The Tome Conflict was a lengthy political dispute between the cities of Mirith and Andris, that centered around the Tome of the Lost.
The year was 428, and the War of the Eye was still a fresh memory for many citizens of Oberin. In order to stop the Eye, Mirith had temporarily enlisted the help of Marthonis. Now that the war was over, however, Marthonis was once again considered an enemy, being an important leader of the Black Hand.
The Machine and the Tome[]
One day under the full Harvest Moon, a Black Hand scout was captured. He revealed that Marthonis had designs on the Pure Crystal Machine, which was being kept with Father Cecil in Brigobaen.
Over the following days, there were many reports of brigand activity. In spite of that, Cecil and the Pure Machine were safe. Around the same time, there were sightings near Lerilin of a cloaked figure who used Black Magic.
During the full Dancing Moon, the same mysterious figure was found lurking around Brigobaen. This was reported to Mirith. An army gathered and made haste to Brigobaen, where they found a legion of Black Hand troops led by a brigand cleric and a Bone Lord – the work of Marthonis. The Mirithian army emerged victorious, and entered the temple to find Cecil speaking with the cloaked figure.
The stranger was asking to see the Tome of the Lost, which was then unfamiliar to the people of Oberin. For whatever reason, Cecil refused to comply. The cloaked figure then revealed himself as Royal Mage Beleth, who had been missing since the end of the Lancaster Wars in 426. All this time, he had been on the hunt for Tirana, the murderer of his daughter Araine. Beleth claimed that Tirana was weakening, and that he could use the Tome to find her. However, he was being pursued by brigands, for reasons he could not fathom.
As might have been expected, an even larger army of brigands soon interrupted the conversation. Brigobaen was successfully defended, but sometime during the fight, Beleth vanished. When all was safe, Cecil promptly sealed the Tome in the temple vaults.
Come the Blue Moon, some adventurers encountered Marthonis at the Andris Cemetery. When prompted about the Tome, he says that he was interesting in acquiring it as well. Before long, Marthonis was chased off, and wasn't seen again until the Sleeping Moon, in the same location.
He revealed that Beleth had performed powerful magics of late: namely, the weaving of strong spells around the city of Mirith. Marthonis also described the Tome as a "potent volume" whose true powers are known to none. He believed that the Tome could help King Galandir destroy whomsoever he wished, such as the leader of the Black Hand. The Andrisians present reassured Marthonis that the Tome would not go to "unstable" Mirith, and ought to remain at Brigobaen.
Push and Pull[]
Then, on Day 108 of the Sleeping Moon, Royal Cleric Nafets had some adventurers deliver a private message to Cecil. Cecil couldn't read it, and so he handed it to his visitor, Senator Morgans of Andris. She read it aloud: Galandir was asking for the Tome of the Lost.
There was an outcry among the gathering. After a few minutes, Cecil lost his patience and said that the Tome would remain sealed in the vaults until Andris and Mirith could come to an agreement. The visitors then dispersed.
At this point, there were three beings that desired the Tome: Marthonis, Beleth, and Galandir. However, there was still not much known publicly about the power of the Tome itself. This upset quite a few people who felt that the Tome should just stay locked away forever, if not thrown into the depths of the ocean.
Meanwhile, members of the two cities were going back and forth with fiery exchanges. Andrisians had little love for Mirith's "unholy alliance" with Marthonis. For their part, Mirithians felt that joining with Marthonis was the only way that the Eye could be defeated. If not for Marthonis, the Eye might still be around, controlling all of Oberin.
Also, some citizens of Andris questioned Mirith's "unconscionable defense" of Majara. Majara had recently brought his "lifelong companion", Pepito the ant, into Andris. Since the city did not allow pets within their walls, two guards took the life of Pepito. Majara killed the guards out of revenge and was thrown in jail. In the ensuing public outrage, many Mirithians were put in opposition to Andrisians. Even so, Nasrith of the Mirith Vanguard admitted that Majara had stepped out of line.
Deteriorating Relations[]
Later in the Sleeping Moon, a squire of Andris came to see the king. When asked about his reasons for wanting the Tome, Galandir confirmed that he could use it to locate the leaders of the Black Hand. But even if Mirith's intentions were pure, as the squire said, it remained unclear if the city could safely guard the Tome. Galandir said the Tome would be safer in Mirith than in the "old decrepit temple".
When the squire offered to have Andris guard Brigobaen, the king took it as an Andrisian attempt to expand their territory. The squire responded that no one had ever broken the temple's vaults, yet an "agent of the Black Hand" (Marthonis) had been freely admitted all passage to Mirith.
The argument continued in much the same manner. Eventually, Galandir ordered his Vanguard to go and fetch the Tome, adding that any resistance whatsoever would be dealt with. The Squire cried out that Mirith was consequently at war with Brigobaen, and was soon asked to leave.
Tragedy at the Temple[]
As Year 429 arrived, the debates continued to rage, with the same old arguments being rehashed. However, there would be something new to argue over come Day 71 of the Growing Moon, when smoke was seen rising from Brigobaen.
Adventurers that were in the area recall hearing an eerily sweet voice echoing through the air: "Sweet melody…murder…the old cleric…is dead…his temple…is burning…the Tome…will be opened… the seals… break the seals…"
The temple entrance was totally blocked with a violent blaze, and the guards had ben killed. Those closest to Brigobaen arrived just in time to see one of the temple priests dying near the entrance. Unable to lend a hand, all they could do was watch as the priest perished in the flames.
Beleth’s first appearance in years.
Eventually, the fires receded enough for people to enter the temple grounds. Witnessing the death and destruction all around, some people whispered that it was the fault of Beleth. But just as the uncanny voice had indicated, inside the temple lay the bloodied body of Cecil.
While the group was mourning over the Father, someone noticed that a spark of life still seemed to inhabit his body. Not wasting a moment, Nedved II picked up Cecil's body and set out toward Mirith with some companions. Along the way, the party was beset by some brigands.
Cecil was taken to the castle, where he was promptly treated by Nafets. As Nafets was taking care of Cecil, Galandir arrived, and a frenzied argument erupted. There were some Andrisians that blamed Galandir – or at least one of his "zealous followers" – for the attack. But then some Mirithians felt that, if Andris hadn't intervened, then the Tome would be in the hands of Mirith, and Cecil would not have been attacked.
During the debate, it was pointed out that there had been brigands – a telltale sign of Marthonis and the Bone Lords. Then, Galandir was told that some people suspected Beleth of raiding the temple. In response, Galandir acknowledged that Mirith wanted the Tome so Beleth could use it. Then came the alibi: Mirith had been hiding Beleth the entire time.
Just at that moment of revelation, Beleth teleported into the castle with Black Magic. He vehemently denied the accusations, even going so far as to "swear on the lost soul of [his] departed daughter". As it turned out, Beleth knew nothing more about the Tome than what Cecil allowed him to know. As for his reasons, he clarified that the Tome would help him locate and slay the fallen duchess Tirana, and the Twins.
There being nothing more to say, everyone returned to their homes, with tensions running thick.
Shaken Faith[]
Later in the Growing Moon, a band of mercenaries attacked Brigobaen. The invasion was quickly repelled, and a note was found at the mercenary campsite, reading, "Guard the temple so he can steal from the vault – use discretion." The note seemed to prove that the Tome was still safe, then, even if Cecil had been hurt.
Then, on Day 11 of the Red Moon, Cecil was spotted walking around Mirith with Nafets and some other travelers. Cecil still seemed rather unwell, and was prone to fits of coughing. He thanked Nafets for the healing: now he was able to walk.
However, the Royal Cleric directed all of the credit back to the Goddess. Cecil muttered some reply and didn't mention the Goddess whatsoever – very unbecoming for the head cleric of Brigobaen.
It soon became clear: Cecil was beginning to question his faith, having undergone such excruciating pain while supposedly under the Goddess's protection. He even suggested that it would be a good idea to open the Tome of the Lost itself, as a "test". Before the conversation could get out of hand, Nafets took Cecil back to his rooms.
The Use of Stones[]
Later that same day, Nafets and Royal Tinkerer Borigard called everyone to the castle. The Royals were looking for Magic Stones to build some sort of a device. When questioned about the device, they held out, hoping to keep it a secret for the time being. Even so, Nafets mentioned something about making "more than one" if multiple stones were found. Borigard quickly waved him away.
Several days later, the horns of Mirith were sounded. When the citizens gathered at the castle, they found Borigard and Galandir waiting for them. The king announced that Borigard had managed to make two copies of the Pure Crystal Machine, which had gone with Cecil to Mirith.
Galandir went on to say that one of the copies could already be found in the temple of Andris. And now, as the King of Mirith, he was proud to offer the last copy to Marali, believing that much could come from an alliance between the two cities. Unfortunately for Lerilin, only two stones were recovered.
Galandir asked the crowd to bring the last copy to Marali. They would be moving by night so as to avoid brigands. Lenard was the first to offer to carry it, and so Borigard handed him a lockbox with the machine inside.
And so the company departed. They ran into many mercenaries along the way, but eventually the machine was delivered safely to Commander Nyatha Vaup of Marali. Vaup recognized the seal on the lockbox, and said that only three keys exist: the three fragments of the Curio. She used the city's piece of the ancient artifact to open the box, finding the machine inside.
Vaup then publicly announced her plans to make Marali great again (it was still recovering from the Twins' occupation in 426. The Andrisians present warned her to not fall prey to the king's "insatiable quest for power". Vaup ensured them that, once Marali was feared again, then both Andris and Mirith would calm down. She insisted that three powers were needed for there to be balance.
The Senate's Decisions[]
As the Red Moon was finally drawing to a close, the Andris Senate decided to hold the first-ever open Senate session. All were invited to the public session in the gardens, which was held by Senators Anderson, Feinstein, and Muqities.
There were three main points of discussion at the session that day. Feinstein announced the first point: the rumor concerning an alliance between Marali and Mirith. The senators didn't appear very worried about the rumor, and indeed many of the audience members fell asleep at the announcement. Anderson spoke warmly of Marali after hearing of their plans to rebuild strength. Andris wouldn't even bother with the rumor without further evidence.
The second point was the defense of Andris. Anderson asked that the city have a running vanguard by the end of the session, leading to much deliberation. Eventually, everyone agreed that an election must be held to determine who would lead this Andris Vanguard. Anderson was tasked with forming a list of candidates, which she would submit at a later date.
The third point was regarding Anderson's recent visit to Mirith. During her stay, she had struck a bargain: Mirith would give Anderson a copy of the Pure Crystal Machine, while Andris would give Mirith an artifact called the Golden Bolt.
However, as Anderson revealed in the senate session, Mirith had been given a fake copy of the Golden Bolt. Essentially, Andris got their copy of the Machine for free. At the same time, the fake Golden Bolt ended up ruining one of Mirith's artifacts: the Vial of Centaur's Blood. It was then decided that the Andris Vanguard would receive and guard the real Golden Bolt. With that, the session ended, and Feinstein concluded with an ale feast.
The Conflict Subsides[]
With the advent of the Pure Machine copies, the enmity between Mirith and Andris diminished – to some extent. Meanwhile, with the reemergence of Marali, it would seem that a tripartite balance was in the making. As for the Tome, it was now in Mirith's hands, for better or worse.
Cecil, who had since grown more and more disillusioned with the Goddess, eventually did read the Tome. Thereupon, he renounced his faith altogether, and left Mirith. Even so, Beleth had been correct in his suspicions: Cecil had learned from the Tome a spell that could locate Tirana and the Twins. But this pursuit is another story entirely.