Dear Ashtani, Ashtanites and Ashtanians,

Firstly, I must apologize to those of other city-states, and those of no
city-state at all (I am looking at you Eleusians) for clogging the
otherwise extremely pertinent Public boards, but as you will soon see
this was unavoidable. Perhaps you will find the glimpse into the
politics of a Foriegn City enlightening, though that is not my primary
concern at this point in time. Never the less, please continue reading
if you will, for I will not be disclosing any information that is
classified in any way, and thusly cannot object to your scrutiny as I am
posting in a Public place.

On to the true intent to this post:

Ashtani, I come to you from a time in the distant past, a time when both
new enemies and old had been beaten into the ground, a time when Ashtan,
Bastion of the North was truely the City of Freedom. I come to you from
this time, this Temporal Utopia, in dismay. I find, not the City of the
Free, but what appears to be Mini-Mhaldor (I feel I must apologize to
any Mhaldorians here, though I belive I am still enemied to you so I
don't really see why). I have come, through this unfortunatly
unidirectional wormhole, to find that the Freedoms which once reigned in
our City to be little more than memories.

I will relate to you a story, which while simple and many of you may
find petty, I have come to discover is simply a symptom of a far greater
Disease that grips us. Earlier (for what seems to my temporally
displaced mind to be) today, the Overseer of Ashtan (who for the sake of
dignity shall remain nameless) had entered into the sanctum of a certain
Goddess of the Mischievious Persuasion. While in said area, he happened
to be lured off of a cliff by what I assume was a very attractive female
(much as I was in my youth), falling to his death.

Now, to you or I this may seem a perfectly acceptable risk for stepping
into the Temple of a Mischievious Goddess, why I remember a time when
said Mischievious Goddess stole a ring from the Logos Himself and went
'Wild', enjoying Herself as only a newborn Goddess could, much to the
dismay of many Mortals. But apparently to the Overseer (again, remaining
nameless) this was completely UN-acceptable. For, this particular
Goddess of the Mischievous Variety is also, apparently, a Patron
(Matron) of Ashtan. This led the Overseer to berate said Goddess over
the slaying of a 'Citizen' (his word) in Her temple.

This was fine, and the moral does not stem from this but the actions
afterwards, but perhaps you may gleam a clue to the origins of this post
in this introductory story. The Overseer of the City of Freedom, judging
the actions of a Divine incorrect? Surely the Freedom that should be
extended to mere Citizens would stretch much farther to the Divine, a
Divine who did not push him over the edge Herself, but simply let the
Natural Defences of Her Temple do their job. This is not a defence of
said Divine, as I am sure She is more than capable of defending Herself
if She felt the slightest bit threatened.

And so we come to the crux of the story. For making a simple comment on
this situation, a comment that I still feel was fully justified, and
that as belonging to Ashtan (City of Freedom) I have no requirement to
justify at any rate, my ability to speak on the city channel, which may
be a privilege in some place but is a right in Ashtan, was revoked
indefinity. How can the Ashtan, whom I remember as being the truest
defender of individual Freedoms, allow the Overseer, the person meant to
personify the Ideals of the City, to destroy the Freedoms Her citizens
strive to maintain in a hostile world?

Citizens of Ashtan, I come to you pleading. Do not let the Freedoms that
defined you in the past, the Freedoms that caused you to become the
Greatest City-State since Seleucar, to wither. You must remember who You
are, and not allow those in power to denounce your Freedoms. Stay true
to yourself and do not allow Tyranny become ingrained in your Heart. You
are stronger than this, and my only regret is that I was dormant too
long and did not see the illness taking you until now. But together, we
will find the cure. Together, Citizens of Ashtan, we will ensure that
the Freedoms we hold dear are the Freedoms we pass to our Children.

Yours with Hope, Yours in Freedom,

Accipiter

Penned by my hand on the 22nd of Aeguary, in the year 518 AF.