Second Passage of the Cricket Moon

The Aranorian guard won’t disclose which city park is now inhabited, but the rumours are officially confirmed – there is a man, perhaps of fae blood, who is living wild in Aranor.

Nicknamed the ‘Beastman’ by those who have seen him, the man wears no clothes, has a bushy beard and long, unkempt hair, and has an uncanny knack for being elusive.

"We’re guessing this is actually a human, judging by the beard and rough appearance," said Kalata, one of the guards in charge of getting him out of the city.

Others disagree, citing examples of him disappearing into mists that weren’t there moments before, or leaping through the trees like a Moraithian monkey.

"These reports are highly exaggerated," Kalata insists. "But he is definitely wild, and familiar with natural ways. Like other animals, he is capable of hiding quite adeptly in the forests."

Although some reports have the Beastman walking up to citizens and either attacking them or stealing things, Kalata also points out that reports of this nature come from ‘questionable sources’. "Reliable sightings show us that this man does not want human contact – he’s always running away if he sees that he’s being watched."

Thus far the guard has had no luck in tracking him down, but they have been charged with extracting him from the city – without harming him. It won’t be an easy task.

Tirian

The ships arrived last An Tir – three of them – and deposited over three hundred gypsies on the Old World. Due to tribal strife on the Masallan isle of Sehra, these gypsies were displaced, and with nowhere to call home, they made their way to Gwynned.

"Sehra is small – it was getting too full of people," said Aratai, one of the gypsy leaders. "Fights were breaking out, and people came to be made into two groups. Our group was the smaller, and so we left."

These gypsies will doubtless bring new challenges to Gwynned, which has successfully made it through its first full winter. While in the Old World we are used to ‘civilized’ gypsies, the gypsies from Sehra have had very little contact with the outside world. Most only speak Old Masallan, and aren't aware of Gwynned’s culture.

"Our people are quick to take to new ways," Aratai insisted. "We will make Gwynned our home, and will bring good things to the island in exchange."

Gwynned already has a small gypsy population which came from Aranor. There may also be some cultural clashes between the ‘traditional’ Sehran gypsies and the current ones.

Aratai, however, seems confident for now that his group can smoothly fit in to the existing culture.

Lord Kieran

"We had no choice!" Lady Emily (one of the sages of Illumination) explains.

The café opened in order to give people a chance to browse through the frequent treatises and tomes that Illumination publishes. They serve pastries, teas, and hot chocolate cream. They wanted things to remain friendly, relaxed, and homey. In fact, the original café had only six tables.

"It just wasn’t enough," said Lady Emily, who often does her research at the café, and sometimes works as a server. "At first we had lines, and then we just had to turn people away."

The decision was finally made to move the café across the street, into a building about three times the size.

"We’ll keep things as friendly as ever," Lady Emily promises. "More tables, but just as much good food, and now we’ll have room for all the new treatises, and won’t have to keep rotating our writings."

They’ll also be hiring two or three new servers, though those hoping for the job will have to meet the most stringent requirements for friendliness. The new Illumination Café will open next An Maad, with only a single day of being closed between locations. So come and enjoy!

Tania

To the Oracle Main Page

To the Oracle Collection-- Fourth Year