Emissary of the Golden Lion

[Sollis Lott]

"yes, brother"



"Sollis.... you are not listening...."



" I am brother"



"No.... try again"


The young man was frustrated....and he began to state his case.....


"Brother, I have spent a lifetime in this Order....it is all I know"



"Sollis.... you must understand, Torm is very particular.....you meet the physical requirements....but your attitude is....well....you know...."



"Brother Isaac.....I implore you.... I have spent every waking moment of my life as a Radiant Heart Acolyte. I have devoted my very existence to its causes, to Torm's faith. All I have ever wanted is to join the Hellriders and advance Torm's Faith. I am a devotee of the Church, and I fully intend to see said Church expanded. Surely you understand?"



The older Priest smiles and leans back....



"Sollis Lott.... THAT is the attitude I was looking for.... and THAT is the arguement I was seeking. We, of the Church, have long watched you. YOU are our future. Go forth and spread the Faith. Sollis Lott...welcome to the Hellriders of Elturel."



Sollis stands...his mouth agape....and he is utterly speechless........


"Now... go pack your bags...."

(this will be ongoing and episodic... stay tuned!)

[Sollis Lott]

Packing his belongings, the young Paladin looks around the room he's known as his own for what might be the last time. He remembers fondly his time here at the Order of the Radiant Heart.....growing up under the tutelage of the Knights and Brothers here. Never having known any parents of his own, they were the only family he has ever had.

"Dace....take these to the carriage for me " ..he says as he hands his bags to the young Page.

Lifting the footlocker, he walks out of the room and down the hall.....beginning what might be the last journey of his young life.

"Torm guide my hand...." he thinks...as he wonders where life will take him......and heads out for Elturgard.... and his future life as an Oathsworn Paladin of Torm.

[Sollis Lott]

Sollis wandered north from Athkaltla….making his way toward Elturgard, but seeing many sights along the way.

His travels took him deep into the outlying roads and paths of the Western Heartlands.

Many days and nights did he spend on the roads and sleeping in the odd Inn and Tavern. Nightly, reading the scriptures of Torm, he lost himself in a reverie of faith. Truly devoted to his Patron Diety....he followed his heart and travelled blindly, only his horse and the occasional caravan for company.

Sending letters almost daily back to the Radiant Heart....he described his travels in great detail to the brothers and acolytes that supported him. The Order was wealthy, afterall, and they told Sollis a young Crusader should want for nothing. So his stipends from the church were always available.

He made his way north along the roads, intending to turn straight east toward his destination in a few weeks. And that is what brought him into conflict in Baldur's Gate.

Walking down an unknown alley in a darker part of the lower city, Sollis was leading his horse when approached by several unknown and particularly smelly men. They fanned out, trying to surround the Paladin and his horse.

"Where ere ye headed?"

The paladin met his gaze "none of your concern."

"Oh I think it is" said the man, as all drew daggers and other assorted weapons. "I know yer type...and ye tend to have coin."

Narrowing his eyes...the paladin made one last attempt at peace..."You are currently on a course of action that only ends in your death. I implore you to reconsider." While speaking the paladin lowered his hand to his weapon.

The smelly man chuckled..."yer hopelessly outnumbered, boy....give it up and we may let ye live."

Gritting his teeth, the paladin draws an elegant longsword with flames lapping up and down the blade......"NO MAN is outnumbered when he counts TORM as an ally...!!!!!" and the paladin flew into a blur of motion.

The smelly man's eyes widened....he did not expect such a response......

Sollis' sword immediately cut through the man's neck, the flames cauterizing the wound and the carcass falling headlessly to the ground, his head rolling quietly away. Sollis' horse reared, kicking a poor boy in the face...breaking his jaw and sending him to the ground in a heap after his stumble. The other men looked around, and at each other, not knowing how to react after their leader so immediately met his demise.

Sollis pulled back....reigned in his mount...and proclaimed..."all who continue to stand against an emissary of Torm Truehand the Loyal Fury are doomed to death and beyond".....

The remaining men ran down the alley and cut the corner, never to be seen again.

Sollis left his mount and approached the young boy whose jaw was shattered. The boy trembled and began to crawl away, a look of sheer terror in his eyes. "Easy....I'm not going to hurt you...."

The boy, wide eyed, consider these the final moments of his life as the man in golden armor approached......

"Easy....." the paladin knelt....his hands in front of him in a gesture of nonviolence......and he took off his golden gauntlets. Touching the boy with one hand, he raised the other to the sky...."Torm take your pain"......he recited as a flow of divine healing entered Sollis' body...the boy's jaw reset itself and the bones mended. The pain subsided...the divine energy overwhelming the boy's senses.....

"Wha.....Why?!..." implored the boy.....

"Rest yourself.....you've taken quite a beating....." he was told by the blonde paladin.....

"But I don't understand"

"And you may never understand. It is my calling. May Torm guide you from here as he guides me."

And with that....the paladin leads his horse on down the alley and out into Baldur's Gate to continue his journey.

[Sollis Lott]

In Sollis' journal....on a warm night, by the soft lilting glow of a campfire….he writes....

"The Philosophy of Torm:

Salvation may be found through service. Every failure of duty diminishes Torm and every success adds to his luster.
Strive to maintain law and order. Obey your masters with alert judgment and anticipation. Stand ever alert against
corruption. Strike quickly and forcefully against rot in the hearts of mortals. Bring painful, quick death to traitors.
Question unjust laws by suggesting improvement or alternatives, not additional laws. Your fourfold duties are to faith,
family, masters, and all good beings of Faerûn."

[Sollis Lott]

Wandering the realms, Sollis saw much that he didn't agree with. He saw slavery. He saw spousal abuse. He saw many crimes against humanity in general. He had to come to terms with the fact that he was not the all-knowing, all-being ender of immorality.

Be certain, he ended his number of wrongs....but was choosy about them. Sollis learned that he was Not put on Faerun to smite everything he didn't agree with. It was a growth experience.

One thing he could not abide was the summonings. Demons, undead, other-planar beings....he destroyed all involved in such proceedings. Many such sorcerous types were put to death at his hand. But always after careful deliberation. Always after the Counsel of Torm himself.

Pragmatism, it seems, was a Godly quality.

[Sollis Lott]

Sollis had stayed at the Roadside Inn for 2 days. The food was ok and the room was dry and comfortable. The clientele left a bit to be desired, but who was he to judge?



One of the regulars was a prostitute that lived there with her boyfriend, Edward. This girl, Anita, would see her business contacts on the side and then return to Edward with her proceeds. More than once Edward had gotten quite rough with her, seemingly for no good reason at all. But hey, who was he to judge?



One evening, after a long day of study about who and what he was supposed to be, Sollis returned home late to find, yet again, the two of them arguing. Then, to his extreme bewilderment, Edward punched Anita dead in the face as Sollis rounded the corner.



“Ye mangy slut….’ats all ye bringded me….I ort ta poke out yer slimy eye, I should!”



Anita sat on the floor sobbing and Sollis considered walking by…..



In that quiet moment…. He realized.. just exactly who he was TO JUDGE….. and what his mandate was…. It came into as clear and complete a focus as he’d ever had. He was the Hand of Torm…Oathbound to protect this woman….and to mete out punishment to the likes of this..’man’…..with conviction as well as mercy…..as many paladins had done before him…..



Letting his mind wander, he hadn’t noticed that Edward was now looking at him.



“’At ere ye lookin at, ye dog….ere ye wanting some too?”



His first instinct was to take the man’s head….a reaction borne of guttural rage as well as righteous indignation…..until she looked up at him.



Her face, bruised and streaked with tears, implored to him for help. She said nothing, but screamed at Sollis in silent agony to get her out of this place….and Sollis also felt compassion.



He could stand no more. He stood up straight…gritted his teeth….and clenched his fists so tightly that every one of his knuckles popped loudly.



Turning to face the fat, dirty, unshaven man…Sollis told him “you should leave her alone….and go turn yourself in to the local magistrate for judgement.”



Smirking to himself, as bullies are wont to do, Edward replied “’at ere you gonna do about it?”



Famous last words.



**** Sitting on his bed, Gerald MacMearney was readying for bed after a long trip. He’d just rented a room at the Landing Inn and placed his belongings neatly in his small room. His boots were neatly arranged in the corner, his bags neatly stacked at the end of the bed, and his clothing neatly folded and lain on the top of the dresser. He’d neatly remade the bed and tucked himself in, laying his spectacles gingerly on the nightstand and readying himself to blow out the lamp and drift off to a comfortable night’s sleep. And then a fat, unshaven man named Edward came crashing through his wooden door and landed in a bloody heap on the middle of his neat little floor.****



Sollis followed the man in to check on his sorry hide.



“Good…still breathing.”



Sollis looked up at the quiet little man smiling sheepishly but obviously terrified…and told him…”go back to sleep.”



He turned around and walked back out. He went into his own room and retrieved a small brown bag. Inside it he placed 50 pieces of his very own gold. He took the bag to Anita…helped her up…..placed the bag in her hand and told her in no uncertain terms….”you don’t live here anymore…go….and be relieved, mylady…and may Torm bless thy passing.”



Then he dragged the unconscious form of a fat man to the local lockup and spent the next several hours explaining many things….as his Duty bid him to do.

[Sollis Lott]

Sollis stops one night...having been hired out on a caravan to fight and heal. In between cities, outside of Nesme, he recounts a battle remembered to the others around the fire:



"Our lord had gathered the prisoners together and ordered their execution. As the soldiers cut down their number due to the overwhelming odds and the inability of our number to guard them, an aged knight came upon a few young warriors.....who turned their eyes away from the carnage. "



"What are ye...maidens...with yere downcast eyes... Look not away, boys, but take it in....see it for what it is...and remember…..for the battle is fought to be won.....and it is THIS that happens when you lose."

[Sollis Lott]

Sollis writes in his journal.....



"The truest warrior isn't immune to fear....he fights in spite of it."

[Sollis Lott]

After a particularly grueling day, Sollis writes in his journal:



"Holiness is in right action and courage on behalf of those who cannot defend themselves."



And with that, he reads The scriptures of Torm until he falls fast asleep.

[Sollis Lott]

Another Simple Journal Entry Recounting a Battle he led outside of Nesme:



The Paladin, in Gleaming Golden Plate with a Lion’s head shield….the Sigil of Torm…. Prays quietly to himself a Paladin's Battle Prayer:



"I am the hammer.....

I am the point of His spear.....

I am the sword in His hand....

I am the gauntlet about His fist....

I am the Bane of His foes....

and the woe of the treacherous.....

Beware, evil, as I am your end."


And then he rears his massive destrier, spurring him into action… with a roaring battlecry….



“FOR TORM….and the ORDER!!!”

[Sollis Lott]

Sollis remembers in his journal….



Many years ago I was only a squire, and I aspired to greater things. I studied, I prayed, and I DEVOTED my self to my faith. After my recent journeys into Cormyr, I recall my Knighting into the Order of the Golden Lion....as I knelt in front of the Proctor Knight….receiving my sacred admonition…..



"Be without fear in the face of your enemies.."... the older man said, as the young Sollis knelt in front of him...



"Be Brave and Upright, that TORM may love thee..."



Sollis listened.....



"Speak the truth always, even if it leads to your death....."



the young man nodded lightly, trying to remain still.



"Safeguard the helpless..... and DO NO WRONG!" .... the last part a CRESCENDO as the older man struck a young Sollis across the face....



"That is your oath, and THAT(the smack on the cheek) is so that you will NOT forget it!"



The Crusader Paladin smiles as he remembers.



"ahh... such a long time ago, but SO very important even to this day"



and Sollis closes the book.

[Sollis Lott]

Shortly after his induction, Sollis was granted an audience with the High Cleric and Pontiff of Torm's Faith, Barriltar Bhandraddon, at the Temple of Torm's Coming in Tantras (as is tradition in the Order)....and he remembers the bulk of what he was told in this journal entry:





"Just remember.... only YOU are responsible for your life, for your soul, for your faith .... not a king, or duke, or leader.... you. At the end of your days.... you cannot stand before Torm and say 'but i was TOLD by others to do thus... or ordered....or implored..or that virtue was not convenient, or that the timing was not sufficient'....no...only YOU can be called upon to safeguard what you did and did not do in your life and for your faith. A KING can move a man, a father may claim a son, and that man can also move himself.... remember...howsoever you are moved or by whom, YOUR soul is in YOUR keeping alone."

[Sollis Lott]

Sollis writes a journal entry in simple script:



"If I must choose between righteousness and peace, I choose righteousness."

[Sollis Lott]

Remembering a recent journey back to the Heartlands….



The night was dark. Very dark.



They had left Waterdeep to head southeast along the Trade Way toward Daggerford. That night, they camped at the edge of the Ardeep Forest. The darkness, though, was something….otherworldly.



Sollis had laid down but didn’t come out of his armor and had his hand on the hilt of his sword as he dozed. He never truly slept. Only dozed…. Like a cat, waiting for what will surely come to pass.



Hours passed. The night stretched long into the next day, passing midnight without much fanfare other than the crackle of the fire and the quiet whispers of those on watch.



After quite a while, Sollis noticed something: not what he heard, but what he no longer heard. No longer did he heard soft whispers. No longer did he hear crickets, or owls, or other creatures of the night. No scurries, no hoots, no flapping of wings. It was then, that he became worried.



The caravan that he signed onto was a small merchant caravan. Outside of the merchants and the contingent of guards, he was the only passenger. They were nice enough people, but not the types he usually travelled with. The guards were trained and equipped well enough for a short jaunt to Daggerford. Or so he thought.



But, this night, they weren’t facing bandits. They weren’t against hobgoblins or orcs on the roads or in the forests. This night, pure evil was about. And it hungered.



Quietly….swiftly…..it all began. The unnatural darkness cloaking their movements, their silence one of their dark gifts. They moved with inhuman speed, unnatural precision, and overwhelming deadliness.



The guards never really knew what hit them. They never really had to feel the dread…. The terror. They went silently….taken from this world by creatures of the night.



Sollis looked around. He saw nothing but the glow of a few small fires. And then he noticed it. Carsevahl. His Hallowed Redeemer. A blade of divine origin, gifted to him by Torm’s church. Carsevahl was glowing. Golden light peeked out from inside the scabbard…..seeking to warn him. Her hilt was warm to the touch. She sought his attention.



He rose, as quickly as he could in his gold and silver armor. When he drew Carsevahl, it all became clear as the blade lit up the entire area in its holy splendor.



They were all dead. Fed upon. Drained completely. Left where they laid by those responsible. He put his helmet upon his head and went to get his shield, which would further enhance the light of the sword. He didn’t make it.



A human form crashed down upon him from the trees….in complete silence… until it hit. The fangs bared, those glowing yellow eyes…..its chin caked with coagulated blood. Sollis was large.....almost 6 and a half feet and over 230 pounds without armor on. He was strong, as strong as any man his size. But this was no man he was facing. It, too, was strong. Unbelievably so for its size, though it was markedly smaller than the Paladin. And its speed was uncanny. But it was overconfident, and that was its biggest weakness. For Sollis was no easy prey. Indeed, he was not prey at all. And Sollis threw the thing to the ground.



The creature had half-fallen and been half-thrown off, landing on its hands and feet in front of him and turned in an instant to face him. Pale, gaunt, and utterly horrid, it stared at him through narrowed eyes. Then Sollis presented his blade. Then, it began to hiss. The creature recognized immediately what it saw. And Sollis knew that it knew. He embraced the newly found fear in its eyes. He stepped forward and pointed the blade at the thing.



“Back, Devil-spawn….back away!” He stepped forward again. But the creature didn’t recoil completely. It lunged at him, took a swipe at the sword in an attempt to knock it away. Had it been any other type of blade, it might actually have worked. The blow hit square. The blade burned the skin of the cur….smoke wafted up and a loud sizzle broke the night’s silence. It screamed and cursed the noble paladin. It recoiled again.



Sollis spoke with divine authority….”I said BACK!”.



And it stepped back.



And it was joined by another. And another.



They looked at him, and at each other. They smiled. And then they advanced….again….overconfident in their numbers.



And Sollis reached up and grabbed what was on a golden chain around his neck: a beautiful holy symbol of Torm, the Loyal Fury. And it exploded with holy light. Sunlight would be envious.



And TORM spoke through him: “BACK THOU DEVIL SPAWNED CREATURES….BACK AWAY FROM ME AND RETURN TO THE PITS OF HELL FROM WHENCE THOU SPRANG!”



The trees shook. Leaves fell. The three creatures, nosferatu all of them, began to flee. Wholly incapable of standing in front of the paladin, they began to run. And they began to dissolve. They became as dust before him. They rejoined the ground around themselves and were, suddenly, no more.

He let out a sigh of relief. Divinity, when channeled, can be exhausting.



But carsevahl was not cool. And she would not be quiet. No, Carsevahl glowed even brighter. Sollis looked along the tree line, into the darkness.



“Impressive.”



And then he heard the quiet clapping….and the nearly silent footfalls…..from his left.

(to be continued)

[Sollis Lott]

(continued from last....)


He turned and held high his holy blade to see what was there.



“Truly impressive, mighty paladin…..I do not often encounter your kind out here.”



And then Sollis saw. He was handsome. Impeccably dressed. Pale, but smiling. The fangs were obvious, but not overly so. Fingernails that were razors capped long, slender fingers upon the hands that quietly clapped. He was wearing formal wear. And beautiful jewelry. His cloak draped across his shoulders swaying gently in the breeze.



“Back!” Sollis proclaimed again, boldly holding his symbol out and in front of him.



“Now now…. Do you really think that you can compel ME to retreat?”



Sollis froze in his tracks. He was incapable of feeling fear. But he was NOT incapable of feeling concern. He was no fool. The fires of the Hallowed Redeemer raged….the blade begged for the chance to bite this victim. Sollis was certain that it would get that chance.



“it seems that you have me at a disadvantage” the paladin said, standing confidently in the night with sword and shield.



“Oh, it most certainly does, doesn’t it?” the vampire responded.



“I am Sollis Lott, a noble paladin of Torm. Who are you?”



“Well, it hardly seems important, but if you must, you may refer to me as Lord Barlow.”



Sollis nodded. “I would ask you what you want, but that seems painfully obvious.”



The vampire lord nodded slowly and grinned. “Not as stupid as I expected.”



And then the world erupted. Sollis barely noticed the movement, as Barlow was a veritable blur in motion. The Paladin felt a solid and bone-jarring thud in his chest. Barlow knocked the paladin back 15 feet and to his backside. Luckily, Sollis held tightly to his blade. That blade was his life, at this point. And he knew it. And so did the vampire.



Sollis shot up and set his feet. Barlow was already moving. Sollis was hip checked….hard. Into a tree he went…..hard. He was dazed. Still, as he collected his wits, he held tightly to that blade. Carsevahl glowed like the mid-day sun. The vampire avoided looking directly at it, and most assuredly avoided touching it. But Sollis was no novice to battle. Not even to battle with vampire lords. As Barlow’s vice like grip pinned him by the throat against that tree, he had no room to swing the sword. Sollis clutched at the hand around his throat. His feet left the ground. The fiend grinned.



“How sweet does the blood of the devout taste?”



Sollis kicked and slammed his booted heals into the tree’s trunk. He seemed in a state of sheer panic.



But he wasn’t.



He was buying time. Time enough to reach a small metal vial in a small non-descript belt pouch. A vial of holy water. And he splashed it across the vampire’s eyes at point blank range.



The skin and eyes began to burn loudly. The vampire’s eyes slammed shut, and he promptly dropped the large, blonde human as he slowly backed away, cursing and growling.



“You will never find out, cur”…..and he leapt. He brought Carsevahl down hard from a high guard that he had learned as a young squire….”the guard of the hawk” it was called.



The vampire, used to its physical superiority carrying it through in all circumstances, raised an arm to deflect the blow. Overconfidence. Complacency. The death of all warriors who entertain them. The holy blade, awash with divine energy, cut cleanly through the arm of the undead beast and continued through the chest. It stopped just short of the crotch as their eyes met.



“Torm take you!” he yelled as he ripped the Hallowed Redeemer free and drew it back to strike again. The vampire looked on, incredulous as to what was transpiring. Sollis’ arm twitched…the sword again took flight, parallel to the ground, and the vampire’s head left his neck, rolling away some 20 odd feet from the body.



“Torm take you all.”

[Sollis Lott]

Sollis writes in beautiful and flowing script:



"To know what is right….and DO otherwise…is to WANT of courage."

[Sollis Lott]

-Sollis Opines in his Journal-



On forgiveness and Redemption:



Many times throughout our lives, we seek forgiveness for a slight, or a misdeed, or some such perceived wrong by another. Usually it is over and done with quickly, or, less often, it goes unforgiven and neither party truly cares.



But, sometimes….just sometimes…..every once in a great while….a being does the unthinkable. He or she walks down a dark path, one from which there is NORMALLY no return. And the smallest minority among those beings….seek to redeem themselves and return truly to the light. To do so requires heartfelt sadness, truly sincere guilt, and a desire to overcome what led them to this event or series of events. And it requires courage, patience, and determination.



The hardest thing to overcome is the need for forgiveness. Forgiveness, I am convinced, is the most powerful force in the known universe. It is the encapsulation of all that is love and kindness. And it is the most difficult thing for most of us to truly do. To forgive requires courage, commitment to a set of principles that transcends us, and dedication to a right path. And it’s hard. But it is SO overwhelming when it’s done that it overtakes all involved in a manner that is INEXPLICABLE.



To reach the truest form of redemption, however, requires the toughest first step of all: you must first forgive yourself. And that, though seemingly a small thing, is the most difficult part of the process.



“He who would move mountains must carry the tiniest stones first”

[Sollis Lott]

Sollis writes on a page in his journal:



"A true warrior recognizes the illusion of despair and refuses to give up."

[Sollis Lott]

Sollis sits down in the Regal Griffon with quill and ink, and begins to pen a correspondence with an old mentor back in Tantras at The Temple of Torm's Coming.



"Father Demarius,



I hope this letter finds you in good health and great spirit. My journeys have been filled with His work, and I find myself in an ever sustained need to minister

to those around me and to show His Hand in my actions. Such is the value of your teachings that I think of you often in these situations.



My travels have led me into the nation of Cormyr, and I have found a group of like minded adherents to our Lord's doctrine. These triadic knights seem like a good

match for one of the Golden Lion and I am considering trying to throw my lot in with theirs for the greater good here.



I will do my best to keep up my correspondence now that I have a more stable presence in Greatgaunt and its surrounds.



Yours in His teachings,



Sollis Lott - Paladin of Torm"