[News]Writings reveal more of the Nystad's Story

[Oriana]

The following writings have been found within the Offices of Seppo and Palindo and within the confines of the Lady Aino Nystads quarters, within the castle walls.

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[FONT=&quot]The Nystad Twins[/FONT]​

[FONT=&quot]By an unknown scribe[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot](as found within the Counselor's Hall)[/FONT][FONT=&quot]
[/FONT]​

Somewhere in the furthest outreaches of the kingdom in the north, there used to be a noble known to its people as the House of Nystad. That is till the day it was all lost in a mysterious fire. Like all tales of tragedy, this one also spun rumor and some riots to boot!

While some say that the fire was started by the lord of the manor himself, others are of the mind that it was the work of a gang of bandits. There were also stories with villains of gargoyles and even dragons.

We may never find out what truly happened that ill-fated night, but there are two facts undeniable: One that the entire Nystad household perished in that fire sans the twins. And two that the royal council refused to reinstate the estate to the twins due to political complications, which the raised some more rumors of political nature.

This was over ten seasons ago and no one knew what became of the twins till the showed up in Vesper last summer. The two twins, Aino and Kullvero, would be hard to distinguish from any of the other migrants had it not been for the few family heirlooms they still brandish. They are of age now and what little they have spoken of their past since that night betrays a childhood unbecoming for one born noble.

A childhood of misery for orphans, even noble born, is unfortunately of no great surprise or interest. What is of an interest is not their past but what might still become of them. It is their distinct character that perked up my ears.

Aino Nystad, a beautiful young maiden that might still blossom into a lady is a proud woman. If it was not for her lack of gold, you would think the she was a noble straight from the king’s palace. In fact she maintains the council should reinstate the House of Nystad. However, thankfully her pride is not always blinding. On most subject matter she comes across as both kind and intellectual. She is genuinely interested in the political establishment and in the future it would not surprise this old man to see her at the helms of a high office.

Kullervo Nystad, also a handsome young lad, does not exhibit the family pride as his twin. He also brandishes heirlooms, not out of the need to deny the reality but maybe to embrace it. He is not overly social, some may say loud like his sister, but likes to keep to himself. While you may consider these as good qualities, it is him that gave me reason to pause. While Aino is keen to work from within the establishment, Kullervo could not be any more against it.

These may seem like a lot of differences, they do share a few things in common. Not just the of their northern hair or the familiar Nystad chin, but they also share a deep love for one another and are both equally inclined to bouts of fierce temper. From my short time with them, I can state that, not unlike in many orphans, they share an attitude of “us against the world.”

Yet their paths are also so clearly leading into different directions, we have not heard the last of these Nystads.

[FONT=&quot]The Game of Houses [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]by Aino Nystad[/FONT]
(as found within the confines of the lady's quarters)
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Starting a storm in a tea cup, with the most noble of intentions, I rode out of the city of Britain. There is an old saying amongst my people.

"A sheep amongst a pack of wolves would be soon killed by the wolves. Yet a sheep amongst a pack of bored nobles would have the nobles kill each other trying to crown it king."

So I set out to the sheep to play my part in the political intrigue that is oft played out in this city.

My plan was straight-forward; go to Britain, declare my intensions to get the House of Nystad reinstated, and lend my ears to every noble who might seek a potential alliance with me, yet never promising or discounting anything. As they take my silence to be a sign of power, a power that can be harnessed by their enemies. I will raise higher in the social and political ladder. High enough, I hope, to get what I want but not too high as to have my corpse be discovered floating in the sewers. Indeed, it is a dangerous game but that is oft the case when the stakes are high.

It was a little over ten seasons ago when a fire destroyed not only my familial estate but also claimed the lives of my entire kin but for my twin brother Kullervo. The political turmoil of the time allowed the neighboring nobles to exploit the situation to their advantage, the end result of which dissolved the House of Nystad. We became not only orphans but also lost our identities on that day.

I can recount the hardships and humiliations we faced growing up in a world to which we were no use. However, wallowing in misery has never been my forte. If anything those years have only firmed up my resolve to reclaim out title. To those intensions, I fly like an arrow. I am well aware of the dangers I face and the sacrifices I must make. I have already sacrificed the close rapport with my brother who thinks of it as a fool's quest and wants to play no role in it. While I seek healing from the very institution that inflicted the wound upon us, he would rather have it brought down one brick at a time. So, should I fulfill my quest, I run the risk of finding myself bereft of my brother/ Yet, I fly like an arrow.....