Betrayal and disloyalty...perhaps the only things I hate more than Balthazar.
There is no room for it in Valorn as there is already deceit and other evils. The Dark Lord is laughing at us since he doesn't have to do a thing and still win. Maybe he was once a good adventurer like myself but was changed by the things I hate most.

Lately, things are going well in the land.
The RoK is planning for our annual Fall Festival play and it is going very nicely. It shall be held at the RoK theatre again and afterward there shall be a party at the Swashbuckler. It should be a grand event.
Valornian Voice Issue II has been released throughout Valorn and I found it to be even better than the first issue. I have read that there will not be an issue this month since the staff is too busy, but I do not mind. I prefer quality instead of quantity and the staff should use some time to relax.
Kammeron the Weapon has left this land for good. Although he was not the kindest merchant, he was very good at what he did. Perhaps I should send him a thank you by messenger...though knowing him he would not care to read it so maybe I will not send him one. I shall wear my Beach Viper Skin Helmet in his honor.

This has been a busy week but I believe that anything bad that has occurred will turn out better in the long run. I shall have to see.
Also, two good friends of mine, Hellios and Severin have left Valorn for good it seems. I was given some of their items and was able to say farewell before their departure but it is still quite sad.
I have lost four friends this week but that is the way these things go. This is the way of life in Valorn. Balthazar, his armies, and even deceit roam the land, so sadness is to be expected. I say...oh well, he will not phase my allies or me. I shall continue for those I care about and for those who have fallen. We shall press on and make him leave this land, it will not be the other way around.

I have heard much already about the awards ceremony, although I was not there. Many adventurers are angry and upset at the outcome. It is not my place to argue it nor will it matter as the decision is now made. I am angry though at the actions that some have done and action will be taken against them.

Today was quite a strange day.
The Order of Norton meeting was today and it had the largest crowd as of yet, even Cory of the gods showed up to watch. There was a blackout in which no adventurer could be seen, except for one new adventurer that sat in the room. Then we were able to see again but could not speak for a short time, it will be an event to remember.
Later, after traveling N'rolav with Maji, I decided to visit the Dundee Inn and rest. Not long after my arrival a strange, hooded old man entered and sat in the back of the room. He mumbled something about not being able to find a place to relax anymore and was then offered some drinks from various adventurers. He spilled his ale and created a magical cloth to clean the mess. I commented on his great, mysterious power and was turned into a Cute and Adorable Bunny. It was actually quite frightening to be so small in such a large room; perhaps this is what new adventurers feel when they first enter Valorn these days, although I imagine being a bunny is slightly scarier. I trusted my guild mates in the room and knew that they would keep me safe if something were to happen while in my weakened form. Soon after my transformation the old man turned Zarock into a thistle beast and the rest of the adventurers into bunnies like myself. More adventurers entered the inn and were quickly turned into thistle beasts or bunnies.
The man must've grown bored with seeing bunnies and thistle beasts as we were then turned into Inn Zombies. I, and the rest of the inn, became official Inn Zombies for about a marc. We were rather hideous looking, I even saw one adventurer try to sell his own head to the mayor. Before the man's departure, we were turned back to our normal selves.
It was a fine experience!

The Order of Norton contest is approaching, and although I am helping in a guild mate’s entry, I have not come up with an entry for myself.
In truth, I am not very talented for putting on a show. Before Valorn, I was a merchant and now I battle. First, I thought of creating a poem for the contest.... that did not go so well. Then I tried a story but grew tired of writing it and I wondered how the other adventurers would feel, so I did not go further in the story. My third idea was to create some music and dance to it *laughs* but my goal is to entertain, not make adventurers leave. Finally, I decided to create a drawing. It was quite nice, but a bit simple since it was a drawing of the sky at night.
I will continue to think of something that I could do which would entertain and if nothing comes to mind then I shall continue to help others with their entries. I hear that my ally and friend, Olator may enter the contest, I wish him luck!

Today has been a good day so far.
A nice change has occurred today concerning the guild, which I think will improve conversations with some adventurers. Oh and another good change, is the more serious nature of adventurers as of late. Perhaps it is just me, but it seems that adventurers are no longer jumping on tables and poking each other, but actually sitting in chairs and speaking of their battles...most anyway.
Premiering today, is the first issue of the Valornian Voice; a newspaper that is off to a great start. The staff of the paper is a great team consisting of Edenn, Dirk DT, Sevine, Abhorr, and Skilgannon as the paperboy. I am looking forward to their next issue.
There are many rumors circulating about a few adventurers and thankfully, there are none about me, at least not yet. Most of the rumors involve romance and guilds but from what I have gathered on my travels, some of those rumors seem true. My advice to any adventurer that stumbles across this journal, is to not let Tyral hear the rumors, he usually is not too shy about speaking what he knows *chuckles*.
The Order of Norton contest will be coming soon, I look forward to seeing all the entries, most are quite nice usually.

Things have been rather quiet in Valorn lately. Maybe I was wrong, perhaps Balthazar does have a clear limit to his demon armies.
I am still waiting to help cleanse the Obelisk of Power since the date has been postponed. It is very possible that the attacks have seized for now because Balthazar wishes to attack on the date the Obelisk will once again work for us. We mustn’t wait too long or else the Demon Lord will not hesitate to attack.
Not long ago, Scooter was once again kidnapped. That makes three times so far. Many of us searched for a long time. The large areas of Valorn, Kilican, and N'rolav were searched and all of a sudden Scooter ran into the Dundee Inn. Apparently an adventurer at his third level of training found Scooter just west of John the Trainer in Dundee. The adventurer was still new to Valorn and did not know what to do with Scooter, so he picked up the puppy and walked into the wilderness. Luckily, Scooter knew what to do and ran away to the Dundee Inn. The adventurer who found Scooter was awarded a new title, ‘the Returner’, and a few lightning canisters. Not long after finding Scooter, the adventurer seemed to have vanished from Valorn which is quite strange but common at the same time.
That day taught a valuable lesson to the people of Valorn and the lesson was that even small locations can hold grand things.

Socially, little is new. Of course that is not a bad thing.
For other happenings, quite much has occurred. A new location has been discovered and with much work, I have reached my 55th level of training earlier today. For the first time in many marcs, I deposited my JKD Honor Shield into the bank. In its place is now a shield from the Golden Age...I will treasure this item along with the gauntlets I have received.
The cleansing of the Obelisk of Power is going to occur soon. It will be a busy day but I look forward it. It is highly possible that Balthazar shall do anything he can to stop us. We shall stand strong in our goal, and with the gods there, Balthazar will not win.

The play is over and it was a great success! I am quite relieved. A large audience quickly formed into the theatre, even Darren and High King Deek found time to visit.
I am very proud of my guild mates, it is an honor to work alongside them each day. The audience too, I am proud of. All the adventurers paid great attention to the play and we had a party at the Swashbuckler afterwards. Food was eaten and drinks were drunk, it was a grand occasion. Though, as much as I would like to, I should not remain on this topic long for there are many thoughts filling my head.
Besides the play, today has still been a busy day. Many raids occurred, almost each hour it seems. Then there was a larger raid consisting of stronger creatures, this time their goal was King Deek. Fortunately they were defeated and Balthazar's plan for destruction has failed again. Though, this has made me ponder. Richard and I were speaking earlier today of how attacks from demons have been more common as of late. Now, not many marcs ago, more attacks came. Perhaps Balthazar is growing desperate or perhaps he is increasing the strength of his armies. I do not know for sure but unfortunately, the latter is probably the reason for these attacks.
Each day, demons attack us and are slain. This leads into more questions. How can Balthazar have so many demons? Could he have an endless army of demons at his command? I believe this to be highly possible considering the Demon Lord's abilities.
For now I shall cease writing as I have far too many questions that cannot be answered. I hope to unravel these mysteries eventually; in time I believe Valorn will know the answers.