[center][b][u]~I Left The Hillfolk's Dirt Roads for the Cobblestones of Candlean~[/u][/b][/center]

As a child, Tanda had heard stories of the cities of Taln, the kinds of places she passed on her journey south toward the headquarters of Candaeln. The Patriarchs considered any Hold with more than a thousand souls within it too large in the eyes of the Green God. And, the Patriarchs said, such cities were vile in the eyes of the Green God. And though there were many cities in Taln, none was more vile than Aimlenn in their stories. The people lived lives of squalor and sin. The poor slept in the gutters, the elderly left to die by the young, the King and Queen sealed within their fortress castle, and plague running rampant through the streets like so much filth in the roads. And this was to say nothing of the morals of the citizens themselves. Gamblers, thieves, layabouts, soiled doves, and false prophets by the thousands. Not a single soul was worth saving within those walls, and one day the Green God would wipe it from the land while the Hillfolk in their Holds would be left in his favor for their faith.

As the trading boat [i]Mayon's Grace[/i] slid into the riverside docks with its loads of furs and fish, at every step of her journey, Tanda was not surprised to find these descriptions of Taln's cities were largely false. Poverty and banditry existed, but they were not all powerful forces that ruled Taln. Besides, half of the things the Patriarchs preached were proven to be lies before the children of the Hillfolk had arrived at the Temple of Mayon back in Garethen.

Tanda had no experience with being a sailor at all, and she did as she had for most of the voyage down the river- kept out of the way of the ship's sailors and watched the people on the shore for any ne'er-do-well types, ready to protect the sailors and their cargo. As lines were tied down and the oars and sails stowed away at her final destination, the Outer Ward of Aimlenn, she was practically vibrating with excitement. 

She held her sling at the ready, watching the citizens in the riverside district up until the moment the captain presented Tanda with her pay and released her from the ship's service. If Tanda's father had ever known she would take a journey to Candaeln, Tanda would have been locked in the house and never let loose. But if he'd known she would have been paid by a [i]woman[/i]- a woman captain of her own merchant boat no less- she could only imagine a burning stake within the courtyard of her old hill hold to know how that would have turned out. The captain, Ailsa, was kind enough to point out the compound of Candaeln by its flags over the rooftops of the city.

The road through the Outer Ward in the early morning was somewhat congested, full of peddlers and artisans on their way to do a day's work. Navigating the roads and rivers of Aimlenn was difficult enough, but walking to Candaeln was a simpler affair by far if she stayed on the path. And the one time she did get turned around, a local Justicar was more than willing to put her back on the path.

So it was that Tanda came upon a gate to the walled compound of the Iron Rose Knights. The rose bushes outside the walls were a dead giveaway, but having been pricked by thorns in the wild before and seeing the needle length thorns being left to grow in those bushes, she had to smile and wonder how many thieves or attackers would want to wander through those without anything short of plate mail on.

The smile on her face quickly died when she heard the boisterous, loud, and demanding voice of a man with authority in the courtyard ahead of her, marching into another building with his entire retinue.

Trouble, she had no doubt. Not the kind that ended with someone dead. Definitely the kind that ended with someone flat on the floor.

Tanda took a deep breath, straightened her shepherd's shawl, considered the signed wax-sealed note that was still in her satchel, and stepped across the threshold into the courtyard. And didn't feel much different on the other side. Except that she was in the presence of dozens of what she assumed were Rose Knights and the squires, attendants, hangers on- someplace a country shepherdess wasn't supposed to be.

"Excuse me," she asked one young man- [i]man? Granma always said Rose Knights were women. What else was she wrong about?[/i] 

[hider="I'm, ah, looking for someone to give this to."][i] To the illustrious Captain of the Iron Rose Knights, her Lieutenants, her Majesty the Queen, and his Lordship our King,

I hope that this letter finds you well. I can only imagine that the runners have been arriving with weekly frequency from the Hillfolk's region. The Rose Knight appointed to oversee the situation in the Hills has found the last Patriarch, and the armsmen have long since been sent back to their towns and garrisons. The Patriarch's remaining followers are faced with exile, outlawry, or integration into the kingdom.

I write to you on behalf of the young woman bearing this note, signed and sealed by my own hand as a Priestess of Mayon. Our temple took it upon ourselves to rehabilitate and educate the children of the Hillfolk in the true ways and laws of Taln, not the lies and injustices the Patriarchs instilled within them. I formally report that this measure is well underway. The girl children learn their letters and numbers with a fervor I have never seen among our acolytes. The boy children are stubborn, but are being instructed in the true idea of Taln- that both men and women are equals both before the law and in our culture. Within another year, I may judge our work complete.

This particular child, Tanda, has shown remarkable resilience and intellect. She was secretly instructed by her grandmother in numbers and letters. Moreover, she bears claim to a suit of armor within the vaults of the Iron Rose Knights. One Lady Diane di Silva was sister to Tanda's great grandmother, Hera di Silva, who cast off the Silva name upon marrying into the Hillfolk tribes. Diane died childless, while Hera's line continued. It is my belief that Tanda would be an excellent candidate to reclaim this armor and enlist as Squire or Blade within the Iron Rose Knights. She has a healthy respect for authority that roots itself in justice, a stubbornness that saw her resisting the Patriarchs of the Green God and their poisonous culture from a young age, and a physical hardiness brought about by living on the edges of Taln's borders with few of our cities' comforts. 

She will not be a meek puppy, but will need guidance. The Hillfolk are a reclusive people and half of the stories she has been told about Taln are lies, while the rest are lies mixed with truth. Be patient with her if she shows ignorance to the laws and customs of Taln. She will learn happily.

~ Signed and sealed, Marion Ysmalt of Mayon's Holy Order, the Temple of Garethen[/i][/hider]