Jebiah:
Your old friend Borrin has been feeling like a bright faced, tongue-tied lad again lately. I didn’t really know what to expect of the Farclan when I came here. We’ve heard all the same stories and said all the same limericks about dwarves who would choose to live in a jungle rather than a mountain, so you have some idea of what I might have been assuming. Let me tell you, Jeb, I was turned right around and knocked on the head with a hammer by what I found here.
Farclan is different, there’s no denying that, but they’re strong and true and skilled as any dwarves. The Farhall is a marvel of creativity. What they’ve done with limited resources is remarkable, dwarven ingenuity at its finest. Their leader, Solya… well, I must admit I’ve never met quite so fine a woman. (And I don’t say that just because the dwarves of the jungle are inclined to wear a bit less than those in the north.)
Page 2
Her mother, Alyona, was lost to the Farclan in the first days of the wars with the rifts, brought down fighting off a most wicked demon from the Plane of Fire. Solya was still really just a girl when she succeeded her, the youngest leader Farclan has ever had, but apparently she seized the reins right there on the battlefield and led her people to victory. She has a voice that could move ancient stone, Jeb; powerful but smooth as cream. That voice stirs the hearts of anyone who listens, a true bardic heir to Karine. They give all their leaders the surname Karini, but they say no one has deserved the name quite as much as Solya. While the spineless Kelari let the rest of the island fall, Solya and Farclan held on strong. If I’d had half her mettle, we’d never have lost Lord’s Hall.
If she sleeps, or grieves, or has any faults at all, she doesn’t let anyone see it. She could probably stand to smile a bit more and I’ve decided to make a bit of a game of seeing whether I make her crack a grin every now and then.
Page 3
… Look at me, going on about her for so long. Like I said: a tongue-tied young lad. I don’t expect she’d ever have me. It’s not really the right time to be wooing women, anyway. Still, you laughed at me when I said I was off to make allies of the Farclan, but I don’t think you’ll be laughing anymore. We’ve a powerful ally in the Farclan, especially in Solya.
Your old friend, Borrin Gammult