and killed King Rohlmik. Survivors of the war were gathering on the small island of Marjorie, and we were forced to evacuate. Our numbers that were upwards of 50,000 were now reduced to 6,000. We loaded ships and evacuated our home.

When we first arrived at Hunters Island, we had to build lodgings very quickly to prepare for the coming winter. The quickest way was to rebuild on some old structures that we found here. It seemed the best option. The land was already cleared, and many of the structures were salvageable. It was very close to an area along the coast where we could build a shipyard.

When we first began to work on these old structures, strange spirits appeared and then quickly vanished. The workers would stop and leave the buildings, frightened by the spirits. Were it not for the rapidly approaching winter and our dire need for lodgings these spirits would have driven us to move to another part of the island to begin anew. That was not an option, given our desperate situation. Time was running out and winter was approaching fast.

When we began building new structures, markings would appear on the walls, and new spirits would appear. This was a frightening yet intriguing occurrence that would require further investigation when time allowed. Eventually we realized that these spirits meant no harm to us. If we just ignored them and kept working, they would appear for a few moments and then vanish. They always appeared in the same place, near strange markings on the outer walls. Each marking has a form of writing on it that I have so far been unable to decipher.

Before the first snow came we had built enough lodgings for everyone to be comfortable, and cleared plenty of land to plant come spring time. Everyone worked hard, especially the children, and we are at least prepared for the long winter to come. Baron Vandal of Capulus and many good people in Ravenholt have supplied us with the bare necessities and we have established supply lines in nearby Capulan towns.

As we slowed in building for the winter months, the spirits appeared less and the people began to feel a little more at ease. Having gone trough all the turmoil of the last years, with the constant battles with the Sessuar and the relocation the entire Vikindran populous, we rested. Much like bears, we hibernated for the winter. Not all of us though, there are some who refused to be maintained in this way, and took to the sea. Others, myself included, began the grieving process. I remember the elders telling me stories of the disasters that have struck our people in the past, yet they do not seem to compare with what we have just been through.

Ratabjak has done well. His valor and endurance throughout this crisis has again proven his loyalty to the people. He is truly the great leader that I saw in his child eyes the day we found him so long ago. He has worked hard to keep the people together and safe, and has genuinely earned his position among our people though there are still those who will never accept him fully because he was not born Vikindra. The Veklok who stand by him and those who are left of the Coranni continue to battle about Ratabjak even though the clan leaders have agreed to put their difference of opinions aside and concentrate on the crisis at hand. Vengeance is still a strong motivator among the Coranni, a remnant behavior of Jarl Coran's time.

I never used to write down experiences and stories, and I probably should have. I have been spending too much time of late acting like an elder and conveying our stories to the younger ones.

I was telling the story of Tamaar of Vorgon to a group of children and realized that much of what the former elders had written was lost or destroyed during the evacuation. Very few remember the Turbulent Years or King Muljirut, who got us through them. So much is lost. I can at least keep these stories going for I am one of the very few who lived through those twelve years and I knew king Muljirut both before he was king and during.

Many of the people are unsettled by the restlessness of the spirits on this island and they cling to the belief that spirits who do not resurrect are not to mess with. The old superstitions are still very strong among the Vikindra. Upon exploring more of this island, I have found other old structures and what look like mud huts. There are no markers on these, and I saw no spirits, which makes me believe that it is not the entire island but only a small part of it. Some of the people have decided to build new structures for themselves outside of the area of spirits. Perhaps they are right in doing so, perhaps not.

We held council and decided to hold Harvest Festival here on Hunters Isle. Many thought that we should wait until we are back on our own isles but many thought this a good time to celebrate. The crops this year are more than plentiful and we are planning to return to our true home in the spring. After council as I returned to my home, I saw that the spirits have returned. For almost a year I have not seen any, and now they are back. Just as before they would appear and vanish. The only way that these spirits have interfered with us or affected us has been when one of the markers disappears. This only happened once that I know of. When the marker disappeared, the building it was on crumbled to the ground and many undead arose from the rubble. We fought undead for several days, and then they just stopped coming. We did not rebuild that building.

I have tried to tell my people that there is more here than just spirits appearing but they will not listen. They strongly urge me to leave well enough alone. I cannot. There is something going on here and whatever it is it is growing as fast as we grow. As we build, more markers spirits come, but where do they come from, and why. I will continue to try and find out regardless of the warnings to leave it alone. I get the feeling that we are being watched. Others feel it too.

The older stories from before even my time may be lost forever if they are not told again. We do not have large numbers of elders passing down our stories like they did when I was a child. There are very few of us left to tell them and so many younger ones to listen, and ask us so many questions. I try to answer their questions as best I can but much of my time has been filled with traveling to Ravenholt and the war efforts. The children are always the ones to suffer. They were the ones most effected by our relocation and the changes since. Most of them were orphaned and accepted by other families. As hard as it was we have truly joined together again as we have done in the past. I hope the children can see that and gain strength from the experiences rather than just feeling the hurt and pain.

Today there were spirits at nearly every building. As I looked closer, I noticed that the markers were changing. There was much more of the strange writing appearing on the markers. Some of them that had previously only borne one line are now completely covered in this strange writing. What has caused this to happen? The only thing that is different now is that the people are arriving for the Harvest Festival. I fear that something has disturbed them and that they are trying to communicate. I still cannot understand this strange writing that appears on the markers, I have been trying to make sense of this for a long time now but I am no closer to understanding it now than I was when I first saw it.