Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
A Rose In The Wind: A Saga of the Halmae -- Updated June 19, 2014
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Ilex" data-source="post: 6195598" data-attributes="member: 82687"><p><strong>35x05</strong></p><p></p><p>The rest of the day’s research complicated matters. And not just because the Military Library’s filing system was, itself, ridiculously complicated. (<em>The First Expedition records are under “F” for “first,” and the Second Expedition records are three floors down under “S” for “second”? Who <strong>does</strong> that</em>?! was Twiggy’s first reaction before realizing that the Military Librarian of Divine Mark, Myosho-san, did that. And was very satisfied with it. And would brook no questioning of her methods.) </p><p> </p><p>After a stint among the labyrinthine halls of scrolls, Twiggy and Mena, with Nyoko’s help, were able to learn more details about the <a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?251423-A-Rose-In-The-Wind-A-Saga-of-the-Halmae-Updated-September-12-2013/page46&p=5876424&viewfull=1#post5876424" target="_blank">three expeditions</a> that the Sovereigns had sent to destroy the Sheh. Shortly after the First Expedition had vanished roughly a hundred years ago into the wilderness west of Divine Mark, the Second Expedition—a larger force, better equipped—took a different route west into Sheh territories. It found no trace of the First Expedition, but it did encounter violent resistance from the Sheh: that Expedition’s Adept reported magical attacks by plants, animals, rocks, and fire as well as more mundane assaults by Sheh warriors. After many bloody battles, the Sheh were finally beaten into silence: slaughtered, the survivors forcibly converted to Sovereign belief.</p><p> </p><p>The Third Expedition was more recent—about seventy-five years past—and it came about because of a strange series of murders: a rash of midwives were smothering Sovereign infant girls. Further investigation revealed the shocking fact that the midwives were Sheh. The Sovereignty had believed the Sheh extinct, but some had apparently survived—and there were rumors that they were acting upon a prophecy. </p><p> </p><p><em>The <a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?251423-A-Rose-In-The-Wind-A-Saga-of-the-Halmae-Updated-September-12-2013/page27&p=5265362&viewfull=1#post5265362" target="_blank">Sheh madwoman</a> whose <a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?251423-A-Rose-In-The-Wind-A-Saga-of-the-Halmae-Updated-September-12-2013/page33&p=5420480&viewfull=1#post5420480" target="_blank">dying speech</a> we uncovered must have been one of those midwives,</em> Twiggy realized. </p><p> </p><p>The murders had begun in remote Sovereign settlements on the fringes of the wilderness, then traced their way east. The Third Expedition, determined to destroy this eerie resurgence of the Sheh people, followed the Second Expedition’s path west. It met no resistance, and what Sheh it found, it easily killed. </p><p> </p><p>“And that was the end of the Sheh,” declared Myosho-san, with what sounded disturbingly like satisfaction.</p><p> </p><p>The party left the Military Library with maps of the routes taken by both the First Expedition and the latter two, and a bad feeling that the Sheh’s prophecy about murdering girl babies sounded a lot like <a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?251423-A-Rose-In-The-Wind-A-Saga-of-the-Halmae-Updated-September-12-2013/page52&p=6162452&viewfull=1#post6162452" target="_blank">Sister Orchid</a>’s mission to kill Rose. </p><p> </p><p>“Not that Sister Orchid was Sheh,” Nyoko pointed out. “Sheh people looked much like Sovereigns, whereas Orchid was plainly Peninsular.”</p><p> </p><p>“Agreed,” said Mena, “but it’s fairly clear that the Sheh had their own information about the birth of a girl child they feared. We need to know everything they knew.”</p><p> </p><p>The Archives of the Adepts were a far more pleasant place to work. And after the brutal facts of the Military records, the Adept records were relievingly full of colorful minutia: the names of the Adepts who accompanied each Expedition, sketches of Sheh totem markers, notes on fascinating beasts of the western Ketkath.</p><p> </p><p>The party also learned many more details about the Sheh murderers. A number of the convicted killers made dying speeches akin to the madwoman’s, and witness testimonies suggested that the Sheh midwives only selected certain girls—sometimes merely by glancing at the mother. <em>Would they have targeted Rose after a glance at Dona Giovanna?</em> Twiggy wondered, with a chill.</p><p> </p><p>Most of the murderers were caught, but a few cases had gone unsolved—in a sequence of towns that drew a line on the map toward the coastal city of Seaward. “One of the Sheh may have gotten away,” said Nyoko.</p><p> </p><p>“And gone to Seaward,” added Mena.</p><p> </p><p>“And to the Peninsula after that,” concluded Kormick.</p><p> </p><p>Twiggy cast a quick glance at Rose. “This happened seventy-five years ago,” Twiggy reminded them. “No murders have been recorded since. Whoever it was is probably dead by now.”</p><p> </p><p>“Probably,” muttered Tavi, his hand unconsciously finding the hilt of his wakizashi.</p><p> </p><p>### </p><p></p><p>And so, at the end of that long day, they had a choice. They could stay in Divine Mark and await the Lord High Regent’s death, or they could seize the intervening three months to follow one of the two cold trails before them: east, to Seaward, or west, into Sheh lands.</p><p> </p><p>Twiggy was sure she wanted to be on the move, tracking down clues rather than standing a depressing vigil in Divine Mark. But she was bracing herself for the party’s usual lengthy, complicated debate when suddenly Savina said, “I never thought I’d say this, but I miss the Ketkath. Going west feels right to me.”</p><p> </p><p>Unseen by Savina, Arden shot a wry, mock-beleaguered look at Kormick: <em>Gods, now she’s gotten a taste for adventure. I’m in real trouble</em>, it seemed to say. Kormick mouthed back words that looked suspiciously like: <a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?251423-A-Rose-In-The-Wind-A-Saga-of-the-Halmae-Updated-September-12-2013/page3&p=4737630&viewfull=1#post4737630" target="_blank"><em>Unnatural, bloody deaths</em></a>… Neither one of them looked sincere, though: Twiggy guessed they supported Savina’s suggestion.</p><p> </p><p>“I find myself agreeing,” said Mena. “I would rather seek the original source of the Sheh’s knowledge than one murderous and aged bearer thereof—as long as we can be back here by winter.”</p><p> </p><p>It turned out that everyone had essentially the same intuition: go west. </p><p> </p><p>“Phoebe says west is obviously best because east is backward and we’ve already been there,” Tavi added, and so it was decided. </p><p> </p><p>Two days later, they set forth into the wilderness.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Ilex, post: 6195598, member: 82687"] [b]35x05[/b] The rest of the day’s research complicated matters. And not just because the Military Library’s filing system was, itself, ridiculously complicated. ([I]The First Expedition records are under “F” for “first,” and the Second Expedition records are three floors down under “S” for “second”? Who [B]does[/B] that[/I]?! was Twiggy’s first reaction before realizing that the Military Librarian of Divine Mark, Myosho-san, did that. And was very satisfied with it. And would brook no questioning of her methods.) After a stint among the labyrinthine halls of scrolls, Twiggy and Mena, with Nyoko’s help, were able to learn more details about the [URL="http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?251423-A-Rose-In-The-Wind-A-Saga-of-the-Halmae-Updated-September-12-2013/page46&p=5876424&viewfull=1#post5876424"]three expeditions[/URL] that the Sovereigns had sent to destroy the Sheh. Shortly after the First Expedition had vanished roughly a hundred years ago into the wilderness west of Divine Mark, the Second Expedition—a larger force, better equipped—took a different route west into Sheh territories. It found no trace of the First Expedition, but it did encounter violent resistance from the Sheh: that Expedition’s Adept reported magical attacks by plants, animals, rocks, and fire as well as more mundane assaults by Sheh warriors. After many bloody battles, the Sheh were finally beaten into silence: slaughtered, the survivors forcibly converted to Sovereign belief. The Third Expedition was more recent—about seventy-five years past—and it came about because of a strange series of murders: a rash of midwives were smothering Sovereign infant girls. Further investigation revealed the shocking fact that the midwives were Sheh. The Sovereignty had believed the Sheh extinct, but some had apparently survived—and there were rumors that they were acting upon a prophecy. [I]The [URL="http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?251423-A-Rose-In-The-Wind-A-Saga-of-the-Halmae-Updated-September-12-2013/page27&p=5265362&viewfull=1#post5265362"]Sheh madwoman[/URL] whose [URL="http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?251423-A-Rose-In-The-Wind-A-Saga-of-the-Halmae-Updated-September-12-2013/page33&p=5420480&viewfull=1#post5420480"]dying speech[/URL] we uncovered must have been one of those midwives,[/I] Twiggy realized. The murders had begun in remote Sovereign settlements on the fringes of the wilderness, then traced their way east. The Third Expedition, determined to destroy this eerie resurgence of the Sheh people, followed the Second Expedition’s path west. It met no resistance, and what Sheh it found, it easily killed. “And that was the end of the Sheh,” declared Myosho-san, with what sounded disturbingly like satisfaction. The party left the Military Library with maps of the routes taken by both the First Expedition and the latter two, and a bad feeling that the Sheh’s prophecy about murdering girl babies sounded a lot like [URL="http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?251423-A-Rose-In-The-Wind-A-Saga-of-the-Halmae-Updated-September-12-2013/page52&p=6162452&viewfull=1#post6162452"]Sister Orchid[/URL]’s mission to kill Rose. “Not that Sister Orchid was Sheh,” Nyoko pointed out. “Sheh people looked much like Sovereigns, whereas Orchid was plainly Peninsular.” “Agreed,” said Mena, “but it’s fairly clear that the Sheh had their own information about the birth of a girl child they feared. We need to know everything they knew.” The Archives of the Adepts were a far more pleasant place to work. And after the brutal facts of the Military records, the Adept records were relievingly full of colorful minutia: the names of the Adepts who accompanied each Expedition, sketches of Sheh totem markers, notes on fascinating beasts of the western Ketkath. The party also learned many more details about the Sheh murderers. A number of the convicted killers made dying speeches akin to the madwoman’s, and witness testimonies suggested that the Sheh midwives only selected certain girls—sometimes merely by glancing at the mother. [I]Would they have targeted Rose after a glance at Dona Giovanna?[/I] Twiggy wondered, with a chill. Most of the murderers were caught, but a few cases had gone unsolved—in a sequence of towns that drew a line on the map toward the coastal city of Seaward. “One of the Sheh may have gotten away,” said Nyoko. “And gone to Seaward,” added Mena. “And to the Peninsula after that,” concluded Kormick. Twiggy cast a quick glance at Rose. “This happened seventy-five years ago,” Twiggy reminded them. “No murders have been recorded since. Whoever it was is probably dead by now.” “Probably,” muttered Tavi, his hand unconsciously finding the hilt of his wakizashi. ### And so, at the end of that long day, they had a choice. They could stay in Divine Mark and await the Lord High Regent’s death, or they could seize the intervening three months to follow one of the two cold trails before them: east, to Seaward, or west, into Sheh lands. Twiggy was sure she wanted to be on the move, tracking down clues rather than standing a depressing vigil in Divine Mark. But she was bracing herself for the party’s usual lengthy, complicated debate when suddenly Savina said, “I never thought I’d say this, but I miss the Ketkath. Going west feels right to me.” Unseen by Savina, Arden shot a wry, mock-beleaguered look at Kormick: [I]Gods, now she’s gotten a taste for adventure. I’m in real trouble[/I], it seemed to say. Kormick mouthed back words that looked suspiciously like: [URL="http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?251423-A-Rose-In-The-Wind-A-Saga-of-the-Halmae-Updated-September-12-2013/page3&p=4737630&viewfull=1#post4737630"][I]Unnatural, bloody deaths[/I][/URL]… Neither one of them looked sincere, though: Twiggy guessed they supported Savina’s suggestion. “I find myself agreeing,” said Mena. “I would rather seek the original source of the Sheh’s knowledge than one murderous and aged bearer thereof—as long as we can be back here by winter.” It turned out that everyone had essentially the same intuition: go west. “Phoebe says west is obviously best because east is backward and we’ve already been there,” Tavi added, and so it was decided. Two days later, they set forth into the wilderness. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
A Rose In The Wind: A Saga of the Halmae -- Updated June 19, 2014
Top