Communist Sausage... it wasn't much, but it was my home. I heard rumors of our Lawspeaker wanting to leave us. For the most part he already has. He was absent during the evening feasts. His hut unlit. We were a flock without a shepherd. This is the story of the fall of Communist Sausage.
It was no secret that we had been feuding with a faction of murderers. What can I say? We were fighting for the good of the Hearthlands, but to do so we had to become what we despised. So much killing and bloodshed, and for what? The war taxed everyone. Our farmers grew weary from the long hours in the field. Our hunters traveled great distances to procure even the smallest of game. All the while our Lawspeaker was nowhere to be found. I remember when I set my head down to rest for the night in the Longhouse. A million thoughts played out through my head, but I was tired and I had no trouble falling asleep despite the cloud of death and destruction that loomed overhead.

I awoke the next day in a state of confusion. The hearthfires were lit a dimly green, and the skeleton of my friend and ally was the first to greet me. His skeleton was missing its skull, so whoever killed him had wanted a trophy of this grisly deed. I felt a sickening pang in my stomach as I drew courage to go outside and see what the Gods had in store for me.

Gone. I now stand not in a bustling town of change and progress, but a cemetery of ghosts and betrayal. The gate has been opened, our gatekeeper nowhere to be found. Cupboards and crates looted and all the chests of our prized possessions gone. This was no raid. This was deliberately orchestrated and carried out in a fashion that could only have been done by a group of trained killers. But why? Suddenly I realized how it all happened... our Lawspeaker. That bastard allowed the barbarians into our home. Our blood now stains his disgusting hands. I couldn't bear to stay any longer. I retrieved what little I could salvage from the tragedy, destroyed my hearthfire, and said a prayer for our fallen as I left the walls of my home. Forever.

The surrounding countryside was in no better shape. Signs of warfare were evident. Blood stained the grasslands and pooled in the rivers. I came across a skeleton near the edge of the river no more than a stone's throw away from our walls. Most likely a traveler cut down in the wake of the raid on our village. I took his skull to study later.

As I continued on my way I come across more carcasses. Although they've already decayed I could still smell the blood on them. Their skulls were already taken.

Another unfortunate soul left to rot in the midday sun. Could all of this have happened because of one person? I shudder at the implications. I looked forward to leaving this place far behind. As I walk I start to question why I came back, of all times, only to be betrayed by a person who we thought we could trust. The Gods have a cruel and sick sense of humor. Perhaps there is meaning to all of this? A sliver of wisdom to be gained. I had too many things on my mind to even begin to start. All I can do now is walk...
The unfed mind devours itself. - Gore Vidal