Lylia says, "Well, it seems we have our audience."
Lylia smiles.
Lylia says, "Some of you may have heard me speak on the subject of the Faendryl spice trade before, but I am gratified that you are here and hope I shall still hold your interest."
Lylia inclines her head.
(Lylia moves to the head of the table.)
Lylia clears her throat.
Lylia begins, "What is more precious than gold, weight for weight, and yet can hide unseen in the very braids of your hair or the hem of your robe?"
Lylia continues, "What is so sought after that the hunger for it is never sated, even though its very nature helps us sate our hunger?"
Lylia asks, "And what is as desired by Patriarchs as it is by paupers, yet accessible in some measure to all?"
Lylia raises an eyebrow.
Ferghal quietly asks, "Saffron?"
Lylia says, "Of course I speak of spices."
Lylia waves to Ferghal.
Lylia says, "Not only that one, although it is most precious."
Lylia winks.
Lylia authoritatively states, "That humble shaker of pepper on your table or the dusting of cinnamon that graces a sweet treat has noble lineage and a storied history -- a history that the Faendryl have helped write."
Lylia says, "I recently discussed the spice trade in the context of our own region here near Darkstone Bay as part of the Consortium lecture series, but today, we shall learn more of the Faendryl roots of the spice trade, including some of the more romantic myths that have grown up about it and its sometimes perilous nature."
Lylia says, "We shall discover why spices hold their value so well and how often we enjoy them, often without even realizing all the ways in which they give life its savor."
Lylia explains, "I have both a personal and a professional interest in the subject, although I am not directly in the business at the moment."
Prismatic silken streamers flow outward from Lylia's bracelet, dancing through the air majestically. She makes a complex gesture and the streamers coalesce to reveal a stylized Faendryl crest illusion.
Prismatic silken streamers flow outward from Lylia's bracelet, dancing through the air majestically. She makes a complex gesture and the streamers coalesce to reveal a Faendryl Basilica illusion.
Lylia explains, "Many of my family members are in the spice trade in New Ta'Faendryl as part of the Emporion, the mercantile aspect of the quintipartite Faendryl structure known as the Pentact."
Lylia says, "Before you is an image of the central portion of the Basilica in New Ta'Faendryl, seat of the Patriarch in his glory and the beating heart of the Emporion spice trade, among other vital roles."
Lylia nods to a stylized Faendryl crest illusion.
Phanna murmurs, "Such intricate detail."
>look illusion
The alabaster and crystal dome of the Basilica rises above the surrounding angular cityscape, a glittering focal point for the city. The dome's transparent panes refract spectral hues from an unseen light source, and the illusory city wavers akin to a desert mirage. The graceful figural columns holding aloft the lower arches bear distinctly Faendryl features, while jeweled mosaics, rich with despanal, adorn the spires around the central dome. Although a Faendryl Basilica illusion does well to replicate its source imagery, it wavers occasionally, somewhat ruining the effect.
Rohese purses her mouth, pondering a Faendryl Basilica illusion. The expression on her face speaks volumes.
Lylia says, "Not terribly far east of there, I grew up surrounded by elegant women in luscious perfumes of sandalwood and cinnamon. Saffron stained my uncle's hands, and it was a mark of prestige that he dealt regularly in such a rich commodity."
Lylia offhandedly remarks, "My family is not the wealthiest, but as New Ta'Faendryl's wealth is built partially on the spice trade, it is certainly not the poorest. Our roots run deep in their new soil, and even a wasteland can be made a paradise, as the Agrestis can tell you."
Lylia smiles.
Lylia briskly says, "But enough of such familial details. Let us talk a bit more generally about how great wealth could be built from a few handfuls of fragrant spice."
(Lylia paces slowly, warming to her subject.)
A stylized Faendryl crest illusion unravels into prismatic silken streamers before fading away with no trace.
Lylia suggests, "You can undoubtedly think of some reasons yourselves, so sing out. Let me hear what you think about why spices are so sought after, how they are used."
A Faendryl Basilica illusion unravels into prismatic silken streamers before fading away with no trace.
Lylia surveys the area.
Fyg exclaims, "To make bad food taste good!"
Rillarie says, "To cure meats."
Lylia nods at Fyg.
Arenglae says, "They have a variety of uses, ranging from food to medicine."
Claede says, "Disguising poison."
(Lylia holds a well-manicured finger aloft for each item as she repeats it, counting the suggestions she hears.)
Ysharra says, "Spices are used as currency, as well."
Lylia nods in agreement.
Lylia says, "Culinary. Medicinal. Aromatic...even as currency, yes. Other, more specialized properties that some rare spices have."
Fyg exclaims, "For making people prettier!"
Lylia says, "You have touched on many of the reasons the spice trade is so lucrative and always has been."
Lylia nods at Fyg.
Ferghal quietly says, "He who controls the spices... Wait.. never mind..."
Lylia explains, "When we think of spices, of course we think first of the pleasure they bring to dining. Spices delight our senses, none more so than that of taste. To a talented chef, they are their own kind of magic, adding fire or ice to a dish."
Speaking drunkenly to Fyg, Gutstorm slurs, "Da shpice mush flow."
Speaking to Ferghal, Lylia says, "Emporion traders would agree."
Ferghal nods at Lylia.
Lylia says, "Delicately sweet blade mace, garlicky charnushka, tart anardana, they are all familiar to the Faendryl cook and have not made their way here yet, but many other flavors have."
Lylia says, "One of the most beloved is here before you, in fact."
Lylia suggests, "Try the brownies, if you have not already. You can see the dusting of cinnamon -- yes, it is cinnamon and not cassia -- but they have a bit of heat to them too from locally grown and dried peppers."
Lylia says, "I know you have all eaten plenty, so I would forgive you if it were only a nibble."
Lylia notes, "Without that unexpected kiss of heat from the cinnamon and peppers combined, they would be too simple, too common."
Lylia removes an elegant silver incense burner from in her wrap.
Lylia carefully places an elegant silver incense burner on the floor.
Lylia removes some black cardamom incense from in her wrap.
Lylia carefully places her cardamom incense on an elegant silver incense burner.
Lylia lights the cardamom incense, which flickers and begins to burn.
Rohese playfully accuses, "You have all made me so hungry this afternoon and I can't eat for another hour at least!"
Lylia grins at Rohese.
Lylia says, "This is how we conquer worlds."
Lylia nods knowingly.
Lylia says, "But food is not the only use for spices. We are familiar, sometimes too familiar, with medicinal herbs to heal wounds and cure scars. Some such plants could also be classed as spices -- that is, the seeds, dried flower buds, bark, or other parts of the plant aside from its leaves."
Lylia says, "Tkaro root, with its mildly astringent heat, also acts as a calmative, for example. Clove oil can help a toothache until you see a healer."
Lylia offhandedly says, "Or, I suppose, a blacksmith with a pair of pliers and a strong arm, but most of us would prefer the numbing oil."
Lylia looks thoughtful for a moment, then shrugs.
Lylia says, "Some of you may have noticed that spices can delight our other senses too."
Lylia waves at an elegant silver incense burner.
Lylia says, "Scent is an evocative yet underrated sense."
Lylia says, "Yet our insatiable appetite for perfumes, incense, and scented oils suggest we pay more attention to it than we may consciously realize. Fragrance lifts the mood, evokes nostalgia, and -- as perfume -- attracts all the right kinds of attention."
Gutstorm gobbles down his dark chocolate brownie in one enormous bite.
Lylia explains, "What you are enjoying now is a cardamom incense, sweet and warm with an almost resinous note. It is one of my favorite flavors and fragrances; I am not alone in this affection as it is sometimes called the 'Matriarch of Spices' in the Faendryl tongue."
The incense emits some black smoke which disperses, leaving a faint scent of cardamom.
Speaking to Gutstorm, Lylia says, "Chewing helps the flavor."
Gutstorm gulps.
Gutstorm grunts at Lylia in agreement.
Lylia says, "From cozy bakery fragrances to lush, exotic concoctions that would delight Ivas herself, some favorite perfumes have spices at their heart. Combined with rare woods and resins or softer floral notes, they take on a wholly new character as a composed fragrance."
Lylia sniffs at some black incense, inhaling the cardamom-scented smoke.
Lylia smiles quietly to herself.
Lylia says, "While some spices' fragrances are notable, others have unique characteristics that make them particularly valuable."
Lylia says, "I believe we already heard about one."
Lylia continues, "Saffron, for instance, transforms into a lambent sunset orange as a dye, and although it is wildly expensive, nothing else quite compares. The gown I wear today is dyed with saffron, which comes from crocus blossoms such as the ones comprising my circlet."
Lylia turns around.
A trickle of cardamom-scented smoke rises from some black incense.
Ysharra gazes admiringly at Lylia.
(Lylia completes a slow circle.)
(Lylia runs a hand over her gown, its silken skirts dyed a golden orange hue so richly saturated that it almost seems to glow in the ambient light.)
Ysharra says, "A rich, bold hue."
Lylia says, "The shoes are likewise saffron-dyed, though as you can see, you may achieve many hues from the same noble plant."
Speaking to Lylia, Fyg exclaims, "I came for the outfit, I must admit!"
Lylia says, "Turmeric also produces a yellow color, but it is less vivid, less intense. It also requires a good deal more of the raw ingredient and certain mordants to produce lasting color than saffron."
Lylia grins at Fyg.
Lylia notes, "It has, in fact, been used as an adulterant in saffron dyes, although any member of the Spicers or Dyers found responsible for this is treated almost as harshly as if she had poisoned someone -- which in a sense, she has, by poisoning the public trust."
Lylia carefully says, "Speaking of which, it is said, as we heard earlier during Ysharra's discussion on botany, that the dose makes the poison; this is true of spices as well as toxins, and it is one reason why the spice trade has sometimes been closely monitored, even harshly controlled under harsher Patriarchal regimes."
Some black smoke rises from the cardamom incense and dissipates into the air.
Lylia nods at Ysharra.
Ysharra smiles.
Lylia says, "Innocent nutmeg tastes of holiday sweets and the warm, mellow coffee that Gert Fessel serves in Jastatos, but it is a potent hallucinogen, creating visions in those who consume a great deal of it. This is ill-advised, however, as a slightly larger dose is a lethal poison."
Lylia says, "When ground, a single nutmeg the size of an acorn would kill many of you, and three would kill even the hardiest."
Lylia adds, "And the visions you would see before death are gruesome, if the reactions are any indication."
Lylia offhandedly says, "Mm, or so I have heard."
Lylia looks thoughtful for a moment, then shrugs.
Lylia says, "Indeed, some spices can also be weapons. Ask anyone who has sampled some of the fiery orange peppers that grow not far from here. Perigourd mentioned using them in this way when I spoke on spices for the Darkstone Bay Consortium, and he is correct."
Lylia says, "Powders or oily essences of these hot peppers can be so intense that they sear the skin and eyes. A sachet of the powder tied in a stocking and swung at the face of an assailant can incapacitate without leaving marks."
Lylia lightly comments, "And we would never want to leave marks, now would we?"
Lylia rotates a silver-framed bracelet inset with skyglass panels around her wrist until a map of Elanthia panel is on top.
Prismatic silken streamers flow outward from Lylia's bracelet, dancing through the air majestically. She makes a complex gesture and the streamers coalesce to reveal a map of Elanthia illusion.
(Lylia waves a hand at her illusory map and traces lines along it that glow in saffron gold. When she begins to talk again, her brisk tone signals a shift in topic.)
Lylia says, "But! Let us return to those trade routes and talk of how they have formed, and where, and why."
Lylia says, "While I do not wish to give a lecture on the entirety of the spice trade's history, especially as we might not wish to be here for a fortnight, it is vital to understand the broad sweep of it, if not the particulars."
Lylia says, "Old Ta'Faendryl, our ancestral land, was also home to an abundant array of spices, both cultivated and wild."
Lylia gazes with interest at a map of Elanthia illusion.
Lylia explains, "The Elven nations have always had their specialties. While Loenthran vintners produced the finest wines and Ardenai graced tables with delectable fruits, the Faendryl added savor to it all with spice."
Lylia says, "Cinnamon groves in the south, black pepper in the lowlands near the Lake of Shadowed Sorrows, and the crocus flowers that produce saffron once thrived in the region. Formal gardens were fragrant with herbs, and the city's spice markets overflowed."
(Lylia waves a hand through the illusion, dispelling it.)
Lylia dismisses a map of Elanthia illusion.
A map of Elanthia illusion unravels into prismatic silken streamers before fading away with no trace.
Lylia tersely says, "That was not to last."
Lylia says, "During the period of our exile, it is said, some those who tended and harvested these precious spices were able to carry something of their home with them."
Ysharra nods slowly at Lylia.
Prismatic silken streamers flow outward from Lylia's bracelet, dancing through the air majestically. She makes a complex gesture and the streamers coalesce to reveal a map of Elanthia illusion.
(Lylia traces a jagged slash from the northeast to the southern part of the map. Unlike the golden lines earlier, this one is an angry red.)
(Lylia regards the map with an inscrutable expression, then turns back to the assembly.)
Lylia adds, "Many Agrestis Faendryl will regale you with stories of how their ancestors smuggled cardamom pods or caraway seeds all the way to the Southron Wastes as one of the few belongings they could carry such a distance."
Lylia dryly says, "Some of these stories may even be true."
Lylia says, "Speaking of stories, Spicers have a few of their own. Nothing drives up value like the perception of rarity, and of course there is also the matter of maintaining secrecy of sources."
Lylia says, "One such tale was of cinnamon-birds, massive and ferocious beasts that could carry off an unlucky traveler."
Lylia continues, "Cinnamon-birds, it was said, created clifftop nests from the choicest pieces of cinnamon bark, and Emporion traders were the only ones who knew the spells to subdue them enough to shake apart their nests and collect the branches."
Lylia nods.
Lylia says, "And yes, some people truly believed them."
A map of Elanthia illusion unravels into prismatic silken streamers before fading away with no trace.
Speaking naively to Lylia, Rohese asks, "So that's not true?"
Lylia ruefully notes, "This briefly led to a trade in crested grifflet eggs being sold as 'cinnamon-bird eggs,' but this scheme cracked almost as soon as the eggs did, as this species of grifflet has remarkably ungainly chicks that look and smell nothing like the majestic cinnamon-birds of legend."
Lylia looks like she was about to say something to Rohese, but she hesitates, obviously having changed her mind.
Rohese demurely lowers her misty grey eyes.
Ysharra vocalizes a keen shriek in talented imitation of a gyrefalcon.
Rohese lowers her head in a shy manner, laces her fingers behind her back, and scuffs the ground with her foot.
Ysharra grins.
Lylia simply says, "No, it is inaccurate."
Lylia grins at Ysharra.
Rohese nods faintly.
Ysharra winks at Lylia.
Lylia says, "Stories of serpents lurking among pepper trees may have had their roots in truth, though, as abyran'sa and other demons are often mistaken for snakes and were sometimes summoned to guard groves."
Lylia says, "The difference between white pepper and black pepper was said to be related to whether the 'serpents' were driven off by balefire or not, as black peppercorns look burnt while the milder white peppercorns are round and pale."
Lylia chuckles.
Lylia says, "This part, of course, is a bit of fiction traders deployed to make their wares seem more valuable."
Lylia says, "I imagine Lady Anduin might have heard similar tales from traders about the sources for rare textiles and dyes."
Lylia says, "But let us turn back to history and away from fantasy, however amusing the latter may be."
Lylia says, "Nothing grows easily in a desert, yet with careful husbandry and over the course of decades, it began to bloom."
Lylia says, "Eventually, those handfuls of spices, so carefully hoarded and hidden, became some of the earliest planted seeds of New Ta'Faendryl's wealth. Discoveries of new plants that grew regionally, including balsam and sandalwood, enriched Faendryl perfumes and dishes."
Lylia proudly says, "Within a mere five centuries, growers began to export."
Lylia points out, "The stories they told may have been fantastical, but some of the dangers for early traders from New Ta'Faendryl were quite real."
Lylia rotates a silver-framed bracelet inset with skyglass panels around her wrist until a moon and stars panel is on top.
Prismatic silken streamers flow outward from Lylia's bracelet, dancing through the air majestically. She makes a complex gesture and the streamers coalesce to reveal a distorted night sky illusion.
(Lylia traces thin, sparkling lines between the stars in constellations that are subtly different, shifted from the night sky outside to reveal more southerly stars in unfamiliar configurations.)
Lylia says, "Guided by the stars and lit by the moons, traders traveled mostly at night, in part to avoid the searing heat, but also to evade other travelers. Spice merchants were targets both for their wealth in silvers and for their useful cargo."
Phanna gazes thoughtfully at a distorted night sky illusion.
Lylia says, "Emporion traders also learned how best to blend in, where possible, and when to stand out when needed."
Lylia says, "Eventually, trade routes carried Faendryl spices that thrived in our new home everywhere, and imports from lusher climes, such as vanilla, nutmeg, and ginger, have made these routes even more extensive."
(Lylia waves a hand through the illusory constellations, and they spin to match the more familiar perspective of the night skies above the Alabaster Spire.)
Lylia says, "Today, you may even find some of these spices locally in some form, although familial pride compels me to assert that the imported versions from distant southern groves are more flavorful."
Lylia flashes a quick grin.
Lylia haughtily assures, "Helga is not using New Ta'Faendryl's long pepper or sumac in her stews. She could not afford it at her prices."
A distorted night sky illusion unravels into prismatic silken streamers before fading away with no trace.
Lylia says, "But if you want to sample the fuller flavors of Faendryl spice yourselves, feel free to try anything you like in the Spire, and if you like it enough, talk to me. I might know someone who knows someone..."
Lylia chuckles.
Lylia says, "This is, I promise, not a commercial endeavor. Rather, it is a way to bring something of the color, flavor, and spice of our home to this, our small slice of New Ta'Faendryl in the great northwest."
Lylia concludes, "I hope you have enoyed it and that you sample a few items from our kitchens before you go."
Lylia smiles.
Lylia bows deeply.
Speaking curiously to Lylia, Guarrin asks, "What spices would you suggest for extending the duration and quality of field rations?"
Speaking softly to Lylia, Rohese exclaims, "It was even more informative and interesting as I was led to believe!"
Speaking to Guarrin, Lylia says, "Peppers are ideal for it, of all varieties, but particularly black. Turmeric is also ideal and also imparts a hue that hides any discoloration -- which is a double-edged dagger, to be sure, as you do not want to serve anything that is utterly spoiled."
Lylia places a hand over her heart.
Lylia nods graciously.
Lylia says, "Truly, thank you. I really am pleased to share it with all and sundry again."
Lylia asks, "Are there other questions? Have I missed anyone?"
Speaking to Lylia, Guarrin says, "That is what we traditionally used. Thank you. I was hoping there was some other secret that would...well, improve the taste. It is a common complaint."
Lylia says, "Drying foods, of course, improves their useful life. That is quite easy in New Ta'Faendryl; quite an arid climate."
Speaking to Lylia, Ysharra says, "I rather like tumeric, myself, but I can see why a trader could get themselves in trouble with it. Saffron it is not."
Claede raises his hand.
Lylia nods at Claede.
Claede asks, "What's the difference between a spice and an herb?"
Speaking to Claede, Lylia says, "Spices are typically dried seeds, flower buds, or other discrete items. Herbs are typically leaves and stems and other pieces of the plant that must be chopped or minced. But that is very rough and broad."
Lylia agrees, "It has been an absolute delight. But now I wish to change out of these shoes before they color my feet a magnificent saffron gold."
Lylia says, "Be well, all."