The silver mark draws Quin from the milestone to a modest wayhouse beside the Ashen Ford. Smoke threads from its chimney, and shuttered windows watch the road.
Old Keeper Bram
A traveler from the temple, then. I am Bram. Seris is not receiving visitors, and I would know whether the temple sent authority or merely proof.
An old keeper stands in the doorway, barring only half of it. Beyond him, a woman keeps to the far wall beside stacked grain sacks, her face turned toward the joined seal.
Seris Vale
Do not use that name loudly. The ford has ears, and Varkesh's men have paid for every rumor that crosses it.
Bram glances toward the riverbank, where two ferrymen pause beside their mooring ropes. Seris notices them and lowers her voice without approaching.
Seris Vale
The ledger may prove what was concealed, but proof alone will not make these people stand against a claimant. They need witnesses, and witnesses need protection.
Old Keeper Bram
If you carry the temple's judgment, show us what it truly grants. Then perhaps the ford will decide whether Seris speaks before them.
✓ Quest Accepted
Gain the witnesses' support for Quin's role in the succession crisis
“I show Bram the joined seal and explain the temple's judgment.”
SUCCESS (Good Reasoning, rolled +2)
Quin steps to the threshold and opens his hand. The joined iron seal rests in his palm, its silver fracture bright beneath the wayhouse’s smoky light.
quin
The temple rejected Varkesh’s stolen kingship. This seal proves the authority he took, and the judgment allows him to petition, but grants him no throne.
Bram studies the seal without touching it. Its glow reflects in his weathered eyes, while outside, the ferrymen turn their heads toward the doorway.
Old Keeper Bram
So the temple has spoken against him, and still leaves the matter before the people. That is stronger than a rumor, but dangerous to carry.
Seris Vale
It is the proof I was denied for years. If the ford sees that fracture, they may hear the oath behind it.
The seal’s light reaches across the threshold and touches the nearest boundary stone. The three-stroked mark there answers with a single pale spark.
Old Keeper Bram
Then come inside, bearer of the judgment. I will call the ford’s witnesses before sunset, and let them decide whether Seris may speak.
✓ Quest Accepted
Prove Quin will not expose Seris's allies to retaliation
“I step inside and ask Bram how to shield Seris's allies from retaliation.”
SUCCESS (Good Reasoning, rolled +0)
Quin steps inside, and Bram draws the half-door shut behind him. The wayhouse smells of peat smoke, stored grain, and river mist.
quin
Bram, how do we shield Seris’s allies from retaliation?
Old Keeper Bram
By making them witnesses together, not scattered names. We gather them here before sunset, record their oaths, and send copies under temple seal.
Bram crosses to a wall cupboard and removes a bundle of blank vellum, a bronze wayhouse token, and a ring of old boundary keys.
Old Keeper Bram
The keys open three refuge rooms beneath the ford chapel. Seris’s allies can shelter there while the ferrymen carry word to every household.
Seris Vale
Then I will name them openly, and let no one be isolated for carrying my testimony. But the record must reach Arvok before Varkesh’s agents do.
Old Keeper Bram
It will. The boundary stones can carry a sworn message east, and your seal gives the temple cause to guard those who sign it.
“I gather the allies and record their oaths”
SUCCESS (Good Reasoning, rolled +1)
Bram sounds the bronze wayhouse token from the chapel steps. Ferrymen, grain sellers, and two boundary wardens arrive before sunset, wary but willing to hear Seris.
Old Keeper Bram
Stand together, neighbors. No name is entered alone, and no oath leaves this ford without shelter beneath it.
Quin arranges the vellum across the long table while Seris identifies each ally. The joined seal warms beside the inkpot, its silver fracture shining over every page.
Seris Vale
I name these witnesses as those who kept the unthroned line’s memory. Let their words defend one another, as the oath once required.
One by one, the allies place their hands upon the vellum and speak their knowledge of Varkesh’s false claim. Bram records each oath in a steady hand.
Old Keeper Bram
It is written, witnessed, and bound. Copies will travel east under the temple’s protection, while the signatories shelter beneath the chapel.
When the final oath is sealed, the boundary keys chime softly. Outside, pale light passes from stone to stone, carrying the sworn message toward Arvok.
Quest Complete
Gain the witnesses' support for Quin's role in the succession crisis
Attribute Upgrade: Reasoning Good→Great
Quest Complete
Prove Quin will not expose Seris's allies to retaliation
Attribute Upgrade: Reasoning Great→Superb