The Hall of the Silver Serpent was buzzing with activity. The Knights had gathered at the request of Lady Amandine and were awaiting her presence when an unknown voice called out from the back of the Hall.

“The wolves of Britannia, assembled to hunt a bear…”

Our eyes turned to regard the stranger, and, as he strode swiftly across the Hall, he began to tell us of when he had killed his first bear. Having won the bear in a tournament, he had set it free so he could hunt and kill it. One could see the twisted glee in his eyes as he recounted the joy of seeing a predator’s eyes turn to eyes of fear. The topic abruptly changed as the man asked about Lady Amandine, telling us, with a hint of sarcasm, that it was “a pity her calling was to lead Knights….Instead of….Other things.” The man finally introduced himself as Sir Hethe Idem, from a new Order of Knights known as the Poor Fellowship of the Chamber of Virtue. He spoke of how this Fellowship was dedicated to maintaining unity in the realm, that it was their duty to lead the rest. When asked about the abduction of Yusef Ad-Din and Theresa, he denied having anything to do with it, stating that he would never resort to a tactic such as kidnapping. He then told us that the Fellowship is based in the Chamber of Virtue, and if we wished to experience true unity, worth and trust, then we may seek them out. “You will be hearing from us again… Good luck… Hunting bears…” With that last comment he departed.

Upon her arrival, Lady Amandine wasted no time in calling ten of her Knights to the stage. She declared that these individuals would be put up for special commendation for their dedication over the last year and a half and for going above and beyond in their duties as Knights. “I have nothing for them tonight, but soon there may be something special for them. You folks can return to your seats.”

Lady Amandine then told us that she had received word from the Guards of Yew that some bodies had been discovered and it was unclear if it should be treated as a crime or an animal stack. We were told the scene was in far western Yew, and we were to investigate and report back with our findings. With little more than rumours and a location, we set out.

After several minutes of searching, the first grisly scene was discovered. The mangled body of what had once been a man was lying under a tree to the north of the house, alongside a winter cloak. Inside was another body, this time a woman. A spear also lay off to the side. It wasn’t long before shouts could be heard of a blood trail heading south, and at the end could be found a monk’s robe and a peasant’s dress. There was talk of the robe possibly belonging to one of the monk’s at the winery, and so the investigation continued.

“Welcome to Ye Olde Winery.”

At the winery, the Knights were greeted by Father Simon. When asked about the bodies, the Father at first brushed it off as a random animal attack, however when told of the discovery of the monk’s robe, we were informed that one monk, Rieb Adre, had gone missing.  Father Simon mentioned that several months ago, Rieb had come to him and stayed for a time, praying and meditating, but he’d had a troubled soul. The Father insisted that Rieb was a good man, but that he had met a girl, and as that was not welcome, he had returned to his home with her. He told us that the girl’s name was Tarra Edels, and he believed that they were friends with the butcher in Minoc. With that new information we bid the Father farewell and went on our way.

At first the trail seemed to end in Minoc. There was nothing of importance to be found at the butcher’s and no real clues to be seen. The Knights searched for a while longer before a badly burned journal was discovered in a nearby building. The journal belonged to Rieb, and what little that was still legible spoke of how he’d met a girl in Yew, the daughter of a butcher. It mentioned how he’d resolved to tell her about his curse. It went on to say that now there are two, that her hunger is terrifying and that though he is her master, he is afraid of her and that animals would no longer sate her hunger. Many pages after were destroyed, but there was one more passage; it spoke of how she wanted children, wanted their cave full of dire bear cubs, and how he believed that she didn’t understand the danger.

Back in Yew, a ledger book was found in the butcher shop that contained notes written by Tarra Edels. The most interesting ones spoke of how she enjoyed eating raw meat and of a secret place she’d found to the east; a place full of catacombs and ancient chambers where you could hide something if you wanted to.

Those among us who resided in Yew were quick to direct the others to the Yew Crypts, the place Tarra had most likely been writing about. The crypts seemed quiet at first, but we were quickly assaulted by various undead creatures as we travelled through the crypts, including: Ancient Shield Maidens, Ancient Dragon Kings, Ancient Stallions, Ancient Knights and Ancient Viziers. At the end of one of the many passages, a flight of crumbling stone stairs led to a chamber that contained the dire bear cubs. The Knights attacked without delay, but even being outnumbered, the bear cubs fought back viciously.

When the last cub had fallen, it was evident that the mother and father weren’t going to appear. After some deliberation, we headed back to Jhelom to report our findings to Lady Amandine as ordered.  She seemed surprised at the news that there had been cubs found, and happy that they had been dealt with. Though frustrating that the mother and father hadn’t been apprehended or killed, it was agreed that they’d appear and be dealt with soon enough now that their cubs were dead.

On a lighter note, many of our dedicated Knights received a well-earned promotion after the night’s mission. I’d like to extend my congratulations to those promoted and also remind everyone that you MUST be in attendance at roll call to receive merit towards a promotion.

In all, it was another successful mission; however, there always seems to be questions left unanswered. Sir Hethe Idem for example. What was the purpose of his visit to the Hall of the Silver Serpent, and what part will the Fellowship play in these dire times?  Or Rieb and Tarra, where were they as their cubs were slain?

Faeryl Tyr’athem                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Atlantic News Reporter
Knight Major of the Knights of the Crux Ansata