1163

YEAR 1163

Scribed by Medius

Spring 1163 AD

The first events of the seasonoccurred even before Concilium met. During the early hours before dawn threeof my sodales were awoken by the sense that the covenant's Aegis had beentested. The magi Astrius, Theodosius and Cormoran investigated the cause ofthis and discovered an owl perched in a tree. It seems that Magus Theodosiuswas able to communicate with it and he said that the bird, that named itselfEmyr, had been sent by Gwydion to tutor my sodalis. Given that Gwydion wasnamed as a son to the Anu it seems likely that Magus Theodosius' lessons willbe something to do with the pagan faith. He invited the bird within the Aegisand it now resides at the covenant.

At Concilium all seven magi ofthe covenant were present and the events I have just laid down were revealed.The conversation moved on to the strange events involving the Morrigan andBethwyn during winter and Magus Astrius was fully apprised of what littlewe knew. I stated that I would be visiting Zedekiah at the beginning of theseason as in our conversation during his visit he revealed that he had someknowledge of augury as it might be practiced by one from the east.

The Pontifex granted two pawnsof vis for each season's service carried out the previous year and moved theconversation on to the matter of what we would have Maga Crathia create forus in exchange for Corlear's notes. There was much discussion as to whetherto have a single item or a mixture of items but finally a motion was broughtbefore the Concilium that the Pontifex finalise any deal. This was passedby five votes to one, with my abstention and Magus Tiarnan the lone voiceof opposition. The Pontifex is travelling to Durenmar to hear at first handthe decisions of the Grand Tribunal and will scribe some spells from the librarywhilst she is there.

Magus Astrius told us of his meetingwith the Praefecta and revealed that the covenant's service had been performedby him at her request. It seems that my sodalis was most fortunate as he wastasked with learning a spell to create a wall of fire that he might betterbe able to act as a hoplite in the future.

With myself travelling to Chepstowand the Pontifex to Durenmar the activities of my sodales were discussed.Magus Astrius and Magus Theodosius revealed that they intended to travel toMynydd Myrddin and were willing to treat this journey as a service to thecovenant. The Pontifex readily agreed and gave permission for them to remainthrough Summer also given the nature of the regio there. The remaining magiwere also tasked with services to the covenant during spring; Magus Tiarnanextracting vis from the aura, Magus Aelfwin creating Leap of Homecoming potionsfor our stores and our Imperator spending the season training the grogs.

In Chepstow Zedekiah revealedthat he had cast an augury based around the information that I had grantedto him for such a purpose. He said that a man who once resided at the covenanthad returned from a great voyage having made a pact with the Deceiver. A manof law, quite possibly a reference to myself, was destined to play some partin his destruction with the secret to the mystery lying in the East, in thedeserts beyond the Holy Land. Zedekiah also said that some part of my lineageor relationship with this diabolist may be relevant. Whilst it is not easyto decide how much credence to give to such techniques, for clearly divinationof the future is beyond the hermetic arts, there was much that he said thatmade sense, and later events at the covenant would support a lot of it. Ialso spoke to Zedekiah regarding Edwin of Huntley and it seems that he hasstarted to harbour unnatural desires for his sister Rachel. With him beingGloucester's man it is nigh on impossible for Magus Theodosius to get involvedin his position as a noble and thus it becomes ever more urgent to gain greaterknowledge of what events within the village. Pontifex Dialectica divertedto Hereford and there recruited a man named Hugh, a son of one of her formerretainers, to act as a spymaster for the covenant. It was agreed that hisfirst task must be to place himself within Huntley, giving us the informationthat we require to make decisions in future. It is clear that Zedekiah fearsfor Rachel's longer term safety and thus I must be prepared to travel to Huntleyonce more if it seems that she is in imminent peril. I remained in Chepstowthat season to learn some more of the Kabbalah and there techniques for identifyingthe taint of the infernal upon a man.

I have written that events atthe covenant supported some of what Zedekiah said and I shall now record thosehappenings. Magus Cormoran was visited at the covenant by three servants ofthe Erechwydd, a Giant and a brace of ice Goblins. They told him that theyhad been involved in a battle within the forest, fighting a group of strangerswho had been spying upon the covenant. This party numbered two Moors who hadused sorcery during the melee and were now summoning dark spirits to theiraid. I am told that there was some argument between the Imperator and MagusTiarnan but eventually the fae were granted sanctuary within the covenantand an emergency council was called. It seems that the Imperator proposedthat a state of Trepidus would be in order but both Magus Tiarnan and MagusAelfwin refused to support such with Magus Cormoran unable to state the benefitthat this state of affairs would provide during the threat. The Imperatorended the meeting and was soon called to the gates once more as the faerieQueen of the Snows herself visited the covenant with a large retinue. Shestated that it was her intention to attack the diabolists and wanted to enlistMagus Cormoran's aid. He then called another emergency council and informedhis sodales that he intended to accompany her on her mission. They were bothreluctant given their own limited talents in the martial arts should the covenantbe attacked and reminded him of the obligations of his role. The Imperatoronce more proposed Trepidus and was again rebuffed. The council ended andMagus Cormoran made the decision that he would sally forth with Erechwyddanyway. The battle was entered into and Cormoran's report made it clear thathe was instrumental in the success of the attack and the death of the twoMoors. Indeed, calling a third emergency council he deposited the heads ofthese individuals onto the council room table.

An exchange of comments was thenmade between the Imperator and Magus Tiarnan, although I can say with no certaintywho began such an unseemly row. The result was that Magus Tiarnan goaded theImperator into a challenge of Certamen, a duel that matched the arts of Mutoand Animal. Clearly these are our Merinitan's strongest technique and formand he won the battle in a handsome time, his phantasmal snake quickly beingaugmented in such a way that the bear it faced was vanquished.

Alas, within a few minutes ofthe Imperator being reduced to a state of unconsciousness the Aegis was feltto resist a challenge once more and shortly afterwards was breached. Fromlater reports it is clear that a sorcerer, who in truth we believe to be thefallen magus Caelestis, managed to compel a grog to open the gates for him,with the use of vis enabling him to raise a spell of sufficient magnitudeto breach our powerful Aegis. He then entered the covenant and cast the Incantationof Lightning at any who approached him before flying up to the top of thetower and entering the building. He made his way to the mundane library wherehe took our copy of the Almagest, a map of the tribunal and some notes regardingthe lost covenant of Morestow. In the process three of our covenfolk wereslain although mercifully he did not attack any of my sodales. With his raidcomplete he disappeared, undoubtedly through the use of magic. When the Imperatorwas finally roused another council was called, where tempers again becameheated. In the end it was decided that Aelfwin would attend Blackthorn topass on word of what happened to Senior Quaesitor Serenia and Archimaga Gyriania.Alas neither was present and he eventually made his report to Praeca Eloria.

Summer

In my position as Ministrator,acting on behalf of our absent Pontifex, I chaired a most fractious Concilium,one that lacked the Pontifex and the two magi who had travelled to MynyddMyrddin. The events of spring were relayed and despite having been given theinitial opportunity to present his version of the story without interruptionMagus Cormoran was apparently unable to extend the same courtesy to MagusTiarnan. Such were the continued interjections that I felt obliged to callMagus Cormoran to silence on more than one occasion. It was clearly statedthat Magus Tiarnan intended to raise a charge against him when the Pontifexhad returned and so I did not raise one myself. I did however ask Magus Cormoranfor an assurance that if left alone in the covenant whilst Imperator he wouldnot again abandon his post. He felt unable to give such an undertaking andthus I informed him that he was relieved of the duty. He asked who I intendedto appoint in his place and I stated that I had no intention of appointingany present to the post. He was greatly unhappy about my decision and challengedme to Certamen with Rego. I responded with the form of Vim and the fight wasjoined. It seems that the arts were with me for I struck him fully down inbut a moment and thus the remainder of the council continued without his presence.There was little more to discuss save for our activities. I extracted visfor my personal use with Magus Aelfwin again creating potions, although thistime as a private commission for myself. Tiarnan agreed to a second covenantservice to enter the faerie regio and attempt to discover if our source ofTerram vis was lost to us with recent changes in the faerie politics. WhenI asked him the following day Magus Cormoran would only state that he wouldbe working on an unspecified project within his laboratory.

Magus Tiarnan travelled to thefaerie regio with his consors Ciaran and his familiar Kai. Within the lowestlevel they discovered the laboratory that had been created within a tree severelydamaged, with traces of ice giving an indication of the likely culprit. Therewas also no sign of the Palug save for his bow found at the foot of the tree.The ground was hard and frosted and of the glade where the mushrooms thatprovide our Imagonem vis there was no sign at all. Whilst they made theirexamination they espied the Stonevale cart proceeding through the forest accompaniedby Giants and Ice Goblins and with the Erechwydd sitting upon it. They quicklyhid and the procession passed by without their discovery.

This faerie party continued theirjourney to the covenant. When they arrived Magus Cormoran was called to discussionwith the Erechwydd. From what he has told us she has named him as the newKnight of Stonevale, a position once held by the former Magus Turold, andthat the tithe shall now pass to him. It seems however that there shall bea greater proportion granted to the covenant with there being no need forStonevale to pay tribute to the faerie court of stone. We received two rooksof Terram vis in the form of rocks, 2 pawns of Creo in small gold nuggetsand a small quantity of a maerial that investigation later in the season revealedto be faerie silver.

Back within the fae realm MagusTiarnan and his companions pressed on with their investigation into the deeperlevels of the regio. They made their way unmolested through the snow, presumablyas the court of ice was largely beyond the regio, and came to the summer glade.There it was once again midsummer and the ritual of gift giving to Nyniawproceeded as usual, although I did not ask what manner of gifts they offered.Magus Tiarnan described the atmosphere as subdued and had some conversationwith the faerie Lord of the Oaks. He was told that the Palug was no more andhad now taken some other form as a servant of the Erechwydd. He was also granteda vision in which he saw Stonevale held by her icy minions and with the faerieCyrgig shackled.

Magus Tiarnan then made his wayto the cave of Gofynwy and there found the faerie knight Turold. He told mysodalis that Gofynwy had fled into the deep caves beneath the mountain asErechwydd had gained some hold over him. Turold himself was attempting tocraft a sword although it sounds like the work was not going well. He agreedto take my sodalis to speak with Gofannon the faerie king of the undermountain.There he learned that Erechwydd had possession of Gofynwy's blade which givesher a hold on him that is only warded by staying close to Gofannon. Turoldhas been held responsible for this and has been tasked to make amends. Ifthe faerie knight does not prevail then the doors to the undermountain fromthe forest will be closed, and this in turn is likely to result in Erechwyddturning her eyes against Nyniaw's realm. Having learned all of this they returnedto the covenant, aided through the snows by a coal that Turold gave them fromhis forge.

Autumn

Magus Astrius and Magus Theodosiusreturned for the opening council and first told us of their travels withinMynydd Myrddin. They had made their way there easily enough but on arrivalat the Celts village it was apparent that the brood have grown strong andtheir boldness was leading them to hunt the Celts down, even having attemptedto breach the stockade. Many of the Celt warriors had died and travel beyondthe walls was very dangerous, which in turn meant that hunting was sparseand the people were going hungry. The headman and the druid told this to themand Magus Astrius told them that he intended to hunt some of the brood himself.The Celts granted his party a scout and they entered the forest in searchof the creatures. With the aid of the tracker and the nose of Magus Astrius'familiar Drudhuil they were able to avoid the traps that the brood had lainand locate a gbroup of five of the creatures. Four of the beasts were swiftlyslain with one escaping from the melee. Magus Astrius and his familiar setoff in pursuit and were able to kill the remaining creature although Drudhuilsuffered some minor injury in the process. They were able to successfullyremove some of the creatures' hearts intact. Back at the Celts village therewas much celebration and they remained there whilst those who were injuredrecovered from their wounds, although none had been grievously hurt.

Next they travelled successfullythrough the awakened forest, taking care to harm none of the wildlife lestthe Great Bear attack and recovered some sap from the oak tree at its heart.They also made their way to the stones and passing through the magical veilrecovered some of the moss. They then made their way to a black pool thatthey had heard tale of where lies a great serpent that breathes poisonousfumes, has an exceptional sense of smell and is invariably lethal if any disturbit. Using stealth and magic Magus Astrius was able to recover some of thedark liquid, and that proved to be a new source of Perdo vis. On their returnto the Celts encampment Drudhuil smelt a large number of the brood and ratherthan divert a large distance around them it seems that Magus Theodosius commandedthese beasts to let them pass unmolested and return to their caves, an orderthat they complied with. On learning of this the Celts asked my sodalis, towhom it seems they had already paid some especial honour, to parley with thebrood on their behalf. This he did, speaking with the chieftain of these savagecreatures with Magus Astrius present in case there should be any ambush. Therewas some bargaining with the chieftain wanting a tribute of one Celt childa year but in the end it seems that Magus Theodosius was able to force throughan agreement regarding where in Mynydd Myrddin each group could travel unmolestedand where was considered contested. With that my sodales left the regio andreturned to the covenant.

After this tale we discussed whatMagus Tiarnan had learned within the faerie regio. It became apparent thatone reason why the Imagonem site was lost was that Magus Tiarnan had previouslysworn an oath to defend it from the servants of the Erechwydd and that whenMagus Cormoran harvested it while the Merinitan was in Irencillia the oathwas broken. In truth it is a concern that Magus Cormoran could so be considereda servant of this malignant faerie and none sought to raise any charge againstMagus Tiarnan.

With his return I decided to appointMagus Astrius as Imperator once more. He said that he would be extractingvis from the aura with magus Aelfwin training his apprentice and Magus Theodosiusstudying within the mundane library. Both myself and Magus Tiarnan took theopportunity to study from the Intellego vis that had been recovered from MynyddMyrddin and magus Cormoran said that he would be travelling abroad althoughhe expected to return before the end of the season.

Early in the season we were visitedby the Redcap who brought letters for myself, the Imperator, Magus Cormoranand one addressed to the Pontifex. I read this one myself as it was not specificallyaddressed to Maga Dialectica and discovered that it was from Trevalga covenant,seeking to trade Imagonem and Animal vis for some of the texts within ourlibrary. The news from the mundane realm predominantly regarded the expectedinvasion by Henry of Anjou. His army is currently in Normandy having takenseveral ports and two English castles. France has also granted him some menand six ships to aid him in his task. The muster throughout this country issaid to be very large and covenant recruitment will be very difficult forsome time to come. The Hermetic news all concerned the Grand Tribunal. Themotion of House Tremere that those who practice the pagan faith be questionedwas narrowly passed, although with an amendment from House Merinita that itbe the Senior Quaesitor of each tribunal that carry such out. Of course shouldany suspicion of involvement in the Un-named house be suspected then HolyIsle must be immediately informed. There has also been a change in the etiquetteof Certamen, with magi now allowed to challenge one they have previously challenged,albeit on a different matter, after a years wait. The form rather than thetechnique shall lead such a second challenge. This change has been introducedin an attempt to reduce the recent spate of wizard's war that has surfacedthroughout the order. There will also be a meeting of the Concilium Quaesitoriiat the next Stonehenge tribunal where new legal precedents will be discussed.

Once again the covenant receiveda visitor from the faerie regio, this time the knight Turold. He sought totrade for Gofynwy's sword offering a large quantity of gemstones in return.After some probing it was apparent that he might well raise it against oursodalis Magus Cormoran in his efforts to bring war to the Erechwydd and thusI called an emergency council. Magus Aelfwin did not attend, being contentto maintain an observation over the faerie whilst he resided in our greathall. A vote was called on whether to accede to this trade offer with myselfand the Imperator against, Magus Tiarnan for and Magus Theodosius abstaining.Thus magus Astrius and Magus Tiarnan went to tell the faerie of our decision.It seems that he was greatly unhappy by our decision and informed my sodalesthat unless he was given the sword within a year and a day he was bidden tostate on behalf of Gofannon that a state of war would exist between us andthe court of stone. He also said that from what he recalled of our laws itis an offence to molest the fae if this should bring their wrath down uponus, a clear reference to Magus Cormoran and a possible breach of the primarycode. Magus Astrius was greatly concerned about this improvement in the faerie'smemories although I remain content that Quaesitor Linaris' judgement abouthis being fully fae remains correct. We decided to send message to that Quaesitorand also to Senior Quaesitor Serenia seeking their advice for my studies inthe Rome tribunal mean it is perhaps the weakest area of my knowledge of Hermeticlaw. Magus Astrius travelled to Blackthorn and ended up in discussion withthe Praeca, a discussion that once more revealed her passion for challengingthe actions of members of the order.

Winter

In truth I was gladdened by thereturn of the Pontifex to our concilium, for whilst I will never shirk myduty as Ministrator it is clear that her greater experience helps our meetingsto proceed more calmly than under my own stewardship. She was able to adda little detail to our knowledge of the Grand Tribunal and also brought thenews that she had copied the spells Haunt the Living Ghost and a seventh magnitudeversion of Free the Accursed Body.

Magus Cormoran spoke next andsaid that he wished to declare finding a vis source within the faerie regio.It seems that the Erechwydd has granted ownership of the tower that once belongedto Tegid Foel. Within it are many, many rooms that are filled with vast quantitiesof ever replenishing junk. A few items found over the course of a season havecontained vis however, of a variety of forms. There are also creatures onthe land of this holding that when hunted contain vis, again of a varietyof forms. Magus Cormoran informed the council that he had not realised thatthese sources were renewable until his second visit to the tower and aftersome discussion of his reticence to tell us of his initial discovery it wasagreed that he would keep all the vis save one pawn from his first trip. Theentirety of that collected from the most recent visit would pass to the covenant,with that season being counted as a service.

The conversation then turned tothe ultimatum passed by Turold. After much discussion, some of which becamequite heated even with the Pontifex's best efforts, it was proposed that MagusCormoran return the sword as requested with him being in full understandingof the consequences that might befall him. This motion was passed unanimously.The Pontifex then stated that she was concerned about the dealings withinthe faerie realm and proposed the introduction of a Legationis to the fae.Only Magus Tiarnan stood for this position and he was thus duly appointed.The Pontifex then proposed an additional stipulation for all magi enteringthe faerie realm or dealing with it's denizens. There would be a requirementthat the Legationis be informed in advance of all intentions and afterwardsof all actions taken. The Legationis would have the right to call an emergencycouncil if he felt any matter required it. Magus Tiarnan stated that he wouldsupport such and hold himself fully bound by it and the motion was passedunopposed. Finally the Pontifex asked that all agreements, gifts and obligationscurrently held by members of the concilum and the fae be revealed. Magus Cormorandeclared his two holdings, a suit of armour, Turold's sword and three boonsfrom the Erechwydd. Magus Theodosius owes a favour to Turold in exchange forsome armour that he had made, and is also seeking an agreement with Nyniawto be allowed to walk hidden forest paths. Finally Magus Tiarnan declaredthat he held an allegiance to the faerie King of the Sea as a member of thecourt of the water, and his now failed obligation to the Palug. The hope wasexpressed that both Magus Tiarnan and Magus Cormoran make some effort to ensurethat their opposition within this realm was contained in the future.

Next the Pontifex turned to theevents of Spring and the actions of the then Imperator Magus Cormoran. Shestated that it was her belief that he was in clear breach of the duties laiddown for that post within our charter. She said that she felt that withdrawalof the role was a sufficient punishment but called for a formal vote of delictumanyway. This was passed with Magus Cormoran the only opposing viewpoint. Thatis now twice that my sodalis has been found guilty of delictum and I hopethat it will cause him to pause for thought in his future actions.

Finally concilium discussed theproposal from Trevalga covenant. It was agreed that they be granted threeseason's access to our libraries to make such copies as they will, in exchangefor a rook each of the Imagonem and Animal vis. I will speak with them atthe tribunal if they do not visit beforehand. For the season I was permittedto once again extract vis for my personal use. Magus Tiarnan would be creatinghis longevity potion with the assistance of Magus Theodosius while Magus Cormoranwould be attuning his talisman. The Pontifex intended training her apprentice,the Imperator studying from Creo vis and Magus Aelfwin developing a spellto rejoin a severed limb.

The season passed with littleevent although a messenger from the Baron of Monmouth did arrive early inthe season to ask for Lord Theo to attend the Baron during Michaelmas. MagusTheodosius did just that and learned that both the Baron and earl of Gloucesterwere attending the muster in London next year and thus a treaty with the Welshhad been formulated. This granted them a number of concessions in exchangefor their pledge not to invade and the baron wished for my sodalis to concludethese negotiations. He was asked to travel to the Prince of Powys' castleat the beginning of Spring and ensure that the final document was satisfactory.