Francis' Journal: The 'Beauty' of Nature

Again I awoke feeling as though I was suffering a hangover, every inch of my being screamed out in agony. I had thought myself to be in good shape but this morning every single one of my muscles ached, how do the common folk endure these tortures to their bodies every day? At that point I would have murdered for a half-decent masseuse. Alas that lifestyle is still out of reach until I prove to father that I've 'learned my lesson'  After I dragged myself out into the world my day actually got off to a pretty good start. I heard a man yelling for help and once I was completely certain there were no muggers running past me or monsters on the loose I decided to cautiously investigate. Turned out that the man's rabbits had gotten loose and they were feasting on his crops. Spying a chance to be a good samaritan (something that's bound to earn favour with father) and to play with cute bunnies I was eager to help. Chasing the little creatures around was far harder than I'd expected, the staff were responsible for rounding up Lord Snuggles at the end of the day when I was a boy but I'd always assumed it was a simple enough job.  Difficulties aside we eventually managed to round them all up with minimal damage to his harvest, he even tried to sell me one of the rabbits. If I wasn't finding it so hard feeding myself I would have been tempted, I never did forgive Amber for what her mutt did to my poor Lord Snuggles, those squeaks haunt my dreams to this day. When I mentioned that I really couldn't afford it the kindhearted man gave me a small reward for helping him out. It seems the 'peasants' are far more pleasant than my old friends had led me to believe. Speaking of which I haven't heard a thing from any of them since my exile, it makes me question everything I knew. But perhaps that's the exhaustion and lack of rich filling foods talking. The day went downhill from there.. First I tried helping a local fisherman. He asked me to check the traps he'd set up, which sounded simple enough. I should have known better by that point, nothing is 'simple' with these people. I went to open one of the fishing cages when I was savaged by a drake! The fisherman laughed it off saying it was only a baby and drakes and skelks got into the cages all the time! I have no idea how long I ran for but it was certainly long enough to ensure none of those evil water-lizard was following me! Next the dam. I wasn't looking forward to more heavy lifting but at least this time it would be safe, hopefully. I was clearing rocks and plugging leaks and I got to chat to some of the other workers. After hearing about my predicament one of the older workers gave me his pickaxe and taught me how to spot ore deposits, he explained that if I ever intended to travel that gathering ore for craftsmen could earn a decent wage. I was a little skeptical but right now a gift is a gift and I wasn't going to turn it down. I was settling into my day at the damn, thinking that it was nice to have a quiet job for a change when the world had to go and prove me wrong yet again. It turns out the dam isn't safe. I was just minding my own business when a giant looming figure made out of stone stomped it's way towards me! Needless to say I found a safe place to hide and let the proper authorities deal with it. I tried to write off the elemental attack as a one off, to tell myself that perhaps it was poor luck that my peaceful job had been interrupted. Unfortunately the living nightmare that is Queensdale had other ideas. As I set back to work we were beset by flying creatures. 'Harpies' I believe one worker yelled though I wasn't paying too much attention as I was moving with haste and purpose to find a different job for the rest of the afternoon. Deciding that the incident with the rabbits was clearly a sign I should be working with cute animals today I headed for the Moa ranch. For a brief shining moment I felt that my hunch had been correct as I was hired on to find some missing Moa chicks that the workers assumed were just hiding in nearby bushes. So there I was, making cute sounds to coax out baby birds, with some degree of success I might add, when I came to some heavily rustling undergrowth. Hoping to bring another chick home I reached out to try to reassure the poor creature only to end up with the barrel of a pistol aimed squarely at my face! Apparently bushes are good hiding places for Moa chicks and bandits! If it hadn't been for the quick action of my hero, rancher Mepi, I doubt I'd be alive to write this. Perhaps I should try the city for opportunities tomorrow, clearly the 'peaceful farmland' of Queensdale isn't so peaceful.

OOC: I'm slowly getting back up to date on these entries, the next one should see Francis becoming more aware of the situation with the Flame & Frost storyline. This entry is just a summary of the rest of Queensdale and the dangers therein. Several of the renown hearts in the area are doable without fighting anything though the Moa Ranch is tricky as you need to keep coming back when those bushes are 'suspicious' again! I could have tried going into the Bandithaunt caverns to kick over some of the bandit's supplies but poor Francis didn't fancy trailing that many bandits around and I played it safe!