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Scribed by Maximus

Spring 1260 AD

I was not present at the meeting as I was finishing my enchantment binding with Barnabas, my familiar. However Erla, Husam and Lysimachus were present, and as the meeting started, Atrius noted that this season marked the 40th anniversary of his rule as pontifex. Although we might not see eye to eye on a lot of matters, I am grateful to god for the continued existence of our covenant. The council discussed the Erechwyth and the plan to talk with the queen of snakes to evict Amabilia from the caves in which she hides. Once this bargain is made and Amabilia is forced out, they would strike together to give her no chance of escape. Husam agreed this season to study in Lydney to protect the village from any harm. Astrius said he would relieve Husam at the start of summer and planned to train Constanza in the hamlet. Edith stated that her consor Agnes required a longevity potion this year and planned to take her to Solis Castle to allow Matthias to formulate it. Astrius asked again for ideas for magic items to be constructed for the fight against Damhain-Allaidh.

Astrius and Lysimachus headed off into the Fae Regio with a grog called Sperling and Conal to hunt Amabilia. As they entered the regio, there was snow on the ground, but it was not impassable. In a flurry of snow, the Faerie Erechwyth appeared, casting her frosty glare across the small party of brave souls who dared to enter her realm. She stated that the queen of snakes had agreed to terms and would send her minions to drive the renegade Amabilia out of the cave as planned. Astrius and Lysimachus set up ambush positions with Astrius choosing to be cloaked by the Erechewyth's magics. The hissing from the cave, normally quiet and easily confused with the wind, rose in volume and then there she was, Amabilia looking ragged and harried by the hordes of snakes pursuing her stumbled into the light of day. Moving quickly to block any retreat, the grogs and Erechwyth’s minions blocked the cave mouth behind her and with a blast of lightning and ice spears her body was eviscerated. Indeed, Conal was so close he was splattered with gore form the explosion. Back in the covenant, I was struck by magic that bypassed the regio boundary, the Aegis and my parma. It ripped at my heart and I thought it would kill me, because of our link Barnabas was also struck, but although he kicked out at the pain, it affected him much less than me. I staggered to the Infirmary and Blanche was able to assist me. My only thought was that the infernal ritual she had cast using the drop of blood from Rufus’ heart had struck me. Atrius and Lysimachus returned to the covenant after their victory with a couple of days left in the season.

The last day of spring brought Zepherus the redcap to our covenant. He conveyed news both hermetic and mundane. Of hermetic news, it appeared that the Fae have stopped their aggression. Primus Merinita had been congratulated for all the hard work and diplomacy that he had performed. The great oak of Cad Gadu had once again blossomed and the Aura had returned to the level it was at before the death of Urbanus and loss of the crown. On a sadder note, Myra of Merinita had decided to explore Arcadia as many of her house do in their final years. Of mundane news, there were battles in the Levant with the Mongol horde fighting the armies of Egypt under a powerful general. In Rome, his holiness the pope had declared that all magical practices were diabolic and he condemned all users of magic as apostates.

I was informed that my house meeting was next year and so I would probably be asked to remain as senior quaesitor again.

Summer

We met at the Summer Council and Astrius reported the previous season's victory against Amabilia. I reported that there was a non-Hermetic black claw sigil on my heart with the effect of perdo and corporem.

The rest of the season passed peacefully with very little to report. Astrius went to the Heart of the Forest and I went to Blackthorn to discuss with my pater about next year's meeting of house Guernicus. I rode Barnabas for the first time on an expedition and he was fine travelling down to Chepstow. However, we both felt anxious crossing the new bridge and I wonder if his unhappiness at crossing open water might have transferred down the bonds to me for surely I was scared of the calm flowing Wye river as I had never been before. Once we were half way over the bridge, his pace unexpectedly increased and I was lucky not to have been left on my back, staring at the sky, but I managed to hang on to his mane and Barnabas delivered us safely into Chepstow itself. From there we went up the Wye past Tintern Abbey and then up to Monmouth where we followed the Morrow river on our right till we got to Skenfrith and thence onward and upward, up the black mountains till we came to Blackthorn covenant. Whilst there, my pater informed me that I would be required to travel with him to my house meeting. This was most unusual as normally I would be expected to remain in Stonehenge tribunal. He explained to me that my voice with my intimate knowledge of the brothers in christ would be invaluable at the meeting.

Autumn

Our council convened on the first day of Autumn and Husam reported that a new gang in Bristol was holding out against the infernal gang run by his old consor, Giodinio. The way they were achieving this was through the secret assistance of a member of the Kabbalah, a jewish mystic sect who seem to be most efficacious in combatting the infernal. Indeed, god must assist these followers of the old testament. Husam cunningly laid in wait for this man and some how did not provoke a fight. He then managed to get this man's assistance in his efforts to wipe out the gang that he had created. With this man's assistance he managed to ambush Dougal, the vampire lieutenant of Giodinio’s gang. He slew him and cut off his head. It was a shame he did not retrieve it as we could have interrogated the spirit of the man, however in the heat of battle such mistakes can be made. Husam also reported that Giodinio was probably a vampire as well now which may explain the tale of his supposed demise and then return to power. The An Fayan was delivering the blood that supposedly comes from Hibernia and Husam managed to burn down the warehouse storing it. It is a shame that we could not retrieve one of these blood containers to determine if magics were keeping the blood fresh or the origin of the blood.

Husam did bring some mundane news that a noble called Simon De Montfort had several barons in support might force the queen to sigh the royal accords which she had been delaying in doing so. Astrius, alway aware of the smell of war, like a hound to the smell of a fox, warned us to keep an eye and an ear out for further news as this might lead to conflict in the realm again. Erla reported that she would travel to Solis Castle in winter to arrange for Agnes the red’s longevity potion to be made by Mathias. Lysimachus stated he would need the ship in Autumn of 1161 and I stated I would need in in Summer 1161.
Astrius reported that the Harvest of acorns was less because of my following of the Christian faith. To ensure that there was no injustice he put it to council that I should have three pawns of herbam vis, the remaining acorns were handed out and three were put into reserve. In the future, council decided that I would be given vis in autumn to make up for the fact that the Anu spirit has decided to stop giving me vis.

Towards the end of the season, Zepherus arrived with news for Astrius and then he had further news for us all. Apparently Damhain-Allaidh and a big army of clansmen from the wild north of Loch Legaen were on the move towards the border with Stonehenge tribunal. As such, any and all items made for this eventuality were to be transported to Cad Gadu immediately to equip the magi and grogs who would face him. Although he was moving in Autumn, it was expected that they would overwinter somewhere and then strike south in spring. Of mundane news, the Queen had signed the provisions of Oxford, however it was reported that she had done so unwillingly as it gave up a lot of the royal powers. News from the Levant was bad as it appeared that the mongol horde had destroyed the army of the Mamluks at the battle of Ain Jalut. Indeed the leader of the army was killed and with that his men lost heart and fled to be cut down by the swift horsemen. With the defeat of this huge army, the wealth and power that comes with it of the country of Egypt lay open to the Mongol's pillaging hordes.

Winter

It was a smaller council than usual as Husam had taken the items and potions we had crafted to Cad Gadu. I made an error of judgement and offered Erla my leap of homecoming potion but realised I was requested to be in Lydney this season and so had to ask for it back. This was a mistake and although I annoyed her with this I hope she can find it in her heart to forgive my small mistake. Erla was travelling by ship to Solis castle and I hope she will be able to return before any attack occurs as she might be trapped in the castle unable to escape. I went down to Lydney to learn the leap of homecoming spell formulaically. Lysimachus learnt the form of Intellego from the book. Astrius went to a war council of stonehenge at Cad Gadu.

At this council, many magi attended including my pater Luvidicus, Zepherus, Laurias, Faelon, Astrius, Husam and Praeca Edith. There they discussed the army that Damhain-Allaidh had gathered which numbered twelve hundred men and the possible routes of attack. There were three covenants close to this army: Giant's Stone, closest but not very defensible and thus would not be appealing to capture; Scafell, but for similar reasons was too open and thus if captured would give them a defensible base of operations; and the most likely place to capture was Borri-Tor covenant as it was in the form of a castle anyway and very defensible. Once captured, it would be very hard to recapture. The question arose that if Queen Eleanor met this army on the open field as seemed likely what magics or effects could be used as the enemy was under no restrictions to follow the oath and so we would be likely to lose such a battle. My pater was firm, however, and stated that the oath could not be bypassed no matter what the reason. This angered many of the magi present and the presented again and again the practicality of the situation hoping the consilium quaesitori would allow blatant magics to be used, but to no avail. The council broke up and some of the Magi stayed at Cad Gadu in preparation for the spring assault, wracking their brains trying to come with a solution for the conundrum that their oath and the situation had put them in.

The rest of the season past without note.
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