Auch

Auch is situated on the river Gers, and ruled by the count of Armagnac, Pierre-Gerald. Auch has been the seat of an archdiocese since 879, when it was moved from nearby Eauze. However, the cathedral burned down in 1170 and its reconstruction has not proceeded beyond clearing the site of most of the rubble and raising a few portions of the outer walls. It has no Divine aura. Located in the approximate center of town, the old cathedral was built over the site of several mithraea. Hidden within the catacombs are six complete tauroctony altars crafted of white marble. Mithraeans performed purification rituals and mystery initiations at these altars. The structure immediately surrounding and including the altars has a Magic aura of 3. If your saga follows history, no further attempts to reconstruct this cathedral

happen until 1310, when only the ribs and vaults are completed, leaving a rough skeleton to be demolished in a conflict of the 15th century. The relics of the cathedral, once dedicated to St. Thomas, remain with the archbishop's retinue and he normally travels with Prince Louis' crusaders. Garsie de Lhort became archbishop in 1214 and was present at the massacre of Marmande.

The count does not like the archbishop, and this enmity has existed for some time, with its roots in the Albigensian Crusade. His father, the previous count, was known for his correspondence with the trobairitz, Lombarda. The two met in Toulouse and maintained an unrequited relationship throughout the Albigensian Crusade. The conflict kept them from reuniting before the count's death in 1219, and the current count feels the archbishop's support of the Crusade prevented his father's happiness.

This otherwise unremarkable town on the Way of St. James is home to a small sect of Christians descended from a Diedne magus who successfully hid from the Order by renouncing his magic and becoming a hermit several years before the Schism War. The magus was a devout follower of St. Valerie of Limoges, purported to have personally known Valerie before her death and canonization. Every year, on the summer solstice, his followers make the short pilgrimage to Limoges and the Benedictine abbey of Chambon-sur-Voueize to visit her bones after lighting candles at the church of Saint Caprasius of Agen.

In truth, Estebe, formerly Bachlach of Diedne, was a pagan warrior-magus who desired a saintly woman named Valerie, and cut off her head when she refused to marry him. She then miraculously stood and carried her head to Limoges, presenting it to the archbishop. Humbled, Bachlach immediately converted to Christianity, changed his name, and returned to his covenant as a hermit. His followers now form an unusual cult, living apart from society in the wilds of Gascony and seeking overt manifestations of the Divine in nature. They are particularly interested in stories of the unicorns seen near Bazas. The remnant structures of the covenant-turned hermitage have a Divine aura of 2, which fades and becomes a Magic aura of 2 on the night of the summer solstice. Bachlach's research and journals are still here, kept in an old ossuary next to the magus' crypt, and could provide insights regarding Diedne magic and rituals from the dawn of the Order. They are just as likely to reopen old wounds of the Schism War best left alone.

While their initiations are cryptic and secretive, and some claim they involve a ritual reenactment of St. Valerie's beheading, the Agen Valerenes have demonstrated powers of Intervention and Purity, as well as the virtues of Saint's Aid and Wilderness Sense. The group in Gascony is associated with the larger Valerene cult in Limoges, and the two often assist one another in larger initiations, but both struggle independently to acquire a special ring possessed by the bishop of Limoges. In 1172, during the investiture ceremony of Richard I as princeps of Aquitaine, it was called "the ring of Valerie" and proclaimed to ensure "he may be fortunate in deed, abundant in faith, and finally come to glory with the Lord of Lords." This relic, Valerie's proposed wedding ring, was returned to the bishop when Richard went on Crusade.

This small village is roughly a mile from the site of a fairly prominent former Diedne covenant called Nemetannais. The covenant was founded in the mid-900s as a southern extension of Branugurix, but since the Schism War, the only distinctive characteristic of the area has been its unusual number of feral, magical cats, or matagots, considered descendants of the familiars kept by the magi, and who bear many distinctive qualities of the lineage of Diedne the Founder's familiar.

The former covenant site was near a series of caves and six small, pyramidal monuments of garluche sandstone associated with declarations of "safe haven," called sauvete. However, these 12-to-15-foot monuments stretch back to time immemorial, and mark the boundaries of a Magic aura of level 3, which includes the cave complex. The caves, however, are of questionable stability, given how the covenant was destroyed by Flambeau magi.

Drakes and worms have begun plaguing the pilgrims attempting to travel the Way of St. James. They are particularly terrible near Ostabat. The knightly orders of the region can handle an occasional small "dragon," but these numbers threaten to overwhelm them. They seek out the covenant and ask to establish a temporary relationship while "crusading" against the creatures. A group of questing Verditius and vacationing Jerbiton both agree to the knights' terms as well, and suggest an amicable competition and friendly wager between the hunting parties.

Major, Supernatural

This Virtue grants the Ability Saint's Aid at a score of 1. By beseeching St. Valerie (or another saint with a particular interest in the character) for help when performing Divine Powers and Methods or Holy Magic, the character may ignore the necessary Fatigue or Confidence cost. This blessing may be used a number of times between confessions equal to the character's score in Saint's Aid. This Virtue is always associated with the Divine realm.