Tyndale's Revelation

The Never Ending Quest - Episode 14966

Every person who testifies under oath is a witness. You are the sole judges of the believability of a witness and the weight to be given the testimony of each witness. In determining the believability of a witness you may consider anything that has a tendency to prove or disprove the truthfulness of the testimony of the witness… from the Canon Ordinal under the heading Evaluation of Evidence

"Alright, I confess. I know you’d have found out the truth sooner or later." The remark of the now standing Tyndale drew all attention to him.

"What is the meaning of this?" said Duke Dred eyeing his mage.

There was much stirring in the hall. But before it could get out of hand Urlathe spoke, "Silence. Brother Tyndale of the Oaks, you act now to confess a thing of which we need be privy? Poor choice of timing." The mage looked as if he wanted to die, while the archmage looked as if he was capable of doing just that to him. "Honorable Duke Dredrik D’Honaire of Suffex," he continued. "This unexpected outburst needs further delving into, but…not here. We shall retire to our conference room and inquire as to the nature of this statement. We beg you all to remain here while we do so. It may be a while, it would be prudent to have food and drink brought so as to ease any discomfort."

The Duke looked at Urlathe and nodded. He looked at Tyndale and shook his head. Then he called for the majordomo Pomfret and soon food and drink was brought to those assembled.


The seven Archmages of the Order of the White Hand sat about the round table and stared at their fellow mage Tyndale. Urlathe eyed the lower mage with a keen look; Lord Mage Urlathe, Urlathe the Tender, Urlathe Palantar, Urlathe the Expunger. Yes, he had many titles and even though he was the current Speaker of the Council, among his colleagues he was simply one of seven, an equal among them. The others were these; Alexander, Thule, Orkney, and Faith, Ursula, Britainnie. Each was an Archmage, each was considered one of the most powerful persons in all of Allaria. Tyndale was not even close to their stature.

"What foolishness is this, Brother Tyndale?" asked Urlathe.

The man looked with a despairing eye at the seven who surrounded him. "Foolishness? Yes, hah, hah…a good joke, no?" He was blabbering, he was terrified, and rightly so. "The girl did nothing wrong, it was I. I did it, not the Lady Rowena, oh by the Maker of the Hill, I never knew what she would find."

"Stop jabbering!" commanded Ursula. "What did you do?"

"I…I fashioned a blood compass." The seven did not scream or yell, the roof did not fall in, the very earth did not shake. Tyndale’s fears bore no fruit and so he breathed a bit easier as he continued. "It was the day after we learned of Lord Fred’s death [7090]. She was so inconsolable, so pained with sadness. Partly it was in hearing that her brother was dead, partly it was in hearing there was no body, no confirmation. I knew that there was one way of confirming it; the blood compass. And so I did it, with a little of her blood I did it. I thought the damned thing would sit motionless, but it moved, it moved! And then, curse of curses, the Lady up and left after her brother, following the thing which I had made. And so I confess to my transgression." Then he stopped and waited.

Urlathe and the other six sat without comment for a long while. Then Urlathe nodded to Thule, the One who Judges, it was he who spoke. "It is decreed in the fifth rule of the Amendments to Propriety, that the one who follows not the judgments of the Council will be stricken from the Order and confined to a room for seven years at which time he will be released as a servant of the Order." Tyndale winced at the thought of such imprisonment. "Yet the tenth command in the Book of Consequences states that a mage who usurps a responsibility not his own and uses the Arte in discord must be left speechless, eyeless and without his left toe." Tyndale caught his breath and nearly fainted. "But in the Code of Rightful Acts our prior benefactors left us with this, 'the one who - in compassion- makes a mistake is not to be dealt with harshly.'"

"And yet look at this 'mistake'," said Ursula. "He fashioned an artifact that uses the blood of a human; this is not acceptable, this is not allowed. I cannot quote Law as our brother, the One who Judges, but I do know that those who fall into the dark ways must be disciplined strictly, and permanently."

"And yet, dearest sister," said Faith. "It was not so long ago that such an artifact was quite permissible, if not tasteful [7090]."

"Our Law grows even as we do," said Thule. "There was good cause to censure the blood-spells, yet still, the facts in this case run counter to what that cause was."

"Though our brother acted in no malice," said Alexander the Young. "Still, he chose to break a rule. And though he thought no wrong could occur, let us look at the consequences of his act. The Duke and Lady Duchess suffered the absence of their daughter; they suffered the absence of a number of Guard who could have been well employed elsewhere; they endured the thought of the possible death of their daughter, so soon after the death of their son. These are the consequences to the House D’Honaire, the House to whom Tyndale vowed loyalty! And what of the other consequences? The attacks on Lady Rowena’s life. The appearance of this man Denom. The appearance of great magic in the Tumbar Pass. Look to these consequences and see if he deserves our compassion!"

"You argue forcibly, but in error, dearest brother," said Thule without any gentleness. "Though the pain suffered by the House D’Honaire is rightly the result of Brother Tyndale, the other events are not. In fact, we should praise the odd confluence of Providence and Luck. If it were not for the compassion of Brother Tyndale then our Lady Rowena would not have left us, and then, perhaps, it would’ve taken longer for us to find and seize this man Denom. And whether the Emerald Flame stems from this man Denom or not, it has no relation with the blood compass given to the Lady Rowena."

"And so what is your recommendation?" asked Urlathe.

Thule, the One who Judges, answered, "For breaking our code he must be punished, for hiding his transgression he must be punished, for announcing his transgression in the company of those who are not privy to the business of the Order he must be punished. Yet for showing compassion to a daughter of the House to which he vowed loyalty he is to be praised, and for not continuing his charade of innocence any longer he is to be praised. Following the rules and commands of our Order, it is my recommendation that Brother Tyndale be sanctioned for one year and four months, he is to be allowed free reign within the Tower of Ganthet but will not be permitted to leave its grounds. Though this leaves the House D’Honaire without a mage, that shall not lessen the sanction against Brother Tyndale. After his sanction, Brother Tyndale will be allowed free reign within Caemlyn and the King’s Demesyne but only under the companionship of a Watcher; this shall last for five years and two months. Only after a total of six years and six months shall Brother Tyndale be given free reign of his person within the lands of Allaria."

Urlathe looked at the others and waited. Their responses were swift; all were in agreement, although Ursula commented that she would have had the wayward brother spend his time in Ganthet as a servant to the stablemen. This was not amended to his punishment. A very shaky and drained Brother Tyndale was then removed from the chamber, a messenger was sent to the Duke explaining that though this one detail had been addressed the Council would now take on the issue of Denom, and a maid was sent for in order to bring cheese, meats and ale to the Council. Hours had already passed without a meal and no doubt the next series of discussions would not be shorter than the first series of testimonies.


Seven persons sat around the round table; each was an Archmage, each was considered one of the most powerful persons in all of Allaria. Yet power meant responsibility.

"Now that this most unexpected revelation helps us to understand the motivations of the daughter of Suffex," said Faith of Hill to Urlathe of Heven. "We must now turn to the man who claims to be the son of Suffex. Though now we know of this compass which sent the Lady Rowena on her dangerous errand, this does not prove without a doubt that this man is indeed Frederigo. Too many questions still do not have definite answers. Who is this man? What is this man? Why is he here?"

"Why indeed!" said Alexander of the Winds. "He stated that his reason for coming was to return home. He stated that he had private news for the Duke D’Honaire, whom he continually refers to as father. He stated that he had much news gained through his travels that needed to be told to the King Exultaine, and which he did share –so he said- with us today."

"Aye," began Orkney. "His reasons for coming reveal his personhood. He shows himself a loyal child of the King, a loyal son of the Duke, a goodly brother, an honorable companion. He truly believes that he is Lord Frederigo D’Honaire, Dragon-Slayer."

"Yes, yes," quipped Ursula impatiently. "Though he believes that he is Frederigo, his belief is not proof in and of itself that he is Frederigo. And that doubt leads us back to what kind of creature this man may be."

"We now know that the blood compass pointed to him as the true bearer of D'Honaire blood, and we have gone over the reports of Oyael," commented Urlathe. "We know that this man before us is more than what he himself realizes and yet less. What can you add to this, Quiet One?" Urlathe and the others turned to look at the woman with icy-blue eyes and long red hair.

Britainnie, the Quiet One, the Silent Watcher, Quick-Fingered and Slow- Tongued. She took in a breath, exhaled, and looked at her compatriots. "While he spoke I probed; a fidget here, a twitch there, nothing that would be noticed. I probed and I breathed and I opened my eyes. What I beheld was… disconcerting… and it confirmed the workings of Oyael; he is of and not of the Duke’s son. The brain and the cranium which encases it, his ears and eyes and tongue, his esophagus too, but not much else. I probed deeper, inhaled as much as I could, opened my eyes wider than I ever had need. I looked for his spirit, his essence. This is not easy, my friends. I am tired." She stopped then, but the others did not say a word. They waited, and they knew they would wait for as long as needed. It was rare that the Quiet One spoke, to disturb her or rush her was a mistake monumental. She finally resumed. "I am not sufficient in the Arte to ascertain whether this man has the nature of the Duke’s son. But I can see that he is strong in charity and full of mercy, and saturated in misery and fear. It is misery and fear that surrounds him, covers him, engulfs him, yet it is not of him, not part of his true nature." Then she ceased speaking and the others let her rest.

"Fear is guilt," said Alexander.

"And guilt is fear, is it not?" said Thule with a gleam in his eye. "Do not bring your circular logicisms here, young one. There is fear in this man, but that does not denote guilt of any kind. Guilt is only one possibility among many. Perhaps he fears this questioning, or perhaps he fears the questioners. Perhaps he fears that which he refuses to tell to no one but the Duke of this land. Perhaps he carries fears garnered from his journey, would any of us be unaffected if we encountered a dragon or monsters or a banshie-witch? His fear is an unsettled question, and we must find the right words to coax out the answer."

"Yet too there is misery," said Faith. "Misery, sadness, desolation. These are the emotions of a man who has seen much and done much. It could well be in connection with the battle at Batlan, the magic which transpired, and his true involvement therein. That is the matter which most concerns me at this juncture."

"But, sister," replied Orkney. "The Emerald Flame is at the end of this man’s arcane journey. First we must look at the beginning. Let us eat some, and then return to the question of an encounter with a dragon—our tomes have been brought here, we must look to our books to see what is written. And what of Doctor Vincent Priceless? He has not been seen nor heard from for over two decades, our Lord Knight would never have had cause to learn of him here in our schools, so perhaps this part of the tale is true. And if true, what then did this encounter play in Denom’s journey?"

"And let us not forget," added Ursula. "That this man admits to having become a forsaken creature of darkness! Never in my life have I heard a man admit to it without the fear of the heated iron. This strange man admits to many transformations, transmutations, and alterations all of which are repugnant to a civilized person. Even if we take this man as Frederigo of Suffex, look at what has happened to him! He is definitely not the same Dragon-Hunter who left Caemlyn but over two months ago."

  1. And so the Council continued to debate the fine details of the stories told by the man Denom and the others who had accompanied him, the details and the consequences which flowed from them.

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1/11/2001 4:56:48 PM

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