Hey Travance,
Oh look, it's Annora here with her usual updates about the Employer.
If all goes well this week, this will hopefully be the last of my letters. If our calculations are correct, this will be our chance to resolve this whole situation.
Last feast (two weeks ago), as we expected, the Kingdom Below returned to bring their "death" (since we didn't return their Pearl). They opened a Sea Gate into our lake to do this.
Good news: With the aid of Triton's energy (and some punching of the lake), we were able to get the lake infused with the necessary Dark and Primal energy to sustain a Sea Gate. When the Kingdom Below opened the gate, the energy successfully flowed into it.
Bad news: there's some angry murder plants spreading through the Proper that we'll have to deal with (those yellow stalks).
Our Travancian Sea Gate is currently in pieces and needs to be assembled, as the pieces of the gate drifted across the lake to absorb as much energy as possible. Now that they've been marinating in the lake for about two weeks, we should be able to collect the pieces and remove them from the water. If you're out on the lake during the extended feast and you can get to some of these pieces of coral, please retrieve them and bring them to the entrance to the maze (across from Pendarvin).
About those plants--Darius and I witnessed the Kingdom Below representative plant the source of these plants in the lakebed (but couldn't get to the roots). These poison plants have a very dangerous aura and will hurt anyone who comes within range of them. In April, there were 4 plants in the Proper, and we estimate this number will double every month (meaning there will be 8 in the Proper this month), roughly spreading up from the lake towards the top of town. So while we don't have to take care of them immediately, it is imperative that they remain a priority.
Hopefully if the Pearl artifact is returned they will call off this scourge.
On Sunday of last feast, we met with Costadori Naval Captain Amelia Righetti, of the Coast Haven Third Fleet. Captain Righetti very vehemently wants Alverez brought to justice, and also gave us coordinates for a warehouse belonging to Alverez's cronies, having heard that goods were being moved suspiciously.
(Lorenzo Alverez has three known associates, former crew on the Queen of Tides that are still loyal to him.
Captain Ironmantle - also in Duke Aligheri's employ, wealthy arms dealer
Captain Greykettle - Costadori pirate
Baronet Casterfoe - politician in Septefus.
All three of these individuals are aligned with Duke Aligheri, the man protecting and housing Alverez.)
We were able to raid this warehouse, belonging to Ironmantle. It looked like Ironmantle and Greykettle had already loaded up its contents, consisting of armaments/ammunition, and were moving to free Alverez. The guards, when questioned, told us their ship The Fortune Hunter was headed to Doth Moria.
Unfortunately, the Employer got to the building before we did (using a Sea Gate to travel) and grabbed all the papers from the warehouse office that detailed their plan.
Captain Righetti sent us a letter with good news--the Queen of Coast Haven heard our calls for Alverez to be brought to justice, and he is scheduled for execution.
One of the main reasons the Employer is pursuing her own justice against Alverez is that she has no faith in his country to do the right thing and actually serve justice.
This is why, as much as so many of us in Travance may want to, we CANNOT kill him ourselves. Coast Haven authorities have to be the ones to serve justice to Alverez. They need to restore faith in their country and their leadership and show the world that they're capable of doing the right thing.
Ok, so what does that leave for Travance to do?
Ah yes good question because we have A LOT to do.
1. Our first priority is assembling that Sea Gate and learning how to successfully operate it. We need it to travel to the Employer's lair. We NEED to raid that lair for multiple reasons:
We need to steal back those papers from the warehouse office that detail Ironmantle and Greykettle's plan. We gotta make sure they don't succeed at breaking Alverez out of prison.
Gotta take back the Pearl. If we return it to the Kingdom Below they might call off their murder plants, and without it the Employer can't finish their rituals.
2. Make sure Alverez doesn't escape custody, and he is executed by Coast Haven as planned (NOT Travance, for the reasons stated above). Him escaping would be bad for MANY reasons, obviously. Once we know what Greykettle and Ironmantle are planning, they'll need to be stopped.
3. Saving the Employer from herself.
Roll your eyes at me, mock me all you want. But this is a person who has been hurt, tortured, and made to think she is nothing more than a monster. She's given up on herself, but I'm not giving up on her. She is not beyond redemption. Of course, our priority is stopping her from completing these rituals, but if we can stop her without more death, without letting Alverez win, I sure am going to try.
I've been there. And I only clawed my way back from the brink because I had stubborn friends who refused to give up on me, no matter how much I tried to drive them away. So how could I not possibly do the same for her?
As always, my list of rituals is on the Scholar's Table
(https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ML_cHd7Fi4U6mjQebGQ9jC3Ji9d6s9to9zwcEstEB9Y/edit?usp=sharing), now with a nice little chart of the months, zodiacs, and their locations at the bottom.
During the Extended Feast, I will be holding a briefing/Q&A session on Wednesday at 6 bells, in the inn. I'll be going over all the various things that have happened in this whole twisted narrative, answering questions you may have, and looking for help in acheiving these goals.
Also feel free to pull me aside during the week if you want to talk about any of this; I'll be around.
As always, thank you for your time and help.
...To Annora...
...If I may speak plainly, I don't think you are really in the wrong. It is clear that you want to save the Employer, no matter how others may feel, and given your past, you just don't want history to repeat itself. In someway, that sense of wanting to help given your experiences is... noble if anything.... (makes me wish I had it during my time if anything...) And if I had the opportunity, I would, and still give a chance to give an open chat with the Employer, at least to help vent their issues. However, to have them understand given the circumstances is going to be a challenge, and I think you do understand that.
Regardless, given the dangerous circumstances we are all in, you are going to need help, and my knowledge on this sort of thing may give us an advantage, both with dealing with Alverez, and if it should come to it, the Employer believe it or not. So if you are willing to do so, I will try to appear this Saturday, pending the usual stuff that can happen, Travance being what it is. This is merely an offer however, so I will not intervene if you decide to seek assistance elsewhere. Since this is a rather delicate situation we are dealing with, if it works out in our favor, so be it, but I will try to stay out of your way if that is not the case. That is all. Thank you.
'Zeke.