This is a book originally sourced from the Library Under the Mountain. The party has found three copies: one in Dr. Collodi’s inn room after she went missing, one in the librarians’ dormitories at the Library, and one that was left behind after Jeanne made her hasty exit.
Each one is slightly different, although not in contents:
- Collodi’s copy has various notes scribbled in the margins here and there as the doctor was actively reading through it.
- The copy from the dormitories has dogeared pages on the tales specifically mentioning Petrus and Joyce.
- Jeanne’s copy is less well-worn but was found open to a tale about Joyce as well.
The Mage Knights
The Knightly Society for the Preservation of the World Tree, more commonly known as the “Mage Knights” due to their blending of swordplay and magic when facing their foes, is posited by this book to have been a secret society of sorts, small in number, dedicated to combating those that would threaten the World Tree. The age of this book is impossible to gauge offhand, but it is written in a very antiquated style and clearly predates the miasmic age, so it is likely very old.
If this society actually did exist, their deeds are not taught in any institution of learning, which begs the question: why did the Library Under the Mountain have three copies of it? (Collodi has notes to this effect on several pages.)
Their members were:
- Petrus, called Petrus Stoneheart, Petrus the Unshakeable; commander of the Mage Knights, if not officially elected such, than by group fiat, as the other knights look to him for leadership. Occasionally shown as stubborn and hard-hearted. Depicted wielding a blade as large as his torso and commanding earth magic.
- Joyce, called Joyce Sun-Blessed; de facto second-in-command of the Mage Knights. Joyce was the voice of reason to Petrus’ stubbornness, and the two balanced each other well. She was a master of light magic and wielded a mace if she wielded any weapon at all.
- Aedwin, called Aedwin the Eagle-Eyed, Aedwin Farshot, Aedwin the Zephyr; they frequently served as a scout when the knights traveled as a group, although they had plenty of solo adventures too, often more light-hearted ones. Aedwin preferred to fight from afar with a crossbow of their own design and magical control of the wind.
- Erix Dene, who bore no real monikers as the youngest of the group. Erix is featured in very few stories, but she is often shown to be knowledgeable about a great many things. Erix wielded primarily dark-elemental magic, and could forge weapons out of it on the fly if needed.
- Symath, called Symath the Giant. A jolly giant of a man, who was a blacksmith before joining the Knights; many of their weapons are of his make. Appropriately enough, wielded fire magic as well.
- Ellanen, called the Moonchild, Ellanen the Bright Glow. Ellanen is unique in that when she is depicted wielding magic, it is not entirely clear how it works; she uses it to control two giant curved blades of her own make. Frequently depicted as a sort of prophet.
- Lodhili, called Lodhili Venomtongue. Lodhili and Petrus do not get along well at all in many stories, although Lodhili is undeniably effective at their job. Wields a variety of knives and, surprisingly, poison magic.
- Anor Annell, called Anor Lightfoot, Anor the Dancer. Like Aedwin, many of Anor’s tales are more light-hearted in nature; they are depicted as a dancer and healer, primarily, compassionate in nature, though swift to enact justice with both their large crescent-shaped blade and lightning magic when called for.
- Thamund, called Thamund the Silent; true to his name, he is never depicted speaking. Wielded ice magic in combat; however, rather than a weapon, he was shown using what modern magic scholars would recognize as a form of arcanism, summoning spirits and familiars to fight for him.
Tales of the Mage Knights
Many of the tales are written in a fairytale-esque, almost surreal nature, making it unclear whether these stories are true or simply fictions. Still, perhaps there is a seed of truth, if one wants to dig deeper.
The tale that was dogeared in the copy found in the library dormitory dealt with a creature of unknown type that threatened the sanctity of the realm with its ‘deep, unending hunger’. Petrus and Joyce disagreed openly about how to deal with it, but finally came to a conclusion: as it was too powerful for them to destroy, it would be sealed away forever; Joyce was uneasy about this decision, but as the Mage Knights seemingly were long-lived — doubtless part of their devotion to the World Tree — they could watch over this seal as well.
Other tales include one where Symath engaged in a contest of smithing with a renowned dwarven blacksmith, the two of them creating several mythical magical weapons over the course of a fortnight. One day, Symath went to show his work to his opponent only to find that they had passed out at their forge; the Giant carried them to their home and tended to their health. Upon waking, the dwarf declared their thanks and expressed surprise that Symath would toss aside a contest to care for them. Symath responded that what was truly being forged in their fires was friendship, and thus Symath became an honorary dwarf of sorts.
There is one story that is honestly more of a debate between Joyce and Lodhili over the use of poison magic in combat; Lodhili reasons that while some would call it dishonorable due to its tendency to be a form of slow wasting away, it is a form of mercy, as its allows the poisoned foe to reason that they are outmatched and flee the field of battle before they die. Lodhili is depicted as efficient but oddly merciful in many stories, you realize.
A story late in the compilation features primarily Anor Annell and Ellanen; the two venture far afield to a small kingdom whose lands suffer as its leader does. They manage to heal the king, but he is aged and quite possibly dying, and he two of them worry that should something afflict the king after they depart, the lands would once again suffer in their wake. The ending is left deliberately vague.