The Reaper's Blades

This leather-bound book of sorts seems to be written completely in some sort of code. Either that or it's just all nonsensical. There doesn't seem to be a name written anywhere on it. [This is the IC journal of Shun Kuroda in Guild Wars 2.]

[reapers-blades]

It has been a little odd readjusting, now that Mordremoth is down. Being back at the city felt almost too quiet or peaceful. Given how much trouble the Reach sees, that is... saying something. It is nothing compared to what went on in the jungle, though. I can at least rest at ease back home. That is not to say there is not an abundance of issues at hand. Eleanora is once again having trouble with the Taipan. It seems our mistake of not killing Linniea’s aunt long ago is coming back to haunt us. Kaal also recently returned to show his face. Not for an apology or to give an explanation, but to inform us that we would be working with the likes of him again due to some sort of deal Hannah had made. I sorely hope that her losing her sight has not caused her to somehow lose her sense of judgement as well. I do not trust Kaal’s superior much more. This whole thing stinks of trouble. But...  There is still some good, as well. No one tried to murder us at the wedding, and a new home is in the works. And damn it needs a lot of work...

[reapers-blades]

The Pact is slowly getting ready to make a full on assault. I honestly do not know how well it will go. We tried to open a bigger path into Dragons Stand, but our efforts to keep the chak gerent at bay were for naught. Resources are still being spent, and personally, I am exhausted. I have not been able to rest easily in the jungle. The longer this drags on, however, the less of a chance we will have, I believe.  So far, no one I know has been lost to the dragon, one way or another. So there is that, I suppose. That can easily change at a moments notice. Rhia apparently has gone in deeper, on her own. Not the wisest thing to do. I am uncertain of her current status as of now. I do not really know what is going on in the rest of Tyria. Nearly all my time has been spent in Magus Falls. 

[reapers-blades]

Sylvari have begun to betray their allies, falling prey to Mordremoth's call. Caewyn had turned on the rest of the group, managing to kill some of the others. And the Pact is in shambles due to a fair number of the force answering the call. There are still some who resist the dragon's demands. I have to wonder how long they can last. There are not many I trust right now in that regard. I had been stranded for a short while as the Pact fleet crashed to the jungle floor. I saw the vines grasping them, dragging them down. It is a wonder that so many survived, but that is not to say they have not lost many. My absence did not affect Estel kindly as well... we will need to figure out a way to soften that. She seems to be thriving in the jungle, for the most part, otherwise. She has taken to gliding with fervor, as I expected. There are many areas she seems to love as well. The grand leyline hub deep underground. The golden city of the Exalted.... I found her assisting with commanding for an effort to retake Tarir from the Mordrem. She did well. I feel as though she may be due for a promotion before too long. Despite the crushing blow they have received, I can see the Pact fighting back with whatever they have left. Sozyn believes it is time to start moving on the offensive. And I agree. We cannot let the dragon keep us down.

[reapers-blades]

By some strange chance, I ran into an ally in the jungle. Sozyn is out here as well, setting up relay points for the LDC’s. Our contact was brief, as we had our own work to do, but I agreed to help set up a few of the relays while working with my team. That is, if we do not end up falling back due to some of the issues we have been experiencing. Apart from that, it has been oddly quiet as far as threats go. No signs of wyverns or mordrem. There have been a few tremors in the earth. I do not have a good feeling about it. The Pact fleet should be flying overhead soon. No, the troubles remain internal. Caewyn is particularly... on edge today. Calamity and I are watching her carefully. I think it would be best to se-- [The ink smears across the page abruptly, and a splatter of blood can be seen.]

[reapers-blades]

Tamm has displayed no odd symptoms since his accident yesterday. However, Caewyn’s behavior has not improved. She seems... paranoid. Or jumpy. to put it lightly. We may have to send her back if she continues to be uncooperative and rather antagonistic towards the rest of the group. It is making all of us rather on edge towards one another, which is not something we need right now. To top it off, Calamity’s feline has gone missing after we had to fend off a small group of Mordrem. I could have sworn I had seen... No. Perhaps I am mistaken. Peyo did test out a prototype set of ‘wings’ to allow for gliding across spans. She did not get too far. If we can utilize that, it should come in handy. I bet Estel would love to be able to do something like that. I do hope she is alright at home. I have no idea if any other shit has stirred within this week...

[reapers-blades]

Progress was hindered somewhat today. As we moved forward, a much larger and older wyvern decided to land and attack us. We were not entirely prepared to deal with a creature like that and were forced to retreat. Apart from that, Caewyn has been somewhat irritable. She snapped at everyone at least once today. I am not quite certain what has gotten into her, but then again. Perhaps this is just how she is under pressure. I would knot know. Calamity has not been all too happy either. She seems to think that the asura brought faulty detection equipment, given how we have not found anything remotely suitable yet. It is possible. I do not know how long this process typically takes, though.  We also ran into some odd....flora. They do not look like standard mordrem, if they are related, but they are dangerous all the same. They appear to be some sort of mushroom. Some of them explode, as Tamm found out the hard way. He was not hurt badly, but we are keeping an eye on his condition to see if we need to head out of the jungle. On the other hand, we have been getting a feel for the land, and some of the creatures that inhabit it. This would all still go smoothly if we had some way of traveling across these damn chasms and the like.

[reapers-blades]

I saw something odd in the distance earlier. Perhaps I am mistaken, but it seemed like some sort of strange hylek. In which case, I am not certain of it is hostile or friendly. We did not get close enough to find out. Getting around the jungle is proving to be difficult for a number of reasons. Vines are thick in the area and the trees span far greater than eastern Maguuma. The cliffs hang at the edges of what seem to be endless abysses. One wrong move and one of us will plummet. Calamity grumbled something about sprouting wings. I am fairly certain she was sarcastic. There has to be a safer way of moving about, however. Speaking of vines, we had to deal with a number of those earlier as well. Caewyn nearly got tangled up in them. She was not the only one. A small dragon-like creature that Calamity called a wyvern had been ensnared as well. The Charr mentioned they weren’t likely connected to the jungle dragon, itself. After it had been freed, the creature flew off. Hopefully, that one will not come back to bite us in the ass. Literally or figuratively.

[reapers-blades]

The jungle is certainly filled with its own dangers, Mordrem aside. We ran across a small pack of tiny raptors. Their size can be deceiving almost. Aside from that, we ran into another creature, one I had not yet seen prior. It was capable of shadowstepping, and it could emit some sort of smoke or thick dust from its body to blind those within it. Tamm and Peyo have not found any suitable locations yet. I would not have expected to find any this soon, anyway. We should probably travel in a little further.

[reapers-blades]

Earlier, Araxus informed me that he had finished my commissioned weapon, so I went on and picked it up. It is a rather fine rifle. Powerful, too. It will take some time before I am really proficient with it, but the more practice I get in, the better. Apart from that... I am now in the depths of the jungle, along with the small team I was assigned to. Before leaving, Estel gave me some magically imbued feathers that can give a small bit of healing. Hopefully I will not need to use them. There are five of us total. Two asura: Tamm and Peyo. A charr with a jungle stalker: Calamity Warshock and Spite. And then a sylvari, Caewyn. The two asura are tasked with detecting the magical flow in locations to see where suitable spots for waypoints might be, as well as to start setting that up should we manage to find something in a good location. The rest of us are to keep them safe, as well as map out whatever we can. There is not a great deal so far. We arrived at night, though. A few mordrem have already attempted to attack us, but it was a fairly small strike. I cannot say things will always be that way. Once day comes, we should be able to mobilize and get to work.

[reapers-blades]

I’m being deployed into the jungle shortly. Apart from the aerial strike, the Pact wants some scouts on the ground to begin trying to find good waypoint locations. Unfortunately, I am unable to bring Estel along. It seems they have set teams they want to be sending in for the matter. I am uncertain what to expect out there. I will need to make preparations.

[reapers-blades]

Lylla needs to be watched. She is embracing these newfound abilities of hers far too readily. She claims she is under no influence, but I cannot say I truly believe her, considering what she pulled back at Jalis’s refuge.  Power does not come freely. The question is, what is the cost?

[reapers-blades]

I should have realized Kaal was up to something when  he offered to demonstrate some sort of binding ritual for ‘communication’. That little bastard took something from Hannah. I am not certain what it was, but he stole some sort of essence straight from her body, then fled like a fucking thief.  Managed to catch him. Sort of. I suppose ‘catch up’ with him is more accurate, as I ended up in his lab due to my efforts. While I managed to rough him up, and destroy some of his equipment, his security ended up overwhelming me. When I came around, he had me bound and suspended over some fucking lava and was contacting the others, ransoming me for the Mask of Mirrors. They agreed to hand it over. They should not have. That shit could be really bad if it falls into the hands of our enemies. And well. That is probably where it is now. He kept blathering about how sacrifices must be made. Bloody moron.

Estel wants to talk to him. But as far as I am concerned, he is just a traitor who needs to die.

[reapers-blades]

Estel is alright. I got a letter from her. She had to go all the way to the silverwastes in order to find Rhia, who has been stationed out there the entire time. That solidified my concerns that the one I met was not real. I went out to make sure this was true... and it was. Volanys is still out there. And she is up to no good. But at the very least... Estel is safe.  If my fears had been correct, and she had gotten a hold of her? Then I would no longer have any real excuse for what came next. The Order would have to put me down... But it has not come to that. Not yet, at least.

[reapers-blades]

I fear something terribly wrong has happened. Yesterday morning, Estel had left for the Chantry. Earlier tonight, I went on by to bring her some food... She wasn’t there. Instead, I found Rhia, who informed me that she had gone back to the Molten facility. Alone. Why they had sent her alone when a rogue agent likely was involved, I have no idea. But that... it was just a ruse. The facility is still sealed up. No signs of anyone having gone in. And by the time I got back to the Chantry, Rhia was gone. And her desk looked as though someone had gone through her things. Again... Volanys is a mesmer. Reza was around, and I was able to explain a few things to her, but it doesn’t help me out much for now. Estel has not... called back the piece of her daggers that I keep with me. But that does not mean she is not in danger. She might not be able to summon it. Chances are...  I may very well soon be in a position of blackmail.

[reapers-blades]

We have managed to awaken Hannah, but all is not well just yet. Her vision is gone. Given how Estel said she could not heal it... I am inclined to believe this may be something permanent. Kaal stated he could fix it, but I honestly do not trust his methods at this point. She is recovering slowly. And she is struggling. I cannot say I blame her. There are those how manage being blind while still being rather formidable. I may need to see if Reed has any advice on the matter. Granted... she was born blind, as far as I know. If not, she has still had a long time to adjust and adapt. She may still have some insight, however. Aside from the sight issue, her ability to cast may have been damaged. Or weakened. Hopefully this is just a short term effect of the coma. I suggested she use her blade’s ability to try and let me be her eyes temporarily, but she was unable to do it. I asked Hannah if she thought what she had done to save Eriath was worth it. As I suspected...the answer was no.  If Estel had been home at the time, perhaps she could have said something to help give her hope. Offering comfort is not a strong point for me.

[reapers-blades]

Hannah is still out of action. We have the means to do something about it now... it is just a matter of getting it done. It cannot happen too soon, I think.  Of course, where one trouble starts get settled, another old issue comes rearing its head in its place. I received what I thought was a mission from Viola. I was to clear out everyone that was residing in what was supposed to be an abandoned Molten Alliance facility. I should have realized something was not right sooner. I had expected the place to be at least half occupied, but only two charr were  within. One whom I killed immediately. The other... Estel pointed out that it was a female. Flame Legion do not have females within their ranks. I shot her with a devourer venom arrow for safe measure before moving in closer to investigate. I could not find any sort of identification, but it mattered little anyway. The charr managed to kill herself, possibly to avoid having to talk. Or maybe for another reason. I do not know. It dawned on me then that... perhaps it was not Viola who sent the missive. It was written with a type writer, and signed by ‘V’. They stated that it had been ‘a long time since they last had work for me’. There is one other person this could have been. Volanys. Even without messing with my mind, she has found a way to use me. After contacting Viola, she confirmed that she was not the one who gave me the mission. Rhia should be notified of this shortly... but... it is too late possibly. Estel was pretty distraught over it. I cannot blame her, but this is not her fault. I made the call. And as a result, I may have just murdered two more agents. It seems in the end, I am just...

[reapers-blades]

There are times where I realize how much of a fool I really am. How to deal with people is something I doubt I will ever really... be able to master. I had been considering it for some time, now, and with the way things have been as of late, I felt that... maybe I am ready. I tried to give her the ring, and while she accepted... Well. Some things hold their history. I should have foreseen it, but I did not. She is happy, excited even. But I cannot help but feel that I have tarnished the moment due to my choice. What is worse is that she feels bad for saying anything about it. She is right to have done so. I am a fool. We should be heading back out to Orr to extract Kaal soon... and hopefully find a way to awaken Hannah along the way. I am beginning to doubt I will be able to do anything of use in the matter.