Eat like kings

“I therefore invite you all," Foxwise went on, 'to stay here with me for ever.'A great cry went up from those assembled How marvellous! they all agreed. To stay here with the Silver Magician would be the most storied outcome. As the crowed cheered, Foxwise continued to extol the virtues of his new dominion and the many things that his patronage would provide for the inhabitants of this particular glade here in The Forest."And every day we will eat like kings!" he grandly announced as the climax.The cheering that followed this speech went on for many minutes.

Overview

Shortly before the Autumn Equinox 386YE, Meraud apparently entered a period of crisis. Details are sparse, but the gates out of his demesne were all sealed from the inside and the eternal retreated to his tower, surrounded by many enemies. Some of his servants became unreliable, potentially even dangerous, and Scarrow Dawnbreak issued a warning on behalf of the Rod and Shield to Imperial magicians to be careful invoking rituals such as Golden Ramparts and potentially even Lions of Phoenix Reach. A message from a desperate herald was delivered to some Imperial magicians who had made use of the ritual From the Mouths of Babes, begging for the Archmage of Summer to send a pleniptentiary missive and ask for a parley.

This was done, and Barthek, Lorekeeper of Meraud visited the Hall of Worlds. Imperial magicians made numerous sacrifices to help Meraud stabilize his power and identity. These included a number of key items such as the regalia of the Churnspire Adjutor, unique rings gifted to Summer Children who had accepted boons from the eternal, and a ritual text created by Starcaller and recovered with great difficulty.

As well as the items that had been suggested, the Imperial magicians went above and beyond. A thousand ingots of tempest jade, gathered by League magicians the the Golden Pyramid collected in the hope of raising a mountain but gifted without expectation of a boon. An old gift given to Septus Sentinels Tower, faded but still valuable to the Summer Enchanter. A band from Skywise Gralka gained in a competition, the power from a potent item of worth presented from Goodcrow Udun, and several others. There was apparently an attempt by the Gryphon Prince to intercept the sacrifices, but it came to nothing, and Barthek returned to the Summer Realm and to his master.

Events in Dawn suggest that the Imperial magicians have been successful. The Fire Mage has recovered from his crisis, and emerged from his hole, as discussed in the Golden magicians fayre wind of fortune. It's clear though that they have undergone some kind of change, although the full extent of this alteration is not entirely clear. Rumours of conflict between the Lord of Fire and the Spiderling Prince speak of an attempt to seize parts of the Forest of Arden. It seems Foxwise is no longer satisfied with a small domain surrounding his tower. The renewed King of the Twilight Sun seems to have ambitions to enlarge his demesne, and increase his standing in the Summer Realm.

Gratitude

Foxwise is grateful to Imperial magicians, and will not quickly forget the aid they gave him without expectation of reward. Without their intervention, there is a chance that his power might have declined to the point where he could no longer hold his old domain, never mind expand its borders. Had the Imperial Conclave not intervened, it's likely that either Hayaak would have seized the throne of Meraud's domain, or Jaheris would have drawn it into the Forest of Arden. Now, though, Meraud can focus on restoring his domain and has ambitions to expand its borders.

He first wants to reassure those who were concerned about the use of rituals that draw on his power. There is no problem with casting Golden Ramparts. The lions of his domain will once again focus on their duties, as long as the Rod and Shield continues to exist. Likewise, the agreements he brokered around Lions of Phoenix Reach have been confirmed, and that ritual will work as long as the Urizen do not abandon the Three Pillars that make their nation strong.

One ritual cannot be restored however; Meraud has reclaimed the power contributed to Golden Trumpets. The six heralds associated with that ritual - Assoni, the bellower, who rises with the sun; Goudenstem, of the golden mane, who roars at the crown of heaven; Donner, whose voice echoes with thunder in the afternoon; Ivi Hriva, who travels with the south wind in the early evening; Kerrix, who sounds the last moment of twilight-before-night; and Gwinthav, who speaks with majesty in the hours of darkness - are needed elsewhere to help him protect, rebuild, and expand his domain. As such, that ritual will no longer function.

Meraud is also unable to respond to From the Mouths of Babes at present and so the ritual cannot be cast. His herald apologises for this inconvenience, especially given that the ritual played such an important part in recent events, but he is currently considering how best to support it. The heralds who collected the missives in the past were not doing the best possible job and he is keen to ensure the ritual does what it is meant to do - allows folk to speak to Meraud to gain access to his wisdom and understanding of the magical arts. For too long the Empire has relied on the dubious counsel of the Pernicious Worm and Meraud would like to offer an alternative if at all possible.

Finally, Noble Mien of the Hawk Lords. Hayaak's attempt to steal the sacrifices made by the Imperial magicians has infuriated Meraud. There are a number of other names associated with the ritual - Crown of the Majestic Stag, Lore of the Spiral Dance, Wrathful Visage of the Ladies of Summer, Heartbreaking Song of the Swan Maidens, Wise Eyes of the Twilight Councillor, and the name it was originally formulated under Lore of the Golden Spiral. Meraud asks that the magicians of the Empire use this ritual sparingly until the conclave have a chance to rename it with a title that better befits the relationship magicians and the Summer Mage.

If they do so using either a Declaration of Concord or Acceptance he will provide the magician who raises the Declaration with an arcane projection for a more powerful ritual, similar to Fire from the Heavens, and an agreement that it can be codified and placed into Imperial or Urizen Lore as the Conclave wishes. Or simply put in a cupboard if they consider the magnitude to be too great.

Obligations

Meraud is recovering rapidly, and intends to repay the debt he owes to Imperial magicians now, or as soon as he is able.

The first boon is the easier; he will restore the regalia of the Churnspire Adjutor at the Summer Solstice as normal. He will make some modifications however; the Mark of the Geyser will support Golden Ramparts and Lions of Phoenix Reach for example. He also plans to double the number of golden apples his heralds provide each season from here on.

To Katrina Words and Leo the Rainbow Sage, he offers each a single great boon. The Golden Magician confers on these two burgeoning magicians the rank of Golden Lion, a recognition of their singular accomplishments. (There is a suggestion that Meraud may intend this title as a deliberate snub to Eleonaris who has named Blaze Dunning and her companions as her "Lions of Summer").

To thank them for their efforts on behalf of The Lord of the Lake he offers each of them a single key to the Spire of Spells. This powerful boon will allow each magician a way to enter a regio associated with Meraud. Inside, they will discover an array of heralds and other apprentices who will do everything needed to help them codify a single ritual. It will cost one ingot of tempest jade for each magnitude of the ritual, expensive in absolute terms, but still a tiny price to pay for a ritual text. The Lord of Summer Stars advises them to pick carefully - the Spire of Spells is swift, but not impossibly fast - the greater the magnitude of the arcane projection, the longer it will take. The Spire can codify 25 ranks of magnitude of a Summer ritual, or 15 ranks for any other realm, each season. Time matters not to the Golden Magician, but each of his Golden Lions will only be able to use the Spire of Spells for long enough to codify one ritual, so he advises them both to consider their legacy carefully.

The Golden Magician knows there were many others who helped restore his tower to him, too many to count. His heralds have provided a score of golden apples to the Archmage of Summer. He begs their indulgence and asks that they use their perspicacity to distribute the apples fairly among all those who helped him fend off the Gryphon Knight and other threats and regain his rightful position in the realm. He hopes that the Archmage will be able to assure him that everyone who helped that the Summer Enchanter has not personally repaid, has been rewarded in proportion to their efforts.

Finally to the magicians of the Golden Chalice, the Summer Enchanter will offer a magnitude 80 arcane projection "The Hands that Shake the Heavens". This ritual targets a single region - it can be cast from the Anvil regio if targeting a region in a territory controlled by the Empire. The enchantment calls on the power of the Fire Mage, inviting the Lord of Summer Stars to extend his power to the region. It invites heralds of Meraud to operate freely in the area. It will also cause a small earthquake as well as several minor tremors throughout the region; these will be dramatic but should cause little permanent damage. The ritual will have one lasting effect: it will dramatically and permanently elevate one of the largest peaks in the area. The larger the mountain or hill is to start with, the taller the resulting peak will be.

The only requirement that the Summer Enchanter makes is that the arcane projection be used, and not codified and put into lore. The Lord of the Lake is likely to be... upset... if the power he has freely offered is stolen in this way. The arcane projection will be delivered to the Grandmaster of the Golden Chalice (the heralds of Meraud explain that there might be some confusion on Meraud's part here - that the eternal has mistaken a coven of the League for a particular Conclave order) at the Arcane Colloquium. The destructive power in the ingots significantly speeded his recovery, which might otherwise have taken several seasons. Meraud also wants to offer himself as the official patron of the Golden Chalice, though what exactly that might mean is anyone's guess.

The debt incurred by the return of Golden Trumpets may take a little longer. The Fire Mage begs the indulgence of the Empire while he finds a suitable way to repay them for this gift.

Further Reading

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