Pining for the Fyrds

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Season, Week, Day

1625, Holy Season

Dramatis Personae

PC

Berra
Rajar
Serala
Nala
Dormal

NPC

Kallyr- Prince of Sartar
Tennebris- Chief Priest of Orlanth at Boldhome
Andrin- High Priest of Eurmal at Boldhome
Beneva- High Priestess of Chalana Arroy at Boldhome
Dorasa- High Priestess of Lhankor Mhy at Boldhome
Eril- High Sword of Humakt at Boldhome
Kalis- High Priestess of Ernalda at Boldhome
D'Val the Sword- One Eyed Doomed Death Duck
Koraki Silverhand- Louche Tarshite Windlord
Jenn Finmastdottir- Brand new Chalana Arroy Initiate
A Guard Captain

Events

As before, the log will be recounted with extracts from Berra JarangsdottiHumaktisaga, from The Sonnets to Mellia, Sweetest of Healers, White Lady of Esrolia, The Lay of Serala, Lance of the Cold Sun , The Sonnets to Vestra, Grey Lady of Esrolia, The Death of Rajar, and NalaTiwrSaga. Editorial commentary will be recorded [thus]. Both the D and T voice appear in this selection of extracts.

---

[Welcome to our next lecture. This is a fascinating opportunity to look at the political events of Sacred Season 1625, through the prism of Pro-Sartarite propaganda of the time. We should perhaps remain a touch cautious about some interpretations, as naturally the geopolitical struggle between Heortling and Lunar was not the only- there are plenty of factional struggles ongoing between Sartarite groups. We shall begin with Kallyrsaga, again documenting the work of Dormal in the immediate aftermath of the failed ritual.]

Bleeding bright blood
Bladecarrying Bride of Sartar Brave
Lay lifeless midst Lightbringers
Lept Dormal Lightfoot loyally.¹

Bound burnt body
Bundled bleeding with bands
Saving sweet Starbrow
But Still slept Sartarlady!

Jena just-called to Gentle Goddess²
Justly jagged wounds judging
Brought back Beneva
Bright lady Best of Boldhome

[Our other heroes at this dramatic moment were kicking open the door to the farmhouse and finding slaughter.]

Blood between boards.
Bodies fly Blown bloating.³
Lunars leaving death lying
Lies leading sacrificial lunacy⁴!

[The Lay of Serala has a rather different focus on this part, and if we consider it historically⁵ we must assume Serala split off from the main body of the heroes at this point, in order to travel back to Boldhome.]

Swiftly through Sartars tallest mountains then flying
Serala arrived in a city that was wailing and crying.
Riding like the wind through a place that was mourning
She arrived in the square as the gold light was gently dawning⁶

Eril's word stood before them all, Serala, and Dormal, Koraki the Tall
The Fyrd riding out, Dormal and Serala answerin' the call⁷
To battle, to glory, which showed in the light
Which glinted on weapons, and sharpened their sight!

Arriving as Eril the brave stood confronting Jar-Eel
Midst the dead 'fore him besmirching the field!
Dormal led Humakti home, to search for the foe
Whilst Serala charged Jar-Eel to strike her with woe!

Once and once again, her bow string did sing
Her bronze arrows keen striking forth with a death dealing sting!
Throwing self foward against the red Queen, guessing
That only thus would Humakt find her in battles hard pressing!

So did she win greatest renown and her tale
Was told for many a day and in many a vale
For who would not wish of such a warrior to know,
Who bested, though costly, such a fell foe!

[It would appear that when the others returned, one or other Praxian was blamed for things which had gone wrong. These stanzas are found both in NalaTiwrSaga and in The Death of Rajar.]

Why blame Praxians
When things go awry for you?
Your truth is not this.⁸

When Humakt blames you
But Orlanth does not see this
Divided kingdom.⁹

What Really Happened

Dormal found himself in the ruins of the failed heroquest, with the questers all reappearing in a variety of levels of injured. Springing rapidly into action, he tried to heal anyone, or get working bandages in place, before handing over to a sixteen year old Chalana Arroy Initiate, who finally managed to get her High Priest awake, so that she could in turn do most of the healing. Meanwhile, Dormal had as a prisoner one of the assassins. He set to ensuring all went well, and the large part of the Fyrd (including the 2nd band of assassins under illusions) left to fight against the Lunars, as ordered by Eril.

The heroes back at the farm sent Serala back as a rider to report, and investigated the farm, where they found the whole family had been killed, with one of the daughters sacrificed for some reason. Serala and Dormal were then sent on to Eril to let him know what had happened at the Northern front, and to inform him that further assassins might be still in Boldhome. They arrived as Eril was fighting 'Jar-Eel's army. Dormal and some Humakti were sent back , whilst Serala joined the battle. All was going well, until Serala and Eril charged Jar-Eel, Serala shot her, and was counter-shot with a Madness spell. Serala woke up some minutes later, a long way away, and with no memory of what had happened.

In the end, Dormal, Serala, and then Eril returned to the city, and a relief force was sent to the others to let them back. Of course, Eril needed to know whether the distractions of the last session had been deliberate, and so as Nala arrived first, and then Rajar, both were arrested and taken to Eril for interrogation under magic. Dormal slipped home, and found that someone had written in New Pelorian on his wall with a moon rune. He got the High Priest of Eurmal to translate, as he was a follower of Eurmal the Forger Creative Scribe, and found it was essentially, "Nice try, son. Better luck next time." Dormal swallowed a bit to realise that the Lunar assassins had known just where to find him.

Nala and Rajar released, the party repaired to the tavern or temple (or both) to work out what they were going to do next.

Notable Moments and Quotes

"No, you do you." - Berra
"Ideally not on camera." - Dormal
"*expression* - GM

"Hey Nala, good news! I thought you were someone else again." - Berra

"It's a lot harder to do it on yourself." - GM
"Quote!" - Nala

"Much alarum. Followed by the messenger who triggered the whole thing, saying, 'Yes, but Eril wants the whole Fyrd!'" - GM

"Dormal gets to be the one who disobeys Eril!" - Berra
"Not sure which side to support here." - Berra

"So, do you take orders from me?" - Messenger
"I'll give you two guesses." - Dormal

"Stabbity?" - Nala

"Hey, there are PCs about, but hey!" - Berra

"hangs back checking the outside" - Berra

"I’ll go left. Is D'Val right -handed? -Rajar" - Nala
"Right-winger." - Nala

"WHO IS QUACKING?" - Nala
"Who is gas-quacking Nala?" - GM

"I'm mutd." - Dormal
"+e" - Dormal
"mutde?" - Berra
"I'me?" - Berra
"Yes, mutde." - Dormal
"Good, because I was puzzled." - Berra
"rolling_eyes" - Dormal

"You're losing your mind." - Dormal
"Going quackers, as it were." - Dormal

"Whose mind?" - Berra

"Rajar. Is that currently Chaotic?" - Berra

"The soldiers burst in. And you know - I thought they'd got me." - Ghost

"Good news! You don't have to worry about this year's harvest." - Dormal

"Rajar —" - Berra in a conversation that was not hers.

"Put Serala outside to be on guard." - Berra
"Engarde!" - Serala
*gets broadsword out* - Serala

"Did they kill the children?" - Dormal
"Yes, The sacrifice looks to be about 13" - GM
"Ah, magic number." - Dormal

"One middle finger and one facepalm, before 8:30." - Berra

"We are not talking major chaos; more low-level grubbiness. - GM

"He takes out a quill…" - GM
"Is it green?" - Berra
"…. Yes… it is." - GM
"And he starts writing." - GM
"Off the top of his head, as it were." - Nala

"You win free falling rocks." - Dormal

"How many horses do we need for the party?" - Dormal
"What is this, Equus?" - Dormal
"Four is the most even Serala can reasonably take at once anyhow, I think." - Serala

"Dormal do I look naked?" - Nala
"Couldn't say, your camera's off." - Dormal

"The Lunars knew where the Lunars were - but they know what we did by now." - Berra

"I will stab him in painful and non-lethal ways if he tries anything. -Dormal

"I wish Eril and Tenebris would just elope." - Nala
"Nah. GM and Koraki will be eloping." - Berra

"THAT BARN WAS CHAOTIC" - Dormal

"Swinging the duck is not a euphemism for Ernalda’s bounty." - Nala

"Nor is grabbing the duck by the ankles." - GM

"Is the duck lit? He looks quite sober. - Nala

"The duck not getting onto the roof is not a euphemism for Ernalda’s bounty." - Nala
"Pulling the duck up, however, is a euphemism for not being shared with." - Berra

"I'll find a ladder or something D'Val can get down with, before I turn in for a nap." - Berra
"I'm relieving him. He can climb down me." - Rajar the Sizeable

"Sigh. Poor Ernalda. And you think ducks have a hard time" - Nala

"They look at the owner's marks. 'Well let's hear it.'" - GM
"Their owners won't need them any more." - Serala

"It's gone Paps Up." - Guard captain

"Eril. Pining for the fyrds." - Nala

"Is swinging their spears a euphemism for Orlanth’s bounty?" - Nala

"Robbery doesn’t necessarily mean murder. Just violence." - Rajar

"TEA." - Berra

"Moving swiftly along." - GM
"Not nearly swiftly enough." - Serala

"Tennebris says, Relax" - GM
"Lie back and think of Ernalda?" - Nala

"Much to my chagrin, the Northern Patrol is OK…" - Dormal

"Such a charmer, isn't he?" - Serala
"I have nothing against most of you." - Dormal
"Pining for the fields…." - Nala

"Who writes with a webbed foot as a seal?" - Laknhor Mhy Priestess
"Much as I hate to admit it, one of the best warriors I know." - Serala
"His handwriting is *atrocious*." - Priestess
"If you are going to tell him that, I'd like to pay for a ringside seat!" - Serala

"You could get all of that and more out of Koraki. Yes, that is a euphemism. - me" - Nala

"He wore the runes of Moon, Truth, and Death." - Assassin under Truth Spell
"Damnit, I knew Rajar should have killed him." - Rajar

"There is a place in Lunar Tarsh, they called the Reaching Moon" *sings* - Nala
"And it has been the ruin of many a lad who cannot sing in toon." - Nala

"How could we tell? Well, we could ask the GM." - Berra

"The Lhankor Mhy set have Truth." - Berra

"Not to put too fine a point on it, who's [Eril] going to listen TO?" - Dormal
"Everyone looks at Tennebris." - Berra

"Lankor Mhy is a professional, but D'Val is just a quack." - Nala

"Find your friend." - Tennebris
"For a given value of friend." - Serala

"He was with us when the Rune Lord in question was in a stand-up shouting match with Berra…" - Dormal

"I need to find something to buff with illusion." - Nala
"Then I gotta botch my honour roll and lose that advance" - Nala
"Just use illusion to disguise your truth rune as an illusion rune." - Dormal

"I can relax, just for a few blissful, peaceful hours." - Serala
"Ah, there you are. We need to ride." - Dormal

"I'm going to walk outside, knock on the door, and walk back in. 'Ah, there you are. We need to ride.'" - Dormal
"Dormal, you are such a dick" - GM

#TeamSerala - Berra

“Come back here, you ingredient!" - Nala

"I'd have just thrown a javelin at him." - Initiate
"It's called diplomacy. We all need to practice, and Dormal is a good subject to practice on." - Serala

"Rajar, if D'Val needs to get down we don't want him to be undignified. We should get a ladder. I mean, he would jump off the roof, but it's good to be able to get down quietly." - Berra
( Do not ask him if that tree there is Chaotic. ) O o . - Berra

"We love his little pointy horn of healing, yes we do." - Serala

"Is that a euphemism?" -Nala
"Oh GOD yes!" - Serala

"I typed that because Berra won’t have had a clue who said what in that interchange." - Nala

"So, I've been nominated to be polite to the Humakti, have I?" - Dormal

"Rajar, Rajar, he's our man!" - Nala, Storm Bull Cheerleader
"I think this should be canon." - Rajar

"Mmmm. Watching Dormal trying to be polite." - Berra

"Conscious meditation on the map." - Berra
"NOT A EUPHEMISM" - Berra

"Important message from Boldhome. It is Boldhome we are talking about, right". - Dormal

"She'll be watching, but she'll let Dormal enjoy the experience of being needed." - Serala

"Why does the duck think he can write?" - Eril
"Because nobody has the guts to tell him he can't." - Serala

"Eril: really competent at failing." - Berra

"There is a sudden thrust of Humakti along the edge." -GM
"Is that a euphemism for Ernalda’s bounty?" - Nala

"Dormal: really good at sneaky bastarding." - Berra

"Which guy?" - GM
"The one that Berra had the standing-up falling-down fight with." - Dormal

"I was planning on going with my…. no, she can't say friend. Acquaintance here." - Serala

“Are you going to stay and be a rider for me?” -Eril
“No, because you are an ARSE - serala’s inner voice” - Nala

"Do try not to be killed." - Eril
"He cares about you!" - Berra

"But then again, they are talking about my High Priest." - Berra

"I have never EVER….shot Rajar." - Nala
"-Ouch." - Rajar
"Ouch. Ouuuuch. Oooooouch." - Rajar

"Berra, Bambi? Really?" - Nala
"Yes. It is the least Berra T-shirt I have ever found." - Berra

"What is your power?" - GM
"11. No, that's my horse's power." - Serala

"She’s said to be one of the greatest warriors Glorantha has produced." - D'Val
"Ah, that is why he is bitter." - Nala

"Maybe Sid can get a bed out of this, instead of sleeping with me in the stables" - Nala

"There was a little bit of Humakti elbowing past you." - GM
"It is necessary to get behind someone before you stab them in the back." - Dormal

"Oh, Eril…." - Berra
*sigh* - Berra

"Tiwr, let me get the blood out of your mane." - Nala
"I won’t be magnificent!" - Tiwr
"You won’t be smelly." - Nala

"Tiwr care takes up a lot of my time" - Nala

"Are you going back up to your chambers?" - GM
"Yes. Are they as empty as I expect them to be?" - Dormal
"Yeah. The decoration's different, though." - GM
"There is a moon rune and words." - GM

"Oh, by now we will have searched all the bodies, stripped them for valuables, and so on." - Berra
"LOOT THE BODIES FOR TREASURE" - Nala
"Exactly." - Berra
"I should probably send them on to damnation." - Nala
"They go runny and ruin the treasure if you don't get them out in time." - Berra

"I can steal a scribe." - Berra

"And the evening and the morning were the first day." - Nala

"It would be really ironic if one of the Humakti Erik sent in were the rune lord" - Nala

"Gates have been closed, except for the thousand men that went out." - Eurmalite

"Well, if he went out that way, he's Eril's problem." - Dormal

"You know how difficult it is." - Eurmalite
"Yeah, but he does have iron on him. That would be a pretty sweet take." - Dormal
"Why didn't you say so?" - Eurmalite

"People only wear iron so they can say they are attractive" - Nala

"Eurmal the Creative Scribe." - GM
"I didn’t even know we GAVE permits for that! -Dormal

Pag: . o O (This is NOT my first time with a catatonic rider) - GM

"They'll open the gate for me. If they know what's good for them." - Serala

"Dormal at least they made that nice moon rune to make you feel at home" - Nala

"The truth is to be shouted from the rooftops." - GM
"The truth is supposed to be shoved off the rooftop? What?" - Nala

"I think the best bet is to head for Karachi…. -Serala

"I shall walk in on him without knocking. Win." - Serala
"Double win, as Dormal has all his clothes on." - Berra

"I seem to have a small gap in my memory. Trivial. What battle?" - Serala

"I think we are setting a record for GM facepalms." - Nala

"Plaaaaayed." - Berra

"She comes very highly recommended by Dormal." - Berra
"God help us." - Serala

"I will try to get to the tent before Eril does." - Dormal

"About ten minutes later, to cheering, Eril strides in." - GM
"I will conceal my eye roll." - Dormal

"Boys! Girls! D'Val!" - Berra
"Racism!" - Tiwr

"He's like my camp follower." - Nala
"He'th perfeckly mathculine!" - GM Devolin voice

"We can offer D'Val the chance to ride on Billy's back." - Berra

"Why Rajar?" - Berra who definitely did not co-plot things

"And I'm pretty sure that D'Val will survive us finding out." - Berra

"Ah. The prophetess." - Eril
"Look behind me." - Nala

"You had a vision." - Eril
"I did." - Nala
"He draws his sword." - GM

"Oh man, someone needs to have invented popcorn." - Dormal

"Tell me of the vision you had three days ago." - Eril
"Two days ago. Whatever it was." - GM

"Are you now or have you ever been…" - Berra channels Eril McCarthy

*swishes the sword out from under Nala's hand, sheathes it* "Right. Get out." - Eril

"Can I please have Hate (Eril)?" - Nala

"Rajar of the Bison Tribe." - Eril
"Yes." - Rajar
"You were involved in distracting me from my duties." - Eril
"No, you did that yourself." - Rajar
*disruption* - GM

"Just… answer." - Berra
"I did answer. It's not my fault if he doesn't like the truth." - Rajar
*straight face* - Berra

"I can Has? Pleeeeeeeeeeease?" - Nala

"Rajar. Remember when we talked about politeness? Now is one of those times." - Berra

"Now, I'm going to ask some extremely polite questions." - Eril
"And I will answer with the truth." - Rajar
"Good." - Eril

"You were involved in an incident." - Eril
"Which one?" - Rajar

"Oh, Eril. Just take the f#ckin’ blame." - Nala

"That's a very long sentence. I kill Lunars. I don't work for them." - Rajar

"Tent committee on unsartarite activities." - Dormal

"Alright windlord. You and your warrior sidekick can leave us now." - Eril

"BEER." - Berra
"And then the temple." - Berra

"You were the messenger. And I believe that there's a saying about shooting the messenger." - Serala
"You don't do it!" - Nala
"Depending on if it's Dormal." - Serala

"You're pitching up to the temple." - GM
"Yes." - Rajar
"Drunk." - GM
"Well. Yes." - Rajar
"Bloodstains…" - GM
"I've got some too, so we've all had a good time!" - Rajar

"I had a great set of rolls, and then realised I had not put in my modifiers, so the GM kindly got me to do them all again. Curse him." - Berra
"The earth finally moved for me" - Nala

"Oh. Duh. I'm looking for my discorporate skill to roll against. It’s a rune spell." - Nala

Related Logs

Related Logs

• Berra Scouting
• Prayer During Sacred Time

Previous: Duck and Cover

Next: Rollin' down the River

Footnotes

1. T D Voice's theoretical involvement here sets him - or her - aside from the usual interloping narrative voices, but the end reward is, of course, the same.

2. But not in Sacred Time.

3. Oh, for an inner eye that might be closed to such images.

4. Two double meanings in a single stanza.. Almost certainly deliberate on the part of the poet. Or perhaps three, if one considers the results of Lunar Magic to Serala later in this 'episode'.

5. Which is a debatable position

6. This sounds highly unlikely as it would mean she had ridden through the night again, and further does not match with other accounts of when the assassination attempt was made. One can assume it was either an author error, an attempt to bring Yelm and Yelmalio into it, or dramatic license. In whichever case, this historian does not approve.

7. Again, there is evidence that Dormal and Serala rode out after the Fyrd, and somewhat faster. The author of the Lays is not always the most concerned with precise chronology

8. As always, given the current popularity of The Spurious Rajar, we are inclined to include an appropriate stanza:

Can tall Eril find
The North Road given: both hands
An ass, an Atlas?

It is noted by the Lecturer in Oversized Books: Clearly this is a diversionary tactic. Given the drain of cavalry horses at the battle of the Razoress, it merely comments that Eril rode a donkey north, whilst pandering to such sensationalist interpretations as given above.

We now discard that unfortunate poem, in favour of more serious discussion.

9. The R text tries to distinguish Eril and Tenebris as separate characters. This is (according to certain ill-advised sources) specious. Their functional overlap in the story is complete, and with the windlord Koraki, a much more personable and believable character, there is no need for another Orlanthi. Or, for that matter, another villain. We must assume that due to the respect of the character Berra, the Humakti priest is the origin of the doubling.

And possibly the source of the phrase “ off-handed.”

Wiermonken on this subject: 'oh, sweet summer child'.