1102

YEAR 1102

Scribed by Varsavia

Spring 1102AD

Our first meetingof the year began with a discussion of what we could do to break the holdof the mundanes upon our supplies of food and trade in ore. Lothar,once again, was ready with unhelpful advice and quickly the meeting descendedinto poor humour as Turold, particularly, became angry with the young Bjornaer.More practically it was felt that we must become more diverse in out mundaneactivities to which end Ruaridh volunteered to spend a covenant season inGloucester to learn what he could. Lothar was sent out into the forestagain, having found only some bones which contained a few pawns of Corporem.It turned out that these bones were of the priest of Morrigan who slew thediabolist Jean de Caen. I agreed to assist Idris in the laboratory tohelp prepare some potions similar to the spell Leap of Homecoming. Petrusis to undertake an enchantment; a leather cuirass to deflect arrows and woodenweapons from the wearer. Turold will extract Vim vis for the covenant.

About a week afterRuaridh had departed for Gloucester we received a messenger from the new Reeveof the Dean, Tobias. The letter stated that in the view of the Earlwe owed taxes from the time we were under the occupation fo the Welsh, andmust pay them before the end of the year. A sum of thirty eight hundredand fifty pennies in all was demanded, the penalty for our defiance wouldbe the reselling of the land to the Church. We had Pierre make a copyof the letter and sent it with a messenger to Ruaridh in Gloucester.He returned to the covenant with the news that the new Earl was none otherthan a Benoir de Troyes. It was a 'Benoir' who had been identified asin league with Gierre and the diabolist coven in Gloucester; a fact we foundmore than coincidence. We debated long and, given the hardship we hadsuffered last winter, decided to test the water with this new Reeve.We would pay the taxes for this year, some 350d, and see whether they liftedthe edict upon our landholding.

Stassius alsoarrived as Ruaridh returned, a wound from a crossbow bolt fresh upon his shoulder.We gave him the vis to use a healing item and he gave us his news quicklybefore departing. Of mundane matters, Stassius confirmed much that wealready knew or guessed. 'Black' Hugh, as many now call him, was victoriousagainst Gloucester and against Wales, crushing any who resisted him and layingwaste to Cardiff and the nearby settlements. Clydoc of Wales was slain,by an assassin it is rumoured, and his Knights surrendered to the EnglishKing to prevent further bloodshed among their people. With Gloucesterand Wales fallen the Duke of York has capitulated, removing his objectionto Hugh's accession to the throne. Now the English King is free to turnhis armies against his uncle in Normandy. The Jerbiton are pressing for actionto be taken against the counsellors and advisors to the English King.They warn that if the King is not separated from infernal influence then nomagus will be safe. Tyriania, from the safety of the Black Mountains,has decreed that nothing can be done within the Code. Lamark is saidto be petitioning his Prima to intervene.

Also, Gruder ofHouse Bjornaer has been sighted near Blywyddan taking vis from one of theirsites. We are instructed to capture or kill him upon sighting, tho'I cannot see that any of us would have the ability to recognise him if heremains in heart-beast form.

The season progressedin poor cheer. The spring bubbled up blood at the Spring Equinox andmany cold shadows were seen moving about the covenant. Idris, in particular,appeared vexed, concerned that the evil abroad in the land was sympatheticallyaffecting our source of magic. Ruaridh returned late in the season with anew friend he had made in the city. A young girl, touched by the fae,whose singing and playing were enchanting to all who listen (save Ruaridhbecause of the power of his Parma Magica). He brought also the newsthat the Reeve had lifted the edict, allowing us to trade once again withthe towns in our vicinity. We instructed Thurstan to maintain linkswith merchants in Bristol, however, in case the new Earl had a sudden changeof heart come winter.

Summer

With our Stewardreturned to us and trading resumed with Gloucester it appeared that we hadpassed through the immediate storm of troubles. We were reminded thatThurstan is growing steadily long in the tooth, and so Petrus agreed to concoctfor him a longevity potion as an extra covenant service in lieu of next year.I shall help Petrus in this endeavour. Lothar, now that his servicesare complete and the basic structure of his laboratory constructed behindthe stables, will begin to fit out the rooms with basic equipment. Havingdone it myself I do not envy him the task; it is a slow and boring processfitting out a laboratory.

I suggested thatwe might find profit in taking Ruaridh's new friend to the Ruadan. Iwondered whether the singer's enchanting song might move the half human heartof the Ruadan, and be accepted as a gift. I carefully instructed thegirl, Ruth, as to the theme of the song and obtained Turold's permission tohave Pendaran accompany us as an escort. Ruaridh also chose to comealong, to discuss his bargain with the Ruadan, though in retrospect I thinkit may have been a mistake to do so. Eanfled led us to the Ruadan's glade,where the Winter was heavy and harsh. Ruth's song moved her to tearswhich formed black droplets in the snow. The Ruadan accepted the songas a gift and allowed Ruth to keep her tears. Then all of us, save Ruaridh,travelled back to the covenant.

I exchanged twelvepennies for Ruadan's tears, a good bargain for both the covenant and Ruth.However, the ungrateful girl seemed disatisfied with the sum (more than ourgrogs see in a year) and appeared to expect us to give her our only ridinghorse. I must confess I dismissed her a ittle abruptly. I had hopedthat she would return next year and sing again for the Ruadan, but I fearwe will have this girl's greed to contend with. The next I heard was a fewdays later when Petrus reported that he had given over to Ruaridh severalof the magical items and our large reserves of Perdo vis. We were shockedto hear that he had done so without consulting us, and further concerned whenPetrus told us that Ruaridh had with him the infernal wand which had so nearlycorrupted the faerie regio. I left Petrus trying to explain his foolishnessto the others whilst I used Wings of Soaring Winds to fly down the forestroad and try to catch up with Ruaridh. I spent several hours searchingfor him, going as close as I dared to Gloucester, but to no avail. Ireturned to the covenant just after dark.

The next day foundIdris down by the spring with Petrus. During the morning it appearsthat Idris had some intuition that something was wrong there. Laterthat day Petrus cast some Intellego magics around the pool and to his horrordiscovered that a small infernal aura had developed at the site of the spring.Further more there appeared to be a regio stemming from it deep into the earth.With no small haste we assembled a meeting of council and decided to attemptthe Perdo Vim ritual developed at Durenmar. After the success of therite at suppressing the aura caused by Jean's diabolism and disrupting theregio at the dell, it was felt we had no choice but to attempt the ritualagain at the spring. This Petrus did, but the effect of it was suchthat none of us could have predicted. As Petrus reached the climax ofthe ritual a hand emerged from the spring; a hand followed by another, andthen the head and body of Ruaridh clawing his way out of the spring onto thegrass.

We recovered Ruaridh,who was stunned and withdrawn by his experiences, and let our sodalis restuntil that evening. I can say for myself that I urgently wanted to knowwhat had happened to him, but we all remained patient until that night.Then with no small hardship, for to relate such dark events requires courage,Ruaridh informed us of his actions the previous night. It appears the Ruaridhhad asked the Ruadan for some help in locating the daemon who had given herthe wand many seasons before. Ruadan retrieved the wand from the poolin the cave of snakes, using magics to avoid touching it, and used it to obtaina vision for Ruaridh at the scrying spring discovered by Eanfled.

Ruaridh saw thedaemon, who is called Baku by the coven, in a cell inflicting torture againstsomeone under the direction of a master. They were asking questionsabout our dealings, seeking to discover what contacts we were using to tradein food and ore. Ruadan told Ruaridh that the wand could be used tolocate the daemon, so long as the wand was kept safely away from physicalcontact. Ruaridh accepted the wand and had it secure in a leather bagas he returned to the covenant. Back at the covenant he waited at the edgeof the aura and called out Thurstan to deliever a message to the magi as tothe events that had happened. However, the influence of the wand wassuch that it whispered to the minds of men; to take it and use it. Thurstanfell to its fluence, and Ruaridh was forced to put him to sleep and call upto the men at the gate to fetch Petrus. Of course, Petrus handed Ruaridhthe wands, the protective torc, the leather cuirass and one of Idris' potionsas Ruaridh asked and also some 33 pawns of Perdo vis.

Ruaridh then startedoff towards Gloucester, where he thought the vision may have been from.On the road, however, the wand began to call to him, and in something of apanic it seems Ruaridh stumbled away into the forest. In the forest,shadows began to form around him, and he felt a stab in his back like a knifewhich forced him to drop the bag. Unfortunately, the bag had becomeuntied in all this activity and as Ruaridh quickly sought to recover the wand,he accidentally touched it with his hand. The wand now had Ruaridh in itsinfluence once again. Ensorcelled by its infernal magics he bore thewand into Gloucester, where it led him to a deserted house in the closed andnarrow streets of the poor quarter. Ruaridh entered and followed thewand as it led him down some stairs into a dark cell where he heard Baku andone of the masters torturing another victim. Ruaridh, possessed by hatredand the power of the wand, lashed out with the infernal might striking firstthe demon, then the master. The wand destroyed them both with scarelyan effort.

Ruaridh, seeingthe demon's spirit being sucked by green flames and dragged down into hellby clawed hands, realised something of his actions. With a moment ofwill he cast the wand aside, breaking the enchantment upon his mind. Appalledby what he had done, Ruaridh saught to gather up the wand again in his cloak,but another infernal presence made itself known to him. Using a spellto flip the wand into his cloak, Ruaridh sort to escape. The cell doorslammed shut before him, but Ruaridh used some Perdo vis to disintegrate it.He ran out of the cell, but discovered that the stairs he had used to descendwere no longer there for him to escape. Re-reading that last sentenceI think there is a moral there. The daemonic presence appeared as claws andfire reaching out to grasp Ruaridh in its talons. Forgetting for a momentthe cloak and wand contained within it, Ruaridh used the Leap of Homecomingpreparation. It appeared to succeed, for Ruaridh was snatched from thetalons of the demon and transported to the council chamber.

Ruaridh was atfirst relieved, but then discovered that the cloak and the wand were gonefrom his grip. Settling himself he descended from the council room andsought out others in the covenant; but to his surprise no one was in the greathall, or even in the courtyard. Then he heard daemonic laughter, andturning he saw the illusion of the covenant fade to be replaced by a chamberof fire and magma. He watched as malformed creatures twitched and revelledin the fires. He stood on an outcrop of rock as the presence of thedaemon appeared again. The daemon taunted him, claiming that Ruaridhwas already damned, and his soul lost like that of Jean de Caen. Ruaridhtried to use one of the wands of daemonic oblivion, but it was snatched fromhis hand and lost in the magma. He gathered up the reserves of his defianceand tried to grab the Perdo vis from his pack to use in a spell of destructionupon the daemon. The daemon saw his move, however, and lunged towardshim with iron claws and sulphurous breath. At the last Ruaridh leaptfrom the outcrop, seeking to reach another. For a moment he slippedinto the fire and heat of the molten rock, but by some miracle he was ableto clamber up before the heat had eaten through his clothing and the leathercuirass.

There Ruaridhconsidered his doom. With no Perdo vis left, and strongest of the enchantmentslost, Ruaridh saw little hope. Then, above him, a vibration in the darknessrevealed a swirling glow of light. The daemon sensing the disturbancewas distracted, and Ruaridh saw his only chance to escape. Inside thewhirl of light he could see an opening, a patch of stars. Casting aspell to levitate himself, Ruaridh quickly ascended to the lights, there hereached up with a hand and found grassy earth at his fingers. Thus Ruaridhemerged from the spring at the climax of Petrus' ritual. What horrorand repercussions from these events are yet to be known, but one thing aboveall disturbs me. Within the box of Perdo vis was some which Ruaridhhad extracted from his own body. To lose something made from your essencein an infernal regio can only be considered a disaster waiting to occur.

As if these eventswere not enough, a great murrain has followed three days of gales which sweptover the land, bringing ruin to crops and stores. In addition to theloss of food, the Vervain which supplies us each year with Herbam vis, hassuffered also. We collected no vis from it this year, and Idris fearsthat it may not regrow in future. Thurstan has sent Osric by barge alongthe Severn as far as Shrewsbury. There our steward has succeeded infinding food stocks unaffected by the murrain. At least this find preventsus from going hungry again this autumn.

Autumn

After three seasonsof assisting others in laboratory work it is good to return to my studies.Indeed in the last year I have seen more of the others' laboratories thanmy own. We discussed at council what we would undertake this season,each of us continuing with our arts save Lothar who will spend this seasonlearning English from Pierre.

The season wasmarked by three events which I shall relate: First, we had a visit fromStassius, who passed to inform us of the meeting of the Grand Tribunal atDurenmar this spring. The news offered us little hope. It has been decidedthat Idris' son is the bait in a trap to draw away the Order's most powerfuldefenders. Instead they shall do nothing, save allow Primus Flambeauto recommend three new Hoplites to Stonehenge Tribunal. Second, at the AutumnEquinox, blood bubbled again from the spring, but unlike in the past it delieveredus no Perdo vis. Petrus and Idris were both deeply concerned for days,Petrus suggesting that perhaps something local to us has tainted the spring.The evil in Gloucester would appear source enough for me, but Petrus and Idrisinvestigated the dell and the ruins of Lydney just to make certain.They found nothing unusual, which leaves us none the wiser as to whataction should be taken to rectify the taint upon our source of magical aura.Lastly, Kira of Tytalus visited us from Carrion Moor covenant. She hasheard of our troubles and can arrange fair trade of food for some of the orethat we mine. She also suggested some trade of Arts from our libraries.We have agreed to exchange equivalent tomes on Imagonem for our Mentem texts,for the rest of the Mentem books we have suggested 24 pawns of vis from thereserves they have plentiful in Creo, Animal and Mentem.

Winter

As the snows drawin we meet to decide whether to pay the Reeve for back taxes due from theWelsh occupation. None of us are happy to part with so great a sum,thirty five hundred pennies, but we see no choice. The covenant is toopoor at present to meet the tax, but both Lothar and myself have contributedsome of the money given to us by our parens to help meet the tithe.Idris, now that the period of his censor is over, travels to Cad Gadu.The rest of us continue with our studies.

The winter almostpast without incident, but a few days after the Winter Solstice Ceadwith reportsthat several of the grogs have bcome ill. Ruaridh quickly falls to thesickness, as does Thurstan and Ceadwith herself. After reviving Ruaridhwith spontaneous magics, long enough for him to stabilise both Caedwith andThurstan, it is decided that we will need aid from another covenant if weare to see this winter through without losing our chirurgeon or our castellan.I used the Wings of Soaring Winds to travel down to Carrion Moor, to fetchKlael, an Ex-Miscellanean there who is adept at Corporem magics and knowsthe formulaic spell to end the progress of disease. She agrees to comeand for only the price of three pawns of Mentem vis. After making along journey to Severn Temple she casts the healing magics upon Ceadwith andThurstan.

Later in the seasonwe received word that the Reeve is pleased with our descion to pay the taxesrequired of us. It appears that there will be no repeat, for now atleast, of the edict which was placed upon us. Still, from the recordsof past years it is a shame we are once again subject to taxes. It istoo easy for these mundanes to alter their agreements and increase the taxesupon their whim. We all hope that now we have a regular and uninterruptedflow of monies, such concerns will not bear upon us or distract us from ourstudies as they have in the past. Thus ends the year, and my time asscribe for now. Our covenant now numbers six magi, but we still havea great many worries to share between us.