The Ballad of Madman Montore
The Last Words of a Doomed Sailor
Found in Deadman's Anchor
I hear his footsteps coming closer, his boots booming against the wooden planks beneath me... He'll make quick work of the flimsy door and barricade I've created. Montore has gone mad. He's slaughtered his own crew as we crashed on the island. But, more terrifying than that, the dead sailors around me seem to come back to life. Their eyes are empty, twisted by Montore's madness. I hide here, but I know that I too will meet the same fate. This entire expedition was doomed.
Ranching by Riverside
Stenchfork
Found in Arruda Ranch
Some madman attacked me! He was crazed and wild, with red eyes that struck fear in my heart. I held him back with my pitchfork, and he ran away. The stink coming off of him is one I will not soon forget. Now, that stench won't come off my pitchfork no matter how many times I wash it.
-Tomas
Notes from Traitor's Hold
Captain's Demands
Found in Traitor's Hold
I don't think I can take much more of this. I try my best to craft weapons for these insolent pirates, and all I am met with are more demands from this mad Captain! All he wants is more shine, more gilded handles... I am collecting my due fees, and quite a handsome pay at that, but I shall decidedly not put my mark on these weapons. In fact, I would be ashamed to admit these trinkets are my own work!
-L. Harrison, Master Artificer
Pistoleer's Plight
Found in Traitor's Hold
The damn weapons won't even fire! What use are these damn things if they're nothing but pretty toys!
Missives from the Mines
The Plight of a Gambler
Found in Mines de Miclot
Just one more... These damned walking cadavers, their blank eyes glowing red. Mocking me. My wounds cloud my head, but just one more...
Belly Full of Riches
Found in Mines de Miclot
Quite curious is the case of the creatures in this mine! As some lucky adventurers have discovered, these fiends do in fact eat any gems they find. One could hypothesize that in life they worked these mines, once a rich source of precious stones on Aeternum. However, one must ask, why do they eat them? The idea I propose is based on their patterns of hording! They must have some semblance of the value of these stones and, in a lust to horde wealth, they put such small stones into the safest place they can muster: their own bodies!
Finding precious gems in the belly of these poor wretches is still rare. Some guess that only one in group of ten Withered may have a gem in their belly. With that in mind, good luck! You may need it.
-Dr. H. Garrison
Lee's Reconnaissance
Now I See
Found in Archernar
Now I see what Thorton was talking about in her last letter. These Ancient Guardians are ferocious, suspended in undeath to guard the ruins of a society we may never understand. Well, out with the old and in with the new as I always say. I will try to cull as many Ancient Guardians as I can while out hunting so that Survivalist Thorton might have some relief from their blockades. If only I had someone to help with this...
Lee's Special Pants
Found in Archernar
Those bastards! Those dastardly, villainous fiends! The mace-wielding miscreants of Archernar killed me, and even worse, they damaged my pants! This is azoth-infused silk, and incredibly hard to come by. It isn't easy being the most fashion-forward Survivalist of all the settlements but it's a title with which I find immense pride. I will have my revenge for this affront to my aesthetics.
Douglas' Watch
Change of Tune
Found in Monarch's Bluffs Watch Tower
As I rest here, watching the waves crash upon the beach, I reminisce about my old life. I was a budding antiquarian: the stories of the past, and the people that made those stories so real to me, drove me to this Island. Though at first the hardships of this island made my outlook on surviving here bleak, my tune has changed.
To be honest, when Bixford recommended to me to be a Watcher, I didn't understand why anyone would do this job. But, over time, investigating the ships, talking to new folks, and aiding them after crashing onto the island... Hearing their stories, piecing together their past, and helping them figure out their future on the island. It scratches an itch! I'll thank Bixford next time I'm in the settlement...
Fighting the Drowned? No one loves every part of their job, I suppose.
Poseidon's Curse
Found in The Rise of Poseidon
I met a man who was hiding inside of the Poseidon after he had crashed onto Aeternum. I spoke with him and tried to help him, but for the first few moments of our meeting he was unintelligibly muttering about "Poseidon's Curse."
As I continued talked to him, he regained his wits. I quickly pieced together that he was on a ship that was struck by spires of Corruption, which seems quite common among survivors that wash ashore. He attributed this to a curse from Poseidon. I should report this to the Greyjacks, this is too common to be a coincidence.
Notes from a Professional
Found in the Boar Infestation
Douglas,
Sometimes shipments from the settlement can be a little lean on meat, but these infestations of Boar here can be controlled and maintained like livestock. If you're ever hungry between shipments, this infestation should make a great source of food in between. I'll see what I can do about getting some meatier shipments.
-Saville
Deals with the Devil
Punishment
Found in Devil's Quarry
Coming to this island was a mistake. I came to this island seeking fortune and riches. But, I was mislead. This place is no heaven...
As I lie here, dying, I feel my soul leaving this husk. Ah, is this how it felt Faustus? To have body and soul ripped to pieces by the claws of fiends?
Maybe, like Faustus, my fate was sealed when I signed to come to this place. Maybe coming to this island was both my sin and my punishment.
Oh, Margarete...
