New Empath Welcomed to Crossing with Theft

(Crossing, Zoluren: 321 Dolefaren 351)

Seasoned citizens of the Realms know that there is an undercurrent of thievery and low-minded actions that lie in wait in the shadows of every town of the Realms. We do not like it, but we must live with it. I like how Therae refers to it as a "street tax."

But this time, it hit close to home. Today, the young lass who serves up the orders and the fun here at the Tavern, our very own Beckah, was robbed of all her money on the way to the bank to deposit it.

Beckah is new to the Realms, she just joined her father, Baresh, here about a week ago. She tried her hand at the Bard’s Guild, but she found she could not bear to harm things. Last night she took her vows and joined the Guild of Empaths so that she could help people.

She arrived here at the Wren’s Nest today in tears, flustered, and feeling scared.

As a first circle Empath, she is only able to help heal people’s smaller wounds, but she has valiantly been doing just that. We watched her last night as she learned to heal others, and cast her first spell. Her teachers, Mystiri and Tyler, patiently gave her the life-saving advice she was going to need in her new life’s work.

This afternoon, as she was healing folks in the Green, she noticed that she had acquired her very first tip in payment from one of her patients. You should have seen her face light up! She knew she should keep her money in the bank, and headed off to quickly do her banking.

She did not pause once, she told us, but just outside the bank, she felt that awful tugging at her pocket as the thief Valloa took all the money she had in the world.

Beckah ran quickly back to the Green, upset and scared, telling the people who were there that she had been robbed, and asked them what to do. Taavetti was able to calm her down a bit. He took her by the hand and showed her where to find the guardhouse and file a complaint. The guards looked shocked that this Valloa would have stolen from any empath, let alone a first circle one, and assured Beckah that Valloa "would not get away with this."

Beckah feels reassured now that the guards will look into it, and I will manage to find her some extra shifts to work if she needs them, but what will replace her loss of security and trust in town?

If a first circle empath must fear being robbed — what have things come to? It is a dark, dark day that I had to comfort her tears so. I call on the Guild of Thieves to at least attempt to limit their excursions into the pockets of empaths. Such a deliberate crime against the very people who heal us is unthinkable. I do not understand how it can be tolerated by Valloa’s peers, or how such a misdeed can be justified by the thief.

Just what is the cost of a gold piece and some bronzes? A young woman’s security and trust? It seems a bit high to me.