35th Day of Kar, 7th Katoam

From Danakan

We secured travel with this caravan after negotiations with Tonri, the leader of the caravan. A great and bellicose kopa, he has an easy-going attitude that would normally rile me… yet I cannot help but like the fellow. Not that I would admit it to Muri. I gather from some overheard conversations that I may have paid slightly more than a fair price for the journey, but I will admit that I am just relieved to be surrounded by so many well-armed guards! I have hired a bodyguard, Kale, for the first stretch of this cursed journey. He is an imposing and haunted character. I gather he has served for many years as a Reyad and never seems to go anywhere without his slingstave. The owners of the caravan are Galan and Mahal Telonan, brood siblings who have spent a lifetime travelling the Empire. As with many traders, they hail from the distant clan of Larigal. They are clearly skilled and wealthy and the caravan contains a large collection of beasts including some great hulking belan that I understand to be quite a status symbol. While they own the caravan they appear to be more than happy to let Tonri make all the decisions leaving them to spend their time casting stones and imbibing from various potent smelling snuff pots. We passed through a small village recently and it was then that I saw them come to life, trading trinkets from Teral for valuable fabrics far beyond their worth. One of our travelling companions is a most eccentric fellow! I have been raised to revere those who are afflicted with the calling to become an engineer, but for the most part I have just avoided the peculiar characters… Gil refers to himself as a ″Travelling Biologist″. I made the mistake of asking him what exactly that entailed and he spent the next few hours regaling me with tedious tales and even insisted on showing me his rather extensive collection of creatures that he carries in small metal cages on his back or perched atop his personal baruk. I’m certain that one of his critters has set up home in my tent, but I seem incapable of finding and removing it! As if the indignity of sleeping in a tent wasn’t bad enough, I now have to put up with irritating scratching and squeaking noises every night. During his travels Gil appears to have had the good fortune to acquire a Casanii scout to act as his guide and bodyguard. While I was most impressed with this exotic fellow I found his gabbling speech beyond my understanding. How these two strange characters became nigh inseparable is beyond me!

Source: Chronicles of Anyaral