Chapter 2: Council meeting

Retired Play by Post Campaigns Ars Magica 5th Edition: Novus Mane
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asuming you are not all fiery, people may notice the eagle, but they are too busy to pay much attention. The guys in the water, their adreniline is pumping hard and they don't realize how much danger they are in. The warming spell, as little as it may be, could very well be the difference between life and death.

Stll, they are having trouble getting inside the ship or finding where the guys trapped inside may be. Blasting holes in the hull may help, or it may make things much much worse.

Oh where oh where is the waterbreathing aquatic magus when you need him?

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[color=blue]It seems I was under a false impression as to the situation... I hadn't understood the fact that the ship had capsized :blush:

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Capsized it has. Jan Axel seems to be leading the townsfolk in a rescue attempt. They have formed a solid teather from ship to shore. This will save may rescue workers from drowning.

And it seems to be working!

One guy makes it out. He babbles on in his Flemish about there being at least two others in there that he knows of, but he does not know which deck or compartment.

This fellow's name is Bob. He is a navagator (though his chart is now washed out). He was in the top forcastle when the disaster struck. Luckily he knows how to swim. His left arm is broken, and he would not have survived without the help of the rescue workers, who themselves would have prolly perished if not for the assistance of Jan Axel (and Iolar).

Still, there are two more men in there, and they are going to die!

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((Moved to Winter Strom thread))

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[color=green]Wirth[color=red]
Could this help if I had this guy (points to Jan Axel) [color=red]become even more of a giant?

[color=blue](With FFM, I could increase his size by +4, up to +6. Might be usefull, but I'm not sure)

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I was thinking about that, but still, the rope is only so strong. Perhaps if you attached more lines, got together all the big guys and enlarged them, you could drag the thing ashore. That might freak people out though.

They need your Leadership Wirth :slight_smile:
Get more rope, execute your plan!

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Arf, I just realized, this won't work on Jan Axel and Marcello. They're too big already :frowning:

Gotta find something else, but destruction is more my thing :laughing:

Oh, is there a fire burning somewhere? The covenfolk must have ignited one in order to warm up the guys.
If there is, I can still unnaturally increase its heat:
[color=blue]The Warmest Fire (MuIg 05)
Base 1 (Change one characteristic of a fire within the target area: Heat), +2 voice, +2 sun
Casting total Mu 6 + Ig 1 + Sta 2 + Aura 4 = (13+die)/2

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A bonfire helps. People are looking at us oddly. Feaks everywhere. There is a golden eagle hovering overhead squawking in latin, some weird crusader is wandering around touching people to make them warm (and setting a few bones), giants and amazon's abound, a few big guys are holding on for dear life to the line keeping the ship from floating out to sea. People are trying to moor it however they can, tying lines to the fragments remaining of the dock or to giant rocks.

They have the thing pretty secure by now. It is just a matter of time. Should they write the few lost sailors off as dead? Should they keep trying? Someone says they swear they can hear a muffled voice, but then its gone.

Maybe if we cut it open from the top? Or is that little air bubble the only thing keeping her afloat?

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Before we meet, Roberto wants to talk to Wirth. Besides the brik-a-brak about last nights events, he wants to talk to Wirth about Kilica. He wants to designate her as having officer status and make her Quartermaster. It is all part of his new idea to empower the peons :slight_smile:

In the meeting, Roberto interrupts as everyone debates and discusses what to do about the obvious. The problem is much deeper than that. Just as the dock was rotted, the very heart of this covenant has rotted. It needs to be reinvigorated. Roberto has gained newfound respect for Colijne, and goes so far as to say she should be given a vote on this council. Roberto is feeling all “power-to-the-people” today. He thinks the fundamental problem is the decadent and selfish nature of the covenant’s charter.

He reminds Aelianus about the time he defended himself against charges of neglect, saying that the power was not in his hands. The responsibilities and authorities for the maintenance of life and duty are to be shared by one and all. An equal member ship, equal duty, equal reward. Likewise, the true life blood of this covenant, the people, they should be elevated in status. Now mind you, Roberto grew up in a Fuero of free farmers, and he believes in the rights and responsibilities of freemen.

Now mind you, he is not talking about eliminating classes or anything. He thinks that the covenfolk should form a council of their own to redress grievances, and as their representative, Colijne should be given a full and equal vote on the council in all matters of covenant management and mundane affairs.

He is full of ideas, and keeps going on. Some of his ideas are not so good mind you. He wants to annex the small town, whether they belong to the covenant or not. It is for their own good. He wants to draft every able bodied male into the covenant’s militia, whose first task will be to rebuild the docks. Colijne knows he is going a little off the deep end here, knowing as she does the true nature of the able bodied men in the shanty town by the docks.

Other than that, Roberto thinks it is selfish for any one of us to worry about our labs or our season of study etceteras. He is going to roll up his sleeves and work on rebuilding the dock as a simple laborer, maybe use some magic here and there to keep things warm. Storm is over. Winter work won’t kill him.

He knows not everyone is physical and able bodied like himself 8), but still, he encourages everyone to make a similar sacrifice; spending your first season doing something to improve our wretched lot. He talks about earning our keep, paying our dues, gaining the respect and loyalty of the covenfolk.

Then he shuts up. He doesn’t filibuster everything all at once, but that is the general gist of his passion of the day. I wrote this all last night, y’see, ‘cause I can’t be all on-again/off-again with the Atlas Games while I am supposed to be pretending to work.

What else? Oh yeah, sea-devils. There is this persistent rumor of sea-devils, that somehow they were responsible for the disaster. :smiling_imp:

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[color=green]Wirth

I thought about it, but feared as much.

[color=red]I see no problem with this

[color=red]A partial vote.
Have her vote on pure covenant matters.
Other companions could get one on matters involving their responsabilities.
We must trust their skill.

Annex the town? Why not? They'd profit from it. But we should avoid coercion. Anything else is useless.

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Yeah, I would presume she would abstain in Arcane matters, but she should have an equal vote for all matters that concern her duties. Others as well, I can go for that. Each according to their rank and duty.

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[color=green]Havlard

Havlard is in a new, dry set of clothes. He looks tired from the exertion of the spell and the cold water.

He looks at Roberto like he is insane for proposing a mundane a vote on the council.

[color=red]
I would give her a voice but no vote. Her opinion on Covenant matters should be valued but not with a vote at our council.

[color=red]
We can not annex a town. We are not land holders. We can show our worth to be allied with us and get the same result.

I will see what I can do with the road and the town.

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[color=red]
We are a covenant of magi, the leadership does and should remain in the hands of the magi. I am content to listen to the advice of experts and take that advice where is does not conflict with matters on magical nature but I see no reason to intefere with the natural order of things and place a mundane in the council of magi. I do not tell a Baron or a Bishop how to conduct his estate and I will have no mundane tell me how to conduct mine.

[color=red]
I have no problem with a councilor guild structure for the mundanes to manage their own affairs. However the direction of the policy of the covenant is a matter for magi .

[color=red]Foolishness. You will not get respect by pretending to be a peasent you have the gift , trust and liking of the commonfolk is a rare thing indeed . You are not a skilled carpenter, stoneworker or other crafstman so any labour you will contribute will be that of an unskilled labourer which we can hire cheaply , or for a little more hire a craftsman who will do the same job better.
Instead use your magic , your magic ennables you to do things which the ungifted cannot . Use those talants to achieve your goals wether they be constructing the covenant or whatever else you choose to do.
The Gift is a great thing use it don't hide it. If you want the dock rebuilt design a spell to do it , or use spells to help the workers I would be happy to aid you in such a magical task. Or of you want to protect the docks design an Aquam or Auram effect which will prevent a disaster like today again I can assist in such but why deny the covenant the use of your abilities for a season to do a job a peasent can do better

On the subject of the value of magic and waste of time there is passion in her voice, clearly Iolar feels strongly on the value of the gift and not wasting it.

[color=red]
Okeanos, can you shed any light on this , you are an expert of Faeries and the sea[[

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[color=green]Aelianus Robur

[color=red]I must say that I agree with Havlard and Iolar. The council is for magi and magi alone. Of course we listen to the mundanes and hear their troubles or listen to experts when the need arises. But let them into the council…. I think not. Aelianus also looks like he has heard the voices of madmen who suggest such a thing. [color=red]We magi share an equal vote in this council and decide how he should run our covenant. However I must say that the coven folks mundane mistress can be their voices when we require it, perhaps even let her have a designated time in the moon cycle that she can voice her and the coven folks opinions.

Regarding the town, there is little need to annex it. It is a small location with a few craftsmen who manufacture a part what the covenant can produce, mainly their work is to provide the coven folk with a few trinkets that they can by for their salary. So in a way we already control the town, it would simply stir up unnecessary turmoil if the covenant made some blatant attempt to control the town, or perhaps village is a more suitable term.

Now regarding the reconstruction that we do to our covenant, I will spend a season crafting some device that helps with the repairs, the building of a fleet or the income related to the fish trade. Now what are the plans of my fellow magi? What will you contribute to this covenant this year? I must say that I think it is a wise idea that we all work with the betterment of the covenant in our own way, though you should be reminded of that three seasons must be used to grant us our income and that we have no funds in storage.

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[color=green]Havlard:

[color=red]As I said. I will attempt to repair the road with the loose stone. I will also attempt to remove the stink from the town.

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[color=red]I will assist with the trade , and if Roberto wishes my help with matters magical I will also assist him.
She smiles at Roberto
[color=red]"It's always good to get to know one's sodali's. Aelinus I hope our rather limited funds run to a few robes or dresses. The drafts can be most disturbing .

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:unamused:
Robert's expression makes it clear he is not going to serve as anyone's lab assistant. He is adamant about lending his muscle to labor efforts. He does plan on using magic though. Why wait until spring when he can heat up the constrution site? [color=red]We have no vis for this ritual spell you propose, and even if we did, the wreckage of the old dock needs to be cleared. Little kids play out there. They can get hurt. The ground needs to be prepped for a mundane or magical dock in any case.

Spainards and their stubborn machismo :unamused:

I am not feeling the dialogue at the moment. I'll get back into form later.

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[color=red]"We don't have 3 pawns of Vis? I certainly do it is of the wrong Form but that can easily be traded. I did not ask you to be a laboratory assistant I was offerring my own services but If you don't want my help and would rather waste your time and energies digging ditches badly go ahead!
The ground needs no preperation for a magically created Pier , it certainly does not for a tower and a pier is much simpler.If you want some rubble cleared ask Wirth to turn it to dust I am sure he can do that in a few minutes. If you want a warm construction site , Either of use can create magical fires with a few minutes effort each day and still make use of your skills more usefully elsewhere.

You owe this covenant a season of work, that is work done by a magi not a common laborer. I will not consider a season as a construction worker your work for the covenant and no one else should encourage such foolishness. We need 3 seasons work handling the covenants trade at the moment we have one season covered if you don't want to use your gift usefully do that or raid another covenants mundane supplies if you want to show off your muscles don't just dig ditches.

You are a mage and one of the leader of this covenant not a peasent remember that and have the proper pride in your heritage.

It is obvious from her voice and gestures , even rising from her seat to empthasise her point that Iolar is passioante on this subject and it takes her a visible effort of will to reign herself in before she starts to rant even more.

[color=red]It is however your own decision , and I am sure we will all act foolishly at some point in our lives

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David has been listening silently this entire time, and finally speaks. [color=red]Simple tasks like clearing wreckage may be done quite easily by the deathless. As for a vote, if we are to grant one mundane this right, we set a precedent that grants it to them all. We cannot allow this perversion of tradition and order if we are to remain strong.

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[color=red]We should have one of our number do a season of work for the Covenant.