It's no surprise to any that the Lady Monique Greenmarch, who has long taken an avid interest in all things Eurus, should find herself seeking out a way to meet with the Eurusi contingent headed for Arvum's shores. "Purely out of a deep desire to learn more and to extend the diplomatic relations of the Telmarch," is the official reason given. She even has new assistants, Quintus (Sebastian) and Sextus, Septimus and Octavus (Ansel's guards), and Nonus (Swift) for such an important journey.

The unofficial reason, though, is far more exciting.

The Minx of the Marches has enlisted the help of her trusted, talented allies and friends to get her to Sungreet at Farmorn Point, to finesse the way for her to meet with Prince Damik'uhl'daja privately. With the assistance of Delia, and possibly a stolen ship from a charming fellow named Argus the Cruel, they'll try to meet with the Eurusi contingent before they ever make land fall. Her goal? To beguile the Eurusi Royal and make of him an ally in that foreign land, with the ultimate goal being to seduce his support of Dawn Baseborn and Leo Fidante, whom she has reason to believe are in Eurus, acting against the Emperor. The Minx will employ all of her tricks, up to and including offering Prince Damik an unknown assassin to help him eliminate his siblings, who clamor for the crown. If they are successful in cutting a deal, she'll give him a letter from one Dante DiFidante, an introduction to his cousin Leo, speaking well of Monique and her helpfulness, among other things.

While Sebastian will be traveling with Monique to Sungreet, he by no means plans to travel as himself. Instead of being a representative of Pravus, he travels as one of Monique's assistants. His goal: to assist Monique with getting her private audience -- whether that means finding and bribing the right assistant to give her a small window of opportunity, distracting guards with a well-timed drinking contest, stealing a copy of Prince Damik'uhl'daja's itinerary to find the right moment to approach him, or all of the above.

Giving his blessing to this little attempt at 'diplomacy', Ansel isn't going to be attending in person. Instead, the Duke of Telmar is providing some resources that he sets at Monique's disposal. A sum of silver, a few guards masquarading as assistants and a few other things that he believes that she might find useful in her attempt to turn the Crown Prince.

Seems like Arianna and Sebastian have spent a lot of time together lately, he is her cousin after all and she does love him so. It makes sense she'd tag along to keep this delegation on track. Not really. She tends to be trouble when she's left to her own devices. Thankfully Monique is one of the very few people who can keep her on a tight leash, which is how she prefers it sometimes not gonna lie. In any case she's here to do what Arianna does best -- be a persuasive little thing and assist in the diplomacy. Or seductions. Most people would call it seduction but really it's her one tried and true method of getting everyone to get along.

If things go awry.

Well...the First Knight of Setarco is no meager combatant and as one of the foremost experts on making murder look like art she will utilize those skills if need be on just about any and every obstacle between the delegation and safety. Hopefully it doesn't come to that but if it does we all know she's going to do her very best to keep Monique and her second favorite cousin alive. (Don't ask who the first one is, the mystery is just so much better.)

Anisha Whisper is an excellent courtier, and her coming along with the expedition fulfills a two-fold purpose. First of all, she's very good at what she does - making people feel welcome, safe, and willing to speak on any number of subjects.

Secondly, she actually speaks Eurusi. Which she intends to keep from the delegation, and use to suss out hidden information for Monique. After all, there's something to be said for what can be spoken of in front of strangers, and Anisha has a gift for truth. So, she seeks to learn information useful to Monique's mission - particularly as regards to the Prince and his rivals for the throne, siblings or not.

Swift will be going along, ostensibly as a servant and assistant to the nobility, using her skill with medicine and alchemy to ensure if anyone becomes sick or wounded that they can be tended immediately. She will be on hand to concoct any necessary poultices or potions as required and in general to just keep her ears open and her mouth shut. A former Thrall, she knows exactly how to go about being part of the scenery, working quietly at the tasks set to her without disrupting others.

Ships. Dante won't be taking one of those anywhere, not anymore. Instead he does what he can from Arx. He's not the diplomatic type, and not being there negates his ability with a sword. So, in case things do go awry, he'll train the ship's crew in tactics that can be used on sea or land, should violence become necessary.

As a skulky investigator from the Lowers of Arx, Ras has recently upped his charges when it comes to dangerous cases, and Monique was willing to pay his fee. He's been hired to find out some extra information about Damik'ul'daja before the attempt to sway the prince is made by the Minx and the others.

Since Monique briefed him on the target, he knows that Damik has siblings who clamor for the emperor's throne, and that he is the son of the Vizier, not the emperor. So what he's looking for is whether the prince is Abyssally tainted, what more he might want, if he's controlled already by strings that need to be cut, and those types of things.

The first stage of his investigation begins immediately (before Monique goes to Sungreet) in the Lowers, where he knows black market traders who deal with Eurusi smugglers, and contacts them to learn what they know. Further, he uses his awkward knowledge of the language to converse with refugees from Eurus (from action 3843). He speaks more directly with the few refugee families that he's befriended lately, too - all with the hope of finding out more regarding the prince.

The second stage of his investigation is in Sungreet. There, he uses street contacts - some of them smugglers, many of them fluent speakers of Eurusi, who can blend in well with any groups of rabble among camp followers, the city's slums, seedy taverns, and anywhere rumors might be spread. The information is directed towards Monique.

With her decent acting chops, Alessia joins the endeavor, posing as one of Monique's assistants, Nonus. As violence isn't anticipated, she'll remain placid and charming for the most part, though will keep her eyes peeled for any threats to any member of her party, especially the Greenmarch herself. In true Lycene fashion, she's armed but not visibly so. With a hidden dagger and sharp hair ornaments on her person, she's well prepared to face any physical threat if things take a dark turn.

Delia heads off to Sungreet ahead of the others, renting a berth on a merchant ship going that way. She's going to appear as if she's there for regular courtier-type stuff, and she probably will actually do some of that for appearances' sake. However, her real purpose is to get chatting to nobles of House Helianthus, especially those who appear to be familiar with sea routes or the Eurusi. Once she finds someone suitable, she means to charm and persuade that person into telling her all about it. That creates options. Perhaps the others will want to get ahead and go try to meet the foreign fleet before it gets to Sungreet. Otherwise, it just provides some more information about which way they might come from and where they might go. Once she's all done with this, she'll wait for Monique's ship and go along for the ride, to be persuasive elsewhere if she can, or find a way to safety if danger looms.

Getting an audience isn't easy. They arrive at Farmorn Point well before the Eurusi, and find Sungreet bustling with activity. Many of the domains of the Compact have done similar to Monique's claim of being diplomatic envoys from the Telmarch, with voices of scores of domains present to speak to House Helianthus or in hopes of a conversation with the Eurusi and find out first if war is inevitable. With the bustling chaos, Sebastian is able to track down and talk to scores of different Helianthus officials and use Ras' contacts to finally track down exactly who to talk to, and from there Anisha and Delia as trained diplomats are able to find out exacting details on when and where the Eurusi are expected to arrive and just who is due to speak to them. A few bribes, cajoling and deft diplomatic maneuvers later, and Monique's Telmarch delegation is added as official envoys that have Helianthus permission to speak to the Eurusi.

Of course, House Helianthus almost certainly expected Monique's group to be one of dozens to eventually speak and would be far down the list, but the Minx of the Marches has recently acquired a very fine ship, and once there's even a threadbare official cover so the Eurusi are expecting her, there's really no need to wait. They sail ahead to jump the line and boldly see if the Crown Prince of Skal'daja will let them board and speak in person.

The Eurusi are more than a bit dubious at the entreaties to come aboard, but Monique, Alessia, Swift, Anisha, Sebastian and Delia are all extremely convincing. To be honest, most of them have been convincing people for a living for a very long time, and that's not about to stop now. So Monique, escorted by the disguised cohorts, comes aboard and has her private meeting with the Crown Prince of Skal'daja, Prince Damik'uhl'daja.

Monique and the prince meet in private for what seems like an awfully long time, and during the time of the meeting Anisha and Delia are able to find out that the crew is a mix of fanatically loyal slave soldiers, higher rank freemen from commoner families, and the officers are almost all Skal'dajan nobility. The fleet is huge and largely divided. A third is under Damik's personal command, while the other two thirds are split in command by two of his brothers, and Anisha is able to hear a fair bit of scuttlebutt about tensions between the three, as all vie for the approval of their father. The sailors gossip about the frictions and how Damik was given command because he's the least reckless and less violent compared to Ulrik'uhl'daja the Butcher of Skal'daja or Galik'uhl'daja the Whip of Skal'daja. THe sailors point that one tends to not get titles like that in Skal'daja by being pleasant. The gossip goes on, and many of the Eurusi are interested to meet the Arvani as curiosities, but at long last Lady Monique Greenmarch emerges and all of Arvum will get to find out just how convincing the Minx of the Marches could be.

The proposal of marriage from the Crown Prince of Skal'daja to Monique is still something of a surprise. Monique can be very, very, very convincing it seems.

To say it shocks the crew of Damik'uhl'daja's flagship is something of an understatement too, as this simply isn't done. Many are aghast when Damik goes on to explain that he intends to ally himself with the Arvani, and that a letter from Monique helped convince him that he's been fighting on the wrong side of the war in Eurus, and Skal'daja should turn against the Dune Emperor and break free from the fetters of the Emperor and Damik's father, the Grand Vizier. Damik, by his side, proceeds to give a stirring speech about how Skal'daja could rise to be a bright beacon in Eurus, and the continent could be liberated from the forces that have held it in sway for generations.

It really does not take long for assassins to attack after that.

Alessia notices them first. There's a hiss from a cat (wait, how is there a cat on board this ship?) and she sees Skal'dajan nobles associated with Damik's brother Ulrik edge closer in the crowd after he gives the speech. She sees the daggers surreptitiously being drawn, and she has time to draw her own weapon and shout a warning right as the assassins move to suddenly charge.

Fortunately for Damik'uhl'daja, Monique's guards Sextus, Septimus and Octavus were standing by the pair and react immediately to Alessia's shouted threat, getting swords out of their scabbards as they move forward to to place themselves in between the assassins and Lady Monique. Septimus manages to parry a dagger but a second assassin stabs him in the throat, who is then cut down in turn by Sextus. Octavus impales a third man before a crossbow bolt catches him in the chest. Sextus is stabbed from behind by a hulking Eurusi in plate mail, while Monique deftly sweeps the leg of one attacker to cut his throat as he falls then stabs the plate-clad Eurusi through the heart, her dagger punching through the metal like it was paper.

A cry goes up from the deck in Eurusi, "Damik has betrayed Skal'daja, death to him and his Arvani dogs! Rally to Ulrik!" An answering cry bellows up from most of the slaves and numerous soldiers, "Protect the Prince!" "For Damik!" "For a free Skal'daja!"

And then the battle is truly joined.

Prince Damik is shouting orders, as the ship begins to turn hard to port and a robed figure near the prow of the ship waves flagged signals. Catapults, archers and ballistae on the decks of hundreds of Eurusi ships begin to fire at one another, as the ships under Damik's command and the ships of his brothers start to clash.

On board his flagship, scores of Eurusi are trying to kill Damik, his supporters, and all of the Arvani guests. Alessia's glaive is out and the glaivedancer of House Mazetti demonstrates her unique style, dancing nimbly away from three attackers as she impales one and flings the body overboard. Sebastian has his Diamond Thorn free and is frantically trying to defend himself and Swift Grayhope. One attacker is attacking with far more strength than seems humanly possible for the thin Eurusi's frame, knocking Sebastian off his feet. Swift throws some powder into the Eurusi's face, making him scream in anguish, but the attacker grabs and brutally slams Swift to the deck of the ship with horrifying force, Swift's cry of shock cut terribly short as she impacts and lies broken and prone. Sebastian is able to recover and cut the man down, but at a glance it's unclear if Swift is still alive.

A bolt of fire lances through the air as Alessia manages to dance away at the last moment, some of her hair being singed by the blast. A robed mirrormask is chanting and pointing, as arcane symbols appear floating in the air then fly forward and burn three sailors fighting to Damik to ashes. More chanting is heard but it's suddenly cut short as the man is pulled backwards and his throat is cut by Monique, who is moving on to her next target before the body hits the floor.

Alessia and Sebastian find themselves fighting back to back, cutting down their own attackers and as their attackers fall they become aware of cheers from the deck. Scores of armed supporters are cheering around Damik, and the battle has died down as quickly as it started, as it seems the assassins could only inspire a thin minority to turn on the Crown Prince of Skal'daja. Able to catch their breath, they can look out from the ship and see what's become of the fleet.

There's smoke rising from Sungreet, and obvious battle in the distance on the ground. It's hard to make out, but throngs of thralls are fighting in what seems to be a revolt against House Helianthus, and ships from Galik'uhl'daja's fleet have made landfall with forces fighting against revolting slaves and supporting Helianthus... who seem to have other forces of Helianthus fighting them. On the sea, dozens of ships are sinking and fighting is happening across scores of decks, but it looks like roughly half of the Eurusi forces are withdrawing... though to the South and Southwest, not East towards Eurus.

Damik has his forces move to support the Arvani who are freeing the thralls, and Monique, Sebastian, and Alessia move to the ground with the forces landing, while Anisha and Delia look after the prone Swift. She's clearly in a coma and likely to perish, even with aid from Mercies on land.

As they land, it becomes obvious that House Helianthus is in a civil war, with forces of the Duke fighting alongside of Damik's brothers against a thrall slave revolt and the Faith of the Pantheon. Templars and Knights of Solace battle desperately against mages and adepts from Eurus who are wrecking horrifying damage, but Damik's forces joining on the side of the Faith decisively tips the balance and prevents a slaughter of thralls. As Monique, Sebastian, Alessia and hundreds of Damik's Eurusi take the loyalist forces of Skal'daja and Helianthus by the rear, it turns into a rout. Some of the forces loyal to the Duke escape by sea, but Sungreet falls to the free forces.

As night falls, the Compact finds itself at war. A war both with a foreign foe, as Damik's brothers lead a little under two thirds of the Eurusi fleet against the Compact, and also a civil war, as the Mourning Isles turns upon itself. But Monique's mission may have saved matters, and they have a new powerful ally.

Now she just has to decide what to do about a marriage proposal.

The Crimson Blades have come to the defense of the Fluffybottom's and the Lodge of Petrichor. It is the least that can be done after what happened earlier in the year. At their head is a determined and fierce Violet. Though she sleeps, her watch is almost constant. Whether on patrols she herself takes with a unit or standing atop the watchtower, spyglass in hand, watching. Waiting. Feeling.

Working with the Chapterhouse of the Fluffybottoms and the King's Own, only those who can push past their incredulity work closely with the animals. Others are set to scouting and keeping a moving scout perimeter of concentric circles. Violet doesn't wish to leave anything to chance.

The ballistae are ready, but one is kept in reserve and capable of moving to reinforce other defenses if needed. Those of the Fluffybottoms who are willing are welcomed to work with the scouts, hopefully extending the hours of watch well into dark and well before dawn. Signal arrows that trail colorful ribbon or give off different screams are with every scout, ready to alert that the enemy is near.

Harlex has been preparing for a long while it seems. His armor, his diamondplated sword, all provisions made toward the singular purpose he has set him to in this crisis--to meet the enemy and drive them back with everything he has and is. Since Violet is present, sending out orders from the command tent and leading patrols, he must only make sure his soldiers in Scarlet Company are keeping with the plan.

He's heard good things about the knightly Fluffybottoms and knows the talents of the King’s Own are up to snuff. So all that's left for him to do is fight.

He'll be joining a patrol unit as well. An intermix of King's Own and Blades, like they discussed at their strategy meeting. (@cal 2227) But the dark-clad mercenary is, above all else, here to fight. Harlex has warred across Arvum and so much of it he regrets. But this is his chance to give back, from all that he's taken.

Thorley has been an unofficial member of the Crimson Blades since the moment he married Violet Marjawn. With the Commandant heading into the field with their child, the knight knows he needs to throw in his lot to assist with the patrols. It also helps to have a Knight that has no attachments to the Blades or King's Own to assist - an extra blade in the field is always a good thing. So once again, the Sword of Westrock Reach is out to bring glory home and protect the precious fluffybottoms. Also, he plans to serve as Violet's personal knight as she needs one.

Being in the division of the Blades that she is, Arianna's job is to protect the Fluffybottoms. She's learned how to do the duties without being invested beyond that, which means, she takes her work very seriously. While some people might have questions it's business as usual for the Corporal. She's equipped well, thankfully, for the task at hand and possesses a wide array of skills which help her be a very vigilant troubleshooter. When it comes to eliminating the threat she prefers to approach things from a more cerebral, calculated approach rather than deal with a head on assault.

This means skirmishing over standing and fighting and making sure that she can communicate with her charges, not enough to wax philosophy but enough to have several contingencies in place as well as secondary and tertiary locations to withdraw and recoup. She's good at moving unobserved and hopes her awareness of the threat can bring her insights moment to moment.

Aiden signed up to specifically help the Fluffybottoms because of his understanding of, well, animals. Birds especially. This is particularly the best fit for him, considering he's also a friend of the Lodge and the Officator of the Menagerie. If he's surrounded by birds the entire time or if anything strange happens with the birds - like if they seem to be swooping down to him as if passing messages or rallying together in a flight or scouting ahead - one can probably look to him for it. He'll support the Crimson Bldes and King's Own by trying to be a go-between, between Fluffybottoms, the Great Bird Empire and well, those who stand for the Compact. Yes, he might get looked at funny for it but it seems totally normal to him to talk to the birds. Though of note, Aiden will put donations earned from the Menagerie Masquerade ball toward the efforts, supplies, and whatever else is needed for this part of the operation to be a success. The man is also a bit of command and scout himself, so he won't balk at leading any or participating in any patrols, not when he has help of fur and feathers! He's totally bringing his Alaricite bow, Starfall.

A corrupted bear, twisted and hungry. Collapsing tunnels among the Burrows. Violet almost dead. Squire Ragnarr Ragamuffin clinging to life - barely. Dead Knights of Petrichor, fluffy and otherwise. A quarter of the Crimson Blades dead. But they are victorious. For now.

Arianna wants to see the worship of Tehom spread more commonly throughout the Crownlands and beyond. Though every movement has to gain momentum somewhere and thus Stonehearth, the seat of House Stonewood is the birth of her efforts. With the construction of the temple Arianna begins holding ceremonies, guided meditations and rituals dedicated to the Thirteenth for the people. She doesn't expect many to show up at first and has prepared for that by creating theological curriculum disguised as spiritual techniques to protect the soul from the Abyssal corruption spreading through the Gray Forest. This is an observed phenomena that people can get behind and understand as a threat and also props the House of the Thirteenth up as a much desired destination to gain education, guidance and self discipline. It's a slow movement but indoctrination always is and at the end of the day, the young Lady of Stonehearth is ever the charming, articulate and cunning woman whom has been able to inspire fidelity from the people. It's what she does as the Minister and now as a Disciple of the Thirteenth.

Joslyn is new to Stonehearth, and so with these services Arianna is running, Joslyn finds it to be a perfect opportunity to make her first public appearances in Stonehearth as the new Lady Joslyn Stonewood. She offers to lead her own services, but she also seeks to help the less fortunate. Joslyn will be using the temple as a staging ground for charity works to try to give people jobs and to feed the hungry, to make it a place of healing and charity as much as it is a place of worship and reflection. She'll be paying for these efforts from her own coffers, and perhaps let it be known that she has introduced herself to Stonehearth by the way of charity, working along with the masses to help those in need.

It's slow going, but it's going. There's still an institutionalized discomfort through the Compact (outside the Lyceum) with worship of the 13th, and it takes time to overcome that. The Temple has won quite a bit of praise in the Lyceum, and many of the vassals in Stonehearth are beginning to come around when something they found creepy at first isn't turning out to be the worst thing, but it's still more of a trickle of individuals being won over than a flood.

%It was brought to Reese's attention that any Shavs in the Gray forest who have not bent the knee are likely to be recruited to the Horned God's army and to serve as his slaves while fighting against the people of Compact. Reese would like help prevent the Shavs from becoming enslaved as she highly values freedom, but she would also like to help prevent increasing the size and power of the Horned God's army. She also wants to secure the Gray forest as much as she can to make the it more difficult for the Horned God to take action there.

With this in mind she went to her cousin Calarian for help. Calarian and Reese decided to embark upon a mission to help secure he forest and encourage the Shavs to bend the knee. Calarian would be focusing on the diplomatic side of this mission and Reese on the military side (providing the diplomats with protection from any possible threats). Reese fears that treats might come in the form of Shavs who don't like this missions, abyss tainted animals and etc. The goal of the mission is to use words and charm rather than violence as much as possible.

Reese and Calarian would like to bring others with them, especially of the Grayson faction, including vassals and commoners who are interested in such an effort. They would like to bring scouts (who know the forest), social characters (who can help charm the Shavs over) and warriors (who can help defend the party). While on this mission they will be trying to stay alert for anything amiss including, but not to limited to (signs of the Horned God, cultists, blight, abyss tainted animals, any unexpected animals and any signs of monsters).

Reese will not hesitate to kill in defense of their party or herself, however she will offer any mortal and non abyss tainted combatants a chance to surrender. She also has moral problems with killing when not in defense. Which means she probably not kill Shavs who will not bend the knee if they are not attacking the party, not behaving as a threat or not engaging in acts she would consider evil. Reese will most likely follow the commands of Calarian who is voice and above her in rank. She wishes to be inclusive as possible and to invite the Grayson faction to aid in this effort.

Thanks, Reese's player

Since this is getting a little long and unwieldy, I'm going to save this one for reference as we go over the PRPs and applicable crises. Since it's getting hard to track what's resolved in PRPs and what's not, let's break it up into separate ones to make sure things aren't missed and go ahead and throw up a prprequest to make sure staff responses to anything outstanding aren't missed.

Reese would like to help clean up the Grayson forest. She wants to clean up the whole forest, but she is interested in starting in the areas closest to Grayson farmlands, Grayson lands, compact, etc and branching out from there. She would like to work closely with Mistress Leola and Lady Khanne who are aware of her intentions. She does this crisis action with Leola's blessing. She wants to mobilize Grayson faction npcs and pcs both to help restore the land. She has a few ways of trying to do this. 1. Bringing in fresh new healthy soil and carting it in. 2. Bringing in new healthy plants of a sort that go naturally to the area and replanting. 3. Putting intense effort - blood, sweat and tears to the land. The more energy sunk into this especially while actually at site in the forest the better. 4. She wants to try and help inspire those who go with her to be passionate and work hard. 5. She is not a singer - but she would like to sing while they work and hopes to get some songresses on the action. 6. She is not a priest, but she plays to prayer while she works and will encourages (or try to encourage others to do the same). She suspects those more effective at this might take point here, but she feels like every little bit helps. 7. She wants to take any life that seems corrupted beyond hope - such as twisted animals and plants, killing them and burning them if possible. She plants to follow Leola's and Khanne direction and will listen to them if they advise her in some way. She plans to give them credit amoung the Graysons working with her for the work they have done toward this.
Reese is is using a 100 econ to help provide the funds for this. 100 social to help provide the social influencing to encourage people to get involved. 100 military to help protect those joining the effort. She also is spending 10,000 to help fund the project. She wants to bring much generous number of the Grayson military with them to help guard those working. She will focus on moreso on commanding the forces and guarding the efforts - now that more information has come to light.


Important Append: Reese is taking the group only to the area of the forest closest to compact and is not venturing too far into the Gray forest. She plants to what she can help to help the forest close to compact. She still plans to bring Grayson soldiers and to focus on the protection of those going out. Keeping people safe is her personal #1 objective. She will be fully armed and armored and on the watch for trouble.

Esoka has been enlisted by Reese to aid in the task of restoring the Grayson lands in the Gray Forest to order and beauty.
She'll pitch in on the manual labor, and patrolling/clearing areas of hostiles. She'll also offer her assistance, and the aid of those other Riven prodigals willing, as translators and general envoys to meet with the more cooperative Abandoned tribes in the area. She wants to facilitate information-sharing about the dangers in the forest, what it endured during the march of the Silent Army, and ways to rectify it. Perhaps even gain some assistance from these Abandoned in the effort to restore it.

For once, Aislin's not going to be able to help that much with lore or esoterica. But she /can/ help by providing sweat and labor to help work the land in the Gray Forest, and she will absolutely do so.

Killian isn't sure how much help he can be with the matter of restoring the land, but the one thing he's certain he can be of help in, is finding the places where darkness and evil still linger and taint the land. So he's going to go lend his unique ability to find trouble to the group, and his sword to deal with whatever trouble they find of course. Under no circumstances is he attempting to plant anything or nurture anything, because he's certain to have a black thumb and be more harm than good.

Reese asked Olivia to help in her efforts in the forest, and naturally the nature-loving Ashford is quite happy to assist. Her best skills are in matters of herbal lore and alchemy, so I imagine she could be of some help identifying and analyzing the blighted areas, both to try and target the dead areas as precisely as possible while retaining anything that can be saved, and also to learn more about the blight itself close-hand. So maybe a bit of soil analysis, etc. Of course if she knows any natural products or processes that might spurn new growth, she'd also use these once things are cleared and re-soiled (ie maybe using improved fertilizer blends or... something? Player has a total black thumb!)

Reese also asked about her assisting in coordinating some of the farmers in their planting works. She's not an expert at this but will do her best if there's not anyone better or pitch in assisting if there is.
Added: Following certain new information, Olivia contacted Reese (as well as Leola and Cara who I know have other actions on the same crisis) with a warning about their efforts potentially coming under attack. Wary of the fact that she's not readily able to defend herself, she'll make sure she stays close to certain protection (likely Killian ) and doesn't wander off or stray from the group as she might normally be inclined. Caution is the word!

Luca's going to be joining his wife in helping to fix the land if he can, primarily by putting his own blood, sweat, and tears into the effort and trying to help inspire others to do similarly. The things a lazy man will do for love!

Sparte is making an effort to collect plants to present to the king, mostly taken from the Gray Forest. As a side effect of this he is learning about the areas that were damaged and what grew there. He is doing his part to lend a hand clearing the damage and ensuring there is qualify spaces for the plants to regrow while collecting his samples.

Silas will get his hands dirty and do some manual labor, as well as take some new Iron Guard recruits with him for 'physical conditioning'. Additionally he will look into getting some of the farmers of Whitehawk to lend a hand with their skills in forest agriculture. They will use agricultural lime to help lessen the toxicity of the afflicted soil.

Laric isn't very interested in the gardening aspect of Reese's patrols, but will happily assist in controlled burning where deemed appropriate. He's apparently pretty good at starting and containing fires, go figure. Inquisitors are weird.
I.E, overly corrupt areas or places the actual gardeners feel need it.

Samantha is going to tap her network of new Prodigals, requesting that their shamans and healers research and consult the spirits for information on how to reverse the blight. She will also call upon the archivists at Old Oak for any information they might find as well.

Arianna is the Voice of House Stonewood and all of their forces mobilize to support the Princess Reese's efforts to reclaim the outskirts of the Gray Forest. A small unit of infantry, cavalry and pikemen are dispatched to assist in patrols. Keeping travelers and surveyors safe. The craftsmen and other vassals of House Stonewood lend their skills to help build fortifications and the many pyres needed for the controlled burns. The timber her House provides comes from Stonehearth and should be of great use. Arianna herself will be accompanying the small army of Stonewood soldiers, craftsmen, and laborers to the Gray Forest. She stays for a time and oversees the initial efforts of their getting involved before she will leave a capable commander in charge until she returns.

At Reese's request, Zhayla is joining those helping to bring new life to the Grayson forests. She's more than willing to defend the less martial among them in case of trouble, and will be armed for it, but she's mostly hoping that she can just plant a few trees. A lot of trees.

Princess Reese Grayson leads the other major effort to work the Gray Forest and revitalize the land left dead by the Bringers of Silence. Of particular use are the prodigals in her group, such as Esoka or ones with very close ties like Marquessa Samantha, who are able to speak personally with some of the remaining Abandoned mostly left shattered in the Gray Forest and near Old Oak to at worst leave the work parties alone, and a handful see it as time to bend the knee and help out- they've been through enough. Lady Olivia spends time studying the land and seeing what specific plants can be brought in to foster growth and reporting such to Reese, who sees it done. Aislin, Luca, Sparte, Killian and Zhayla help out with with sweat and labor, and making certain the area stays safe as they till the land and haul up fertilizer in one of the least glamorous jobs done in their respective careers. Silas as Lord Commander of the Iron Guard 'requests' iron guardsmen help out, which has its share of grousing but is undeniably effective at helping provide manpower. Laric and the Inquisition help organize control burns to clear the land for recovery, because inquisitors are weird. Lady Arianna has Stonewood house troops on hand to make certain the work parties are kept safe, and to lend raw effort. Between the efforts of Reese's part and Leola's, the effected land in the Gray Forest is expected to make a full recovery.

Silas is gathering artisans from his barony - primarily masons and carpenters - and sending them off to build small shrines dedicated to Mangata along the White Mountain River and the Gray River. A small contingent of soldiers (about 20) is dispatched to guard them and dissuade brigands from attacking. His steward, Eshken, will be entrusted with reaching out to other counties and baronies to help aid and expedite constuction.

Sister Thena dispatches three Godsworn agents of the Knights of Solace (cost: 50 military units from Solace org) and contributes 10k of her personal income to the building and blessing of the new riverside shrines.

Eshken will assist with organizing Silas' selected artisans and soldiers before sending messengers to the other holdings and villages dotted along the rivers, in the hopes of persuading them to aid in the construction. In addition, he'll reach out to a few men of the pantheon, hoping their goodwill will be enough to motivate them in aiding the godly effort.

Lieutenant Calaudrin Estardes of the Iron Guard is happy to assist Baron Whitehawk, since he's his boss (and comrade) and possibly something about 'needing a vacation'. He'll help guard the workers along with the other solidiers as well as keep an eye out for anything suspicious. Not because he necessarily suspects something but well... okay, he /always/ suspects something.

Lady Stonewood has agreed to send materials and fifty Wardens to help safeguard the craftsman and stonemasons while they erect the shrines along the Rivers. In exchange, the Baron's people will work to erect the shrines and statues in Stonewood lands, continuing all along the Gray River. Arianna has made arrangements with Baron Whitehawk in regards to the trade between their Houses. Seeing how this combined effort will benefit them both.

In Farhaven and the surrounding area, Darren will be calling for Shamans and Faithful alike to band together and build small shrines to Mangata along the rivers and lakes, particularly close to the Red Run. He makes a passionate and implored speech to these people, attempting to inspire them to work together for the betterment of the Compact. Darren himself will assist in building some of the shrines around Farhaven in particular. ((Note: we will be utilizing 200 economic resources and 200 social resources (please take from Redrain Org) in order to assist with this action).

It's an uncertain time right now. The reports from Maelstrom are grim, and more and more people are flocking to shrines of Mangata to pray, to offer gifts, to give thanks and to pray for their loved ones to come home. Under the direction of Baron Silas Whitehawk, small shrines to Mangata have been built all along the White Mountain River and the Gray River - personal shrines but no less beautiful for all their size. In Farhaven, Prince Darren calls for Shaman and the Faithful to band together to build more shrines to the goddess around Red Run. Lady Arianna Stonewood, Sister Thena of the Knights of Solace, and Lieutenant Calaudrin Estardes of the Iron Guard all offer help to protect the craftsmen organized by Eshken Greenblood. The shrines are safe and used - in ones and twos people come to offer prayers to Mangata.

Reese is commanding Grayson forces who are going into the Gray Forest. They are traveling to the border between the Grayson and Redrain part of the gray forest. The Redrains are aware of such and Princess Freja asked her do this. She intends to keep her people as much as possible on the Grayson side, but if there an urgent need to defend against the abyss she won't be too shy about crossing over (but won't linger and will let the Redrains know promptly that she went over the border and why). Her intention is to create a barrier, making it hard for the horned god or his minions to travel into the Grayson part of the forest. She believes (having heard a vision) that the horned god plans to march through the redrain forest to the grayson forest and to compact from there. There are few things that Reese is attempting with this. 1. The protective barrier explained above. 2. To try and recruit any Shavs she finds to compact's side and keep them away from the horned god's side. 3. To be a loud distraction, keeping the horned god and his minions (hopefully) focused on her instead of those looking for the weapons. 4. To take down anything abysmal in the area and thereby reduce the power of the abyss. 5. To take down any agents of the horned god in that area and to thereby reduce his power. 6. to Search for clues of where the weapons are, primarily by asking and investigating amount the Shavs in the area. If clues are found for the location on Redrain lands she will give these clues to them and let them decide how to act. If clues are found or weapons on Grayson lands, she will dispatch out a team to look for them.

Reese is taking 200 archers, 200 infantry men and 200 pikemen. The men are primarily under her command, but she is open to people such as Rymarr, Silas and Killian helping her command they are around. She plans to be loud over the top and recruit as much as she can. She hopes to bring diplomats, warriors, healers, scholars and so forth. Reese intends to protect those who come with her as much as possible, especially healers, scholars and diplomates She will not kills Shavs who are not hostile to them or working with the abyss, but will go out of her way to be human, protective and to follow the laws of Gloria and honorable combat.
A few more points. 1. If the Horned God himself shows, Reese will order a tactical retreat, saving as many as she can, rather than engagement.

2. Rymarr is her second in command, he is fully in command if something happens to render her unable to lead.

3. Command assignments go like this: Rymmarr: Second in Command of the mission, command of Deepwood Troops. Command of Any Kings Own Troops (that may or may not come). Killian: Command of any Ashwood troops that come. Second Command for the Grayson Army. Arianna: Stonedeep Troops Commander. Reese: Mission overall Command. Grayson Army Command. Co-command of the Knights of the Solace. Thena: Commander of the Knights of the Solace. Tobias: Commander of the Crimson Blades. Preston (if he comes and he might not): Command of the Templars. Corban: Back up commander if another commander falls or is not present.

3. Fergus asked if some wanted to do missions in the north. Reese will let her people do that or possibly send out on missions on the Grayson side if a need arrises. She will let pretty much any pc who wants go, but she is specially interested in sending some of the more champion like fighters without armies to command on these such as: Vesper, Dameon, Alexis, Kaldur, Graham, Faelan, Luca and Barric.

4. Noncombant attendees or possible attendees include Mia (diplomat), Margot (Diplomat), Rey (Healer) and Aurelian (Investigator). Reese will try to protect them. Esoka is also assigned to protecting the diplomats. Monique and Esoka, despite being fighters are assigned with the diplomats due to the backgrounds and langs.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UggXLCYVY99-ongS-yHsqxxBY20V3PyscroyyjqDMmw/edit

Above is the goggle doc. Thanks Staff!

Reese has a few secret actions to take here.

1. The first one is protecting Thena. Reese believes that Thena is important to the Horned God and that if she dies to his agents his power might be increased. She realizes that Thena is a great warrior, but she still feels it is her responsibility to make sure she is safe. Thena is partly coming as a lure to keep the Horned God's attention away from those seeking the weapons. Reese is concerned about such, but Thena really wanted to do this and she respects that. She just intends to bring her out of this alive, even if it means taking blows for her or doing down herself in battle.

2. If the Horned God makes a personal appearance, she plans to retreat. She is open about this plan. What she is less open about is that she will try to save as many lives as possible among those who attended this mission and will try to guard their retreat even if that means she doesn't make it out herself.

3. The third one is that Reese believes that Thena is a new commander without the leadership skills at this time to be sure the Knights of the Solace will be succesfully commanded. She believes she will develop such in time. She believes this because Thena asked her to command the Knights. Reese intends to help command the knights, to watch out for them and at the same time to try and not upstage Thena with them. She wants to step in as needed without taking the spotlight, if she can manage that.

Barric, armed with Elvesbane and a backup sword just in case honor demands he not use the heirloom in a given situation, will be primarily serving as bodyguard to Reese and any other Grayson of rank that shows up for this affair, up until the point where he sees anything abyssal, at which point he will endeavor to stab evil in the face. Repeatedly.
If Reese needs him to go on a mission (a la 3), he will gladly go.

Margot attends with Reese to work predominently on #2 to try ad recruit and shavs she finds on the compact side and keep them from joining the Horned god, which is something she's getting rather practiced at at this point. She ensures her own escorts (the peace keepers), come with food and supplies to give out to Shavs who have come through the winter but it hasn't warmed enough to replenish their stocks yet.

Lord Corban has pledged his sword and skills to Princess Reese's mission. He will guard what needs guarding, slash what needs slashing, and otherwise do his usual job of Guy with a Sword in these missions.

Tobias and the Crimson Blades have been hired via Reese Grayson to join up with the Princess' wall in the forest. Iron Company (100 heavy infantry) have been contracted, and Tobias himself will be commanding the mission on the Blades' behalf. If this becomes obvious that holding the line is suicide, Tobias will work with other military commanders for an orderly retreat. Otherwise, the elite of mercenaries will hold the line, just like the Night Grove, if need be.
Tobias will be primarily wielding Requiem for this... but if the army comes up against undead, he'll switch to his rubicund blade to see if that helps to cut them down quicker.

Killian will be joining the armies of Grayson as one of Reese's lieutenants, and taking command of whatever troops she designates him to command on the expedition. Of course, he'll also be personally entering whatever battles are joined. He'll bring along whatever troops Ashford sends (new Harlan, so not sure of what this will be) as well.

Kaldur will be going on the mission, as a mounted knight if needed, or on foot as the case may be.

Monique is fighting as needed, but mostly helping to recruit the Abandoned with her extensive Abandoned background and languages.

Thena will personally lead a contingent of Knights of Solace out with Reese's forces, to help the Princess accomplish her listed goals.
As Thena is not particularly experienced in leading troops, the Solace divison will be co-commanded by Thena and Reese, with the help of a trusted (NPC) Solace marshal.
Solace unit consists of 30 knights, 70 footsoldiers, 1 marshal.
As a Godsworn priest of the Pantheon, Thena will offer any religious support as needed such as prayers, blessings and holy water. A few, though not all, of the Solace Knights are Godsworn as well. She will also offer aid as a battlefield medic and herbalist.
Thena will be bringing with her Dame Vesper, newly Godsworn Knight of Solace.

Aurelian signs on to assist in investigating the weapons as best he can, and hesitantly to act as an additional diplomat if needed.

Daemon rides alongside Thena and Princess Reese as a brother in arms to the Knights of Solace bands. He will assist in combat and wherever he will be needed otherwise.

Silas will be lending his sword and the armies of Whitehawk to the cause, bringing with him his archers/rangers while leaving his infantry behind in Hawkhold to defend it in case of a surprise attack (unlikely but who knows). He will command his rangers to scout the area they decide to camp at, in hope of countering any surprise ambushes or enemy movements and to see if they come across anything... strange.

Mia will be assisting with this as well, once I can see the full action and know what to add!
Mia will be bringing 50 of her archers and 100 of her infantrymen on this mission, with them under command of the following PCs in this particular order: Thesarin -> Esoka -> Rymarr -> Silas. Additionally, she will be acting as one of the diplomats attempt to convert as many shav'arvani as possible, making use of both her familiarity with the language, their customs, and her own reputation as the head of a House composed of a significant number of prodigals. Being as Esoka may be called to another mission concurrent with this one, she will be in need of some type of bodyguard, as she's not particularly combat ready.
Added in 30 AP.

The Grayson Princess General has asked Lady Arianna, and by extension, House Stonewood for aid in fighting Legion. Never one to deny her duty to Grayson, Ari has graciously agreed to lend her blade, expertise and knowledge of the dark forces that Legion will no doubt be utilizing. While that might be enough, Arianna has gone above and beyond by bringing along a detachment of Wardens with her to help support any military action that may occur. The men and women under her leadership have excellent Commanders drawn from the recent population of Prodigals and other Abandoned tribes which have filtered into Stonehearth. Above all, Arianna makes sure that she stays close by Reese with ten of her best men willing to die for their charge. This Royal Guard falls under the direct command of Princess Ribbons and is sure to follow her word even when their Liege, Lady Stonewood, is dispatched on any secondary or tertiary assignments such as recon or elimination of enemy commanders.
Arianna is a talented Investigator and has the ability to find leads and hunt them down with a relentlessness that borders obsession. When she is not commanding the Wardens (of which she brings five hundred), she is at work speaking with the local Shav populace and gathering information that might lead to a breakthrough in the hunt for the weapons they seek.


Lady Lailah of House Bisland has sent along 750 infantry and 250 archers under the command of Lady Arianna to help supplement the Gray Wardens. The additional men will be organized into units along with the Wardens, creating a combined fighting force to operate under the direction of Princess Reese. Lady Arianna leads these men by example, and follows Princess Ribbons military directive as she is the more experienced General.

Saedrus will be assisting Reese through diplomatic measures in trying to secure Shav'arvani are loyal to the Compact rather than the Horned God. As a Whisper brings with him his effortless charm, his carefully honed diplomacy and, beyond all else, the kind of empathy that cannot be taught or learnt to get through to the Abandoned tribes. He'll also keep himself well out of the way of all the martial types and generally keep himself away from frays, or anything other than being charming.

Halsim will be providing scouting services for the army (wearing his black robe and mask to keep his identity hidden to the Abandoned), and when necessary, provide his expertise on occult and investigative matters for the weapons search. When not doing any of this, he will provide his alchemical expertise towards equipping the army with medicines, poisons, and useful alchemical cocktails.

Alexis will do what she can, which is primarily serve as a meatshield to stand between enemies and more important targets. She brings her weapon and her armour, and will escort and patrol, and fight, as needed.

100 Infantry, 50 Pike, 25 Cavalry, and 50 Deepwood Rangers. Marquis Rymarr Deepwood's contingent to travel northward into the Gray Forest in preparation to play distraction. Those remaining in Deepwood are given explicit orders from the commander of Old Oak's military leader to be vigilant. A heightened state of security ordered, increased patrol regularity, reserves called into service for the duration, etc. Before setting off, Rymarr will gather his troops; first to speak with them and explain to the whole their objective, their purpose, and hopefully inspire them to fight hard and return home safely. Watch over those in front of and beside themselves, and trust those behind them to watch over them. He will also join his men and women in prayer to the Pantheon's deities. In regard to more Shamanistic means of religious observation, Rymarr will make himself present in support of those under his command, though he will not take direct part in their activities.

The Deepwood forces, under Rymarr's command, will be working in conjunction with a number of military pieces into one overall unit. Acting as Princess Reese Grayson's second-in-command, he's prepared to follow orders or lead, as is necessary dependent on the situation. Additionally, Rymarr is an experienced (and learned) battlefield commander - the first order of business will be locating important terrain features and choosing a strategically strong defensive point to make their presence known and draw attention. Ideally this position will benefit Deepwood's forces, while still permitting them ease of withdrawal, resupply, and all the rest - while preferably robbing any potential aggressors of those same traits and altogether impeding their ability to fight effectively. The former Lord Commander of the King's Own is prepared to play advisor - admittedly quietly to the overall commander of the mission, Reese. He's not afraid to speak up and offer an alternative plan, if he deems it strategically wiser.

Resources which Rymarr will be making use of(13 Economic, 27 Social, and 27 Military) are used to represent the fact that Rymarr will be hiring mercenaries to assist in bolstering both numbers and presence. Their orders are to... follow orders, but when a retreat is called, to retreat.

Having suggested a strategic withdrawal to Princess Reese should the 'Metallic Traitor', 'Horned God', or whatever name will be used for the day, makes an appearance on the battlefield? Should that time come and the Horned God makes his presence known on the battlefield, then Rymarr will work with the other commanders to promote an expeditious but strategically sound withdrawal. A fighting retreat, if necessary.

An additional 100 Deepwood Infantry, 50 Pikes, and 50 Deepwood Rangers will be on hand in the event such a fighting retreat is necessary, in which they will cover those withdrawing and begin a systematic retreat using the two separate forces to withdraw under the cover of arrows and fresh troops to cover the retreating force.
Additionally the King's Own will be there in the form of Dame Felicia and Dame Paloma, each with four Silver Swords/King's Own under their command. So they'll be doing their thing under Rymarr's guidance and ever watchful eye. They're amongst the greatest knights in Arvum, so there's not much that he'll need to command them on. But, he'll keep an eye out to ensure that the don't get in too deep over their heads and to correct any strategic matters he may notice. Despite being their very own past Lord Commander, he'll lead those few knights as though they were any other troops under his command. Given the history, no doubt they could work together to great effect. Their overall command will fall to Dame Felicia and Dame Paloma, per Lord Commander Leona Thrax, but Rymarr will be present to offer any strategic and leadership course correction as necessary.

Felicia is going to gather up her squad and assign them to the direct protection of the various VIPs (Rymarr, Reese, etc.) within the main attackng force. This is ostensibly because the King's Own trains for the defenseo f the King and so is particularly suited for this role but also because the secondary role she intends to take on would be to accept 'special' missions. If specific targets need to be eliminated the King's Own can be tasked with these dangerous but vital missions, including eliminating enemy leadership, etc. She wants to make use of the King's Own high level of esprit de corps and training to make a single squad as valuable as possible without getting them killed unnecessarily.

Luca is doing as usual and joining the fight to add to his monster head collection and keep his beribboned badass of a wife safe. He's becoming a decent scout, but mostly he's just there for the stabbing of things.

Tikva will be posting herself amongst the archers and scouts serving beneath Reese's command. She is especially lending her services as wilderness survival expert and scout to the efforts to comb through the freezing north, hunting down the Abyssal and/or hunting down agents of the Enslaver /as one does/. She will also be along to provide plucky morale assist to those who care to listen to her, and in case Reese needs cousinly advice and/or a hug, because you never know.

High Inquisitor Alistair will be taking a cadre of Confessors and lower ranking Inquisitors into the Gray Forest alongside the Grayson expedition. The High Inquisitor has multiple reasons for joining the expedition and the war effort against the Horned God. 1. To capture living agents of the Horned God to obtain information on their master and other abyssal entities. 2. To better train the Inquisition to deal with abyssal forces, especially in martial conflicts. 3. Provide martial support to the Grayson effort.

With the support of the Faith, and the need to attract the attention of the enemy, Preston and the Templars are going to try and muster a sizable force of 400-600 Templars to march in support of Reese. If they can't manage that, they will at least try to send several lances of mounted knights. If they manage the full deployment, they will act as a second 'battle' of the column, alongside Grayson troops, allowing some mutual support and flexibility, including the ability to pin the enemy with one and smash. If they only manage the knights, they'll act as a mobile reserve and try to pin down any breaches of the shield line. But in all things they will act in support of Reese, a thanks for her and Grayson being a friend of the Faith.
There is a request associated laying out a bit more detail on our motivations - ticket 6028

Joslyn will be sticking close and directly taking and relaying orders given by Lady Arianna, all while armed with Alaricite hairpins and adorned in leather. While her skills are mostly in stabbing and making sure that things stay stabbed, she'll also ensure that all of Arianna's operation runs smoothly. She'll help Arianna with command if it ever comes down to it, but mostly she'll just be doing copious amounts of stabbing.

Paloma will be assisting Rymarr! And leading her four troops to glory and good tactical use.

Lethe is going along as a healer for the group.

Zenix, a native to the lands, will provide insider insights about the various Clans and Abandoned Tribes that occupy the area. Including their numbers, an estimate of how many warriors they have and what chances one might have at flagging them as friend or foe. Besides their guidance through the land, Zen will stay close to Lady Arianna's side protecting her with her entourage of Wardens and Mistress Joslyn.

Olivia is joining the group largely in a supportive role behind the lines, as a healer and apothecary. If it proves useful, she'll use her alchemical and herbal talents to help with treatments for anyone who needs it, and potentially, if any weird abyssal blight, corruption, sickness, or that kind of thing rears its head, to try and combat it via whatever potions or elixirs she might be able to come up with. Failing that, she's got decent medical training and can simply service as a medic, and will aid wounded soldiers.

A scouting force heads out from the Gray Forest base. There have been a lot of these of late - small groups, meant to find shav, to treat with them as possible, to stop any flocking to the Horned God's banner. Tonight, Arianna, Joslyn, Zenix, Olivia, Kaldur, Silas, and Faelan are headed into the Forest. When they return, it is with a single shav and tales of the hideous creatures that were going to eat the woman's dog (and possibly the scouting group too). They are bloody and battered but alive. And hopefully the very grateful woman who is now swearing dutifully to the Compact is willing to give them information on the movement of the Horned God's armies. And the dog? The dog lived.

Meanwhile in the Gray Forest, Marquis Rymarr Deepwood's army has been busy. Today as they returned to the base camp, they told a tale of cultists trying for a sacrifice to the Horned God, one of the First Children about to be sacrificed, and perhaps most importantly, a prisoner escorted back by Lord Killian Ashford and delivered into the hands of the Inquisition.

A party of diplomats and diplomat-likes, consisting of Margot, Alistair, Aurelian, Monique, Saedrus, and Tikva ride out into the deep woods, it'’s said, to speak with a nomadic group of shavs claiming to possess key strategic information. Whatever negotiations happen past the ragged flaps of ragged tents remain private, but the group emerges with a sheaf of parchment and none the worse for wear.

The stories coming out of the Gray Forest tell another tale as well, as a large group of refugees is escorted to Arx by contingents of the Grayson army. They spread word of the valiant heroes who lead their defense, protecting them against the horrors coming from the northlands. Princess Reese Grayson's army, along with the Iron Company lead by Lord Tobias Telmar, apparently encircled the refugees as they were soon to be overwhelmed by the enemies which had pursued them nearly to their destruction. They tell tale of Prince Luca Grayson's 'nearly insane bravery' in fighting three huge monsters at once, to draw their attention away from the injured Grayson troops. Of Prince Barric Grayson's prodigious strength and prowess, as he cut one of the monster's heads clean off. Of the efforts of Lady Lethe Tyde, who set up triage and sought to mend the injured in the thick of battle. They tell of the hundreds of enemy dead left upon the field, and of the heroic troops who fought such overwhelming odds, standing behind their leaders against the coming onslaught and turning it away with their might. Needless to say, the refugees are being redistributed to Grayson lands, having bent the knee to such heroic representatives of the house.