I am Tenhwa, formerly a knight of the House of Ballads. Many seasons ago I was asked to give up my post and come here, to work on the Fae Cairns. Hallam has trusted me with protecting the catalog of legendary Summer feats. I guarantee that every song is sung as it should be.
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Tenhwa is a member of the House of Ballads and keeper of their lore. She once held a position as a knight within the House but was asked by Hallam the White to resign and work with him on making the Fae Cairns.
“Welcome. Do come in. You must forgive my lack of hospitality.The Maid of Windemere and her minions have left me in a bit of a situation. Creth and Airmer could offer no remedy, but perhaps your mortal ingenuity will prevail where others have failed.”
“The Maid paid me a visit this past evening. She and her accomplice, Nix the troll, stole my most prized Cairns. All that work, and for what? With what I know, I should have expected an attack. Even this imprisonment spell - it is the same she used in the ballad of 'Two Knights and a Troll!' I can't recall the counter-spell, of course, as the Cairn was stolen. You must get them back, mortal. All of them. Especially the one you came for.”
“She is the witch Magwyr, sworn enemy of our great House and enchantress supreme. She will do anything within her power to win the love of our brave King Wencen. As it is now, and as it has been always been, she preys upon the wild and stupid to reach her goals. But something is different this time. She is growing... ambitious.”
“Surely you know the songs of Sir Creth and Sir Airmer, faithful friends and knight-hands who recovered the Sword of Rhyderk. Ah, but it's likely you know them from 'Two Knights and a Troll'. That is certainly their most popular ballad. They were here only moments ago, and I sent them after the villain who did this. My hopes for rescue go with them.”
“It is a tale of what happens when one wishes to become something he is not. In this case, the subject of the song was Nix the troll, a loathsome, pitiful brute. As a jest, the Maid of Windemere enchanted Nix into believing he was an ordinary man. He attempted to settle in a quaint mortal village, to predictable disaster. When the knights Creth and Airmer arrived, they treated him like the man he longed to be. They challenged Nix to a gentlemanly duel, and slew him in fair combat.”
“As in his ballad, Nix ran when he saw Creth and Airmer arrive. He is clearly under the Maid's curse, and may be doing her bidding. He ranshacked the cottage and made off into the night, his gigantic arms pilled high with Fae Cairns. My Fae Cairns.”
“The great collection was commissioned by Lord Ysa himself, but it was Hallam the White who championed its creation, and who crafted the Fae Cairns. As long as the library and its many Cairns remain, the songs of Summer will have a place in this world, being sung again and again for an eternity.”
“It is a form of magic new to our kind, a creation of our own Hallam the White. It is what he and I have been doing here in the Library these past few seasons. Lorestones have become a common magic among the Young Races. They are readily made, changed, and defiled. We Fae need a new currency of telling - a new way. The Echostone and the Fae Cairns are the latest in a series of experiments, as Hallam and I seek a way to protect and perpetuate our greatest songs.”
“They were designed by Father Etair, a mortal, and I worked with Hallam the White to fashion the enchanted Cairn shell itself. Quite a discovery, they are. It took more than a season to conceive of and then create the first working Cairn, but it has been worth all my efforts. Our songs of Summer are safe... for now.”
“Excellent! But, you've returned without the most important Cairn of all. Troubling, but that is a challenge for later. For now, you must break this cursed spell. As you've no doubt noticed, those Cairns are warded and will not reveal their secrets. They will, however, last an eternity. Perhaps even longer.”
“Go listen to 'Two Knights and a Troll'. Find the words that will free me from this prison.”
“Hear me. And don't forget a word. What Hallam feared is coming to pass. Somehow, using a new and twisted magic, the Maid of Windemere hopes to alter the Telling. At this moment, she possesses the single most important song in our canon: 'The Hero and the Maid'. If its story changes, we are all at risk. You must warn the House of Ballads. Time is running out... for all of us.”
— after you set her free.
“I will sing of you, my friend.”
Notes[]
If the player wishes to loot the containers on the floor above then it is recommened to do so prior to freeing Tenhwa as she is unable to catch you whilst under the imprisonment spell.