The Oracle
Fourth Passage of the Plowing Moon
Halos Fill Night Sky
Halos, strange light-phenomenon that appear among the stars, are usually considered unusual, if not rare. But on the night of last An Meja, they tried to make a new reputation for themselves.
“This was one of the largest displays of halos ever recorded,” said Aelus, an astrologer who works in Aranor. “I counted a hundred and fourteen halos throughout the night.”
The phenomena are completely unexplained, though Aelus said that halos foretell events unfolding in the near future. The nature of the events is determined by the area of the sky in which the halos blossom.
“Even for me,” Aelus went on, “there were simply too many. I recorded as many positions as I could, but until I do more determinations, all I can say is that the next year will be eventful indeed.”
For most, the halos were simply beautiful. And for some, a bit frightening. “They scare me,” said Mya, a girl watching from the end of the Pier.
The halos blossomed throughout their full range of colors – from silver to golden, often with hints of green. Many filled nearly the entire sky. And hundreds of people filled the streets, many extinguishing the city lamps in order to get a better view.
“We were blessed to witness this event,” Aelus said. “We’ll likely not see such a thing again within our lives.”
The city guard would also like to point out that extinguishing lamps is a punishable offense, though no one will be fined due to the extraordinary nature of the events.
Tirian
New Animal Discovered in Moraithe
Some sages have estimated that Moraithe has more types of animals than all the other provinces combined, and explorers often return with fabulous new beetles or butterflies. But large beasts are another matter entirely, for the island has been inhabited since long before the Masallans arrived, and the Native Moraithians possessed lore concerning most of the island’s bigger animals.
Thus it was with some amount of surprise that Duke Amasay, ruler of the isle, received audience with a pair of explorers claiming to have discovered a new animal.
Dubbed the ‘Jungle Octopus’ by its discoverers, the beast much resembles an ocean octopus, with mottled skin and two dark eyes.
“We were lucky to stumble upon it,” said Shane, one of the explorers. “It has incredible camouflage.”
Indeed, the creature was able to change the pigment of its flesh, seemingly at will and with great speed.
“Colors seemed to flow over the surface of its body,” said Shane, “almost as if it was having an emotional response to our presence.”
He also noted that the effect resembled the appearance of the wind rippling through the area’s underbrush.
The creature was large – measuring over twelve arms from the tip of one tentacle to the opposite, and when the explorers attempted to kill the beast in order to transport it back to Staladin, the creature defended itself with sharp lashings of its tentacles.
“We shot all twelve of our arrows at it, but had ill luck,” Shane explained. “First, it was difficult to determine exactly where it was, due to its strange coloration abilities. And even when we did land an arrow, it usually glanced off its slimy hide.”
Shane's companion was struck with one of the tentacles, and soon experienced an intense stinging pain which ended their assault. He did not recover for two days, dwelling most of the time in fever.
The explorers suggest that the beast lives in unpopulated areas and dwells in the lowland ‘wets’ – areas which retain moisture and are perpetually damp. It seems to settle into leaves and debris and lay out its tentacles, waiting for prey to pass by. Judging by bones in the area, the explorers think that it might eat prey as large as palau.
The explorers pointed out that the creature ‘was not aggressive' unless given reason to defend itself.
Lord Kieran
Pirates Surrender
The pirate Karius wasn’t only hated by the provincial authorities – he was hated by other pirates, as well.
“This man ignored all the honor of pirating,” I was told by a pirate who asked me not to use his name. “He’d fly the flag of surrender, promising not to harm any of the victims, and then kill the men and rape the women. He gave us all a bad name.”
Four passages ago he ran his ship up against the Pike, an underwater rock formation off Shelter Isle while attempting to escape an Aranorian patrol ship. Almost all of the crew, including Karius, were dashed to pieces as the waves carried them into the rocky shoreline.
Others of his men were already upon the isle, and have finally surrendered to Aranorian authorities. Queen Lillian has decided to deliver them to Masalla, and will collect over seventy thousand silver in bounty from Queen Anabelle. The gold, Queen Lillian has said, will go to the families in Aranor who have been harmed by these particular pirates.
Thirty-two men and two women were captured, all very hungry after four passages on the rocky island.
Karius’ ship, the Sea Owl, is believed to be impaled upon the Pike. The rumor that there was over two million silver’s worth of treasure on board has caused a flurry of excitement among adventurers, who have flocked to the island and set up tents on almost every flat surface.
Let’s wish them luck, for the waters surrounding the Pike are exceedingly dangerous, and will likely take many lives before they give up their treasures. If they ever do.
Tania
To the Oracle Collection—Year Three