Quoted By:
<span class="mu-i">“They say they can be killed. But even those brave souls that have done so have never had the body for long.”</span> Your expression is grim. And always, always those knights pay for their heroic deeds in their own blood or that of their kin. If nothing else, the Dread Lords remember. And whether it takes a generation or more, they ultimately have their apparent thirst for vengeance sated.
<span class="mu-i">“The front troops and their lieutenants of that dread realm.”</span> Father Towbrya nods glumly, bringing out a book wrapped carefully in leather. <span class="mu-i">“There are tales of worse still from those concerted attempts to push them back during the crusades, but I’ve not dissembled that. A wider net must be cast for what is to be learned there, and a finer sieve to sift fact from fantasy.”</span>
<span class="mu-i">“We must know our enemy.”</span> You agree with a nod. <span class="mu-i">“But what is it then that you have uncovered?”</span>
Father Towbray passed you the tome, surprisingly light. <span class="mu-i">“I received this from a friend of mine in the Aethenaeum.”</span>
The man spots your raised an eyebrow and shrugs, acknowledging the at the strangeness of the notion that this hardline Reclaimant priest has contacts within that font of foreign knowledge.
<span class="mu-i">“A childhood friend. A priest ostensibly, but more in love with books than God. He left behind his parish and a promising future at a monastery in Montbrun to further his studies here.”</span>
<span class="mu-i">“He doesn’t sound like your type.”</span> You dare a little good-humoured dig at your friend and confidante.
<span class="mu-i">“We had a falling out, before he left.”</span> Father Towbray admits tersely. <span class="mu-i">“But I viewed my visit here as good a reason as any to rekindle old friendships. In the spirit of Reginae’s forgiveness, you know.”</span>
<span class="mu-i">“The Aethenium let you take this from their treasure trove?”</span> You handle the book carefully, hesitant to thumb the pages.
<span class="mu-i">“It’s his own work, from his home. The man has an obsession with heraldry, foreign and domestic. I think he’s writing an essay on the cultural distinctions between certain…”</span> The priest catches himself trailing off. <span class="mu-i">“Anyway, this is the page you should see.”</span>
<span class="mu-i">“A red wolf on a sea of grey. Yes, this is symbol of House Ardenne.”</span> You had heard it said that the adoption of the colour red in their symbol, the same as the royal colours, was seen as a challenge to the seat of power in Aubrey. The Night of Three Sisters made that rivalry a moot point. <span class="mu-i">“What of it?”</span>
<span class="mu-i">“Look at the last entry.”</span>
The page depicts a similar heraldry set, but with the colour inverted. Instead of a wolf rampant it is a wolf’s head, a black wolf on a sea of red. A cadet branch then? No, perhaps an adoption of the family colours much like your own flair on the House Andrei heraldry of the bear.
<span class="mu-i">“Towbray…”</span> The frown in your eyebrows is gradually being matched by the frown on your face. <span class="mu-i">“What am looking at here?”</span>
[2/3]
