"You were awoken or raised by a priest of Thoth? Interesting."
Aetherius will search for recent lab texts, to see what he was working on, and correspondences he might have kept.
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Lares heads to the meeting hall.
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While Aetherius is looking, a knock at his lab door is a messenger asking him to come to the meeting hall.
"I suppose I'll have to finish here later. Care to show me where this meeting hall is at?"
The boy escorts you to the meeting hall.
As the last magi enter Silas clear his throat a little.
“Well that makes 8 magi. Which is supposed to be the number of magi at this covenant. Why don’t you late commers have a seat so we can start this council meeting. According to the charter we discovered Argentius, Tastheus, and Zarkut are the original founder so perhaps one of them may wish take charge of the meeting?”
Silas looks around the table as he speaks, trying to memorize everyone’s name, house and appearance.
Argentius rests a hand on the table.
"I'm happy to share what I think I know. We're at a covenant named Al Kufra in Libya in the African Tribunal. The covenant was established in 1233 following confirmation by the Tribunal in 1228. Tastheus, Zarkut, and myself are founding members. The other two founders are gone… were gone before all this happened. I believe the rest of you are signatories on the addendum, joining at different times. The cook in my quarters seems to have also been impacted by this change. She called the covenant 'de Liberte' and said her family were called Cathars from Provence, but I have no idea what that means.
"My masterpiece was accepted and my gauntlet completed in 1181. That was yesterday. As far as I remember. The current year must be somewhere in the 1280s given what the servant said. My lab… Damn, that feels unusual on the tongue…. My lab clearly took some time to establish. There is evidence there that I was following my research interests. I saw no evidence of an experiment gone wrong, though I took no arcane measures to assess that."
Argentius looks again at his sodales, his violet eyes intense, serious.
"I'm concerned that we may be in grave danger. This situation appears to be localized. We may be back to the beginning of our years, but the world beyond Al Kufra has likely gone on. Some of us were a century or more past our gauntlets. I can only speak for myself, but I am quite sure I must have rivals, if not an active vendetta or two with those rivals in my House. What will the Tribunal say should it be discovered that an established covenant with over five decades of development is now populated by novices? What of an Aegis? So many things to consider."
Plasmatoris will follow the other magi from the library to the meeting hall. He is more than happy to take up his 'traditional' space, settling into the chair in a bit of a sprawl and pulling his notes out of his satchel. One bundle of papers he pushes out towards the center of the table while the other he sets in front of himself so he can return to his charcoal sketches.
"Plasmatoris of Jerbiton. Artist, not socialite, despite my mentor's attempts." He looks up from his sketching and notes, moving between making notes on a wax tablet as people speak, and making marks on his drawings for future painting. "A delight to meet you all. This entire situation is brilliantly frustrating. That aside, I have spoken with a number of the common folk around, those who have learned Latin or were near those who learned Latin. I have compiled a partial list of ages and years of those who serve us here. I would suggest that someone more charming than I finish this task, possibly assigning one of the clerks in the covenant to do it - Do we have any clerks?" He frowns at his own interruption, then shakes his head.
"Everyone seems to be under a quarter-century - as if everyone suddenly was returned to some primacy of their life, some moment when they first became adults or became magi, or something. All of the youngest think that the year is 1289, which implies it is closest to the truth. It feels as if something has taken away our lives, not just destroyed our memories, nor undone our age, but has turned back time itself, as God's angels might."
Tastheus sighs slowly before finding words. "This is most strange and disturbing. Is anyone aware of records indicating how often the Redcaps visit us? It would be useful to know how long we have until a visitor shows up."
Okeanettis tries her best to keep her face calm as the others speak "If I may, I am Okeannetis of House Tytalus. I don't think we can fool anyone who comes visiting, that nothing untoward happened. We are about a century younger, and less powerful than we used to be. And it's likely we've all angered some people, some more" and she nods at the Verditious "and others less. But I think our best bet to both buy time, and to allow us some measure of protection, would actually be to go before the Tribunal, and formally asking for a Quesitor to investigate, and make a public declaration. This would put us under Tribunal protection, if done correctly, and will give us the time to shore up our defenses. Plus, such a formal statement will also recognize us as full Magi, so we can keep the covenant, and it's official vis sources."
Zarkut shakes his head. "Secrecy is definitely the best course. The order will either think we had an accident, and enemies may pounce on our perceived weakness, or they'll think we found a secret to eternal youth, and we'll have to fend off their attempts to get it from us."
He strokes his chin, and stares off into space. "But... I think we can manage. It's not too hard to make oneself look older, and as long as we keep an Aegis up, nobody will be able to see through such changes. And it will only be Redcaps, who should be protecting our privacy anyway. If we're careful, I see no reason why anyone outside the covenant has to find out that anything happened at all. Though... we do need to solve the Aegis problem, before the one we have now expires. But we have a little time, don't we? We just need to figure out who can cast the best one, and get it ready. If we work together, with eight of us, we can put up a pretty strong barrier by casting communally. Assuming we can find the vis stores."
"I concur that secrecy is our best ally. If we limit who comes and goes from the covenant we might be able to uphold the facade. Its not without its own problems but at least it beats having hundreds of cretamen challenges for all our resources."
Silas shivers a little at the unpleasant though. Getting stripped of his creations before he even has had the pleasure of acquainting himself with his own creations. After a breif paus Silas continues.
"We seem to be located remotely in the desert. I dont know much about Africa but I dont think we have to worry that much about visitors. The Code does protect us against scrying so we have options against anyone who would discover the truth."
Silas turns a little toward Okeanettis as he continues speaking.
"Going forward a tribunal or anything else can be very dangerous. We dont know the fine political balance of this new tribunal. 1233 might very well make us the oldest covenat and we might be the most politically powerful as well. Best to feign a sudden winter and withdrawal. Perhaps imply something important and dangerous happening at our site or perhaps not even bother with explanations. Let the tribunal sort itself out as we get ready."
Lares takes his seat at the end of the table and listens to the others intently.
“Larex ex Miscellanea. It seems our assessments of the situation are in substantial agreement.”
“As for the Aegis, unless someone else is skilled in this field, I propose that I be the one to cast it. There are some matters we must determine or decide, however.”
Lares raises a finger.
“First, the timing. Do we know how much time we have before we have to recast it? What time of year is it? It will take time to prepare for the casting.”
Lares raises another finger.
“Second, the level. There is a lab text for a strong Aegis in the library here. I would prefer that we attempt to cast this. It will take substantially more preparation, however. I am not yet quite sure how well equipped my laboratory here is [@silveroak what is my estimation based on having looked through the lab?], but I may need a theoretically-informed assistant for inventing the spell. Several of us – preferably five – would also need to learn the relatively strong Wizard’s Vigil available in the library. Please review the Vigil to determine if you are capable of learning it now or with a season or two of preparation with the available tutorials.”
He waves his fingers around.
“Is everyone willing to participate on this endeavor? If not, there is also the alternative of me learning a weaker Aegis by myself from notes I discovered in my laboratory. This is less resource intensive, but results in weaker protection. I do not favor this alternative for the reason that,”
He raises a third finger.
“third, the potential threats are substantial. Beyond the ones you mentioned, there seems to be some kind of a powerful spirit inhabiting the surrounding wastes, called ‘the Red’. I do not know its specific nature, but I seem to have been quite worried about it. Furthermore, there is a real chance that the secret of our situation is on its way out.”
He lowers his fingers and his gaze, looking uncomfortable.
“I woke up with a woman, Barshako, who seems to have been my wife. She insisted on leaving to find her mother, which I allowed, having not fully grasped the situation we find ourselves in. As we speak, she is travelling the mountains to the west, having left a while after we awakened.”
He pauses briefly.
“She probably has a limited understanding of the situation here. She could, however, shorten the time we have for preparation, should she fall in the hands of our enemies. I therefore propose we recover her at once. I am willing to bear the brunt of this, of course, given the mistake is mine. I would appreciate help, however. The terrain is unfamiliar and dangerous, she has a head start, and she may be a werehyena or shapeshifter. Anyone skilled in flight or defense would be most helpful.”
"I am Aetherius ex Mercere, and I vote for secrecy as well. I don't have a ton to share at this time about any challenge we may face, as I haven't finished going through my sanctum's documents. I may need to work on my Vim a bit, but I could learn the Wizard's Vigil to assist with rituals. As for redcaps, if they visit, we can always decide on a new procedure to limit who they can interact with, and distribute mail internally. Assuming the covenant is sufficiently gated to control access, and has a building near the gate that can serve as a guest quarter, it could work for a while."
To Lares "I concur on catching her up. While I could assist on a field expedition, I haven't learned any travel magic at this point and I don't think its likely we'll catch a shapeshifter without shapeshifting or other forms of fast travel magic or flight..."
Lares interjects:
"I believe she is travelling on foot. Catching her is likely to be the lesser problem. I am capable of flight myself given some time for preparation. I worry, however about whatever else might be out there. We are in completely unfamiliar territory, and from what I have seen, the landscape seems rife with magic. Hence the possibility of potent creatures or other dangers. We cannot afford my incapacitation at this time."
"Yes, I agree that secrecy is our best course." Tastheus's tone is grim. "I had, or have a master who might pounce on any weaknesses. As for recovering Barshako, I can help with that. Though we may have to find our water supplies as well."
Lares lab looks to have a +1 Vim, +2 Rego, a +2 bonus for animal and +1 bonuses for Cr, Co, and Pe, so it would only offer modest boosts for inventing or reinventing an aegis spell, though the aura likely offers more of a boost than the specific aspects of the lab.
Argentius has listened intently to his colleagues, clearly considering each viewpoint based on his thoughtful reaction to the various viewpoints and concerns.
"If I may add a few thoughts, sodales. While our memories are gone and our bodies made young, our lost history is a shared history. We not only founded Al Kufra together, we welcomed each magus in this group into our ranks, and by all appearances, we thrived here. We advanced our studies and our arts here. This is our home." The handsome Verditius pauses for a moment.
"This apparent disaster could be turned into an unprecedented boon. We have a second chance, an informed second chance. If we can keep ourselves protected." He leans forward slightly.
"I propose that we all sign a special addendum to this Charter," continues Argentius as he pushes forward the document. "By that fresh signature we recommit our new selves to Al Kufra and to our common weal. With that signature we commit to our common safety and mutual success. In the next few seasons and years, we may need to commit our time, our study, and our efforts to the Covenant and to each other before we re-embark on our life's work. I believe that investment will be one well made."
Argentius rests a hand on the table as he looks at each magus with purpose.
"Sodales, you have my full commitment to the common good of Al Kufra."
“Thank you, Tastheus. Having a sturdy Tytalus on my side greatly eases my mind. Will you be traveling by foot or by air?”
Lares smiles wryly. It is difficult to say whether he is happy at the shared devotion, amused by Argentius’ high-minded ministrations, or both.
“You have my full commitment. If we manage to endure, this covenant is going to be more than a dream come true. That being said,”
He looks around the room,
"how full is your commitment? I will remind you that I will not be able to learn the Aegis without help in the lab. I understand this is much to ask, but in exchange you will have substantially stronger protection for the remainder of your years."
(OOC: By my calculations, Lares would need 10 points of lab assistance to learn level 50 ReVi. That's either one Aetherius or two others: Lares' ReVi lab total for inventing aegis: 3 int + 10 vim + 10 rego + 8 aura +4 mt + 2 labRe + 1 labVi + 2 overtime = 40; with two helpers, this could be done without overtime)
Zarkut smiles. "I commit myself as well. We are all equal, and I am not too proud to assist in something that will help protect all of us. But does anyone know what time of year it is? We can only make an assumption regarding the expiry of the Aegis, but we should try to make sure everyone has ample time to learn Communion."