Human Name:   Bast<br/>Deed Name:   Shadow Cat Dancing Betwixt the Silver Moonbeams<br/>Type:      Lunar<br/>Caste:      Changing Moon<br/>Motivation:   To build human society to the point where every person has a fair chance to make their dreams come<br/><br/>true.<br/>Intimacies:   Her compassion for the people of the Valley of Three Hearths<br/>Her passionate love for the Cinabar Ember and the man in her dreams.<br/>Her respect and admiration for people who give up their freedom to be their beloved's slave.<br/>Her freedom, and her right to surrender it.<br/><br/><br/><br/><br/>Strength      2   (3)<br/>*Dexterity      5   (6)<br/>Stamina         4   (5)<br/><br/>Perception      3<br/>Intelegence      2<br/>Wits         3<br/><br/>*Charisma      3<br/>*Manilation       3<br/>*Appearence      5<br/><br/>Archery         0<br/>Athletics      1   (+2)   (+2)<br/>Awareness      1   (+2)<br/>Bueraucracy      1<br/>Craft: Air      0<br/>Craft: Earth      0<br/>Craft: Fire      0<br/>Craft: Genesis      0<br/>Craft: Magitech      0<br/>Craft: Water      1<br/>Craft: Wood      0<br/>Dodge         0<br/>Integrity      1<br/>Investigation      1<br/>Larceny         1       (+2 Escape Artist)<br/>Linguistics      3<br/>Lore         1<br/>*Martial Arts      4<br/>Medecine      1<br/>Melee         0<br/>Occult         1<br/>Performance      3<br/>Pressence      3<br/>Ride         0<br/>Sail         0<br/>Socialize      1<br/>Stealth         1<br/>*Survival      2<br/>Thrown         0<br/>War         1<br/><br/>BACKGROUNDS<br/>Ally      1   Uncle Kheperu<br/>Ally      1   Cinamon Ember (Flame Duck and Healer, Shared Background)<br/>Artifact   4<br/>Cult      2   Bast has shamelessly included herself and a number of her friends in the State Pantheon of<br/><br/>the Valley of 3 Hearths.<br/>Face      1<br/>Heart's Blood   1<br/>Manse      4   Valley of 3 Hearths:<br/>Stone of the Fire Hearth:   Gem of Seduction<br/>Stone of the Watter Hearth:   Crystal of Seawalking<br/>Stone of the Wood Hearth:      of Youthful Suppleness<br/>Resources   3<br/>Solar Bond   4<br/><br/>VIRTUES<br/>Compasion   4<br/>Conviction   3<br/>Temprance   2<br/>Valor      2<br/><br/>Willpower   7<br/>Essence      2<br/>Motes:<br/>Personal                16/00<br/>Peripheral   44/-24<br/>Comited        6<br/><br/>Virtue Flaw:   Curse of the Mother Hen (Sometimes she nests.)<br/>Limit      10/0<br/><br/>CHARMS:<br/>APPEARENCE<br/>1st Appearence Excelency: Essence Overwhelming<br/>Hide of the Cunning Hunter<br/><br/>CHARISMA<br/>3rd Charisma Excelency: Resurgent<br/><br/>DEXTERITY<br/>1st Dexterity Excelency: Essence Overwhelming<br/><br/>STAMINA<br/>3rd Stamina Excelency: Essence Resurgent<br/>Bruise Relief Method<br/>Halting the Scarlet Flow<br/><br/>KNACKS:<br/>Deadly Catgirl Tranformation<br/>Claws<br/>Fur<br/>Heightened Senses (Taste, Touch, Scent, Smell)<br/>Night Vision<br/>Tail<br/><br/>Lunar Bond Dice -1<br/><br/>ATTACKS:<br/>Twin Moonsilver Kopesh (Hook Daiklaives)<br/>Speed      5<br/>ACC   (+4)   13 (14)<br/>Damage   (+4)   +6 (+7)<br/>DEF   (+5)   14 (15)<br/>PDV      7  (8)<br/>Rate   (3+3)   6<br/>Tags   Disarming<br/><br/>Cat Girl Claws<br/>Speed      5<br/>ACC   (+ )   11<br/>Damage   (+0)   3L<br/>DEF   (+ )   12<br/>PDV      6<br/>Rate      3<br/><br/><br/><br/>Dodge DV   (7/8)   4<br/><br/>Perfect Breastplate (Elementaly empowered with Water to adjust as she shifts shape.  +6B/+8L, 0M, 0F)<br/>Soak   Armored<br/>Bashing      4(6)   8(10)<br/>Lethal      2(3)   8(9)<br/>Agg      0(1)   6(7)<br/><br/>OK   (X)<br/>-1   (X)( )<br/>-2   ( )( )<br/>-4   ( )<br/>I   ( )<br/>D   ( )( )( )( )<br/><br/>EXP      20<br/>Available   0<br/><br/>Spirit Shape;  Egyptian Black Cat<br/>Heart's Blood Forms:<br/>---Albatross<br/>---Camel<br/>---Dog<br/>---Mospid<br/><br/><br/><br/>*   *   *<br/><br/>By the blessing of Luna, Bast still seems frozen forever on the cusp of womanhood and at the peek of youtful desirablity, with dark chocolate skin smooth as silk and tatooed with purest silver, firm, proud, and round in the bossom and hips, slim in the middle, with a waist that can bounce a jade coin, a grace to make a cat admit to envy, and a voice to make a golden bell weep and an imaculate monk pray at the alter of luna.<br/><br/>Her henpecked father Ori-Manu always did favor his slave concubine Koneko over his only wife, Ibu, for Sable Blossom was a pretty girl with a tender and loving heart, whereas Ibu was a bitter hag who never forgave any of them for Ori-Manu adopting and legitimizing Bast rather than raising the girl for the collar so that Ibu could sell her to a rich man and retire in comfort when at last Oni-Maru sucumbed to the years.<br/><br/>Despite her love for her father and mother, her father's wife's hatred drove Bast at first into a number of defiant fits of thrill seeking, that then gave way to acompanying Great Uncle Kheperu on his adventures into the desert, seeking treasure, robbing tombs, raiding ruins, seeking knowlege, and ultimatly starting up a band of counterbandits with friends and family who grew ever richer off of plunder plundered from plunderers, while thriving with the support of Kheperu's magic.<br/><br/>When wored reached their camp that Ori-Manu had died, Kheperu leaped up in shock and demanded, "How can this be?  Such potent potions have I regularly delivered to my nephew that he should have another hundred years of prosperity yet to thrive!"<br/><br/>A hundrd silk clad bandits with thrice their number in contented pleasure slaves bore down on the farm of Ori-Manu the day that all he owned was to be sold to a fat narcotics merchant, demanding with one voice that the<br/><br/>last will and testament of Ori-Manu be read and honored.<br/><br/>The merchant had only 5 gaurds and in terror for his life demanded the same, and the will was brought out,<br/><br/>still sealed.  Priest of Ptah was summoned to read, and of Anubis to bear witness these simple words.<br/><br/>"My beloved family and friends.<br/>"I thank you all for sharing my life with me, and apologise that I have only two gifts to give as an<br/><br/>expression of my gratitude.  Kheperu my uncle, I owe you so much, from the assurance that I am not the failure my<br/><br/>father would style a pauper like myself to a true apreciation of the enjoyment of life to the keys to sucess that<br/><br/>I was too poor offer my beloved progeny.  Therefore I hearby will you my most valued possesion, my beloved slave<br/><br/>concubine Sable Blossom, who is not to remove her viel 'til the will is read."<br/>"My remaining possesions are few.  I hearby will every last one of them to the church of Anubis to cover<br/><br/>my funeral expenses on the soul condition that my wife be offered to me, collared, as a grave good.  Let the<br/><br/>collar bear these words."<br/><br/>'Wife.  You would not obey me in life.'<br/>'Slave.  Obey me in death.'<br/><br/>"Those are my gifts to you, my friends, neighbors, and most of all, my family."<br/>Sable Bloosom then removed her robe to kneel before Kheperu, now a beauty to match her own daughter, and<br/><br/>seemingly no older than the day she'd knelt before Ori Manu and said the same words to him thanks to the potions<br/><br/>Ori-Manu had given to her instead.  "Kheperu, what my master comands me I do with pride, but also with honor and<br/><br/>pleasure.  I pray you, master, accept my submision and be the master of my heart and soul."<br/><br/>*   *   *<br/><br/>Life continued nicely, with Bast's youth extended and heallth preserved by Kheperu's potions.  From time<br/><br/>to time they would raid slave caravans, a dangerous gamble not normaly worth the reward on the accountants ledger,<br/><br/>given that they kept no male slaves, nor any female slave who was unwilling.  Though slave merchants often carried<br/><br/>heavy money chests and a healthy suply of other wares, these rarely made up for the expense of restoring health to<br/><br/>the slaves and leaving them in civilization with enough coin and equipment to start a new life.<br/><br/>Kheperu, however, was a wise old lech, and counciled his men that there were many valuable things in the<br/><br/>Creation, but none more so than good will.  Or, as he was more likely to put it, "A few silver will spread a<br/><br/>whore's legs.  A buisness will buy you a rich man's daughter.  But the only curency in the world valuable enough<br/><br/>to buy a pretty girl on her knees before you, pledging her eternal loving servitude as she locks the collar around<br/><br/>her own neck, is that girls' own good will.<br/><br/>Kheperu's leacherous proverb proved true time and again, not only in the ever growing number of loving<br/><br/>concubines who woshiped the Hundered Companions, but also in the ever growing shield of protection the comon folk<br/><br/>offered the bandits.  Soon neither constable nor Guild Army could find the Companions anywhere within 50 miles of<br/><br/>their home.<br/><br/>Many of the Companions, having known the smallest, curviest, and most beautiful of their number when she<br/><br/>was too young for love looked on her as a little sister.  As Bast grew in beauty and maturity her uncle and her<br/><br/>mother quietly ensured that Bast had the proper instruction from the concubines and a regular suply of Maiden tea.<br/><br/>Kheperu informed her that he would not marry her to a suitor she refused, or before she was prepared for<br/><br/>marriage.  She simply shook her head and replied, "No collar's for me, uncle, not for my neck and not for my ring<br/><br/>finger.  My life is racing the wind over moonlit sands.  No man in the world has enough of my good will for that,<br/><br/>and none ever will.  I will not dishonor you, though.  As your promise grants me a lifetime free of the collar, I<br/><br/>promise you I will go to my grave a virgin."<br/><br/>"My dear, I swear to you, not a man in creation will fail to wheep in his sleep this night.  Nonetheless,<br/><br/>I heard sincere pleasure in your cries as th e concubines instructed you, and so i offer this advise.  Let your<br/><br/>taste for women be known amongst the Companions.  Indulge it, and accept the hospitality of your friend's<br/><br/>concubines with gracious joy.  Eventualy the Companions will despair of you ever developing an eye for men at<br/><br/>all."<br/><br/>*   *   *<br/><br/>One day while raiding a slaver's caravan they found a prize of incalculable worth, a goddess--well, an<br/><br/>elemental--in the chains of a Cynis concubine.<br/>Kheperu's called upon the power that the Prince's of Creation fight to attain, the power of Sorcery<br/><br/>itself, to unlock her collar, then cast off her chains with a bow, "Oh beauteous divinity, it has been my honor to<br/><br/>do you this service.  I make no claim upon you, stay or go as you wish.  If we have pleased you, I ask only the<br/><br/>boon of a single night to worship your most beautiful body."<br/>The goddess embraced the old lech and kissed him with great love and much promise.  "Sorcerer, you shall<br/><br/>have your night.  If I please you, then don your armor again, rally your men, and ride to war.  My sister and five<br/><br/>of our daughters, neices and graudaughters launguish in chains as I did.  Grant them their freedom, and I will be<br/><br/>your loving slave 'til the end of your days."<br/>Come the morrow, Kheperu, lecher of 111 years, jaded hedonist, regularly known for exhausting five of his<br/><br/>concubines at a time, called forth the captains of the hundred compaions and, with a desperate look on his face,<br/><br/>informed them, "I...  I won't ask you to come with me, but I must have her!  I care not if her sisters are held in<br/><br/>the darkest depths of the underworld or the greenest seas of hell!  I must have her..."<br/>They laughed, and they slapped their teacher-captain on the back, and they road to war, easily liberating<br/><br/>the first three, but the last three where already held in a Cynis pleasure dome.  Kheperu, the flame duck, Bast,<br/><br/>and three others slipped in by night to rescue them, only to discover upon breaching the inner sanctum that they'd<br/><br/>been trapped and now faced 3 fully prepared dragon blooded and over a dozen Neomah.<br/>Suddenly the normaly sleepy green girl's attitude grew razor sharp with anger as her hair glowed like a<br/><br/>cherry red coal and flickers of golden essence wavered around her body as if she were a candle.  She spoke calmly.<br/><br/>"Where is the child?"<br/>The Cynis sorcerer scoffed.  "She was useless, years away from any value.  I sold her in the west to men<br/><br/>who had time to train one such as she to their service.  No matter, girl, you are here.  My forces outnumber yours<br/><br/>4 to one.  Submit to my collar and I will permit you a life in the same harem as these three you came here for."<br/><br/>The flame ducks eyes narrowed and sparks began to fly.  Flames guttered to life on the tips of her<br/><br/>fingers.<br/>"Oh, really now, what do you think you can do to me, Incarnadine?"<br/>She cried out in shocked pain and dropped to her knees.<br/>"Do you think I do not know of you, Incarnadine Waters, the greatest failure the Flame Ducks have ever<br/><br/>known?  It was you who promised Sorsa Endi that with the aid of your flock her brother would be found within a<br/><br/>century.  A century later, with no sign of Sorsa Endi's brother, your draconic patron sent you all away.  It was<br/><br/>your fault.  It was you and your flock who seduced Sorsa Endi and exhausted her reason 'til she accepted a drink<br/><br/>blindly from your hands, Incarnadine, a drink that then put her into a sleep from which she would never wake, and<br/><br/>from which your people would never recover.  Traitor, failure, regicide, whore."<br/>The wheeping flame duck closed her eyes.  Her tears boiled away the instant they hit the tile.  In the<br/><br/>throes of despair, she cried out, "Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?  No, this my<br/><br/>hand will rather the multitudinous seas incarnadine, making the green one red."<br/>Her hands relaxed, fingertips smoking like snuffed out candles, as her tears fell cool upon the tile and<br/><br/>the Neomah quickly overcame the others.  It was only as a panicked Bast slipped her bonds to fight futiely against<br/><br/>a Cynis Harkonen's collar, only when moonlight filled the room and the sound of Harkonen's backhand striking<br/><br/>Bast's cheek cracked through the chamber like a thunderbolt that Incarnadine Water's eyes flickered open at the<br/><br/>site of Bast's eyes wide in desperate pleasing, face bathed in moonlight, chest pressed into the ground, as Jabal<br/><br/>planted a knee into her back and pulled her head back by the hair to collar.  "Help me."<br/>Incarnadine's fists cracked shut and burst into flame as she exploded forewards, streaking fire like a<br/><br/>meteor.  When harkonen's scorched and battered corpse lay at the feat of the flaming pyre that was Incarnadine<br/><br/>Waters she slowed down to the point where her motions were visible as more than streaks of flame, and the battle<br/><br/>was on, one flame duck against 20 demons as two dragon blooded fled to call for the Wyld Hunt.<br/>Fifteen minutes later, moonlight lit the riverbank on a moonless night.  Thgouh fire had healed her<br/><br/>wounds, Incarndine waters stopped before their ship, grabbed the hands of Bast and Cinamon Ember, pressed them<br/><br/>into each other, and them crumpled to a ground in a coiled up ball as aconite venom rent her organs apart.  "Bast,<br/><br/>Steward of Creation, Chosen of Luna, I pray you, take care of my daughter.  Kheperu, I'm sorry to break my oath.<br/><br/>It seems my fate to fail and betray."<br/>Kheperu growled furiously and cast aside his bag of potions, having already given her all the treatement<br/><br/>for acconite he had.  Instead he snatched the torches away from his men and applied them to her chackra points,<br/><br/>forcing upon her agaonizing regeneration that held her back from the brink of death.  Incarnadine wailed in pain<br/><br/>and a man reached for the torch, but Kheperu snapped the torches away.  "What are you doing, Kheperu?" the<br/><br/>Companion demanded.  "She's past help, this is just prolonging her suffering."<br/>Kheperu growled, "This girl is my property and cannot die without my permision!"  The old man shoved the<br/><br/>younger compaion away and pressed a ruby and gold collar into her hand.  "Bollocks, Incarnadine, our contract is<br/><br/>fulfilled and you are mine now.  If Fate wants you it will have to deal with me.  Now, girl, your promise."<br/>Even now, fresh blood tainted her lips, and agony creased her beautiful face, but Incarnadine's smile<br/><br/>could outshine the sunrise.  She croacked something wet her lips, then spoke again, "Cinamon.  I need...  Over<br/><br/>there."  She gestures feebly and the girl clutching Bast's hand gestured with her free one to light a dry patch of<br/><br/>dock ablaze.  Her mother brushed away the torches, staggered to her feet, stumbled to the patch of flame brushing<br/><br/>away all offer of aid, and then fell to her knees in the pyre.<br/>Flames burned away blood and scar.<br/>Flames seared away dirt and sweat.<br/>Though she shook in agony, the nude beauty had never looked so perfect.<br/>She spread her legs, then, slowly, gracefuly, gingerly, made a formal obeyesence to Kheperu in the old<br/><br/>style before stretching her hands skyward, breasts thrusting high, neck stretching wide.  "What I swore first out<br/><br/>of nessicity, i now do out of love, and with joy."  In a single motion she bared her throat to the collar and her<br/><br/>wrists to manacles with perfect poise.  "I pray you, Kheperu, accept my submision and be the master of my heart<br/><br/>and soul."<br/>The old sorcerer granted her wish and collared the flame duck, the crouched before her and brushed her<br/><br/>lips with his thumb.  The flame duck smiled, then doubled over in pain, screamed, and coiled into a ball as the<br/><br/>flames spiralled around her, coiled into the sky, and went out.<br/>For a moment in the darkness that followed, all thought that she was dead, but Luna's light brightened<br/><br/>with each of Bast's tears to fall and each prayer to pass Cinamon's lips.<br/>Then they heard the faint, agonised, distorted babble of the elder flame duck fighting her way back to her<br/><br/>knees.  Mud and blood streaked her caliminsite curves, and she lacked the power to even burn the new blood<br/><br/>spatters from her lips, yet she fought to her knees.  "Master of my heart and soul,' she croaked out.  "Would that<br/><br/>I were mortal...  And could be...  The least of your grave goods...  I am not worthy of you."<br/>Kheperu cuffed her.  "Speak not so of my proprety, girl.  The Bandit King Kheperu owns no treasure one<br/><br/>half so worthy as Incarnadine Waters."<br/>The flame duck's eyes flashed and burned with love and fury as they looked back at her master.  Her pained<br/><br/>shaking began to subside, but only because her pores were smoking like a guttering candle.  A boiling tear ran<br/><br/>down her cheeks.  "Yes, Master, this one obeys"<br/>Kheperu nodded, he could see the agony building further within her, internal organs ripping apart over and<br/><br/>over.  But she still lived, obedient to his will.<br/>"Kiss me, girl," he comanded, and she obeyed, ministering to his lips with perfect skill and infinite<br/><br/>passion, 'til he thoguht his own heart would explode, 'til he was sure he'd feel her kiss lingering on his lips<br/><br/>'til the end of time.<br/>Gently the old sorcerer pushed the flame duck back and whispered in her ear, "Incarnadine Waters, my most<br/><br/>precious treasure.  I declare myself satisfied.  Your oath is fulfilled."<br/>Then she died.<br/><br/>*   *   *<br/><br/>The next weeks were a blurr to Bast, Cinamon holding her hand.  Luna kissing her lips.  Cinamon holding a<br/><br/>small black cat in her arms, only she was the small black cat.  Fleeing the Blessed Isle.  The hundred companions<br/><br/>scattering out into small groups for three seasons.  Seven Blessed Oasis's finding her and instructing her in the<br/><br/>arts of the Lunar Exalted.  Her Dreamlover filling her sleep with pleasure and her waking with yearning every time<br/><br/>she sleapt by day.  Cinamon filling her night's with passion but weeping in her arms for her lost daughter and the<br/><br/>certain execution of the man who'd fathered her every time she saw a bald man.<br/>As her education reached it's peek, Seven Blessed Oasis set Bast a challenge to prove beyond all contest<br/><br/>her worth in the Silver Pact and the Thousand Streams river.  Find a manse, claim it, then estalish a fully<br/><br/>functional society there that she could derive benefit from in ways that inherently strengthened the society.<br/>Upon sucessful establishment of the Valley of Three Hearths, a nation consisting largely of refugee slaves<br/><br/>emanciapted by the 100 Companions.  This was a small nation of free men with a citizent army of pallace gaurd<br/><br/>stiffened by militia.  Freeholders, not peasents, they worked for their own profit.  Bast's procedes came in the<br/><br/>form of a sort of property tax, which might also be considered the rental of their portion of the manse.  Other<br/><br/>taxes paid for the running of the goverment.<br/>Religious festivals double as both comunity bonding and an excuse for the holding of games.<br/><br/>*   *   *<br/><br/>Witht hat acomplished, Bast's tatoos were augmented and elabrated to represent her deed.  She was then<br/><br/>released from tutalage for a time.  She, Cinamon, and Kheperu traveled to the west in search of Cinamon's lost son<br/><br/>and Bast's dreamlover.<br/><br/><br/><br/>Notes on Bast's small 1,000 Streams River Expirament: The Valley of Three Hearths.<br/><br/>LAWS:<br/>Slavery:  As many of the citizens are emancipated slaves, the Valley deals carefuly with this institution.<br/><br/>There are multiple codes of legal protection pertaining to slaves in this country.<br/>Human Animals:<br/>"By your (criminal actions/dishonorable conduct in war) you have proven yourself less than an<br/><br/>animal.  This court hereby sentences you to slavery in the collar of an animal.<br/>Human Animals may not be killed or sold beyond the valley without permision of the court.<br/><br/>Otherwise they have no rights and no more legal protections than domestic animals.<br/>The worst possible legal punishement in The Valley is to be sentenced to serve 1 to 3 consecutive<br/><br/>years as a dutiful human animal.  (See Death Penalty.)  Every season the owner of a Human Animal must sign a<br/><br/>sweared afidavit that the human animal has been reasonably dutiful, in which case it moves towards Humanity, or<br/><br/>has not, in which case the owner is offered a chance to dispose of the worthless animal.  If the merciful owner<br/><br/>offers the animal another season to prove its use, its sins are ritualy purged with lashes from a kidskin lash and<br/><br/>it is offerd a fresh chance to earn humanity.  If it completes its sentence, the human animals animal collar is<br/><br/>removed.  It enters the lowest levels of the Manse itself and walks from Heathtower to Hearthtower.  First it<br/><br/>claims its Name and recieves cothing and tools.  In the next tower it claims it's Humanity and recieves a bond<br/><br/>bag.  Finaly it claims its and Responsibilities and claims a collar.  (Sometimes various gods or ancestors will<br/><br/>participate in the rebirth trails and try to deny the collar to the criminal, forcing them to ask, wrestle, or<br/><br/>riddle for it in enlightening ways, what ever happens, the human animal must demand the collar to fulfill their<br/><br/>responsibilties or they will never be human again.)<br/>When the human slave emerges, a festival is held in honor of their regaining humanity.  When the<br/><br/>festival is done, the human slave is entitled to submit him or herself to a master of his or her choice to serve<br/><br/>out the rest of their sentence.  If they cannot choose, one of the state gods will claim them.<br/><br/>Citizen Slaves are enbonded for minor crimes or are prisoners of war who fought acording to the<br/><br/>conventions of honrobale conduct.  Though property, and subject to a seperate set of laws from free men, they have<br/><br/>some rights and numerous protections, including protection from being punished without cause, punishment for<br/><br/>another slave's wrongdoing, and corperal punishment who'se marks endure longer than 5 days.  Their master is<br/><br/>required to see to their basic needs and pay them 1/25th a free man's wage, with which they may buy their freedom<br/><br/>for 4 times their price.<br/><br/>Slave Concubines (As Opposed to Contract Concubines)  As a result of southen culture, it is not<br/><br/>uncomon in the valley for women who wish to marry above their station, against their father's will, or for reasons<br/><br/>of personal taste to offer themselves to their beloved as a slave concubine.  They are offeerd the same legal<br/><br/>protections as other Citizen slaves.  Unlike the slavery of the wedding band, this bond cannot be severed with a<br/><br/>simple divorce, and if a slave concubine truly wishes freedom she must assemble at least a resources 3 expense to<br/><br/>buy herself.  Otherwise she reverts to freedom upon their master's death.<br/><br/>The slaves of visitors: Visitors are welcome to bring to their slaves into the valley and leave with them.<br/><br/>They are informed at the border, however, of the following facts:<br/>A.  The Valley has no fujative slave law.  Any person entering the valley as a free person is a<br/><br/>free person in the eyes of the valley.  Any slaves left in the valley after their master has left are salvage of<br/><br/>the state, too be imediatly offered the choice between the trials of emancipation, submission to a master of their<br/><br/>choice, or being claimed by one of the gods of the state.  Unless judged by a magistrait to have been embonded for<br/><br/>translatable capitol crimes in their home land, persons remaining in the state of slave enter the category of<br/><br/>citizen slave by default.<br/>B.  The slaves of visitors are subject to the same legal protections within the valley as any<br/><br/>citizen slave.<br/><br/><br/><br/>RELIGION:<br/>Along with whatever religions the citizents choose to honor, the following religious observances are<br/><br/>requested of all citizents.<br/><br/>The State Gods are:<br/>Verdent Spring Delta, the beuateous young city mother.<br/>Ardent Roar, the Lion at the Gate, the citties guardian.<br/>Grandfater Blade the first soldier to die in defense of the city.<br/>Grandmother Wise the first woman to die of old age in the city.<br/>Bast: Shadow Cat Dancing Betwixt the Silver Moonbeams (City Owner)<br/>: Dreamlover of Bast, revered as the Dreamlover in Sunlit Reverie<br/>Cinamong Ember: beloved spearsister of Bast.<br/>Beloved Horizon: The lost child.<br/>Kheperu the Sage: Uncle of Bast:  Bast's mortal uncle, an aged, acomplished, and leacherous thaumaturge.<br/><br/>Each of these gods is honored with a state sponered festival seasonaly, usaly a comunity meal on the third day of<br/><br/>the week at moonrise and an apropriate ritual, followed by a few hours of time set aside for personaly instigated<br/><br/>comunity events.  Each month also has an all day festival replacing the specific gods day.<br/><br/>On Grandmother Wise's Day in the Month of    , families are celebrated.<br/>On Grandfather Blade's Day in the month of    , tournaments are held.<br/>On Kheperu's Day in the Month of    , orgies are held.<br/><br/>In the Month of Fire there<br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/>EXP<br/>4   Strength    0-2<br/>4   Intelegence   0-2<br/>3   Temprence    0-2<br/>3   Cult      0-2<br/>1   Ally      0-1   Uncle Kheperu<br/>1   Ally      0-1   Cinamon Ember<br/>1   Face      0-1<br/>1   Heart's Blood   0-1<br/><br/>Bonus Points<br/>5   Artifact   0-4<br/>3   Compasion   3-4<br/>1   Martial Arts   3-4<br/>4   Manse      1-4<br/>2   Solar Bond   3-4<br/>