~o~
On Good and Evil
For more than a thousand years, men of Eria have based their understanding of right and wrong upon the notion of Man Supreme.
When his guardians were hard pressed, fighting the Great Enemy, Man stole the Secret of Creation from the Halls of the Gods, and marched to stand beside Gods and Elves. Together they were victoriuos.
The guardians, however, were dissatisfied. And I can understand why. This treachery, and the resentment that followed, lead to the wars on Gods and Elves, and the notion of Man Supreme.
And now, as we are facing the Exarch once again, we stand alone, because we killed the Gods, and we drove the Elves away.
As I broke a branch of the Two Trees, I realized that Man has his position within Creation, and that we must do our utmost to enhance it. Enhance Creation that is, not our position within it.
All acts, when judged as good or evil, must be valued on their effect on Creation, the continued evolution of Creation.
It is deeply problematic to base one's actions on a doctrine written out more than a thousand years ago, for a situation quite different from ours. We must not stagnate in these ancient doctrines. We must ensure the Progression of Man.
By stripping away all free thought and individual will, the Temple of Man Supreme and the Cabal of Pure Thought have devalued the Spirit of Man. And by searching out and killing off all magic, they are acting as Agents of the Deep. These Blind Men of Faith have no free will, but are simply following ancient orders, and are, in practice, hollow men committing Crimes against Creation.
Ai, ai. Galan is fast becoming a hard-liner. This is sure to have an effect on the so called "Blind Men of Faith".
ReplyDeleteWhat is the captain's thoughts on the consequences of breaking the seal?
It is true it was posted as a comment to the Last chapter published on February 27th. It was written, however, as a reaction to the Experience of the Two Trees, the previous chapter.
ReplyDeleteTo answer your question, the consequences will, no doubt, be disastrous. Especially for Pendrell. And I will be the first to acknowledge that none of us can know, to a full extent, the consequences of breaking the seal.
Had we attacked one of the Five Forts, they might have been spooked, and they would have sent men. Now they have to fight their war on two fronts. We do not have the time to fight a tiring war against these dark bastards. They have had their chances.
The one thing Bansel's grandfather and others told us the first time we went to face the Blackbloods, was that we must not hesitate, and we must show no mercy, because what we are facing, is True Evil. This is the truth. And we do not underestimate our enemy. Desperate times call for drastic measures. That is why, when we go to war, we bring the big guns.
I would like to point out, that the last time the Great Enemy was defeated, it was the combined efforts of Gods, Elves and Men that did the trick. To think that a handful of men can do the same now, is more than a little naive.
To quote Brother Augustus: "We have failed". We have failed to protect our world. The Gods and Elves were the Guardians. And this is why, following my theory of Good and Evil, the wars on Gods and Elves, were evil. They did not help Creation.
Now we stand alone. Against The Deep.
Except we don't. Anymore.
Hard-liner? Indeed.
You try the soft approach with The Deep. See how far you get.
So to sum up my answer to your question, the breaking of the seal has given us the opportunity to save Creation.
This has recently been published in Crondor:
ReplyDeletePeople of Eria,
In Mr. Galan's epistle he attacks the Great Order of Things, and he appears to be completely void of compassion for the many innocent souls his actions have condemned to the deepest suffering. He hides his ruthless quest for his own Ascencion behind thin rethorics, and proclaims himself a great hero and saviour, while thousands die to further his own agenda.
Among his many arguments he claims that, "By stripping away all free thought and individual will, the Temple of Man Supreme and the Cabal of Pure Thought have devalued the Spirit of Man."
Mr. Galan believes that CPT and TMS have stripped away the free will of Man, and that they cling to centuries-old doctrines, yet he offers no alternative but war. He seems to believe that letting arcane powers, ancient creatures, avatars and best-forgotten deities run rampant is the answer.
Does Mr. Galan believe that the masses are nothing but faceless, mindless cattle? The wizards refer to normals as Sleepers, as empty shells without the ability to understand their own good. perhaps it is no wonder then, that Mr. Galan shows no remorse for the suffering of the 531 souls he condemned when he, in the Corinthian village of Scutino, allowed a demonic avatar entry to the World of Man. He and his cabal of worlocks appears to have made a habbit of summoning such entities to do their bidding; in the Reconquest of the Colonies an entire city was sacrificed to the very same demon.
Further, there is also reasons to believe that he is behind the latest catastrophe, the annihilation of the Vale of Five Forts and the attacks on many farms, hamlets, villages and towns all over Pendrell. Again he summons demons to feast upon the flesh of Man.
How many souls will Mr. Galan sacrifice before his demonic masters are content?
Mr. Galan proclaims himself an enemy of the Exarch, and he seems to believe that he alone can guide Man to salvation. Assuming Mr. Galan's strategy yields victory, what is the future of mankind in the world he wants to create? Thralls of cruel masters who care for nothing but power over Creation, and fodder for their demonic servants?
The structures of society Mr. Galan so despises and attacks have supported growth, safety and prosperity for a thousand years; the world he wants to create is a world where ancient creatures and powerful magicians will battle for control over the masses. In the world of the wizards and their demonic servants, we, the Sleepers will toil and suffer to bring power to the masters in the tower.
There is but one flaw in the schemes of Mr. Galan and his cohorts: the Free Will of Man. Once already we have cast off the shackles of wizardry and worship. Do not rest easy, for the peasants may storm your tower yet, Master Galan.
Dr. Timothæus Black
Dear Doctor Black,
ReplyDeleteEsteemed Members of Parliament,
and All People of Pendrell.
I was very happy to hear of your response to my letter. And I am encouraged by the fact that we are discussing The Exarch, The Great Enemy.
You write:
"Mr. Galan proclaims himself to be an Enemy of the Exarch".
I can only read this to mean that you doubt that I am, and that you certainly are. If this is correct, if you are, as I am, an Enemy of the Exarch, then we have come a long way.
A Great Dark has risen on The Black Continent, and unless all of Man unite to stand against it, it will surely succeed in what it desires most, to destroy all of Eria, all of Argos.
Meanwhile, our sons and brothers, our fathers and uncles, our finest men, are being killed in a war between Erian nations. Can you not see who benefits from this? We are playing into the hands of The Enemy when we fight amongst ourselves, instead of standing shoulder to shoulder against the forces seeking to destroy our world.
I have the greatest belief in The Free Will of Man. I am deeply confident that the people of Pendrell, as well as their rulers, will see that the wiser course is not to wage war on our Fellow Men of Wezel, but to fight The Evil Blackbloods, The Orc and The Exarch, like our grandfathers did. Like our forefathers did before them.
As to your accusations against my person, dearest Doctor Black, you speak of things you know little about. "Reason to believe", you say. And because someone claims to have "reason to believe", somewhat or other, there is a warrant for my arrest. Not only that, they went after my whole family, and burned our home. Because of a rumour!
And still I have been lucky in this. Many have been less fortunate. Many have been killed. Pendrellians killed by Pendrellians. It fills me with The Deepest Sorrow and Grief. Riders are criss-crossing The Land, killing men and raping women and even young girls in the name of Presbytarianism. Because they have been to slow to convert. Members of Parliament will know, I am sure, that to change a nation's system of beliefs, it takes time. You cannot kill people for being slow. That is Evil.
These were Farmers and Fishermen. Proud Workers of the Land who laboured hard every day, to put food on all of our tables. Killed for no other reason than being slow. How is this helping Pendrell, let alone Argos?
I am not the one who should be defending myself.
Yet I will do. I can promise all of you, that I, Captain Gryff Galan, will come to Crondor to face these wrongful accusations against my person. I will stand trial. But right now there are more pressing matters at hand. We are at war. And I am not talking about war between neighbouring nations. I am talking of The War to Save Our World.
It is true that I witnessed The Horror of Scutino. But I am no demon worshipper. I am a Navy Captain. And this is what Captains and other soldiers do, they get into the battle. I take my ship across oceans to face the powers that stand against us. I FIGHT these dark powers, I do not call on them.
The Glencaellyn Rifles will tell you as much. I fought with The Bravest Men of My Hometown of Glencaellyn to take siege of the Fort now known as Fort Pius, on The Black Continent. Many men sacrifised their lives, for you to lead yours.
So my dear Doctor Black.
You sip your wine, converse and dine,
while others lay their lives on the line.
My company invented The Repeating Rifle, so that we could stand a chance against The Dark Orc.
And now Pendrell has turned these guns on Man.
What a sickening plan.
Sincerely,
Captain Gryff Galan
Good People of Reason,
ReplyDeleteHe will stand trial, Mr. Galan says, but only when it suits him. He dismisses the charges against him as mere rumours, and thus beneath him. I must wonder, has Mr. Galan's mind been corrupted, or is it his contempt for the mundane world that lets him put himself above his culture?
The so called rumours Mr. Galan so easily dismisses are those of several Corinthian gentlemen and commoners who saw Mr. Galan take his covenant into Scutino, and then leave the dead village behind.
It is the rumour of how Mr. Galan and his henchmen fought their way through lawful constables who tried to stop them, killing dozens.
It is the rumour of how Mr. Galan killed two Pendrellian officers in cold blood, one a captain on the deck of his own ship, the Suprize.
It is the rumour of the assassination of Dr. Murdoch with witchcraft and poison.
Here is my answer:
Nay, Mr. Galan, these accusations are factums, not hearsay. There are charges laid against you! You are summoned to stand trial for your crimes, before the people of Pendrell. Your continued contempt will not aid your cause, and so I beseech you, do not add more suffering to a world you profess to love.
If you are truly, as you claim, innocent and pure, you should have nothing to hide. "Only the guilty fears judgement" [Mach V/xxix].
Good people of reason, I am convinced that Mr. Galan will continue to hide amongst the corrupt oligarchs of Wezell, and continue to undermine the very fabric of our society, all the while proclaiming his innocence. His is the voice of the Enemy; honey-scented poison, each word concieved to push Man one step closer to the Abyss.
Such are the enemies of our world. They will appear fair, but their deeds will prove foul, and they will seduce you with power and simple sollutions. Whether Mr. Galan is indeed a Hollow Man, or whether he is merely seeking personal power is not for me to say. But know that as long as he insists on continuing his attacks on our society he will be hunted, as will all Enemies of Reason!
Know, good people of reason, that while Mr. Galan and his deciples may hide from the law, judgement and righteous retribution will seek them out. We, the people, have called him to stand trial. He has elected to hide.
Let it be known that there will be no succor for the corrupt wizards who set daemons upon our world. They must burn if the collective soul of Man is to be saved.
Therefore it is my solemn duty to announce that on 13 Primium, YE 1022 Mr. Gryff Galan was tried in absentia by a tribunal of Lectors. Evidence was presented and testimonies were heard, and Mr. Gryff Galan was found guilty on five charges of malevolent sorcery, of practice of dark arts, of colluding with avatars and outsiders, of willful conspiracy to corrupt the Soul of Man, of three and twenty cases of manslaughter, of poisoning, of piracy, of espionage, of desertion, of misleading those under his lawful command, of arson and of obstructing justice. He was sentenced to death.
All those who give him aid or assistance will be named Enemy of Man.
Sincerely and resolutely,
Dr. Timothæus Black, MP
The following persons have been found guilty of aiding Mr. Galan and sentenced to death in absentia:
Yolander van Zaar
Mandan Bansl
William Hawkins
Jeremiah Toombs
Grimm Galan
Gela Galan
Aranne Batshaven
Henrik Warhult