The First Land Herald/433-10-14

Article Number: 22

Dateline: 433-10-14

UPCOMING LUNAR EXPERIMENT: THE HOPE FOR A MESSAGE FROM THE STARS Some eight years ago, members of the Trader's Guild were only concerned with their worldly possessions and materials.  That is, until they were approached by the Arbiter in Darkness. Folklore links the Arbiter to a tale of shamanic summoning and the Benesu tribe of the Arid Steppe.  In the present day, we know that the Arbiter is a Greater Concept of Probability, a being from the Plane of Probability and the embodiment of starlight.  It struck a deal with Lord Veahmic Turmar, a master Trader and head of the Human noble House Turmar, that changed the lives of those within the Trader Guild by gifting them with Lunar magic.  This confidential exchange remains cloaked in mystery, and Trader students themselves remain ignorant about why they were chosen for this gift, what the guild offered in return, and what the exact terms of their Contract are.  Traders, being so new to their magic, also know very little about the nature of their own spells. Trader Rafano Rekletar was inspired to ask questions about these unknowns.  He sent a letter to the First Land Herald regarding his intentions to conduct a Lunar experiment.  He will be hosting a gathering at the ancient tower near Wolf Clan, where he will use a Stellar Collector to attempt to receive a message from the stars.  The event will take place in just over one Elanthian month [OOC: Sunday, March 22, 2020, 6pm EST]. The Stellar Collector is an apparatus fabricated by a Trader in order to create an Iridius crystal to collect and store starlight energy, which Traders often require for their other spells.  The Iridius crystal remarkably resembles a crystal that Iridius the Guide wrote of as having numerous uses. Furthermore, the spell once required the use of a tessera, a psychic communication device.  These facts led Rafano to write, "there are those who believe that the full potential of the apparatus has not yet been realized." Rafano also sees potential for this crystalline device to be linked to recent visions involving starlight stairways and proclamations of denied permissions.  He thinks these visions may hint at a meaning only Traders are meant to discover, by way of their connection to the powers of starlight and the strict boundaries of their agreement with the Arbiter. In the first vision, a parent is seen sitting with a child, speaking before a warmly glowing hearth fire, the rest of the room obscured in shadow.  The child is looking up at the parent, who speaks softly, gently, voice blending with the cracking flames and howling of the storm against window shutters.  "Your questions are profound, but only accidentally so. You inquire only to establish your boundaries. You will always be safe here," the parent says, squeezing the child in a hug. The storm continues, and the walls groan with the effort of remaining upright.  The parent begins to hum a comforting tune, and the child seems oblivious to the maelstrom outside.  As the storm intensifies, so too does the parent's song, winding along octaves, strangely resonant and haunting.  The hearth glows brighter, and suddenly, the parent stops, looks up at the seer and says sharply, "You do not have permission."  The door flies open, an icy wind howls, and the vision fades. The second vision involves climbing an endless starlight stairway, giving the viewer a strange, elongated sense of space and time and the ability to view rarely seen aspects of the universe above.  At the end of the vision, shadows grab at the ankles of the seer, rooting him or her in place, then beginning to pull downward through a gap in the stairs. The final vision features a crystalline apparatus of nested rings and prongs and a column that creates an auditory perception of the stars and planets.  As the apparatus is focused on a distant reach of empty space, a whispering voice begins to overpower the sounds of the cosmos, until it can be clearly heard repeating, "You do not have permission." A noticeable pattern between the three visions are the overlapping themes of discovery, authorizations, and starlight.  Rafano wonders if the stairway from the second vision is symbolic of an interaction or transmission made possible through the Stellar Collector.  He further stated that, regarding the third vision, he believes "a Stellar Collector [is] the medium through which these broadcasts are received," given that it is also a crystalline apparatus (and we note that it is ring-shaped with inward branches that may be prong-like).  Thus, a Collector may allow Traders to receive approved communications from the Arbiter, other source from the Plane of Probability, or possibly the cosmos itself. In his letter, Rafano mentioned the failed experiment of Dehvra (see the Herald article of 428-08-02) and the dire consequences that ensued.  He believes she breached the Contract, and hers is not an example he intends to follow. He stresses that he will "not [touch] the Plane of Probability in any way."  Of some note, Rafano has attempted an experiment before, which attracted the attention of the Negotiants, albeit in a benign way. It will be intriguing to discover what this new experiment produces, if anything.  Will it answer any of Rafano's questions? Will it provide enough information for himself and other Traders to begin to understand their magic, perhaps their sense of purpose?  Rafano invites all comers to witness and find out. Sincerely, Shaylynne Sauvage and Navesi Daerthon Assistant Reporter and Editor in Chief, respectively, of the First Land Herald

Real Date: Unknown Date

Subject(s): Arbiter in Darkness Arid Steppe House Turmar Plane of Probability Rafano Stellar Collector The Negotiants Trader Veahmic Wolf Clan

Author(s): Shaylynne Navesi