[Council Meeting] Ashan 718

[Faith Augustin]

123rd Ashan, 718

So much had happened between the last meeting and this one, marking the end of Ashan 718. Padraig was currently away, on the expedition back to the barrier he'd discovered a few seasons ago. She couldn't be more proud of him, more pleased that he was doing so very well but the selfish part of her wished he was here. Yet, she was more grateful than she could say that he had not been in contact with her two trials ago.

Because two trials ago, had they been working, then the bonds shared between Faith and her husband would have allowed him to know that Faith had died. Stabbed by a woman who thought that Faith had killed her son. She hadn't, of course, but that was not the point. The young woman, former slave and mother to two, looked pale and rather pensive. It wasn't the only difference to her, for those who knew her. Faith's eyes shone with a deep wine red tint to the silver, the colour flashing at a slow pace but definitely changing in intensity. She had a number of pieces of parchment in her bag, which she pulled out, in preparation.

As others arrived, Faith greeted them. Those that she knew, certainly and she made sure to nod her head to anyone else. She had with her the report on the relief effort and the final numbers. The memorial service and official opening of the new area, including the rebuilt homes and the garden of remembrance was the next trial and she had to admit that she would be glad when it was done and Scalvoris could get back on with its life. It had been a long time and too many people had died.

Far too many.

Alongside that, Faith had notes on things she had passed to the Clerk, ready for discussion. Her agenda items were always around things such as Welfare for citizens, the expansion of the Order of the Adunih, that kind of thing. Numbers for the Soup Kitchen, Orphanage and so on were sent to the Council members on a seasonal basis but Faith knew that this meeting was going to be one where there would be change. And so, this meeting, Faith had put forward two items.

A proposal for changes to citizenship status and a proposal for the legal restriction of some magics and outright banning of others.

letter sent to council members

Letter sent: here

To my fellow council members,

It is my duty to inform you of how things have gone, and continue to go in the relief effort. As of this morning, what I believe to be the final numbers are as follows:

1. Four hundred and eleven people are known to be died. Of that number:
-- fifty six were pulled out alive, but later died. Of those fifty six, fifty of them died within the break. Five within one trial. One lived two trials but their wounds were too intense.
-- one hundred and six of them had died of dehydration. These were recovered in the last three trials and it is theoretically possible that they could have been saved had we got to them sooner. Having examined them all I can say that of the 106, at least 70 of them had very extensive wounds which would have significantly reduced their chances of survival, unless they had been found immediately.

2. Three hundred and one people have been pulled out who have survived. Of that number:
-- fourty two have lost limbs
-- all will require therapy and assistance for some time to come.
-- seventy one are children.

We are now at the point where we can begin to clear away the rubble in more immediate and complete terms, ready for starting the building of the new accommodation. The survivors have temporary accommodation, as agreed previously. Please find attached the plans for the new accommodation here - note that I have included a Garden of Remembrance. I think it is incredibly important that we have this - and I would urge the Council to ensure that, when it is opened, there is a specific opening ceremony where the names of those who died here are spoken, where the volunteers are thanked and where the future is looked to.

And so, that brings me to my final point. That is to thank Councillor Amaris for the help and support provided during this difficult time. I feel that I must thank Councillor Amaris specifically since no other Council Member came to the aid of the people of Scalvoris in a way which involved getting their hands dirty. The Chancellor of the University, Professors and many, many others came. There were over a thousand volunteers at one point.

The only Council Member was Amaris.

For that, I am deeply disappointed and trust that you understand just what this shows the people of Scalvoris. The people you supposedly represent. It is disheartening and simply not good enough. Please reflect on your lack of action here and put it right the best way you can, the earliest you can. I don't care if it is your job to look after Education, for example. Young, bright minds were ended when these buildings collapsed. Teachers died. If you are the Council member representing Faldrass or Egilrun, or any of the places which are Not Here, then it is my very real hope that, should the people in that area ever need such help, then we will remember better that we are all Scalvoris citizens.

Forgive my harsh words, if you find them offensive. I am not a politician, nor have I ever been. If, however, you do find my words here offensive, I assure you that they do not offend you as much as your lack of action offends me.

Faith.

[Amaris]

- common / murnasian

This past season had been taxing. There was much to address about it, but there was plenty that the mixed blood felt was more of a personal grievance than anything else. They had hoped that some exploration would have been a good means of distraction, but it had proved to provide more stress than anything else they might have considered. They wouldn't think to much of it, they decided - as they did with all things. Instead, they put forth a different idea that had occurred while visiting family, yet again.

There was more to this island. That much was clear when people had begun to folk to Scalvoris' shores to study it. It was made abundantly clearer each day as the island itself began to rebel against its people, with incidents of strange occurrences being placed all over the island. Much of them, though, suspected that there were people who knew the answer and that they were well within reach - if Amaris would get the chance to see to it that some efforts be made to find them. This was an old island and her people may have been changing, but there would always be constant.

Amaris had not been sure of what to write in regards to this idea. Or, well, ideas. There had been much swirling around their mind in the peace of a familiar space, and they had sought to capitalize on it, writing down what they could - but it had seemed insufficient. And so, for perhaps the second time this season, they would try to verbalize their thoughts. They walked into the hall, fingers twitching with nerves as they greet Faith and the others that arrived. Taking their seat, they resumed their usual habit of attempting to curl in on themselves before thinking better of it. They were meant to be assertive; slumping their shoulders could easily be mistaken for cowering.

They took a deep breath, eyes fluttering shut for a moment before they opened. Shoulders set and back straight, they glanced around the room. They could not, however, stop the short show of nerves in the form of their fingers tapping on their thighs, hands otherwise pressed into the material of their pants.

[Sephira]

It had been a terribly long season, with multiple trials and tribulations. Sadly for Sephira she couldn’t quite recall everything that had happened, at least not the things that pertained to the Elements. Ever since returning from that strange place in the mountains with Rowan and Amaris there had been gaps in her memory; Recollections that were filled with fog and uncertainty. For instance she could remember the riot earlier in the season...and arresting Maxine, but not how the violence had been brought in an end. The attack on Element’s Hall near the start of Ashan was nothing but an amorphous cloud of half remembered moments that she couldn’t quit recall.

And then there was Volker...she remembered only two things about the aberrant; that she had met him on two occasions, and that she had held him down while he died. That particular memory left her feeling cold and distant, as if there was now some part of her past that everyone knew, that she didn’t

Thankfully she and the other Elements on the cult case had taken extensive notes, so she hadn’t been completely derailed, but it had been an embarrassing conversation with the deputy to say the least. Now though Sephira was here at the council meeting to bring up her own agenda, something that she had been thinking about for some time.

Mages.

Now, Sephira Blackwood was no idealist, she was a realist if anything at all. Magic was a dangerous thing, it was a truth she had been coming to terms with for quite some time. The Rupturer knew that she, even with all of her discipline and focus had been more than capable of losing control of her Spark. That ignorance had cost many lives. However, while some believed that mages were better left exiled from the island Sephira knew that many mages could be valuable to society... if they were carefully managed and monitored. So she intended to propose two badly needed changes to the Elements of Scalvors.

Firstly, she would request that a proper police force be founded from existing members of the Elements. They couldn’t continue to throw soldiers at problems that required solid detective work and good working relationships with the locals. Soldiers were geared toward dealing with foreign threats, not domestic ones. The Elements were a young organization; they had likely been created in haste to fill badly needed roles. Now that Scalvoris was changing and evolving, they were being faced with new and complex challenges every trial. Those challenges required a functioning police force.

Secondly and perhaps most important to Sephira was her request that all mages from every branch of the Elements be consolidated in a new organization where they could be properly educated, managed and assigned to tasks. This group would work in concert with the military and the police force, so mages could be assigned to cases where their particular skill set could be of the most value. They could consult with the Order of the Adunih to provide therapy and treatment for mages dealing with the growth of their Sparks.

It was a massive undertaking, and there was a good chance that she would be denied, but too much had happened recently that demanded change. The Element’s cult had somehow radicalized multiple Defiers to their cause, maybe that would not have happened if the Defiers had been better managed in the past.

The Element stepped into the council hall and nodded politely at Faith. The woman had healed her and the other women after the cult had kidnapped them. Not to mention Faith had verbally supported the Elements during that difficult time. For a moment Sephira took pause, noticing the strange otherworldly glow in the healer’s eyes. It reminded her of her own witchmark, but was somehow completely different...

Dialogue|Thoughts

[Kura Wolfsdotter]

Kura was not in the greatest mood, but that was quickly becoming the norm with these meetings. This time it was due to the Rynmere government refusing to meet with her, largely due to being busy burning it's own citizens as far as she was concerned. She had, however, come out of Rynmere with a student who would be arriving soon, so she supposed it wasn't a complete loss. However, it was the end of season and she knew that there would be important things discussed at this meeting. Like everyone else present, she had her own agendas, but she would listen to what the others had to say before she put her own agenda forth.

When she entered the council chambers, she paused a moment when she passed Faith to notice the change she now sported and smiled warmly. "Congratulations, lass. You've earned it." she said, patting her friend on the shoulder. She didn't always agree with Famula or her attitudes, but Faith had done amazing work and she deserved the mantle of "Champion" she now bore. She looked around the room and nodded at Amaris and Sephira before taking her seat. She had a feeling mages were going to be an issue this session, so she prepared her arguments for that.

Her own agenda, however, was the prison system. She currently found it to be woefully lacking, and she wasn't too fond of the way trials were handled either. Granted, she wasn't a fan of most prison systems, but that didn't mean she was going to accept it. She wanted to replace the prison system and upgrade the judicial system, and she had some papers written up about that with her, but she set them face down in front of her for now. She suspected it would be a busy trial indeed.

[Aegis]

Date

Every single member of the Council was present for this meeting, and there wasn't a single jovial face among them. They'd all received Faith's letter, and most were rather ashamed. Of course, Councilors Kura and Militant Broson were exempt, the first for being on a diplomatic mission and the latter being under house arrest with the rest of the military. But the rest knew they'd been shamed, and essentially publicly, and some felt it was well deserved, and others not so much. They all looked over the agenda that had been provided, recognizing that there were a bunch of sensitive topics. This meeting would be going well into the night. Hopefully Lesli had food on hand.

Albarech called the meeting to order gruffly, with his standard fist upon the table. He was particularly short today it seemed, and it reflected in his directness. "We have several topics of discussion, so let us get to it shall we? The first is the question of citizenship in Scalvoris, brought forth by Councilor of Welfare Faith Augustin. I believe she wishes to speak upon proposed changes to citizenship status. Councilor, you may begin. When you are finished, the table is open for discussion. Following a decision, vote, or tabling of the motion, we will move on to Special Assistant Sephira Blackwood's proposals."

Militant Broson cast a look toward Sephira, and gave a slight head nod, almost as if to say he supported her ideas, because of course he'd heard about it. Ever since he was cleared from being a member of the cult, he'd been putting forth phenomenal effort to better know what was going on in his military, but more importantly, getting to know his soldiers better. He still held himself personally responsible for each death, and it showed in his tired eyes and worn lines upon his face. But he was stubborn bull, and kept trying to do something right.

Accountant Fraear and Merchant LeShard were both sitting near each other wringing their hands. They were both miffed by the letter that Faith had sent, for while they didn't go and get their hands dirty, both put forth respectable fundraising and supply efforts for it. And the moment they saw citizenship mentioned, they knew it really meant slavery. And that meant loss of money, something neither of them appreciated.

The rest of the Councilors were passive in their seats, quietly waiting for Faith to speak her peace. In the crowd of onlookers, there were a few notable faces, more than usual. Sitting right next to Sephira was The Warden of Slag's Deep. He was a fairly common face at the normal council meetings, and was often seen at high class events rubbing elbows. But he was not just a fanciful type, he was there at the relief effort. But he'd dressed down for that, not wishing to make a big show of it. He might be recognized by those that were there, and were now here, but he preferred to keep his charitable contributions to the higher end of society. But sometimes he just needed to get in the muck, which is where he started his life.

Nearby sat Cornel Sherapo of Darbyton, much to a lot of people's surprise, Chief Ranger Elliot was there, Deputy Thorst Fall in the back, and so many more. This meeting would be heard far and wide across the island, by all walks of life, from the elite to the criminal, the downtrodden to the isolated. Every word here would be spoken of over dinner tables, into flagons of beer, and around hearths at night. The air was electric with expectation, anticipation. People were scared, others angry, and everyone seemed to want change of some sort. And so it began.

"Councilor Faith, please."

[Faith Augustin]

Some people had been angered by her letter. Others had been shamed. Faith knew these things, but they were not important things to her. Had she known the thought processes of the Accountant and the Merchant, Faith would have snorted with derision and informed them very clearly that the Council money was not theirs, and they were doing their job. She did not know, though, and in truth it was probably just as well. She stood and nodded her thanks to Albarech with a slight, tense smile. "Three hundred and one people were pulled out of the rubble in the docks and lived. Tomorrow, the new buildings and garden of remembrance will be officially opened. Three hundred and one souls who would have died had it not been for the volunteer efforts of Scalvoris people. People in this room, people from all over the island came together. Over a thousand pairs of hands, working together to make a difference." She looked around and her eyes moved to each of her fellow council members, each person in the room as she spoke. Silver and ruby eyes gazed on each person.

"We saved three hundred lives. The volunteers came from all over Scalvoris. Not one of them was a slave. Five slave owners sent us their slaves to volunteer. They were malnourished, unable to work in the conditions we were in." In fact, Faith had fed them and given them somewhere safe and warm to sleep. "They played no part in the relief effort. Yet there were one hundred and seven volunteers from Beacon village. Former slaves, but now free people, working people each one of them. All of them volunteered" Faith looked around and raised an eyebrow. "And that got me thinking about the economics."

Faith then gave them numbers. How many slaves there were on Scalvoris, as a rough estimate. She'd prepared the paperwork, with those numbers. Even assuming that the slaves were given a bare survival diet, they were fed. That would mean, medically, that their immune system was highly depleted, which would in turn lead to them being prone to more illness, more disease. They would heal more slowly from the brandings on their skin, the cuts and abrasions from the beatings which were legal and allowed. Then, she said, there were the costs of the pregnancies from the legalised raping of women, because they were slaves and had no rights.

"In Gunvorton, there are no slaves," Faith nodded to Shania. "It is worth to note that, of all the areas of Scalvoris, Gunvorton is growing most quickly, economically. There are no slaves in Ne'haer. A city which has a much higher wealth level than us. There is no slavery in Rharne. Also much more wealthy than us. There is slavery in Rynmere, but they burn people alive there, so lets not use them as a moral compass."

There was a time when she could not have done this, not at all, but Faith had worked as a professor in the university here for some seasons now, nearly an arc. She ran her own business and had founded a faction which was building worldwide renown. A few trials ago, she had died and been declared the Champion of the Immortal she adored. This lot seemed quite tame in comparison. "But I'm not here to talk about morality. As my letter suggests, I feel that is not the best or most prudent topic." Handing out a piece of paper to be passed around, Faith waited until people had it.

"I'm talking economics. On that handout you will see statistics for two hundred people and their economic impact on Scalvoris. One hundred people who have gone through the Beacon and Isonomia system, each of them former slaves who have gone through a ten week programme. One hundred of them.They are compared to one hundred slaves. There, in black and white, is the economic impact of the two groups. One, gives to the economy, adds to our strength and numbers. Buy things from shops, have jobs and buy homes. They are part of our growth. The other hundred? They make money, too. Of course they do." Faith paused, just a moment. Just a small moment. "They make money for slavers. No one else. There is no economic argument, they are not just free labour. Because they are weak and unfed so they are ineffective and costly. This system maintains because it always has, but it makes no economic sense."

Faith breathed in and spoke. There was no doubting her passion for this topic, but the numbers she put forward also made a lot of sense. "I propose that all slaves immediately are given the full rights of citizenship and we commit to putting them through the Isonomia programme. Every member of Isonomia will work towards it, including all our trainees and our volunteers. Each area, and I will visit each village personally and help, each area sets up a programme, we take the time to get them fed and strengthened and taught a trade. Then, they work. Until the cost of their freedom has been paid back, to their previous owner, they draw down half their wages and the other half goes to recompense the previous owner for their loss." There was no doubt in Faith's mind that she'd recompense them with a hot metal rod, not the money back, but still.

"The Elements have taken a dip in numbers. We increase their numbers via this. Lots of raw new recruits, but better than nothing. The slave owners do not lose their money and we have a stronger economy, a stronger military."

She had to close now, she knew, and so she raised her voice, just slightly and spoke to the room, not the council members. "When we were pulling people from the rubble, no one cared if they were slave or free person. They were mortal beings suffering. A thousand pairs of hands changed the world then." And they would do so again. "It makes moral and economic sense. It is time for change and that time is now."

[Sephira]

The young mage sat there in respectful silence as Councilor Faith spoke about the efforts following the collapse of the docks. A great many people had come together in that dark time to mend the wounds of Scalvoris Town. It was an inspiring effort, but Faith brought up an interesting notion. Slavery was still very much legal in Scalvoris, where as in other more wealthy nations it had been lanced from their societies like a troublesome boil.

Sephira was not like Faith, she had not lived a life in chains. Her childhood had been easy and carefree at least until gaining her first Spark. Now that she was beholden to the whims of her magic, she could sympathize some with the healer, but even then it was a stretch. Regardless, the Element’s interest was certainly piqued when there was the mention of boosting the military's numbers via emancipated men and women.

The Elements badly needed fresh recruits with positive attitudes and willing minds. Freed slaves would fit perfectly into this role. If Sephira was successful in instigating the creation of a local police force then the new recruits could be even more instrumental in the success of such an endeavor.

When Faith finished speaking Sephira stood for a moment, taking a measured breath before speaking in a concise and clear tone.

“I am no councilor, so my word only goes so far, but I agree with the councilwoman. Not only does this proposal make moral and economic sense, but the Elements would do well to take on new recruits.”

Sephira glanced up at the Militant, nodding at him with respect, hoping that he too agreed.

“The events of the last few seasons have placed a great deal of strain on our numbers. This is a time when we as the military of Scalvoris need to show our strength. That can only happen so long as we have enough able bodied soldiers to defend our borders. Fresh recruits would aid us in this endeavor.”The words were spoken stoically and with little emotion. She may sympathize with Faith to a degree, but the soldier didn't feel as strongly about the ethics of the issue. What mattered to her was the benefit that Scalvoris and the Elements might glean from the freeing of slaves.

Her eyes flickered briefly to Faith before she once again swiftly took her seat. Sephira could only speak up as a civilian and a soldier, she had no vote in the coming debate, but she could at least lend her voice to the healer’s cause in her own way.

Wordlessly she knotted up her fists in her lap to keep from fidgeting after that brief stint of public speaking. Sephira hated speaking in front of large groups, but for some reason she found herself doing it more and more these trials.

Dialogue|Thoughts

[Kura Wolfsdotter]

As Brandel called the council to order, Kura glanced around at the rest of the council. She had found out about Faith's letter when she had returned, and she could see that it had stung. There were going to people who would be more willing to listen to her friend because of it, but also those who would be incredibly obstinate about it as well. In particular, she looked at Fraear and LeShard. Both had contributed funds, but she hadn't been able to determine how much, if any, had been out of their personal pockets as opposed to the governments. Either way, she knew that they were likely to protest the economic upset abolishing slavery could cause. Then her gaze turned to the audience, noting the Warden of Slags Deep. He would likely oppose her own item, but she was prepared for him. Then there was Cornel, who Kura quite simply did not trust. Elliot she liked, however, but that didn't mean she counted him a firm ally, he would be more unpredictable.

As expected, Faith started on her anti-slavery speech almost immediately, but she took it an interesting direction, focusing on the economic value proposition. Kura grinned slightly at that, Faith was more adept at this game than most would assume. She held her hands clasped on the table before her during Faith's presentation, something she did to conceal any tells she may have had. Indeed, one of her fingers and the corner of her mouth twitched slightly when Ne'haer was brought up, as she didn't feel a relatively centrally located trade city and an out of the way fledgling of a nation were good comparisons. Rharne was somewhat better, but location would also lead them to wealth. She supposed, however, that comparable cities to Scalvoris were pretty few and far between, due to simply how far out of the way they were.

The comment on Rynmere got a slight huff of laughter out of the Mortalborn, however. She hadn't been able to make any headway in her meeting with them, as they hadn't been able to get their government in order long enough to meet with her. When presented with Faith's handout, she glanced it over briefly. The Isonomia program did good work, from the results it produced. It also indicated that those who held slaves on Scalvoris were largely not even particularly intelligent in their use of their slaves, but that held true from Kura's experience, admittedly. Slaves tended to be treated as though there was an infinite supply of them to be had.

When Faith gave her proposal, however, Kura raised an eyebrow, then leaned back in her seat for a moment and closed her eyes. Five years, she could see the results for five years. In less than one, this could lead to potential civil war. If they made it past one year, however, the odds decreased rapidly. Recompensing the former owners would help, but it would depend on how deep the slavers had their hooks into people with the ability to convince others. Recruiting former slaves into the military could help lessen the odds of a civil war, however, or at least make one easier to win.

When Sephira spoke up in support of Faith's plan, Kura opened her eyes and nodded. "I support Councilor Augustine's proposal as well. There are, however, a few things she did not mention. The fact is, the slave trade does little to boost itself, in fact I wouldn't be surprised to find that many slave traders had trouble breaking even. The cost of acquiring new slaves, keeping them fed and appealing to buyers, training them, obtaining holding and auction space, these all add up." she said, before pausing a moment. Then she just shrugged and smiled slightly. "And, being perfectly honest, many of the smaller slave traders are criminals, kidnapping in part of Scalvoris to sell in another, or kidnapping in Scalvoris to sell in other cities and vice versa. But since they're slaves, no one investigates. Frankly, I find it a bit embarrassing that we let it go on." she said, before sitting down and waiting for the rest of the reactions.

[Amaris]

- common / murnasian

Amaris was no economist - nor were they in the habit of studying the social climate of the island. Faith started in on her proposal with numbers and economic weight, and they were lost almost immediately. Brows furrowing at the sheet of paper passed to them, they read as the woman spoke and as the others later did. They had not encountered many slaves, though there were probably more out there than they had noticed. They were reminded of the slave woman from the ruins at the Immortals' Tongue, an encounter that had ultimately lead to them taking...something of a break. They blinked, looking up now from the paper to the councilors. A familiar voice was speaking, though not from the table. Sephira. She'd just finished speaking when Kura's voice sounded.

Amaris, for a short trill, was close to terrified of speaking. They had not thought of the matter in any sense. Slavery had been that one encounter - and yes, they had seen nothing good of it - but there was no knowledge they could draw on aside from that. Like anything else, there could be variations to it. Not that they would be thinking of justifying it but - soon enough it was their time to speak. They were sure that all had been in favor of looking into the matter of slavery and seeing to its abolition on the island, and the mixed blood was of the same inclination to see it happen.

Eyes were now on them, curious to see if the mixed blood would speak. Under such pressured gazes, they felt more so compelled to do so. They sat forward, back straight before they cleared their throat. "I cannot offer more information on how slavery would affect the island from an economic stand, but I do know that if we were to continue - we might well find ourselves being compared to Rynmere. And in the current state of things, I doubt that will be the public opinion we need going forward." Their opinion stated, they shut their mouth and sat back in their chair. Amaris' shoulders slumped, only momentarily relieved to have gotten through that speaking point, but there would certainly be another that would require their input. Or that they'd prompted to speak on.

[Aegis]

Date

Accountant Fraer found this proposal most interesting, particularly with Diplomat Kura's addition. He'd divested himself of the slave trade two seasons ago. Under the pirate rule, slavery was a lot more profitable. The pirates captured people from all over Scalvoris, and Eastern Idalos. But with the Pirate Lords gone, so was the best supply system. He began to ponder on the best ways to profit from this. An expansion in the military was certainly worthy of thought. Supplies, ships, new bases, forts... A large chunk of his wealth was currently in outlying lands, waiting for the island to grow. He could certainly make this work, with care.

Merchant LeShard, on the other hand, doubled down. She had been insulted by the former slave, and found herself cursing whoever it was let her go free. She was one of the few people still profiting from the slave trade, and her slaves were properly obtained abroad. She had three ships dedicated to the cause of importing people. She already had the shipwrights in Havardr building her another one. She had already begun setting up another network abroad, and in Darbyton she had started on... no. She shook it out. She was a shrewd businesswoman, she knew that much. And with a glance around the room, she was fairly confident this vote would be a close one. She needed to be prepared for the worst outcome.

Standing up, she looked directly at Faith with polite yet subtly pointed eyes, "This is an inevitability, now that the Pirate Lords are vanished. The slave merchants will kick up a fuss, but by agreeing to compensation, I'm confident I can help wrangle them under control." Turning to Kura now, "However, they may need assurances that, should this pass successfully, they will not be prosecuted on past charges related to slavery. Amnesty. After that, they are fair game to the justice system. Without that, you'll find the merchants fleeing Scalvoris, taking their ships, their slaves, and any other goods we rely upon them for."

Militant Broson would've smiled had he been in a more appealing mood. One of his own, a true soldier and not a politician, had made a bold and intelligent support of Councilor Augustin's proposal. And he stood in agreement with Special Assistant Blackwood's assertions. His agreement with her, and with Councilor Augustin, would be reflected in his vote. He had nothing more to say on the subject. But he returned the nod to Blackwood. Soldiers and solidarity.

Egg Liza now stood, smiling a bit venomously. She had been insulted heavily by Faith's letter. Not because she'd given money, and not time, but because she had. She'd sent dozens of Egilrun's finest craftsmen, construction workers, and laborers to Scalvoris Town to give to the efforts. And she'd stayed behind, with her husband and a couple of companions, watching over the businesses left behind by those she'd sent. She helped attend to their families, their children, ensured their animals were fed and crops cared for while they were gone. To suggest that showing up was the only way to help was beyond insulting. And naive.

"Egilrun maintains a sizable slave population. To give them full citizenship immediately, instead of after they've paid off their debt of worth, means we have no control over what they do. You say you'll establish Isonomia programs in each village, but can you promise that our slaves will stay when they now have the ability to go where they please, when they please? And if they simply leave the island? You will cripple my village if we do not have an immediate replacement for this potential loss of workforce. And so, I ask that, should this measure pass, we ask the Warden of Slag's Deep to speak, for I am aware of his desire to integrate prisoners back into the community, for rehabilitation purposes."

She sat down, and now Gunvortonian Shania stood up, smiling. "Council Augustine, I thank you for all of the hard work you put into the organization and follow through for your relief effort. You truly did an amazing thing. I do apologize for not being able to attend personally. I was away on personal business, and when I returned, there was much work to do from the heavy winter snows. Many of our own had homes that were destroyed, and were displaced. I wish I could have been there, but I was dealing with the problem that was most present before me and my people. That said, I strongly stand by your proposal. Abolishing slavery in Gunvorton has been the greatest accomplishment in the village's history. And we're more profitable than ever. Any and all aid we can give to this proposal, Gunvorton will give happily."

Devout Reza, Trainer Tren, Academic Witchbane, Almundian Tide, Darbytonian Elliot, Havardreen Linca, and Proper Birch were all silent. Albarech Brandel stood up. "If you have more to say, please do so now. When conversation is exhausted, we will cast votes. As per usual, one vote per councilor, with myself as tiebreaker if needed. An aye vote will indicate a desire to follow Councilor Augustine's proposal. A nay vote will strike down the proposal, and the law remains as is. A knock upon the table will table the motion until the next meeting. Following the vote, I will hand out assignments should the proposal pass. Following this, Special Assistant Blackwood will present her proposals." He sat down, and awaited for the rest of the council to continue.

!	Message from: Aegis
	I will post again on July 18th, regardless of who else posts. There is NO posting order. Be sure to include a vote AFTER discussion has concluded. If you wish to discuss, please get it done during this round. If you need discussion input from other councilors, let me know. You may post multiple times during these discussions if needed.