01.05, Godsday
Recuperation
02.05, Airday
Baron Constantin came with a great following of men and hounds, banners snapping gaily in the wind.
Departure
03.05, Fireday
Search, pillaging.
At night the camp is harried by malign spirits summoned by the dark masters of the ogre village. The faith and banner spirits of the men of Hamvalle see them off.
04.05, Earthday
Approach. Abjuration. Assault.
05.05, Waterday
Pillaging and departure.
06.05, Aetherday
Descent towards the valley.
07.05, Moonday
Return, coming to the Chateau de Flonde, partying.
08.05, Godsday
Conversation with Baron Constantine de Flonde.
09.05, Airday
The Baronet Francois and his cousin travel to Hamville. They meet Don Julio Iglesias de Pilamaxos at Hamville Castle, and later Baronet Tancred and Lady Hermengart, and Banneret Urson, all of the Hamvalle family, as well as Banneret Fromodin.
11.05, Fireday
Being unable to sway the Hamvalle family, the two Bois-Alsantes return to Castle Flonde. They seek out and speak with Aghart the Ostler, and return to speak further with him at midnight.
12.05, Waterday
Baronet Francois, Sir Jacques-Alphonse and Sir Patrick announce their intention of travelling to Fontetrine for the Tournament.
13.05, Aetherday
The three knights and their diminished entourage leave Flonde. They ascend to the pass in the morning, and start their descent after noon. On the way down, Patric's horse missteps, and he almost loses it down a canyon, but Jacques-Alphonse miraculously manages to calm it down. They see a seven-toed bear track in the lowlands, before reaching Castle Limbe. Here they dine with the commander, whom Patric insults.
14.05, Moonday
The entourage departs fairly early in the morning, and soon heads off the Cargan road and into the countryside.
They run into a peasant girl and some tax collectors. They decline to aid her in her plight.
Going through forested hills, they see what seems to be a huge white boar, at a distance, they investigate, but cannot find it.
They come out into the northern Moize farmland. Passing through a hamlet, they hear that many knights have been coming to the area.
The three and their entourage finally arrive at Gautier's horse farm. Here they meet four other knights.
15.05, Godsday - Beltane
The three knights are introduced to Richard Aurel, and instructed regarding the local situation. They are given elixirs, information and coursers, and head off towards the Jourdemar Forest. Pausing to eat in a hamlet, they then enter the forest, where they follow hunting paths for some time. In the afternoon, they run into the four knights they met the previous night, as well as four more knights, a squire and some servants. They share newly hunted venison.
Just as they are leaving, a white stag appears. All give chase, leaving behind servants and baggage. The stag hunt goes on for a long time, Francois and his fellow monocular knight, Eustache, leading the charge. When the knights lose track of the stag and once more consider the world at large, they are lost, and night is falling.
Night brings strife unparalelled. Sir Francois is preparing for a nights sleep when he suddenly feels compelled to go out into the forest to pray. He kneels down with his sword clasped in both hands in front of him and starts his vigil and his prayers to Terminus. Night has closed in around the little fire the few lost knights have made. Francois has not gone very far from the makeshift camp, but the darkness is heavy with only faint starlight. As he sits there, Francois gets a feeling that something or someone is approaching. He rises and proceeds carefully further out into the night. He calls out to the night and is answered by cold steel flying towards his face!
Sir Francois does his best to defend himself, however, the attacker seems to be both quicker and more powerful. Another blow to the face makes Francois' face run with blood. He is able to hold his ground, but no more. Roused by the clangour of battle, Patric stumbles to his feet and rushes to where his master is under attack. He rushes the assailant with his sword at the ready. Patrics attack is met with an excellent parry and his face is filled by shock and dismay. Then he is struck to the ground by a mighty blow.
Meanwhile, somewhere else in the forest, Jacques-Alphonse wakes with a feeling of dread. He gets quickly to his feet and starts to run throught the forest to aid his fellows. On the way he is waylaid by two men. They both attack the young knight, but they seem clumsy and he manages to avoid their weapons. All three become entangled and the melee continues on the forest floor. Jacques-Alphonse deals one of the attackers a blow to the arm and hacks the limb nearly clean off. After a short time Jacques-Alphonse gets to his feet. More attackers are closing in and J-A has to use all his skill to hold them at bay. With some amazing feats of swordsmanship he is able to vanquish his foes and proceeds towards where his companions are struggling.
Francois and Patric have not fared well. Patric is down with a bleeding wound in his side and Francois is down on his knees after receiving several harsh blows from his fierce attacker. His sword broken, Francois has to resort to pure strength. He grabs hold around the attackers waist and puts him in a bearhug. Almost simultaneously, Jacques-Alphonse comes rushing out of the woods. The young knight leaps up into the air and swings his sword against the now locked-down foe...
16.05, Airday
The knights break camp and follow a river towards civilization.
In the afternoon, they meet the Comtet of Kyron, Maurice, who is waiting for them nonchalantly. He treats them to a fine meal, and then follows them to the Chateau de Jourdemar.
Here they are greeted both as heroes and kingslayers.
17.05, Earthday
They rest.
18.05, Fireday
Recuperation.
In the evening, the three knights strike out against their hosts
Sieur Patric dons his helmet. The servant lies sprawling on the floor, a small pool of blood at the back of his head. The three knights move swiftly towards the stairwell. Being invisible feels strange to Patric. He does not enjoy lurking about like a spectre, but if it is necessary to achieve their goals, he will do it.
When Patric and Francois reach the first landing they find two guards. These had already been alerted by the noise made by JA. As the knights are all invisible, it is hard for them to determine what their companions are doing. Patric therefore opts to wait and see what happens. Not long after another guard is heard ascending the stairs. Standing beside the portal to the stairwell, Patric hopes to strike down the guard as he enters. But before he can do so the guard is slammed backwards and falls down the stairs. There is no choice but to follow, hoping that none of the knights collide. On the ground floor there are more guards and some dogs. These are disposed of with some haste, abeit quite merrily. One guard actually manages to escape the room only to be knocked down in the adjoining hallway. The knights are able to regroup and move together towards the chapel.
The chapel is guarded by four sentinels, all heavily armoured. Two of them are of the Royal Guard, the other two belong to the Archepiscopal Guard. None of the fellows knows where his comerades are, and, in addition, Patric and Francois crash into each other as they enter the room. This leaves Patric on the floor, directly in front of a snarling dog. The melee is hopelessly chaotic. The three knights devoted to the Archduke try to avoid striking eachother while also hoping to vanquish their foes quickly, before more guards arrive. A new weapon is introduced when Francois utilises a bench to strike at the guards.
After much carnage, bravado and spiritual harrowing, lay their hands on the royal sword.
The three knights flee, Patric bearing away Francois southwestwards, into the Jordemar forest whilst Jacques-Alphonse flees with the king's sword to the north, appropriating a boat and drifting down the river.
19.05, Waterday
Jacques-Alphonse awakens under weeping willow trees, and with some awkwardness climbs to the shore and heads south and west, hoping to cross the mountains eventually. In the afternoon, he falls asleep, exhausted, under an apple tree.
Patric, meanwhile, heads southwards in the forest, hiding his tracks as he goes.
Gautiers henchmen find Jacques-Alphonse and after some argument take him along into the small forest to the south.
Patric eventually finds a resting place in a a charcoal-burners sod hut, and tends to Francois' wounds as best he can. Francois regains consciousness and is much dismayed.
Bimble, the grumpy gnome, appears, and takes the two knights from the forest to the nearest village, where they meet Gautier and some of his men. The hemphead guarding the village raises the alert at Castle Jordemar, and the men flee south into the forested hills. They ride continuously on horses fed drugs by Gautier. Patric loses his horse and nigh breaks his neck after an encountering an ill-fated badger hole.
20.05, Aetherday
While Silver and the henchmen lead Jacques-Alphonse safely towards the forested hill north of Fonetrine, Gautier's party, riding with a trail of blood and broken horses, are trailed by twin search parties by the time they catch up with Silver.
Jacques-Alphonse offers the royal sword to Francois, with astounding consequences.
The recombined fellowship are taken through the hills by Gautier and his men, doggedly followed by the Archbishop's men. Francois has twin accidents with his horse, the latter robbing him, mercifully, of consciousness.
Jacques-Alphonse fights Sir Leonide "Le Tygre" de Moize to a standstill.
At night Silver and Jacques-Alphonse are sent out to find Captain Agell of L'Esperance and arrange a rendezvous near the estuary of the Nimèle river, while the larger party heads westwards to the rendezvous point under pursuit.
They cross the river with some difficulty and enter Fonetrine disguised as sailors.
Agell quickly gets his ship and men ready, but not fast enough to escape detection. His chances of a stealthy escape ruined, he has his men fire at everything in range, setting much of the harbour on fire. The ship sails away under bombardment, but is still seaworthy as it slips downriver.
The ship picks up Gautiere, the two unconscious knights, and the surviving henchmen. There is an affray of arms with pursuers, and a lot of quarrels are fired.
21.05, Moonday
L'Esperance reaches open sea at dawn. Captain Agell masterfully eludes all pursuit, but some ships give chase about eight miles behind. Francois is wretchedly seasick, Patric is soothed by opium, Jacques-Alphonse hears tales of the sea. "Silver" brings bad luck. Dolphins, heralding good luck, are sighted.
22.05, Godsday
The wind gradually dies down and L'Esperance finds itself becalmed in foggy weather.
23.05, Airday
Maurice and Bimble appear in a boat of bone. The sorcerer gives navigational advice and cryptic warnings. Captain Agell attempts to sink them, and the boat disappears in a cloud of mist and smoke.
The three knights confer over their mission.
24.05, Earthday
They sail north, to Eloreville, under difficult wind conditions.
25.5, Fireday
The three knights disembark from L'Esperance, and head inland. They are intercepted by a lance of Hounds, who are doubtful of their claimed identity, but take them to Castle Elore.
Met the Arch-Duchess, travelled towards Domun.
27.5, Aetherday
Crossed the Domun. Arrived at the Arch-Duke's camp in the evening. He was given the sword, explanations and confessions.