Chapter Text
Year 2 - Spring - Chalices in the noble provinces.
There was a chill morning fog, like winter clinging to the land. Everyone seemed quite sluggish in the house where they had spent a day letting the twins rest. Mildiane had been impressed by how much mana they had to control and pour through the chalices. They did not even seem to notice that what they were doing was well in advance for their age. Noble children barely did more than give weak blessings before going to the academy.
She could not have imagined her own children doing the same thing at that age. Now that she thought about it, Agostino and Alessia would breathe through most of the first year practical lessons in the academy and they were only eight years old.
Now that she knew the children better after a week of travel with them, she felt sorry for them and their parents. Even if they managed to get their children out of the temple, the stain of having been there would follow them through their life. Even as nobles, they would most likely be stuck in their province under their elder brother with few hopes of a better life.
She took a moment when the twins were not present to have a small talk with Sir Theodemir.
“As you know, we will go to Ceolwald now.” she hesitated but Theodemir indicated for her to continue.
“The wife of Giebe Ceolwald used to be your sister’s attendant. As such the province is strongly aligned with her in the First wife’s faction. Their disdain for any noble house with Drewanchel ancestry, like house Fraistein, is well known.”
Theodemir let out a sigh of resignation. His older sister Lorentia and the lofty ideas she had about her station in society had been a thorn in his dutiful life. Even now she was having her husband holding on to his position as giebe while they were well into their autumn and should have handed the role to their son who was married and had two sons of his own.
“Your sister is well known for her distaste of the nobles with a Drewanchel ancestry like Giebe Fraistein and his wife. Luckily this is a mednoble province, and your rank as an archnoble gives you the position to curtail any ideas the giebe’s household could have about mistreating the children of Fraistein children.”
“I thank you for bringing this to my consideration.”
As they were about to board the carriages, Theodemir gathered everyone to inform them of the situation and to be prudent.
It put quite a gloom on their departure in this already gloomy weather, but better safe than sorry thought Theodemir as he concluded his warning speech.
They reached Ceolwald without problems on the road. Theodemir was flying to keep an eye on their surroundings and spotted quite a few of the trees but none of the flying shumils.
Ceolwald was a good sized village lodged on the hard ground inside a bend of the river. The villagers cheered when they recognised the carriages of the temple. They officially announced spring was upon them and the farmers would go back to the fields.
They crossed the village on their way to the priest lodgings which were halfway to the noble estate resting on a hill a mile away from the river. As they went, they could see the eager faces of the commoners, happy to see the harbingers of spring.
A lay scholar and a few servants were waiting for them at the entrance of the lodging. The servants seemed uneasy while the scholar had a satisfied expression.
Theodemir landed close to the scholar before the carriages reached the entrance.
Unsettled by the presence of an archknight, the scholar’s face lost its air of superiority as he offered a greeting.
“I am sorry, Milord. We were not informed about a visit from such an important individual. We will have a room prepared for you at the estate.”
“No need to worry. I will stay by the priests I escort. I would be most aggrieved if anything were to arrive to them while they are under my protection. I am sure everything is in order in the lodgings.”
“They are, Sir. But I will make a last verification while the carriages arrive.”
The scholar hurriedly went inside with the servants. And Theodemir could hear him barking orders.
The carriages arrived, and Theodemir interpelled the grey robes.
“It seems our lodgings have not been prepared adequately.” The knight told them, his voice taut. “Once the giebe’s servants have finished correcting the situation, you can start and install everything for us, but be careful. If you see anything suspicious, report it immediately.”
The greys nodded to his instructions, tense but relieved that someone of higher status was here to protect them. Theodemir sent a dark glare in the direction of the giebe’s mansion.
“Mildiane, I will accompany the giebe’s people back to the estate, I will leave you in charge of the lodging while I receive the greetings of the giebe. I’ll inform him that the chalices will be brought tomorrow at the earliest.”
He could see that the twins were conflicted about not handing over the chalices as soon as they had arrived, so he called them to the side.
“ It is our duty to deliver the chalices in a prompt and efficient manner, Lord Theodemir. We would not want to do anything that would reflect on our family’s standing.” Agostino said, his voice hesitant and prudent.
“While I commend you both for your sense of duty. What they did is an affront to me, or any knight who would have accompanied you. If I were to accept this slight from a mednoble house, it would bring shame to my house and leave me open to more severe attacks.”
He knew he did not have to explain to mere priests, but he had grown quite fond of the twins, if he had to admit. Agostino was a smart but guarded boy, and he would most likely become an efficient scholar if not for his family’s unfortunate circumstances. As for Alessia, she was a bright and gifted girl, but more than that she was socially aware and could have been an excellent attendant or the first wife of a giebe.
With the way happenstance threw his own life into disarray, he felt kinship with the twins. So if throwing his social weight around here could help them in the future, it was all for the best.
The scholar came out of the lodging followed by the servants who carried crates of food.
“Hmm, Lord Theodemir. It seems there has been a mistake in the delivery of food as we did not expect an archnoble visitor. I will ensure better food is sent as soon as I reach the estate.” He said while bowing submissively.
“That goes without saying. Let us fly to the estate, so that I can receive your giebe’s greeting.” Theodemir said shortly, not giving any indication that he was ready to forgive the slight.
Without leaving time for the scholar to say anything, he summoned his flying horse and took off, hovering just a moment for the scholar to join him after he ordered the servants to go back to the estate.
Theodemir pushed the speed of his mount just enough for it to be uncomfortable for the scholar to follow. It was petty, but important for the man to convey to the giebe that Theodemir was most displeased with what he had found.
They landed in the courtyard, and the scholar led Teodemir to a reception room before running to his master’s office.
Giebe Ceolwald entered a few moments, quickly followed by his wife Frahilde. Theodemir was standing by a window overlooking the garden.
He remained there while they presented their greetings to him. He could feel their unease at his cold presence. Finally he put down his untouched teacup and slowly looked down at his hosts.
“I will need time to ensure our lodgings are safe. So the priests will give you the chalices tomorrow.”
“But, Lord, we need the peasants to return to the fields as soon as possible.” dared giebe Ceolwald.
“You should have thought of that before playing your little games. I’ll be kind enough to not make your failure public,if our visit goes well and so as to not embarrass my sister and her faction.”
“We thank you for your kindness, Lord Theodemir. We would be honored to offer you suitable accommodation within the estate tonight.” offered Lady Frahilde, hoping to regain some favour.
“I fear our threads are too tangled at the moment. I will stay in the priests’ lodgings to protect my charges and the chalices.” Theodemir responded curtly. “I will see you in the morrow when the chalices are handed over.”
Theodemir left the estate without leaving any further chance for the hosts to mend things.
At their lodgings, Mildiane and Alarius had made a thorough search of the place while the twins and the attendants were waiting by the carriages.
As Theodemir approached to land near them, he noticed that one of the commoners was walking towards the village, most likely after talking to the priests.
Agostino told him it was the mayor that came by to inquire about the ceremony on behalf of the farmers, and that he had informed him about the ceremony being held the following day. As commoners, they were used to having their life at the mercy of the whims of noblemen, so he had turned around, resigned.
The attendants went in when Alarius authorised them. They unloaded the carriages and brought everything inside with haste.
Theodemir accompanied the twins into the dinner room and made sure everything was fine before going back outside and checking the surroundings of the building.
The atmosphere was quite tense for the rest of the day. Mildiane stayed with the twins once the rooms were ready and dinner was a subdued affair. They soon retired to their rooms without having their usual after dinner teatime.
Alessia was quite upset and she could not rest. She tried to listen and focus on Mildiane's regular breathing as she slept behind the curtains of the other bed. After a while, she got up to take a glass of water. As she was looking outside, she noticed a cloaked Alarius exiting their lodging, summoning his mount and flying toward the giebe’s estate.
Back in her bed, sleep was still escaping her. Should she tell anyone about this? She will inform her brother, of course. But what about Mildiane and Theodemir? She hated all these noble shenanigans. If she had her way, she would go and work among commoners and leave it all behind.
In the morning, before they started their purification ritual, Alessia informed Agostino who groaned at the possible implications.
“We’d better keep it to ourselves till we reach Fraistein.” He advised his sister. “We do not know if Alarius went to the estate at the behest of his master or for his own schemes.”
“Maybe Mildiane could help us if I told her, no?” Alessia wondered hopefully.
“I know you do not like keeping secrets, Alessia. But we will be safer if we wait to be with our parents before divulging this to anyone.”
She sighed before nodding and getting on with her purification prayer. It took them longer than usual because they were both unsettled by the news.
When they came out of the lodging, Theodemir and Mildiane were waiting for them by the carriage that would take them to the village.
“With what happened yesterday, I asked Mildiane to stay with you at all times while we are in the province. And I will, of course, be by your side when you give the chalices to the giebe and run the ceremony for the commoners.” He then knelt to be eye to eye with the twins. “My mission is to protect you, and gods as my witnesses, I will do it from anyone.”
“We thank you, Lord Theodemir, and you as well Lady Mildiane. We apologise for causing undue worries.” The twins knelt before rising and boarding the carriage.
As they approached the village common, they could see all the farming families waiting. The giebe and his retinue were by the stand where they would hold the ceremony, but his wife was nowhere to be seen.
The carriage stopped, and the grey robes stepped down to make ready. Through the window, they could see that Theodemir had landed close to the steps by the side of the stand, but he stayed on his mount while the giebe and his retinue offered their greetings to him.
The farmers were quite hesitant to approach for the ceremony, as they felt the air crackling with tension between the nobles. The mounted knight looked ready to barely contain his contempt and anger.
Accompanied by Mildiane and the grey robes carrying the chalices, Agostino and Alessia moved toward the stage. The young priests saluted Theodemir before continuing toward the stage and offering their greetings to the giebe.
Mildiane stayed beside the knight. While keeping an eye on what was happening on the stage, she leaned towards her mistress’ husband and whispered.
“Lord Theodemir, young Alessia asked me to demand of you not to scare the commoners. She stressed to me that it is an important ceremony for them celebrating the return of Flutrane’s blessings after the harsh months under Ewiegeliebe’s glare. And discordant tones from Gebordnung’s followers would mar the events.”
Theodemir did not acknowledge Mildiane’s message, but he eased himself in his saddle for a moment before dismounting gracefully and nonchalantly going to lean by the carriage. Mildiane was sure Lady Hilduara would have a good laugh when she would report the story.
The ceremony started and as time went the commoners and the noble participants eased from the earlier pressure.
“O goddess of water Flutrane, bringer of gehealedness and awendendness (healing and change). O twelve goddesses whom serve by her side. The goddess of earth geduldh hath been freed from the god of life ewigeliebe. I pray that thou grant thy younger sister the power to birth new life. “i offer thee our joy and songs of glee. I offer thee our prayers and praise, so that we may be blessed by thy purifying protection. I bid that thou fill the thousand lives upon the wide mortal realm with thy divine colour. ”
Alessia and Agostino poured the mana from one of the chalices in the farmer’s vessels.
After they finished the commoners’ part of the ceremony they turned towards the giebe while their grey robes brought a second Chalice.
Giebe Ceolwald moved forward and stood proudly. Agostino moved towards him carrying the chalice with Alessia, and together they intoned.
“We are those who pray to the gods and give thanks for their blessings. Today, we offer you, Giebe Ceolwald, the gift of Flutrane to enrich the lands you have been ordered to ward under the watchful eye of the Highests.”
They handed over the chalice to the giebe who took hold of it before answering calmly.
“ As a warden ordained under Gebordnung, I accept your offering of the blessing of Flutrane.” Then turning towards the commoners and raising the chalice, he raised his voice. “I have received the blessing of Flutrane and will use it to bring strength to the land. Let us have a fruitful year again.”
The crowd cheered while the giebe led the twins to their carriage. As they approached, Theodemir stood up from his leaning position.
“Before you take back the road, I wanted to offer you some gifts as a show of goodwill and thanks for your work. I would be grateful if you could accept it as compensation for yesterday’s incident. It has brought shame to my house, and I would be grateful if the actions of my wife could stay private.”
Mildiane ordered the grey priests to take the gifts after receiving a nod from Theodemir. The knight let out a sigh.
“My sister always had really committed retainers, always eager to do her bidding. Such a shame she also preferred to push down people rather than rise above her opposition. You are right that it would be for the best that this incident is forgotten. No need to bring political upset in the region when the duchy is gearing up for interduchy maneuvering.”
Having come to an accord, the giebe summoned his steed and led his retinue back to the estate, while they boarded the carriage and rejoined with the rest of their convoy at the lodging before journeying southeast toward the province of Piarik which would be their last stop before Fraistein.
It took them the rest of the day to reach the border, and they spent the night at a small merchant inn. The quality was clearly not there, but they made do. They had secured private quarters while most commoner travelers stayed in the common room.
They had a more relaxed evening than the previous one. Mildiane and Alessia compared the bolts of cloth they had been offered, and chatted about what they could use it for.
Theodemir was enjoying the bottle of fine vize he had received by the fire telling tales of adventures to Agostino who had put to the side the beautiful bottles of ink and the quills he had been gifted.
These were really nice gifts for simple blue priests like them, clearly the result of Theodemir’s presence. But neither Agostino nor Alessia would complain.
In the morning, they resumed their journey toward the village of Piarik, center of the province that was neighbouring their parents’ own.
Piarik province was more forested, and Theodemir decided to stay close to the carriages. Since they started their journey, the days had grown warmer and this one was quite balmy.
Half way through the morning, a group of three knights flew in their direction from Piarik. They slowed when they approached and landed a small distance away before dismounting and waiting for them.
Theodemir advanced toward them while the carriages slowed down. When he reached them, the knights offered their greetings and he responded before sending a signal for the carriages to approach and his companions to join them.
“So Geserulf, why has giebe Piarik sent you to escort us?”
“Our lord thought it better as there has been a heavy presence from fetzes in the woods since the end of winter which is a blessing in a way as the shumil population has exploded as well. Without the zantze hunting them like mad, we would have been submerged during the farmer’s growing season. But with you bringing the chalices, we felt it safer to escort you as the mana could have lured a pack of fetze.”
“Did these infestations start by the river by any chance?”
“How do you know? From what the commoners told us, the population of shumil moved from Fraistein downriver”
“From Fraistein?” Alessia interrupted, alarmed about her home.
“Yes, we got news that they have been quite busy over there since they came back from the capital.”
“Do not worry, young Alessia. As soon as you are done with the ceremony in Piarik, we will be on our way to your home. I’ll take the lead, you take the flanks and the rear. Let us make haste.”
They boarded the carriages and their convoy continued on its way.
They reached Piarik without incident. The knights left them to return to do some patrolling before the end of the day after leaving them with the mayor who led them to their lodging. The lodging was actually close to the giebe’s estate being only separated from it by a small park.
A few servants were working in the building they would occupy for the night. As they were finishing to settle, a scholar came to the entrance and presented himself as giebe Piarik’s headscholar.
After exchanging greetings, he invited them to join the giebe for tea in the early evening.
Theodemir and Mildiane could see that the twins were quite uneasy after what happened in Ceolwald. So they spent some time reassuring them that there should be no faction politics here as the giebe was a neutral noble who liked his tranquility.
As Mildiane explained, it was most likely that the giebe preferred to foster a good relationship with Fraistein.
The tea party impressed Agostino and Alessia as it was the first one they were going to, other than the ones with their parents in their estate in the capital. They kept close to Mildiane, as Theodemir was busy, being the highest status individual in the room.
Agostino found the event exhausting, being always on the lookout for potential faux-pas. It got better when Mildiane introduced him to an old scholar, Itharius, who had helped Lady Hilduara when she wrote her botany book. He felt more at ease discussing the strange tree they had seen during their trip that was different from the description in the book. Itharius was quite interested and had a servant bring him some boards so he could take notes and have Agostino draw a sketch of the trees he had seen.
Mildiane had Alessia join her and the local ladies in doing some embroidery, much to her joy. She was prudent not to show off too much but she still made sure not to embarrass Lady Mildiane or her mother. After a while, Mildiane had a servant bring Alessia’s harspiel so she could entertain the ladies while the kept embroidering. Alessia blushed demurely when she received felicitations from the attendance.
It was a really nice evening, and they went back to their lodgings to rest before the ceremony in the morning.
Before retiring for the night, Theodemir gave them news about the fey beasts hunting that was going well according to the knights. They had told him the components they collected were of good quality on the fetze. He was looking forward to spending some time hunting in Fraistein
They were surprised in the morning when knights were waiting for them outside to escort them and the chalices to the village square.
As they approached, they could feel the joyous atmosphere with children running everywhere. When they entered the plaza, the giebe, waiting for them by the stand, had the villagers cheer for them as they advanced through the crowd. They could see a good part of the noble household present.
Agostino and Alessia climbed the steps of the stand and their greys brought the chalice.
“O goddess of water Flutrane, bringer of gehealedness and awendendness (healing and change). O twelve goddesses whom serve by her side. The goddess of earth geduldh hath been freed from the god of life ewigeliebe. I pray that thou grant thy younger sister the power to birth new life. “i offer thee our joy and songs of glee. I offer thee our prayers and praise, so that we may be blessed by thy purifying protection. I bid that thou fill the thousand lives upon the wide mortal realm with thy divine colour. ”
The greys invited the farmers carrying vessels to bring them in front of the stand. Agostino and Alessia took turns pouring Flutrane’s blessing.
After the commoners, the giebe approached the stand to receive the chalices with excess mana, profusely thanking Flutrane and her messengers who brought her blessings.
As the giebe was taking the chalices toward his estate, tables were brought to the plaza and the commoners started fires to grill game meat and cook vegetables.
In a corner, a more elaborate kitchen was set up by the noble attendants. Their little group joined the nobles after Alessia and Agostino had changed from their robes. It was a nice moment of gratitude for their work.
Before they left in the early afternoon, the giebe informed them that he had sent a message to their father telling him they would start the last stretch of their journey.
And so they took back to the road toward Fraistein accompanied by two of the giebe’s knights till the border.