Children of Wrecks

"Why do they do it?" she asked frustrated. "What in the Empire's name appeals to them about it?"

They were staring at the body of the murdered man. Stabbed three times, it looked like it was the final cut that had killed him. The knife had gone in under the rib cage, buried to the hilt. An inch less it might have missed his heart. Instead he was lying in a pool of his own blood.

"They were arguing. They fought. One of them gets killed. Where's the murderer to run to? Nobody will take her in now. She's a marked woman. Nobody except the Mother of Wrecks. And Howl-in-the-Night obviously, but Sermersuaq is both hundreds of miles away and stupidly cold. It makes perfect sense to flee to Free Landing. We should just write this one up and move on."

"No, that's not it," Emilia responded, shaking her head. "The neighbours said they were arguing before this. But they were lovers apparently, tempestuous and prone to arguments all the time. Nobody thought anything of it before they heard the screams. Point is, she was trying to get him to come away with her. That's what they were arguing about. She was all set to leave before the fight!"

"You sure about that?" Miguel asked.

"Definitely." Emilia stooped to find the notes she'd made when interviewing the young neighbour. "Here we go. They were arguing. She was shouting about going away from here. Somewhere without any rules - about doing whatever they please." She looked up at her partner triumphantly. "The boy says the fight started when her lover said he wouldn't let her go. He threatened to go to the magistrate. And that's when she killed him."

Emilia bent down to get a closer look at the body. "Too late to give him a voice. We should see if the magistrate will pay for the hakima to whisper him."

"Pfft - like they'll spring for that." said Miguel disdainfully. "If you're right - and I'm not saying you are - but if you are right... That means she was planning this all long, by now she's far away swimming with the sharks. We won't catch her."

Emilia rubbed her neck in frustration, her gills were itching again. "You're right... I just want to get to the bottom of this. Maybe his family will pay for it?"

"You doing this for them... or for you?"

Emilia ground her teeth, but it was a fair question. "Both" she said quietly. "It's for both of us."

The servants of Siakha are many and varied but among the more terrible are the murderous shark heralds who shed blood in the name of the Mother of Monsters

Overview

• A loose coalition of Siakha worshippers has formed in the Bay of Catazar under the leadership of High Priestess Shivaarn
• The Children of Wrecks have claimed Free Landing and have decisively split from the Grendel

The followers of Siakha are varied and numerous. Some of the Grendel and the inhabitants of the Broken Shore have long worshiped her. Indeed it was one of her followers from the Broken Shore who met with the Archmage of Spring, Ibiss Briarheart, last year as a representative of the eternal herself.

Reverence of Siakha is widespread. Beyond the Bay of Catazar, some want nothing more in life than to rob and take, to slaughter and raze, and the Mother of Monsters will gladly provide boons to those who revel in such a life. Even in the Empire there have long been rumours of corsair families of the Brass Coast with hidden shrines dedicated to idolatrous worship of the Empress of Sharks. Then there are her heralds: vicious carcharadons who revel in butchery; disruptive tempests who channel the power of the storm to break battle-lines and cause chaos; great sea serpents who coil around ships and drag sailors to their deaths; and hulking beasts of scales and razor sharp fangs that can smash a wall to splinters in a matter of moments.

Now they have come together in a loose coalition under the direction of High Priestess Shivaarn. She who praises the Mother of Wrecks enacted some grand plan during the Winter Solstice 385YE that saw the Shining Pillar destroyed, and the creation of a swirling maelstrom in its place. This desecration necessitated a betrayal of the Asaveans who were there to support the Grendel - someone had to be sacrificed to the carcharadons after all.

In the diplomatic fallout that followed, the Salt Lords were forced to denounce the Siakha followers. As a result Free Landing has denied the rule of the Salt Lords; instead, the region is held by the Children of Wrecks. Just ten days before the Spring Equinox 386YE this was confirmed with a message relayed by an orc captain to the Freeborn and Marchers on the docks at Quzar. Since then the "wreckers" have established themselves in Atalaya, opening the port as a haven to anyone who worships the Salt-born Devourer.

The Bay of Catazar belongs to us. It has been sanctified with blood and the High Priestess claims it as her domain. Not for the Salt Lords, or for the people of Attar or the Broken Shore, but for our mistress. For the Queen of Reefs, the Devouring Maelstrom, the Thunder-that-Roars, the Blade of Seas. For the goddess of storm and slaughter. It is hers - it is ours as it always should have been. From shore to shore it is ours, and whether you are Empire or Grendel, you cling to its borders only as our prey.

High Priestess Shivaarn

The Celesti Lighthouse sits high on the headland overlooking Oran.

Jewelled Isles

• The Children of Wrecks have claimed Cazar Straits from the Grendel

The Children of Wrecks have not only been active where Imperials can see them; they have also struck a blow against the Grendel in Feroz. They have claimed the grand lighthouse overlooking the cliffs of Cazar as a shrine to the Mother of Monsters - along with the rest of Cazar Straits - for Siakha. The wreckers here are led by Azzura di Cazarri, merchant-prince of the Nested Crow Carta, a wild changeling whose keen eye for opportunity led them away from the whims of Rhianos and into the many arms of Siakha.

As the majority of Freeborn were evacuated from the territory following the Spring Equinox 384YE there are few remaining who can give a report on the situation. It is possible that more information could be uncovered if the Empire were to construct either a spy network or a smugglers cove in the territory. For now, the only certain thing is that the southern Jewelled Isles are under the control of the Children of Wrecks, just as the northern Jewelled Isles are in Madruga.

Jailbreak

• The Children of Wrecks have attacked Axiom Prison in the Iron Confederacy and freed hundreds of rogue magicians

It is not only land that High Priestess Shivaarn has directed the followers of Siakha to claim on behalf of her mistress. In the week or so before the Summer Solstice, news begins to filter into the Empire of an attack on the Iron Confederacy. Axiom Prison, the imposing fortified gaol first spotted when ships mapped the Bay of Catazar, has fallen. Those kept within have been freed, either to join the worshippers of the Unrelenting Storm or to accept her embrace in the waters below the prison. Some of the worst of the Iron Confederacy were kept in the prison along with a few innocent magicians. The cult leaders of the Hand of Dumon - considered too profane to sully the presence of Evra the Smith - were left to rot... and plot.

Those dangerous ritualists and murderers who have accepted Siakha have been welcomed into the Children of Wrecks, significantly boosting the magical might of the followers of the mother of wreck and bringing their own brand of unhinged worship to the waters of the Bay.

The Status Quo

• The Children of Wrecks will continue to launch raids on both Imperial and Grendel territories

It is possible to send a winged messenger to High Priestess Shivaarn, the Temple of Thunder, Cazar Straits, Feroz..

As the current situation stands, the Children of Wrecks present a potential threat to all nations on the Bay of Catazar. They have already struck at the Suranni, the Empire, and the Grendel and their ships stalk the bay for any worthy prey. Even those nations such as the Asaveans and the Sarcophan Delves who had treaties with the Grendel are no longer safe from attacks by pirates.

Within the Empire, the legal status is clear - as members of the Grendel, they were barbarians, they haven't automatically lost that status just because they have renounced those ties. As far as the law is concerned, they can't change their status in that way. But it does mean that the Empire could attempt to treat them differently to the Grendel if they wished. They could make diplomatic overtures to the Children of Wrecks and the Senate could declare them foreigners if it benefitted the Empire to do so.

Siakha is the harbinger of the storm, the inspiration of violent, bloody destruction, and the mother of terrible monsters.

It doesn't seem like this would be a fruitful route. By all accounts the High Priestess of Siakha is a vicious demagogue; she decried the Salt Lords over their acceptance of the peace treaty back in 383YE almost as soon as it was signed and she has repeatedly called on her followers to slaughter Imperial citizens.

But the Children of Wrecks are not just Grendel anymore. It seems that the Mother of Wrecks has found followers even in the Empire. Her disdain for society and embrace of the lawless appeals to brigands, pirates, smugglers and the disaffected who find any restrictions too onerous to bear. Across the southern coast of the Empire some spires, chapters, cartas, and families have seen loved ones abandon their oaths to throw their lot in with the followers of Siakha and embrace the Maw of Stone. Some have remained on Imperial soil to help the wreckers in their raids, though these have all lost their connection to their egregore and are no longer Imperial citizens.

The Children of Wrecks are a fundamentally dangerous alliance that represents the worst of the Empire and the Grendel. They are supported by Siakha's heralds and have been joined by scoundrels and wretches from across the known world. They have an unknown number of havens - Atalaya being just one of them - where they welcome anyone who bears the mark of storms as an ally.

However they are also now at war with the Grendel. Maybe, in spite of the risks, there is a way to wield them as a weapon against the orcs of the Broken Shore? Or maybe it would be best to deal with them quickly and decisively before matters get too out of hand?

Strategic Conjunctions

• There are several conjunctions that involve the children of wrecks or Free Landing, or both
• The eternal Rhianos offers their boon to bold Imperial heroes undertaking one of these quests

During the Summer Solstice the Sentinel Gate holds conjunctions to places threatened by the children of wrecks, or involving lands claimed by them, or both. The civil service have examined these conjunctions and offer their best advice to the heroes of Anvil who might take advantage of them. Anyone participating in one of these skirmishes can also choose to gain a magical boon - the eternal Rhianos is taking advantage of their amity, and the request of the Summer Archmage, to offer their power for use by heroes fighting the servants of Siakha.

The Boons of Rhianos
As promised to the Archmage of Summer, the Regent of the Eternal Sea - the eternal Rhianos - offers their boons to those who fight the servants of Siakha this season. Any Imperial citizen who passes through the Sentinel Gate to undertake one of these conjunctions may accept that boon as they arrive on the far side - but they must make the choice as soon as they pass through the gate.

The boon takes the form of a personal enchantment - and if they choose to accept it they immediately lose any existing enchantment they may already be under. The enchantment has one of three effects - it either grants a rank of endurance, grants an additional hero point (if they have the hero skill), or grants two additional personal mana (if they have the Magician skill. In each case this increases their current and maximum, just as if they were benefitting from an enchantment or tonic. The effect ends when they return through the Sentinel Gate to Anvil, or the end of the skirmish whichever comes first. Note that if the boon of Rhianos removes an existing enchantment it does not come back again.

The boons only apply to Glowing embers, After the storm, and Uncharted waters, and to the Ripped away conjunction already described in the Guide the spirit wind of fortune.

Glowing Embers (Madruga)

• A mob of wreckers are threatening an isolated family of corsairs
• This skirmish is a combat highly likely encounter
• The Strategos of the Brass Coast is responsible for finding out what is going on

It was one of the scouts of the newly raised Narwhal's Spear who first identified the mob of orcs and heralds; travelling through the pomegranate orchards in Calvos Sound and stealing as they went. Kaija Headstrong managed to tail them for three days before being spotted and having to flee back to the main force, but they watched the mob meet with at least one group of corsairs in that time. The icewalker describes it as akin to seeing two aurochs smash into each other - utterly brutal. The Children of Wrecks didn't stop for longer than was necessary to loot the corpses and allow the carcharadons that accompany them to feast. The mob is clearly on their way to something, but Kaija wasn't able to work out their target.

A call for help came in the form of a letter from the Tabhorios; a family of reclusive corsairs who apparently fled the coming of the Children of Wrecks but were pursued. Mazirua i Erigo, one of the hosts of the Freeborn egregore spirit, received the letter just a few days before the summit with a plea for the newly elected Strategos of the Brass Coast to come and help them. Given that this is a direct request it is the responsibility of the Strategos of the Brass Coast, Gael i Guerra, to find out what is going on and protect the Freeborn if necessary.

Creatures associated with Siakha come in all shapes and sizes, and some of them are very large indeed

After the Storm (Sarvos)

• A mob of wreckers are attempting to curse Sarvos with terrible storms
• This skirmish is a combat highly likely encounter
• The Jade Custodian is responsible for stopping the wreckers

Last season the Children of Wrecks were able to use potent boons to unleash terrible storms on Madruga. This season followers of Thunder-that-Speaks have used the knowledge and connections of Azzura di Cazarri to slip into Bocche. Their target is "Ferocity's Stand"; a small but potent Spring regio that resonates with savagery. If the Children of Wrecks are allowed to perform either Thunderous Deluge or Foam and Spittle of the Furious Sea, or worse both, then people across the territory will die. There is no sure way of telling how widespread the damage will be - though with the completion of the flood defences the inhabitants of Caricomare will suffer the least.

One guarantee is that it would spell disaster for the hamlet of Aversa and, given its proximity to the sea, to the Wellspring of Jade. Given that this is a direct threat to the Wellspring it is the responsibility of the Jade Custodian, Giacomo Corvinoscuro, to stop the Children of Wrecks.

Uncharted Waters (Madruga)

• A small conjunction to Free Landing has been identified on the Friday of the upcoming summit
• The prognosticators warn they are able to determine very little about this conjunction and urge caution
• This is a combat possible encounter
• The Champion of Vigilance is responsible for being alert to potential dangers present in Baleen Cove

Amidst the chaos of recent events on the Madruga coast, the Imperial prognosticators have identified a small conjunction, only large enough to allow a handful of people through the gate, to Free Landing on the Friday of the upcoming summer solstice. Much to their surprise the prognosticators of the civil service are able to find out barely any more information than this - the presence of the Lock hangs unusually powerfully over this conjunction, blocking almost any attempt to divine further information despite their best efforts. What little can be gleaned is that five people will be able to travel to Baleen Cove in Free Landing, Madruga at 22:05 on Friday of the summit. They can tell there will not be a major military force waiting, a handful of people there at most, but neither can they rule out the possibility of combat - travellers should probably prepare for a fight, but violence may not be necessary. Beyond that, given that this will involve practicing vigilance it is the responsibility of the incumbent Champion of Vigilance, Jared, to find out what is going on and to be alert to potential dangers present.

Profitable Conjunctions

• Last season Siakha offered boons of savagery to Imperial citizens, and to guide those who took them into bloody raids against their enemies
• Enough warbands were clandestinely enchanted in this way to produce opportunities for Imperial heroes to confront their barbarian foes

These conjunctions are a result of successful savage raids against Druj, Grendel, and Jotun lands following the Spring Equinox. The military units who performed these raids - who used the blessing of Siakha to engage in savage yet profitable bloodshed - would be wise to keep that matter quiet. If they do not, they will likely place prosecution and execution for accepting power offered by an enemy of the Empire. They may have used that power to attack barbarians, but they are still criminals.

While these opportunities may have arisen as a result of Imperial citizens taking on unlawful enchantments, they are not themselves illegal in any way. The civil service can only guess at their provenance, after all. In each case, responsibility for these conjunctions has been assigned in the usual way - by selecting the Imperial title most suited to oversee them. There's no suggestion any of these people, or anyone who accompanies them, have accepted illicit boons.

Eldrid Vestardottir, Champion of Ambition

Heading West (Skallahn)

• The outpost of Augaard's Bluff in Iron Stand is relatively undefended
• This skirmish is a combat highly likely encounter
• The Champion of Ambition is responsible for killing the Jotun

The outpost of Augaard's Bluff stands not far from the border with Sermersuaq; close enough for a small group from Vertering Hall to travel across the border and claim the wains of weirwood that are stored there for resupply. Normally the Bluff would have a larger garrison, hundreds of battle-hardened Jotun in and around the area, but the majority has been called away in response to raids along the coast of Skallahn.

Finn Vertering, has made an offer to Eldrid Vestardottir, the Champion of Ambition. If the champion can get enough people together to kill the guards, then the icewalker and their allies can slip over the border and bring the weirwood stored there back. If that happens, they will split the wains with the champion. They will give Eldrid the lions share, 14 wains of weirwood before the start of the Autumn Equinox 386YE, and keep the rest for themselves and their fellows.

Not only that but the guards who remain at Augaard's Bluff will be equipped with fine weapons and armour and have access to a large supply of herbs; something that the icewalker encourages the Champion of Ambition and those who accompany them through the Sentinel Gate to claim for themselves as reward.

To Teach and Learn (Ayereed)

• The isle of Dunreagh in Gainmeachdubh is relatively undefended
• This skirmish is a combat highly likely encounter
• The General of the Red Wind Corsairs is responsible for killing the Grendel

The isle of Dunreagh serves as a resupply point for a number of the armies of the Broken Shore; a secure place for artisans and maistirs to visit to receive herbs, mana crystals, and mithril that has been sent to the isle for their use. Usually, the garrison would be well-defended and strong enough to see off anything short of a navy. But raids across the territory has left them strung out and under-prepared for such an attack. Juan i Macabeo i Erigo, a corsair who was visiting the new foreigners of Beoraidh, has discovered from traders that the isle is vulnerable and ripe for looting. The corsair has proposed a deal with the General of the Red Wind Corsairs; if they can kill enough of the Grendel then Juan will be able to sail in and plunder the isle of its store of mithril, sending 12 wains to the general after the summit.

The only potential complication, beyond the risk of using the Sentinel Gate to journey into dangerous situations, is that a group of Asaveans are expected on Dunreagh with more resources for the cache. The general therefore has a choice on whether to allow the Grendel and the Asaveans to meet or to try to attack both at the same time. It is highly likely that if either group sees the other be defeated without being engaged they will withdraw to safety. Given that this is a direct request, to whoever is elected as General of the Red Wind Corsairs it is down to them to decide whom to send to assault the guards of Dunreagh.

Hugh Farrier, Champion of Prosperity

The Thread Burns (Forest of Ulnak)

• A group of Druj are travelling through Grimfen Mire with a stockpile of goods
• This skirmish is a combat highly likely encounter
• The Champion of Prosperity is responsible for claiming the stockpile of goods

The Varnalis are one of the many extended families of Druj that live in the homesteads of Grimfen Mire. Reports from the wagon raiders who trade and sell at the stinking market in Ossium is that some big disturbance - apparently a series of raids in the east of the Forest of Ulnak - has encouraged the Varnalis to go and recover some of their stores to bring them closer to their homestead. The wagon raiders ask the Champion of Prosperity to take inspiration from Good Walder and demonstrate what Prosperity means to the Druj. The Varnalis will have a chest with them containing a lot of herbs and likely a smattering of potions. If the chest can be reclaimed excellent - the wagon raiders are happy for the Champion to keep anything they find - but if the Druj can be defeated then the wagon raiders will move in and loot the reported stockpile of white granite the Varnalis have elsewhere and then retreat back across the border.

If the Varnalis are defeated then the wagon raiders will claim the white granite and send 16 wains of it to the Champion of Prosperity after the summit. Given that this is a direct request it is the responsibility of the Champion of Prosperity, Hugh Farrier, to claim the stockpile of goods and defeat the Varnalis.

Further Reading

• Siakha
• Below the thunders - 386YE Summer Wind of War detailing the aftermath of the kraken and storm summoning
• Siakha's Maw - 386YE Spring battle opportunity to stop the release of the baby kraken and the raising for storms
• The Cry of Gulls - 386YE Spring wind of war detailing the aftermath of the lighthouse's destruction
• Save the Shining Pillar - 386YE Winter battle opportunity to save the Shining Pillar