The Oracle
Second Passage of the Plowing Moon
Goblins Found Dead
The earliest travelers on the road that leads west from Aranor came upon a grizzly sight last An Tir, for the small, pale grey bodies of goblins were found tossed about on the road and throughout the nearby woods.
The guards collected fourteen bodies, as well as the body of a Sereg warrior.
"We can only conclude that there was a battle waged here," said Aryn, of the Merchant District guard. "No one knew that Sereg and goblins fought each other, but that seems to be the inescapable conclusion. The most troubling thing is the proximity of the bodies to the gates of the city."
I asked him if the city feared an attack from such ferocious fae creatures.
"A goblin attack upon the city would be very unlikely. They choose easy, isolated prey. But we’ve done our best to plan for it, though we have little knowledge of their fighting tactics."
And the Sereg?
"Again, these are wild creatures. They wouldn’t enter a walled city."
Still, some fear the closeness of the encounter.
"It’s frightening," said a young woman who lives near the western gates, "to think that those creatures were fighting right outside of Aranor. And at night, even. Brrr. It just gives me the chills."
And that can probably describe the feeling for most of us.
Lord Kieran
Unidentified Wreck found on the Southern Coast of the Old World
Sailors working the southern route around the tip of the Old World have discovered a strange wreck upon the shore.
"We came across it early in the morning," said Daenen, a sailor with the Highland Trading Company. "It looked really strange, so we anchored and took a boat in to see what we could see."
The sailors described the ship as being "of a strange make and design", and bearing no flag, although the tattered sail seemed to be decorated with an image of some sort.
"It was long and thin," Daenen said, "with oars, and some other structures cast down the beach. Like it might have been a Moraithian designed catamaran."
However, its large size and strange woodwork, a sample of which was brought back to Aranor, do not suggest Moraithian origins.
"The survivors had obviously made a camp on the beach," Deanen said, "but after that they must have gone inland. They didn’t leave many clues, except for their ship."
Some people have voiced fears that the ship might be from Saravai. Many have thought that it is only a matter of time before the lycanthropes banished to that isle build a craft and come back to the mainland.
"That’s a justifiable fear," said Cairon, Captain of Aranor’s elite guards. "But the complexity of design and fine workmanship tend to suggest a ship from another land. The lycanthropes would likely build something more . . . practical."
Let us hope he is right. And in the meanwhile, we can all wonder what strange folk wander lost in the southern forests of our vast province.
Tania
Laetitia Comes to the Old World
Laetitia, a Tirané dance troupe famed in Masalla for their wild harping and rhythmic, fast-paced dances, is coming to the Old World.
Their music and dance is a blend of traditional Tirané and Masallan Gypsy dancing traditions, created when the twelve member troupe traveled to Masalla and lived and studied with the gypsies for three years.
Now the six men and six women proudly display one of the most unique and energizing performances to be found anywhere.
"What makes them especially unique," says Kassie, a Tirané woman living in Aranor who has seen the troupe perform in Masalla, "is that there are so few examples of Tirané performance art available to the public. Most Tirané dance is, by tradition, of a religious significance that doesn’t encourage it being viewed by outsiders. Laetitia has broken that tradition, but they’ve also given us all a chance to see that Tirané is something besides a province of barbarians, which is how I often hear it described."
Laetitia will be performing according to the following schedule, barring ill traveling weather or other inconvenience.
Jalpa – An Sel and An Ilé, Fourth Passage of the Plowing Moon
Selarum – An Maad and An Aran, Third Passage of the Cricket Moon
Neraha – An Aran, Fourth Passage of the Cricket Moon
Aranor – An Ilé, An Meja, and An Tir, Second Passage of the Summer Moon
Tirian
