Letter to Balladeer Caddick

[Blue41]

Balladeer Caddick,

My men tell me that you're interested in building a bridge between the Rose and the Fourth Legion. There's no small amount of bad blood or ill feeling here, and while the main perpetrators may no longer be with us, the victims are. Nonetheless, they're willing to clear the air if the feeling is reciprocated.

Lt. R. Colmes

[Loops]

Dear Lt. R. Colmes,

Thank you for your correspondence. I hope my letter finds you in good stead. It was my honour to be hosted by the 4th Legion of the Sultan's House Maribid, and I remain heartened by the enthusiasm all of your men and women display for the safe keeping of our home, Ephia's Well.

They say that words made in haste are rarely kept. The Grandmaster of the Cinquefoil Rose Elizabetha d'Auvergne has charged me with cleansing the stain of dishonour upon our standard. With this in mind, I must be deliberate and careful in how I undertake my command.

I have spoken at length with members of la Banda Rossa, the Sisterhood of the Sibylline Vine, and others in the ranks of the Balladeers, and I have found a grave amount of distrust and misunderstanding of the arduous work of the 4th Legion. If we are to hope to build a future of peace and liberty for our disparate peoples, then we must, with care, create a measured and appropriate plan for resolving future disputes or raising concerns of distrust or misinformation.

Without the certainty of what was briefed to you of our discussions before your arrival, I will summarise that your armsmen suggested that we broker terms of safe access for the Janissary into the Krak des Roses, as well as terms that you may freely investigate people within without fear of reprisal. I have also put forward the suggestion that there should be a magistrate within the Cinquefoil Rose to act as an evening hand of justice and an interested party in the affairs of the halls of governance to ensure that soldiery cannot devolve into the reflexive shutting of doors and building of barricades, which is understandable. It is how they are trained to deal with situations where they feel unsafe, and men are creatures of habit.

As someone foreign to Ephia's Well, I am given to understand that a Magistrate is a government position and outside of the strictest purview of the 4th Legion. I would appreciate your correction on this matter if it is appropriate, and I would also not press for this form of resolution without your blessing. I do feel, however, that it would do much to mend the affairs as I have investigated them.

Considering the aforementioned, I would also invite any suggestions from you or your armsmen that you may have thought of in the meantime or that you believe I am overlooking. If you will excuse the expression, we shall need to look towards building concrete steps to shore up our foundations. Bad actors shall only succeed where we are lax and ill in our diligence. Let us restore the deliberation and forethought necessary to resume building our accord once more.

Yours sincerely,
Caddick
Balladeer of the Lost Hearth

[Blue41]

Caddick,

Magistrate is a Legate-appointed position within the government, inscribed on the Stele. As I understand it, the dwarf Khum'nazir, formerly of the Banda Rossa, sits as Magistrate under Legate al-Marain. Whether he's in uniform or no, I take it as a matter of course that his sympathies lie with the Rose-- which I suspect satisfies the spirit of your suggestion.

The needs of our own are simple enough. Simply put, the laws of the Well do not and cannot end at the doors of the Krak if our two groups are to cooperate on any level. The Cinquefoil Rose are not the enforcers of any law within the Krak, because it is beholden to the same laws of the Well, just as everyone else is. This should be a simple thing to state, but there seems to be some difficulty in accepting it for as long as I've resided here.

We can communicate the nature of an investigation into a person or persons with whomever is on staff at the Krak at a time easily enough. What will not be tolerated is quibbling over the legality or worthiness of an investigation, as that's something best suited for the Halls of Jurisprudence before legal representatives. A case was mounting against Vico Rasca before his execution at the hands of your own, and when my men entered the Krak to take him for questioning, they were met with interference at every level of your organization. An irony considering his eventual fate and the circumstances the Balladeers find themselves in now.

Our men must be capable of doing their duties within the Krak without dealing with arbitrary consequences applied by a single individual with an axe to grind.

Lt. R. Colmes

[Loops]

Dear Lt. R. Colmes,

Assumptions are a dangerous thing. Given that I have had no introduction to Mr Khum'nazir, nor have any armsmen, or working agents of the Cinquefoil Rose mentioned them to me for matters of dispute resolution, we will find he explicitly does not satisfy the spirit of my suggestion. If he has not, as you say, prevented disputes and interference by individuals with an axe to grind, I find it to be a strange suggestion by you that he satisfies the suggestion by any measure, indeed.

You have my agreement that the laws of Ephia's Well do indeed apply as far as the territory of the Cinquefoil Rose for as long as the Grandmaster lends her support to the Accord and allows the Legates to sit. She instructed me to restore the banner to a higher level of honour and decorum. A task I have put myself to over countless hours since my arrival in Ephia's Well. This includes my cooperation with the judiciary in all matters.

However, we shall be clear: la Banda Rossa is a separate military force with its own manner of regard and dispute resolution. The Krak des Roses was dispensed and made the eminent demesne of Grandmaster Elizabetha d'Auvergne by the authority of your Sultan, above and beyond the purview of your Bey and your 4th Legion. Our cooperation is ever at the command of the Grandmaster and the military structure thereunder. Your failure to appreciate this distinction and why a lack of diplomacy on your part has antagonised the situation in the past and led to repeated breakdowns of communication and chaos in the streets are your own failings best reflected upon as a leader.

A reply is not necessary. I retract any further negotiations I had made as an offer to improve the state of our affairs and look instead to other means of supporting our futures.

Yours sincerely,
Caddick
Balladeer of the Lost Hearth

[Blue41]

Caddick,

If Khum'nazir is not to your liking, then propose an alternative. I plan to broach the subject of a magistrate within the Legion with the Legates soon, and there may be some value in representation among the Rose as well.

Your retraction is noted, though it should be stated that I had the opportunity to sit down with Recluta Emilia Laurentis and Apothar Mevura. The Recluta suggested a weekly meeting between the members of the Accord to address any potential issues before they reach the levels of resentment that provoke the Bellows and, it would seem, letters like your own. These issues, sentiments, wishes and the like would then be brought back to the rest of our respective organizations to be communicated. I found myself thinking of your proposal at the time-- now rescinded-- and found it strange that one of the Banda Rossa, a separate military force with its own perspective and regard, would assume this role.

I am sure a weekly meeting between the Fourth Legion and the Balladeers of the Hearth would do us some good. I understand Soldier Diadys is seeking a meeting with you at the moment. The decision ultimately seems to lie with you, however-- or whichever other representative from the College should take up that charge.

Lt. R. Colmes

[Loops]

Dear Lt. R. Colmes,

Thank you for your enquiry. It would seem you would be well suited to dealing with the aforementioned Recluta Emilia Laurentis, on an unofficial basis given her standing.

Unfortunately, as my attention is now turned towards more pressing matters, and I shall not deign to lower the banner of the Cinquefoil Rose to being assumed as a vassalage to your Bey, I had to turn away Soldier Diadys.

All the best in your endeavours.

Yours sincerely,
Caddick
Balladeer of the Lost Hearth