Re: A Town Meeting Is In Order

[Phineas J. Pennefeather]

The Halfling continues to look after the locals, quietly and with respect to the death of always well-meaning Pierre.

Keeping Degren while served, he watches the former sheriff pass a note to the now mute smith. After a pause, he returns to his cooking satisfied that Volk has not been struck dumb as well. Well, at least not in the same way as the smith.

[Degren Brightforge]

With a frown, Degren nods and drinks another glass. Again, he coughs, this time slamming his open palm onto the table, shaking the nearby cutlery.

Well, I think I'd rather forget this day and let is fizzle out as one of those bad days. From what I know, "My people" are all gone. Disappeared into the winds. Pierre's dead, Sky, Asher, and Auron are fucked of into the woods; I don't know if they're going to the next town for a night, or if they've fucked off to the other side of the bloody world. And don't even get me started on Datura. He's probably in the middle of the woods, frothing at the mouth, swinging that slab of metal he calls a sword into some poor sap of a tree (get it?). We'll be lucky if he doesn't come down here looking to start some kind of an elf-ear TROPHY necklace. Alaphin's gone, probably worshiping some brook or field, which is innocent enough but no good here. And Krond's gone on some soul-searching journey to find gods-know-what. And I'M drunk. None of us KNEW this whole elven code mattered to us. We knew it mattered to the elves, that was fucking obvious, but we didn't know it affected us. We didn't know WE could be punished for defending ourselves from some low-life-piece-of-shit who HAPPENS to have pointed ears and an affinity for magic. Those fuckers were here, causing trouble, enslaving people, torturing people, and doing who knows what else. We OFFERED them a chance to leave, but NO. They kept coming back. They turned KROND into a hunk of stone. They used magic on ME, and attacked our people. We are not elves, and we should not need to follow their insane laws. They have zero right to push their laws on us. They forget. This was OUR world first. It was dying, or already dead, true, but it was OUR world. Then they come in here, all hunkey dory with their magic, and their RULES ,and they're KILLING my friends. DOes that sound fair to you, Mr. Volk?

[Lady Val]

Meanwhile... Back in the Inn

”Everyone please… attention… ...may I have your… oh bollocks… EVERYONE CALM THE FUCK DOWN!!!!!” Val is standing on a table. Some of you will notice that even then she is still unable to touch the ceiling.

The inn immediately quiets as the tiny Elf’s voice drowns out everyone’s arguing.

“That is enough! We are citizens of Holdfast not brigands thus I expect you all to show some manners.” She pauses for effect.

“Now, as I am sure you all know Pierre is dead, but before going off your heads about the whole thing maybe you should stop and actually listen to what happened. Now As many of you know before we left I was charged by Lessa to recount the events of the Mists as accurately as possible and given this ring,” She says pointing to the delicate serpent band on her finger “to ensure that I would only be able to tell you the truths of what happened there.”

“When we arrived in the mists we were impressed by the vastness of the place, the beautiful yet terrifying indistinctness. All objects and surfaces were hazy and sculpted out of the mist but suggested form and still solid to the touch. The place was truly befitting of the beauty, elegance, and otherworldliness of the Faerie themselves. The breeze carries songs long forgotten, the air smells of floral scents only just remembered and even the light itself was magical.” Val sighs wistfully.

“Ahem, Faerie was expecting us and so when we entered their hallowed halls we were greeted by the most wondrous and exalted of our creators: Aurori’ana mother of Elves, Kytrae’lianan the great mother of the Kaern; Matka father of Halflings, and Aroburash Basurz father of Orcs. The Faerie, in their vast beauty, then spoke as one and asked for our testimonies regarding the deaths of the three Elves who passed through our town.”

“In general all of us from Holdfast had similar testimonies — myself, Timmean, Herr, Gurok, Bikbun, and Pierre. Although we had differing feelings regarding the presence of Teek as a slave within our community under Oliphandrius’ control we were all generally agreed that freeing her from the Elves was the correct thing to do. Gurok told Faerie about Oliphandrius’ physical abuse of Teek and how Asher and our Knights stepped in to protect her, Timmean elaborated on the fear Teek felt and projected in the presence of her captors, and Pierre confirmed my testimony that the Elves seemed content to leave Teek with us as she had been “causing them trouble”. We then detailed the events of the forest where Timmean was assaulted by Oliphandrius. Yes, you heard me correctly, assaulted for there can be no other word for it. Timmean claims that he was walking with Oliphandrius when he blacked out and awoke to me regrowing his hand. In his testimony he admitted to Faerie that he suspects Oliphandrius used mind magic on him to erase his memories after cutting off his hand and after hearing Teek’s testimony about how Oliphandrius and his company were forcefully removing the hands of others to sell to Nordin extremists I believe he was correct. Pierre, Timmean, and myself also relayed to Faerie our interactions with Teen, what we understood about her situation and what we were planning to do, as a town, to protect her from Oliphandrius should he return. It is after this that many of our accounts differed. Myself and Timmean were obviously absent during the the argument and eventually battle with Oliphandrius and his companions. The most we could give were second hand accounts given to us by others and as such they were missing crucial information. For instance, Pierre’s testimony revealed that the Elves struck first and were the aggressors. Now Timmean and I knew that the elves were using non-competitive spells to neutralize anyone who was trying to de-escalate the situation, most notably Torvallis! but I did not know that they actively tried to harm Pierre. According to his testimony Amyrillis actively engaged in battle with Pierre and was the first to strike. Additionally Pierre’s testimony revealed that Asher, Aaron, Krond, and Torvallis! were all swallowed in the Earth or petrified to prevent them from de-escalating the situation and unfortunately my cousins Keket and Innogen, despite their efforts to calm everyone down, were removed from the situation entirely by a well meaning Herr and Bikbun. All of us stated that many attempts were made to encourage the Elves to leave but they chose to ignore them. Pierre, Herr, Gurok and myself gave Faerie the names of the people who ended the lives of the Elves and obviously we all had differing feelings about how the situation was resolved. That being said, I can assure you that the majority of us, myself included, put our feelings aside to advocate for the citizens of this town. We told Faerie that Holdfast should not be cleansed, for the citizens of Holdfast are good people and our Fae hold themselves to a standard that these Elves did not. We do not treat humans as lesser beings. Gurok, Timmean, Bikbun, and Pierre also took this a step further, to question Faerie as to whether if these three had been any other Fae would Faerie have taken such an interest in their deaths.”

“I know many of you now look upon us Elves as being ‘stuck up’ or even worse hate us because we believe ourselves to be above other races. I can assure you that this is not the case. We are the chosen of Faerie, the first of their legitimate children, but with this title comes a great burden. As Elves we must uphold the Elven code to protect our fellow Fae and further Faerie’s wishes in this realm or risk losing our status as Elves. Following the Elven code is a choice, but it is a choice Elves must make to remain Elves. However, harming humans is not an inherent part of this code. Yes we are to seek justice against those humans who harm Elves and other Fae but this does not necessarily require the human’s death. The Elves who came to Holdfast with Teek were willfully abusing the code to suit their own means and cause as much pain and chaos as possible. Teek’s own testimony was enlighteningThese Elves renounced their clans. These Elves used their perverted and twisted interpretation of the code to make Teek harm others using her power so they could raid towns and made her distract Elven villages so they could steal items that were “miss-able”. Teek was forced to send discharges out in mixed communities and was punished if she went too long without harming other Elves. Yes that is right, Oliphandrius and his company used Teek to actively harm other Elves and then beat her for it in retaliation. And when she refused to do so they beat her anyway. They treated her like vermin for being a human, whipped her, abused her, and reduced her to nothing, removing her name to address her as less than a slave. As Pierre and Timmean put it, the Fae and Elves of Holdfast are honourable and these… Elves were nothing like us.”

“After giving Faerie all of our testimonies the Faerie then deliberated upon what we had to say. When Faerie returned they, in their majesty, were obviously irritated by the happenings in holdfast and questioned us individually in addition to asking two questions of the group as a whole: “Who died at the hands of the three dead Children of the Mists, or who else was harmed by them beyond Teek?” for three deaths for one life seemed unfair to them and secondly “Which was more important? Free will or Life?””

“All of us were of the opinion, and I’m sure many of you will agree, that life is fairly meaningless without free will. Additionally myself and Bikbun were able to provide evidence that members of our own town were harmed directly or indirectly by the Elves. Bikbun was sent visions of his family burning at the hands of humans in the Scarred Lands because Teek was ordered to harm Fae, Torvallis!, Asher, and Auron were swallowed into the Earth and, although we had stopped Gore, there was a genuine fear that they could come back as Constructs to harm us —especially among members of the Knights, finally Timmean had his hand cut off by these Elves, and although we can regrow limbs I am sure the Elves did not care whether we had that ability or not. In short, these Elves did harm us and attempted to harm us.”

“As for personal questions, I was asked where I was during the altercation, Gurok was asked how she would ensure that all lives are of equal value, Timmean was asked why he sacrificed his relationship with the Fae of Holdfast to save a human when he knew we would have to take action against those who killed Elves, Herr was asked the price of his loyalty to the Fae, Teek was asked why she was still alive, Pierre was asked why he Auron, and Teek killed the incapacitated Elves, and well… Bikbun was given a magic potato.” Val then gestures to Bikbun who still has his magic potato.

“Pierre for his part was quick to add that how could Faerie be sure that expelling the three unconscious Elves from the town would be enough to make them leave. How could we be sure that they would not return to enslave her to maintain their way of life, or find another human with similar abilities to wreak havoc upon this world once more? He maintained that if we had not stopped them those who would have done so would likely not present themselves before the Faerie and take ownership for their actions. In short, Pierre presented the argument bluntly but with an honour that befitted his position as a Knight of this town. He was courteous but still hammered home the point that he felt free will was more important than life and that if we had not stopped these Elves who would have? He then told Faerie that they were to judge him fairly based on his actions.”

“Herr stated that his loyalty is best earned through actions not bought. He then asked to be made one of Faerie’s first children. Faerie listened and complied.”

“Timmean told Faerie that he would risk everything to help those he cared for. He has risked his life many times for the people of this town. He helped search for Bikbun when he went missing, he offered himself in place of others when Marwal came calling for blood, and he has fought beside our citizens and out Knights to defend the town from hellions and the things that threaten us at night. This day, he risked everything by offering himself to Faerie and defending the people of this town. He stressed that what we did, killing these Elves, was what we thought was best to protect others from suffering at their hands.”

“Gurok… well Gurok was very forward in her testimony and directly challenged Faerie. She asked why, if Elves are placed under greater scrutiny, did Faerie not deal with these Elves sooner. Why was it left to us? She also stated that she wished Faerie would remove the Elven code in its entirety since any code enforced by the Faerie should apply to all Fae not just Elves and that the law should be able to change over time.”

“In Gurok’s question, Faerie stated that the Elven code was an example of life without complete free will. In response I argued that yes as an Elf I must adhere to the code in order to retain the gifts that Faerie has bestowed upon me, but it is my choice to do so. I and other Elves choose to adhere to the code because we value that which Faerie have given me and my kind. We enjoy being the among the eldest of their children — but that is our choice. There are Elves, as we have seen, who choose to ignore Faeries teachings and in the past the Faerie have always removed the blessing they granted them in kind, but that is still a choice, an act of free will. It is our free will that defines us, shapes us, makes us who we are. In denying Teek her freedom Olipithandrias, Pierpontiel, and Amaryllis created their enemy by sowing seeds of hate, resentment, fear, and loathing, seeds that when bathed in their corrupted shadows grew into twisted vines that choked out the life within them. Denying free will only leads to bitterness, envy, malice, and death. It leads to the destruction of lives, either through the dull crush of the limiting force or the building snaggle­toothed retaliation of the oppressed. Thus although the Faerie may see us Elves as an example of a situation where life is more valuable than free will, I and my kind see us as the greatest testament to the power of free will.”


“As for my personal question, as most of you know or may not know I was inside for the duration of the ordeal with Timmean, preparing supper and discussing how best to help Teak once Oliphandrius had left. The Faerie also wondered why I do not have a formal stand in for myself to make decision on my behalf when I cannot be present. I informed the Faerie that I am part of a council of several members and that many of the former members of this council and indeed many important figures in the town were present during the fight, including our town’s Sheriff. I informed them that I trusted your all of your judgements, although in hindsight this was probably a mistake on my part as I simply assumed you understood the intricacies of the Elven code since some of you have lived with Elves or have studied the code in depth out of paranoia.” Val looks pointedly at Volk then returns to addressing the town as a whole.

“I apologize for this oversight. I have been meaning to make Keket my official stand in when I am absent but as many of you know since the affair with that Grand Dame of the Empire the council membership has been in flux. It was our intention to rectify this last month but as you all know this was unable to come to fruition. I also stated that we have many Elves in the town and Keket and Allura were even present during parts of Oliphandrius’ attack, he simply chose to avoid Allura and focus his efforts on the non-human members of our Knights company, despite her best efforts and Keket was unfortunately removed from the scene by Herr. Additionally I named the humans who knew of the code and it seems Oliphandrius and his company either managed to incapacitate all of you or you were sent off to protect the lives of Teek or my cousins. Unfortunately, it seems that Oliphandrius once again sewed the seeds of his own destruction. Because he looked down upon lesser beings he removed all of the humans and Fae who were sympathetic to his cause.”

“Teek then answered her question. She refused to commit suicide because she knew her own potential. She was also terrified that even if she had tried to kill herself Oliphandrius and his company would have tried to bring her back and force her to serve them using darker magics.”

“Lessa then stood to give her piece. She was grieved that the code was used to harm others, to cause such pain. That these Elves, and I could feel her contempt, could use someone to harm when we as a race are meant to give your blessing to others, it is disquieting. You will all be pleased to know that Lessa held true to her word and urged that Faerie give punishment only where it is due and mercy where it is needed.”

“The Faerie then deliberated. I have not said much of them because during the entirety of our encounter Faerie listened patiently. Their forms often shifted with their moods and at times seemed to be a mixture of all Fae at once. Faerie was awe inspiring, many beings yet one. When they passed judgement the mists themselves grew dark and Faerie became at once both beautiful and terrifying. Olipithandriel, Pierpontiel, and Amaryllis had their Elven essences removed and Herr was turned into one of Faerie’s first children. What he is remains to be seen. The Faerie then demanded that Gurok be made Sheriff, which we will have to talk about with Asher and the rest of the council. Timmean was then turned into an Elf and I was taken to give every Elf in this community a gift of Faeries tears,” she gestures to the simple necklace she is wearing, “to remind us all that every Elf is to follow the code and that… should any of us Elves of Holdfast break our codes we will have no mercy shown to us. Additionally Lessa, myself, Bikbun, Gurok, Timmean, and Herr are to establish the formation of a Faerie Circle so Holdfast can serve as a safe refuge for the Fae of Annwm and Teak for she too has been given Faerie’s protection. We were all then blessed by Faerie and are now considered Faerie-touched. Faerie then turned to Pierre. Earlier in his testimony Pierre offered to pay for the deaths of the three Elves with his own life. We are all here today because Pierre offered his life for us to prevent Faerie’s judgement from touching the lives of others in our town. Faerie knew Pierre was a human of honour and they were certain Pierre would return to his body in the human world. Our party was then offered food for the journey and we ate our fill before taking Pierre’s body and bringing him back to Holdfast.”

“I feel that compared to what it could have been Faerie was benevolent and just in their judgement. They listened and in their wisdom showed mercy where appropriate and only took a life when they felt it was needed in recompense. We did our best. I hope you are content with the way that we represented all of you. Thank you for listening.” Val then sighs, suddenly exhausted after their two day journey and collapses to her knees on the table. Feeling faint she manages to get herself off the table and onto the bench. She pours herself a glass of water.

[Volkihere Malacalo]

Volk speaks, more hushed to Degren.
"Degren, who said anything about fair?"

[Gurok]

Gurok slowly comes out from behind the door to the inn, (and quickly gets out of the way), where she had been hiding and listening since getting back from the Knights camp. Her face, clothes, and hands are covered in yellow pollen, and pine needles cling to her hair. The skin around her tusks seems red and swollen. Her eyes come to rest on Lady Val, who she joins on the bench. Thank-you so much, Lady Val. And for the rest of you, I do hope that clears things up a bit. If anyone has any questions, i can answer them the best I can, likewise the other members of the group, but I think Lady Val could use a rest. Let her catch her breath.

[Lessa]

Lessa has watched and listened from her quiet corner; towards the end of Lady Val's speech she produces a Faerie cake from her parcels and also a tiny thimbleful of Faerie liquor. "Yes, that is how I remember it too. Thank you, Valeriya. Please eat and drink; I hope it will restore you." She brings the food to Lady Val, then hesitates, taking in the various listeners. She shrugs elegantly, re-produces a flask and pours a small taste into the glasses of any who express an interest -- please speak/write up if that's you. <If and when Lady Val takes the food and drink, it will still taste scrumptious, but not madly, divinely, sublimely scrumptious the way it did in the Mists.>

[Gurok]

*Guroks hand shoots up in response to the offering of alcohol*

[Malva]

"Thank you, Lady Val"

[Lady Val]

Val notices Lessa's glass and drinks from it, draining it in one swallow. She then rises and begging people's pardon she leaves grabbing her cloak. She heads for the Knight's camp to find Degrin.

[Gurok]

OOG: degrin is in the inn siting with volk!

[Lady Val]

OOG: I just realized this

[Lady Val]

Val notices Degrin in the Inn before she leaves and turns to him.

"Oh, Sir Degrin I didn't notice you there. Forgive me, I am tired. Did you have any questions for me?"

[Degren Brightforge]

Noticing that Lady Val's gaze has fallen upon him, Degren swiftly scoops the paper from Volk's grasp and, using every finger owns, stuffs it unceremoniously into his mouth. Smiling as though nothing is happening, he pulls out a fresh page and places it before him, writing as he sloppily chews away at the page.

I have many questions. How do you justify the god's decision to kill Pierre, when you acknowledge the true evil of the people he helped to stop? How do you call their decision to kill someone who did nothing more than defend themselves as an act of mercy? Indeed, they COULD have decided to reduce this entire town to nothing more than a pile of dust, but me deciding not to kill is not an act of mercy, but of common sense. The creature you name God murdered my friend out of nothing more than a yearning for power. It saw an opportunity to slay something it deemed lower than itself, and it took it. Then, it demanded that a person who it can control be placed in one of the highest forms of power that our town has, and, ON TOP OF THAT, it had the audacity to demand that we erect a place of worship for it. I am sorry that you find our methods barbaric, but I refuse to risk the lives of any of the people in this town by allowing someone like those elves live. Especially after they've proven their ability to use magic against our people. We offered them the chance to leave, and they refused, not once but twice. They attacked us of their own free will, and we killed them for it. For this, I have no regrets. Those people deserved death, and much more. Perhaps I should consider it a mercy that we chose to not torture them first?

I am sorry, Lady Val. I refuse to pay homage to nothing more than a monster that has deemed itself so high above others that it is a god. I have seen the punishment that has been placed on my friends for not following it's laws. And I deem them unfair. This thing, and your people as well, have no say over the laws and minds of Men. We share this planet now, that is a fact that I undeniable-- but we live in two very different worlds. If we are to bring the decision to a vote for the new Sheriff, I will vote against Gurok. I will lobby against her with everything that I have. If the people decide to place her in power, and that vote is true, and unswayed by magic or corruption, then I will protect her with my life, and give her the best council I can. Gurok is a strong willed woman and has a kind heart, but she is new to this town. She does not know its people as we do. She simply lacks experience.

Degren takes a moment to finish chewing, to swallow, and rereads his letter, fixing obvious spelling mistakes and grammatical errors that may-- or may not-- be caused by his current state of drunkenness.

[Lessa]

Lessa has filled Gurok's vessel with the liquor. Once Degren's message is clear to her, she sighs and looks weary. "Sir Degren. The Faerie do not want your homage; they barely want mine, nor that of any other Fae. They are too great for any amount of homage to matter to them. And the Faerie Circle is not like the other circles Holdfast has established hereabouts: it is purely and only a sanctuary for any Fae people who find themselves in danger in this settlement and who have no other way to defend themselves. The Faerie Circles I have seen elsewhere do not gather power, nor do they send power to the Mists, although people are welcome to pray there. So the Faerie are not asking for our "worship", although all Fae are bound to honour them - usually." She darts a quick look at Gurok. "The three ... elves ... <she clearly has difficulty saying this word> ... who caused so much destruction and pain are still undergoing eternal torment: all of us who went to the Mists heard their screams. I do not think that will stop anytime soon. Had I known the full story, I might have been somewhat less anguished at their deaths, or at least perhaps my response might have been more measured. But Sir Degren, I can't help but think that had the situation be reversed, if humans were part of a small contingent that was inhabiting a Fae world and were sworn on pain of death and dishonour and all that was best in themselves to let no harm come to each other, and if three of their number were summarily executed by a group of ten elves, you as a human might not have reacted much differently than we did. You too might, in desperation, have sought a higher answer, and given yourself over to the decision the higher power makes." She thinks, stroking her scaled arms. "I can't believe that Faerie are monsters; if they are, then they are blessed, miraculous, wonderful monsters of mercy, and we who are Faerie's creations and Faerie's creatures can only hope to aspire to their model. Perhaps that is so. I must think on it." She pauses again, and her arm scales glint again. She looks right into Degren's eyes. "All I ask is that should such a situation arise again and there is a question as to whether any one or several elves should die, please bring more elves to it, and let us deal with the problem. As a group of elves all of us connected to Holdfast including myself were in serious danger of losing our lives, our elfhoods, or worse for letting Olipithandrias, Pierpontiel, and Amaryllis die. And so it will always be: we elves are hostage to each other's well-being." Another pause. "Whether you know it or not, what you have in Holdfast is a group of Fae and a group of humans who are all remarkably dedicated to making things work here as a blended community. I wish you could all have heard how compellingly your friends spoke of this place in the Mists, and the loyalty they all displayed toward Holdfast, honouring its flaws and its brightest achievements, and wanting only the best for it. And let us hope that Pierre returns soon; I am certain he shall, although perhaps he has more business in the Land of the Dead than I realized." She offers the liquor around again. <Please assume that if you want the liquor, it's in your glass - but please mention it, as Lessa would notice.>

[Gurok]

Upon hearing Lessa'a response to what seems to have been a harshly worded note from degren, Gurok comes up to her and says in a frustrated but non hostile, almost pleading tone-"This is all a big misunderstanding! Do you remember how we fought so hard to protect the folks back home? How we argued that Faeries law should only affect her people, not the humans? Everyone is forgetting the reason we went to the mists! Because we sawe that the Privileges of the Elves allowed them to mistreat a human, and that it should not be so! We Intervened, and all of the humans, who are not bound by the law of faerie nor do they worship her, They were threatened with mass genocide by her law! We saw that as unjust too! That is why we went into the mists! That is why each one of us risked our lives by confronting a god! To protect the humans! For equality! For justice! That is why Pierre went! That is what he wanted! Not war. None of us want war. Please... You don't understand...." She trails off..."Lessa! Do you think there is a way we could show everyone exactly what happened? Use Phinnius's and Timmean's and Teeks's psychic abilities to project our memorys, let them all experience the mists! Just like Teek did for Pierre, showed him his memories! That would help them understand! They need to understand how it was!"

[Degren Brightforge]

Gurok, I appreciate your attempts at aiding the situation, and I know that your heart is in the right place. You argued against gods alongside my brother for the sake of a race that is not your own. For this, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. You are valiant, and courageous-- but I see no evidence to suggest that you or he managed to complete your goal. Instead of simply coming to some compromise about how this foreign code affects the humans in our world, the gods chose to wipe away everything human in the mists. The only human they spared from their power was Teek, a human whose power might rival their own, in time.

To Lessa: You'll forgive me if I refuse your offer of food and drink. I've made it a point not to accept such things from anyone these days. The last to do so was an Imperial Dame looking to invade our home with poison that took the will of my comrades. Something like what the Faerie did to Timmean, or Herr? I heard you, that day that this all started-- you were furious, and you were calling for the cleansing of humans from holdfast. Perhaps if you'd taken the time to understand before you decided to go running off to your parents, then maybe my friend would not have suffered so.

Why do the fae here need a sanctuary? We lived in complete harmony before these people came along. They felt no persecution, and no one considered them to be any lower or higher than anyone else. (With the exception of Herr, who I believe was one of the few racists that dwell here. Ironic, no?) I propose we keep things here the same. Make no changes at all. Keep our current Sheriff, unless ALL the people demand a new one, and erect no shrines or circles to these Faerie 'gods'.  Instead, we should sit down and talk about the differences we have. We will always have to deal with threats here. Those threats may be human, monstrous, natural, supernatural, or elven. We need to be able to defend ourselves swiftly against these threats. The humans care not if elves wish to treat one another as brothers and sisters, and wish to help them. Humans don't look at life that way. We look at it in only one way: How do we survive? with that goal in mind, humans will do anything; even kill their own family. We only ask that you remove us from your equation; allow us to be ourselves. If an elf were to threaten our lives, we WILL kill them-- if we think that we must.

By focusing on our differences, we blind ourselves to our similarities. "We" quickly becomes "them" and "us".  Do not allow that to happen.  

[Zar/Herr]

Herr let's out an audible "ooh!"
"THAT is a good idea, Gurok!"
He looks to Lessa "And that little spill about cleansing Humans from here, i'm sure you realize that'll be between difficult to impossible to forgive. Doesn't mean i'll actively be negative towards you, just means it'll influence every decision that involves you."
He takes a bite of food.
"I agree with Degren saying to leave us... the Humans?..." he ponders for a moment, clearly confused.
i'm not Human anymore.. do i still count as being Human? Because i was..
His eyes quickly return to Lessa.
"Just leave us out of your rules."he says a little more softly.

[Gurok]

Degrin, no one is asking you to worship or even acknowledge the existence of the fae. The circle is for those who wish to to learn, or call upon faerie to do so. You won't even have to look at it. The only reason it was Pierre who was sacrified instead of one of the Elves who are actually bound to the code (and who broke the code might I add, namely
allura) is because he volunteered. He was willing. This is not justice, no. But it is mercy. Might I note that everyone was offered the chance to go to the mists, and speak their mind. Including you, Degrin. We all knew that those who went may not come back. We all had the chance to fight. But only us six were willing. If you're not satisfied with the result maybe you should have came with us and fought for your friends. For the community. Now. Are you willing to see what actually happened in the mists? Or do you intend to cling to your damned misinterpretations of a unfortunate situation that you clearly could have helped avoid!?

[Degren Brightforge]

Gurok, I am sorry if I've upset you. Perhaps I should have gone. But I believe I've made the correct choice. At the time I believed that they were simply going to explain their case, and then quickly return. But I also worried it would carry danger. You see, there's a saying, about eggs and baskets, that I am rather fond of. If I had gone to the mists, I have no doubt that I'd either be some elven slave, or have a very different opinion on all of this. I have trouble understanding your definition of mercy. Mercy is allowing someone to live when you have to power kill. They chose to kill because they could. You claim their mercy was to allow him to return to us? Perhaps that is because they had no choice. The mysteries of life and death may be too great even for them. If we should consider who broke the code, perhaps we should trace it back to the source. The Faerie are, as many have said, capable of many things. Things that put them so far above us that they MAY be gods. But why could they not stop this from happening? Why couldn't they have stopped what these pieces of SHIT were doing years ago? They could have struck them down with lightening. They did not. They could have separated them from Teek, and rendered them harmless. They did not. They could have exacted the regular punishment, and turned them into humans; stripping them of all their power are protections. They did not. What they chose to do was watch from afar as people suffered and died at the hands of their beloved children, graciously bestowing their power and protections upon them as they roved the country, stealing and torturing at will.

I will not happily allow their influence to thrive here unchecked. If the people wish to create a place of worship, that is fine. They are free to make their own decisions. The ability for them to be called upon at will may give them a foothold within Holdfast, one that they can use to rip control from the people who live here. But I do warn this: it will only serve to further spread the chasm that has erupted between our two peoples. We must strive to return to how things were, and correct the problems that caused this rift.

I am not saying that I will not listen. I welcome a full-- and truthful-- account of what happened there. I hope it might fill in some crucial missing piece, and that I can somehow understand their decision. But I do doubt that will happen.

Thank you, Herr. I don't hate elves, or any fae. But we are not, and will never be, part of your world of mist. We are what we are, and we will not follow their laws just because they demand it.

Again, I hold no ill-will against you, Gurok. I still believe us to be friends, just ones on opposite ends of a point of view. Tell me, What did they say to convince you so completely that they are benevolent? How did they convince you of their divinity? How did they convince you that slaying Pierre needlessly was right?

[Lessa]

Lessa smiles a small smile at Gurok. "So - I am escalating hostility, am I, even though I am trying to calm the waters. I'll retreat to my shadows momentarily, never fear. Though all I am trying to do is to emphasize exactly what you are saying - the Faeries do not rule this place and do not want to, they are not trying to control the human world and do not want to, they care only so much about Elves and that is only to make sure that Elves do not betray the best of themselves and that they protect their own best selves. I think that my words are -- poisoned -- here in Holdfast, and that none will listen to me or what I have to say. But I'll wait until Teek and Timmean return, and see what they have to say about your idea, which might help - although I see that the suspicion and hostility I sowed in my grief and rage has grown rampant. That is a very great shame, and I am sorry I began it."

She acknowledges Herr's speech wordlessly with a calm and accepting nod of her head and a glint in her eye. She smiles, perhaps strangely, and turns back to Degren's newest note.

"So far as I know, Sir Degren, Olipithandrias and his crew had met Teek weeks or months ago rather than years, and while I know they were not worthy of being elves well before that -- I disavow those three entirely, by the way, and I also disavow my former sorrow for their deaths because they deserved and received much worse than that -- anyway, only Faerie knows why they did not intervene before. We did not ask them that, and they gave us no explanation; and I cannot explain, so there is no use pursuing this line of inquiry, I'm afraid." She says this last quite, quite gently and sympathetically. "The Faerie are so much greater than we, you see - it is as though we were asking them to track the minuscule conflicts and aggressions in the ant world, to track us all, even though we be elves. Their minds and energies are not only for us." She breathes. "As for hearing a 'true' version of events in the Mists, you have already heard it - Valeriya is incapable of uttering anything but the truth. It's the ring that prevents her from deceiving you. None of the rest of us are so limited. So ask us - independently, if you like - for our own accounts of what happened there; not all of us who went to the Mists were present in the Watering Hole for Valeriya's summary, so not all of us will be able to shape our accounts to hers, especially Pierre when he returns. The more our independent accounts chime with Valeriya's, the more you will be able to have confidence that you know what happened. I am not sure whether you prefer this measure or Gurok's more novel idea, but there are definitely ways to verify the truth of Valeriya's statement. I, at least, am at your disposal in that regard, although I will not speak for the others. Even should I return to Sa's abode, I'll give you means to summon me back."

"Regarding Pierre's death, I can't be sure, but I thought I felt that the Faerie, in their generosity, meant to compensate Pierre abundantly for his sacrifice; I think that the gifts they caused to appear on his body are a measure of this compensation. But I have not looked at the gifts and might not be able to Evaluate them regardless, despite my training, as I am not trained in Evaluating items from the Mists; and I am thinking it is unlikely anyone wants me to go anywhere near Pierre in any case at the moment." She thinks for a second, nods, and retreats to her shadowy corner.

[Degren Brightforge]

(OOG: I must have a skewed idea of what lessa looks like. What DOES she look like? Because your said scales. I never knew elves had scales. )

[Lady Val]

(OOG: Lessa as a priestess of Sa has scales on her arms, its not an Elf thing, its a Lessa thing. She's like part snake. Val is kind of weirded out by it too but she's just like "meh my cousin runs around with Faerie wings, so different strokes I guess")

[Degren Brightforge]

(OOG : that explains why she didn't want us killing snakes! I thought she was just a hippy. That's, like , super ominous! Thanks for the clarification, Hilary!)

[Lady Val]

(OOG: Yeah... Val visited Sa's domain once... it was... lovely but disquieting if that makes sense (tons of hissing and filled with white marbled tunnels that glow softly from within). To be fair though more snakes around means more snakeskin which means more health potions.)

[Gryzzleback Chanteloup]

While the various members of town argue and debate, quiet singing comes forth from under one of the tables. Yawgo is laying there in a curled up in a drunken stupor, a few flagons of strong ale and other such beverages surrounding him. His singing is quiet, almost inaudible over the din of angry townsfolk

"Yawgo dreamed a thousand dreams, been haunted by a million screams.
But Yawgo hear the marching feet, they're moving into the street.
Now, did you hear the news today? They say the danger has gone away.
But Yawgo see the fire's still alight, they're burning into the night.

There's too many men, too many people, making too many problems
And there's not much love to go around. Can't you see this is the land of confusion?

This is the world you live in,and these are the hands you're given.
Use them and let's start trying, to make it a place worth living in

Oh, chosen man, where are you now? When every thing's gone wrong somehow?
Men of steel, these elves of power, they losing control by the hour
This is the time, this is the place, so you look for the future
But there's not much love to go around. Tell Yawgo why this is the land of confusion.

This is the world you live in, and these are the hands you're given.
Use them and let's start trying, to make it a place worth living in.

Yawgo remember long ago, when the sun was shining...
And all the stars were bright all through the night.
And the sounds of our laughter, as Yawgo hold you tight...
So long ago...

You won't be coming home tonight, this generation must put it right
You can't go making promises, that you know you'll never keep.

There's too many men, too many people, making too many problems.
And there's not much love to go around. Can't you see this is the land of confusion?

Now, this is the world you live in, and these are the hands you're given.
Use them and let's start trying, to make it a place worth fighting for

This is the world you live in, and these are the names you're given.
Stand up and let's start showing, just where your lives are going to."

After he is finished, the elderly Kaern rolls slowly out from under the table and kicks away some of the flagons. he begins to walk unsteadily to the door muttering the whole time.

"Yawgo see all this, but no one ask Yawgo what he sees. Just because Yawgo is blind, does not mean Yawgo does not see. Yawgo sometimes sees better than any elf. Yawgo listens better than any Halfling and sometimes, yes sometimes Yawgo smell worse than any orc. Yawgo thinks it is time for Yawgo to leave this place, maybe go to other place... the place that is not this place but will be this place when Yawgo gets there. Hmm, this place might be that place until that place is this place. Then Yawgo would be at that place and not this place where is where Yawgo does not want to be as this place is going to the dogs. Soon enough that place will also go to dogs, but dogs are a place things to when they go to the dogs."

Yawgo pauses at the door and stares sightlessly around the room, before shrugging and walking out

Yawgo wonders why so many people are here arguing about what has happened? Is pointless to live in past. Yawgo live in past, not fun. Yawgo try to live in future, that was strange. Yawgo does not recommend it. So Yawgo live in present. Does Yawgo have regrets? Oh, enough to fill a lifetime. So much has been lost, so much forgotten. So much pain, so much blood. And for what? Yawgo wonders. The past tempts us, the present confuses us, and the future frightens us. And so lives slip away, moment by moment, lost in that vast, terrible in-between. But there is still time to seize that one last, fragile moment. To choose something better, to make a difference, as Yawgo say. And Yawgo hope you all intend to do just that."

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