A thought for this past Feast

Can we all agree from here on out, that when the next outside entity comes to us and says, "This has to be done, there is no other way, we must do it now!", that statement IS NOT taken at face value?

I mean, how many times are we going to fall for this? Feel free to berate my intelligence for posting this. I am certainly questioning my own for falling for it again, with thee all.

I'm still not sure how to feel about what happened.

I'm sure many of us are, and for good reason. We're currently stuck between a rock and a hard place. On one hand, there's going into battle with only Bloodtide, which means that, despite the eventual death of Balfurious, he would not die in time for us to foil all of his plans, with much destruction being wrought in his bleeding wake. On the other, travelling through time itself to "borrow" magical artifacts and weapons, possibly damning other timelines to worse fates.

The way that I see things, the outcome of both sides is unsure. Sure, we might have succeeded against all odds using Bloodtide. Sure, other times may be damaged by taking these artifacts of power. But our coin might not land on edge in our fight. And perhaps we do return the weapons in time so nothing bad happens.

In dark times, when someone offers a glimpse of hope, it may be enough to see them carried through. Desperation drives men to do many things. I know, I know, one of you is going to make an analogy of making a deal with a demon. I will remind you all that we, as Travancians, have taken similar risks in the past, however, and so far, we have triumphed. And let us not remember that it has been less than a year since we have entered into the Fourth Age; the horrors of the Demon War is still fresh in many minds and hearts. The terror of Xualla was monstrous enough, and the threat of Balfurious, while there aren't portals and demon gates appearing around the world as was Xualla's plan, is no less serious.
I would like to remind you all that various people of Travance engaged in a demonic ritual in order to follow Xualla as he teleported throughout Arawyn. I, myself, was part of this, using my own blood to do so. Without this, we may not have been able to keep up with him, and thus, unable to kill him and end his power.

We lie in similar straits now. Reforging Bloodtide was a terrible, terrible thing to do, and many will claim such. But what can Travance do when we are caught between that rock and a hard place?

We do what we can, like we've always done.

We cannot undo the past.

There may be many alternate options to many seemingly insurmountable problems, but we rarely have the luxury of time. Thinking about the "what ifs" is a luxury that consumes much of that time, and if there's anything that these past few days have taught us, time is a very precious thing.

So! Let's not pat ourselves on the back, but at the same time, let's not whip ourselves. We've still got work to do.

Sindarion,

On the contrary, my dear friend, we can undo the past. If the Mr. LeBastion who visited us this past Feast, demonstrated anything to us, it is that we can go back to certain periods of time. We did this to retrieve certain weapons. Humor me here. What if we traveled back to before Bloodtide was forged? What if we traveled back to the time before we removed hearts from both the willing and the unwilling? What if we listened to the dissenters who advocated not working in deception, of not keeping in the dark those of the Light? We need to go back in our own time stream and right our wrongs. There is still time, plenty of it, and it would be a tragic thing to squander.

Nalick

Mister Nalick, from where I come from hiding from your past deeds is form of even greater disgrace. If we have already dishonored ourselves by doing the things you mentioned, then there is little point in hiding it by abusing this so called time travelling. Not only that, but so far I have not had any good outcomes from this method. We should focus ourselves on atonement and reconciliation so we, as lands, as groups of people, as individuals, can regain our honor for what we have disgraced ourselves with.

I will only speak to this once to remind you that when anyone jumps time there are risks. Even if one thing changes we risk changing things in unknowable and potentially awful ways, not to mention in case anyone missed it time and space almost collapsing in on itself. I am not necessarily saying we should not have gone and borrowed the items we did however I do not want this town believing we can just move through time and space whenever we get the whimsy to do so.

I will also state that we did not take this "at face value."

Extensive research was performed before this month's feast in ways to both defeat Balfurous, and to find legendary wepaons. Said research by multiple scholars working in concert turned up the same result over and over - Bloodtide was the key to defeating Balfurous (even with other wepaons), and even if we defeated him, our own chances of survival were slim unless we sought additional help from beyond our own timeline.

This decision was not made lightly, nor unadvised. If you have a better plan, you are always welcome to bring it to the Scholar's table, and have it vetted by those who can do the research. If it is vaible, we'll put it into action. Saying that a plan is not acceptable without a viable alternative does not help.

In a rather philosophical discussion I had with Klarington I will also put forth that somewhere out there all the suggestions were taken have been taken or will be taken and used. He and this version of Verill came here to us to this time and place for the best shot at a victory. I'm also going to suggest that if we are victorious and return the weapons through time that a rippling effect is most likely to reach beyond our today into other today's that are around us. That which they sought to use to get us what is needed are likely to be affected by the failure or success we have here.

Mind you I'm only an old sword but I've had some talks along this line with him before. The look I get is priceless. For me it was good to see him focused and active with his old home. For me it was a walk into my old past to see Travance walking through and collecting what was needed to defeat anything that came along.

Strangely comforting since I hate time travel circles.

Cmd. Sgt. B. Drexel

With respect Lord Gideon, alot of frustration arises when the fruits of research and basis of decisions are not fully communicated to others. This, I submit, may be partly the fault of those not seeking out scholars or asking endless questions at the scholar's table. However stating "We did the research" after consequences arise, as a refute to frustration and anger is not going to help the emotions of those agitated.

It seems a recurring theme of the past few months that we pursue a plan which turns out to have significant consequences that surprise the populace. For example, we almost stole a weapon whose presence in its timeline ensured my God's ascension and caused the Age of Peace. Whether we might have gotten it back in place at the right moment or not, is not the issue. That we would so risk the timeline and the fate of our own past, without even knowing what we risk is terrifying to me.

If the researchers knew the risk, they apparently stayed silent until people found out the truth. That is the problem. This is not the fault of the researchers, this is not an insult laid upon those who make decisions. This is a plea for those involved to realize that there is a gap in communication here, and how others feel when research is done insisting action without full disclosure.

That is fair, and I will make pains to address it, I promise.

Again, with respect Lord Aleister, the behind doors discussions and decisions made are one thing. But to ask people to follow thee, without knowing what they do, or why, is beginning to make some question that trust.

It is my concern for the Barony, that prompts that statement. It is a sin against my God to consider action or thought that is unjust and blatantly illegal under the laws of our King. If I have begun to resist those whispers of mistrust in my own mind, I can assure thee it has gone farther than whispers for others.

If the Nobility took the time to explain every single action to everyone before it was acted upon, we'd still be explaining who Balfurous was to some people.

The information is available. The Scholar's table is open to all, and Belegchand regularly gives a Chroniclerite Mass that explains the current happenings in the town. There is no attempt to withhold information from anyone, unless it would aid our enemies by revealing it.

If you are concerned about such things, get involved. Do not wait for things to be personally delivered to you, for they will not be. Become the champion of others, and make sure the information is distributed, if you feel that is has not adequately been.

We need people to take an active role in our survival, not objecting to how it is discussed and decided upon, without contributing.

Brother Aldric, I challenge you to step up, and become the common man's liaison to those who do the research. Become the solution you wish to see.

Lord Gideon,

I accept thine challenge.

If the commoners are to have a liaison, I suggest we allow them to decide on their own.

As to accepting the blandishments of others, it is a common fault in Travance as well as elsewhere. As to time, I would have found the manner in which people decided to believe or disbelieve Klarington's assertions to be amusing, had the consequences not been pottentially so dire.

Nalick,

Then you don't understand bearing the burden of the results of the actions you take.

In regards to what you said, Nalick, I've thought about that, too.

The way I figure it, let's hypothetically say that you could go back in time and permanently change something you dislike. You do so. However, despite the fact that something changed, you may still remember the fact that something was wrong, i.e. you still remember the unchanged time. In that way, what happened in the past still lives on. As what our time-travelling friend told some of us this past Feast, "Time ends when there is nothing left to experience it." It would not be an outlandish jump of logic to say that if one has experienced something, then it has in fact happened.

Let us also say that there was something or someone out there who was unhappy with your decision to change the past. They then travel through time in order to fix the fact you went back in time to change it, so things are exactly the way they were even before you changed things, to the point where you don't even recognize anything happened. Even though you have no recollection of travelling through time, the entity that rectified your actions does. It might not know what or why you did so, but it recognized that something happened.

The only way I presume no party involved would remember or experience any measure of time manipulation would be through paradox, and we have all seen firsthand with the Hollow Song how disastrous such temporal catastrophes can be.

Our actions, no matter how small or large, make imprints that ripple eternally across the fabric of time. Nothing can be undone, only covered up.

***Not Caelvan***

Those who commit the atrocities of trying to change fate, especially of an event that has already occurred, are worse than those who most consider to be the worst scum on Arawyn. The gods have mapped out the fate of the world for a reason. It is not our place to question their reason. Nor is it our place as mortals to try to change the path they have decided.

Merikh Tazham
Priest of Death

If it is our fate to intervene in the fates of others, and theirs, in turn, to intervene in ours, how can we help but do anything else?

~ Na'ar Chacov

I know we have never met Father Merikh, but I seek to understand your perspective. In my teachings, nothing is fated. All possibilities exist at all moments, and the will of the universal consciousness dictates reality's progression.
Please forgive my being so forward. I ask humbly, if the power of the entities Palmydians call gods is great enough to draw the borders of fate, are they not powerful enough to stop us? The former seems to this one far more difficult than the latter.

I want to take the time to clear the air, and make a few things clear as far as the "Why" things have happened. I have tried to spread this as much as I can, but still, it has not proven to be enough.

A number of things took place over the last few months. I will attempt, here and now, to explain all I can about the events leading up to the the jumps through time, and explain the research and rationale behind every decision.

First, I will discuss the forging of Bloodtide. The town has, for what seems now like the longest time, and with much fervor, debated whether this weapon should have ever been forged. The primary rationale behind needing the weapon itself is due to Balfurous' innate defenses.

Last December, when the town was faced with fighting Xualla, the scholars came to a realization that while we knew all the abilities that Xualla possessed, we did not know a single thing about what Balfurous could do. After much research, we uncovered some of his capabilities. The two primary ones we now concern ourselves with are:

1. His ability to make himself invulnerable to all offensive attacks. When in this form, he is unable to be moved by any means whatsoever.
2. While being invulnerable, his ability to regenerate from any damage he has taken.

Specifically, we needed a way to negate or limit these abilities if we were to have any legitimate hope of combating the Demon Lord. So, we are back to Bloodtide. As has been openly discussed, as well as said at every one of my masses since we considered reforging it, when fully realized Bloodtide possesses the ability to inflict wounds from which the defender can never heal, and from which they will continue to bleed from. These wounds would, if not negate his regeneration completely, at least diminish it to a point where we can have a realistic chance of finishing him off ourselves. It is important to state that no other weapon in history has this specific ability which we need to combat Balfurous. No matter what weapons were thought of or suggested, none could do fit this specific need. And so, we put our efforts into uncovering how to create this weapon, so that we could fight the Demon Lord we had to.

Beyond Bloodtide, another weapon was looked into that looked to give us an increased chance against Balfurous: Ragnarok. Legends hold that this blade could be used to fight entire armies. So, research was undertaken to find it. At the Feast held at the start of October, while Balfurous sent forth his most powerful minions to find the gem he sought so earnestly, plans were made to venture forth to Hero's Rest, the location where it was rumored the blade may have been laid to rest. However, issues arose as to how we could get to Hero's Rest in a timely manner. Through ingenuity, Templar Cooper and Tsoli Silverbow managed to, in but a few hours, create three Gates to the graveyard, and we planned on seeing if more could be made. However, that very night, Balfurous accomplished his mission. He managed to gather the gemstone, and as such, the plan needed to be enacted at once. Nine towns members went to Hero's Rest, because that was all the three Gates could carry. When we arrived, we searched high and low for the Blade, but could not find it. Instead, we found someone we didn't expect: Klarington Everest.

The chronomancer was surprised to see us as well, and revealed he had been looking into our predicament. Before I continue to speak, I would like something put on the record: despite anything else he did, despite any lies he may have told, Klarington clearly had a single intent in his mind. Klarington intended on ensuring our timeline survived, regardless of the consequences to others. That much was made clear in his argument with Maja the Lorestri. That much was clear in his plans on having us take the Hammer of Valos. In the end, Klarington wanted to ensure our timeline - his timeline - was successful.

Klarington revealed an ability of Balfurous that we did not previously know existed. Balfurous, in his power, has a contingency upon himself, similar to his Abyssal Slams. He has kept this contingency reserved, and it will be one he unveils only when Bloodtide strikes true. Upon its invocation, all who are fighting Balfurous would be trapped with him until the Demon is killed. Now, while Bloodtide can kill him on its own, it would be a slow death. Too slow, in fact, as all calculations towards this showed that those trapped would easily perish before the time ran out.

So, those who were present began to brainstorm with Klarington. And it was proposed that, perhaps, if we were able to have alternate means of adequately harming Balfurous, we could reduce the time Bloodtide needed. At first, this was hoping to gather weapons from all over Arawyn, but unfortunately that option did not seem valid. And then, Klarington proposed his plan, to gather weapons from alternate timelines, and borrow them briefly. An agreement was made that we would only attempt such a plan if, by gathering the weapons, we absolutely, positively, without question could defeat Balfurous. If that could not happen, Klarington would never even appear to give us the option, and we would have to make alternate plans. Klarington also agreed that, if it came to it, he would personally return the weapons to ensure the timelines did not end due to their absence.

The only issue with this plan occurred on the Sunday of the Feast Weekend. The Hammer of Valos was not one of the items we had originally planned on gathering. Klarington informed us of the excursion that very morning. Little did we know he intended on us taking the weapon during the fight between Valos and Malyc, not afterwords as we had thought. Maja the Lorestri intervened, and rightfully so. I will emphasize, as we did not know of this excursion until the morning of, we had no time to adequately look into the matter and weigh whether our intervention would change the timeline in a remarkable way and disastrous way. And, I am willing to bet, if we arrived on the field of battle between Malyc and Valos, we would have turned around and travelled back to Travance instead of dooming Valos to losing the fight.

Now, that is a recap of the events regarding this plan to date. I will say, on a personal note, at this past feast I was sure to be exceptionally open regarding the risks involved to all who asked. At the mass to Chronicler, I made sure to specifically explain the reasons why we needed Bloodtide and why we were gathering these other weapons. If I was asked any questions, I was forthright with the answers, and I looked to spread the knowledge as much as possible. I know others also did this. I will say this now, for all the proper to read:

If I am present in the proper after Feast, I will be giving a Mass to Chronicler directly following the Feast. I have chosen this time as it is when the fewest other events occur in the Proper. During this Mass, at the beginning, I will go over a brief recap of the events of the Feast Weekend. I will open the floor to questions to be answered, and if someone is more knowledgable than I am, then I will give them the floor. This is to better the town as a whole, and has been offered every Feast since my Altar was completed in August. Please take advantage of this as much as you can, because it is always nicer to preach to a crowd.

I say the above because, while I understand to many people a Mass to Chronicler is boring and uneventful, I will say that I am always sure to try and give as much information as I can, and I want to spread that to the general populace whenever I can. I want the days where people are confused what we are marching off to face Saturday Night to come to an end. I want the people to always feel they understand why we do what we do. That is why I am making such a point of it now.

Thank you all for your time and energy. I understand I can be long-winded, but I hope you are now better enlightened into the "why" aspect of what we did.

In Service to Knowledge Eternal,
Loremaster Belegchand Dìnephilin
Viceroy of Drega'Mire
Seeker of the Lost Word
Sage of Exploration and Illumination

See you all at Mass.

And just so one thing is abundantly clear;

All of the information that Loremaster Belegchand has written here has been consistently available and advertised to all on the proper.

If you do not seek information, that is your own sin.
Do not complain that the scholars withhold when we have them so willingly available.

Anser me this, Belegchand. Why did Klarington run from the taer that almost consumed us on Sunday? To my eye, this was the akshun of a coward.

Klarington cud hav stayed, but he ran. Maja cud hav pursooed Klarington, but insted he stayed to saev us.

Tell me if I am rong.

Siegfried,

I will never say that Maja did not extend to us a great kindness in helping to save us, nor say that Klarington did not flee. As I could not ask Klarington directly why he left, nor did I have the chance to ask Maja why he stayed, I cannot give a positive answer in either, and instead would be speculating and assuming based on various tidbits, and that would not do justice to either.

I personally do not feel that either's actions alter that events that preceded them. In the end, the information I provided was meant to illuminate the nature of why we, as a town, pursued the avenues towards accomplishing our goal that we did. In regards to that information, I am more than happy to provide additional answers as requested.

In Service to Knowledge Eternal,
Loremaster Belegchand Dìnephilin
Viceroy of Drega'Mire
Seeker of the Lost Word
Sage of Exploration and Illumination

I must add that while their temporal-traversing abilities seem quite similar at a glance, to compare them would be akin to comparing a sword and a warhammer - the two can both be used to achieve the same ends, but one is decidedly... smashier.

And then there's the fact that Maja kind of wants Klarington's head for being so smashy. Maja stayed behind to fix the temporal rift that Klarington was oh-so-kind enough to leave as a distraction, probably because great big gaping holes in time are nothing to sneeze at.

***Not Caelvan***
If nothing was fated then where do the gods of fate come into play? Also if the gods interfered with anything us mortals do then there would not be much of a difference between mortal and god.

As a side note, yes the gods are powerful enough to stop us from messing with fate. However, if the gods interfered to stop us, then it was fated for the gods to come and stop us.

-Merikh Tazham
Priest of Death

If I may answer your question Siegfried.

I spoke with Time Verrill after the fact and he said that he believes it was Klaringtons plan to create that tear if him and Maja kept playing portal plugs. And when the tear opened Klarington took that as his chance to escape Maja, knowing that Time Verrill would stay behind to fix it. That is just what Time Verrill told me about his analasys of the situation.

Also, consider the following,

BALFURIOUS NEEDS TO BE STOPPED.

If anyone believes otherwise, please, I beseech and implore you to make your voice heard!