Vardian Log #6: Swords of the Diabolists

Season: Winter 1199

The Players:

Angus of House Bonisagus			Magus		(Don)
Demorar of House Guernicus			Magus		(Billy)
Certus of House Bonisagus			Magus
Christofano					Grog
Ferramentum of House Verditius			Magus
Geoffrey of House Verditius			Magus		(Phil)
Giovanni					Grog
Luigi Demonsbane				Grog
Myrta						Warrior		(Dave)
Nasan						Demon
Taron of House Bonisagus			Magus

**
** From the Diary of Aquilonius

I have learned my lesson.  Never again shall I miss a Council Meeting.  I
decided to skip going to the Council of Winter 1199 because I thought it
would consist of Tractare whining that Chavin was still missing and
Ferramentum complaining that Certus still wasn't right in his head.
Instead, not only did I miss Certus being utterly humbled, but I also let
several of the young Bonisagus magi go up to Rome without any Jerbiton
guidance.  A grave mistake.

Apparently, the magi were sitting around the Council Table, waiting for
everyone to arrive so that they could begin, when someone burst from one
of the many secret passages that riddle the Covenant into the Council
Room.

Taron, the man who burst in, was a middle aged magus, looking to be no
more than fifty years old.  All of the elder magi recognised him, and
fortunately Angus had not arrived yet, thus there was no violence at this
unexpected intrusion.  Taron apparently began yelling at Certus to get out
of his seat, and due to his mostly befuddled state, Certus actually did.
I can imagine Certus quietly scuttling away, under threat of violent
action, and only wish that I had not missed seeing it.

Taron was apparently one of the founders of the Covenant, and until 1157,
he had been the leader of the Bonisagus faction.  In that year, he had
gone to collect the vis from the magical lake that lies far below us, and
never returned.  Until now.

After ousting Certus from what he considered his rightful position, Taron
apparently glanced at the table, and gave it a violent pull towards
himself, commenting that it wasn't positioned correctly.  By this, he
shamed Certus even more, for Certus had quietly repositioned the table a
year and a half before so that the Quaesitor, who had situated himself
in the center of the table, would be sitting on his side of the table in
reality.  Quite a coup.  I am saddened that I missed it.

**
** From the Scattered Notes of Ferramentum

Years ago, Taron crafted what he called a deck of cards.  It was a set of
pictures, each of which he had elegantly painted in beautiful hues.  After
spending serveral seasons crafting them, he enchanted them all with vis,
creating a powerful, if vague, method of forseeing the future.  At the
start of each council meeting, he would lay his cards before him in a
deliberate pattern and see what trials the Covenant faced.

I still recall Taron's last reading before his disappearance.  He pulled
out his humbly named "Taron Deck" from the folds of his robes and put
them out before him, showing the Covenant's past, present and future.  The
last card, which showed the future, was the three of swords, which bears a
picture of a heart pierced thrice by wicked blades.  If we had listened to
him then, perhaps we could have avoided four decades of dissent.  Perhaps.

After Taron's disappearance, I spent three valuable seasons searching for
those damned cards.  If I could have had them, I would surely have gained
reknown within my House, for they were an elegant magic item indeed, but
Taron had hidden them too well.  And now, Taron has returned.  It almost
seemed that when he had finished shaming Certus, he wished to humble me
as well, for he simply snapped his fingers together, and spoke a quick
spell, and the wooden box which I knew contained his cards was in his
hands once again.

I am sure that Taron smirked at me as he removed the deck and began
to cast the cards for the Covenant, as he always had before our Councils.
The reading was disturbing mainly because it mirrored what the younger
magi said they had been shown at the Stand, during the previous year.
The three of swords, dissension, was our present, and Death our future.

Taron's reading showed an even more pressing concern, however.  The
card of the Devil came up as our greatest adversary at the current
time.  Doing a second reading, centering on the Devil, Taron proclaimed
that the Devil was somewhere up in Rome above, and demanded that the
young magi go up to Rome and once, to deal with the problem.

Geoffrey and Demorar were quick to volunteer to go up into Rome above,
although Geoffrey slyly fooled Taron into allowing them to use the main
Library before he left.  At least the young Verditius magi is able to
think quickly.  I truly think that it matters little in what Library
the youngsters are in, but Fortunatus thinks differently, and Certus
did...

Perhaps if I asked Taron, he would show me how he created his cards, so I
could duplicate his effort.  But then again, perhaps not.  Taron has never
been known for his generosity.

**
** From the Diary of Aquilonius

And so, Demorar and Geoffrey set off for Rome, dragging along Chrisophano,
Giovanni, Luigi and Myrta to help deal with the demons which they expected
to face in Rome above.  The trip up to Rome was apparently uneventful
enough, but as soon as the Quaesitor and the Verditius arrived on the
surface, they began to attract violence.

Truly understanding how to deal with a problem, they went at once to The
Hog's Breath, an excellent Roman tavern.  However, belonging to the
Bonisagus faction, the magi managed to make an awful mess of things.
Geoffrey apparently began to argue with some of the mundanes in the tavern
concerning the ownership of some burnt sausages.  I can only assume that
he thought himself more important than the mundanes, whom the sausages
belonged to.  The Romans whom Geoffrey had decided to pick a fight with
were feeling surly that day (why, they would discover later), and a brawl
soon erupted.

>From what I heard, the idiot magi and grogs managed to kill most of those
that they faced, and then fled, stealing weapons and money.  What a bright
bunch these magi were.

After a bit of work, the magi managed to discover that the weapons that
they had stolen from their dead foes were magical, although not in a
Hermetic way.  They quickly realised that the enchantments must be of a
Diabolic Form.  A bit of research, and they were able to discover who was
making these blades.  They were all of high quality and being sold at very
low prices.  Almost as if they were gifts, it seemed.  As well, all
reports that they heard said that violence was increasing in the city.
Showing some intelligence, Demorar and Geoffrey managed to put events
together, and realized that the swords must be causing the trouble, and
that their creator must be the demon that they were warned of.

Fortunately for them, Angus showed up before they confronted the diabolic
blacksmith.  No doubt, he was hoping for a good fight.  However, he would not
be one to bring the magi into closer attunement with the needs of the
people of Rome.  Unfortunate.

Demorar and Luigi were very quick to start a fight with the blacksmith,
despite the fact that he had four mercenary guards with him.  Geoffrey and
Demorar were both badly wounded before the Grog Luigi managed to kill the
beast, with one of his own blades.  It is fortunate that the battle was
finished quickly, for townsmen had been moving in to aide the smith.
After wreaking this havok, the magi and grogs quickly decided to flee,
leaving behind the many blades that the demon had created.  And now, the
blades, with their malignant influence, have been scattered throughout the
city above.

Theoretically, we won when facing that demon, but I can only wonder if he
thinks the same, for though he is banished, his malignant weapons are
scattered throughout Rome.  I, however, have learned my lesson.  Never 
again shall I miss a Council Meeting.

**
** From the Journals of Taron

Well, the younger magi seem to have driven the demon from Rome above.  I
am sure that it will eventually return, but we should be safe for quite
some time.  Luigi and Myrta both seem to have brought swords back with
them that are diabolically tainted.  I may have to deal with them if it
becomes a problem.

My coup seems to have gone better than I had expected it would.  The
Covenant is almost utterly under my control.  Whether this happy situation
will last is still in the cards, however...