The Exarch (late summer 1242)

Play by Post Campaigns Ars Magica 5th Edition: Light of Andorra
41

"That's an interesting theory," Lucas replies. "I certainly believe them capable of attempting such a thing if they thought it necessary for the good of their House or the Order of Hermes. So let's talk it out for a moment. What does House Tremere and the Order in general gain from a weaker House Mercere?"

"House Mercere is the grease that keeps the Order moving smoothly. Our bank eases financial bumps; our Redcap network keeps the lines of communication open; and our portal network allows rapid movement of magi. The Order is stronger because of House Mercere. And I'm not just spouting propaganda with that. What's more, with only nineteen Gifted magi, we're not considered a great threat to the Order."

"In the end, if House Mercere goes down, then the Order in general is weakened. House Tremere can see that and the other houses can see that. Tremere may have its blackcaps in Transylvania, but not in the rest of the continent. And we don't know what House Tremere withdrew its vis reserves for. They did just fight a war, and wars are expensive. Much of it may have been spent on that."

"Now, I'm not saying that there wasn't some plotting behind this mess. There may well have been. And House Tremere may well have been involved. I'll be very interested to see what the investigation of Isatella's death turns up. If it wasn't suicide then that leaves a lot of questions on the table. But we can't immediately assume House Tremere is responsible without some further evidence."

"If this was a plot, then what whoever was behind this gets is chaos within the Order. Frankly, that sounds more like a Tytalus plot to me than a Teremere one. Or a plot from someone outside the Order who wanted to weaken us. My point is, we need to investigate the bank failure and investigate the death of Insatella. Only once we have evidence can we come up with proper theories. It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts."

42

Rewind two steps. Doisettep is in France, a major player in Provencal, and an important part of what's going on in House Flambeau. In previous editions it was in Provencal. In fifth edition, the official name of the covenant is Aedas Mercurri. There is a division within, a Dorsum and a Septum, alluding to the old name and which I use as inspiration for the nickname.
In the real world, Doisettep is the name of some shrine in Thailand. :smiley:
In Mythic Europe 5th ed, it is by coincidence that the slang corruption of Dorsum-Septum comes out as Doisettep. Though the official name is different, that is just what everyone calls it.

So okay, Doissetepp was right there in the thick of it. That would nullify the that inspiration for the idea of a conspiracy. Just that one. There are other posibilities.

I shall now reread the last five posts to see whats going on again...

43

Havin reread everything, it can fit into the swirlig chaotic caccophony of wild theories and debates. I will deal with this first, then get back to Vocis and the Exarch.

Concerning the list of magi Mercere: * Rodrigo has long passed (actually, he transformed into a genie bound to a sword, but that is not widely known).

  • Merceria and Guillermo are both from Doisettep. And they have both had brief association with Andorra. Mercuria is a Mistress of their council. Guillermo is a past master and has migrated to Blackthorn.
  • Insatella has just passed. She had but one filia, Erica, who just passed her gauntlet earlier this year. She is here.
  • Talbot is the Parens of Lucas. Flesh him out for us :slight_smile:
  • Deciumus is Lucas' predecessor at the Andora post, before it was a portal hub back when it was just a bank. His text exchange program is based in Valencia, where he lives with his family. His wife, Leja, was once a Redcap of Andorra. She is not here.
  • Elegans, Velox, and Ophilio. These are all mysteries to me. Presume they are here in the background, along with a half dozen unnamed magi.
  • There are several Redcaps present. A few that work here, and a few notables from around. Richeaux. Tiana. English Erik. Heirich. Irish Richard. And such.
  • Readers and playes can help out by digging up names from current and past cannon. :smiley:
44

"It is," Rilcheux states slowly "A place to start. As to what Tremere would gain there are three possibilities. One of which is that the plot may have been to inconvenience rather than destroy the house, which gains any plot the advatange of ruptured communications through official channels. The second is if Tremere believes theycan replace the redcap network. They may r may not be interested in making house Flambeaux into a client of their own house, built along similar likes and acting as a lesser cousin. Tytalus do not organize this well. There is the possibility that someone outside the order is involved, but if so they have infiltrated to such a degree as to be a part of the order, the other possibility would be a mystery cult of some sort. However Tremere had their Exarch of summer coming to Andorra ahead of the Interem Primus of Flambeaux, which certainly suggests some level of knowledge or involvement. "

45

Lucas forms an island of calm begining with Talbot. His senority will give quiet strength to the words of Lucas. You win over Mercuria, Decimus, Erica, Velox, Elegans, and Ophilio. Redcaps follow suit, following Tiana (who was at Andorra, then Barcelona/Yvalls, now here at Harco). Herich and Ricky follow in. English Eric and Irish Richard have their own crazy ideas, while Richeaux talks Tremere conspiracy.

46

A kindly and compassionate gentle-Gifted old Mercere magus. He's incredibly humble and never pulls rank, even though he outranks a lot of people due to his hermetic age. He's utterly devoted to House Mercere, though he's kept out of the political side, being content to live in semi-retirement at Cunfin copying rare books and occasionally either crafting an item for a Redcap or a devising a longevity potion. He is the senior magus in the Milvi Antiquiti and a master of Muto magic. His familiar is a white cat named Dexter. A half a century ago, he was very active in the Milvi Antiquiti, and was instrumental in many of their endeavors.

I don't know if it's permitted to make him an archmagus or not. (I'm not sure how many there are in the Order and how exclusive you want to make that club). He's capable enough in transmutation magic to have achieved that hallmark, though if you'd prefer he not be, he could easily have decided he didn't need the recognition. As I noted, he's quite humble.

47

Vocis will ask the familiars to start a think tank via his own:

  • who could gain from the vis run, and what prep would they do?
  • what are the political and house populations within the covenants who have already withdrawn from the Mercere vis bank?
  • who will bleed the worst from the vis shortage? Verdi perhaps? Then who wants the Verdi gone?
  • what of the other Houses? Where are the Tytali and Quaesitory on this?, and the other less political houses? Rumours?

"We shouldn't dismiss factions and cults the discussion. They're as political as the wider Houses. "
"This might be an embezzlement case in Mercere too, which raises questions of the house. Again, factions. "
"Val Negra's return isn't a coincidence. Something isn't right with that. "

48

Lucas pulls out every arrow in his quiver to keep his group of magi together and talking, thanking God for the serene presence of Talbot sitting down next to him and implicitly giving weight to his words. The House was really on the brink, and letting this chaos go on for a minute longer served no one, the more so if Rilcheax was right and someone had orchestrated this whole situation, a conclusion that seemed increasingly valid the more he thought about it.

"We need to act and act soon," he says to his small group. "Reasons can wait until later. But we need to stabilize the situation and keep it from getting worse. We need to shut down the bank for at least a week to let things calm down and give ourselves time to think and plan. That means no withdrawals by anyone for a week."

"We also need to announce a convocation to elect a new primus. I think that should be as soon as possible. within six months, if we can manage. We need to show the Order that we're in control of our own House. That's the only way we're going to regain the confidence that this bank run is going to cause."

"Finally, we need to appoint someone to investigate the death of Insatella. Rilcheaux is right. Something isn't right about this whole situation. As frightening as it is to think that someone might have killed our primus in the center of our power, I think we have to investigate that possibility. I propose that we start by having some in-house magi look at the situation immediately. Once news of this gets out, we'll have a Quasitor coming and offering his or her services. But for now we keep this inside House Mercere. If no one else is willing or able, I volunteer myself and Rilcheaux to start the investigation." He glances at the Redcap silently apologizing for volunteering him without asking. "He's extremely competent in matters covert, and I can handle any magical aspects of the investigation."

"In the meanwhile, I propose that we name Talbot as the pro temp replacement for Insatella, just to to handle day-today matters and just until a successor can be officially determined. Talbot is the most apolitical of Gifted magi in the House. He has no desire for the position and will clearly stand aside when a new primus is named."

"I'm sorry, Talbot," he says to his parens. "I know it's the last thing you want. But that's the reason that you're the right magus for the job."

"Now, this is all informal," he acknowledges. "But if the nineteen of us," he's looks around the room, all too aware that he only has a smaller group within the greater number listening to him, "can agree on a course of action, then the others will follow." He hopes that's true for the magi in this room as well. He had eight magi out of nineteen as well as a handful of Redcaps together now. If he could get the eight of them agreed on how to act, hopefully more of the magi would follow.

"We need to act," he reiterates. "The whys and wherefores can come later. But for now the House and the Order needs to see us taking decisive action."

As he looks around at the gathered magi, he mentally contacts Horus. Reporting in, buddy. Things are bad here. The House is broke and there's a run on the bank. Insatella is dead, apparently by suicide, but we're looking into that. I need you to wake Cecelia immediately and tell her to get to Harco. We need her here as soon as possible.

49

Vibria is shocked, but says nothing at first, but merely sits there drumming her fingers on the table-top thoughftully (perhaps drawing attention to the missing finger on her right had as she does).

[color=red]"I knew things were bad, Markus," she says, [color=red]"but I had no idea how bad. Of course I will do what I can to help out your House."

Yeah. I do remember that. And Vibria has kept the secret very well, even from Jaksic.

50

Back to Markus with Vocis and Vibria.
(keep in mind that none of you have yeard about the Mercere situation as of yet, which was about three or four hours ago, and Lucus either just got home and passed out or is sleeping at Harco while his wife is busy with stuff there).
Exarch Markus looks solemn. [color=brown]Grandmaster Vocis, the fact that you do not desire rank is in part what makes you most fit for it. And General Vibria, the situation is serious but not dire or disaterous. The major expense is in the reconstruction. Mundanes were hit heavy in the war. Conjuring new towers and restoring pastures goes a long way towards earning their good graces. It is expensive covering the losses of others. But it will be worth it in the long run. I do see that.
And the war chest is such that Coeris could maintain another war of similar magnitude. As I said, the House has withdrawn substantial deposits. Both to replenish the war chest and to rebuild the tribunal.
There are four exarchates. Spring is the three British tribunals, Summer is mine along the west cost, Autumn is the center with Rhine and Rome, and Winter is everything east of that.
Old historic modle based on whay back when there were only four regional tribunals in the 8th century.
So there are four resource inventories scattered about each of these Exarchates. And four individual accounts of materials magic and mundane.
So, Autumn and Winter are thouroughly tied in with Coeris. Sping, managed by Aeorix out of Blackthorne, is slow to respond. The tribunals in Stonehenge are a year off, and they say they need tribunal input before deciding on how to allocate funds.
I pity Blackthorne. They are the most morally upright and egalitarian covenant I have ever encountered. But all of their peers think they are masters of conspiracy and manipulation.

So now it comes down to me and what I must do. I have already donated generously from my personal fortune [size=25](several wealthy tremere around the Order have done the same, hence the rash of "Tremere deposit withdraws" I keep talking about. Really rich magi like Markus could have multiple accounts im different banks. And keep in mimd that, as advanced as the Mercere are, this is still a primative medieval banking system based on the barter of a consumable product).[/size][color=brown] cough!
I have donated generously, but I am not asking the same of others.Make that decision on your own, but I reccomend shoring up close to home. Give not to me, give to the hospital.
I am not of a mind to transfer assets of the Exarchate to Coeris. I favor suspending all funding until we can manage on our own without subsidy, thus relieving Transylvania of that burden. I spoke quietly to a few about it just this past spring at the Normandy tribunal. I wanted to bring it up publically at Provencal this summer. But several other issued precluded me. The Flambeau situation was a minor thread until it blew up at the end. The Cathar situation and the aftermath of what has already happened and too late to change dominated conversation.
But I did talk to a few. There is talk of rebuilding Mistridge, but they made grisly discoveries concerning Grimgroth that are classified.
And now Iberia. I hope to gain wisdom and advice there, and come to a sound conclusion as to how to best manage my duty. It is the wealthiest Tribunal of the Order and has the most robust economy. Mundane and Arcane! They must be doing something right.
And you, Vocis, are between here and there. And you are amongst the three most important Tremere magi in my charge. Veteran, officer, grandmaster, pater, and..
Vexillation?
fnord!
Yes yes yes. Latter that.
Anyway, I require the council and assistance of both of you. Andorra's Zenchodium is one of seven resource centers under my charge. Three are staying open and operating at slightly reduced vis budget but an increaced mundane budget. A fourth is able to operate on its own and needs no subsidy. I closed two in Normandy earlier this year. Which brings me here again.
Everything seems to center on Andorra.
I cannot fund you, and I need to transfer some assets to the other locations I am keeping open.
But looking over this inventory sheet, I see there is something I can do.
I am not touching the texts or tablets your covenant owns. Just the ones the hospital holds that are House property. But I see that hardly amounts to anything. You have a strong scribal staff here. I am going to assign you two more scribes and let you keep Marius. I need to reassign Draganna. Keep the scribes. I will pay them. Copy all of the texts, and when I take them come spring, I will drop off another batch. Then we will work out something where you make two copies of different things, one for your outpost and one I can install elsewhere.
Your dedicated vis stock is less than four rooks. Not much, but I still need it. But it wont go far. Combined with the vis I have gathered from other sources, I amplanning to open a dedicated account here at the Andorra bank. If your Zenchodium ever runs into a situation where they need vis for emergency healing, you may draw an advance from it. When I can fund you again, part of the budget will be to repay that draw and keep the reserve at top.
The Asturian and Argentium warchests are intact, as are others. Except for one in Normandy I closed.

51

Markus continues.[color=brown]
Now as for this Flambeau situation, I did not expect it to blow up like this nor for the Archmagus to get involved. There has long been a dispute amongst the Flambeau of Provencal. Specifically between the Mercurians of Aedas Mercuri (Doisettep) and the Mithraic cultists of Castra Solis where the deposed Primus Garus hails from. Pietro comes into it from out of nowhere, a force of his own on neither side. I saw a fair challenge to Certamen fainly fought and fairly won. And considering his great service to the Order, I think it is the best interest of House Tremere to support his claim. I said as much in my spectral report to Coeris last night. I was told to keep my eyes open and be mindful of the manicions and ambitions of the archmagi.
What do the two of you think?
:question:

52

Rilcheaux nods at Lucas' wisdom. He votes in accordance with his plan, wanting to move quickly before anything could happen to the body. Examining that will likely be Lucas' deparment, InCo magic can learn far more than medicinal knowledge, but he will want to start interviewing the staff of the old Primus. He does however add one more suggestion. "Messages need to be slowed, and any that might touch on this investigation should be reported to Harco. I doubt any conspirators will be using the redcap network, but those around them may well let things slip that we can piece together. If we have not done so we should not acknowledge receipt of the Doisstep request for their fund yet. The only messages which should travel as quickly, or faster, than usual are any involving trade that will bring in more vis."

53

"Excellent plan," Lucas adds. "We should see if we can get all or most Redcaps to pass through Harco in the next few days to get new orders. A general slow-down isn't a bad thing at all. Let's let all requests for withdrawals take as long as possible."

54

Using the familiar link to Celeste: "If you can please excuse yourself and get a message to Lucus, perhaps via his familiar if you cannot find him? Asking to quickly talk to Vocis before we meet on mass with the Exarch or Archmagus Pietro. Andorra needs help. The next part of this story will be very interesting and I want us to know all the problems."

Oh just finished reading that thread, interesting. Thanks for the heads up.

"Truthfully, I don't much like the idea of House Tremere weighing in on the change of the Flambeau Primus; they have their traditions", he shakes his head while continuing to speak, "imagine if the Flambeau tried to alter the ascendancy of a Tremere Primus." Then he looks at Clotide, right at her as she sits listening just as she was told, then smiles softly to try to take some gravity from his own voice.

"Now I know that pragmatically speaking that's not possible as we are all linked together, but I think Andorra has to consider it's position very carefully given how prominent it is within the tribunal landscape, and how many Flambeau hold senior ranks here. Our Flambeau magi need to decide their personal stance and balance that against Andorra's position. I'd bet a pawn it will not be as simple as backing Archmagus Pietro because of an association to Flambeau of yore. My guess is Andorra cannot openly throw it's support to a side of the Flambeau struggle without creating significant problems in the future. Val Negra's return is very strange, and frankly I don't believe yet that it has been active and hiding all this time. Somebody would have known, or would have known to keep it secret for a specific purpose."

"Why does it feel like the afternoon already?"

55

Rilcheaux also muses "What information do we have supporting the claim of Val Negra to their vis assets? I would think we would need to be able to verify the physical location of the covenant as well as documentation of an unbroken chain of leadership tying back to the council which first made the deposit, as well as a need to review our own records regarding any special conditions of that deposit. Of course with the Primus deceased this could take some time to verify our own records, but we should probably go ahead and make a request for their supporting documentation, after witch we would need to send a redcap to re-establish normal communications."

56

Markus, with Vocis and Vibria...
[color=brown]Pragmatism is my main motivation. And to uphold the tradition of Certamen. In House Tremere, of someone challenged the Prima to Certamen over leadershi and wone, they woukd be the new Primus. Ancient Flambeau tradition is a fire duel. Modern convention is election. Neither of those has happened yet. But Garus did back down from the propsed fire fight and opted for Crtamen. And lost.
I understand not wanting to get involved. I only wish I had that luxury. I plan to closely monitor the situation. Some say Pietro is secretly still Tytalus. He even has his own version of the Book of Instruction and favors old style Agoge training. Casting appentices tyo the wild for their gauntlet as the Spartans used to.
So yes, it is a sticky situation. And it seems to center right here.
I seek what is best for the Order, what is best for this Exarchate, and what is best for this covenant. Andorra has become (is becoming) one of the lynch pins that holds us together. So, having stated my feelings on the matter, I shall defer to your judgment. Just remember Pietro is a war hero. He led our forces in Thule against the Trollsynir. He fought in the dragon wars in Transylvania. He pacified Pan Caudrax after that Iceland incident last year.
Keep quiet on that last one. Someone of your rank should be aware that there was a situation. But the tale is only half known and is mostly speculation. I was asked to keep quiet and share only on a need to know basis. I feel you need to know, but that is pretty much all I know. Icelandic Wars in 1241. Pan Caudrax was involved. Pietro pacified him. No more than that.
As for Val-Negra, I checked on that last night. No record of an official close. I was told that there are classified documents kept at Durenmar and Doisettep. Agents are currently checking at Scholomance and Lycanodon (or wherever the secret library is hidden).
But there is an exact record of the location. Here at Andorra. That is something I want to check into. Supposedly, 22 years ago, this covenant sponsored an expedition there. The names recorded include Xalbador of Flambeau and Octavian of Tremere. Also, Vares of Flambeau and Ludovicio of Tytalus. The first two I know of. The others, no clue.
Further, Coeris reports that Harco owns a magic lamp that will lead one straight there. I don't have time to investigate that. But Pietro did recrit a dozen members yesterday, and presumably they are there right now.
Vibria, you are a prestegious Flambeau maga. Perhaps you could take Vocis with you for a visit so he can make a report for me?

57

By now you all may notice I am a babbel-onian. I take the elements that are present, get into the head of a character, and just start blabbing freeform based on what I figure they know and think like. That may take me into random tangents sometimes. Background fluff. Ultima Thule and Icelandic wars have no bering on the plot at hand. My word as a man and a mason. I may use ideas such as this in the future, and I might not.
Fexability and possibility are why I prefer to run a sandbox-style saga. Not everything presented is linear. Just as in real life, it is up to you to make sense of it all and forge your own path.
(My ramble style also explains my perponderance of typos and mispellings. I type really fast on this old blackberry. Even when I spot them, I move on anyway figuing you know what I mean. I also tend to use words that I never encounter in my daily blue collar life. Sorta like Robert Howard. I get tripped up on spelling, and there is no spell check on the phone. So I find myself rephrasing things to use word I can spell properly.
I also use "amongst" and "however" a lot.)

58

Back to Rich and Luke. Which takes place a few hours befor Vocis and Vibria.
As Richeaux starts to come around, Irish Richard and English Erik will follow suit. They also are on the conspiracy bandwagon, and shout "Blackthorne" a lot. But they see that Rich is following a sensible plan as laid out by Lucas.
People are getting antsy and wanting to go home. It is agreed to keep the financial situation quiet. Some think the problem is exaggerated. But anyway, the slow-down plan is accepted unanimously.
As for documentation on Val-Negra, just as Richeaux mentions that, Tiana hands him a book and a lantern. A copy of the full record, and a device that navigates the mists that hide it.
[color=blue]Go there and fimd out for us.
According to the record, there is no external Vis supply to be concerned about. Just a substantial deposit of a few chess sets, made in the year 1111.
Interesting that. The same year Andorra was reopened and the year old Al-Stanzia merged with Es-Karida, forming the "modern" Estancia Escarida. Little record of the years after the Schism Way up until then. And after that, only a record of funds tranfered from Doisettep to the Val-Negra account. And lo & behold! Andorra was paying tribute all the way up to 1212. And for some reason stopped.
No record of where any physical vis came from or went. Just numbers on parchment.

59

I estimate about 30+ archmagiin 1242. Give or take. If Talbot is an archmagus and the primacy upon him evern for the moment, it will most likey turn out he will get stuck with the job. Choose wisely...

60

In the room with Markus, Vocis and Vibria: "agreed. let's see if we can recon the covenant and who resides. Andorra and our Houses will gain a lot of gravity to our arguments if we can speak to having physically seen Val Negra. Ive reached out to Lucas, let's form a team. "