The Order of the Blazing Sun

My Dearest Travance,

For those of you who are not aware, there is an encampment holding the tents of over 1,000 men at the border of Travance Proper. This Encampment belongs to an organization known as the Order of the Blazing Sun. They are a Valosian extremist group, who have killed many innocents for simply associating with those who walk with the Dark. They are to be considered extremely dangerous and enemies of Travance, as so declared by the Magistrate. The older members of their Order cannot be reasoned with, however, some of the younger members have been turned to see the error of their ways. We know for a fact Valos himself does not stand with them. We are waiting for a message from the Pontiff of the Chruch of Light so that we may fight an official Holy War.

It is my goal to create a comprehensive pool of information that Travance has on the Order. This will include accounts from those of us who have been fighting against them for the past year, and any other Travancian who has had encounters with them. Please respond here, or send missives to me personally with any information that you may have. I plan on having said information published in the Chronicle under my name. I understand the implications of doing so, and I am not afraid to stand for what I believe in.

Despite your personal beliefs, this is the time for Travance to stand together as a whole. Not as Light, Dark and those unaligned, but as Travancians one and all. The Blazing Sun must be brought to justice, and repent for the what they have done.

Blessed Be the Dark, Blessed Be the Light, Blessed be Travance.
-Dr. Victor Wainwright, Baronial Clerk, Cleric of the Dark.

**Not Caelvan**
This Order will fall. We of the darkness have shown ourselves to be heroes. Any who target those of the Reaper will meet a swift end. This I can assure you.

Gal'Azin Merikh Tazam

---

I have fought this Order before, and will do so again.
They may profess to use the Light. But they show themselves to be evil through their actions.
I stand with whomever is willing to stop them.

Victor, expect some missives from me. I would also be interested in information you gather.

1000 men, a whole legion, walk up to our Proper again unnoticed, unchecked.

What exactly are we doing in this war, allowing these wild forces to march on our Seat, time and time again?

Teach them the Darkness of their actions, and the consequences thereof, yes.
But also teach them the Light they have believed they stood for.
Teach them the Law that still brings Justice for those who walk in the shadowed alley.
Teach them the Life that still breathes and thrives deep in the umbered holt.
Teach them the Spirit, that still finds Purity on both sides of the balance.
Teach them the Compassion, that still shines Hope on the ignorant and repentant.

1000 men appear, in a time where we scramble to muster the force necessary to remain claimant to our own home and throne.

Let them choose to remain ignorant. Let them choose to repent.
Let them die by the sword. Or live by the shield.
Let us fight. And in our war, find common ground that those who survive will conquer together...
I have a Desperate Hope that even one soul of theirs will turn to last this moon with us.

--Mantel

Nadia,
I can tell you--far, FAR too many.
This order is one that would kill babies to prevent them from potentially growing up Dark.
They will kill innocents in pursuit of Dark children.
They twist the various teachings of the Light to do evil deeds.

I do not want to kill them. I hope we can teach them the value of mercy and tolerance. But their reign of terror needs to be stopped before more innocents suffer.

Additionally--if you are one who is commonly known to practice the Dark arts in Travance, be careful. You may be a target. This Order wishes to purge all of Travance, but they might single you out.
Let us look out for one another.

As Annora has said, this Order Kills children for the association with the dark. A memory which sticks out in my mind is that of a whole village which was burned down, over the rumor that Galamachians may live there. No one survived this massacre. Women, Children, an entire village dead, if that does not show the lengths this Order is willing to go to, the innocents who they are willing to kill, then live in your own false ignorance. This Order must repent for what they have done.

-Dr Wainwright, Cleric of the Dark

To my fellow Tranvancians, all of whom I hold most dear,

How much more abhorrent can it be to a faithful Valosian than to see those who claim to follow the Light twist it toward evil. There are no words for how this heresy shakes my ire. My hope for them is repentance - as we all are called to the constant task of the conversion and reformation of our souls. My thoughts and prayers are with them for repentance; my Thoughts and Prayers will be upon them if they do not.
As I write this I pack my bags to accompany Sir Grimkjell Eirson to aid the war effort in Glangsdale, during which time I will take the short side passage to the Sanctus Luminarium and consult with the Holy Pontiff of the Church of Light with regard to this so called Order. I will make full report of all that you have told me and see if the goodness of our Church can bear down upon this travesty of a cult.

Wish me well on these tasks.
Yours in the Light,

I do not believe my intentions toward this gaggle of heretics needs any more clarification than what those of you who were with me at the time witnessed last feast. I'm in, however I am able to be of service toward getting rid of this organization, be it repentance and conversion, or the other alternative I excel at. One way or another, the Scales will be brought to balance.

~T. E.

We have been fighting these petulant illiterate ingrates for some time now. We know how they fight, and have seen their intentions.

We stand fully against the very existence of any of this orders members, and will sink our teeth into not only these sheep, but any who dare stand in their defense.

It is our wish not one dies swiftly, and once that last agonizing breath leaves their body, we shall claim their essence and disperse it into the nothingness they deserve.

The words on these pages fill me with fury, and I swear to you all that whatever I can do I will. Please let me know how I can assist your efforts and I will.

-C. Tartaros

To my fellow Travancians,
It seems that a great evil marches upon us once more. I believe in my fellow Guardsman and the Barony as I do all of you, but I cannot leave my post here on the front lines. For as we fight a battle against all that is twisted and unjust in Travance, I cannot allow the enemy to take even an inch from us on the battlefield. As such, I place my trust in all of you to defend Travance against those who seek to harm the innocent.

I will say this now and I will repeat it as many times as necessary. I worship Brazen. I am one who values Order. I value friendship, family, and the bond that is sacred between us all. I reject this group's ideals of "Order" through the twisting of the Light. My brothers and sisters, my dear friends and comrades, I stand with you now and forever. Please use my will and my spirit to aid you in casting out these abhorrent cultists. I trust that you will put an end to their misdeeds and bring together the clergy of the Light, Dark, AND Neutral faiths. It is imperative to recognize our strength as a family. Be well and be safe.

In Truth, Duty, and Honor,

Corporal Ravyn Aeronwen
Commander of the Sagewood Guard and Battalion
Professor of Bardics at Darkwood Academy

You peaches and your weird insistence on the world conforming to your own faith's vision of what it wants the world to be is always silly to me. Now I've thought this for hundreds of years! These Order of the Whatsits are just ruining things for the rest of you faithy folk. Kick them out and tell them to get off your lawn! I bet they dress funny too. Can't even appreciate a good drink with another person without first getting into their business asking if they've let the right god into their life. In my day we respected a body's privacy and just got drunk without asking about their faith like normal people! Get them out of town and lets all go to the pub and have some drinks about it, eh?

-Aengus

I could care less about why or who.
The fact of the matter is that there is an entire legion of people just waiting to storm our walls with a zealous rage.

I need information.
Are they organized?
Do they have rank and file?
Do they adhere to battle ground codes of honor.
What is their goal?

This is the information that will help us.
This is the information that can help save lives.

I would like to put a call to duty to anybody that has the ability to scout this new threat.

My sword stays sheathed until the time to strike is at hand.

Honorbly yours,

LET IT BE HOLY WAR, THEN!
DON FULL YE THE ARMOR OF GOD, SO THAT YOU MAY TAKE YOUR STAND AGAINST THE SCHEMES OF THESE FALSE PROPHETS, THESE HERETICAL WEAVERS OF LIES! LET THEM REST THEIR EYES FORTH UPON THE ENTIRETY OF OUR MIGHT, THAT THEY MAY STUMBLE OVER EACH OTHER IN THEIR HASTE TO FLEE OUR DIVINE AUTHORITY! BE AFRAID, BLASPHEMERS, FOR WE DO NOT BEAR THE SWORD FOR NO REASON; WE ARE GOD'S SERVANTS, AGENTS OF WRATH TO BRING PUNISHMENT TO THE WRONGDOER! SHALL BLOOD BE THY TITHING, FOR NOW SOUND THE HORNS OF WAR! HER NAME BE PRAISED!

Father Ephrem,
As always thank you for your support, I shall see you on the field of battle.
Your Friend,
Victor

Jericho,
I understand that we have not spoken much before, however, these are the answers I have for your questions.

Are they organized? Yes.

Do they have rank and file? Yes.

Do they adhere to battleground codes of honor? Not if you're a darkling, it is unknown if they will act with honor when fighting Light or neutral or unaligned people. However, if you are defending a darkling, they will treat you without honor.

What is their goal? To our knowledge, their goal is to "serve Valos in the highest form." They want to destroy all who are Dark-aligned, associated with the Dark, Chaos-aligned, or those associated with/protect those listed above.

I hope this helps, please ask more questions if needed.
Dr. Wainwright, Cleric of The Dark

I hope to have more detailed information on their forces soon.

To further expand on Victor's statement--they see the entirety of Travance as corrupt, because we willingly ally ourselves and stand with those who follow the Dark. Even the followers of the Light among us are, in their eyes, tainted by this association. To their view we all need to be purged.
When I conversed with one of their leaders last week, they welcomed me into their camp to converse as a paladin of the light, but as soon as I advocated for the diversity of our town, their opinion turned against me. I was all but chased out at swordpoint.

Annora,
I see they are quick to anger and enrage.
This may be a trait we can use agaisnt them.
Seek me out this next feast and we can formulate more.

On my honor,

Never will it be so simple as to unsheath a blade. Our proving ground may prove once more that we have the strength to wield a sword against the darkness, but be mindful of the use of that darkness against us. The true threat is thought, and minds are yet another front in this war.


In Her light,
Nalick DeMarche

Are... are you saying what I think you're saying?

Am I finally going to fight a battle NOT with fists or magic but with... with... scathing commentary, acerbic satire, and musical numbers!?

PRAISE VALOS, MY TIME HAS COME.

Sindarion,
If you would, we could use a musical number.

Nalick,
We understand your intent, but choose your words wisely.

Annora,
We believe I was ill equipped to tell you of whom needs to die here when we last spoke. I however remember them better then myself there. Please seek us out, you may have gone in and spoken, but we have tasted their rot and cut their flesh. Something only few to this point can say. There is one in particular, we would find your better fight; you may be more equipped in that regards. There name escapes us, but we've seen their face and read their thoughts.... funny how some men keep a diary... it fits them all too well. A collection of insecurities if you would.

Nalick,
Our enemy is of the Light, and they are evil. I am of the Dark, I am not. Do not confuse the Darkness and Evil.
Blessed be the Dark,
V.Wainwright

The darkness in men differs from the Deities and the miracles they afford us. Nothing has been confused.

~Nalick

***Not Caelvan ***
No. Darkness is Darkness and Evil is Evil. Do not confuse the common people by using the same words in "different ways".

These people are Evil. There is no darkness in men. There is evil intent.

The moment that you, who say that you side with us in this matter, start calling them dark is the words they will grab hold of to call us the same as them.

-Gal'Azin Merikh Tazam

Merikh is right.
One need not be Dark to be evil.
And following the Light does not necessarily make one good.
There are good people who follow the paths of Dark teachings.
And there are evil people who hide behind the teachings of Light.
Alignment does not equal morality.
We need to continue to make this as clear as possible.

A pity my use of adjectives wasted so much ink. We should abed before the Agauran sky turns to Gaia.

~Nalick

Nalick, I understand what you meant. I have not forgotten my past and what I used to be able to see in people.

Seems as though there is a great ed of stumbling over the distinction between what one believes they are doing and what they do...just like walking with your head to high on a goal and thus being unable.to see your footsteps are taking you in the opposite direction.

I fear the anger of the people of Travance will be shielded from our own review by a sense of righteousness causing us to work against our own goals. This fight, is it about us, or those of less power caught in between?

Bengarion

Before the mass use of the alignments of 'Dark' and 'Light' as of late, I had heard people say, 'there is a darkness within him', 'they are so full of light'. Word choice, when those specific terms define people, was probably poor.

But do not claim Nalick to be a sympathizer of these Evil people, he's fought tooth and nail many times to protect good people, and always will.