Severn Temple Covenant
An Ars Magica saga set in 12th century England


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Description

Marius' easy smile and mellifluous voice belie the sharp mind and political insight of this young man. Dressed often in riding leathers and practical clothing, he carries himself with his head held high and a grace in his step. His features are much like his father's: calm grey eyes and a laugh never far from his lips. He has fair hair worn mid-length and sports a youthful beard. His build is slight, much like his father's, though he carries a sword with a measure of confidence.

Personality

Marius is charming and polite to all that meet him, but those who know him better see a keen mind that is quick to judge political situations and something of his mother's will behind his eyes. He is not as easy with the common folk as his father, but moves with more confidence in noble or Hermetic circles.

Magic

Much like his father, Marius rarely appears to use magic and any strengths or weaknesses in his art are yet to be discovered. What is clear, however, is the extent to which the faerie courts and the pagan spirits court his attentions. He is touched by a destiny that may yet bring greatness or ruin.

Marius' views on the other Magi

1195 AD

Cormoran

This giant-blooded Ex-Miscellanean has the capacity to be as duplicitous and brutal as his blood-kin and I know that even Aelfwin (who never said a bad word about anyone!) had grave doubts about his membership of the council. At times he appears generous and quick to lend aid, yet this attitude can swiftly lurch to petulance and mean-minded envy. His martial prowess is without question (or even peer!), but left ‘wild’ this would be surely be his ruin, I’ve no doubt. I can clearly see why he has been the object of suspicion and derision by many of his sodales in the past.

However, in very recent years he appears to have found some solid sense of direction and even some wisdom through his studies of the old Gods and the practices of their followers. With the restraining influence of the Anu and the strict moral code of the Morrigan to guide him, he may yet avoid the fate of self-destruction through greed or petty enmity. In a vision I saw him standing defiantly in defence of the spring against crusaders upon one side and infernal shadows to the other; it may be that Cormoran has an important destiny that ties him to this ancient and sacred temple. Thus, I shall take my time in judging him, for perhaps he may yet prove a better friend than I might have reckoned.

Cynfelyn

My feelings for Cynfelyn (formerly Astrius) were once gravely conflicted; for I felt he bore some responsibility for the deaths of my parents. My mother’s grave stands mute witness to his capacity for recklessness; though she died from his healing spell going awry, that spell wouldn’t have been necessary save for his petulance at losing his armour to a spirit whose grave he was desecrating. Once Theo’s closest friend, Cynfelyn’s unwillingness to compromise over Theo’s relationship with the Morrigan and Ruaridh led the two to become ever more distant over time. In the end, Cynfelyn turned his back upon my father at a time when Theo needed understanding and counsel. Though I understand his reasons for breaking his friendship with my father, I note that others like Aelfwin and Tiarnen were able to separate the issues; seeing that what he did was wrong, but able at least to try and understand his reasons. Whilst Cynfelyn’s attitude did not lead directly to Theo’s death, it is a shame this attitude to the old Gods and Ruaridh did not change sooner so that he might have remained my father’s friend and confidant ... and perhaps been better able to counsel him against imprisoning my mother and possibly even protect him from falling into Nimue’s trap.

Yet, for all this history, there is greatness within Cynfelyn; that my father saw in his youth, Aelfwin firmly believed and my mother swore by. His fierce sense of loyalty to his friends and his covenant, and his strong bonds to the animals and the land mark him as something much more than simply a warrior magus; and I intuit that he has a deep connection to this temple. Cynfelyn has come a long way in resolving his beliefs about the Order, the code and his place within the world; his eyes are far more open than they ever were. But beyond all this, Cynfelyn would lay down his life for his friends and to defend this covenant, and has already put himself in mortal danger to save me from my own recklessness; and for this I gladly set aside my past doubts. Without Drudwyl, he’s cut a lonely and isolated figure of late; I hope he is able to heal those wounds swiftly and restore that connection to the land.

Medius

Our Quaesitor’s adherence to his faith in the jealous God marks him as the odd one out from all his sodales within the covenant; despite what the others may believe about each other, they have much more philosophically in common. Medius was often very suspicious of Theo and from the Journal and from Aelfwin I got the impression that he was staunchly against the old ways and deeply suspicious of the faerie. This natural hostility was matched by a pedantry regarding rules and the code, which appears to have made him quite unlikable when he first joined the covenant (at least by Dialectica’s report; she described herself as often his only supporter). Certainly in the early years he appears to have been more concerned with rules than justice; and to an extent I think he still struggles occasionally with this conflict.

Perhaps it was seeing first hand some of the injustice against his race, in Chepstow, that has caused him to soften his line against the pagan ways; I don’t know. But seeing the horror that such intolerance brings might make one, in turn, more tolerant. He surprised me by not objecting sternly to my taking the crown, and has become more indulgent of talk of gods and goddesses at the council table. I was worried that his fairly open dislike of Theo would extend to me; but he has been neither distrusting nor overly suspicious of my dealings. First he was quick to make me Magnus Ex Parte for dealing with the mundanes and then latterly asked me to serve as Ministrator over Tiarnen or Cormoran. So, in truth, I don’t know what to make of him. Part of me thinks that he’ll be happy to have me around whilst I behave like a typical Jerbiton; though the fact that he didn’t really bat an eye when I talked about the ‘King’s Council’ being held at Severn Temple makes me think he really is much more open-minded than any of my Paters or my Mater led me to believe. Aelfwin always said it was easier to judge another than to understand them, and I shall take his advice; try to work out what Medius really stands for before making any judgement about him.

Tiarnen

Tiarnen is the magus about whom I assumed the most, but actually probably understood the least; a failing that Aelfwin would have gently chided me for and my mother scolded. Of all, despite their fair words and talk of friendship, Tiarnen was Theo’s closest friend; even at the end when everyone else, it seems, had turned against him. I honestly think I just assumed that I would inherit that along with Theo’s lineage; and that was a stupid error of judgement. My father was many things to many people (mortal and immortal); saviour, champion, traitor, oath-breaker, King and villain ... but at the last what he really represented was hope: Hope that the world of magic and the wild places of nature are not doomed to dwindle to nothing under the iron heel of the Dominion. I think now perhaps that Tiarnen was the only person to really understand or believe that; and perhaps part of Tiarnen’s hope died with Theo in the crystal caves.

So, having erred, I must make fresh opinion. Tiarnen is isolated at council; for he appears to see little of worth in his companions at times. Since Theo’s loss, he has not drifted towards the faerie (he appears to have little to do with them), nor turned to the old gods, nor branched out into Hermetic politics; he appears focussed only on studying arts and spells. He strikes me as someone biding his time; though perhaps Theo’s death struck him harder than I ever realised and actually he has simply given up. He comes to life in the circle of his chosen companions; Kai especially never fails to lift his spirits. So far his advice to me has been cautious and conservative; as if he has not yet made up his mind about me. His advice is good however; that I should remember my free will in all this and look to preserve such freedoms. Perhaps that lies something close to the root of his apparent disconnection from others? That he sees connections as robbing you of your freedom to act as you would like, and seeks to preserve this freedom by avoiding such connections? Again, time will tell ... I just hope he’ll change his mind and sit at the King’s Council; of all my sodales he has most direct experience with the major courts and I implicitly trust him!

Marius' previous view can be found here.

 

Marius, filius Dialectica, follower of Jerbiton