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by Revlona » Mon Oct 30, 2017 10:22 am
by Ulls » Mon Oct 30, 2017 1:05 pm
by G-Tech Corporation » Mon Oct 30, 2017 1:42 pm
by The Hierophancy » Mon Oct 30, 2017 3:17 pm
by Ulls » Mon Oct 30, 2017 4:40 pm
G-Tech Corporation wrote:Sterkfestning, Nom Sapmi
The steward rocked back in his chair, taking the map from "Caligari"'s hands and studying it intently for several moments. His face seemed slightly paler when Agelmar looked up from his contemplation of the parchment, and his eyes looked at the visitors with newfound curiosity, noting perhaps for the first time the strange cast of the features of the Skulk, and their odd clothing.
"Beyond the Isles. Well, I don't know exactly what I expected to hear... but it was not that. You have come far then, far indeed."
Lost in thought the steward seemed for a moment, turning over the ramifications of this discovery in his mind, but after a moment he nodded, hearing Jeb's words about the warlike nature of the people who he led.
"Perhaps we have something in common, then. My people have forged our kingdom out of the ashes of Gunjar's forefathers- he is a Norscan, and we of the North, Lapps. A threat you say, well, that is outside my purview. At any rate, if what you say is true... yes, I think that is the best explanation for your strangeness, men from beyond the Atlantic. As what you say is true, I shall take you to the King. He will desire to hear what your request is, and I have no power to bind or loose that which you might seek."
His mind made up, Agelmar rose, holding onto the two maps and turning aside to one of the doors set in his room. It opened at a touch of the old man, and he motioned for the outlanders to follow him as he disappeared into a dimly lit corridor.
A few strides, a minute's walk or less, and the steward emerged from the hallway into what appeared to be the central part of the keep, a sturdy fortified mead hall. The sound of conversation in the native tongue of the Sami came from ahead, and as the Skulk came through the doorway the ceiling fell away upwards, the hallway transitioning into a high chambered roof from which echoed the arguments of two men; two men, one which sat upon a low graven throne set with amber and precious stones, the other who knelt before his liege.
King Heigen of Nom Sapmi raised bushy eyebrows the color of fresh-fallen snow at his steward's entrance into the throne room, but this was clearly an extraordinary enough situation to gain his attention. A pre-emptory bark of voice ended the conversation with the supplicant, and a brusque jerk of his thumb sent the man scurrying away from the throne, bowing obsequiously without turning his back as he departed the feasting hall. Crowds of courtiers and soldiers parted as the steward led the outlanders towards Heigen's seat, and then Agelmar motioned for them to wait, whispering "one moment" before striding ahead to the side of his king.
The steward whispered for several moments, and the deep brown eyes of the King moved to gaze at the foreigners for interest, before moving down to the map that Jeb had provided. After a few minutes of further whispered exposition on the part of the steward, he stood back, and spoke aloud for all the court to hear.
"Western men, step forward. His Majesty, King Heigen of the North, will hear your requests."
by Leikmis » Mon Oct 30, 2017 4:58 pm
by Ulls » Mon Oct 30, 2017 9:05 pm
by Labstoska » Tue Oct 31, 2017 12:06 am
by Great Confederacy of Commonwealth States » Tue Oct 31, 2017 11:54 am
“After having so generously and patiently heard our plea, after reading and hearing all our presented evidence, I would ask of you, magistrates, our masters of law and governance, to take a philosophical tour. From this moment onwards until the moment that I sit back down with my friend and his wife, we will not deal in matters of precise evidence and timelines, the awful and horrid question of which son was favoured more by a dead father, who now peacefully resides in the underworld. With you, my magistrates, I want to ponder a matter higher than which acre of land belongs to whom. I want to imagine a perfect world: a world inhabited only by the spirits of the righteous, and ruled by the gods of wisdom, virtue and justice. I would not enjoy tis thought for too long, for we men and women of earthly desire might grow sick of our own world and long for this perfect place. Yet, as we stand in court, a palace of divine justice, it feels like a disservice not to pay homage to the very ideal we are trying to search for.
A world inhabited by the spirits of the pure and righteous would not require any of us to stand here today. It would not require us to stand or sit at all. A world of the righteous would have no need of laws and contracts, of wills and testaments. Were we all imbued with the perfect sense of divine consciousness we would give onto others what they would need, receiving in return only exactly as we would need. Contracts, guarded by securities and oaths, but be wastes of time, as we would all trust our neighbour to do the best in his power, no external force obliging him to do so. We would give freely onto others, a godly faith instilling in us a feeling of security that the world was helped by our action.
Take us one step more towards our own, for I would not want you to ponder too much on the world of heaven which I described. Imagine now a different world, of mortal souls in our likeness, governed by the righteous gods I described before. This world, like our own, has great need of contracts and boundaries, of personal property and of securities. We mortal souls are not quick, indeed, we would be fools to trust our neighbour without first knowing him for a long time. What guarantee do we have that our trust will not be acted on in bad faith? In such a perfect world, laws and decrees from our ruling gods would show us the light of truth, their judgement deciding in each case what the most righteous and true decision would be. Here too would be no need of laws, as laws are guides the gods do not require. Their perfect moral fibre and union with the nature of the universe allows them no other choice than to do the best possible. Unless we want to commit to the idea that nature can do wrong, we cannot but agree that gods can do no wrong, either.
One step further, and we are in our own world, inhabited and ruled by mortal, imperfect souls. My magistrates, before you think me a charlatan and a fraud, I mean no disrespect towards your mighty office, and certainly not towards the persons who inhabited those mighty seats. Less still would I want to insult our Lord Sovereign, who with divine mandate rules this city in fairness and equity. It is no insult to call a man mortal and imperfect, for, which man is greater? He, who by nature is imbued with perfect sense, or who by free will chooses to take the path of righteousness? While the being is perfect, it would be useless to judge such a creature, as, like a stone thundering downhill, it has no choice but to be good. We do not praise the stone, but we do praise the water carrier, who carries his water up and down the hill.
Still, it leads us to conclude that our laws, our governing principles, are only inspired by what little part of the divine we can witness. For the rest it is the work of imperfect, mortal men, who cannot see into the future. I would therefore argue that your task, my magistrates, is more than to apply the law. Applying the law on its own is applying the flawed will of flawed men, however perfect they may appear. You, as men imbued with a free will, must carry the load that a free will carries; it is up to you to look into the divine, searching nature for what is right. While our laws are not made by gods, we can aspire to follow the ideals of justice they used to create our world with. We follow the feeling given to us by Amun himself: what do we feel is just? That the son is punished for his hard work by the death of his father? A father he loved so much; his death is punishment enough. And do we, by his early death, enrich a man who not only has done little for his family, but little for the community?
I end my plea with this, noble magistrates: I hope your sense of duty and justice is as strong as it is in me and that, empowered by the will of Amun, you make the right choice, by all that is sacred”
by Pasong Tirad » Tue Oct 31, 2017 1:33 pm
by Kingdom of Tunisia » Tue Oct 31, 2017 4:18 pm
by Ulls » Tue Oct 31, 2017 5:25 pm
by G-Tech Corporation » Tue Oct 31, 2017 8:16 pm
by Ulls » Tue Oct 31, 2017 8:51 pm
by Arulean States » Tue Oct 31, 2017 9:49 pm
by G-Tech Corporation » Wed Nov 01, 2017 6:30 am
by Ulls » Wed Nov 01, 2017 7:24 am
G-Tech Corporation wrote:Oshanka’s Camp, Eastern Iowa
The rumble of heavy drums came from the camp of the Bison Chasers, strong hands beating on the stretched skins of fallen victims and send a heartbeat of menace out into the surrounding plains. As the warriors of Ego approached the primitive pallisade, they felt naked under the deep blue sky, no trees marking the horizon for leagues, only endless acres of long golden grass. Grass tall enough to hide anything.
A crier emerged from the rudimentary stockade, listening to the words of the man of Ego for several moments, before scowling and shaking the spear in his hand at the emissaries.
“You say you wish for peace, man of Ego, but my chief sees no peace in your hands. The blood of my brothers cries out for vengeance. Begone, before he is forced to honor the People of the Sky with your deaths.”
by G-Tech Corporation » Wed Nov 01, 2017 9:17 am
by Revlona » Wed Nov 01, 2017 9:22 am
by Labstoska » Wed Nov 01, 2017 11:26 am
by Ulls » Wed Nov 01, 2017 11:29 am
by The Hierophancy » Wed Nov 01, 2017 1:31 pm
by Pasong Tirad » Wed Nov 01, 2017 2:57 pm
by Ulls » Wed Nov 01, 2017 6:05 pm
by G-Tech Corporation » Wed Nov 01, 2017 7:18 pm
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