A Letter to the 97th Diamond from the 67th Archmage

[Bailey Raptis]

April 24, 2019
Active Guard Gym

Blame it on the strange energies emanating from the crystalline tower currently haunting Twilight Isle, or the unrest bubbling at the city’s surface. Hell, blame it on the nexus (in fact, that was the likeliest culprit). At any rate, the letter Bailey sent out Monday, right before his challenge match with Jin Chae to determine whether or not he would remain in the Citadel of Stars, did not get delivered to Active Guard Gym until Wednesday, well after his successful defense. The goblin who handed the letter over to the gym’s receptionist looked a bit harrowed, and her clothes bore several rips, almost as if she had traveled through thorns.

“Message…” she started to speak, but her shortness of breath made it so she could only make it through a few syllables at a time. “...for...Hope...Naharis. *Oof*! Can....I think...I’ll just...sit over there.” After handing the note off, the goblin tottered off towards one of the gray armchairs and practically collapsed into the leather, almost immediately falling into a deep and snore-filled sleep.

Bailey’s note came in an envelope colored with ribbons of blue, orange, and red, much like the sunset that never quite seemed to fully fall on Twilight Isle. Inside, the letter was written on stationery graced with yellow stars scattered in the margins. In the header, Bailey’s full name and title of 67th Archmage had been stamped in some sort of gold leaf. Below that, he hand wrote his missive in neat and precise black ink.

***

Dear Diamond Hope Naharis,

Congratulations again on winning the 97th Diamond Quest. Truth be told, my memories of the night are a little hazy -- please tell me that I only proposed marriage to Gren once, at the Outback, and not at any other point in the evening (also, if you happen to know how I blacked my other eye that night, I would appreciate being enlightened, as my memory of that incident is foggy). Anyways, I am drifting dangerously off topic, so allow me to reiterate my felicitations for your performance, since they were likely stumbling and slurred that Friday.

As my time in the Citadel of the Stars potentially draws to a close, I have been pondering my past, present, and future as a duelist across the sports. I have been trying, as best as I can, to settle any old debts I may have and express my gratitude to those who got me to where I am today.

Memory loss seems to be a theme for this missive. I can remember participating in a Squire tournament you hosted while you were the Baron of New Haven in 2016, but I cannot remember the fine details other than my victory. That year, and the one that followed, are a mess and a blur. I do not wish to get too personal in discussing my ordeals during that time, except to say that unavoidable circumstances combined with less than ideal behavior on my part to pull me away from friends and acquaintances, and likely prevented me from expressing thanks the way I should have.

As a way for making up for delayed and misplaced gratefulness, I have enclosed a small token of my appreciation with this letter: a black star sapphire forged from the Circle of Genesis within the Archmage’s Tower. It is formed out of quintessence, the heart of magic itself, and, untouched, should keep its power for about a week or so. You may use it however you see fit to power any spells you might need to cast. Or, if you decide not to use its energies in this fashion, you will be left with a gem that I wager would look nice in a ring, or perhaps cut into a pair of earrings.

May your time as the 97th Diamond prove fruitful, and may you be given the opportunity to face Jonn for his Barony in due time.

Sincerely,

Bailey Raptis