IC-Scene: Mobray Castle (Continuous)

[The great hall of Mobray Castle - on neutral ground in the baron's direct holdings - will serve as an analogon to the throne room for the order roleplay: Here our characters will meet for talks, to announce major developments (major is a relative notion) and for courts of justice should the need arise. The baron of Mobray will not be really involved in the events (since he declared neutrality, so I'll use him as a kind of moderator and to open the first scene.]

This scene happens on Day 1, evening.

The great hall at Mobray Castle was bustling with life. The nobles and their knights bannermen were gathered below the dais on which Lord Malbert, the baron of Mobray had taken seat and above on the gallery an equal number of ladies filled the air with the unintelligible sound of numerous parallel and intermingled conversations.
The steward stomped his staff of office on the ground and slowly silence fell.

Milords and Ladies, Malbert began, we have all heard of the late baron Kelredan's death. I had sent out my men to determine whether he had any direct relatives apart from the son that so tragically died during the wars and the wife that no less tragically fell prey to the red plague. It turns out there are none.

He paused for a moment.

Yet, Kelredan Castle must not remain vacant. Let thus all come forth that have a valid claim to it's keep and lands.

Sir Laurence stepped forward.

"I, Laurence Stackford, have a claim to these lands. My beloved wife was a cousin to Baronet Olfrith, so by blood I am as rightful an heir as any other, save perhaps my son Robert. I also knew Olfrith personally. I am certain he would want his lands to pass to a good friend, rather than a lord he only met once a year or less."

Sir Laurence paused briefly.

(OOC: Laurence might easily be interrupted here. If you want to interrupt, just put it in your post and I'll delete the next part)

"My family has held land in this area for many generations. Few others have been here as long. This constant brings stability and certainty, and our management has seldom been criticized. But neither have we ignored our part in the greater world. Under Stackford leadership, Belmonfaire has often joined the defense against the realm's enemies. I myself fought in the Unification wars, and I still bear the scars of battle. Clearly, the baronetcy of Kelredan should pass to me."

Sir Ealdred gave a derisive snort.

When my ancestors already rode to war in full plate that green boy's family was still digging the ground for roots, he whispered to his squire who only acknowledged the comment with but a nod. Jacob was quite used to his master's habit of talking like that of other nobles. It was only then that Ealdred noticed he was talking to Jacob for whose ancestry he had barely more respect than for that of the baronet in front of the dais. Baffled by his own unwilling condescdence his mouth gaped open for a moment until he quickly closed it again and put on his most indignant expression to compensate for that terrible lapse.

Sir Alain Artois, devoted servant to Sir Laurence Stackford, was standing near the insolent free knight when he made his comment

"What does that say about your family?" He whispered to the old knight, keeping his eye on his master

"A simple 'root digger' dynasty has risen far higher than your pathetic line ever will."

Alain kept his smile on, content with himself for belittling the only thing that the silly free knight had left.

Another man stepped forwards, garbed in the green and black of the Barnoetcy of Yaragar. The man was of medium height and possessed an air of good manners, if having the slightly bookish look of someone who knew their way around a marketplace.

I, Thedric Baras of Yaragar, have a claim by blood on Kelredan as well. My family line and that of the recently departed were bound together only two short generations ago. I object to Sir Stackfords claim as the only legitimate person in consideration as my family has been in Yaragar for as long as, if not longer than his has in Belmonfaire. If Sir Olfirith truly wanted Sir Stackford as the claimant, then were is his will saying this, surely there must be more than one mans opinion?

Let my lands speak for themselves in showing I am capable, with access to the river we have grown in prosperity The village thrives and our fields are well tended, my subjects are happy and secure. I cannot claim a warriors past like Sir Stackford but is this not a time of peace? Should we always look to the bloody past or shall we start anew in this new unified Pendor under King Mordred?

"Peace? Bah! Tell that to the Vanskerry, who sometimes make it as far inland as Belmonfaire. Tell that to the renegade D'Shar raiders, who reach Kelredan Castle before any other part of old Sarleon! I do not dispute that your blood claim is a match for mine, but say only that it is not stronger. But in the safety of Yaragar, you have been sheltered from all violence save the great wars - even at peace, Kelredan will need firm defenders."

With his points made for now, Laurence stepped back slightly.

Nickolas Ballard sat idly, barely listening to the steward as he addressed the situation.

"Another struggle for more land..." Nickolas muttered to himself. It seemed to him that "land equals power" is prevalent no matter where one is from.

As Laurence Stackford made his case, Nickolas' mind wandered off, thinking of home. A joyful reminiscence soon turned into the recurring nightmare, and Nickolas had to visibly shake himself out of it.

Then, Nickolas' sovereign, Thedric Baras of Yaragar, proposed his claim. While this may be a time of peace, Nickolas began to worry on the military front. When Laurence made his points about various hostiles, Nickolas' uneasiness grew even more. Times can change quickly, something that Nickolas knew too well...

The foreign knight and his squire continued attending the session.

William Grey walked into the castle main hall, having just arrived. He was clad in plate armor, to show his military prowess, and above that a simple blue tabard, to show that he was not deaf to the commoners word and would not waste money on extravagance that could be used elsewhere.
He walked slowly to the area where the rest of the lords were gathered. He was completely calm and appeared in control of the situation.
Once there he stepped forward and began his speech with all his diplomatic abilities.
"My lords and ladies, my common man and common women. I succeeded my departed master, Sir Nathaniel Greenfield, when he died in combat on a bandit raid, in which he protected the town long enough for everyone to escape. After that I slayed the bandits who had taken his life, and soon after became the lord of Rebache."
"I have brought nothing but prosperity, the wealth of Rebache is the greatest in the county! I have made a trained army where before there was none! I have proved time and time again that I am a capable leader!"
"With my upbringing in the Knights of the Lion, I am no stranger to the nobles and how to run an army. However I am also no stranger to the common man, I have proven that when I fought to protect them and they themselves gave me the title of baronet!"
"So please my good people, if you want a noble and capable leader, who has proven this time and time again, support me!"William Grey finished and then slowly walked back to where the rest of the baronets where assembled.

"Boring so far, eh? Could be if we choose the most boring of them all, we'll win."

Nickolas shifted his attention to the knight next to him. It was none other than Ser Carax, a fellow knight also in service to Yaragar. Nickolas merely smiled and replied, "Aye. Maybe these baronets would be so caught up in the succession that Yaragar is left alone long enough to muster enough forces to claim victory." Nickolas then reverted to his grim expression, and continued, "We may be somewhat distant from the conflict, and I fear that mere politics and the games of nobility will not be enough to settle the situation."

At that moment, William Grey announced his presence, and Nickolas fell silent.

Baras turned his head to look at the final Baronet as he approached.

Well met Sir Grey. It is always good to see you, though I do not know why you have come here. Sir Lawrence and I have solid claims through blood and marriage on this title and land, though you do not. Your family has only held its title through one generation, yours and I question the fact that you claim it was the people who gave you your title. I doubt that a group of peasants would have supported anyone besides you when you had an army as you so claim.

William turned to the noble next to him. "It is not how you achieve power but what you do with it that matters. And you forget, there was no army to begin with. The whole of the town watch was slaughtered that night, it was only afterwards that I raised an army to protect Rebache."

Chonrad Blackwood stood quietly and watched the events unfold. He wasn't particuarly interested in the claims for Kelredan, but if the situation got out of hand, his status could be compromised. That was something he particularly didn't want, and thus he had arrived from the forests to see what would happen here. Three baronets, each one going after the castle, and numerous knights who had no manners. It was during moments like these when Chonrad wished he could just stay in Blackwood without worries about the outside world.

He briefly wondered what would happen when people realised that Manifest Destiny -decree could be used in this situation...

The steward stomped his staff on the ground again and Lord Malbert rose to speak.

It seems we have heard all eligible claims in this matter. Unfortunately they are all somewhat valid. Both by blood and merit titles have been handed out in this realm in the past and I am unable to see why any of the claims should be significantly better than the others.

He paused for a moment, pondering.

We shall therefore resort to the judgement of the gods. Gentlemen, he said to the three baronets, you have leave to pursue your claims with whatever means are within the laws of Pendor. The gods will grant success to the most worthy of you.

He sank back into his chair and beckoned to his steward who stomped his staff again and proclaimed: The court is adjourned!

Slowly an old man stood up from his stool, coughed loudly and beckoned a man to come closer. The man was an unarmored halberdier and carried a large book around for his master. The Archdeacon Ferrand Astigi, commonly known as both Archdeacon and Ferrand, but he didn't like to be called by his house name. Pretending to be a little older than he really was, he waited until the room went quiet before lifting his frail hand.

"Dearly gathered, when I was laboring in the duties of our Goddess, the beloved Eunomia Stabilitis, an owl presented herself to me. It was a message and it told me to come here, daring travel even in my old age."

He grabbed hold of his walking stick, but he didn't seem to need it when he moved suprisingly balanced an took a more prominent position in the room,

"While things might look uncertain, remember that the owl makes no difference in standing when she passes her judgment. And so neither will I, as her representative, fail to uphold the succession laws of Pendor."

He shifted the stick to his other hand so he could take a piece of silk from his pocket. He held it up into the air and for a moment he actually looked very devout in his convictions.

"This piece of silk shall blind me for the standing of the individual. Prove to me you are worthy and strife for stability and peace, and prove it to the owl in the sky. Prove it to the crown and Archbishop. Prove it to me."

The very last word was slightly louder than the rest and the message was clear. If one wants to claim Kelredan, than the support of the Church he'll need. When he was finished he turned into an old man again and moved his seemingly frail body back to his stool.

Sir Ealdred turned to leave and beckoned for his squire to follow him. He had enough of all this lowborn scum and their squabbling. When he passed by Sir Alain he simply muttered: We will meet again, ... Sir.

"Indeed... At least this session was shorter than I originally thought. I believed I was to be stuck here for days..." Nickolas replied to Ser Carax.

Before Nickolas could continue, the Archdeacon rose and issued his statement. After he was finished, Nickolas took up Carax's offer, "I believed you mentioned something of continuing our discussions in a tavern. When you are ready, lead the way. The lands here are still somewhat unfamiliar to me."

[OCC: I was considering putting a timeline note here, but I am still uncertain on how the roleplay works and if people can exist in two places at the same time. This should explain why the post has been edited.]

When everyone started to get up and leave, William quietly got up and left attracting as little attention as possible. Once outside he mounted his horse and set off towards Rebache.

Sir Laurence walked to Sir Alain calmly. He said in a low voice,

"We won't be leaving yet. Once the hall is a bit emptier, I'd like to have a word with the Archdeacon if he stays that long. Best not to have our discussion overheard by too many people."

Sir Baras stared at the retreating Archdeacons back for a moment, running the events of the audience through his mind. The Church was just a glorified business, and deals between businessmen were as common as a peasant sneezing in Yaragar.

He'd heard of a certain pair of free knights had been seen around his lands, perhaps it was time to see if they wanted something more than just wandering in life. But before that there was a different matter at hand, and he had not gained as much as he had in life by resting on his laurels. Stepping after the old Archdeacon, he cleared his throat in a polite attempt to get teh the man's attention.

Archdeacon? Might I have a word with you? I have been meaning to ask you for something in regards to the Church's state on my lands.