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Muset is an isolated town in the north, surrounded by mountains on three sides and the ocean on the last. Due to little contact with other cities aside from the occasional ship, much of the population focuses on farming or fishing to survive.
Born and raised in the city, Cypha was the only child of the Capulet family, nobles who owned much of the farmlands around the city. Her family had a long history in the mountainous area, going back over six hundred years, to when they fled from Ruridge and came north across the mountains. At the time, Muset was nothing more than a few families surviving on what they could glean from the sea.
As Muset grew, the family established itself healthily, focusing on farming in order to supply the town with food. Eventually, once the population became sizable, a form of governing was needed and established. Since then, the Capulets have maintained a noble status and are one of the primary food and animal feed providers in the city. Occasionally, the city would even be visited by Elves, who helped the town survive tough times when the soil or the sea could not provide enough.
A dozen generations before the current, as the Elves vanished from the human lands, they bestowed upon the family a longsword of elvish make. Unusually light and durable, it was easily usable with one hand and down the sides of the blade were inscribed runes of elvish design. In the language of the humans there, the runes could appear in a certain light to read 'Zinx,' although actual attempts to decypher the runes have failed.
Rumors of the elven gift, which came to be referred to as Zinx, spread quickly among the townsfolk, which elevated the Capulet family in the opinions of some, and for others brought envy and desire, for elvish artifacts were rare and valuable. Since it was received, the blade has been passed down through the family, and finally to Cypha's father.
With no son to bestow the family name and blade to, he decided the best course of action would be to join with another noble family, marrying Cypha to their eldest son, and transferring the sword to him. However, such plans never came to fruition.
Due to the isolation of Muset, decisions were generally by a concensus from the few noble families. It had been that way for centuries, but the rumors of the elvish blade and vulnerability of the city had spread farther than the mountains, and several ships on the northern horizon marked the arrival of a dark period in Muset's history.
Several hundred trained, armed, and armored soldiers invaded the town, using unusual weaponry such as longer, thinner blades which the soldiers could swing exceptionally fast and slice cleanly through even the toughest leather. The city guard were hopelessly outnumbered and the townsfolk were forced to submit. Now under the control of a foreign nation to the north, Meridia, the leader of the forces planned to use the isolated city as a staging point for a further assault on down the coast.
The military leader established a representative of Meridia as lord of the city, who promptly dismantled the noble families, taking all their possessions, including the blade. Numerous Meridian scholars began studying the strange weapon. The representative ruled the city as a tyrant, with no regard to the wellbeing of the people. Many died over the next few years, including most of the Capulet family, leaving Cypha as the only surviving Capulet.
This went on for some time, until a stranger appeared in the central courtyard, in equally foreign clothes, appearing at first to be another Meridian. He held a long spear, and at the tip was mounted a disembodied head. At first people assumed the tyrant was now making an example of someone, but after driving it into the ground and leaving the head for display, the stranger spoke to the crowd, "Rejoice, city of Muset, for your despot is slain!"
When questioned, it was revealed he had impersonated a Meridian, slipped into the fort at night, and slew the tyrant as he grovelled for his last few breaths. Many of the Meridian soldiers who remained in the town were also dispatched, although a few fled and have already set sail.
"Within the treasury are all the valuables they stole from you, go and retrieve them and govern the city independently once more." In his hands he held the elvish blade, Zinx. "I ask you, who possessed such a blade as this?"
A few whispers spread through the gathered people, and after a moment Cypha herself approached, and the whispers grew into mumbled statements, "The last of the Capulets."
The man, understanding the implications of the whispers, kneeled down as he put forth the blade toward her, the stranger spoke, "This is no normal blade, there is magic embedded deep within the metalworking. Keep this sword close."
Rising back to his feet, he explained to call him Xian, and he quickly left as strangely as he arrived. He headed west, straight toward the thickest parts of the mountains.
A few days later, Cypha, age 15, and several others from Muset travelled south. All that remained for them in the city were painful memories and lost loved ones, and they boarded a ship and went down the coast, forging a new life for themselves.
Cypha now finds herself in Triln, 11 years later. Determined to master swordsmanship, she is a knight. It was difficult, but after a year of labor in the fields under the tyrant and several more years of hardship, she kept up with the rest of the trainees and is now a full-fledged and recognized knight of the city.
One day while doing some exercises in the training yards, the knight captains calls everyone to gather together. Standing off to one side near the captains is a hooded figure with their face obscurred. A knight captain explains that they are looking for volunteers. The Mages Guild has decided to do some field research and it's standard practice to provide an escort of knights.
Six volunteers are being asked for, and Cypha immediately adds her name. Several others do as well, and six are chosen. After a few minutes, the captains dismiss everyone else. The strange hooded figure from the Mages Guild, the knight captains, and the six volunteers begin heading toward a structure on the far side of the training fields where more details of the mission will be explained.
After only a handful of steps, someone calls out to one of the other volunteers loudly. Turning around many of the knights realize that the person calling out and rushing toward the group is the son of Lord Davben, Adolin.
He is heading toward one of the other knights that volunteered, whom he often spars with. Adolin jogs toward the group, asking one of the volunteers what's going on. Cypha recognizes the knight as Holland, who almost immediately turns away from Adolin, quickly explains the situation, and begins walking forward. Adolin runs to catch up to him, and speaks with Holland a bit more, but eventually the group continues and after a few moments of conversation, Adolin seems satisfied and begins leaving, heading back the way he had came. Holland just continues with the rest of the group into the briefing.
The knights all congregate into the building and the captains leave. The one who confronts the volunteers is the Mages Guild member, finally removing his hood. He appears to be an aged man, his hair showing a little grey. "Good day, Knights of Triln. My name is Tranan Chandler, one of the Archmages of the Mages Guild. I will be leading this field research, and you volunteering to accompany us is appreciated, and you will be compensated well for your services."
Continuing, "In the morning we will leave for Gellantara. Once there, we will take a riverboat to Tarmikos, where we'll be staying for three weeks. The trips there and back will each take ten days, so this expedition will last for the next six weeks. From Tarmikos, we'll be doing a few excursions into the forest, the longest of which will last a week before we return to Tarmikos."
The man pauses a moment and catches his breath, but continues again, "Your duty and responsibility during this time will simply be to stay nearby and in the event of a bandit attack to fight and defend myself and my crew. This will mainly be needed during the excursions into the forests, as we won't be expecting anything to happen until then." Another brief pause as he finishes up, "So, any questions?"
One of the other volunteers speaks up. It's Holland, the one that spoke with Adolin earlier. "In the event of a bandit attack, will we be taking prisoners, and should we pursue fleeing bandits after such an attack? Also, should we be aware of the purpose or goal of this expedition?"
The Archmage responds, "The purpose of this expedition is not to slay or capture bandits around Tarmikos. If they attack, we defend ourselves, but making them flee should be enough. We won't mourn for any casualties on their side, however, so no need to hold back during a fight." He pauses for a moment. "Our goals are purely academic. We'll be studying magical auras."
He asks the rest of the group if they have any other questions. No one else has any, so everyone is dismissed and told to gather at the northeastern gate at sunrise. Without very many more words, Cypha began preparing her equipment for the lengthy assignment.
The one-handed longsword, Zinx, rests in a scabbard at her side. Her half-plate mail can restrict movement at some times, but after years of training she is comfortable inside it and knows the limitations of its use. Preparing her horse in the early morning hours, even before the sun has risen, she leads it from the stables and begins walking down the empty streets to the northeast gate.
She arrives at the gate shortly before sunrise. Several other knights have already arrived, but the Mages Guild members have not. A few minutes later, just before the sun rises, two wagons approach, and those in the wagons are wearing the distinct robes of the Mages Guild. They stop a few yards in front of the knights, and Tranan comes down from a wagon and speaks, "We've got enough supplies for everyone until Gellantara, where we will restock. There is room in one of the wagons so half of you can alternate days to prevent your horses from tiring out. It's 6 days to Gellantara. Is everyone ready to set out?"
Cypha and the other knights work out amongst themselves who's going to be in which group. After a few moments, they decide the first group will consist of Cypha, Belkas, and Odran, with the second group consisting of Holland, Darvyn, and Shalak. The second group ties their horses to the trailing wagon and then pull themselves up into it. The sun is nearly fully visible now, and the group is ready to leave the city.
However, the gate is still closed. Normally it is opened at sunrise each day, but for some reason they have not yet opened it. After a few moments, Belkas approaches one of the gate guardsmen and asks about it. The guardsman takes a moment, and then says, "That." He points down the road leading toward the center of the city. He says this loud enough for nearly everyone to hear, and so everyone begins looking down the road.
Approaching the group is the unmistakeable figure of Lord Davben atop his steed, flanked by a retinue of his Elite Guard and a few other individuals. There have been various processions where he has made similar appearances, but this is quite odd.
The people in the wagon slowly step down onto the ground, all of them confused at the situation, as Cypha and the other knights dismount from the horses. As Lord Davben nears, everyone kneels to the ground. He stops his horse about 10 yards away from the nearest person and speaks, "Who among you is orchestrating this venture?"
Tranan speaks in reply, "My lord, I am Archmage Tranan Chandler of the Mages Guild. I am the one leading this field research endeavor."
Lord Davben continues, "From what I have heard, this expedition went from a simple concept to you all now standing before the city gates in mere days, and this timing has caught my attention. If you would be so kind as to satisfy my curiousity then we can both be about our day, Archmage."
"Of course, my lord. At the Mages Guild, I have a very specific field of study, something known as the magical aura. In my study, I detected a disturbance in the aura and wished to investigate, but to do so I must leave the city and go to a place where other magics will not interfere. The area around Triln, due to the Mages Guild being here for centuries, is satiated with magical energies, and I am unable to determine the cause of the instability within the aura. As such, I set up this endeavor. Our goals are purely academic, my lord."
The lord considers this for a moment, and then speaks again, "And where in this lies the urgency to spur it into action so quickly?"
Tranan answers, "I fear that if the cause of the instability is not corrected, it may negatively affect all magic uses in unpredictable ways, and if left unchecked could lead to magic becoming uncontrollable and dangerous for the city as a whole."
Lord Davben's eyes widen a bit at this, and he looks to his left, where his son Adolin is flanking him. Adolin looks around at the knights and mages and then speaks, "Archmage Tranan, if the city was potentially in such danger, why was it not immediately brought up to my father?"
Tranan responds after a moment, "I do not believe that the city is in any immediate danger. It could take months or even years before any effects are seen from this, but I cannot tell for certain without getting away from the interference around the city. I did not think it worth your time to hear of a single man's thoughts that haven't even been verified yet, and are mostly theories at this point. Once we return from Tarmikos, we shall immediately explain our findings in full."
He looks back toward his father, who speaks once more, "You said you were headed for Tarmikos. That's quite a distance away. How long is this venture expected to last?"
The Archmage responds, "We plan to spend about three weeks in Tarmikos before heading back, meaning we would return to Triln in about six weeks. If we make an important find earlier, we may send a messenger immediately, or leave early, to ensure you are informed as fast as possible, my lord."
Look Davben looks over the gathering once more before speaking. "I will be expecting the full details when you return. You are all free to go." They all turn to head back toward the Citadel.
Several of those in the group breathe sighs of relief, and after a moment return to preparing to leave. The gate opens, and the expedition sets off a trot, toward Gellantara...
