Pat Benetar

October 14th - 16th, Albanus 1

After bidding a brief goodbye to Count Pelasgus, the band returned to the Golden House, where serious plotting and planning began.

On Severus' behalf, Marius sent a message to Count Harrans, encouraging him to pressure the other Dale Lords to swear fealty to Severus.  The Count was able to sway Corresanti (no surprise, since that would make his niece queen).  However Nimborus would not commit, and said he would take care of his own sacrifices come Equestria.  Another sending went out to Count Molossus.  The Surrexi's grandfather was utterly stunned that "Severillus" ("little Severus") would make a bid for the throne.  And it actually took Marius two sendings to get a coherant reply out of the elderly count.  But Molossus did agree to support his grandson the Pretender, and he authorized Gaius to swear fealty on his behalf.  Finally Severus officially took General Martialis back into the family, so that Leyna's father (and, hopefully, his troops) would be covered by Bella's blessing.

Near the beginning of the preparations, however, Leyna and Titus suddenly felt the oddest urge to ride into the Fallen Lands -- an urge that vanished almost as soon as it hit.  It was Ancilla's summon.  And a sign that the paladins needed to speak to them.

As soon as he could, Marius sent word to Sir Tinnius.  The Grand Master was exceedingly tight lipped.  Mores had been recovered, he said.  He was crippled but in stable condition.  Was there any way that the band could meet them, and get the boy to a healer?  Marius arranged to meet them at Queen's Gate in two days' time.  Abbot Micarius would accompany the band, so that everyone could wind-walk to Invictus.

Unfortunately, this exchange didn't answer any of the questions that people cared most about.  Like, what happened?  Had Lucellus done something idiotic?  So the next day Marius contacted Regulus.  The gentle knight was more to the point.  "Everyone alive.  No one damned," he answered immediately.  "Lucellus promised to return to Theodosius in two months.  Gods, I can't believe that we might have to..."  Regulus checked himself as his mind wandered, but the tail end of the sending was frittered away.

Two agonizing days passed.  Then the party fired up the pearl of windwalking and headed towards Queen's Gate.  They arrived at the edge of the Fallen Lands as a storm was brewing.  Almost overhead, Witch Lights shivered across the sky, glimmering veils of green-white light.  Far to the south these gauzy tendrils brushed the ground -- and where they did, everything changed.  At first there was a forest in the distance.  A curtain of light obscured it, and when the aurora lifted a snow-capped mountain range stood in the forest's place.  The mountains only lasted about a half hour before they were erased by another glowing trail -- which left gently rolling hills in their stead.

The senior knights of the Order came riding, grim-faced, out of this chaos.  Lucellus held a cloak-wrapped body before him.  Though he was somewhat subdued, he glowed with a quiet contentment... and was the only paladin who appeared even marginally happy.  With the storm brewing, questions were put off till later -- the first concern was getting to the relative safety of Invictus.

They found the marcher county at arms and wary.  Silvestrius and the other knights were patrolling the town's borders.  Storms this bad almost invariably brought monsters, the ex-paladin told them.  He prayed it was nothing worse than orcs this time.  The Count, meanwhile, prepared rooms for his guests.

Finally, Tinnius explained what had happened.  For the most part, the Grand Master said, things passed as Marius had foreseen.  With two major exceptions.  One, the elves noted that Mores had a soul-gem bound around his throat and did not dare shoot him, for fear his soul would be trapped.  Two, Lucellus immediately interrupted Theodosius' speech, insisting that yes, yes, they'd foreseen this and they knew he was just going to lie about everything.  So no point talking.  "You don't trust me, Discipulus?" Theodosius said.  "No matter.  I trust you."

The Order's former master then made his offer:  he would exchange Mores' life and soul, for Lucellus' life.  He would give the boy to the paladins now;  they could ensure that he was not enspelled, and that there was nothing supernatually wrong with him.  (Torture and abuse, of course, might well have destroyed his mind and broken his spirit -- Theodosius made no promises about that.)  In exchange, Lucellus must swear -- on his honor, and by his paladin's vows -- to surrender himself to Theodosius in two months' time.  He did not need to bring Ancilla with him;  he could leave the Council Blade behind.  Theodosius would attempt to get a teleportation amulet to the paladin, so that he could come directly to his fortress in Altaris.  Failing that, on Mother Night, Lucellus would come to Queen's Gate, by himself.  There he would await Theodosius' minions, and follow them to Altaris.  Once he arrived, he would go to Altaris' dungeon.  And after that, he was free to try to escape.  There was one other catch that Theodosius added:  Lucellus must swear to abide by the spirit of this agreement, not its letter.  

(As a side note, Tinnius pointed out that Theodosius had made one error.  He referred to his fortress by name:  Altaris.  Altaris was the old capitol of Vesterix;  the elves knew exactly where it was.)

Without hesitation, Lucellus had agreed to this bargain.  For, as he reminded the band, hadn't they themselves told him that souls are more important than lives?  His life for Mores' soul was a good bargain.  "You idiot," Corvina snapped, "don't you think that Theodosius will break you once he has you in his dungeon?"  Lucellus nodded;  "If I make it that far."  "I'll kill you myself before I let you go there," the sorceress replied.  Her threat brought a calm, fond smile to the paladin's lips.  "I know," he said.  "In fact, I'm counting on it."

Leyna, furious, informed him that he was stupid -- and not in an endearing way -- then stormed out of the room.  Corvina followed her, unable to continue talking to Lucellus.  Other party members were more calm.  Severus took Sir Darius aside and asked if his brother, Count Harrans, could lock Lucellus up for a few months.  The paladin had sworn to try his best to surrender to Theodosius;  if he failed against his will, his oath was unbroken.  Darius thought this could be done, easily.

One thing puzzled the band:  what was Theodosius up to?  What was the point of giving Lucellus two months?  The Grand Master must surely know that his (smarter) friends would find some way to prevent his surrender.

Safe in his room, Mores slept through all these discussions.  At Regulus' urging, he was given poppy-laced wine so that he could rest more easily.  His wounds were grievous, so terrible that he could barely speak.  Half of his face was a charred ruin;  Sir Pelius had held it against a burning brazier in Tillaford, trying to make the boy reveal where his knight was "hiding".  Both of his hands were charred as well, and his body bore countless scars.  Dire as it looked, however, these wounds could be healed by great clerical spells.  What was more worrisome was his behavior.  Mores was lifeless and unmoving.  He seemed aware of his surroundings, but only wished to hide inside his cloak.

On the morning, the band returned to the Golden House with Mores while the senior paladins headed to Harrans with Abbot Micarius.  Tinnius wished to return to the Fallen Lands as soon as possible.  They were making progress he said.  Some of the old Vestran roads were shielded from the Witch Lights.  They still did not understand how this was done, however, and which roads were safe.  Until they learned that, they had no chance of confronting Theodosius.

Mores had enough volition to travel, but little more.  Marius cast Test of Souls upon him, and to the squire's shock, the Gods revealed that despite everything he still had a calling -- though his soul was badly stained and bruised.  In fact, Marius had a vision of the teen.  Or, rather, two.  In one, he knelt before two enormous trees in the Northwoods, one as golden as the sun, one as silver as the moon.  He wore a tabard -- embroidered with images of these trees, not a pentagram, as the Order's tabard shows.  And an elvish Warder held out a bow to him.  The band guessed that some day, he would choose to follow the Elves' faith, not his native religion.  The second vision was simpler, and more disturbing.  It showed Mores slitting his wrists in the Golden House's bath, and bleeding to death.

Mores had difficulty believing the more hopeful vision.  He insisted he was no longer clean -- there was no way he could ever be a paladin.  He couldn't even bear to face Lucellus, knowing what he'd cost him.  There was no way he'd ever repay what he'd done, no way he could ever live up to his knight's expectations, foul as he was.  (As Gaius pointed out, the other paladins believed Lucellus made a mistake rescuing the boy, and Mores knew it;  that had to make him feel worthless.)  Marius and Corvina tried to offer the boy what comfort they could, but Mores was still listless and despairing when they handed him into Abbess Halaessa's care.

<The following is a conversation that occurred during the car-ride home.>

The boy received one other offer of comfort -- from a very unusual source.  Severus.  Severus had said nothing to the squire in public, and even seemed somewhat indifferent to his pain.  ("Well, I'd guess he's probably been raped.  Marius should tell him that this sort of thing happens, and that people do recover from it.")  But one evening Severus stopped by Mores' room.

"Do you know who I am?" he asked.  Count Surrexus, Mores replied.  Or...  was it King?  "Do you know why I am king?"  Mores shook his head.  "Because I'm a failure," Severus spat.  "I failed to warn my father about King Albanus, and he died in agony.  I failed to protect my brother Brennus, and he fell to assassins.  They paid the price of my failures... and I profited from them.  You cannot change the past.  But you can avenge those who suffer for you, and ensure that their pain was not meaningless."  Though he said nothing, Mores watched Severus closely, and seemed to be thinking about his words as the man left.