Dispatches from the Office of the Governor.

[Cinnabar]

A letter delivered to the Amesbury estate, on fine paper and bearing the Governor's seal.

To Aldwin Meriwether Gilby, 3rd Baron Hawkesbury, 1st Baron Amesbury, Minister of Myrken Wood

Lord Hawkesbury

Please be advised that my position as Governor of Myrken Wood has been confirmed by the former Governor, Altias Bromn, and has also been successfully ratified by the Judiciary Council. My sincere apologies for not notifying you previously, but it was my desire to ensure that the matter was properly confirmed and formalised before doing so. The relevant documents are available for your inspection should you desire to assure yourself of their legitimacy, as are the minutes of the Council meeting at which the transfer was approved.

To turn to more worrying matters, no doubt you are aware of the troubles in Derry. Allow me to state now that Myrken would much rather prosper under His Majesty's gentle touch than writhe beneath the boot of a tyrant and warmonger such as Burel, and as such we are glad to remain loyal to the Crown. Unfortunately all the fidelity in the world offers little protection against war-sorcerors and cold steel, so any military assistance that His Majesty might see fit to provide would greatly improve the chances of his loyal subjects remaining not only prosperous, but also alive.

I shall take up no more of your time, sir, save to say that I hope we might meet in person at some point. Until then, I remain His Majesty's humble servant.

Sincerely

Cinnabar Calomel

[Hawkesbury]

To the Venerable Cinnabar Calomel, Governor of Myrken Wood; from Aldwin Meriwether Gilby, 3rd Baron Hawkesbury, 1st Baron Amesbury, Minister of Myrken Wood - Greetings.

I am greatly pleased to hear of the ratification of your station by the former Governor and the Wood’s Judiciary Council. Pray I do not offend when I express my most sincere desire for a less tumultuous future for Myrken Wood’s political structure. I am quite certain that His Majesty will express the same such relief when I report this information.

In addition, please allow me to express my appreciation for your reinforcement of allegiance to His Majesty. I am indeed aware of the troubles in Derry and of the audacious and treasonous actions of the Duke of Thessilane. Her Royal Highness, the Princess of Derry, has written to me personally to express her concerns in regards to this most unfortunate matter. I have, in turn, written to her father explaining all that I know about the situation at hand.

I have not yet heard from His Majesty as yet, but I have heard, however, that the armies of the Duke of Xanth Grange march even now toward Wrexham in support of the Crown. As you well know, there is likely no army in Amasynia the rival that of the Grange. It heartens me greatly that the Duke was not taken so by the mourning of his deceased father that he was unable to come to the aid of Derry. It is again a testament to the steadfast honor of Garrison Bromn and his unending dedication to the Crown. His father would be proud.

Although I have not heard from His Majesty and make it not a habit to speak for His Majesty--as it is not my place to do so without his council--I speculate that His Majesty may wait to dispatch his armies until he hears more of the support given to Derry by its neighbors: Xanth Grange, Amasynia, New Dauntless and Myrken Wood. If the Territories of the Amasynian Provincial Region are unable to contain this detestable attack on the Crown, I am certain His Majesty will send forth all the armies of Trae Kelsa to lay waste to the Duchy of Thessilane and depose of its foolhardy leader.

I will, of course, deliver any additional information upon you once it is received. Please do not hesitate to call upon me for any council.

Done by my hand this Second of October, Anno Regalis Two Hundred and Seven.

[Cinnabar]

To Sir Malaroth Deucalios of Zachea, Grand Master of the Shepherd Knights

Sir Malaroth

I am advised that you have a young lady by the name of Alessandra Demarest hoping to join your Order; I am reliably informed that Miss Demarest committed an act of assault with a deadly weapon against Miss Rhaena Olwak at the Broken Dagger, this Sunday last, in which Miss Olwak was injured to the point that it was necessary to take her to the Rememdium. Obviously the Constabulary would be most interested in speaking with her regarding this incident, and any assistance you might be able to offer in facilitating such an interview would be greatly appreciated.

While Miss Demarest has apparently issued an apology for this assault, I feel that it is a matter that should be brought to your attention when considering Miss Demarest's petition to join your Order. I apologise for not advising you sooner, but it was only today that I was made aware of Miss Demarest's petition.

Sincerely

Cinnabar Calomel

[Malaroth]

Cinnabar Calomel
High Constable
Acting Governor of Myrken Wood


You have a lot of explaining to do.


Sir Malaroth Deucalios of Zachea
Grand Master of the Shepherd Knights

[Cinnabar]

To Sir Malaroth Deucalios of Zachea, Grand Master of the Shepherd Knights

Sir Malaroth

From your recent letter, it becomes clear that my previous missive to you regarding Alessandra Demarest went astray somewhere along the way. I apologise for this and enclose another copy of that letter, which should hopefully provide the explanation you seek. If you have any further queries, please do not hesitate to contact me at this office.

Sincerely

Cinnabar Calomel

[Glenn]

To Cinnabar Calomel, High Constable and Governor,

Cinnabar,

All of the stones have been placed. I will hand deliver the complete map later.

Glenn

[Malaroth]

Cinnabar Calomel
High Constable of Myrken Wood
Acting Governor

Greetings,

No, I received your earlier message. I have also received tidings concerning your treatment of my squire as the means to your end. My understanding is that you did, knowingly and willfully, manipulate an attempt to destroy a grave threat to Myrken Wood for your own purposes.

Furthermore, given your mentioning of Lady Alessandra Demarest, and my inability to locate her as of late - may I presume you have knowledge concerning her whereabouts? She is a fully recognized and knighted member of our order and, as such, I am entitled to know her whereabouts should they be known to you.

My thanks for what, I hope, will be your swift cooperation in explaining why you endangered my squire's life, mission, and what involvement you have in the disappearance of a recognized knight.

Sir Malaroth Deucalios of Zachea
Grand Master of the Shepherd Knights

[Cinnabar]

To Sir Malaroth Deucalios of Zachea, Grand Master of the Shepherd Knights

Sir Malaroth

Very well, an explanation:

The individual known as Vraal or Sin'Vraal, founder of the Violet Dawn, is a devil. Normal blades do not touch him, and yet holy water scalds him like vitriol. During the conflict at Snowstill he cast off his mortal guise and revealed himself as a winged creature of cruel and arrogant power - your squire can attest to this, as can Ariane Emory who was also witness to this transformation. It is my informed view that the devil Sin'Vraal poses a substantially greater threat to Myrken Wood and its people than the Ashfiend, for all that his methods are considerably more subtle and insidious.

It was Sin'Vraal who originally cursed the knight to become the Ashfiend, and then bound the fiend to his service. During his servitude the Ashfiend wrought great evil over a span of many centuries, slaying a demigod and laying empires low. At some point, however, the ghoul escaped his master's service, and now strives to destroy him in revenge for that binding, and for wrongs perpetrated against him in his mortal life.

The course of action suggested to your squire by Vraal - that of obtaining a silver urn that the ghoul treasures above all things, and which we believe to hold the remains of the long-dead knight's slain betrothed - would most likely not have destroyed the Ashfiend, but have bound him once more to the devil's will. Obviously this could not be permitted. The urn fell into my hands, I refused Vraal's demand that I hand it over, and eventually the demon was driven off.

This left us - myself, Ariane Emory, and Squire Mayfield - facing the Ashfiend. At this point - due to an enchanted shield I brought to the confrontation - I had received greivous wounds that the transformed Vraal would otherwise have inflicted upon your Squire. The fiend demanded the return of the urn. Had I refused then he would have surely slain all three of us, and still ended with the urn in his possession; rather than sacrifice our lives for no gain, I surrendered the urn. There existed no other option. As a tactically-minded man I am sure that you recognise the sense behind this decision.

On the matter of Alessandra Demarest, suffice to say that I fear she has misled you most grievously, in such a manner that her status as a knight is called into question (were it not already rendered questionable enough by her assault upon Miss Olwak). I feel it would be more appropriate to speak further on this matter in person, as there are certain truths that must be made plain, and falsehoods that must be dispelled.

Sincerely

Cinnabar Calomel

[Cinnabar]

To Prior Lucent Hivarin, Master of the Priory of Stonebrook

Prior Hivarin,

Greetings and good wishes to you, sir.

As the winter months close in, it is the intention of this Government to provide for Myrken's poor and destitute, such that none need perish for want of food or shelter over this difficult time. We have recently managed to procure ample foodstocks to guard against famine (which has been a particular affliction of the Diocese in recent years), and require only a means by which to ensure that these provisions are available to those who most need them. Since the monks of your Priory are already well-versed in the organisation of such endeavours through your many charitable works, it makes sense to me that we draw upon your long experience in order to best implement this distribution.

I enclose an assay from our provisioners regarding the various supplies which we might spare while still maintaining an adequate guard against shortages. If your Almoner could in return supply a proposal for how these provisions might best be disposed among Myrken Wood's needy, we will endeavour to dispatch them accordingly. Indeed, any information that you might be able to provide regarding matters of poverty and destitution in Myrken Wood would be most useful in determining future Government policy to tackle these issues, and I look forward to future cooperation between the Judiciary Council and the Church of the One True Faith in Myrken Wood.

I would suggest that the distribution of foodstuffs be in the form of parcels for needy households (with a priority given to those with children to support); this is merely an idea, however, and I have every confidence that your Brothers know their business very well. I would also ask that written records of distribution be kept in order to prevent allegations of misuse of Government resources.

As a final point, I must request that you do not discuss the Government's role in this matter with anyone beyond those immediately involved in collecting the provisions from our stores or organising their distribution; there are some who would claim this sincere effort to aid Myrken's poor as a cynical attempt to purchase the public's affections through ostentatious acts of largesse, which would distract from the project's intended aim.

Please direct any communications regarding this matter either to myself or to Miss Pemberton Fick, Secretary to the Office of the Governor, who will pass them on to the relevant officials in order that arrangements may be made.

Sincerely,

Cinnabar Calomel

[ShadowRose]

Artistry in the letters, flowing, precise, -perfect-. The missive had been brought to the Governor's office by way of dark hand--children could not be trusted with important matters. Once surrendered, the dark figure left all too eerily. Wrapped within the pale of parchment was several sketches, plans, and information, all relating to certain agricultural improvements.

To the Cinnabar Calomel, Governor of Myrken Wood:

As requested, I have created the briefest of proposals and present it to you in regard to my ideals of the current state of Myrken Wood's Agriculture, and improvements to possibly be made therein.

Should you wish to speak with me, you need only to look under the darkest of rocks. There, I lurk.

Best regards,

Sarayn Aluna Dala'vaesa


Proposal: Myrken Wood Agriculture

[Cinnabar]

To Sarayn Aluna Dala'vaesa at the Chapterhouse of the Shepherd Knights

Miss Dala'vaesa

While I recognise the efforts you are making towards being of service to the people of Myrken Wood, and appreciate your attempts to demonstrate yourself worthy of trust and respect, your proposal raises some concerns that I feel need to be addressed.

Let me start by saying that I acknowledge the value of the mushrooms mentioned as a source of provender, and do not doubt that they are capable of providing more than enough nourishment for entire cities of drow. They are not reliant upon adequate sunshine, being grown underground they are not subject to the vagaries of the ever-changing weather, and as you describe them they possess valuable alchemical properties.

However, they are of drow origin, and this poses an obstacle. I must caution you not to underestimate the depth and strength of resentment against the dark elves held by the people of Myrken Wood. They suffered considerably during the terrible depredations of the reviled Audmathus and later the matriarch Faeryl Auvryrahel, and are thus liable to view anything associated with the drow or their culture with the greatest of suspicion - whether this is justified or not.

As such, any attempt to impose the ways of the dark elves upon Myrken's citizenry will undoubtedly meet with accusations of treachery, even if carried out with the purest of intentions. They will claim the food to be laced with poisons or infused with insidious enchantments (particularly if alchemical processes are involved as you propose), or insist that it is a part of some wider, subtler conspiracy to undermine the way of life in Myrken Wood and render its people better suited to serve the dark elves as slaves.

Even were that not the case, even were the people of Myrken likely to accept such practices with open arms, I must confess that I find myself most worried by your description of the environment in which you suggest these new crops be grown. You propose the construction of what is essentially a heavily-guarded underground fortress, secure from fire, pestilence, flooding and other disasters in deep-delved caverns, and rendered effectively self-sufficient by means of its subterranean fungus farms.

To me, this reads like a description for a drow outpost from which assaults might be launched against the surface-dwelling inhabitants of Myrken Wood.

Indeed, a suspicious mind might come to the conclusion that this is exactly what it is, and that once the underground chambers have been excavated and fortifications put in place, there will be very little to stop the tunnel system from being breached from below the ground; given the disadvantage of surface-born troops in the underground environment - not being anywhere near so well-suited to warfare in the lightless depths of the Underdark - it would not be a great difficulty to overrun this tunnel system with forces of drow hostile to Myrken Wood, granting them a very fine and defensible bridgehead into the territory.

I am willing to accept that this was not your intent in submitting this proposal to me, and will instead ascribe it to an unfortunate failure to properly consider the situation from all angles. I agree that Myrken Wood could greatly benefit from a secure and reliable source of food, and I applaud that you are considering ways in which to remedy this need. However, I do not feel that your proposal as it stands is feasible for use in Myrken Wood, given the territory's history and current concerns over security from drow attack. Perhaps with some revision this plan could work, but in its present form I am afraid that it will not.

Sincerely,

Cinnabar Calomel

[ShadowRose]

To the Cinnabar Calomel, Governor of Myrken Wood:

Let me start out by saying that I accept your concerns as valid, and will do my best to outline each and solve them to the best of my ability.

Blind history, through precedent and observed actions, tells us that I have no love for my own kind. Even when Faeryl and her wretched miscreant Jirai hounded me for information, I gave them nothing. Save the few dark elven companions that I possess, and even times -they- are too much, I have no desire to infiltrate Myrken Wood with treachery and betrayal at the ends of dark hands. We have enough trouble with Jirai, and myself at times. I know you agree.

Therefore, it is with great pleasure that I inform you of an alliance I have wrought with the great, long-ancient enemies of drow kind in the form of the Underdark-dwelling gnomes known as svirfneblin. Neutral and good-natured folk, my new friends have come across desperate times. And, where I would love to bore you with politics, long-standing relationships and history--and, indeed, how I was able to build an agreement with those who hate drow--know that Myrken Wood and her people are safe from my kind.

And, in regard to the natural, and well-placed, resentment the Myrken Wood people feel against my dark-skinned brethren, it was never my intention to force our valuable foodstuffs on them. But rather, gently introduce it to the populance by use of willing trade. Perhaps, through curiosity and eventual trust, Myrken Wood and her people will learn to accept our gifts as normalcy. And, with only a few drow in her lands, your people will see the foodstuffs coming from the gentle folk of the svirfneblin, and not from once-horrors.

I cannot refuse your insight regarding the compound I hope to create with my new-found friends. It will be heavily guarded, and tunnels will expand deeply into the rock, but only to assure that Myrken Wood's enemies do not harm and spoil precious foodstuffs in time of her desperate need. Be assured, and trust in the fact that the svirfneblin are of a goodly nature, much like your own people--considering this, would there ever be a reason to go to war with quiet peoples who only wish to truthfully trade and mine to heart's content? As cunning and quick of tongue that I am, not even Sarayn Aluna Dala'vaesa could convince the deep-dwelling gnomes to fight for a drow's cause against a land that saved them from the oppression back at home in the Underdark--nor would I ever want to convince them of such.

Beginning small, and after proving a success, the project could expand in essence to virtually save Myrken Wood from agricultural attack. But for now we are willing to accept even the briefest of trials.

I await your reply in earnest.

Sincerely,

Sarayn Aluna Dala'vaesa