A Thorny Path to Tread
Twenty Ninth Day of the Eleventh Month 293 AC
The next report you read arrives at dawn, and not through any mortal agency, but through the Orphne Lord himself handing you a scroll of fine Yi Tish paper wrapped in blood red silk. At your questioning look, the lord of the dark fey shrugs. "One can find many things in the Goblin Market, precious tales and bottled dreams, shards of fortune, and broken prayers. It seems Crimson Lotus has an eye for practicality... in this at least."
As you read through the account of the former fey prince turned agitator, the reason for the tone becomes all too clear. Although he managed to rally the remains of his old court with some alacrity, or at least those of them willing and able to follow him into the life of a wandering troupe, the tale he was spinning quickly caught the attention of the Golden Seer's vassals. Despite being of the same kindred as the
fey lord you encountered in the Riverlands who warned of the dangers of wild magic, these were beings of a far less kindly disposition. Unable to act directly against one who had not technically broken the law of the court, but unwilling to let such dangerous mischief lie, they set upon Crimson Lotus a Mockery.
Where the Hunt tears at flesh, the Mockery tears at purpose, it bites and gnaws, rips and tears, the memory of older Dreams rises unbidden to mind, but there is nothing in its wake but hollow silence, and the fey lord's letter seems more concerned with venting fury at this new foe than explaining.
Thankfully, the dark fey lord had anticipated the need to comment upon the letter, likely why he was even here in person rather than having sent a more ordinary messenger. "It is a perilous thing to mock a tale new spun, for in so doing you might be caught within it, as in the case of that which you had Crimson Lotus spread. Being the evil fey that cheat and torment, why such would of course mock the notion of cooperation?"
"So they mock the storyteller," you guess. "It was an attack on Crimson Lotus himself, on his legitimacy in being the herald of such a message?"
"Indeed," the Orphne Lord confirms. "What right had one who dealt with devils, even at once removed, to speak of peace and harmony with mortals, they asked. Did he weep for them as they burned, or does he only care to bring peace with mortals now that mortals have bested him and he has tasted fear?"
That would explain why so much of his support from the Crimson Court seems to have evaporated, though to his credit Crimson Lotus did not take the setback and defections as cause for despair. He sought out fey of the Indigo Court, his old color, to speak of the worth of transformation of form and purpose, all the purer for being dictated in part by mortal will, and to the Green Court, nature warders and protectors, to recount how much stronger a true alliance of men and fey would be against the Lost and Forlorn. These efforts have been bearing some fruit of late, a firmer foundation he writes, and you are inclined to believe him.
In the end, you do not expect mortals to deliver successes from the first, so why demand it of the fey? You conclude in the end. This is, after all, one delay that costs you neither coin nor time from some more urgent task. Still, aid such as the Shadow Fey or even Glyra's Troupe could provide would not go amiss in the future, if you want to tip the scales.
What do you do next?
[] Check the Lys' Flesh-Forge's Feywild reflection
[] Meet a newly arrived envoy from Mantarys who carries several books he wishes to give into your keeping specifically
[] Find and deal with the wisps that caused you headaches in the Braavosi swamps
[] Meet with some of the backers of the Sothoryos expedition and offer some backing before they depart
[] Write in
OOC: Well that could have gone better, but then again it could also have gone a lot worse. He could be on the run with not one follower to his name or even killed in some suitably indirect way and needing a raising.
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