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Itinerant: A Pilgrim Quest

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[x] A desperate in search of a miracle.

I like this one best. I like searching for a miracle to save the house.
 
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0.1 That Damned Roof
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    • So, a desperate in search of miracle won. I am pleasantly surprised by the voter turnout, hope it is a good sign.


    0.1: That Damned Roof
    ​
    Reda son of Rada returned from the king's wars later than usual, in the octave of the feast of Saint Arnulf, late into the harvest days. He brought little in line of booty and no captives, but instead he carried home an open wound in his side, and news of defeat. The warriors led by the king's son were ambushed by the treacherous Seafarers, and in spite of many deeds of valiant defiance and pious might, they were defeated, and a full third of them slain or captured, among them Rida and Ryda, two sons of Reda who had marched with him when the summons to ost were sent. You wept at the news and prayed for their safety and deliverance, while Reda promised that the next year, the king would certainly defeat the Seafarers once and for all, and they would be rescued and returned to the clan, safe and sound.
    ​
    Summer passed quickly, and winter came early, and it was for you a time of mourning. The wound on Reda's side would not close and would not mend, and he swore that it will not heal until his sons are all safe. Then Erdia, who was the wife of Ryda and pregnant with his child came to the term, but contracted a terrible fever and passed away, and the child followed his mother into the embrace of the Saints. Then Maga, who was your younger sister, also fell deathly ill and died of fever on the eve of the feast of Saint Corvo the Exile. Then came the time of the thaw and Rada, youngest son of Reda, went hunting in the woods, and was found three days later by Arno, a red-fletched arrow in his back. A great lamentation was held when his corpse was brought in, and Reda raised himself from his bed of misery to tear at his hair and robes over the corpse of his son and said: "Let the day perish on which I was born, and the night that said 'a man is conceived''. And as his son was consigned to the ground, he returned to lay on his furs and did not raise from them no more. And Ethal, a priest from the city of Grace who presided over the rites said: "You must have sinned against the Saints that they punish you so" and he said: "Praised be their holy name!" and over the grave of your brother, you praised them, for they are just.
    ​
    But it was not until that damned roof started leaking that you had made your decision.
    ​
    Early one morning, you saw water pool near the chest where the velvets brought by Reda from wars were stored. And you noticed a hole in the roof, where a shingle had rotten. Old Marga noticed it too and wailed: "Oh, it is a sign that the house will not stand! Woe is our name!". You agreed with her, but went on to search someone who could patch the roof. But your brothers were dead or captured, servants dispersed and father bed-ridden. And when you had complained about that to old Marga, she wailed again: "Oh, what can we do against the decrees of the Saints? If they will the house to fall, let it fall, and if they send a miracle to save it, let it be saved". You agreed with her. But truth be told, something in her stance struck you as dishonest, so remembering how your brother once did it, you went ahead patched the rotten shingle yourself, even if roughly. And when Marga opened her mouth to give you a word of reproach, you sighed and said: "If it takes a miracle, fine, I will walk to the end of the land, where the First Saint lies, and bring one back". Perhaps your voice did not come off as pious enough, or there was too much anger in it, but Marga said: "Oh, but you must be mad! Your father will never let you do such a thing", so you sighed and walked to where your father slept by the fire, covered in furs and woke him and told him about your plan.
    ​
    He listened to you quietly, sent you away, and pondered until the sun went down. Then, he summoned you, to ask one question, for it brought him pain to speak: "What makes you think you can walk to the city of Step, that is so far away?"
    ​
    And you swayed him with your words:
    ​
    [ ] "For I am wise. Do you not remember that Ethal taught me the letters? I speak the language of Liefs, and the language of the White Wall. With that, I will walk to the city of Step."
    ​
    [ ] "For I am strong. Do you not remember that I fought off warrior Varo, son of Rivo, who tried to abduct me, until my brothers could assist me? With that, I will walk to the city of Step."
    ​
    [ ] "For I am crafty. Do you not remember that I learned tricks and cunning from Rida, who was next only to Saint Corvo in his wits? With that, I will walk to the city of Step."
    ​
    [ ] "For I am pious. I put my fate in the hands of the Saints, for it is theirs to do with it as they please. I don't need more to walk to the city of Step."
     
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    • [X] "For I am wise. Do you not remember that Ethel taught me the letters? I speak the language of Liefs, and the language of the White Wall With that, I will walk to the city of Step."

    As a traveling noble, or just traveling far distances in general, it's critical that we know how to talk in other peoples' languages and avoid offending them because of our ignorance of their culture. Otherwise, we'll find outselves thrown out of cities, stoned for crimes, and charged high prices.
     
    [X] "For I am pious. I put my fate the hands of the Saints, for it is theirs to do with it as they please. I don't need more to walk to the city of Step."
     
    [X] "For I am wise. Do you not remember that Ethel taught me the letters? I speak the language of Liefs, and the language of the White Wall With that, I will walk to the city of Step."
     
    [X] "For I am pious. I put my fate the hands of the Saints, for it is theirs to do with it as they please. I don't need more to walk to the city of Step."
     
    [X] "For I am wise. Do you not remember that Ethel taught me the letters? I speak the language of Liefs, and the language of the White Wall With that, I will walk to the city of Step."
     
    [X] "For I am pious. I put my fate the hands of the Saints, for it is theirs to do with it as they please. I don't need more to walk to the city of Step."
     
    [X] "For I am wise. Do you not remember that Ethel taught me the letters? I speak the language of Liefs, and the language of the White Wall With that, I will walk to the city of Step."
     
    [X] "For I am wise. Do you not remember that Ethel taught me the letters? I speak the language of Liefs, and the language of the White Wall With that, I will walk to the city of Step."
     
    [X] "For I am strong. Do you not remember that I fought off warrior Varo, son of Rivo, who tried to abduct me, until my brothers could assist me? With that, I will walk to the city of Step."

    row row fight the power bandwagon

    I am but a lonely voice in a sea of voices.
     
    [x] "For I am wise.

    I was strongly torn between this and pious, but in the end, I feel like wisdom will serve us better.
     
    Voting ends in about 10 hours. I'll try to keep the update pace brisk, for the time being.

    EDIT: Update will be delayed to later today. I apologize.
     
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    0.2 Reda's Blessing
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    • Between faith and wisdom - which as a learned man would say, are both paths to the same ultimate end - wisdom won. Our as of yet unnamed pilgrim is wise.
    ​

    0.2: Reda's Blessing​

    In a time when you were still a child, Alban, the abbot of Mons Clavo visited the home of Reda, and a great feast was held in his honour. As it is the custom amongs monks to listen to holy scriptures while they eat, your mother – who was of the White Wall people – endeavoured to impress the abbot with having you read from a beautiful book of gospels (which was once a part of her dowry). She taught you the shape of the letters and how to pronounce them, and during the feast, you repeated them from the book, and the monks all praised the family in which the word of the Saints is thus revered. But Alban then asked you to say what was that you read, and you again repeated the letters, but not the meaning behind them. Seeing you well-disciplined, but lacking in understanding, he took the book in his hands and begun to explain the gospels in the plain language of the Lief people, so that all could equally understand it. And such was his eloquence that all had to agree that it must be a mark of a saint, and true to this, when in latter times he passed from the world, many miracles were witnessed around his body, and he was counted among those who behold the name of the God.

    Thus did you learn that the language of the Lief people is not the same as the language of the White Wall, which is the language of prayer and scripture. And as you were curious, and eager to learn, your father permitted Ethal – who, at that time, was spending the winter in your home, for the snows were particularly severe and he could not safely return to Grace – to teach you more. On the days when your father went hunting, and Ethal, who was lame in one leg and could not keep him company, he instead tutored you in the letters and language of White Wall, until come spring you could read from the book of gospels and explain the stories within almost as aptly as a novitiate in a monastery. Although your mother was greatly impressed, your father – at that time – remained indifferent, and your brother Rida mocked you for it, saying that now you would not be married to a man, but rather sent away to a coven, to live a lonesome life.

    You had not practiced that skill since – as the book of gospels was promptly given to Erdia as her morning gift by Ryda, and though there was also a book of wisdom that your father took in one of his wars in your home, it was kept locked in a chest, for it was a great treasure. Therefore, you spoke it without much hope, and feared that your father may not see as a reason enough to let you go. But as you mentioned your skill to him, he stirred among his furs and lifted himself up, even though he felt gross pain at such movements, and he commanded the family and assemble to bear witness. And so in front of Rado the Old, who was the brother of Rada, and Ethal the priest and Leo, son of Maro, your father bade you to kneel and he put his hands on your head and invest on you his fatherly blessings in such words: "May she walk all the way to the city of Step and compel the Saints through her piety, so that our clan will not perish from the face of the land". And great was the surprise of the witnesses, to see a daughter of Reda given such a task, for it seemed to them unlikely that a female, known for the softness of her heart and muscle could endure a journey as difficult. But Ethal reminded them that the wife of the augustus Decius had marched all the way from White Wall to the city of Step, and so the determination of the pious should not be derided. Then, they accepted your task and put a staff in your hand, and before them you made a promise that you would leave for Step as soon as spring clears the snow off the forest routes.

    Your words, full of resolve, cheered your father and he gained a measure of hope that you would restore the clan to greatness. Once again, he stirred in his bed of misery, and commanded you to pick a boon that he might grant you to aid you on your long march. You asked for...

    [ ] The book of wisdom, war-won, in which many secrets of the world were explained by the pious author Desiderius.

    [ ] Wealth, coin, jewels and rich cloth that could serve you well on your way, when other means would fail.

    [ ] A weapon, that you could carry to defend yourself from the many threats which await a traveller on his road.

    [ ] Nothing, for the house had lost enough, and you would not take from it what could serve it in the time to come.
     
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    • [X] The book of wisdom, war-won, in which many secrets of the world were explained by the pious author Desiderius.
     
    [X] The book of wisdom, war-won, in which many secrets of the world were explained by the pious author Desiderius.

    Secrets can have a power all on their own.
     
    Torn between the book, the weapon and wealth.

    We're already wise, so should we really double-down on that instead of generalizing a bit more?

    [X] A weapon
     
    [X] A weapon, that you could carry to defend yourself from the many threats which await a traveller on his road.

    I'm inclined to this or [] Nothing, but believe this more likely to win. I also don't want to risk the book...
     
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