Paper Roses

Title Page

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| The Autobiography of Elrei Avendale |

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| | ---<Table of Contents>--- | |

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| | Title Page.........................Page One | |

| | Table of Contents..................Page Two | |

| | On Myself.......................Page Three | |

| | On New Thalos...................Page Five | |

| | On the Senate...................Page Ten | |

| | On the Shalonosts...............Page Twenty | |

| | On the Gods.....................Page Twenty-Seven | |

| | Taliena......................Page Twenty-Eight | |

| | Zandreya.....................Page Thirty-Two | |

| | On the Present, and Beyond......Page Thirty-Five | |

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On Myself

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| On Myself |

| |

| It may be quite a disappointment to those who read these words that |

| I have little to say about my childhood. It is not due to a desire to |

| hide such information, or because of any dislike for that period of my |

| life. Rather, it is simply that very little of interest happened. I |

| realize that may come as a shock to some, that a person can have a |

| childhood without major trauma. I cannot count on one hand the number |

| of Elves to which I granted citizenship which carried with them tales |

| of their parents' murder, usually at the hands of dwarves or the dark |

| ones. |

| Even so, I suppose it is important that I put down what I remember |

| of my formative years. Therefore, unless you are either a dedicated |

| historian or an insomniac, I recommend that you skip to the next |

| chapter of this volume. |

| |

| I was born of Lucian Avendale and his wife, Eleanore. My father |

| was a bard of no small ability, and it was his skill in words and |

| music, I believe, which won him my mother's heart. She was a mage of |

| some skill, herself, well on her way towards becoming a student of |

| the Conclave. Such studies would have separated the two of them for |

| quite some time, however, and she abandoned those plans. |

| As it turned out, my father was often away from home anyway. Once |

| they had settled together within a rather remote section of forest on |

| Tropica, he would often leave for extended periods of time, exploring, |

| or performing in various locations. When he returned, however, he |

| always brought news, gifts, and anything which we had stated a need |

| for before leaving. Despite his absences, he was a loving and devoted |

| husband and father. In fact, it was the constant journeying which |

| allowed him to provide for us as he did. |

| I imagine my mother may have held some resentment in the beginning, |

| over his long trips, considering all that she had given up to be with |

| him. Even so, I believe she was happy with the choices she made. |

| |

| Looking back, it seems that my father was always concerned about |

| leaving some sort of lasting impression on the world. His wanderings |

| and performances all over Algoron were his way of seeking something to |

| leave an indelible mark upon. Either that, or he was obsessed with |

| making sure he was a person of great importance in my eyes, beyond |

| his role as my father. |

| For instance, he would often mention to me, rather insistently, |

| that it was he who first discovered the continent of Shokono. There |

| was never any actual proof given to support this claim, but then, what |

| proof could truly be offered? True or not, I believed him, and still |

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| do as I've never seen anything to contradict it. Granted, perhaps I |

| have not searched for any dissent as much as I could, but it has never |

| been terribly important for me to do so. I find I am happier living |

| with the thought that my father found his way to leave a mark upon the |

| world, and I see no reason to discredit him. |

| Now I come to a point in my own life where I feel a need to mark my |

| place in the annals of history. To that end, I have succumbed to the |

| highest form of egotism among writers and historians: I have written |

| an autobiography. |

| Do not expect it to be any less verbose than its author. |

| |

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On New Thalos

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| On New Thalos |

| |

| Aside from my entry task to the House, and some slight amount of |

| scribework for Regent Alinashya, I had only one real task in the House |

| before I became its Regent. When I had first joined, I had mentioned |

| an interest in both sides of the House, the historical and diplomatic. |

| Yet, since I was limited to one, I felt that perhaps my skill as a |

| writer might serve the House better if I were to become a Historian. |

| Later on, I was approached by then-Regent Linot Sha'enras asking if |

| I was yet interested in serving the diplomatic side. It seemed there |

| was to be an exchange of ambassadors between New Thalos and Shalonesti,|

| and the Vallen's original choice to send, Trilla Sha'enras, had been |

| unexpectedly called to serve as emissary to Nordmaar, apparently |

| requested by name by their Queen. As there were no other active |

| diplomats within the Sha'enras, I was asked if I might be willing. |

| In fact, I was honored to be approached, and stated as much at the |

| time. I had not expected my interest in the diplomatic side to be |

| fulfilled at all, much less be asked to undertake such an important |

| role. My duty, primarily, would be to discover whether New Thalos's |

| stance regarding Shalonesti had changed with the sudden takeover of |

| Sultan Dramacus. As a secondary task, I was to uphold the pretext |

| under which this ambassadorial exchange was originally proposed, that |

| being an exchange of knowledge. My counterpart and I were to learn |

| about the culture and history of the nation we visited. I took the |

| position very seriously, writing back to my superiors in Shalonesti |

| very regularly to report on the happenings in my assigned location. |

| |

| My first day, after officially announcing my presence to the Sultan |

| and acquainting myself with the palace grounds, it seemed to me that |

| the people of the 'Desert Jewel' were a rather unfriendly, cliquish |

| lot, though I admitted to myself and my superiors that it was unfair |

| to assign such titles so soon. Undoubtedly the New Thalos ambassador, |

| a Shalonesti Elf by the name of Caither, must have felt similarly |

| about her situation. |

| In actuality, it seemed as though Shalonesti warmed to Caither |

| almost instantly. I was not present within the Groves to see it, but |

| I was informed by Najmuddin Majnun, something of a father-figure to |

| her as well as leader of the Masjid, that she was being adopted into |

| the Dragonblade family, and had also been propositioned for marriage |

| by Reos Sunblaze. That relationship lasted long enough to produce two |

| sets of twins, but what with Reos's sudden disappearance, and then |

| apparent reappearance as a ghost later on, and then seeming to return |

| alive and well, one did not need to be a master of the Conclave to |

| realize it was not a healthy marriage for Caither or her children. I |

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| have to wonder whether it was affected by the veritable curse placed |

| on the union by a particular dark elf priestess of Fatale, but I'll |

| get to that later. |

| |

| Not long after my arrival, I ran up against one of the most |

| difficult and embarrassing situations one can find themself in: not |

| knowing the depth of the water. A dark one by the name of Anezka |

| Ka'tath, a citizen of New Thalos at the time, wanted to speak with me. |

| Our meeting is best summed up by the letter I sent to what Shalonosts |

| I knew to be present and active within the Kingdom, at the time. |

| |

| "To those of House Shalonost, |

| |

| "I write this with some measure of dismay, the cause of which will |

| become clear shortly. I was approached today by one Anezka Ka'tath, |

| of New Thalos. She desired to speak with me, and in my current |

| position I had no alternative but to allow such. She began to ask |

| what my presence was to signify, whether arrangements had been changed.|

| At first, I thought she referred to the relationship between |

| Shalonesti and the dark ones, but it became clear she did not. I told |

| her, rightly enough then, that I am here because of the change of |

| leadership within the Jewel. |

| "This was also, however, not what she was referring to. |

| "She bade me write to House Royal, and though I do so now it is for |

| my own benefit, to soothe my mind, rather than because of her request. |

| She desires to know if 'the accord', as she puts it, is still in |

| effect, or whether it has been forgotten with the passing of a |

| generation. |

| "While I have no doubt that this is some trickery of the dark ones |

| to set my mind ill at ease, I still feel it my duty to report on this |

| matter with some urgency. That is why this missive will no doubt |

| reach you before my regular report, sent to the House Sha'enras. |

| "If this is not, however, a trick on her part, I would feel much |

| obliged if I could be given what information is necessary, so that I |

| do not find myself the fool in further dealings." |

| |

| My letter went unanswered, if not entirely unread. In my position, |

| however, and since it was not until some time later that Anezka again |

| sought a meeting, I assumed that whatever information was needed to be |

| sent, if any at all, was presented directly to her. I could deal with |

| the fact that I, considering my youth and inexperience, was not |

| necessarily to be trusted with material of a highly sensitive or |

| private nature. These thoughts proved themselves to be false, however,|

| since I was eventually contacted again. So again I wrote to the |

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| Vallens, this time to a number of Shalonosts within the Clan that |

| Anezka had mentioned. This specifically excluded Pythia Shalonost |

| since I was told she would have no knowledge of the events, having |

| never been informed due to "her extreme personal loss and... delicate |

| emotional state." |

| This time I did receive word, from then-Speaker Dylan Shalonost of |

| the Clan. He seemed convinced that this was some bit of trickery, as |

| I was inclined to believe, but assured me that he would look into it. |

| It was not until after I had returned to Shalonesti that Anezka |

| contacted me again, to inform me that "By failing to observe their end |

| of the agreement made between Speakers Vian Ka'tath and Aerte |

| Shalonost, House Shalonost has broken the old accord. The Ka'tath |

| held to our word even when it was apparent the Shalonost were not. We |

| are now free to act as we see fit. Expect nothing from us in the |

| future." |

| |

| During my stay within New Thalos, I made several acquaintances, not |

| all of them citizens of the Jewel, and even one or two long-term |

| friends. One of the latter was a half-Elven by the name of St'anli |

| who was leader of a local gang called the Sand Rats. They were |

| composed primarily, if not entirely from orphans living on the streets |

| of the city, and had banded together simply as a means of survival. |

| St'anli was also a student of Caither's. She had taken to teaching |

| the orphans of New Thalos how to read, at least those orphans which |

| she could lure to her lessons with the promise of food. Before |

| becoming an ambassador, she had written a book to explain the orphan |

| problem, its causes and possible solutions, and even included a quote |

| from an interview with me. I'm certain a copy of her work, entitled |

| "It Takes a Village", can be found by anyone with an interest in |

| reading either the book or the quote. |

| At first, St'anli was somewhat resentful of my presence, since, at |

| least to the orphans, it could be seen that I was responsible for |

| Caither's leaving. However, once he realized I shared many of the |

| same views regarding the orphan situation as he did, we became fast |

| friends and accomplices. I could not offer much to his already rather |

| considerable efforts in aiding the children, but what aid I could |

| offer, I did. I was too often surprised and saddened by the apparent |

| ignorance and disregard for the situation of the orphans, despite |

| Caither's attempts to enlighten others to their plight. |

| St'anli was invited as a guest to Caither's wedding, of course, and |

| so it was through him that I heard of the rather distasteful actions |

| of one Saad'mznu, the dark elf priestess I had mentioned earlier. In |

| addition to what could be taken as an open threat, if not a curse, |

| directly following the vows (invoking Fatale to watch over the |

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| ambassador and her family), the then-Ghazi spoke disdainfully of |

| Caither's dedication to her duties, citing Caither's refusal to submit |

| to an inquiry on her own wedding day. |

| The dark one's actions came as no surprise to me. Saad'mznu had |

| already outright told me, before that point, that were it not for her |

| oaths of service to the Mujahid and loyalty to the Sultan, she would |

| have slipped a knife between my ribs the moment I arrived within the |

| city. Though I never doubted her intent, I have my own thoughts as to |

| whether she would have succeeded at any such attempt. |

| |

| Fastia, Morthest when I arrived, TideWeaver by my leaving, and |

| Wizardess throughout, was kind enough to share with me some of New |

| Thalos's past, primarily the history of its leadership. Though I was |

| grateful for the time spent and the history learned, her lessons |

| seemed to go by too quickly. I wonder, now, whether it was |

| intentional on her part to move through things so fast, so that I |

| could not ask too many questions. |

| Despite her promised efforts, as well as the efforts of the |

| Najmuddin, I never did manage to meet with the Sultan. After my |

| return to Shalonesti, it seemed Dramacus became somewhat more |

| available to his people, becoming more visibly active and sending out |

| public notice that any of New Thalos's citizens were welcome to |

| approach him, through notice or whatever means, with their concerns. |

| 'As always', he stated, though that was the first I'd seen or heard of |

| such. |

| Soon after my departure from New Thalos, Fastia was given the title |

| of Vizier. This meant, among other things, that she would be, |

| irrefutably, the proper successor of Dramacus in the event that he |

| produced no heirs, something which he had stated no interest in doing. |

| I am uncertain if this was truly necessary, since the proper line of |

| succession would place the eldest member of the Royal Court as the |

| ruler in such an event. I do not know whether Majnun or Fastia would |

| have been regarded as such. |

| After my placement as Regent of Sha'enras, I was called upon to |

| accompany Diathandel Shalonost, recently crowned as Speaker, to New |

| Thalos to aid in drawing up the terms of a treaty between our two |

| nations. Once again, the Sultan was not present, in his place being |

| Vizier Fastia and her brother, Aerandiri Morthest, though the latter |

| seemed present only to serve as guard. It seemed to me, then, that |

| Fastia was very keen on asserting her authority as Vizier, pointing |

| out her place as next in line to the throne. At the time, I was |

| concerned that perhaps the Sultan did not believe the Speaker to be |

| worth his personal time in arranging such a document, but now I am |

| more inclined to believe that Fastia suspected her time to rule was |

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| soon to come. Perhaps she had already, privately, been informed of |

| the Sultan's plans to resign, or perhaps she simply saw it as |

| inevitable, but she seemed only too happy to accept. |

| The treaty we settled on was not truly worth the parchment upon |

| which it had been scribed. It demanded nothing from either nation, |

| written in such mild requests that each leader could, at their own |

| discretion, disregard any or all of its terms. In effect, it changed |

| nothing, but gave us each a pretty document to hold on to. Though New |

| Thalos attempted, much later, to try and strengthen the terms of the |

| treaty, such was never done. Shalonesti could not accept any more |

| binding terms until New Thalos saw and acted upon the fact that the |

| dark ones, specifically those of the Ka'tath and Ka'vanth, were an |

| active and dedicated threat to Shalonesti, something which New Thalos |

| was unable to understand. |

| Even so, despite both sides recognizing that the treaty was fairly |

| useless, Fastia, as Sultana at the time, was loath to relinquish it. |

| I know for fact that it was only kept to appease her apparent desire |

| to collect such documents during her reign. |

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On the Senate

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| On the Senate |

| |

| Probably my single greatest victory in the Senate came early on in |

| my time there, back when I was a Regent. I managed to force then- |

| Senator Da'shal Sha'falas to concede a point. It was not a large |

| point, or one that made an ultimate difference in what it pertained to,|

| but I still look fondly on that memory as I believe it marked a |

| turning point within the Kingdom. |

| Before then, before I was a Regent, a Sha'enras, or even in |

| Shalonesti, Sha'falas was the strongest of all the Noble Houses, and I |

| would not be surprised if some argued they were stronger even than the |

| Shalonost. Beyond that fact, Da'shal already had a reputation for |

| sternness, stubbornness, and intolerance of insubordination from any |

| lesser-ranked Elf (which, as Sha'falas was most powerful, included |

| other Senators). He was also a Kyorl, which only added to his |

| imposing and intimidating authority. |

| Yet I, barely a Regent, and of one of the two weakest Houses of the |

| time, managed through words to get a concession from him. It was |

| exhilarating, if not also one of the more nerve-wracking experiences |

| I've had. It also showed me that I did have some amount of authority |

| now that I was on the Senate. I was heretofore unfamiliar with having |

| authority, and was consistently, even throughout my time as Senator, |

| unsure of exactly how much I held, or for what it could be used. |

| There was no secret manual to explain everything, passed on by my |

| predecessor. |

| In truth, aside from the very basics of a Regent's duties, Linot |

| gave me rather little to work with. Once I became Senator, she gave |

| me the House membership records, but I'm afraid those weren't much to |

| look at. I don't fault her for it, as I'm certain she likely was |

| given no better when she took the seat. Yet throughout my time as |

| head of Sha'enras, more and more Elves kept showing up who claimed the |

| Name, despite not being mentioned in the records. Of course, several |

| of these had not been seen for ages, and I would try to add them in |

| where I felt their past experiences and training indicated they should |

| be. Most of them disappeared just as quickly. |

| At any rate, having tasted some authority as a Regent, becoming |

| Senator only served to exasperate Sha'falas further. What did I think |

| I was doing? Sha'falas was obviously the most important House, with |

| little brother Sha'qelas following behind. How dare I create a |

| structure that could actually stand on its own, and serve the Kingdom |

| as it had been intended to serve? What did Shalonesti need with a |

| bunch of "recalcitrant scholars" anyway? |

| Early on in my time as Senator, in the first part of Diathandel's |

| reign, it seemed as if the rest of the Kingdom was shocked and |

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| appalled that Sha'enras might actually use the Voice it had been given.|

| This sense of impiety was only heightened by the fact that I had |

| managed to fill both Regencies, whereas the other Houses had one or |

| more seats vacant. Though Sha'enras technically had no more official |

| weight than the other Houses if it came to a vote, we had more mouths |

| to voice dissent. |

| Despite statements to the contrary, I still believe it was this |

| fact which caused the Sha'falas to call for the removal of the Regents |

| from the Senate. Then the military voices would once again number |

| more, especially in the times when the attendance of the Songkeeper |

| was regular. Da'shal and Jausin could claim what they liked, but I |

| knew even then that it was more than just votes which could influence |

| an issue in the Senate. Most issues never came to a vote anyway. The |

| Speaker always has the power to do what he or she wants, regardless, |

| and whichever side can shout the loudest often is the one that gets |

| heard. |

| Sha'enras had finally come into its own, acting as befit a Noble |

| House of Shalonesti. Yet the Sha'falas had held power for so long |

| without opposition, they felt threatened. Now they had come up |

| against a Sha'enras Senator that understood his own House, and would |

| not shut up. |

| Of course, it was never my intention to take power away from |

| Sha'falas. What I saw was a void where the authority of the other |

| Houses should be, and I was simply trying to fill it, to bring things |

| back into balance. I believed, and still do, that all of the Houses |

| exist for a reason, and that none are of any less importance than the |

| others. This was not a belief reflected by the majority of |

| Shalonesti's military leaders. Still, once they realized that I had |

| both a strong mind and voice, not to mention a limitless supply of air,|

| I suppose they resigned themselves to the idea that I intended to use |

| such resources as I saw fit. |

| |

| Over time, I managed to create what my Regents and I considered to |

| be a strong foundation within the House, consisting of a system of |

| ranks, and tasks to attain those ranks, which not only emphasized the |

| tenets of the House and our role within the Kingdom, but also made |

| progressive sense. When I had first joined Sha'enras, when Carol was |

| Senator, there were no ranks or tasks at all. Or, at least, none of |

| which I'd been told. I think that Carol's entry task for me, |

| researching major events in Shalonesti within the past two years, had |

| probably been made up on the spot. |

| When I came back from my ambassadorship to New Thalos, I discovered |

| that Regent Alinashya had put together some semblance of a task system,|

| which is what was passed to me when I eventually became Senator. In |

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| this system, an Elf seeking to join the House might be told to |

| interview members of different races, to discover cultural information |

| and differences from one race to the next. This is quite an ambitious |

| task, and certainly one which could be of great benefit to the House. |

| The problem with it became apparent, however, when one Elf decided to |

| interview then-Sultana Fastia of New Thalos, and the Sultana was |

| displeased by said Elf's rudeness. |

| It was suddenly imperative for me to come up with something |

| different. We could not have Elves, especially those who were yet |

| Nameless, going around claiming the authority of Sha'enras while being |

| disrespectful to the leaders of other nations. Further, it was clear |

| to me then that the progression of Sha'enras training needed to be |

| more closely considered. When I was through with the House, an Elf |

| would have needed to attain the House's third rank, Scholar, and have |

| passed through all of the appropriate interviewing training, before |

| even attempting to perform such a task. |

| I won't go into what all the ranks and tasks were, right here. It |

| would do little good at this point anyway, since three days after my |

| retirement everything was changed. If you really want to know, I'm |

| certain you can find a copy of my Sha'enras Guide, now useful as |

| little more than a doorstop or a sleep aid. |

| |

| Among the other roles my House fulfilled, it seemed that, during my |

| leadership of it, Sha'enras served as a training ground for future |

| wives of the Speakers. Diathandel Shalonost eventually married the |

| first Regent I'd selected, Caither. I'll speak more of them in a |

| moment. As well, their child Emrhys Shalonost, who was passed the |

| Circle by his father, developed quite the relationship with one of my |

| later Regents, Margaret, or as she was better known, Maisie. They did |

| not end up wedded, at least so far as I know, but there was every |

| intention of progressing to that before the two of them disappeared. |

| Diathandel and Caither's relationship was always very strong. It |

| needed to be. That pair went through more trials and tribulations |

| than I can even begin to recount, with more, I'm certain, that |

| happened where I could not see. |

| Caither had been rather unlucky with romance before gaining the |

| attentions of the Speaker. She had already been married once, with |

| two sets of twins to show for it, and though she was never to my mind |

| improper, she seemed always to be quite heavily pursued as a love |

| interest by various men. When the Speaker showed an interest, then, |

| of course she was immediately reviled by those former paramours, since |

| the only possible reason she could have for accepting his attentions |

| was to gain the position of Queen. |

| Never mind, of course, that Diathandel was able to grant her peace, |

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| in mind, heart, and soul, being a guiding light for Caither when her |

| goddess, Kadiya, had turned away from her. Ironically, it seemed she |

| had been shunned for going to the aid of a dwarven follower, despite |

| it being against Shalonesti's law to do so. Apparently even Kadiya |

| doesn't like dwarves, expecting an Elf of Shalonesti to maintain |

| adherence to Vallenwood law rather than Her Divine Will. |

| Caither's suitability as wife to Diathandel must have been approved |

| by the Shalonost Elders, however, as notice was sent out of their |

| upcoming wedding. What should have been a time of great joy and |

| celebration, however, quickly turned sour during the reception |

| following the ceremony. It was held in the Palace's ballroom, a rare |

| event by itself, and despite the absence of many expected guests to |

| the wedding, it seemed that things were going along at an enjoyable |

| pace. |

| I had just begun a song, by request of the Speaker and our new |

| Queen, when strong winds began to blow through the ballroom. These |

| were not the sort of winds one would get by simply opening a large |

| double door, either, as they were capable of not only knocking the |

| wind from me, but also succeeded in knocking my wife (who was, at that |

| point, quite far along with our first child) to the ground. As I |

| tried to tend to her, a Voice began to address the gathered revelers. |

| The Voice stated that Zandreya was displeased with the marriage, |

| due to the fact that Caither was not recognized by her deity, and that |

| Diathandel could not rule as Speaker if he were to remain with his |

| wife. By this point, the Speaker had been working for months with |

| Caither, teaching her of Zandreya's ways, and though Caither felt a |

| great understanding of such, greater than her understanding of |

| Kadiya's teachings, she had been officially recognized and accepted by |

| neither. |

| All but a scant handful agreed with the Voice, taking it as |

| Zandreya's Will for Her Kingdom. Diathandel acted with dignity, |

| immediately deciding to remove himself from power so that he could be |

| with his love. Caither was distraught, simultaneously expressing to |

| those who berated her that she had indeed been trying to gain favour |

| from Zandreya, begging the Voice to punish her and not Diathandel, and |

| begging Diathandel to simply let her go so that he could remain. |

| Taesia, despite her injuries from the fall, spoke in support of |

| Diathandel and Caither, knowing that both of them had worked very hard |

| in Shalonesti, and that Caither had been doing immeasurable amounts of |

| work both for Zandreya's Kingdom and to prove herself as worthy of |

| recognition by the goddess. And I? According to then-Senator Jausin, |

| I spoke out against Zandreya's Will, something that he and Elder |

| Tiernyn continued to press when they called me back to the Circle some |

| scant hours later, pulling me away from my still wounded and |

| ________________________________________________________________________|

\|/========================================================================\

_________________________________________________________________________

| \ /

| recovering wife. It was the only time I had ever walked out on a |

| Shalonost without being excused. |

| In fact, I stated that I could not believe that any force that |

| cared so deeply for Her race would be so callous about the pain caused |

| to them. In later statements, I continually expressed disbelief that |

| Zandreya would act in such a manner, that She would do this to Her |

| chosen race. Yet, when all else were proclaiming this as the Will of |

| Zandreya, any dissenting view would be taken as opposition to that |

| Will. |

| So when Galenthas, the new Speaker due to Diathandel's self-removal,|

| called me to the Circle, I had no doubt what the outcome would be. |

| Yet, I had to try and make my points heard. At no point did the |

| presence actually identify itself as Zandreya, despite everyone's |

| zealous belief that it was Her. |

| |

| Speaker Galenthas asked, "Did Diathandel doubt the identity?" |

| "I cannot say. He spoke to the Voice, claiming he did what he |

| thought was best for Zandreya's lands and people, and that if Zandreya |

| did not think he did well enough, She could remove him." |

| "The question our Senator was left with before he excused himself |

| was, 'You either accept Her Will for Her forests, or you do not.'" |

| spoke Senator Jausin. |

| "And the answer?" |

| "I have never stated that Zandreya could not impose Her Will over |

| Her lands. That was never the issue." |

| "So what was the issue?" |

| "That, Speaker, is a very good question." |

| Jausin continued to press, acting almost as though it were he in |

| authority at this meeting rather than the Speaker. "Even if it is not |

| the issue, I would still like an answer to the question. Do you |

| accept Her decision, or oppose it?" |

| "As was stated at the time of the happenings, it matters very |

| little whether we mortals accept the will of the Gods. It has |

| happened. Now we can do little but react." |

| Even as Galenthas tried to continue past this, asking the clergy |

| present (Lord Paris Sha'tavas and Sabrinaela Shalonost, both priests |

| of Zandreya) what they had to say on the matter, Jausin spoke further. |

| "You are a Senator. You have the duty to help lead Zandreya's people. |

| It absolutely does matter. Look at me a moment." Linot tried to |

| interject, reminding the Senator of his place, but he would heed no |

| one. "Do you not realize that Zandreya was dissatisfied with my own |

| son? My blood, my child." |

| "And again, I express my doubts as to the source of this divine |

| influence." At this point, I do believe I managed to shock Paris, and |

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\ / |

| quite a few eyebrows raised around the Circle, though this was nothing |

| more than I had already presented. |

| Songkeeper Nymaya, whose presence on that occasion I can only |

| attribute to the idea that those gathered felt somehow threatened by |

| me, asked, "You believe Zandreya would allow the tampering of another |

| God with Her chosen? There were plagues of insects, there were dead |

| birds. What more is needed to make you see the truth?" She was |

| referring to various events which had occurred prior to the ceremony, |

| the source of which had never been determined. |

| "Whose domain is that of plague and disease?" |

| "There was no disease, there were swarms of insects." Yet, she had |

| been the one to say a plague, and the Gods have always been fond of |

| symbolism. Even so, the deaths of the animals in the Vallenwood could |

| be ascribed to others. Fatale, perhaps. Certainly Devion would |

| delight in such mischief as causing this confusion, and leaving the |

| Elves to think it their Patron's wrath. But yes, there were swarms of |

| insects. |

| "And they attacked both Diathandel as well as Eadonia. Why would |

| they attack both, if they were only displeased with him? If Caither |

| was the supposed source of the difficulty, why was she not attacked?" |

| Elder Tiernyn, realizing that this was going nowhere, posed the |

| question to Sabrinaela, "Bishop, was this message from Zandreya?" The |

| entire issue, then, rested upon her response. Yet, from what I had |

| heard, Sabrinaela had not received Word or Visit from Zandreya for |

| some time. Had that changed? My fate, though I had already expected |

| to leave and had made plans to that effect, was dependent upon her |

| answer. |

| "Yes." |

| Galenthas turned back to me. "Senator, it is my belief you have |

| acted honestly within your own moral code, but I think, personally, |

| that you may have made a mistake." |

| "What mistake did I make?" |

| "You have gone up against Her Will, well intentioned perhaps, but |

| that does not change what has happened. My nephew also had good |

| intentions, and that has not prevented his mistake." |

| "What have I done against Her Will?" |

| "Senator, you are a smart Elf, else you would not be in the |

| position you are in. Please do not pretend ignorance." |

| "Anyone can have doubts. I doubted the insects came from Her. I |

| doubted it was Her Presence in the ballroom. If I am to be accused of |

| acting against Her Will, I would like to know what acts I committed." |

| Lady Linot answered that, as accurately as anyone could have. "It |

| would appear, that you are to be accused of doubting." |

| Galenthas removed me from the Senatorship, passing it on to Linot. |

| ________________________________________________________________________|

\|/========================================================================\

_________________________________________________________________________

| \ /

| As telling as it may have been to know what rank she would give to me, |

| when he asked, I interjected. Taesia and I had been through enough. |

| I asked for us to be removed from the Kingdom. The Speaker refused. |

| |

| It was at this point in life that I composed this particular piece: |

| |

| There was a girl in Vallenwood fair, |

| Heart of gold and spirit so kind. |

| Though lost to all, I summon her memory. |

| Caither was a good friend of mine. |

| |

| She served the Kingdom the best she knew how, |

| Placed as Regent beneath a bard. |

| Beneath her touch, Sha'enras did flourish. |

| Few to none had e'er worked so hard. |

| |

| Fast to befriend, she captured our hearts, |

| Though her own was fractured apart. |

| Fin'lly she found the one who would love her. |

| Diathandel and Caither never would part. |

| |

| He was a King, and she'd be his Queen, |

| With her children cared for and loved. |

| But on the eve of their happy wedding |

| Zandreya sent Her winds from above. |

| |

| The Goddess demanded they be split apart, |

| Else the Speaker he could not be, |

| For Caither was shunned instead of accepted, |

| Despite all she'd done for Shalonesti. |

| |

| They left their home, their Kingdom behind. |

| Ties of Love were stronger than She. |

| They found an orchard somewhere, together, |

| Then intertwined and formed into trees. |

| |

| So now you know this tale of Love, |

| How it conquered Zandreya's Will, |

| And if you see two trees in an orchard |

| You'll know their Love survives even still. |

| |

| Two days after my removal, I was contacted by Elder Pythia |

| Shalonost. She summoned me to a private, holy grove, where she |

| inquired of my intentions regarding Shalonesti. In effect, she |

|________________________________________________________________________ |

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_________________________________________________________________________

\ / |

| exacted my personal allegiance to her in return for her personal |

| protection of my family and myself, retaining me as her "personal |

| confidante". Then, she told me that there had been visions, received |

| by at least three Elves: Diathandel, Caither, and Nymaya. I had heard,|

| previously, of the visions that the latter two had seen, but to that |

| point had not heard of the former Speaker's experience. |

| This is what the visions entailed, as written by Songkeeper Nymaya |

| at the time: |

| |

| "Something both equally odd and disturbing has happened though I |

| will start from the beginning. |

| "I had been in the process of completing a quest for the quest |

| master when I was stopped by the sound of an elf's voice, crying out |

| faintly in pain. This was preceeded shortly after by spoken words and |

| an image that revealed Caither to me, kneeling within a shrine I could |

| not identify. Shortly after the image faded, her voice called to me. |

| "I returned to Shalonesti as quickly as I could and proceeded to |

| search the shrines nearby though she was not to be found. It was then |

| that her voice called out to me again. This time, I proceeded to |

| contact her. She was quite unaware of what had just been transpiring |

| and was surprised to discover that I knew she was within a shrine. I |

| managed to discover that this shrine was upon Shokono and so headed |

| there directly. |

| "When I got there, I was beset by a watcher called Keryllxi, whom |

| had been speaking with Caither. I was instantly frozen by her stare |

| and could not respond for a time but during that time things began to |

| occurr. A breeze whispered through the room and on its heels I |

| watched as Caither received the first of a set of visions to come. |

| "She witnessed the destruction of Shalonesti as a terrible |

| earthquake split the land asunder and she saw a young girl, trapped, |

| crying out for help. Shortly after this, I received a similar vision |

| of a young girl trapped and calling out for help, crying for mercy. |

| "We both spoke to the Balanx in hopes that we would gain some |

| insight but she would not tell us much and so we both returned to |

| Shalonesti where Caither preceeded to search Shalonesti, looking for |

| the girl that we had seen. During this time, I spoke with Elder |

| Tiernyn and Lady Alisette, explaining all that had happened when I was |

| suddenly beset by a powerful vision of the very earthquake that |

| Caither saw. I heard the earth cry out and felt the roar of the wind. |

| Underlying all this was the crying of the young girl, begging for help.|

| "I collapsed after the barrage, beset by exhaustion, and that is |

| when the visions ended. Caither experienced this at the same time as |

| I. |

| "It is our mutal agreement that Shalonesti is in grave danger and |

| ________________________________________________________________________|

\|/========================================================================\

_________________________________________________________________________

| \ /

| it is thought that the young girl in the visions is quite possibly |

| Zandreya Herself. |

| "I do not think that this is over." |

| |

| I did not see Pythia again for quite some time. She had summoned |

| us (my wife and myself) to her secluded grove, shared with us this |

| information of the visions, and then disappeared. |

| Over the next few days, I was approached by Diathandel, Caither, |

| and even Liathus Shalonost, to speak on various things relating to the |

| current events. One piece of happy news in all this gloom was that |

| Caither had finally been accepted by Zandreya. Another was that it |

| was during this time that my wife gave birth to our first child, |

| Sadora Avendale. |

| Diathandel was using his position as a Shalonost to take over the |

| Sha'enras, hoping to keep it strong in this troubled time, and prevent |

| it from being toppled either intentionally or through neglect. And, |

| finally, another vision had been received, this one showing a dark |

| shadow of a figure looming over a young, helpless girl. The shadow |

| had only one hand. |

| For those of you who are not as versed in theology as others, |

| Devion, the dark God of mischief, lost a hand in an ancient battle |

| with Nadrik, the God of honor. So what did this mean, in the context |

| of the visions? Apparently, it was taken to mean that Devion had |

| stalked the Kingdom, posing as Zandreya within Her own domain, despite |

| the fervent belief that such was impossible. It was Devion who had |

| spoken on the winds. It was Devion whose Word Sabrinaela had claimed |

| was Zandreya's own. I had been right, and was removed for it. |

| |

| Even still, I heard nothing of this until four days later, when I |

| was called to attend the re-coronation of Diathandel Shalonost, and |

| the corresponding rise of Caither as Queen, as were their rightful |

| places in Shalonesti. Galenthas, before handing back the crown, made |

| a sweeping apology to "various loyal members" of the Kingdom who had |

| been affected in "adverse ways" by the Shalonost response to Devion's |

| Deception. |

| Upon taking the role of Speaker, Diathandel, spurred by Linot's |

| reminder, requested that I return as Senator of Sha'enras. Before I |

| could respond, Songkeeper Nymaya also voiced an apology, to myself as |

| well as to the Speaker and Queen. |

| So many arguments filled my head, debating back and forth whether |

| to take the position. Was I truly welcome there, or were those who |

| supported my return in the minority? What would prevent such a |

| disaster from recurring? The sheer distaste I had felt from those who |

| had removed me still lingered, and let us not forget that I had a |

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\ / |

| family to worry over. Would we ever feel truly safe in our own home? |

| In the end, with the Speaker and his wife veritably begging me to |

| take Senatorship, I returned to duty and service. What choice did I |

| have, unless I wished to not only hurt them, but also the Kingdom, the |

| House, and all we had worked for? |

| |

| One might notice that I have specifically noted who had, at that |

| point, made an apology for the actions taken during this period of |

| time. Some may think me spiteful to keep track of such, and perhaps I |

| am, but I try above all else to be observant, and so it did not escape |

| my notice who did and did not attempt to make reparations for what |

| occurred. |

| Elder Tiernyn never apologized. Sabrinaela Shalonost, though she |

| later made an oblique admittance that she may have been wrong, also |

| has never apologized, despite the fact that it was she more than any |

| who had damned me, and with a single word. Even later still, Jausin |

| offered an apology, though by that point he had done more than what |

| such simple words could repair. |

| |

| ________________________________________________________________________|

\|/========================================================================\

On the Shalonosts

_________________________________________________________________________

| \ /

| On the Shalonosts |

| |

| I've never told anyone, before, but for a long time I harbored |

| dreams of being approached and invited to join the Kyorl. Fortunately,|

| I recovered from that particular affliction. |

| After the Devion incident, things seemed calm for a while. My wife |

| had been raised to fill the Regency left by Caither when she ascended |

| to her rightful place as Queen. Taesia was more than qualified for |

| the position, as I had been much more demanding of her work than most |

| Sha'enras. Not only was this to avoid claims of nepotism at any level,|

| but also due to the fact that I expected more from her. I tend to |

| have a high opinion of the people I claim as loved ones and friends, |

| and therefore hold them to a higher standard than others. |

| After serving as Regent for a time, Speaker Diathandel asked Taesia |

| to take over as Senator of the Sha'tavas, at least on a temporary |

| basis. The previous Senator, Areanna, had left quite suddenly after |

| only a short term of service, and the House had no viable replacements |

| since the only Regent was Tabrin, an Elf of wild heritage. Although |

| the tradition has been overlooked in the past, most memorable to my |

| mind being Nami's Senatorship of Sha'enras, only those of pure |

| Shalonesti bloodlines are to undertake the role of Senator. |

| Things seemed quiet, for a time, though my wife complained to me |

| occasionally of some resistance from Tabrin. He seemed to think she |

| was unwilling to accept his ideas and help, whereas she was of the |

| mind that he disapproved of everything she did, even when she was |

| using his ideas. |

| |

| Then, one eve, Elder Pythia decided to both hide and make known her |

| presence. I had not seen her about the Groves since that first night |

| she retained me as a personal advisor, and I must admit that I had |

| expected a bit more warmth. |

| I was sitting in the Grove of Healing, where many who are injured |

| go to rest, speaking with my Regent, Lyandis, about House matters. At |

| some point, the Elder entered the Groves. I do not know when, as due |

| to my training at the time, I was unable to see those who could become |

| invisible, nor spot those who were naturally light of foot or adept at |

| slipping through shadows. She apparently remained there for a time, |

| and though I noticed some others showing courtesy to this unseen |

| person, I was still rather engrossed in my conversation with Lyandis. |

| I should point out, at this juncture, my personal opinions |

| regarding the Grove of Healing, or at least those opinions I held |

| before that night. I long considered the Grove to be a place of |

| informality and relaxation. Those who were injured should not be made |

| to rise and bow to me, as a Senator, and so I extended that courtesy |

|________________________________________________________________________ |

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_________________________________________________________________________

\ / |

| and understanding to any within that particular Grove. I further held |

| the opinion that anyone keeping themselves cloaked, by whatever means, |

| does not wish to be spoken to or formally recognized. |

| However, after leaving the Grove of Healing, Elder Pythia inflicted |

| public embarrassment upon both myself and my wife, who had also been |

| quite busy and not noticed her presence. Being known as the best |

| enchantress in the lands, or at least among those who competed in New |

| Thalos's enchanting contest, tends to put one in demand after all. |

| This did not seem to be in keeping with what I thought I knew of the|

| Matron Shalonost. I suspected, correctly, that this was not about a |

| failure to offer simple obeisance to her station as an Elder. She had |

| received "back to back letters of complaint" (a grand total of two) |

| against myself and my wife, apparently all having to do with the |

| appearance, or "perception", that it was not the Speaker who was truly |

| in power within Shalonesti. |

| |

| Briefly, I should explain that Caither and Taesia were sisters, |

| though not by blood. Both had been adopted into the Dragonblade |

| family. This meant that, as both Diathandel and Caither were married, |

| and both Taesia and I were Lifebonded, we were technically all related.|

| How this would give the appearance that someone aside from the Speaker |

| was in power, I'm not certain, as it is commonly known that the |

| Speaker has final veto authority in the Senate, and furthermore needs |

| no approval from anyone to do what he likes. It is a (hopefully) |

| benevolent dictatorship, but still a dictatorship. |

| It was confusing and disconcerting enough that the Elder, after |

| choosing to see reason during the incident with Devion, would make so |

| complete a turnabout over what amounted to a few rumours. What I had |

| not seen with my own eyes however, before that evening, was the horrid |

| treatment that Caither had quite obviously been repeatedly receiving |

| from Elder Pythia regarding her status as the Speaker's chosen. It |

| seemed that the two had been at odds for some time, especially as it |

| regarded any idea that the Queen might actually have a shred of power |

| within Shalonesti. |

| This is something that I have long tried to come to terms with. |

| According to all the histories I had available, the spouse of a |

| Speaker was not simply some concubine, kept only to provide offspring. |

| It seemed that they were to be considered a respected Elf of authority |

| within the Kingdom, though of course not so authoritative as the |

| Speaker or an Elder. Up until quite recently, at that point, the |

| Shalonost Name had been granted to the spouse of a Speaker upon their |

| marriage, a practice which seemed to have, for whatever reason, simply |

| skipped the previous generation, as Rhiadora's husband, Jausin (and |

| consequently, the father of Diathandel), was not given it. In fact, I |

| ________________________________________________________________________|

\|/========================================================================\

_________________________________________________________________________

| \ /

| later heard that several Elves who served exceptionally as Senators |

| within the Clan were also given the Shalonost Name, though they were |

| not officially added to any copy of the lineage that I saw. |

| The idea, then, that Pythia (and her Kyorl, Da'shal) should be |

| telling Caither that she had no power, no authority, and no value as |

| Queen except by what heirs she produced seemed to be pure madness. |

| The fact that the Elder was holding a veritable inquisition of two |

| Senators based on the disgruntled scribblings of two other Elves, |

| Elves who were not as high in authority, also seemed to cross the |

| bridge into insanity. Regardless of what she said to us, whether she |

| intended to be accusatory and hurtful or not, whether she wanted to |

| attribute it entirely to our "perspectives" as the defendants (again, |

| if we were not being accused, why the need to question us, especially |

| in such a way that we felt it necessary to defend ourselves?), she was |

| accusatory. She was hurtful. |

| Shalonesti, or that vision of it which had been worked towards for |

| so long, very nearly fell that night. After the hours of intense |

| confrontation were over, Caither was ready to leave. She had been |

| through this multiple times. No sane person could blame her for |

| wanting to be done with it. Regardless, she could not leave without

| Diathandel following, and if they had left, Taesia and I would |

| certainly not feel welcome or wanted within the Vallenwood. And, if |

| what I had been told before re-accepting the Senatorship was accurate, |

| chances were good that some of my Sha'enras would follow as well. |

| |

| Whatever respect I had gained for Pythia for her reasonableness |

| during the Deception of Shalonesti was lost after that night. Her |

| methods were far from effective, if nothing else, and seemed designed |

| to bring the most possible anguish to the people she was trying to get |

| answers from. When, scant days later, three Elves were banished for |

| treason, Liathus Shalonost, Songkeeper Nymaya Sha'falas, and Lady |

| Areanna Sha'tavas having conspired against the Speaker, I had thought |

| that might be the end of it. Yet, at the next Senate meeting, I found |

| that things were far from over. |

| At first, I was simply irritated. I learned, then, that both |

| military Houses had completely ignored the requirement that Nameless |

| were to attend an Orientation class before joining a House. This was |

| not a requirement made by me, but one that had been handed down by the |

| Speaker, and yet it was entirely disregarded. I had come to ask, |

| since it was required to join all Houses, whether some from the other |

| Houses might be willing to teach it as well. Up to then, I had been |

| teaching it alone, three times a week at the request of the Speaker, |

| so that new citizens would not have a lengthy wait to attend one. |

| Both Taesia and Caither had offered to help, but their workloads were |

|________________________________________________________________________ |

/========================================================================\|/

_________________________________________________________________________

\ / |

| already full. I had no desire to weigh them down further. |

| Of course, I hadn't truly expected much help from the other, |

| military Houses. I will admit I'd hoped for a better response than, |

| "It's your monster. You tame it." After that comment from Jausin, |

| and the accompanying debate that followed, Da'shal decided to drop the |

| other shoe, claiming that the entire rest of the Senate, along with an |

| Elder (Pythia) and two retired Senators (himself and Jausin) had |

| expressed concern over the fact that both Tae and I served as Senators |

| (incorrect, as Laerathan had stated he did not see any problems with |

| the arrangement at the time). Again, the issue of "appearances" was |

| being brought up, and despite the initial attack from Da'shal, it |

| seemed Jausin was, once again, the one truly spearheading the attempt |

| to get an Avendale out of the Senate. |

| Keep in mind, this was barely three months past the Devion incident,|

| when Jausin had expressed so much apparent grief that his own son was |

| deemed unfit for service by Zandreya. One might expect, since |

| Zandreya had since shown unquestionable support, and that it had not |

| been Her showing disapproval to begin with, that he would have a bit |

| more faith and trust in his own son. Yet Jausin was flat-out accusing |

| the Speaker of nepotism, claiming the appearance of one family holding |

| power in Shalonesti would cause problems. |

| One family has always held power in Shalonesti, and that is more |

| than a matter of appearance. If I could assume any amount of honesty |

| from Jausin at this point (which I cannot profess to assume, despite |

| his prior speech that night on the importance of it), then what I |

| would take was that it was not one family ruling which was the issue, |

| but that it was one family that was not entirely composed of |

| Shalonosts. Even as it was, however, their argument was full of holes |

| you could sail a cruiser through. Of course, when I posed the |

| questions to point these out, they were ignored, or covered over by |

| barbs against the Queen. It was not a quiet night in the Guidance |

| Grove. |

| Diathandel eventually managed to put his foot down on the issue, |

| saying that yes, he had heard the opposing viewpoints, but this was |

| how he wanted his Senate for the time being. The intended damage had |

| already been done, however. My wife, though I love her, simply was |

| not able to endure this kind of punishment. She had not asked for the |

| position of Senator to begin with, having been granted it by the |

| Speaker who knew that potential issues regarding appearances might |

| arise. She tried to hold on, because we knew that if one of the |

| Avendales should leave, as they had pushed for, then it would be seen |

| as weakness, and they would only try the harder to remove the other. |

| Over time, however, she simply could not bear it all, and eventually |

| stepped down, moving to a semi-permanent residence on Shokono to |

| ________________________________________________________________________|

\|/========================================================================\

_________________________________________________________________________

| \ /

| escape the hostile political atmosphere of the Vallenwood. |

| The day after the Senate meeting, I sent this to the Speaker, |

| though I had originally considered a more confrontational act by |

| sending it to the Senate in its entirety: |

| |

| "It is very nearly a daily occurrence that I see the Sha'falas and |

| Sha'qelas working together. If it is not in response to a threat, it |

| is in training for such. This is as it should be. Both Houses |

| contribute to the Kingdom, and the nature of their contributions makes |

| it easier for the two to work together closely. |

| "Recently, it has been planned to begin a Militia, which would be |

| made up of volunteers from the other Houses who also wish to be |

| trained in the proper ways of defending our home. Although I have |

| some concerns over this, I can also see the benefits. Such a force |

| would allow even more contribution from all of the Houses, and would |

| promote a sense of 'one'-ness that I feel has been lacking within the |

| Kingdom for some time. |

| "With all of this willingness to work together, and contribute to |

| the greater good of the Kingdom, I would have thought that my proposal |

| at the Senate might have received a somewhat better response. Instead,|

| I received worse than a simple 'no'. I was told, and I quote, "It's |

| your monster. You tame it." I was told that the requirement put in |

| place by the Speaker about attendance had been completely disregarded |

| by two of our former Senators. |

| "It would seem, then, that so long as it immediately benefits the |

| military, the military is willing to aid. If it doesn't immediately |

| benefit the military, even if it benefits the Kingdom as a whole, and |

| even if it is an order handed down by the Speaker himself, then the |

| military pushes it away. This idea is further supported by the |

| opinion espoused and expressed by Lord Jausin and Songkeeper Da'shal, |

| that their own Houses are somehow better and more important than |

| either of the others. That is obviously not an opinion which suggests |

| the concept of unity within the Kingdom. |

| "I recently approached now-Senator Laerathan, inquiring of the |

| training given to those within the Operations Corps of the Sha'falas, |

| because depending upon what sort of training they receive, it was |

| possible the Sha'enras might benefit from it. Initially, it seemed |

| that the Senator was pleased by the notion, but I have yet to receive |

| missive regarding it further. Perhaps that is because he has been |

| very busy, or perhaps it is due to the seeds of doubt that have been |

| planted, regarding whether or not I should be on the Senate. |

| "It seems odd, to me, that we are giving such weight to appearances,|

| rather than what truly matters. A military should know that |

| appearances can be deceiving, as all warfare is based on deception. |

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\ / |

| Simulated disorder shows perfect discipline. Likewise, if a pair of |

| Senators are doing well in ruling over their respective Houses, what |

| does it matter whether they are married? |

| "My answer: It doesn't. As the military is undoubtedly familiar |

| with deception, obviously this 'appearance' is not the true reason |

| behind their desire to see one of us step down, and therefore Lord |

| Jausin's speech upon honesty within the Senate was also calculated to |

| facilitate this ruse. |

| "In the past, my House was weak. The God War made it weaker. |

| Books of knowledge are harder to replace than weaponry and armor, |

| especially when their authors are also lost. I have tried to rebuild, |

| and make the Sha'enras a House worthy of its Name. I have tried to |

| make it the force within this Kingdom that it should always have been. |

| Likewise, even in the short time that Taesia has been Senator, she has |

| done nothing but try to aid and make the House she governs stronger, |

| so that it, too, might contribute more fully to the Kingdom. Yet, at |

| every corner, at every turn, we are opposed by the military Houses. |

| "I believe that the Sha'falas and Sha'qelas have held the majority |

| of the Kingdom's power for so long that they have grown fond of it, |

| and therefore do not look kindly on having it balanced. I believe the |

| military is afraid of being unable to have their way in every issue. |

| This, I believe, is the true reason behind their actions. I invite |

| them to prove me wrong." |

| |

| Though Speaker Diathandel was supportive and understanding of my |

| views, he did suggest that I not present them to the rest of the |

| Senate, since those who had been the real antagonists were not in a |

| position to affect much of anything. |

| |

| As time went on, I was unfortunate enough to discover other |

| occurrences that seemed designed to be antagonistic towards the Queen. |

| I have no doubt that Diathandel and Caither's decision to pass the |

| Circle on to Emrhys was at least in part motivated by a desire to |

| remove themselves from such a poisonous atmosphere. Caither warned |

| Maisie of the dangers inherent in being a Speaker's spouse, and it is |

| perhaps that which caused she and Emrhys to hold off on even a public |

| announcement of intent for so very long. Even so, I remember Elder |

| Rhiadora questioning me regarding Maisie's performance in the House up |

| to that point, no doubt in preparation for determining her suitability.|

| With the disappearance of Emrhys and Maisie, however, any remaining |

| Shalonost whom I would feel justified in giving my life for also was |

| gone. I could no longer claim that I would not hesitate before |

| throwing myself between an assassin and the Speaker, much less any |

| Shalonost. Further, I could not even truly believe that any given |