Master Chalk the Seraph's Crow have been dismissed.

3 Iron Guardsmen have been dismissed.

Lyros have been dismissed.

Monique slips into the Forest Solar, a very slender folio under one arm. She's dressed in honeyed silk and looking grim. The call has gone out to Greenmarch and Rivenshari and all Greenmarch vassals: there's a meeting, and raiders need to be dealt with. It starts... now.

Margret is sitting at the table with Michael and Ianna. There is cake and whiskey. "Well, did you do something?" Margret asks Michael in a deadpan. To Ianna she says consideringly, "I do like babies..." She lets out a thoughtful sigh, but when Monique comes in she straightens up in her chair and puts on her serious face. Which...isn't much different from her usual good-natured expression.

Eirlys steps in looking around, it has been a while since she has had time to step in, she in a pretty purple day dress and her hair is pulled up in one of her intricate braids. She has a pouch around her neck and a backpack in her hands. She is however not wearing shoes at the moment. She blinks and looks around. "Wow.. This is.." And it's about that time that a messenger finds her and she gets the missive. "Oh..Oh!" She steps inside. "So what is wrong?" She asks looking around before her eyes land on Monique. She waves at Ianna and Margret before walking to where people seem to be setting up to talk.

Monique crosses the small foot bridge to the large table, careful to twitch her skirts up over the stream. The folio is placed upon an empty place at the table, and then the redhead gives a wave to the others gathered. "We've got raiders. Particularly violent, bloody raiders. Not the usual. They left a message to what was left of the groundskeeper at Greenhaven." She flips open the folio, producing a red-stained scrap of parchment. Upon it is written, 'True Compact' and nothing else.

Ianna leans across the table to look. "What in the world does this mean?" she asks, furrowing her brow. "Is this backlash for bending the knee?" She doesn't bother to introduce Michael. She's too focused on what Monique has there.

Eirlys waits till Monique explains then looks down at the parchement. "Do we know anything else?" She frowns then asks. "Also do we know if they used blood magic or anything?" She sounds worried and peers at it. "Do you want me to check and see if I can tell anything?" She asks, her foot tapping in thought. "Could be but really after all this time? It's not like we bent knee recently. I mean it's been years. It would be odd to protect bending of knee now." She frowns looking at it, careful not to touch the parchement. "What other facts do we have?" She asks.

Vern arrives, delivering a message to Eirlys before departing.

"The groundskeeper?" Margret asks, and a look of grief crosses her face. She pushes it back, and leans forward slightly to stare at the red scrap of parchment with a furrowed brow before she settles back into her seat. A thoughtful expression crosses her face, but she doesn't speak just yet.

Monique reaches out a hand to squeeze Margret's shoulder unless otherwise impeded. "I'm sorry. He's been with us a long time. We'll see him buried with honor, and his widow well cared for." She turns to Eirlys and Ianna, rolling her shoulders. "Your guesses are as good as mine, at this point. The note is new. Up until now, it's just been bloody murder. Three, now four with poor Angus. The guards haven't got a thing to go on and I'm open to anything."

Ianna raises an eyebrow, turning to Eirlys. "What do you know about blood magic?" she asks, arching an eyebrow. She presses her lips together at the rest of Monique's explanation. "This cannot stand."

Michael straightens up and settles the glass of whiskey BACK on the table. Murder. Blood Magic? *Murders*? Sounds like someone with the Iron Guard. Too bad only Michael is here. Oh wait. He'll step into the circle and just..listen. Until they kick him out.

Margret doesn't stop Monique, and when she says they'll do right by the groundskeeper she nods her head and manages a sad smile. "Has anyone inquired about the matter in the little villages in the Greenmarch? There are always rumors in the village even when it seems like there isn't."

Eirlys frowns harder and starts to walk around looking at the parchement. "Well they obviously wanted to send a message this time, not just.." She waves her hand. "I can look at it and see what I can, but touching it would be bad if blood magic is involved. Has there been any kind of clues?" Eirlys asks. "Anything to give us a direction? Or do we think it is one of the abandoned tribes that have not bent knee." She blinks and her head comes up. "Could this be because the Rivenshari bent knee, it could be possible that people think we forced them?"

Eirlys looks at Ianna. "That some people use it, that it taints everything. The spirits hate it. HATE it. It is wrong.. it makes everything around it.. tainted." She is obviously trying to come up with better words. "When things first started happening, before the siege. There was this demon thing. There were abandoned feeding off the blood of the thing. To gain power." She explains as she pales and looks disgusted as well as angry, then again she was looking like that when she saw the parchement. "The beast was killed btu the abandoned who were tainted beyond saving weren't. We went back to the area to try to see if things would grow back. The whole forest was dead, just black." She explains. "We found sigils carved into the trees with blood used to mark over those sigials. I know from what my own interactions with the spirits that blood magic is forbidden and it is wrong."

Eirlys looks back at Monique. "No it can't stand. Do you want me to look over the message sent to us?" She points to the parchement. "I can do it without touching it."

Monique spreads her hands, palm up. "It will not stand. As I said, I'm open to anything. We have no other leads, save this. It might be a good idea to pay a visit to the villages around, to see if anyone's heard anything. Our guards are wonderful, but they lack the investigative touch, I'm afraid." She looks around. "Anyone volunteering for that? Any theories from the Iron Guard?" she asks, including Michael.

Monique nudges the paper towards Eirlys.

"I'm willing to do any work I can before I leave for Setarco. I don't know if I have time for a trip back to Greenhaven before I have to leave," Ianna says, folding her hands on the table.

Eirlys frowns. "I am the shaman and the Sword. I have a little bit of investigative ability but nothing like.." She waves at Ianna." I have to be at Stormwall when it is time but between that I am here to help." She offers seriously. "Perhaps we can take someone who is good with investigating.."

"I'm willing to go," Ianna says without hesitation. "Tell me where you need me and I'm there, Monique."

Eirlys points to Ianna. "And perhaps someone who is better with protection? We can start doing searches. I mean there is only so much that we can figure out from here. We need to see the place, see what happened, what was left behind." She says seriously. "How does that sound?"

"I will go back to Greenhaven, and go and talk to the villagers." Margret volunteers. "I've helped the women when their babies were stubborn, and stitched up their children and men when they were hurt. They trust me. I can talk to them, but...I'm not exactly snoopy." She pauses and looks around, "Or Ianna and Eirlys can go."

"My time with the Iron Guard..." Michael glances between the assemble ladies and kind of just throws his hands up in a shrug. "I'm a Lieutenant, but I've been knee-deep in Stormwall marchings, logistics and planning for months now. I'm not even sure what happened here. But

I'll be around to help out. I'll check to see what the Iron Guard knows about the murders as it stands. Then I will bring it here, and we will continue from there."

"I think safety and specialty in numbers is a good idea," Monique tips her crimson head to the three ladies. "The three of you should go, and perhaps a couple of others you can recruit at your discretion? Just," she adds, solemn, "be careful? Whoever they are, they specialize in brutality. And anything you can find out about this 'True Compact'," she tosses in, including Michael once more, "would be helpful. Thank you."

Eirlys looks at Margret. "Actually no that is perfect! We can be be going about investgating one way and you can try to get any information when you go back, Margret." She offers seriously. "Just be careful, ok?"

"Two Swords are better than one," Ianna opines, picking at a tea cake. She's deep in thought, trying to think of any relevant references she's come across.

Margret smiles a touch, and nods her head in understanding. "If they are brutal chances are they've terrorized the villagers as well. We'll figure something out."

"Well I will come down, hopefully we can get some more muscle. I have some stuff I could wear, maybe you could pass me off as a shaman?" She asks. It's been a while since she was there and besides she doesn't look like most the other Greenmarchers do. She and her brother have always looked like their mom.

"That's settled, then," Monique nods. "We'll provide funding from the House coffers for your trip, and I'll look forward to your safe return, all of you. Is there anything else anyone wants to posit, suggest or otherwise theorize?"

"At this point, no. However we should bring with us some holy water and I can bring with me stuff for spirit related stuff." Eirlys offers before blinking. "Sorry I am used to dealing with really weird shit. I find it is better to be prepared." She looks around trying to decide if she came off sounding crazy.

Margret shakes her head simply in response to Monique's question.

"And I thought I would encounter more adventure as an Iron Guard." Michael is shaking his head at these ladies. "I will definitely be keeping my eye on the Greenmarch women."

Eirlys looks at Michael. "Oh well obviously you've never met Greenmarchers before. We bring the adventure to you." She is trying to sound light hearted but it comes off slightly more grim given the situation.

"And we may or may not be wearing shoes while we do it," comes the deadpan from Ianna, sitting up tall and proper.

Eirlys checked mana + occult at difficulty 20, rolling 20 higher.

Eirlys tilts her head a little, she is looking at the parchement and it almost looks as if she is listening to someone speak before she takes a deep breath and lets it out. "Ok, no magic or anything remotely occult like to that." She points to the parchement. "So my guess is that we're looking more at some really pissed off, very violent people." The comment about the shoes has Eirlys shrugging. "Shoes are overrated."

Monique nods her crimson head to Eirlys. "Good to know." The paper is tucked back into the folio, and the folio closed. "All right, we'll arrange for the trip. Thank you, all. And please, stay safe."