Written By Rysen
Nov. 13, 2019, 8:06 p.m.(3/11/1012 AR)
Relationship Note on Reigna
By your quill do Eloquence and Wisdom dance.
Written By Ingrid
Nov. 13, 2019, 7:21 p.m.(3/11/1012 AR)
It seems that these days, we need to work on the education of the masses more. There are far too many amongst the hoi polloi that equate Thralldom with slavery under a magical writ.
Written By Strozza
Nov. 13, 2019, 6:34 p.m.(3/11/1012 AR)
Relationship Note on Esme
I do not recall when but I have apparently caused offense to a woman I know very little of.
I am unsure how I did this, or how I had conveyed that this person was vapid.
We have not yet met to discuss. But I appreciate she has confronted, if by missive, in this matter.
I am unsure how I did this, or how I had conveyed that this person was vapid.
We have not yet met to discuss. But I appreciate she has confronted, if by missive, in this matter.
Written By Strozza
Nov. 13, 2019, 6:27 p.m.(3/11/1012 AR)
I need more time to meet with Lessi and Di - it has been a whirlwind about us and I have seen the latter more than the former. I still remember when I was very small, and they barely a year old.
Hard to tell sometimes which were the better years. Di clearly the tempest.
Lessi dear the eye at the center.
Hard to tell sometimes which were the better years. Di clearly the tempest.
Lessi dear the eye at the center.
Written By Strozza
Nov. 13, 2019, 6:24 p.m.(3/11/1012 AR)
The snow storms continue, allegory? I know not. I yearn for the sea again. Little entices me to remain landlocked.
The proof of Cambria has been confirmed. My cousin does well.
The proof of her husband remains unsubstantiated. I believe he a myth designed to lure me out into the open.
The proof of Cambria has been confirmed. My cousin does well.
The proof of her husband remains unsubstantiated. I believe he a myth designed to lure me out into the open.
Written By Bianca
Nov. 13, 2019, 5:11 p.m.(3/11/1012 AR)
Choice is a fundamental part of what makes us what we are. Our choices are the gift Skald gave us, in all their potential. Sometimes, we make mistakes. It is inevitable, for all of us. Sometimes, we err and hurt others without even knowing until it is too late. Sometimes, we willingly make the wrong choices. Our choices have great capacity to ripple through the world and people around us, for good and for ill.
But with every choice we make, we learn. And in learning, in experiencing, we change. When we make mistakes, it gives us the ability to reflect upon what led us to that point -- and to potentially become something different, something better, for the experience of it. We may stumble sometimes along the way. May often, even. We may fall into horrible choices and circumstances that we feel there is no escape from. And some of us do not. But there are many more who do -- who can learn, and change. Who can grow. And I believe that is what makes this world so beautiful: the capacity for growth. The capacity to strive to become the best possible version of us.
Our Lady of Change gives us the blessing of growth, but we cannot grow if we cannot engage with the world. We cannot grow if we are never given the chance to. Sometimes we will suffer for it; sometimes people will bring that suffering to us, or us to them. But I do not believe there is any of us who are beyond redemption, nor do I believe there is anyone incapable of rising to greatness, if given the chance -- if given the opportunity. Opportunity that does not, cannot, come from someone making their decisions for them. Everyone must ultimately forge that path for themselves.
The ability to choose, and the ability to grow, are both sacred and wonderful gifts. I cannot deny that a world of Writs could in some ways make us safer. Nor will I deny that choice and free will often bring tragedy as they does triumph. By stripping our ability to choose, we might well mold a world where there is no chance for misery any more than there is elation, and that would keep us all unthreatened, secure within our preordained cages.
But it would be a much sadder, stagnant world. And I do not believe that such a hollow world is a world worth living in.
But with every choice we make, we learn. And in learning, in experiencing, we change. When we make mistakes, it gives us the ability to reflect upon what led us to that point -- and to potentially become something different, something better, for the experience of it. We may stumble sometimes along the way. May often, even. We may fall into horrible choices and circumstances that we feel there is no escape from. And some of us do not. But there are many more who do -- who can learn, and change. Who can grow. And I believe that is what makes this world so beautiful: the capacity for growth. The capacity to strive to become the best possible version of us.
Our Lady of Change gives us the blessing of growth, but we cannot grow if we cannot engage with the world. We cannot grow if we are never given the chance to. Sometimes we will suffer for it; sometimes people will bring that suffering to us, or us to them. But I do not believe there is any of us who are beyond redemption, nor do I believe there is anyone incapable of rising to greatness, if given the chance -- if given the opportunity. Opportunity that does not, cannot, come from someone making their decisions for them. Everyone must ultimately forge that path for themselves.
The ability to choose, and the ability to grow, are both sacred and wonderful gifts. I cannot deny that a world of Writs could in some ways make us safer. Nor will I deny that choice and free will often bring tragedy as they does triumph. By stripping our ability to choose, we might well mold a world where there is no chance for misery any more than there is elation, and that would keep us all unthreatened, secure within our preordained cages.
But it would be a much sadder, stagnant world. And I do not believe that such a hollow world is a world worth living in.
Written By Jyri
Nov. 13, 2019, 3:59 p.m.(3/10/1012 AR)
If you all are interested in helping thralls, donate to houses that are freeing them. Take them into your own houses, give them jobs, build more houses near your castles and estates out throughout Arvum, teach them. Having seen thralls come across the sea to the main land, without owning anything, just to get away form persecution from traditionalists that now hate them for being free?
There is so much people can do. If you are writing about it here, then I fully expect to see some donations or projects as well.
There is so much people can do. If you are writing about it here, then I fully expect to see some donations or projects as well.
Written By Rhue
Nov. 13, 2019, 2:17 p.m.(3/10/1012 AR)
Two facts I learned during my most recent adventure: 1. Gyrfalcon chicks are adorable. 2. Gulls are incredibly vexing creatures.
A third fact of note, I am now a member of the Society of Explorers! I am so excited to see what is to come.
I've always been the dutiful worker dedicated to the tasks at hand or the knowledge-seeker perusing the stacks. Why should I not add adventurer to that list? Life is about evolving and there is much I hope to learn and improve.
A third fact of note, I am now a member of the Society of Explorers! I am so excited to see what is to come.
I've always been the dutiful worker dedicated to the tasks at hand or the knowledge-seeker perusing the stacks. Why should I not add adventurer to that list? Life is about evolving and there is much I hope to learn and improve.
Written By Tatienne
Nov. 13, 2019, 2:10 p.m.(3/10/1012 AR)
I'm sure she has done a lot of good to atone for her sins. To be honest, I don't know her or what she's done to repent, but I'm willing to take your word for it that it was sufficient.
But she still rejoins the Prince of Slavers, the faith still refuses to condemn the Prince of Slavers.
So really, what's the point in condemning Slavery while the Compact still embraces the Slavers of the Mourning Isles? While the compact turns a blind eye to their Slavery because they decided to call it Thralldom.
That's my issue. Not her actions.
But she still rejoins the Prince of Slavers, the faith still refuses to condemn the Prince of Slavers.
So really, what's the point in condemning Slavery while the Compact still embraces the Slavers of the Mourning Isles? While the compact turns a blind eye to their Slavery because they decided to call it Thralldom.
That's my issue. Not her actions.
Written By Fatima
Nov. 13, 2019, 1:38 p.m.(3/10/1012 AR)
Relationship Note on Tatienne
I think that there are people in the Compact who share your sentiments Tatienne. That they believe that what I've done was something that shouldn't be forgiven but Gloria teaches mercy against those who have fought with honor and laid down their arms when they've lost. We don't need to re-visit the details to understand what I did. I know. I'm fully aware and as the Legate says I will carry that with me for the rest of my life.
I still don't believe that I've done enough and I won't feel fulfilled until slavery is a practice that has long since been abolished. My promise to the people and to the Gods alike were straightforward and sincere. There can be no more slaves. While it's madness to think that one of us has the power to make change in foreign lands without the aid of many, because I am just one princess, we can begin closer to home. I have faith that Victus and the rest of Thrax's leadership will continue to make policy decisions that lead us towards a Mourning Isles without Thralldom.
What we cannot do is let our anger, sadness, disappointment, or shame cloud our judgement. We cannot make foolhardy decisions, such as waving our hand and freeing all thralls, without suffering the consequences. The world is already suffering enough without us adding to it. Even if such a thing were to help us all sleep better at night, we are obligated to be better by noble obligesse. To carry our burdens and all that comes with it even through the most difficult of transitory periods, even if it means people will despise us for it in the moment.
I still don't believe that I've done enough and I won't feel fulfilled until slavery is a practice that has long since been abolished. My promise to the people and to the Gods alike were straightforward and sincere. There can be no more slaves. While it's madness to think that one of us has the power to make change in foreign lands without the aid of many, because I am just one princess, we can begin closer to home. I have faith that Victus and the rest of Thrax's leadership will continue to make policy decisions that lead us towards a Mourning Isles without Thralldom.
What we cannot do is let our anger, sadness, disappointment, or shame cloud our judgement. We cannot make foolhardy decisions, such as waving our hand and freeing all thralls, without suffering the consequences. The world is already suffering enough without us adding to it. Even if such a thing were to help us all sleep better at night, we are obligated to be better by noble obligesse. To carry our burdens and all that comes with it even through the most difficult of transitory periods, even if it means people will despise us for it in the moment.
Written By Aslaug
Nov. 13, 2019, 11:14 a.m.(3/10/1012 AR)
A person should never apologize for who they are.
They should be true to themselves.
Own their identity.
Be.
They should be true to themselves.
Own their identity.
Be.
Written By Reigna
Nov. 13, 2019, 11:01 a.m.(3/10/1012 AR)
A child of Skald. That is what every human is. Skald, the First Choice, god of freedom, free will and the destroyer of fate. Humanity at its core is centered on the ability to choose. We are not gods, we do not possess lifespans that stretch hundreds of years, nor are we as the legends of dragons with their magical breath, or mages from time before the Reckoning. We are human, subject to the whims of weather, luck and whatever it is that life throws at us. The unknown can be a terrifying thing and humans, as a collective, tend not to like it. Why? Because survival dictates that we try to control as many variables as possible to ensure a positive outcome for ourselves and those we care for. Control is, in many ways, an illusion. Digging through the layers of thought and belief, the core understanding that I have come to recognize is this:
The only thing I have absolute control of is this alone: What I choose to do.
I cannot control the wind or the rain, or the actions of a man who seeks to harm me, or the emotions that boil within me in response to an insult. What I can do is choose how to act. How to respond. I choose. That is *mine*. That is the only thing I can absolutely control. It is my Skald-given power to choose how I act.
Being bound by a Writ is the same as slavery. Some may claim this allows for a sense of security, the ability to relax into the safety and comfort of knowing that you will never make a wrong choice. But that is a lie. There is no choice there. It spits in the face of Skald's sacrifice to destroy Fate. It requires giving up the very thing that makes us Children of Skald. There is no virtue to be found in blind, unswerving obedience, that is the same fate held by the victims of the Metallic Traitor. Taking away Choice is taking away Choice. Dressing it up in robes of aeterna and calling it security does not change the fact that slavery is slavery and not security. Without the ability to choose, we lose the lessons and growth that come with making a decision. A person denied the ability to even consider becomes ignorant. Complacent and less inclined to question.
The human spirit will always rebel against that which seeks to yoke it. Just as Copper, born a slave and underestimated rose to be one of the most powerful beings in all of Aion, beloved by the world itself, others will rise. It may take millennia but it will come again. We are the Children of Skald and our ability to choose will not be taken from us. We all will die someday, be it as the result of our choices, or someone else's. There is no sense in fearing what will someday come. We cannot control the future. We can only control ourselves, our choices.
The Eternal Empire asked us to consider accepting their yoke. We chose not to. If some wish to accept, well. That is their choice. It is not mine. Nor shall it ever be.
The only thing I have absolute control of is this alone: What I choose to do.
I cannot control the wind or the rain, or the actions of a man who seeks to harm me, or the emotions that boil within me in response to an insult. What I can do is choose how to act. How to respond. I choose. That is *mine*. That is the only thing I can absolutely control. It is my Skald-given power to choose how I act.
Being bound by a Writ is the same as slavery. Some may claim this allows for a sense of security, the ability to relax into the safety and comfort of knowing that you will never make a wrong choice. But that is a lie. There is no choice there. It spits in the face of Skald's sacrifice to destroy Fate. It requires giving up the very thing that makes us Children of Skald. There is no virtue to be found in blind, unswerving obedience, that is the same fate held by the victims of the Metallic Traitor. Taking away Choice is taking away Choice. Dressing it up in robes of aeterna and calling it security does not change the fact that slavery is slavery and not security. Without the ability to choose, we lose the lessons and growth that come with making a decision. A person denied the ability to even consider becomes ignorant. Complacent and less inclined to question.
The human spirit will always rebel against that which seeks to yoke it. Just as Copper, born a slave and underestimated rose to be one of the most powerful beings in all of Aion, beloved by the world itself, others will rise. It may take millennia but it will come again. We are the Children of Skald and our ability to choose will not be taken from us. We all will die someday, be it as the result of our choices, or someone else's. There is no sense in fearing what will someday come. We cannot control the future. We can only control ourselves, our choices.
The Eternal Empire asked us to consider accepting their yoke. We chose not to. If some wish to accept, well. That is their choice. It is not mine. Nor shall it ever be.
Written By Orathy
Nov. 13, 2019, 10:40 a.m.(3/10/1012 AR)
Relationship Note on Felix
Reckon I ain't ever seen better work than what he got to offer. Aye, this ax sparkles. Reckon I recommend him fer yer weapon needs. Aye.
Written By Aureth
Nov. 13, 2019, 10:36 a.m.(3/10/1012 AR)
The idea that it is hypocritical of the Church to accept an earnest penance is to misunderstand the nature of penance and the mercy of the Church.
No one is beyond redemption. Even the blackest of hearts may seek restoration.
The light is for everyone.
Should you reach for it.
No one is beyond redemption. Even the blackest of hearts may seek restoration.
The light is for everyone.
Should you reach for it.
Written By Sina
Nov. 13, 2019, 9:33 a.m.(3/10/1012 AR)
Relationship Note on Tatienne
Thralldom cannot be ended overnight. The repercussions, both economically and socially, would be devastating to the Mourning Isles and its people, and as a consequence of that, the entire Compact will be affected. This is something you do not understand. Sure, it might be easy to just announce, "Well, we went ahead and freed all the Thralls! Celebrate! Rejoice! Everyone is free!" But that does not make a thrall truly free. Measures must be put into place (which I have been a part of aiding, I might add), to ensure that those Thralls have a place to go once they are freed, so they do not fall prey to enemies of the Compact, or sickness and disease, or abject poverty. They will need livelihoods, homes in which to live, a means of making it in this world, which can be incredibly cruel. These things take time. To do otherwise would be no better than throwing lambs to the wolves.
If you want to help, put your hands and mind and anger into the work. Channel it into something useful that will actually ensure the survival of freed thralls. It will be far more productive and, I suspect, fulfilling for you. And you will be doing them a great service. While I am all for recording one's feelings within the Whites, as we are asked to do by Vellichor, sometimes writing words isn't enough. You must be willing to live up to your own expectations. What are /you/ doing to aid in the freeing of thralls?
If you want to help, put your hands and mind and anger into the work. Channel it into something useful that will actually ensure the survival of freed thralls. It will be far more productive and, I suspect, fulfilling for you. And you will be doing them a great service. While I am all for recording one's feelings within the Whites, as we are asked to do by Vellichor, sometimes writing words isn't enough. You must be willing to live up to your own expectations. What are /you/ doing to aid in the freeing of thralls?
Written By Ophelia
Nov. 13, 2019, 8:36 a.m.(3/10/1012 AR)
Relationship Note on Delilah
My dear friend, what is this Bird Dance you speak of? I am intrigued!
Written By Evaristo
Nov. 13, 2019, 8:21 a.m.(3/10/1012 AR)
The Guardian
Watching like a guard
On a road without an ending
Listening to all that has been told
Gazing out at sea
The cliffs and white long beaches
Seeing all the ships that have been lost
Flying like a shadow through the darkness
Heavy wings are singing over water
Powerful Skylord, who will protect us?
From all the fears that humans face
You the king of Skylords, spread your wings out
Soaring high above the fates of Arvum
Spreading a hope against deadly shadows
Filling our blood with light and faith
Creating storm and wind
With a wingbeat, high and deafening
Caressing like a breeze on tearfilled cheek
Soar above the trees
Swaying calm and soothingly
Know that where there’s life, there’s also hope
Flying like a shadow through the darkness
Heavy wings are singing over water
Powerful Skylord, who will protect us?
From all the fears that humans face
You the king of Skylords, spread your wings out
Soaring high above the fates of Arvum
Spreading a hope against deadly shadows
Filling our blood with light and faith
Carry me through sadness and pleasure
Lift me over dark pits and high walls
Give me softest landing, I wish to live long
Flying like a shadow through the darkness
Heavy wings are singing over water
Powerful Skylord, you will protect us!
Against all fears that humans face
You the White of Skylords, spread your wings out!
Soaring high above the fates of Arvum
Spreading your hope against deadly shadows
Filling our blood with powerful song
(OOC: To the melody of ‘Väktaren’ by Garmarna. I translated the song almost verbatim, it is so fitting - changed a few words to fit the theme of Arx https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3HVjH-ojCck )
Watching like a guard
On a road without an ending
Listening to all that has been told
Gazing out at sea
The cliffs and white long beaches
Seeing all the ships that have been lost
Flying like a shadow through the darkness
Heavy wings are singing over water
Powerful Skylord, who will protect us?
From all the fears that humans face
You the king of Skylords, spread your wings out
Soaring high above the fates of Arvum
Spreading a hope against deadly shadows
Filling our blood with light and faith
Creating storm and wind
With a wingbeat, high and deafening
Caressing like a breeze on tearfilled cheek
Soar above the trees
Swaying calm and soothingly
Know that where there’s life, there’s also hope
Flying like a shadow through the darkness
Heavy wings are singing over water
Powerful Skylord, who will protect us?
From all the fears that humans face
You the king of Skylords, spread your wings out
Soaring high above the fates of Arvum
Spreading a hope against deadly shadows
Filling our blood with light and faith
Carry me through sadness and pleasure
Lift me over dark pits and high walls
Give me softest landing, I wish to live long
Flying like a shadow through the darkness
Heavy wings are singing over water
Powerful Skylord, you will protect us!
Against all fears that humans face
You the White of Skylords, spread your wings out!
Soaring high above the fates of Arvum
Spreading your hope against deadly shadows
Filling our blood with powerful song
(OOC: To the melody of ‘Väktaren’ by Garmarna. I translated the song almost verbatim, it is so fitting - changed a few words to fit the theme of Arx https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3HVjH-ojCck )
Written By Cassandra
Nov. 13, 2019, 7:49 a.m.(3/10/1012 AR)
Relationship Note on Tatienne
So if I am to correct in your assessment, no one should be forgiven by the Faith, regardless of the mistakes they make. Because why stop at slavery, as there are other crimes that are quite reprehensible in the eyes of the Faith. That regardless of the fact that they willing come to the Faith seeking forgiveness and redemption, not out of some self-serving intention or attempting to placate the masses, but a real genuine desire for introspection? But no, because she erred, there will be no forgiveness and no mercy. Just more blood of lamb, vengeance is mine. If you believe that is how the Faith operates, or perhaps should operate, then you did not listen to your Seraph.
If we are not to forgive those who have participated in slavery, that list would be a great deal longer than just one former Thraxian princess. I suppose the better punishment was that she would have to live with what she did. That is not a punishment that I can give, because that is already something she lives with herself. Every day for the rest of her life until she rejoins the Wheel. She will have to remember their faces when she sleeps.
Has the Faith execute those who have committed crimes in the past? Yes, this has happened. And I have been its executioner during some of those incidents. It is not something I enjoy, not something I relish in, not something I look forward to, and I take absolutely no joy in it. But if I were to be given a choice, and there has been much discussion on choice, I would rather try to help one see the error that they made. I would rather see one rise up from the lesser person they were before, to be something better in the future.
I cannot save the people that were put into slavery. That ship has sailed, quite literally. But I can help the person that had a large hand in it happening. The good she has done since she was stripped of her title far outweighs the satisfaction some might get by her head being on the chopping block. But that doesn't matter, does it?
In the end, if you question my judgement, there is always a proper way at displaying it.
If we are not to forgive those who have participated in slavery, that list would be a great deal longer than just one former Thraxian princess. I suppose the better punishment was that she would have to live with what she did. That is not a punishment that I can give, because that is already something she lives with herself. Every day for the rest of her life until she rejoins the Wheel. She will have to remember their faces when she sleeps.
Has the Faith execute those who have committed crimes in the past? Yes, this has happened. And I have been its executioner during some of those incidents. It is not something I enjoy, not something I relish in, not something I look forward to, and I take absolutely no joy in it. But if I were to be given a choice, and there has been much discussion on choice, I would rather try to help one see the error that they made. I would rather see one rise up from the lesser person they were before, to be something better in the future.
I cannot save the people that were put into slavery. That ship has sailed, quite literally. But I can help the person that had a large hand in it happening. The good she has done since she was stripped of her title far outweighs the satisfaction some might get by her head being on the chopping block. But that doesn't matter, does it?
In the end, if you question my judgement, there is always a proper way at displaying it.
Written By Juliette
Nov. 13, 2019, 2:54 a.m.(3/9/1012 AR)
How do you elevate a destitute and pretty unremarkable, if mad, commoner, to the point that the second of the faith and half the peerage is focusing solely on them? Let them step out of line and say something that the people in power don't want to hear.
Then half the Compact will know their name. Not the names of war heroes or loyal vassals, or hard working, salt of the soil people. No, no, let's elevate a confused young man who speaks pretty lies to that sharp a focus.
All that you lot are doing to respond is giving the exact attention desired. A chi,d can throw a tantrum all day if they want to, and will, if it gets them what they want. If it gets them ignored, though, they typically must turn to other methods if they are seeking for attention.
Then half the Compact will know their name. Not the names of war heroes or loyal vassals, or hard working, salt of the soil people. No, no, let's elevate a confused young man who speaks pretty lies to that sharp a focus.
All that you lot are doing to respond is giving the exact attention desired. A chi,d can throw a tantrum all day if they want to, and will, if it gets them what they want. If it gets them ignored, though, they typically must turn to other methods if they are seeking for attention.
Written By Josephine
Nov. 13, 2019, 12:02 a.m.(3/9/1012 AR)
I held her while she died. Watched that thing come out of her. The healer could not have known it would be like that. I suspect, that no matter what we did, she would have gone to be with her brothers and her father. I am sitting at the bench here in my shop, doors closed and the shop devoid of everything. I am making a piece for her and the gems are silent.
Wrong, they aren't silent. They are singing with me while I work. Singing that song. The metal, the stone. Both together in sorrowful harmony. When Marcen brings her back to Lenosia to be with her father and siblings, it will go with her. I have made a piece for each of them when they've left me. Whether I get a body back or not. They do not get to take it with them, but it remains with them and I am sure that they know.
Filigree. She liked that most of all. There are times I wish she had inherited that which I have. But she did not. But she was skilled in her own right. In her own ways. She liked the color purple too. She always lingered at the amethysts. Such a keen eye for them. She was my eldest. My finest. My favourite. No parents are supposed to have favorites but we all do and she was my favourite.
Is.
That was not the way someone should die. She did nothing to deserve that.
Every last breath that I have will be spent seeing that thing put down and I will burn through my fortunes if I must. She is my daughter, my star, my baby and she has been taken from me.
It's a dark world after all.
It will be darker for you when I find you.
Wrong, they aren't silent. They are singing with me while I work. Singing that song. The metal, the stone. Both together in sorrowful harmony. When Marcen brings her back to Lenosia to be with her father and siblings, it will go with her. I have made a piece for each of them when they've left me. Whether I get a body back or not. They do not get to take it with them, but it remains with them and I am sure that they know.
Filigree. She liked that most of all. There are times I wish she had inherited that which I have. But she did not. But she was skilled in her own right. In her own ways. She liked the color purple too. She always lingered at the amethysts. Such a keen eye for them. She was my eldest. My finest. My favourite. No parents are supposed to have favorites but we all do and she was my favourite.
Is.
That was not the way someone should die. She did nothing to deserve that.
Every last breath that I have will be spent seeing that thing put down and I will burn through my fortunes if I must. She is my daughter, my star, my baby and she has been taken from me.
It's a dark world after all.
It will be darker for you when I find you.
Please note that the scholars may take some time preparing your journal for others to read.