Dark Carnival Season: Winter, 1220 [From THE ROLLS OF DRAGONS RISE]: Full Members: Ahmed of Flambeau Hunter (Scott) Arturo of Mercere Protector (John) Demoror of Quaesitor Teacher (Billy) Dubius of Criamon Faerie Envoy (Woo) Flamma of Tremere Head Protector (Eric) Marlon of Tremere Head Hunter (Philip) Meles of Criamon Protector Nicholi of Jerbiton Teacher (John) Verdan of Bonisagus Lab Worker (Shannon) Members: Muris Infestus of Verditius Associate Member (Donald) Head Mundanes: Arkum Autocrat Luigi, Iron Grog Grog Captain Guardian of Flamma Mundanes: Andre, Silver Grog Covenant Guardian (Matt) Arthur, Silver Grog Guardian of Verdan Beneletto, Mercury Grog Guardian of Fabricatio Guiseppe, Copper Grog Guardian of Angus Iago, Copper Grog Guardian of Tolas Jocopo, Mercury Grog Guardian of Demoror Karelos, Mercury Grog Guardian of Musculus Marcel, Mercury Grog Guardian of Meles Martin, Mercury Grog Guardian of Arturo Pellami Fisherman (Scott) Pietro, Golden Grog Guardian of Nicholi Others: Fret Faerie Dragon * * * [Dramatis Personae]: Antonio Werewolf Arkum Fox Avander Werewolf Garb Elf Noble Kip Lizard Luisa Little Girl Shen Seelie Prince Tsink Donkey Eared Man * * * [A Timeline of Sardinia's Faerie Forest]: Spring, 1218 Magi first hear of the Faerie Forest upon Sardinia. -Rise Log #1, "Living in Harmony" Spring, 1219 First expedition into the Faerie Forest after werewolves begin to kill covenant woodcutters. -Rise Log #4, "Rage Across Sardinia" Winter, 1219 Claims upon Sardinian Faerie Forest defended against new Corsican covenant. -Rise Log #6, "The Olive Branch" * * * [From THE RISE LOGS OF TOLAS OF TREMERE]: When I first left Dragon's Rise, nearly two months ago, I felt pleasantly free, able to leave the responsibilities of my covenant behind for a whole year, to be administered by Flamma and Marlon. Now, I feel bound by Literatus, and I regret the fact that I am not at home, managing those things that need to be managed. Today, Arturo brought me a note which disturbs me greatly, and I feel powerless, for I can not directly deal with the events that are unfolding. Last Spring, when our library went missing for a few weeks, Ahmed and Verdan got involved with some Seekers, and they remained in Malta for several weeks, to help these Seekers to unearth some great secret. When they returned, they refused to say anything of what had occured, which angered me greatly. Now, it seems, both Ahmed and Verdan are being affected by some Mentem spells. Back at Vardian's Tomb, Verdan has begun defending Stephios, a Tytalus who he met on that same expedition. He nowclaims that Stephios did not do certain wrongs which Flamma swears he did. After receiving Arturo's note, I talked briefly with Ahmed, and his attitude seems to be the same. Even worse, when Demoror tried to investigate this matter, by peering into Verdan's mind, he began agreeing with the Bonisagus. Clearly, some powerful non-Hermetic magic is at work. I have sent word back with Arturo that Verdan should be watched carefully. I shall carefully watch Ahmed here at Literatus. Ahmed is truly irrelevant, but I do not want Verdan dead, at least not until he has made my longevity potion. I expect that Flamma has already sent notices out to Magvillus, asking for further investigations into Stephios. I hope this problem will be dealt with very quickly, and I wish I was home to lead the investigation. I do not like my magi being tampered with. At least, not without my consent. * * * [From THE DIARY OF VERDAN OF BONISAGUS]: As Fall of 1220 came to an end, and the days began to grow shorter and colder, I began to think of death, as I often have in recent years. I visited Angus frequently, and spoke with both him and Durus. Even more often, I sought out the grave of Vicent, to the North of the village. I had dug it myself, to lay my faithful grog to rest. Next to him lay Edwardo, the woodsman killed by werewolves, and beyond were the graves of several babes, all dead before they had had a chance to enjoy the world. It was a sad place. I insisted upon it, however, for it was a reminder of the mortality of all things Mundane, lest I again forget, as I had after coming to Sardinia. I remember pacing on cold autumn mornings, counting the graves and wondering who would be next. Somehow, I continued my studies. I have given up working through the night, however, for I have grown wary of the darkness, as if it were the great enemy, responsible for the death of all I hold dear. Now, I read and experiment only in the brightest day, when I can clearly see that the spectre of death is not near. As winter approached, I was still studying Animal. I was set making Lucky my familiar, as I had been for years. I was still determined to bring new hope and life out of my misery. Then, just yesterday, I saw the first ray of new hope. We were sitting at tea, atop the first tower, as we do every day. I was ignoring the happy conversation about me and gazing across the lands that surround our towers, melancholy in my thoughts. In the distance, I saw a small figure heading straight towards our covenant. I cast a spell of Imagonem, and I could soon see the figure easily. It was Muris Infestus, with a rucksack upon his back and a stout staff in his hand. When we headed down to greet Muris, he told us that he had finally decided to quit Vardian's Tomb, and thus had come to join us upon Sardinia, as we had invited him to years before. Muris and I have never been the greatest of the friends. We are too much alike, I think, both seeking to make great things, and thus gain reknown in the Order. Still, I was very happy to see him. Too long, my life had been full of cleavages. For once, there was a reunion instead. Today was the council meeting for winter, and for the first time in ages, I was almost happy to attend. It was actually pleasant to talk with my fellows, discussing the world with them. We discussed things freely and politely, as we always have, making decisions that everyone was happy with. Muris is now an Associate Member of our covenant. Marlon and Dubius have been assigned to collect this vis from the sea horses this year, since both Pumilio and Ahmed are gone. Meles shall be making a magic plow for our farmers, while all the other magi who have not yet down covenant service this year shall be making vis. It is all a sign, I think, that despite tragedy and death, life goes on. I am still obsessed by the deaths that have plagued me, but I am now able to recognise that, I think. As I continue my studies of Animal, working on enchanting my life-long companion, I believe I may finally be able to put the spectre of mortality firmly behind me. * * * [From THE DIARY OF VERDAN OF BONISAGUS]: It was five days after the Council Meeting when I was first disturbed from my studies. Flamma came tromping through my lab, looking for Nicholi. Curious, I tagged along, wanting to know what was going on. Soon, I learned that a little girl named Luisa had wandered into our covenant. She spoke only French, and thus Flamma had come looking for Nicholi, and his grog, Pietro. The two of them spoke with Luisa for a while, and then Demoror was called in as well. He looked through her mind, but still, we had an incomplete story. Apparently, Luisa had wandered into the woods in a small town, in faraway France. Somehow, she had ended up in our Faerie Forest, to the North, and from there travelled all the way to our covenant. Luisa believed that several other children were lost in the woods as well. We all considered the matter briefly, and Flamma mentioned that Luisa should be brought home. Finally, though, we returned to our labs. Flamma said that we would discuss the problem at a special council meeting the next morning. That evening, our covenant was again visited, this time by two werewolves. I must admit that they were the most polite creatures I ever saw. They quietly waited out in our court yard until one of the magi saw them. It seems that the last time they had visited us, they howled and barked, and ended up bound in a dome of stone as a result. The werewolves told us that they too had a problem. Something, they said, was eating great swaths of trees within their forest. Flamma told them that the problem would be considered, and soon, the werewolves left. Early the next morning, we were all gathered about the council table. Flamma was, by that time, extremely angry. She had decided that the faeries were responsible for the French children becoming lost, and she was determined to set things right, even if she had to burn the whole forest down. Shortly, she was asking who would accompany her. Feeling better than I had in months, I quickly agreed. I was curious to see the wonders of this island, for I had not truly traversed it since my arrival. Even more, I hoped to help Flamma put the faeries in their place, for I have never been friends with that fay race. With us went Muris (borrowing Iago as a guardian grog, for we did not have any extras to supply him with his own) and Demoror. The warriors Andre and Pellami also accompanied us. Dubius, the faerie envoy, should have gone with us as well, but he had already been sent off with Marlon, to gather vis from the sea horses. After Nicholi promised to watch after Luisa while we were gone, our preparations were complete. So, off we went, four magi formerly of Vardian's Tomb. Just a few miles out, Muris got angry about the way I spoke of Faeries and challenged me to a Certamen. It was just like old times. The next day, when we neared the faerie forest, Demoror began to cast spells of the mind, looking for lost children. He led us to a river with a bridge across. Atop it were two elves and an imp, all fishing. Pellami joined them while the rest of us started asking questions. My questions were all pointed ones, for I was looking for a reason to kill them. The creatures danced around the questions in a typical faerie manner, and then prepared to leave. A smile crossed my face when I heard Flamma utter the words "Creo Ignem." * * * [From THE EPIC OF LUIGI]: When Flamma started cussing, I figured that her spell had messed up. I dodged to the side, expecting flames to be arcing towards her, and was quite surprised when, several minutes later, there had been no explosion. Looking about, I saw that in the middle of the bridge, there was a small fellow made entirely out of fire. From the syllables Flamma was uttering, words entirely unfit for a lady, I figured that wasn't what she meant to do. I unsheathed my sword, ready to make little elf cubes if Flamma said the word. Suddenly, Verdan started chatting with the three faeries, like he was going to make friends with them after Flamma had started chanting spells. I glared at him, vaguely hoping for a moment that he was going to do something useful, and then almost ducked again, when I heard Flamma cast another spell. This time, a cage made of flame appeared. It missed all three faeries, though, and instead captured a bunch of woodland critters which had been gathering on the other side of the river. I think they might have been menacing us, but I'm not sure. * * * [From THE DIARY OF VERDAN OF BONISAGUS]: I was quite upset when I saw that Flamma was only conjuring a cage of fire. I had been hoping that she would be charbroiling faeries. It was even worse that she had botched her aim, capturing several animals rather than the faeries. One of the fisherman was quite frightened by that time, and so he dived into the river, turning into a fish. I tried to stop him with a spontaneous spell, but failed. I was determined not let the other two escape, and so I started yelling threatening things, invoking the fictional wrath of Lord Rupes of the Rupes Valley. Something I said must have worked, for the remaining elf and imp were cowed. They meekly submitted to our questioning. Unfortunately, when Demoror read their minds, he learned that they had nothing to do with the abduction. I suggested that we kill the faeries anyways, for their kind is always bad, but I was outvoted. After releasing the two faeries, we next turned our attention to cageful of captured animals. One fox seemed to be making an extremely careful examination of Flamma's trap, so, when we released the others, we kept him. Soon, we had forced him to reveal that he could speak Latin. He was quite an intelligent fox. The fox, whose name was Arkum, told us that he had come from France, travelling by way of a magical half circle of trees which surrounded a golden shrub. We were all quite pleased with this information, for it seemed quite likely that Luisa had taken the same route as Arkum had. Thus, we had a lead. We were all enchanted by Arkum when he spoke, for he was such a cute and eloquent creature. Somewhere in there, one of us, I no longer recall who, agreed to make Arkum our autocrat. How odd life is sometimes. When Arkum led us to the half circle of trees, we briefly investigated it. Walking around the half circle, we found that the rest of the circle magically appeared. Demoror quickly confirmed that we had indeed journeyed to France. Returning was less simple. We kept walking the half circle, and nothing happened. Finally, though, after trying for several hours, we all found ourselves back in Sardinia. All, that is, except for Andre, who had somehow gotten trapped in France. We decided that he would eventually find his way back, and continued our investigation. I was a bit worried about the swaths of trees which were being eaten, so we next turned to examine those. Only Flamma did not care that our vis source within the forest might be damaged. She and Luigi returned to the covenant, so that they could retrieve Luisa and return her home. After collecting vis from the olive trees, the rest of us soon came upon one of the paths of destruction which the werewolves had mentioned. We were a bit worried for a time, and then one of the others remembered an obscure reference to werewolves. He told us all that every seven years, werewolves went crazy and began eating trees. Satisfied with our solution to that problem, we decided to head home. * * * [From THE EPIC OF LUIGI]: When it became evident that the rest of the magi planned to wander around the faerie forest, like the little lost children that we were trying to help, Flamma decided to leave. She wanted to get Luisa, because we now knew a quick way to return her home. I was quite sad that Luisa was going to be leaving. Becki and I will never have children of our own, and I was dearly hoping that we might adopt this one. I knew that Flamma was right, though, so I did not try and stand between Luisa and a return to her family. When we came within sight of our covenant, we saw a very odd spectacle. A carnival of some sort had set up in our village. When we got nearer, it was clear that the carnival was composed of faeries. A large green lizard wandered about randomly, while six short men with halberds ran about, always in perfect formation. As we passed a donkey eared man, leaning on crutches, I saw Flamma begin to frown. She talked with Meles for a while, for he had been in charge of things while she, Tolas and Marlon were gone. Then, she angrily descended upon the faerie troupe, sure that they were at the heart of our problems. A musician finally admitted to Flamma that they'd just come from France, and they'd taken about ten children with them. I closed my eyes, sure that he would be burned by a ball of flame. Miraculously, when I looked again, they were still talking. Flamma soon returned to me, saying that the children had been left with the elves in the forest. Quite furious, she grabbed Meles, and ordered me to find all grogs that could be spared. After I had collected Guiseppe, Marcel, Martin, Pietro, Karelos and Beneletto, we set off again for the faerie forest, this time a party of war. * * * [From THE DIARY OF VERDAN OF BONISAGUS]: Just a few hours away from the covenant, we did not expect to run into a war party, but that was exactly what confronted us. At the head stood Luigi, resplendent in his Crusader armor. It was like a mosaic out of the holy wars. With Luigi was Flamma, who was furious. She was sure that the faeries of the forest had betrayed us. So, we all turned around, heading back again to the forest we had just left. A few hours into the forest, we came upon several imps. Excited by the fact that Flamma had finally seen the truth of faerie ways, I suggested we kill them at once. On a shorter fuse than usual, she turned to me, shouting Certamen before I had even completed my suggestions. She beat me, of course, making me promise not to kill faeries without her permission, and, not even to suggest killing them. And, of course, I was knocked out for several hours. When I awoke, I learned that I had missed a skirmish with some elves. Beneletto was glowing while Karelos was temporarily struck dumb. Apparently, the elves had opened fire with elf shot, and the warriors and magi had answered in kind. Unfortunately, none of the elves had been slain. They were still questioing an elf when I awoke. He was saying that the children, along with several French farmers, had been stolen at the orders of Garb and Shen, two of the Faerie nobles of the forest. When the carnival entered Sardinia, the children had been given to Garb. Flamma finally let the elf go with a message. She promised that if the children were not all returned to France, she would burn down the entire Faerie forest. And thus, we left. I was pleased to be returned home. The expedition had been a good one, which had helped greatly to clear my mind of the matters of late. Even the fact that we had not been able to slay any faeries seemed a minor manner. In a short council meeting, we made Arkum the autocrat, and put Muris in charge of making a magic quill, that Arkum could speak to, and produce writing. I then returned to my lab, throwing myself into my study of Animal with a new vigor. Over the next weeks, the entire problem drew to a graceful conclusion. Flamma drove off the carnival of trouble makers, though I was able to convince her to collect several arcane connections before they left. Then, we received a note saying that the children would be returned. Shortly, Flamma and Demoror set off. They returned Luisa, collected Andre, and made sure that things were back to normal in the French village. Flamma was a bit upset for a time, because two adults were still missing. She threatened the faeries some more, sending notes back and forth via Fret. Finally, she learned that the two had been killed by some animal in the woods. She was unhappy, but agreed not to burn down the forest. Quite considerate of her, I think.