Legendary 029

Sunday, July 3, 1066

Hennadii breakfast and church service. Breakfast is at 8, and he helpfully listed several church services folks might be interested in attending.

Branna will travel across the Lavra River and attend church with her parents at the St. Gleb church before going to their home for lunch. Marigold will attend the service at the Basilica in St. Boris. Mon examines the list for any service in the name of the Raven Queen, but does not find any. He decide to go with Branna.

Luba will go with Marigold. Dhuka wonders whether they will do anything fun today. Mon convinces her to come with them and learn 

St. Boris Basilica: The Firebrand Service (A Call to Action)

The services at St. Boris Basilica are a world away from St. Gleb. Located in the neighborhood dedicated to the patron saint of peaceful martyrdom, the basilica's interior is likely older, darker, and more imposing, filled with religious icons. The service is a rallying point for the poor and the traditionalists who feel betrayed by the current government.

Atmosphere and Tone: The basilica is often filled to capacity. The air is thick with the scent of incense and the sound of powerful, booming organ music. The atmosphere is intense, devotional, and highly charged. The message is one of unwavering moral authority and the defense of the common people.

Liturgy: The service is highly traditional and ceremonial. It features call-and-response chanting and dramatic rituals, invoking the strength and suffering of the martyrs. The music is often conservative, patriotic opera (much like The Iron Will of Sezja) that stirs national and religious fervor.

The Sermon: The preacher is a charismatic, firebrand speaker whose sermon is a dramatic confrontation with the city's corrupt powers. He will use the King's death as an example of divine judgment against corruption. He preaches a populist message, directly addressing the Cardinal's actions—perhaps railing against the "new Excise Tax" that starves the poor and demanding that the church fulfill its duty to protect the suffering. His oration is designed to inspire courage and political resistance.

The Congregation: The congregation is primarily composed of the working class, including dockworkers and small business owners, as well as disenfranchised veterans. Their collective energy is palpable, and they respond to the preacher with enthusiastic shouts and signs of devotion, leaving the basilica feeling galvanized to oppose the established order.

Branna meets the congregation, and they ask many questions. 

The services at St. Gleb Church reflect its reputation as a haven for the city's more liberal thinkers, artists, and reformers. The atmosphere is one of calm contemplation and intellectual engagement rather than fire-and-brimstone fervor.

Atmosphere and Tone: The church is well-lit, perhaps with modern, clear glass instead of traditional stained glass, emphasizing transparency and clarity. The tone is inclusive and philosophical. The focus is less on doctrine and more on ethical conduct and personal interpretation of faith.

Liturgy: The service is unstructured and conversational. It often incorporates music from the folk tradition—perhaps even featuring instruments like the dulcimer or bandura—rather than heavy, classical hymns. Readings are often drawn from parables or ancient wisdom texts, encouraging open discussion afterward.

The Sermon: The preacher, perhaps a progressive priestess or an older scholar, delivers a sermon that is measured and analytical. The focus is on social justice, empathy, and challenging one's own biases. They might discuss the complexity of the recent political events without naming names, suggesting that true faith requires action to help the disadvantaged and that the church's role is to question authority when it becomes corrupt.

The Congregation: The diverse congregation includes students, merchants, and members of the arts community. They wear simple, practical clothing and often remain afterward for coffee and discussion, treating the service as a forum for ideas.

Mon’s family leaned more towards druidic traditions as professional fishermen. 

With the service wrapping up, Branna and Mon follow her parents back to their home for a light lunch. 

Discussion about the political situation of the Cardinal, excise taxes, increased military presence foreboding a potential conflict, parents wonder if the local theater crew is feeling professional jealousy, or are they driven by some sinister force. They also mention that the script should be gone through with a fine-tooth comb for any threat of independence on the part of Katarina. 

Branna thinks about getting some interviews from the local newspapers. Her parents provide her several contacts. 

Hennadii serves Marigold with several hafling dishes, and the food is delicious. Going to find Anya and Dhuka, Dhuka has left after the end of the church service. Anya and Marigold wander the Walled City. Marigold leaves a note to the front desk telling Mon and Branna she’s left to walk. 

Dhuka is sitting by the fountain. 

The characters, seeking a moment of peace, find themselves in a public garden with a grand fountain, or are taken there by Dhuka. An eccentric old man, Mykola, is sitting nearby, muttering to himself. He approaches one of the characters directly and claims the fountain "whispers secrets" to him. Mykola then shares a list of unsettling, cryptic messages:

"A voice lost to the waters will one day return with the tide."

"The woman from Katarina, they wanted her forgotten.”

Mon’s memory 

Mykola tells Mon

"The thrice-born child carries the Raven Queen's silence in their blood, for the cycle of the King's death only turns when her debt to the cradle is paid."

"The lost voice of the Princess sings a tune only the Raven Queen can hear, for stolen breath is a toll paid directly to the void."

Branna notices the costume was from the Regency period 85 to 70 years ago. Queen regent and young child.

Dinner,

Branna and Sir Sergeii. Invite critics for dress rehearsal on Thursday. Branna expresses concerns and will work on solutions.

Herald returns, mentions he met a pretty lass and told her all about Mon, then passes out in his bed.

Sunday, July 3 - King Stanislas II and his entourage will attend the church service at the Cathedral and reet well-wishers, before heading to Thunderhead Down to enjoy the horse races

Monday, July 4, 1066

Herald departed early, and comes back dishelved. 

During the morning Dhuka is kept busy working on theater business. 

Mon returns to the hotel at lunch to pray to the Raven Queen. He tells her what he has seen, the statue with the raven at the fountain, and he will go to the city archives. Asking for guidance on the information to find and on finding other cards. 

Branna re-reads the script and finds that the whole story has an independentist bent. 

Masha and the Bear is a three-act musical play first performed by the Legendary Theater. The plot follows the story of a young maiden named Masha who gets lost in a forest and is captured by a bear.

Here is a summary of the plot by act:

• Act 1: The play opens with Masha, a fair maiden played by the actress Luba, in the forest with her friends collecting mushrooms. She gets separated from her group and is ambushed by a bear, played by the actor Vadim, who takes her back to his lair.

• Act 2: In the second act, Masha learns how to live with the bear while plotting her escape. This act features beautiful songs and highlights the performances of the lead actors.

• Act 3: The final act begins with Masha convincing the bear to deliver pies she has baked to her parents. Masha hides inside the pie basket. Although the bear is tempted to eat the pies multiple times along the way, Masha tricks him by pretending she can see him from his lair. When the bear finally reaches Masha's village, he is chased away by a pack of hunting dogs, forcing him to abandon the basket. Masha emerges and is happily reunited with her family and friends, and the show concludes with a final song.

Wants to add iconography, and the bear is trying to take her away from religion. And the bear makes her work on Sunday. A renewal of her faith. Masha could be raised in a convent, and the bear kidnaps her from there, she can pray only when her work is done, and her work is never done. She’s collecting mushrooms with the other nuns from the convent, and the pie in the third act is being delivered back to the convent. When the bear is chased off, he is struck by the hand of God. Masha prays when the lightning is delivered.

Mon will research St. Olha and see if there were dogs or wolves associated with her. Also researching the royal family tree, as well as more the losing side of the conflict 70 years ago. What happened to the losing queen. Are there any portraits that exist in the documentation. Is there a connection to St. Olha?

After the day is done, Mon returns to see Mykola. Mykola tells him "The mirror on the wall, it shows only what you wish to see, not what is real." then he sings a song. Mon remembers this song when he was a child, and he hums along.

Archivist Katiya .

She will look for a portrait of 

Grand Duke Andriy Volkov.

Grand Duke Volkov served as Regent following the death of Queen Lyuba, stepping in because the next in line to the throne (the King who recently perished) was a minor at the time. His regency is generally remembered as a period of military stability and cautious rebuilding after earlier foreign conflicts.

Book on St. Olha 

1. The Pestilence and Isolation (The Foundational Sacrifice)

This is the most common version, suggesting the loss was due to an unseen affliction that forced a heartbreaking choice:

• The Event: Olha led her people, a devout and freedom-seeking community, to the remote, rocky island where Konstantina now stands. Shortly after their arrival, a vicious plague or magical blight swept through the nascent settlement.

• The Sacrifice: Realizing the disease was too potent and risked spreading to the mainland, Olha, as their leader, made the terrible decision to seal off the island. She ordered the healthy to stay and tend to the sick, while she barred any ship from leaving, sacrificing their lives to save the lives of those on the continent.

• The Grief: She was the last survivor, or the only one to remain untouched by the plague. She stood upon the highest cliff, watching the last of her people perish. Her tears of despair fell onto the black volcanic rock, cooling instantly into the precious, jet-black stone, the Black Tears of Olha. This makes her not just a founder, but a martyr who traded her community's life for the safety of the greater Sezjan people.

  
  

Branna delivers the change in scripts to Sir Sergeii.