It was a long Journey Home as Torien recalled his Journey. It was past Time to make amends with his father and Brother. He bid Taren and Tags goodbye and Promised to return by Spring. He maybe the long Journey back to the far edge of Duralba's Realm into th small country That his family lorded over. As he came into contact with one of the Outriders They barely Recognized him till he showed them his Greyhawk signet ring. One of the Riders told him some very disturbing news. While you have been away less than a fortnight ago one of the outlying villages was attacked by Mercenaries, A very large group of organized soldiers had attacked. Torien was not sure what this might mean. Thank you sir I must make for Greyhawk Keep. Time seemed to pass slowly even Though Torien pushed his Mount to exhaustion, he finely slowed a bit so He would not risk Foundering and killing His fine Horse It was not his Fault. Finely Greyhawk keep came into few and he made his way through the gate The Green Black and Grey Banner of his House still Flapped in the Breeze as it had the day he had left. As he passed the Garrison post and Barracks it seemed much fewer soldiers were there than when he had gone. He finely Made his way to the Stables and left his Horse with a Steward there. As he made his way into the Keep he came face to face with his Brother Brohm sitting at the head of the table where their Father Eddard sually sat. Brohm you look lost in thought, where is father and why are you sitting in his chair? You remember the last time you tried that he had you scooping Shit from the Stables for a week. "Alas my brother Torien you still have your brash sense of Humour and loose tounge I see but sadly It is my duty to sit here now. Father was wounded in the last siege by an Assasin who snuck in during the night, We found villagers gone from the outer villages and then were beset by a mercenary army. We still have not been able to find out their sender even after putting several captives to the question. Whomever sent them did not want us to know its as if there orders were sealed to them by sorcery so they could not speak of it even under severe questioning. We found some Wagon Tracks that seemed headed to the Borders of Germain's lands. We have never become involved in the conflict between Him and Deralba before so I dont know why he would attack. Torien relayed the events of his recent travels with Tags, whom Brohm was glad to hear had still been keeping him in line, and explained the dead rising up by Ravenswood and the slave camps they had discovered in Germains lands. I think he was trying to force us to stay out of the trouble with him and Duralba and steal some slaves for his camps at the same time. I see we lost alot of troops in the sieges. Aye we have lost many Brohm explained we were set upon by some bandit raiders from the east at the same time the siege was occuring we had to split our force into two. We finally won the day but not without alot of Blood was spilled by our countrymen. Father has made me the Steward of our lands now and he wishes to speak to you now. He had told me news from the Ravens that arrived that someone had seen you headed this way a full grown man now sitting your horse and wearing you swords like you new which end to poke into your enemies. I have missed you Brother. and I you said Torien but I likely can not stay I have commited to Helping Duralbas people and ending his slavers trade. I hope Father and you dont want me to take over the Lords Guards now that you are the Steward. I think he has other Ideas but see for yourself. With that Torien went to see Sir Eddard Greyhawk Baron of the Grey Hills. Mostly our homeland is made up of Farmers in the hilly plains and Hunters in the Great Hawkswood that trade goods with the larger parts of the Kingdom. But we have always been known for our Fighters as well excalimed Eddard as Torien came through the door. Not only have we maintained a fair rule of this land and kept out the Wargs, the Orcs and later the Bandits and Savages from our lands but The other nobles in the kingdom have always thought of our House very honorable. I have decided since you wanted to see the rest of the kingdoms you should. I have named your Sister Lena as the new Commander of the Hawks guard. Wow Thought Torien she has risen fast and even though she was the youngest of the three children Torien thought she would eventually grow to be a capable Warrior. It was not uncommon for the Women of the Grey Hills to fight alongside the men. The harsh lands, beasts and burdens made all of them stronger. Well Father I am sorry I wasn't here when you needed me. I am also sorry to see you bed ridden, you were always one of the best Generals and your Warhammer was always feared by your enemies. Alas Eddard sighed We all grow old or injured or to tired to carry on the fight Eventually. I still have my life at least although I will likely never ride into battle again nor even walk far without a Cane. That assasin got me through the spine, if not for our best healers attending me or your sister slaying the assasin before he could finish the Job I would be dead. So I have stepped into an advisory roll now. Torien I have no Favorites amoung my children however even though you were always the most trouble you have grown into a Man of fine worth I believe. After Torien told him of all his adventures and undertakings in Ravenswood and meeting and serving Prince Liam of the elves His Fater said Son I am proud that you find it a noble cause to help the weak and protect the realm. I feel it is past time I brought this up but you remember the stories of the Order I told you about when you were young. I do Father like something of a bards tale, the Free Knights of Greyhawk they were the true source of our reputation for honor. After the Keep was built here and the King had a fairly lasting peace from the great wars they were disbanded. The knights although from here were allowed free travel to assist the other lords of the realm as long as they obeyed their laws and served under their code the King and the Dukes took them on as their private gaurd or made them generals some even became dukes and Lords of other realms its said. Well I have pettioned the King and adv. him though the order was disbanded I adv. him that I wished to open it once more to help as the realm has come under greater attack from fiends and undead and seems to have some strife from power hungry nobles as well. At first the King wasnt sure of this but after our land was attacked and I was wounded the king agreed if I found the right Person to lead the order or to found it again He would grant us that as a favour for our past service to the Realm I will send a message to the king of your bravery and deeds as a noble of our house and ask that you be made A Free Rider again. The last of the Free Knights of Greyhawk. It is a huge Responsibility son but I know your the only one who can do it. Torien had tears in his eyes as he knelt by his father and agreed to uphold the old code. To seek out injustice and wickedness and to fight it as long as he was able. A few days later a letter arrived from the king, allowing this to take place. So Eddard and Emily and Brohm and the rest of the vassels of the Grey Hills had a cermony to open the old order manuals and Torien Greyhawk was proclaimed the First new Knight of the Freeriders of Greyhawk in over 50 years, since the last ones had passed on and Father sealed the orders chapel and Barracks. I agree to this honour Father, Sister, Brother. I will defend our Realm not just our Home with all that I have and will seek Justice for the wrongs you have seen in these lands and in all lands of our Kingdom. Eddard dubbed him Sir Torien Greyhawk last of the Greyhawk Free Knights. After the Cermony Eddard told Torien Of an old Cave that the knights Commander used to store things in and adv. Him that the Commander of the Knights instructed him to send the new commander there if they were needed again. The Cavern is along a dangerous pathway and is said to now be inhabited be various creatures who gaurd the way into it. It is Said the Commanders Sword was left there as well. The Hawks Claw!! exclaimed Torien. It is said the Hawks claw was given to th knights Commander by the Elves whom he once did a great service and its said the Blade was indistructible and imubed with Elven Magic. Torien knew he must find the sword and Help his new friends in their indevours. He stayed for another few weeks training with his Brother who was surprised that Torien was now an accomplished Swordsman thanks to Tags, and also spent time sparring his sister whom was very skilled with both the blade and the Bow he came to find out after losing several bets against her in a shooting competition. He finally bid his family fairwell and was given a fine suit of plate and some money from his Father, a War Horn from his Brother, and a fine Hawks pendant necklace from his sister who claimed the old Greyhawk medallion would ward away some evil spirits. He wished His family luck in the spring planting season and in recruiting and training some new soldiers for the guard. They all were sad to see him go again so soon but they were all proud that he was taking with him a new title that bore them all great honour and he hoped he could live up to it as he rode back toward Ravensvale and the New lands of the Numinandi to find his Friends Tags and Taren and see how the palns from Liam were forming to take back the slave camps. He also remembered his fathers words in hope he could find the Hawks claw and return it to its former glory.

The psychology of the undead

Mankind is a creature unique unto itself and wholly singular based on the single concept that it has the ability to contemplate the conditions of its own demise. We find ourselves still fearful in this universe on the idea of our own death regardless of the fact that we KNOW that there is a afterlife and we can even travel there and visit the place of our final rest after our death from the mortal world. It is the fear of the grave that gives perspective on life. Until one is able to realize their end they can not place their beginning truly.

"Your cradle stands within your grave" -- A unnamed dracolich.

The thought of a mind that has returned from its death can prove to be a very heady tonic. Our minds are hardwired to the concept of the mortal condition being on of a temporary state. The thoughts that arise from the mind of a mortal creature brought back to life with the onset of mental changes that could trigger from the additional opportunity at eternal youth grants further measure for changes within the mortal thought process. Regardless of the fact that one such creature may still be destroyed the prospect of a opportunity at immortality is far better a chance than a mortal life.

The prospect of immortality through unlife as far as my study can portray, has the opportunity to only prosper in the minds of two major mental archetypes. I will outline them here.

Self - A mind that is centered upon oneself has a great opportunity to last the ages. As the mind continues though time it has the ability to focus on the internal mechanisms of the mind and body to avoid detachment from the world around it fully. A lesser mind would focus on the fact that it has had a major physical detachment from the common mannerisms that constitute human life. A mind that is unable to focus in on itself often fixates on this loss of "humanity" and often leads to self termination within a few hours of reanimation. In turn a mind that con focus on self will take to what it has left as opposed to rejecting its condition for what it has lost.

Action - Though this mental archetype one is often able to find the many people who pride themselves in their work or who toil to better themselves in any way. There are many differing sub types in this overall class of mind but it is most commonly seen is one who acts with a reason as to why it does things. The mind is commonly aware of this choice or opinion on a subconscious level but it is there. The murder who delights in the death of others, the body builder who takes pride in their form, the woman who spends endless coin on her appearance and clothing, the breeder who always wins the livestock award at the festival. They are all types who act with passion in their work even if they take some small measure of satisfaction in their work or actions. Such a mind has the ability to focus on the task at hand and also to go beyond that and divert its attention to the task at hand as opposed to growing distant over the many years. Often a undead after a few years many undead grow lethargic without supervision where as such a mind can continue to grow or progress.

There are many other mental types to go through and there are also many acceptations to this rule of what mind can survive undeath but the exceptions are rare but they can surpass expectations by far.

"Be it ah undead or dead or alive, what does it matter so long as it looks nice enough to pass as human during the day and can make me coin during the night? tha trick is to not worry about the moral aspect of undeath but to know that in the end when you can watch your enemy die of old age, you get to ask yourself, who's next?" - Sennosan, a surface walking dark elf, when Mort asked him of his opinion on undeath

Undead Metabolism -

There are many long winded stories about the hunger of a undead body and their ability to consume sustenance and such. This will be a short study on the Unliving metabolism as I know it.

Lesser animations - The body is a amazing creation by all accounts no matter what way you look at it. Even as the body has died the tissues live on through the alchemical reaction in the body through the Athema, or essence of false life. Once a reanimated body is dissected for research one will find the flame of life resides in the mind, heart, and gut. Through he brain the "soul" of the creature is able to control the body. Being as this is not exactly magic purely, I cant say if it is the soul itself or the minds imprint of the soul. But to say the least the more intelligent of creations have desires and wills, if not dreams of their own as they slumber. The flame in the heart extends through the main veins and animates the tissues of the extremes of the body. and oddly, the gut seems to be the location of which the alchemical process is able to add more fuel to the exchange. The least of creations break down what they eat the best it can, the alchemy is fueled and the rest is transferred as waste material. I have not yet found how long the lesser can go without consuming new material, they have gone thirteen years without eating to show no sign whatsoever of decay or deanimation.

The vampires - Vampires are a hard undead to describe considering their metabolism is dual nature. They can get their best feeding though the consumption of blood but still have the ability to drain life essence through use of their nature considering negative energy. The interesting thing is that lack of a food source does not provide deanimation but just loss of self. This leads me to think that it is not the body that requires blood as a source of fuel but the soul that is torn and infected with the hunger. In addition to this theory it causes me to consider if one form of blood from one creature is more sustaining when compared to another form of creature. Is there a type of blood that would bolster the defenses of the mind so well as to cure them of their hunger? I will have to consult the vampire I know, thus far she has cloned a great many subjects to ensure she never loses herself but there is great potential for further study

Reality is consensus

Though our own personal point of view and understanding of what is reality will continually effect what precede as reality. We are still limited as to the condition of consensus as the common man continues to accept what is real and what is not real. Now it would be foolish to say that nothing exists and everything is false, but that in and of itself is false. Instead we must accept the idea that everything is true but we must accept what is true at the time of which such truth is of most need. I can accept my form as I wish and force that truth upon others. If I wish to become a High lich, then others will have no choice but to accept that as truth. But this does rise to censor the concept of what is the condition of consensus. If, through my ability, everyone knows me as some massive lich of power. Then is it of consensus that I may lose myself in this condition and truly, mentally and irrevocably, become that lich.

At what point is the threshold that we are able to separate the reality of consensus and return to what truth suited us prior to the conditions set before?

I will research on this more.