The Thralldom of Crescentino Sone

-being an account of the sorcerous evil of Glorianna Touraine-

The motivation of grand villainy has long fascinated this researcher. What turns a noble-man or -woman to base and vile acts, despite the inherent superiority of their bloodline? This researcher offers a case study into the hearts and minds of two such nobles, one labeled villain by chance, the other earning the title by thought and intention.

In the early 200's of this age, in a letter to Glorianna Touraine, before her infamy had been fully recognized, respected scholar and architect Crescentino Sone began corresponding with the she-witch of the Touraine. His motive: the honorable pursuit of knowledge based on information given to him on her deathbed by Verity Touraine.

To the Lady Glorianna, Duchess of Touraine

Your Grace,

Please forgive me for having nor written sooner. Affairs of government have kept me busy these past few weeks, and I have been unable to attend Court. Know that my mind has been racing with questions raised by the late Duchess however and I shall do my best to set my thoughts to paper.

Our families have always been close, particularly when discovering or obscuring secrets. Please accept my assistance in fulfilling Verity's wish for deciphering and orchestrating the second ritual. Have you uncovered the method and requirements of the rite to free her soul from the crystal? If there is any aid I can give, please consider it given.

You may be interested to know that I have begun compiling a codex of affinities between the Cosmos Deck and the known High Magic attunements, which I shall make available to the Touraine. If you will assist me in this project, I believe our collective efforts will make the work significantly more comprehensive.

At present, I know three different methods of forming an attunement, and I have noted these in the codex. I lack specific knowledge of the attunements the Duchess referred to as Healing and Knowledge. Can you describe the attunement you received (card affinity, entity name and ritual alignment)?

I assume that you inherited the Duchess' pack of Cosmos cards. Have you had an opportunity to study them and determine if the basic set is different from a standard deck? My daughter and I each received one of Verity's unique cards: Ravening Demon and Burning Anger. May I ask the name of the card you received?

Please accept my wish of good fortune, and I look forward to reading your reply.

Sincerely,

Crescentino Sone, Count of Ketatsu

Here, he applies to the new Duchess as a supplicant. As age and wisdom bows to youth and beauty, so is the natural order turned on its head. This sets the tone for their future relationship. Even his reports of current work are minimized, and placed in the service of a rival house. He begs for favor, even as a lap dog begs for petting.

Thus the beginning of their unholy alliance is documented. Crescentino seeks to place himself under Glorianna's rule. We can only speculate on her answer, but since further letters from Lord Crescentino maintain a friendly, if not fawning, tone, we can deduce her answer in the affirmative.

He continues on in her service, turning his talent from research to spying, no doubt at her request. Here he mentions the loyal corps of students who sought to unscrew the inscrutable, noteworthy among them, the Princess Consort and his soon-to-be student, the legendary Meiko Komaru, whose death in battle in the year 218 left Crescentino inconsolable, and turned him from the ensnarement of the Touraine's prodigal daughter, to a contemplative life.

Your Grace,

Events in recent years at the Castle by the Sea have caused the emergence of a curious cabal of seekers. The primary members of this cabal are myself, Ruriko Minamet, Faust Yuasa, Meiko Komaru, and the Princess Consort.

When Ruriko, Faust, Meiko, and Yamato Komaru completed Verity's ritual and released he soul from the prison within with she placed herself on the 128th birthday, one of the Mer appeared, bringing a small key that Verity had placed into their care.

The next year, we discovered that the key fit a certain keyhole in one of the rooms of the Castle. Ruriko Minamet opened the lock and uncovered the first of Verity Touraine's legacies: a set of rare Cosmos Cards, and her tenth journal. There was also a letter which described the means of opening that keyhole and the others.

Each year another keyhole appears. The keyhole must be opened by a noble of pure blood, and each opener must be of a different family than all previous openers. In this way, Verity sought to see her knowledge disseminated rather than hoarded. Additionally, there are requirements for each keyhole to prove that her knowledge is being studied and grasped.

This year saw the first of those requirements: the opener must be Thalassa no Miko. We consecrated Athel Bellatrix as Thalassa no Miko, and he opened the keyhole to retrieve the second of Verity's legacies: a small set of cards, her eleventh journal, and an enigmatic play called The Star Thief.

Written on the back of her eleventh journal is the requirement for next year: the opener must bear a Soul Implement.

Preparing a seeker to hold a Soul Implement us a difficult process. There are eight methods, but only one of them is both possible and ethical for us to perform.

Have you read of Omoehime no Miko, the wind maiden? She is the Tempestuous Paragon, who rejects those who desire her. This coming year, if we are to open the keyhole, we must grant a Soul Implement to a pureblooded Omoehime no Miko. Fortune smiles upon us, as Nadeshiko Komaru is both pure-blooded and the correct Miko. However, to prepare for this, we must first have a second Omoehime no Miko, and an Initiate of the Crystal of the South must win this other Miko's love, breaking her status.

Currently, the only initiate of the Crystal of the South is myself. However, with additional Mirariel initiates, either Yamato Komaru or Onyx Touraine could become attuned to the Crystal of the South.

I will write to you of the Mikos and other subjects soon.

Crescentino

Even in these days, Crescentino listened well to the dictates of his conscience. Though his learning spread the world at his feet, he understood the limitations of his grasp, and refused to countenance magicks that he did not entirely understand or control, and maintained the boundaries of decency and propriety, refusing to kill or maim in his pursuit of knowledge, and not advising it to those who would pursue reckless power.

It is known that he did not, in fact, call upon the services of Omoehime no Miko that year, as the Komaran lady in question celebrated her marriage to Jet Touraine shortly thereafter.

But it is here the seeds of his discontent are sown, for Lady Glorianna did not heed the advice he himself followed. His last letter to her is marked with sarcasm and world weariness for a land that would believe only the worst of him. Yet, still, he is in thrall to the beast, who demands knowledge of the family her predecessor sent wholesale to the slaughter. Perhaps it is here she was inspired to poison an adversarial general persuaded to discuss conditions under a flag of truce.

Your Grace,

I am intrigued to hear of your conversion to the Light. I hope that this letter find you in health and good faith.

The Issorat family was among the most influential of Setsuna's Age, in the years before Paraceln's Dream enveloped the world. The Issorat family was also one of the many casualties of that time.

The Issora held lands where the Sone now dwell, and perhaps three times that to the south, where the Crystal Plains now lie. They were considered to be mighty sorcerors, well-learned in both Geomancy and High Magic of the sort Verity was instructed in. Indeed, her own mentor was an Issora.

The Issora had a long-running feud with the Jitani family further south, which eventually led to the Jitani unleashing the Excrescence upon their land, destroying both families.

Today, the Issorat are only a pale shadow of their former selves, and are largely tenants and vassals of the Sone...

It is here the letter breaks off, ripped by an unfortunate twist of fate. In the remaining fragment, Lord Crescentino does not even attempt to reason with the Lady. He does as he is bid, relating the tale of histories long forgotten. It is as though he is in thrall to a power greater than his own. Perhaps future research will reveal the extent of Glorianna's perfidy during her long and bloody tenure as Duchess of Touraine.