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==== Summary 58: A fragile peace? (2011-10-03) ====
[[Giraine]] [[summaries-2011|Summaries]]
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You left the Sottogh lands into a dreary, scrubby wilderness with sparse evidence of Giranois presence recently but plenty of past settlements. The chilly wind continued to plague you. One night, when camped in a recently abandoned Giranois hut, you were startled by a large earthquake that shook much of the island. A few tremors followed; one knocking the Captain down onto the icy, sloping ground near the cliffs, but such aftershocks soon faded. 

Yet something else was present- later, a deep groan came through the ground and shook you but its source was elusive. The Captain also heard a softer sighing or hooting noise later, then investigated outside and saw from the clifftops that there was a light that had come on, down in the dark Fosnoir waters. This light was of a colour he could not describe, and moved suddenly and speedily (when he was not looking?). He also noticed that the stars were unnaturally faint, and an oppressive darkness had come over the land, perhaps related to the cold. "Whooping" noises and a hissing caused by bubbling waters below the cliffs also haunted him, but when morning came there was no sign of what had been there. 

Perplexed, but realizing that your hunt for the source of the wind was perhaps too difficult because the wind came from possibly the whole Fosnoir itself, you elected to return back to the Shaven lands. Along the way you noticed that the Evracian monks had made improvements to their monastery such as a short wall and watchtower; a contrast to the inactivity of the rest of the Rokari church on the island. But back at home, you immediately became aware of a new problem- the farmer Nafiyotte (loser in the wedding duel with the hunter Memkud) had sorely beaten a Giranois who had stolen a sheep from him and eaten it. Then the Giranois had declared a blood feud with his household by hanging bloodsoaked crow feathers on his door, and blinded a neighboring farmer's daughter in one eye with an arrow. The peasantry all wanted vengeance but were split nearly 50/50 on whether to take up the feud in the Giranois way by wearing crow-feather broaches themselves, or to eschew such pagan/heretical symbolism and just bring justice to them in a more Malkioni (Rokari?) way. They solicited the Baronet for judgement and he convened his advisors. 

The decision was to try to buy time with the peasants, keeping them out of trouble and focused on debating what to do, while Cyroosta led a party to speak with the witch Vowka. The Baronet gathered the two factions of peasants together and promised to replace the lost sheep and contribute to the dowry of the half-blinded farmer girl, but that violence would not bring succour to his people, only a great Giranois backlash that they could not withstand. His impassioned words began opening and changing minds- the people were realizing that in this new land, with new ways and dangers, they must sometimes be flexible. So a window of opportunity seemed to have opened for the Baronet to prove his mettle as a leader of people. 

But Cyroosta did not have it quite so easy- the Giranois are legendarily stubborn and evasive (or even deceptive). She smoothtalked her way to find Vowka, but even with Wise Words sorcery and a honeyed tongue, she was not certain just what she had achieved with speaking to the witch. She did glean some new information, though-- Vowka recommended that to make peace with the Giranois, you must find "the Unsighted One." She would or could not clarify this more. But she did try to explain her people's perspective- after ~700 years of post-Shattering isolation, and 40 years of contact with outsiders since the Closing of the Seas ended, and recent years of dealing with Big Ron's men and others, they had suffered much. Their revered St Granno had taught them never to trust that which came from the sea- they were even forbidden to ride boats, to fish, to swim in the ocean, or to otherwise take advantage of the fertile seas around them! And so they were religion-bound to loathe and distrust anyone that came to Giraine, as travelling the seas was the only way to get there. Perhaps, then, if a secret to bringing peace to shattered Giraine exists, it has always been on Giraine. And perhaps the bias of the Giranois could be used to your advantage sometime, now that you knew it? 

Finally, Cyroosta did manage to buy a fragile truce with the Giranois, if Vowka's word and influence was what you took it for: from a choice of life (six live sheep), death (three of your own dead) or the bridge between life and death (six metal swords), you chose to provide them with the latter. 
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