The Freeport Militia
Sir Lucan D’lere took great pride in having been selected to protect the city while most of the clerics and paladins were off on crusade. He took his duties seriously and spent many weeks trying to oversee every aspect of Freeport’s defenses. His enthusiasm was obvious, and he grew even more popular. This should have brought Sir Lucan satisfaction, but instead it began to worry him. He began to doubt that the crusaders would ever return from their dangerous mission. Moreover, he was learning to enjoy both the respect he was afforded and the power he had as virtual lord of Freeport – and he soon became consumed with the fear of losing those things. The idea of suffering some major failure, and thus being seen as weak or ineffectual, preyed upon him.
Sir Lucan began to seek ways to ensure that his power and popularity would never falter. He sought out members of the Coalition of Tradefolk Underground who had helped the Priests of Marr build their massive fleet, and he cut new deals with them. He allowed them to move openly in the sections of the city near the docks, as long as they took no action against the more affluent Freeport citizens. He also began hiring a few mercenaries to ensure the city walls were always fully manned. He spent the money left in the Knights of Truth coffers, and began going through the temple’s funds as well. As months passed, those few members of the Priests of Marr who had remained to assist him grew increasingly concerned. Eventually, a paladin within the priesthood, Sentry Dilius, confronted Sir Lucan, demanding he relinquish control of Freeport.
No one knows exactly how the confrontation got out of hand. Clearly Sir Lucan was tired and not thinking clearly, having driven himself too hard for months, and Sentry Dilius was not known as a diplomatic man. Perhaps they began shouting, perhaps they came quickly to blows. In the end no justification would ever be enough, however, for Sir Lucan killed Sentry Dilius in a fit of rage and fear. With that act, Sir Lucan angered his gods and was stripped of his power as a paladin forever. The remaining priests and knights turned Lucan out, and demanded he return his Testimony of Knighthood. Sir Lucan refused. Of all the servants of the twin gods of Marr, only one Brother Jentry remained loyal to Lucan.
The Priests of Marr and Knights of Truth who remained within the city lacked the forces to defeat the mercenaries Sir Lucan had hired. They held onto the Hill, but could not remove Sir Lucan’s foothold in the remainder of the city. Sir Lucan quickly expanded the ranks of his forces and officially instituted the Freeport Militia. Both sides settled in for a siege and left everyone asking one question – what would happen when the crusaders returned? Most residents of Freeport assumed Sir Lucan would be forced to flee the city once that day came. Sir Lucan could hire all the mercenaries he wanted, but without the support of the Academy of Arcane Scientists and the Warriors of Steel, he couldn’t possibly face the combined might of the Priests of Marr and Knights of Truth.
Sir Lucan, however, quickly reached the same conclusion. He sought any conceivable ally in his quest to retain the power he had come to love more than honor or truth – and he found such allies in the Dismal Rage, who saw the time was ripe for them to expose themselves once again. Agents from the Dismal Rage contacted Sir Lucan through his Coalition of Tradefolk Underground contacts, and offered him a deal. The Dismal Rage would support Lucan in his war against the agents of the twin gods if he in turn gave them license to operate openly within the tunnels and sewers of the city, and somewhat less openly in the poor eastern quarter. Sir Lucan demanded proof of their power, and was eventually convinced to make a devil’s bargain with the Church of the Dismal Rage.