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A letter that starts with a bizarre scrawl makes its way to Katya

A LEGENDARY BALLADEER HAS TWO STUDENTS, BOTH FAST FRIENDS FROM A YOUNG AGE WHO STUDY THE MYSTERIES OF THE SWORD. TRAGEDY STRIKES WHEN ONE LOSES HOPE IN THE QUEST FOR THE CUP AND TURNS TOWARDS A DARKER PATH OF BLOOD AND SINISTER POWER. A CONFRONTATION UPON THE DUNES OF THE SCALD. A WHIRLWIND OF GLEAMING STEEL AND EMOTION AS ONCE-COMRADES CLASH BLADES TO SEE WHICH TRUTH REIGNS SUPREME.

Katya -  I've been tasked with fielding entertainment for the Bloodsands, and I can think of no better source of inspiration and talent in entertaining than those of your less studious but impressive in other ways College.

Among the first events we'd like to field are battles with dramatic narratives tied to them and I should like to enlist the College for ideas and perhaps participation. Let's break bread and discuss what's possible.

I've a pretty good budget to work with, here.

Ever your friend and rival (with the bigger sword)
GIDEON FALDREN

FROM THE OFFICES OF VELLYN LHYRIAN

DRAGON,

I am told you are rather enthusiastic of the splendor and excitement of the arena and the potential it holds. On behalf of our new Legate I'd like to extend an invitation to speak of mutual interests and opportunities for the enrichment of both our cultures.

I can meet you at a place of your choosing, or can make arrangements to host you at one of the finest restaurants in the Well.

I'm also told you wield a, and I quote here, "psychic sword". I think that is Vellyn simply fucking getting me interested, perhaps. If this is true I would very much like to see it and perhaps interview you for The Book of Swords.

GIDEON FALDREN
Sword Advisory Council, Gold League
Student of Sandstone - Hiswordian

Think they have some time tomorrow around this bell, if you're available and think you can get stuff prepared. If not, we can figure something out after the election.

Thanks for help putting this together, I owe you one.

-Gideon

A simple letter slipped under the door to their room in the Krak

Ritz,

This is your semi-neighbor Gideon the Guard. I figured I would likely run into you at some point to simply ask in person, but in the off-chance my studies keep me up at odd hours I wanted to reach out with an inquiry.

I've heard you've opened up a restaurant 'Casa Manta' in the Well, beside the pyramid. I'm looking to take a friend out for some well needed respite and an indulgent meal.

- Would you be able to accommodate a pair for a private multiple course meal?
- Is it going to be expensive?
- Do you provide wine or spirits as part of the offerings?
- Is there a dress code?
- Can I have my swords as part of the dress code?*

I'll try to find you over the next couple days. No particular rush on this.

-Gideon

*I know peace-binds of many cultures

[Companion - Lieutenant Rennik Colmes]

Companion - Lieutenant Rennik Colmes

"It was a gift, entrusted to me by our record-keeper, Paraskavi Lurak. Made for a Bey known as the Logothete."

An elongated dagger of unique make and design - somewhat between the length of xiphe and your traditional poignard. Upon the pommel is an intricate inlaid gold engraving of a man that this author believes is Vahd al-Maribid the Great, which would make the piece itself quite old if the story of it's origin rings true.

History usually isn't kind to the many past Beys or administrators of this Great Ring, but what little we know of the Logothete involves command of several Legions of Janissaries under Vahd the Great. The practice of distributing these initially ceremonial blades were reserved for the Beys, or rarely officers who had performed a particularly demanding duty.

While one might initially dismiss the piece as simply decorative, the more discerning eye or enthusiast would recognize the blade as a formidable weapon in it's own right. A tip that yet maintains an almost impossible sharpness, and a balanced weight to allow deft deflection of seemingly longer and heavier blades.

His style, in his own words: Relentless. Pressure. Measured.

Upon first impression in our chance encounter, Rennik Colmes is first and foremost a tired man. While this observation isn't exactly uncommon when looking upon veteran soldiers in the Legion Misfortune, Colmes carries the weight of his duty and the exhaustion it brings in stride. He is surrounded by soldiers whom he talks with casually, partaking in the occasional dry joke and humoring a gaggle of visitors in his barracks. His soldiers respect him in a way that's markedly different than the way Recluta or some of the Balestrieres hang upon the Condotierro. Instead of outright fear or sycophancy, there is an understanding that Colmes is yet among them in the drudgeries of duties in the Well. Building cases, walking the streets, taking statements from concerned Voiced and Voiceless alike.

It isn't wealth and prestige that one usually finds when climbing the ranks in the Legion Misfortune - your reward is more of what came before, but now the people you build cases about are much more important and all the more deadly. The occasional recognition through beautiful ceremonial pieces certainly doesn't hurt the bottom line, though. Colmes didn't have a name for his at first, but he seems fond and nostalgic of the piece he now calls "Companion."

[Ausselgyrdd - Sir Aurelio d'Lyon]

Ausselgyrdd - Sir Aurelio d'Lyon

A great blade from an ancient age of heroes past. While the blade has been blunted at the edge, the massive sword possesses a great weight and presence that this author is certain would bring a reckoning force upon any it would fall upon. The hilt is wreathed in living vines and unbloomed flowers that move as one with Aurelio's hands - it fights alongside its knight and is a living, thinking thing.

Ausselgyrdd was a knight of King Owain I. His was a tale of honour, then betrayal. He struck his comrade in the back and succumbed to his own wounds from the battle. There he dwelt in the King's Mist and Kula's blessed greens for many years, awaiting redemption.

When I came upon it, he called to me from the Lilie Tor of the Ashways, a place of the Garden, where the last spirits of bright, fierce Kula are so present.

The tower opened to me and to birdsong also I was met. At the top of the tower was a sacred pool of Ephia's water - some of the last pure water in the realm. There, the green'ry grew into a thickness, taking the form of the man.

He drew a blade from the depths of the green and he held it for me. Plead that I would redeem him, to carry him forth. As I drew the sword from the green, the flowers and the vines coiled around it, keeping the sword from falling apart.

Eventually the sword's flowers bloomed and Auselgyrdd spoke to me. He said, "I am the sword, and I am your companion." We shall grow in good deed and by my hand he is redeemed for his treachery.

Favored forms: Cavalry - or over-shoulder highlander style when afield.

When I think of the word "knight" and let the mind's eye make shapes, something much like Aurelio manifests itself. He is a tall man, bearing the scars of battle, yet still possesses the proud dignity of the knights of the old stories and cuts a striking figure in his Cinquefoil regalia and helm. I encountered the man by chance in the Souk - in weeks prior I had many companions speak highly of both the man's swordsmanship and of his character. He was busy preparing for a dreadful quest against an ancient Djinn, but took the time to indulge this author his curiosity and allowed me to examine and make record of Ausselgyrdd.

Amongst the small-talk, the tale of Ausselgyrdd's redemption brought me into a philosophical mood. I asked Aurelio if there was an act, or line that once crossed, man would forever be damned.

"Brooking. I've seen what it does to a brooker. I cannot save that soul -  perhaps the Mother could."

[THE BOOK OF SWORDS]

THE BOOK OF SWORDS
A Contemporary Chronicle of Notable Swords in Ephia's Well and their Wielders

Student Gideon "The Guard" Faldren of Sandstone College
Sword Enthusiast and Hiswordian

Publication starting Nisah 2nd, IY 7789
A time wherein all things Begin.

Foreword:

Within this tome are the recorded accounts of notable swords within Ephia's Well. While many may dismiss these weapons as just a tool, or extension of the heroes and villains of our home's will, it is this author's hope that the records here might lend insight into the histories, trials, and circumstances in which these fabled blades were found and held.

The records were compiled through face-to-face interviews - in either fleeting chance encounters or more formal scheduled affairs. The author did his best to examine the blades and probe the wielder gently with questions that might provide interesting insight into the blade itself or the wielder.

Comprised of:

I. Ausselgyrdd - Sir Aurelio d'Lyon, Cinquefoil Knight
2. Companion - Lieutenant Rennik Colmes