April 1210 Chronicle

[size=20pt]Travance Chronicle[/size]
collected by Portia Rom
"The truth shall set ye free."


[size=17pt]WILD MAGE KILLER KILLED[/size]

A man hunting wild mages arrived in town on Sunday morning during the last Baronial feast, carrying a document authorizing the slaughter of wild mages and purportedly signed by the Master Archmage of the Koromyrian Mage's Guild.

Father Edwin Haroldson, working with Master Gideon Weaveforger discovered the document to be a fake. Haroldson said that the document was “a very good forgery.”

Sir Aleister Darkheart apprehended and packed the miscreant off to jail. Unfortunately, Sir Darkheart said, “When we had finished interrogating the man and were finally about to take him to jail, he assaulted me with powerful necromantic energies. Only defending myself, I reflected the spell back at him. Unfortunately for him, he was not as resilient against his own magic.”

The local mage’s guild has declined to comment officially on the matter.


[size=14pt]How To Tell a Wild Mage[/size]

The presence of wild mages inside Travance is still somewhat controversial. As such, Count Winterdark and Marcus tell us how to recognize these residents.

The best way to tell if a person is a wild mage is to throw them in a lake. “If they don’t drown, they’re a wild mage,” Count Winterdark said, “or a nyad,” Marcus added. “If they do drown, their legacy has been preserved,” Count Winterdark said. “They will go down in the history books as not a wild mage.”

[size=16pt]
Drega’Mire’s New Lord[/size]

The Knight Protector of Drega’Mire, Apollo Abendroth, a tireless defender of the truth, was named lord of Drega’Mire at the last baronial feast.

Vassals of Drega’Mire, and those who would wish to become so, are welcome to brunch at the Drega’Mire statehouse on Saturday morning.

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Attention All Celts

The Baron has asked that your race elect a representative, preferably one that does not hold other office in the lands or in the Barony, to carry your concerns to him. Billium MacKraegor has organized a meeting to nominate and vote on candidates. It will take place at midnight in the Kaladonian statehouse on Friday.

As a neutral party, the Chronicle will be overseeing the ballot vote. Any Celts who are unable to be present may send their votes by messenger to Portia.
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[size=16pt]Tobar Exonerated on Besmirchment Charges[/size]

Baron Montgomery has dismissed the besmirchment charges levied against Tobar Avaryne on Saturday at the last Baronial feast. Earlier in the day, during Market Faire, the authorities took Tobar into protective custody due to what Father Haroldson described as “credible threats against his life.”

Tobar seemed relieved, and credited Elazar Ralinfoly, Magnus Von Ritter, and Tari for seeing to it that “justice was done.”

[size=16pt]More Details on the Shantytown Shanker Emerge[/size]

The Chronicle has learned more of December’s search for the Shantytown Shanker. Evidently, the victim was found in the “Shantytown” section of the Dragon’s Claw inn, stabbed, and oozing great quantities of blood. The murder weapon, an ornate dagger carved from wood and engraved with a harp, was found nearby and later given to the town guard.

Unfortunately, most of the town guard had been called away to fight the mummies infesting town. Emar and Niatri, who were in the area, tracked the perpetrator’s bloody footprints through the proper and back into the inn.

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[size=16pt]EVENT CALENDAR[/size]

Friday
Evening:
- Mother Rosa and Father Kensington give mass to welcome spring at the monastery
- Celts elect a representative to the Baron at the Kaladonian statehouse at midnight.

Saturday
Morning:
- Brunch for vassals and potential vassals at the Drega'Mire statehouse
- Market Faire begins at the Dragon’s Claw Inn
- Alissandria's springtide festival begins either outside the inn, weather permitting, or in the statehouse of Alissandria in case of rain. Come and enjoy a maypole, bocce tournament, egg toss, storytelling contests, and other amenities.

Evening:
- Baronial Feast
- T.R.U.S.T. meets outside the inn immediately after feast.
- Springtide Festival continues. Hookah tent opens
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[size=16pt]Brother Kwildar Talks St. Astrid’s Day…and Sex[/size]

It’s not every day that one gets to see Brother Kwildar Zero smile broadly, but this St. Astrid’s Day he was giving away grins like a Kitieran in a catmint patch.  The Chronicle sat down with Kwildar to find out more about the holiday and how it should be celebrated.

Who Was St. Astrid?

A cleric who wandered the world, at great risk to himself, [visiting] foreboding frontier villages with no monastery to marry them, and fighting his way there as needed. He sought out old and young couples to give them marriage counseling and perform the ceremony. He did this for many years.

Why do we celebrate St. Astrid’s Day?

The reasons are mostly lost in history. Last year, I took a pilgrimage that lasted three moons, and traveled Kormyre, marrying many couples. It was my first trip out of Travance in some time. At first, I talked with people across the rift, places with no resident Andorran clergy. 

How is the holiday celebrated?

Wandering clerics encourage others to admit their feelings for one another. Small cakes baked in the shapes of hearts or roses are consumed. It is a day to acknowledge love in all its forms, not just romantic love, but friendship. Gifts are often exchanged among those reluctant to express feelings, and it often takes a cleric of Andorra to propagate these feelings.

How do you counsel couples before marriage?

I always tell couples that marriage is never a promise to be given lightly. It means more than just love – couples need to match on many levels. It is the Forever Promise. Love is a cornerstone for marriage, but what is equally important is friendship.

What about sex -- isn’t that also important?
(Kwildar, blushes, stammers, and the Chronicle repeats the question)

It [sex] renews the ties between each other. There are those for which sex is fun. Andorra doesn’t frown on that but is for using it to cement the bonds of love, not for frivolity. She acknowledges that people must be people.
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Word of the Moon: Perambulate v.

to travel through or around a place or area, especially for pleasure and in a leisurely way; to walk about; to make an official inspection of a boundary on foot.

“Lord Erdrick perambulated with Squire Collin in order to ensure all was well in Kaladonia.” or "During his perambulations, Hamish threw rocks into the icy lake."

Brought to you by the church of Chronicler.
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[size=16pt]Children Saved From Oni
[/size]
Four children were rescued from oni in March, according to Ming Na, who said that the Khitanian Ishima showed exceptional bravery in clubbing down the oni leader, who was striving to escape, on no less than three occasions. “He is a very credit to our race,” Ming said. Evidently, the oni had slain the children’s parents and imprisoned them for reasons that are presently unknown.

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Put some zip in your lip and pep in your step with Portia's Pickles, now returning to Market Faire. In honor of Spring, send a sweet to your sweet with Porita's patented messaging service.
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Notes from the Front Lines
Observations and other detritus from Portia’s little book.

The Chronicle heard several troubling reports last moon of invisible entities attacking various members of town, including Chancellor of Trade Ming Na, whose legs were chopped off while he was en route to an official meeting.

In a strange turnabout, Rudolf von Kreutzdorf was rescued from trolls by a strange man, as he put it, after the attack, “The next thing I knew, there’s a figure standing over me and I’m fully healed. He stands up and walks into the darkness without a word.

I wasn’t privy to the main action this past moon, but as best as I could make out, the Veniir’s offer of peace with Alissandria was a sham designed to lure Cardinal Haigan into a trap. Evidently, a dark sorcerer or priest of some kind had corrupted the local barbarian tribe into some sort of uber-zombie, using mushrooms grown on graves, as a means to getting back at Cardinal Haigan for some perceived past ill. The details escaped me, but I understand that the Baron led the rest of the town to victory against these foul creatures.


Corrections

The previous Chronicle erroneously stated that a band of Celts from this side of the rift aided the town in ending the plague that struck Travance. In fact, it was Highlanders from Hibernia who aided the town. According to Lady Kaitlin MacFergus of the Highlanders, the Celts and Highlanders “were at one time all one people, but during the formation of the rift, we were separated.” She also owned that Celts “have different influences now” because they dwell near large cities.

In the same article, the Chronicle also erroneously stated that in exchange for a fire thorn from the Highlander Hamish, needed to combat the plague, the town promised to protect Lady Kaitlin. In fact, Lady Kaitlin assured me, “the payment he asked was not to help me if I became ill, but to help me should I need anything. I’ll not forget that promise made for his sacrifice, and should I need help, those who gave their word will be held to it.” Evidently, Hamish is “similar to one you would call a Paladin,” and the fire thorn was his focus. Currently, Hamish is undergoing the arduous search for a fresh focus.

This Chronicle was sponsored by Father Haroldson of the Church of Valos.