Franz Lohner's Chronicle - Deathly Whispers
An absent-minded man of mysteries, Franz Lohner relies on his bulging journal to keep track of occurrences, intrigues and arguments around Taal's Horn Keep. Sometimes his notes are even useful, believe it or not. The Franz Lohner Chronicles are extracts from that journal.
Had another one of those little letters today. You know, from Sofia Fuegonasus. Nothing in the way of content, just a polite little reminder that she reckons she has me over a barrel for sins past, real or imagined.
And that’s the real problem with blackmail of that kind: she might be bluffing, might not. I mean, I’ve led a careful life, and what blackguardly deeds I’ve done along the way were witnessed only by those no longer in a position to speak of them, if you take my meaning. Accidents do happen in this little world of ours, and you’d be surprised by how easily.
What you’d not be surprised by, if you’ve any nous at all, is how that kind of precaution doesn’t make for much of a defence in the face of a capable and determined Necromancer. The Sartosan pirates might have a saying about how the dead don’t tell any tales, but that’s more of a guideline than an actual rule when magic gets involved.
If only I’d had the foresight to employ an exorcist back in the day. Still, we’re all of us wiser with hindsight, ain’t we?
To make matters worse, it’s not like Sofia’s actually asking for anything at the moment, so it’s only really blackmail in potentia. Right until the point it’s not. Now, I know what you’re thinking: why don’t I just come clean to the Ubersreik Five about the muckier bits of my past, and remove any traction Sofia might have? It’s not a bad idea, I’ll grant you – and it’s not like most of them would be that appalled by most of it. They’re not innocent little lambs themselves, are they? Especially Saltzpyre and his thumbscrews.
The problems are twofold. First, not everything I’ve done is easily forgiven. You know how dwarfs hold a grudge, and as for elves? Overall, none of the Five would care about most of my little indiscretions, but there are plenty of outliers that’d stick in the craw something fierce, and I’m not ready to take that chance. We’ve got serious work to do, and we don’t need the distraction of a blazing – and possibly bloody – row.
And that brings me neatly to point number two: it’s a very long list indeed. I mean, start and the top, end at the bottom and wonder why it’s suddenly a year later, kind of long. Because if I’m to cheat Sofia of any kind of hold over me, I’ve got to be exhaustive. Between a long career sellswording, and what feels like an ever longer one playing the spymaster game, it’s a lot of ground to cover. Even sticking to the big ticket items, like exactly why Marius Leitdorf went mad, would take days to go into completely, and in a case like this you’ve got to be thorough, or why bother?
Still, I can’t do nothing. In fact, I’ve already called in a favour with my old vampire mate. Might be she’ll have more joy tracking Sofia down than yours truly. And if she does, maybe a little undead girl talk might settle the situation down a bit where my rough charm has so plainly failed.
And if not? Well, we all know that when it’s a case of vampire versus necromancer, it’s a bad day to be the latter. You might think that seems ruthless. But if so you’ve not really been paying attention to a single word of this, have you?