Entry 9: Riloth 19th the 9th

Dear Spellbook,

I keep running that conversation between Daulf and Trish over and over in my head. What Daulf said about me, what did he mean? Is he saying I’m Blessed by Riloth? How can that be? I don’t have any Blessings.

Do I?

My mother was raised a worshiper of Riloth, as is the way of the ship clans. She brought me up the same, but I wouldn’t call myself devout. All the ship clans worship Riloth to some degree, some more fervently than others. When you live upon the waves at the will of the storms, it’s just pragmatism, and the clans are nothing if not pragmatic. What Blessing could Daulf think I have? As the god of storms, his Blessings tend to involve the weather, be it predicting it or channeling some aspect of it. Riloth most commonly Blesses his ship clan with abilities that make one more suited for a life at sea; sure footedness, improved eyesight, and resistance to cold to name a few. I’m quite confident that I’m not Blessed in any of those ways. Those who devote their lives to his will often are granted the power to channel wind, thunder, and lightning. The Master Stormcallers are Blessed in a way that allows them to collectively cast great spells to control the storms themselves, Spells that are too complicated and powerful for any individual. I have spells that call upon the Fonts of Air and Lightning, but those were hard earned, not granted by a god.

Daulf has described using his Blessings before, and I don’t think it is something one can be unaware of. He said that inside of himself sits a store of power, granted by Illunia. Each morning she fills it. When he needs to use one of his Blessings, he draws upon the power. When the power is gone, he can no longer draw upon it. Some mornings he is granted less power than others. He believes this is her way of telling him he ered from her will the day before, or used his power frivolously. Other times he has more power, often following days of great sacrifice.

The way he described the power inside him is unlike anything I have. There are other Blessings that are more passive, and do not draw on any well of power, like his ability to detect lies, but that too has a very noticeable effect. When someone lies to him, the words reach his ears accompanied by a high pitched whine.

Riloth does have a special Blessing though, one that is more myth and rumor than fact. The Blessing of luck. Some say Riloth’s hand goes with some who serve his will, and he plucks fortune out of chaos. For what is luck if not profiting from chaos? Or at least that's what my mother would say. Is this what he meant? Do I have Riloth’s Blessing of luck? I wouldn’t say my life so far has been what everyone would call lucky.

But... I have been frequently in danger beyond my ability to survive, and still I live.

When I chose to follow Trish to the river that night, was that luck? Fate? Chance? Is there even a difference? At Edgewater, I should have died a dozen different times, but each time I was saved by some contrivance of circumstances. Is that luck? What is being a sorcerer but luck? Luck to be born with these abilities, luck to manifest them when you need them, luck to not be found out and killed.

Maybe I am Blessed by Riloth, but I have no idea why he would have chosen me.

The truth is, I’m in way over my head. I just wanted to find answers about my parents. No, at first I just wanted to live, the desire for answers came later. Now I’m involved in some war between dragons, with the fate of the races of men at stake. Or at least I was, until I became trapped in this temporal prison.

Daulf is the Chosen of Illunia, Trish is some mysterious agent of subterfuge, Roland is the best woodsmen I've ever encountered and Blessed by Assuine, and Bearskin is a force of nature. The man is a primal. That's unheard of. If I could write a paper about his people, my name would be known in every scholarly circle in Basin. Not that I would do that. His people deserve their privacy, and I value my own as well—for obvious reason.

I can cast a few spells, but that hardly puts me on their level. I survived the events of Edgewater, but did I help? I don't think so.

This all seems so beyond me. Why am I here?

No answer?

Well, I’m going to bed early. I made my way to the gaming floor today and I bet on seven in roulette today at the first spin after the clock hit 9:15. It landed on twelve. Tomorrow I will bet on that.

See you in the morning.