1132

YEAR 1132

Scribed by Caelestis

Spring 1132AD

We began the council meeting withthe division of Vis in which we all got 1 Herbam and Antonius being the firstto pick this year got a pawn of Creo Vis. Turold declared that he was stillenchanting the device for the tribunal, Audacia scribed spells as a covenantservice and Ospectus continued his studies in English. Antonius travelledabroad making sure of our food reserves and picking up local information whilstI studied from the Ignem texts.

The first new moon after the vernalequinox Ospectus and Audacia went to Snig’s end to observe the diabolicceremony being performed as I predicted. In it they saw Silus perform a bloodyritual involving the sacrifice of a small child. They then called on me toperform another reading and I determined that the same moon next year wouldproduce a great power gain for the fell who performed the ritual and thatthere would be no more rituals after that.

The rest of the season past uneventfullyand indeed must be one of the quietest we have ever had at Severn Temple.

Summer

At the councilmeeting Ospectus explained his activities during the previous season and Iexplained about my divination. We determined at this meeting that Silus wasa too dangerous man to let live. We decided to terminate the existence ofthis man, a subject that Audacia warmed to immensely. Antonius then explainedto us of his travels and how he had obtained food for us from Tintern abbeyand Lydney, for which we congratulated him. He also reported that a move maybe made against Coleford by the Baron of Chepstow. He seemed quite pleasedby this news and further explained that his good friend Martin of Lydney maybe given Coleford if the Baron was successful in this action. Turold statedthat he would this season be finishing his enchantment for the tribunal. Audaciawas going to learn the wizards Sidestep and Ospectus was going to researchfrom the Creo book. Antonius again asked for 3 pawns of Rego vis which I hopedhe would use to better effect than last time and I learned from the Ignembook.

A few days lateron of Turold's fae servants came to Severn Temple to inform him that his holdingwas under siege by the Tegid Foel. Turold then went to Audacia to ask foraid to defend this covenant Vis site. She replied in the affirmative and lookedkeen to have battle with the Fay, wondering what spells to use against thevarious Fay she imagined encountering. The next day Audacia, Turold, Cyrgigand a few grogs went to investigate the tale. When Turold and company arrivedat the manor they espied a large force surrounding it. Turold and Audaciathen flew over this force to talk with his besieged servants to discover thatthe Fay left in charge of the manor had betrayed Turold by taking the wealthand giving it to the Tegid Foel who then decided to attack the manor. Turoldthen decided under advisement from Audacia that he needed assistance againstthe forces arrayed against him and so they flew back to their men and wentto the Summer glade to try and talk with the Ninniaw to ask assistance. Ninniawwas not there as he only comes out on midsummer's day or when he has pressingbusiness here and so they coversed with the Llynyfann who recommended thatthey ask the Ruadan for aid as she was much more suited to this task thanthe Llynyfan's forces. En-route to the Ruadan's cave of snakes they were attackedby ogres and imps of the Erechwydd's forces which Audacia destroyed with minimaleffort using Perdo terram and Perdo Aquam spells. Once they achieved the cavethey conversed with the Ruadan and eventually gave her mask back as she hadapparently destroyed the Pybaw. They then struck a deal that the covenantforces would temporarily ally with the forces of the Ruadan to defeat thebeseiging force and they would meet at the dell close to the manor with theirrespective forces in a few days. On their return they had discovered thatthe season had finished.

Autumn

At the council meeting we discussedthe previous seasons happenings and agreed that Turold and Audacia can takea body of men into the faerie regio to defend the covenant vis source. Antoniusstated that he would learn the spell vision of the haunting spirit as theyhad plagued him for quite some time. Audacia stated that she would leave thisseasons activities open as apart from the faerie regio she was also goingnorth for the meeting at Borri-Tor and would not like to waste any of thecovenants resources. Ospectus was flying around the covenant to gather informationabout the area and Turold and myself were extracting Vim as covenant services.

Audacia and Turold, plus a contingentof 6 grogs and Cyrgig, set off the next day to the Fae regio to meet withthe Ruadan prior to the assault on Tegid Foel’s forces. On the way throughone of the various regio boundaries they somehow became separated and Audaciaended up going in completely the wrong direction. Eventually lost and worriedthey met an Unseelie fae called Morfan who offered to do a deal . He statedthat he would guide them back to the cave of snakes if Audacia destroyed atree of a dryad that had been annoying him. Audacia wisely wished to see thistree first to establish its magical protections and so went alone into thedell where it grew. After a discussion with the dryad she decided to reversethe deal and returned and slew the Morfan. The dryad then led the men backtowards the cave of snakes but apparently became enamoured by one of the menand enticed him to remain with her. He fled with her when she left them atthe cave of snakes and one of the other men in a fit of jealousy chased afterthem. In the meantime Turold was having problems with the impatient Ruadanwho had given him the time it took for a campfire to burn down before renegingon the deal and slaying Turold. Turold gathered his remaining grogs and useda spontaneous Muto Corporem spell to give them large hands so they could gatherlarger amounts of firewood. The fire was beginning to burn low when Turoldnoticed a wolf form hiding in the bushes watching. He realised it was Meredithwho he had specifically told not to accompany him into the fae regio. ImmediatelyTurold summoned the lad to him and sent him to find Audacia as he was afearedfor his safety as the fire was down to a few sticks left. Meredith ran offusing his tracking scent to find Audacia who he led back to the glade in thenick of time.

With all the forces gathered Audaciaand Turold flew over the Unseelie forces of the Tegid Foel and prepared touse spells from the walls of the manor itself. When battle had been joinedthe Ruadan’s forces surprised the forces of the Tegid Foel and caughtthem in the rear. During the fight the small contingent of grogs and Cyrgigfought alongside the Ruadan’s spiders, wolves and Cor’s and unfortunatelymet the Tegid Foel in the open battle field after hacking down several ofthe foe. Tegid Foel challenged the men to single combat as knights should.Cyrgig retorted with the line "I propose that since none of us are knightswe mob him". Tegid Foel moved like lightning and could not be hit; hecut down Owen and then Hengist leaving just Cyrgig and Gifford remaining.Gifford seeing the futility of continuing the fight turned on his heals andfled for the manor whilst Cyrgig fell to his knees and offered his surrender.This flummoxed Tegid Foel until he remembered Cyrgig’s line and thenstated that as he was not a knight he could not surrender. Just as he raisedhis blade to cleave Cyrgig in two Audacia noticed from the battlements thisfracas. She summoned up her power and cast a Perdo Corporem spell at the faelord. It worked and Tegid sensing his imminent demise fled leaving a bemusedlooking Cyrgig to make his way slowly towards the manor. Audacia in her desireto kill Tegid Foel did not notice when the Erechwyth appeared from under aspell of glamour. The Erechwyth cast an evil spell of ice against my sodaliswho fell to these malign magics. But it was too late for the Tegid’sForces and the Ruadan’s forces swept the field and we won the battle.Audacia was mortally wounded and Turold after getting Meredith to performsome basic Chirurgy on her took the body to the manor thence he went to thesummer glade to summon the Llynnyfan’s aid which she stated she wouldgrant for a favour. Turold agreed at once but when they returned to the manor,they discovered that the Llynnyfan’s magics could not pierce Audacia’sParma Magica. They then used potions that Audacia has about her person toheal her, which seemed to work. The Ruadan honoured the alliance by statingthat she would not attack any of the covenant’s forces until they hadleft the regio and then she departed back to her cave of snakes. Cyrgig thenwent amongst the dead fae and collected the body parts that we knew to containVis. When the victorious group returned we called a council meeting to discussthe events and sorted out the vis distribution after congratulating Turoldand Audacia for defending the Manor.

Later that season we all apartfrom Turold went to Borri-Tor to hear the plans for the assault on Blackridgecovenant and to discover our roles in said assault. Haistus, Primus Flambeau,was nominated as leader of this assault with Casitus and Darius under himas second and third in command respectively. Eloria was nominated the representativeof the Grand Tribunal and Dialectica and myself were put at her disposal toensure that anyone wishing to rejoin the order would get a fair testing bythe Quaesitor. Those of house Jerbiton would run the mundane grog army thatwas to be sent up and the Magi who were to be in this assault were split intotwo groups. The first of these groups, which contained Audacia, was to beled by Periculus. The second group led by Garius was the weaker group andwould follow up the first group into battle. The big surprise however wasthat the group that was to do a preliminary scouting of the area was to beled by Antonius and would contain Ospectus. I returned home with Audacia,as Antonius had to start his mission immediately.

Winter

We met in our traditional councilto discuss the previous season’s happenings, although only Audacia, Turoldand myself were there. We then discussed what we should be doing this season.Turold said that he would be making my Longevity potion with my assistancein repayment for the season he owed me and Audacia was going to learn a 9^thmagnitude ward versus spirits.

A few nights after, a ghost walkedthrough the covenant and after causing consternation eventually woke me inmy sanctum. Thinking I was under assault I discharged a lightning bolt atthe figure before me not knowing it was a spirit. We discovered through Turoldthat the spirit was in fact that of Oscytel the first Castellan who was buriedin the graveyard, who apparently had come to warn Ruaridh (whose rooms I nowoccupy) of danger in the spirit world.

The next dawn we were preparedbut as the sun rose in this world it apparently did so in the spirit worldas well, causing all the spirits nearby to dissipate including Hoorstus, Audacia’sspirit who we tried to interrogate. We then quizzed Meredith who stated thatIdris went into the forest a few days ago to avoid this calamity. I suggestedhe may have gone to the "Heart of the forest" and mounted an expeditionwith a couple of grogs and Meredith to find the place. When we arrived atthe heart of the forest we attempted to enter but funnily only Meredith canachieve entry to this magical place. When a day later he emerged we returnedto the covenant and Meredith told council that Idris saw it as an omen andthat he stated it was done by the corrupt faction of the unnamed house. Audacia,upon learning of the unnamed house’s involvement, flew to Holy Isle toreport this occurrence as we were bound to do.

Towards the end of the season,some of our grogs on patrol were attacked by bandits and would surely havebeen slain if not for the timely intervention of Sir Maurice the Faerie knight.He aided our wounded men back to the covenant and upon his entry to the covenantagreed upon by council decision he stated that he wished to mount an expeditionto the faerie regio to challenge the Tegid Foel to single combat, to besthim and to take his sword. He asked for guides who we felt he did not reallyneed but he might have wanted them as witness to his great deed. Cyrgig andMeredith went with him into the Regio and after some delay entering the Tegid’shome he cornered the frightened Tegid in his sleeping quarters. A melee beganbut it was obvious from the start who was the better knight and within a matterof seconds Tegid Foel attempted to flee and would have succeeded if not forCyrgig slamming the door and barring it. The Tegid than cast a glamour ofinvisibility to hide but Cyrgig’s faerie eyes saw through this and hedirected Sir Maurice to rain blows down on the Foel. The Tegid Foel then wasdisarmed and somehow evaded Cyrgig’s sight and so was saved. Sir Mauricehappy to have the sword and having defeated the Tegid Foel then returned tothe covenant but not before dispensing justice at Cyrgig’s suggestionon the traitor who betrayed Turold by removing his tongue. Sir Maurice paidCyrgig and Meredith for their efforts in coins of pure gold and Meredith gavehis to the covenant as a show of good faith.

The rest of the season passedwithout incident.