Zion: Light of the New Moon, Ch 5.4 Myre
Zion - Light of the New Moon Chapter 5.4
Myre The Silver Gate
Based on the votes from Chapter 5.3 it appears that the majority of Contributing Readers think that Liam and Leijh should become 'an item'. As such, that will be followed up on in due time. For now, the final piece of the puzzle for Chapter 5 is some focus on Lady Marion and Bahrla, as well as Keeland Reilly... and Corneilus Cymbeline.
"Lord Belarius, second of the name, son of Belarius, first of the name, son of Mordakai, son of Daelnaius, Steward of Attood Keep is in attendance." announced a teenage otter from beside the entryway as the party was led into the room by a mink messenger. Bahrla was at the head of the group, dressed as always in her leather armor, axe strapped across her back. Lady Marion followed the Wild Lander into the tiger's meeting room dressed in temple finery, including her ceremonial Myrenese holy symbol. Keeland followed behind the two dressed in a clean tunic and breeches, eyes focused more on the white shepherd standing to the Lord's left than on the tiger himself.
The crier remained at attention with a paw out, waiting patiently as the young mink that showed the guests to the meeting room offered him a scroll. The otter unrolled it, then spoke up in just as loud a voice as before, "Presenting Bahrla Splithoof, formerly of the River Reach Clan. Presenting Lady Marion, Priestess of the Temple of Myre. Presenting Sergeant Keeland Reilly of the Myrenese Guardsmen." and, with that said, he closed the scroll and returned it to the mink and waved the party onward.
Lord Belarius was seated at the head of a table, one leg crossed over the other. He was leaning to one side, elbow placed firmly on the arm rest of his chair, closed fist resting against his jaw to prop up his head. His shaggy muzzle was obviously overgrown and he didn't appear to care in the least, the graying fur mixing in with his white whiskers to give him a decidedly aged appearance. He motioned with his free paw at several empty chairs, "Well... sit already." he noted, obviously not interested in continuing the courtly manner of the initial introduction.
"Thank you, Steward." Lady Marion noted. The tiger sat up straight, his bored features quickly replaced with fiery displeasure.
He slammed a fist down on the arm rest of his chair, startling everyone, "You will address me as LORD." he bellowed. The mink quickly showed himself out and the young crier did a very good job of blending in with his surroundings.
"Unless I am mistaken, you were introduced as the Steward of Attood Keep." Lady Marion noted calmly, "I meant no disrespect."
"Whether you mean to offend or not you can still do so... Priestess." the tiger noted caustically, "And you have done just that." he lowered both of his paws calmly back down on the arm rests as he sat up straighter, "You may address me as Lord Belarius, or Your Lordship." he offered.
"Even though you're just a Steward." Bahrla pointed out.
The tiger's ears lowered against his skull as he bared his teeth, but the shepherd at his left quickly took a step forward, "Please forgive them, Your Lordship... they are new to the Keep and are unfamiliar with your long and noble line." Cornelius spoke quickly, but each word was perfectly enunciated, smoothly delivered, and filled with conviction.
The tiger slowly sat back in his chair, growl easing, but the deep scowl on his muzzle remained, "Then you may enlighten them, Captain." Belarius tented his fingers in front of himself, claws showing, "My limited patience is already wearing thin."
"Of course, Your Lordship." Cornelius nodded his head, and regarded the party, "My friends... the man before you is Lord Belarius, the fourth Seneshal of Attood Keep. His family has guarded and guided this Wayside for over 100 years."
"That is a very long time to hold Stewardship." Lady Marion noted, "What became of the Lord's household?"
"Lord Thean, Tah'Aveen rest his soul, was unwed and had no children at the time of his passing." Belarius explained, "My Great Grandfather, Daelnaius of Attood was his best and most trusted friend. Lord Thean was a man of the hunt... he reveled in the lands before the time of the elven curse, but, as the dark magics of the elves twisted the land, he was unready for the changes it would bring."
"Lord Thean died of wounds sustained during a foray beyond the walls." Captain Cymbelline explained, "Daelnaius and several of the Lord's men returned with the Lord Thean's body, and gave word that the Lord, with his last breath, decreed that Daelnaius was to be Steward until representatives from Myre arrived to make him the official Lord."
"And now..." Belarius noted, motioning to the group with a paw, "Here you are."
"I'm afraid that is not the purpose of our visit." Lady Marion noted, "If you seek the approval of the--"
"You are a Priestess." the tiger interrupted, "MAKE IT your purpose."
"That is not the way things are done, Stewa--"
"LORD!" Belarius roared, getting to his feet, "You will address me as LORD Belarius, woman." he ordered.
"Do not propose to order around a Priestess of Myre." Lady Marion noted in a calm tone, "Such things are beyond the temporal power of a Lord... and well beyond the charge afforded to a caretaker of a Wayside."
The tiger's ears alternated between back and flat, his face a mask of pure rage, but a hint of realization in his eyes; Belarius was in over his head, and he knew it. With a disdainful growl, the tiger slumped back into his chair, "You're here to mock me... aren't you, Priestess?"
"I am not. We are merely passing through..." she paused before settling on the title of, "Sir."
"It has been FOUR generations, Priestess, and no one from the temple has come to acknowledge my family's right to the title of Lord of Attood Keep." he looked up to meet her gaze with a challenging one of his own, "Why?"
"The Temple of Myre does not care about Waysides and petty nobles." Bahrla announced, "That should be obvious."
"Bahrla..." Lady Marion addressed the Wild Lander, "That is entirely untrue, and I would appreciate that you not answer on the behalf of the Temple."
"If it were that untrue, then why does he make such a good point?" the minotaur woman countered, "If it HAS been four generations I would think that there has been plenty of time for a Priest to acknowledge this man's claim."
"You assume he has one." Lady Marion countered.
"What?!?" the tiger roared again, getting to his feet once more.
"Sit down." Lady Marion dictated, her holy symbol glowing fiercely. A faint sheen of silver light flowed across Belarius' eyes and he sat down in a stiff, jerking motion, forced to obey her command. "I am not here to insult your family any more than I am here to grant you the right you say is yours... but, if I WERE capable of granting you your title, which I am not, then I would still have to see a formal decree."
"There was no decree." the tiger growled, "A dozen men heard Lord Thean's voice proclaim it so... but they have all been long since buried thanks to the temple's procrastination." he spat.
"You know as well as I that Myre's laws require any passing of Lordship to be accompanied by a written document." Lady Marion responded calmly.
"And what if there isn't one?" Bahrla asked her.
"Then Belarius remains a Steward." the priestess responded with a shrug.
"No!" the tiger growled, "This is unfair! This is wrong! You cannot decide this-- you said so yourself!" he began struggling, but his body did not obey his commands, "Cornelius... talk some sense into her!" he ordered of the shepherd.
"Priestess..." the Captain offered, "Surely you must be able to contact the priests within the temple for an official ruling... do not deny this man that."
Lady Marion nodded calmly, "Of course." she acknowledged, "You have my word, Sir, that I will contact the Temple of Myre as soon as we arrive at Zion. I will speak with the priests and request that they send a delegate capable of making a ruling on this topic as soon as possible."
"That's not soon enough!" Belarius announced, "I might be dead by then!"
"Your heir will remain the Steward of Attood Keep." Lady Marion offered calmly, "Just as you took over from your father, and he from his, and he from his."
The tiger scowled, looking away as well as he was able without having control of his head. The growl left his voice as he let out the grumbling admission, "I have no heir."
"Oh." Lady Marion noted, taken aback.
"So what happens then?" Bahrla asked casually.
"Then the keep has no Steward." Lady Marion noted.
"How does that work?" the minotaur woman asked.
"A Steward may only grant the title to an heir by blood... if a Steward has no heir, then the keep has no Steward." the priestess explained.
"Your rules are horrible." Bahrla smirked.
"I need to be made Lord." the tiger announced, "or the keep falls."
"Surely an exception of some kind can be made." Cornelius offered, "Any kind of reasoning with the temple... even if it were to have THEM name a successor..."
Lady Marion shook her head, "If such a thing were possible, it still could not be done until we reach Zion... there wouldn't be any other way to get a missive to--"
"A Silver Gate." Cornelius offered.
Lady Marion raised an eyebrow, "I suppose... but we would have to find--"
"In the basement." the white shepherd offered.
"Wait... please." Keeland spoke up for the first time since entering the room. All eyes went to him. He cleared his throat, "I thought a Silver Gate transported people from one place to another... and that the destination was a fixed point."
"Correct." Cornelius acknowledged, "but it can also be used as a focus for divination, much like a silver disc... though it amplifies the power of the caster many times over due to its natural affinity for translocation."
"Trans-lo-what?" Bahrla questioned.
"Summoning magic." Lady Marion answered.
"He could have said that instead." she snorted.
"So..." Keeland pulled control of the conversation back, "a Diviner can use the Silver Gate as a focus to be able to communicate over longer distances?"
"Precisely." the white shepherd acknowledged.
"And you have one here?" Lady Marion inquired.
"Indeed." Belarius acknowledged.
"I will speak with the temple of this problem, and you will be content?" the priestess asked the tiger.
"I will." the Steward relented, "It will be made available for use tomorrow morning."
"Then we have an accord." the human woman nodded, and Belarius was released from the divine energy holding him. "Come." she told to her assembled party, "I believe we've worn out our welcome in these chambers." and she about-faced, heading to the door.
"Do not hate me, Priestess..." the old tiger called after her, "Desperate men are not always popular men..."
"No..." Lady Marion acknowledged, pausing, "I do not hate you, Belarius... I feel for you, and I understand why you feel the way you do. You are forgiven." The priestess, the minotaur, and the Sergeant exited the meeting room without the messenger who brought them, but none of the three saw that they were followed nevertheless.
They parted ways in the guest wing. Lady Marion went to a small meeting room to converse with the caravan's acolytes; Bahrla went to the armory to service her axe; Keeland Reilly returned to his room to rest. The dog had just taken off his dress tunic when a soft knock sounded at his door. The sergeant quickly donned a robe and made his way to answer. He opened the door, gazing out into the hallway and paused; it was Cornelius Cymbeline.
"Good evening, Sergeant Reilly..." the white shepherd offered with a faint bow of his head, "I hope I am not disturbing you."
"No... not at all." Keeland responded, "Come in." he invited, stepping aside and opening the door, "I was in the middle of getting changed... nothing important."
"I was hoping to speak with you briefly..." the Captain noted, "Do you mind?"
"Of course not." the Sergeant responded, still providing room for Cornelius to enter, "How may I help you, Captain?"
"Please, Keeland..." the white shepherd noted, "Cornelius is fine... I am not wrapped up in title and rank."
Keeland nodded, and went back over to his discarded tunic. He took off his robe and hung it in the wardrobe before carefully folding his tunic and setting it aside, "What did you need to speak to me about?" the Sergeant inquired.
Cornelius remained standing near the door, watching Keeland as he worked, "Belarius is right to fear for the safety of the Keep... but not for the reason he thinks."
"He's worried about dying without an heir." Keeland acknowledged, packing the tunic away, "That's understandable."
"More so when you consider that most keeps that have no Divine Shield are protected by the divine providence that is granted through having a proclaimed Lord in attendance." Cornelius noted.
"You mean..." the tan-and-black shepherd turned around to regard the white one, trousers half-unbuttoned, "Attood Keep doesn't have a Divine Shield?"
"Correct." Cornelius acknowledged, taking a seat on a nearby stool, "Most forts do not... but they are protected by the divine through their service to the noble who presides over it."
"So... if Belarius dies, then there will be no protection for the keep..." Keeland took a seat on the bed, "Goddess... that IS a problem."
"The problem is, in fact, worse." Cornelius noted, "Belarius has no claim to Attood Keep."
"But... he's the great grandson of--"
"Of Daelnaius of Attood..." the white shephard acknowledged, "the man who murdered the rightful Lord."
Keeland's jaw dropped. "I thought--"
Cornelius nodded in response, "Of course you did... and Belarius is also similarly unaware."
"Then how do you--?"
"I know many things, Keeland... if that isn't obvious already." the white shepherd smiled pleasantly, his tail beating out a faint rhythm against the side of the stool, "You will have to take my word for it."
"But, what about the hunting accident, and the men who vouched for the Lord's decree?" Keeland asked.
"Men bribed by Daelnaius... he promised them positions of power, and then had them each killed off by what appeared to be random accidents." Cornelius explained.
A sense of understanding slowly crossed Keeland's face, "And he never sent for a priest to recognize his claim, did he?"
"No, he didn't... very good." the white shepherd acknowledged, "He planned on removing all traces of his wrong doing first, but the final oath-man had realized by then what was happening... and they both fell out of the window together that they each meant for the other. No priest was ever contacted."
Keeland let out a breath, smoothing out his mane of fur, "And... then Daelnaius' son...?"
"Steward Mordakai knew nothing of his father's deceit, nor did any of his children, or their children." Cornelius explained, "But perhaps now you can see why the keep has been in such decline, and why there are so few people left. With more than one hundred years since the divine blessing of a Lord, the keep has been hemorrhaging lifeblood... and it will not last longer. I've done what I can, but even I can do only so much. To my shame, it's been a necessity to protect Daelnaius' family's secret ever since the Lord's death."
Keeland blinked at that, cocking his head to the side, "You mean, ever since discovering the truth about the Lord's death?"
"Sometimes we hear what we wish to hear." Cornelius answered cryptically, "You should finish getting changed," he added, "We'll need to get to the Silver Gate by midnight."
Keeland glanced over his shoulder at the enigmatic white shepherd, but finished unbuttoning his trousers regardless, continuing to get undressed, "I thought Belarius was going to give us use of it in the morning."
"The keep will not be standing in the morning, I'm afraid." Cornelius offered.
"What?" Keeland asked, turning completely to face his guest.
"You have a fine body, Keeland Reilly... built like a soldier, but without the war wounds." the white shepherd announced.
Keeland blushed at that, but he quickly overcame the compliment and pressed the discussion, "What do you mean the keep will not be standing?"
"There is no more blood to give, I'm afraid." Cornelius answered, "My men will give their lives to protect those of you who can escape through the Silver Gate, but--"
"USE the Silver Gate?" Keeland asked, eyes widening, "I thought we were only going to send a--"
"Send a message? No..." Cornelius shook his head, "I was sworn to secrecy about revealing the existence of the Silver Gate unless it was for the benefit of the keep... discussing the message was the best way to circumvent that."
Keeland paused, cocking his head to the side, one ear back, "Something about the way you casually talking about avoiding your duty concerns me."
"Worry not." the Moon Pelted dog replied with a casual smile, "It was for a greater purpose than the vow itself... it will allow me to save you and your party."
"I... don't understand." Keeland noted.
"First... get dressed." Cornelius spoke, standing, "Next, gather as many people as you can on your way to the meeting room... I will explain more once we get there."
"Can't you explain more now?" the sergeant inquired. Two seconds later, he was thrown off his feet as the entire building shook from a massive impact.
"I'm afraid I can't, Keeland..." Cornelius offered with genuine sadness. He went to the door, looking back over his shoulder to the Sergeant, "we're running out of time."
* * * * * *
Welcome, Zion fans, to the last post of Chapter 5 for the Myrenese Caravan. This also happens to be the last post before the Milestone.
At this point, I feel obligated to note that, even though the group is in good health, it may not pay to be too courageous... this IS the Milestone, after all.
That being said, it is up to the Contributing Readers to decide just how they will enter the Milestone. Please keep in mind that the theme of Milestone 1 is "Loss", which is to say, this is a very VERY dangerous Milestone. That being said, Contributing Readers are encouraged to look at the following options and choose the one they find most fitting.
Unlike prior voting opportunities, the Milestone vote also includes pros and cons of each option along with different ways to view it.As always, the highest number of votes win.
1) To the Fiery Abyss with the Silver Gate... protect the Wayside!! Positive Viewpoint: Whatever is attacking CAN be defeated... time to start fighting. Negative Viewpoint: Who knows what lays in store for the Wayside? Cornelius seems to think it's doomed, and he DOES have some strange insight. Pro: If the caravan can turn the tide and protect the Wayside, imagine how great the taste of victory shall be! Con: Out of all of the options, this one carries with it the most risk and will provide non-contribiting reader voters a negative in their attempt to keep characters alive.
2) Get to the Silver Gate... and convince Cornelius to come with! Positive Viewpoint: It's time to leave, and it's obvious that Cornelius will be a great benefit to the party. Negative Viewpoint: The shepherd appears to take his duty to the Wayside very seriously... how much time with the party waste trying to convince him to join them? Pro: Not only could the party make their get away, but they might also gain the aid of a very skilled soldier. Con: This option carries some risk of taking too much time... it would not be advisable to be caught in the Wayside if Cornelius' prediction comes true.
3) Get the hell through the Silver Gate! Positive Viewpoint: A mad dash to the Silver Gate should get the party (and anyone fast enough) through with time to spare. Negative Viewpoint: Only so many people can pass through the gate... if you're going that fast imagine who and what you might have to leave behind. Pro: Out of the three defined options, this one is the safest for the group. Con: Leaving the laborers and wagon masters of the caravan to die within the Wayside is NOT heroic... and it leaves the party without any support.
4) Get the caravan moving, and attempt to escape the Wayside by road. Positive Viewpoint: This is a very risky maneuver that could pay off big. Negative Viewpoint: This is a very risky maneuver that could really blow up in the caravan's face. Pro: This is the party's main chance to try and save the caravan... or as much of it as possible. Con: The caravan is doomed if the party takes the Silver Gate, but at least the party makes it... with this option, there is no guarantee for either the party nor the caravan.
Contributing Readers will have until midnight on Saturday, September 17th to place their vote. A unanimous vote will result in a minor benefit to the party. Any non-participation by a Contributing Reader will result in double the normal penalization.