Gaspard

For all accounts, House Gaspard is a fairly recent house in Ishgard's long and bloody history. Originally stemming from a knight that served under a house that has long since folded, the originator of House Gaspard was offered land and title for his prowess in battle against wyrm and scalekin alike. He ended up taking a commoner as his wife shortly after his ceremony, and had several children.

The family line seems very straightforward for a few generations, those in its employ faithfully serving the church, or focusing on the people in its rapidly growing territory. Gaspard soon found itself a hub of activity for those who could not enter Ishgard proper, be it because of their outlander heritage, or simply a disdain for the city. Regardless of their reasons, their hands found work tilling the soil or fishing along the river waters, and trade flourished.

The next lord of note would be Lonato de Gaspard, who was born to two devout parents, one of whom was a preacher for Gaspard's small church.  The boy quickly grew to be skilled in chocobo riding and mounted warfare. Due to being a quick study of both warfare and politics, Lonato, quickly found himself a squire underneath a knight from House Blaiddyd. Here he served faithfully for many years, up until he found his own wife who quickly bore him a son, Christrophe. It was not long after Christophe's fifth nameday that Lonato's father passed into the Fury's halls, and Lonato became Lord of the lands of Gaspard. This saw him retiring from his wartime service to focus on his new land and his heir, who rumors said that he learned to hold a sword before he could toddle.

Lonato was beloved by his people, and he loved them back in turn. It is said that the lord, then in his middle ages, could commonly be found among the smallfolk. Be it tilling the fields or tasting bread from a recently opened bakery, the lord's praises were always sung by whomever he met.

It was five years later that the plague came. It began as a cough at first. Then boils. The delirium set in not long after. It struck both young and old with equal fervor along the western side of their boarder. The Holy See praised the lord in his quick handling of the situation, of blockading the villages affected until what was seen as Halone's Wrath had burned itself out.

And burned itself out it had. It is said that those villages are still a graveyard. Skeletons now buried under snow while laying in the streets, or laying among burned out homes of those who had been seen as the source.

Those that did survive after the curtains were lifted were considered unclean, cursed by The Fury herself. Why else would they have such sharp teeth, or pale hair, if they were not the subject of The Fury's ire? These refugees quickly settled into the underside of the villages, and mostly sunk into obscurity aside from the rare occasion one of these beastly outcasts were seen in the bed of a traveling knight.

These outcasts would be nothing more than a footnote, if for Lord Lonato suddenly taking in three young children and formally adopting them as his own. While this would normally not cause much fuss, the outrage came from the children's long tails and sharp teeth. The adopted miqo'te were quickly deemed 'The Beastly Children of Gaspard', and while the eldest daughter was constantly by Lonato's side, they were shunned by most other visiting families.

Still, Lonato strove to give his new children the best education he could. Quickly going from illiterate kits to fine young children, Lonato was fond of taking them to parties and gatherings to show off what they had learned.

But the true star of these gatherings was Christophe. Long of ear and charming, he was a prime candidate for many marriages and knightships in the area. When he left for the capital, Ishgard, he left swearing he would bring fame to their lands. It was not long before the young man was inducted into the Temple Knights.

And fame he did bring, in the form of claymores and long excursions. Christophe found his calling in the city, and while his father never could quite understand the boy's weapon choice, Lonato supported him nonetheless. Lonato's son brought along high expectations, and one of his childhood friends from a minor noble house rose up in the ranks with him. However, the once spirited young man grew bitter over time, questioning the church and those it sought to punish.

He supported the young elezen to the very end, allowing Inquisitors to paw through his records, to question his adopted children, to question him. But despite this support, Christophe had turned his blade on his superior officer in defense of a heretic. It was said that he spouted rhetoric against the church, against the Temple Knight creed, against those he swore to protect. His blade found the neck of a fellow knight, and from then his fate was sealed. Properly arrested, his execution was set for not long after that.

It is said that when Lonato watched his son swing from the gallows, a husk of who he was, the lord became hollow himself.

The lord never was the same. While still kind, there was a distance in his voice. The two youngest adopted children were seen less and less, but the eldest daughter would be by Lonato's side. She would be seen holding his hand, and servants that survived the events to follow said they would see the girl and Lonato in the gardens at night.

And she would sing.

They would not be able to tell the language, but word said that Lonato's steps would be lighter for the next couple of days. The limp that acted up in the cold winter months would leave him be.

 Perhaps that is why Lonato asked the girl to sing to the townsfolk before the letters of revolution reached Ishgard, for the smallfolk fought against Temple Knights as if they felt no pain.

Those that came to crush the rebellion said that those that fought fought like men possessed. They would continue to shuffle to their feet regardless of their injuries, reaching and grabbing at anything they could get their bloody fingers. But no man is immortal, and come dawn, the rebellion was over as soon as it had started.

Some say it was a knight of House Blaiddyd who slew the grief stricken Lord Lonato. Others say it was one of his beastly children, chewing on his bloodied throat when the knights managed to break down the castle doors. Those that survived the initial slaughter, gasping on their death beds, blamed the beast and her sweet song. It had filled them with confidence they had never felt before, a warmth that sunk deeper than any sermon the Halonic priest could offer.

The questioning of the adopted children was almost endless, but the Inquisitors had long since come to a decision. The beasts would be dropped come next dawn, and no one would be surprised if they sprouted wings and took to the skies. There is still debate among the soldiers that day, about who was to blame. Some say the eldest child picked their pockets. Others say she sold pieces of herself for their words. But no matter how much they searched, they never could find the creatures. They stole away in the night, the beastly daughter and her two younger kits, never to be seen again.

No one wanted the land for the longest time, due to its unholy history, so there it festered.

There it sat, come the calamity. Many attempts to re-settle it were made by small lords, but all met the same misfortunes. Bitter cold in summer, blighted crops, tales of ghosts wailing into the night while those attempted to sleep.

There it rotted, groaning under the frost come the war on their doorsteps. Attempts to live in Gaspard were abandoned, the fertile soil quickly becoming buried under snow and ice.

There it crumbled, come the end, with talk of their House of Lords and House of Commons.

It is then that two outsiders, those that had helped with supplying the end of the war effort, came to the councilmen with a plan. One with a smooth tongue and bright green eyes, another with a voice that could make even the most seasoned of veteran's knees buckle. No one is quite sure what was said in the meeting, for the lords pressed their lips together firm. Be it collective shame, or be it something more, the councilmen remain mum.

The two outsiders emerged with rights and dulled crown to a home long taken. It is said that the young lord's laugh could stir even the deepest cracks of the Fury's halls as he picked up his companion and spun him round.

The below records are currently in possession of The Supreme Sacred Tribunal of Halonic Inquisitory Doctrine, and are kept in a file tucked away from most prying ears and eyes.

Opening the nearly decade old files will reveal several documents, all in a seemingly scattered order as if they have been placed away in a hurry. Inside the file are:

• A letter from the previous Lord Gaspard on his intent to break away from Ishgard and form their own holdings after the death of his son, Christophe de Gaspard. Underneath the letter is the reply letter sent from the Holy See, with no response back.
  
  
• A reconnaissance report from Inquisitor Amanadine Ebrelnaux and Ser Gabrineaux Orchenault who were sent to Gaspard Territory to investigate the strange behavior. It seems the duo were swiftly run out of town after they announced their presence. They found themselves lost in the dense fog of the forest around Gaspard before a traveling merchant helped show them the way back to the path that lead to Falcon's nest.
  
  
• A brief overview on the executed former Temple Knight Christophe Gaspard. It seems during a mission out in Coerthas, the man began spouting heretical propaganda while attempting to protect a heretic that had been rooted out during a scouting mission. In his heretical delirium, he had attacked two other knights before being subdued. After he was executed by the Inquisition for attempted murder, heresy, and insubordination, his body was tossed over the Pillars walls and into the Brume below. Those that have testified to this behavior are Catherine Rubens and Esredes Rosemond.
  • His sword had once been in Tribunal custody, but seems to have been lost in the years since the Calamity.
    
    
• A report detailing aggression from Gaspard Territory towards those that cross its lands, resulting in a fatal conflict between Gaspard minute men and traveling house knights from House Dzemael. Follow up documentation shows the Congregation of Our Knights Most Heavenly sending a platoon of Temple Knights in to Gaspard Territory to quell the rising tensions.
  
  
• A personal report from Dacien Portelaine during the two week march to and through Gaspard Territories. She mentions the mist that weaves in and out of the trees becoming thick and heavy, and how easy it was to get disoriented unless one had a partner with them to keep them steady. Despite the disorientation, the march to Gaspard was rather uneventful.
  
  
• A detailed report from knight captain Isaudorel Aurifort on the initial events of the Gaspard Rebellion. It states that the villagers that greeted them surged forward as if to kill, and no matter how many times the knights would put them down they would continue to rise up to continue moving upon them. It escalated when more villagers joined the fray, one holding a pitch fork, and attempted to assault one of the platoon members. Proceeding deeper into the town offered much of the same, villagers shambling towards them, vitrol and hate boiling in their voices as they reached and grabbed for anyone they could latch onto. Some villagers resorted to further means of violence, and the knights responded in kind. The knights began to feel unease when the villagers would rise up again despite how much they swung their blades or how much of their bodies had been lost. It is mentioned that most only stopped after being put to the sword, or until they could physically move no longer.
  
  • The report also documents that some villagers were managed to be subdued and restrained during the initial minutes of rebellion. While the villagers would not shake their urge to do harm to the knights, when the knights kept a respectable distance the restrained would moan about a song they had heard. They would groan that it was the sweetest thing they'd ever heard, how they want to go back, need to go back to listen to it one more time. Questioning the villagers on the singer would have them say they listened to the eldest daughter of Lord Gaspard, and that "her heart is their heart."
    
    
• A bill of mortality for one Lord Lonato Gaspard, confirming his passing and listing his cause of death as decapitation. It is noted that he died locked in combat with a Temple Knight after refusing to yield. It is noted that his head had been taken by Catherine Rubens as proof of the attack, and had been listed in the inventory sheet upon the group's return to Ishgard.
  
  
• A follow up report by knight captain Isaudorel Aurifort detailing the wrap up of the rebellion and stationing of troops in Gaspard territory. Any adult survivors are few and far between, though those that do survive are kept under strict watch. An initial pass of the village revealed a gathering of children in the local Halonic church, where they will be staying until transport is found to take them back to Ishgard. For the comfort of the children, mother and Temple Knight Simone Vuivoix has been tasked with watching over them.
  
  
• An arrest record for Lord Lonato's children: Ashleigh Duran de Gaspard (sixteen summers), Juniper Duran de Gaspard (five summers), and Cole Duran de Gaspard (five summers) for assisting and abetting in sedation and rebellion against the Holy See. The three were placed under the watch of a Temple Knight who has since been dismissed from service due to a failure of judgement.A note on Ashleigh Duran de Gaspard and her flight from authority. The Temple Knight in charge of keeping watch of her was supposedly seduced by her silver voice and willingly gave her the keys to the room she was being held in. After locking the guard in her place, it seems she took control of the knight's chocobo and fled into the thickened mist with her two younger siblings.
  
  
• A personal report from Temple Knight Catherine Rubens. She mentions that over the course of the night and into the early hours of the morning, the fog only began to grow thicker. Upon noticing the late Lord Lonato's children had disappeared, she and Temple Knight Haeferic Mercer went to check on the other prisoners as well in the ballroom. Despite their wounds, it seems they had all gotten up and seemingly vanished. Rubens and Mercer proceeded to head into the mist, where Rubens reported encountering the same marked tree for bells before managing to stumble back onto Gaspard's main village. Mercer appeared two bells later, rattled and visibly nearly a decade older. Whenever he spoke, his words were cut off by wet moss escaping from his lips. Rubens reported this to Knight Captain Aurifort who sent Mercer back to the convoy stationed nearby to recover.
  • Aurifort and Rubens also went to check on the newly orphaned children of Gaspard, only to find that the Halonic church had been covered in dense fog prior to their arrival. Stepping inside, they found that much like the ballroom, all of the children had been spirited away through an open door behind the altar. In the center of the room rested Vuivoix, and approaching her caused her body to convulse violently as a willow branches pushed their way out from between lips and nostrils.
  • A secondary report on the death of Temple Knight Simone Vuivoix. Her body was never recovered, though her personal effects were given to next of kin as per Temple Knight standards and protocol. No cause of death has been listed.
    
    
• Rubens then documents how Captain Aurifort had decided to withdraw the platoon and attempt to head back to Ishgard as soon as possible to report these events and possibly receive Church assistance. Heading out on chocobo back and using a wagon to cart Mercer and other knights not fit to ride, they spend the next several bells traveling in the thickened mist for the path they used to arrive at the village. Rubens mentions how the forest seemed to close in on them as they rode, how the trees loomed tall overhead, how they felt the woods breathing against the nape of their necks. In a fit of desperation, Rubens tossed the sack containing Lord Lonato's head into the fog. This action caused the mist to thin enough that the platoon could find the path, and quickly made their way back to comfortable lands. Upon rendezvousing with other platoons recently stationed along Gaspard's border, the Rubens notes that it seems they had approximately been gone for about two weeks.
  
  
• A debrief given to the Lord Commander of the Temple Knights summarizing the above. A few squads are sent into the mist to attempt to verify the claims, but only bits of them return, minds broken and bodies barely hanging on-- if hanging on at all. It is decided to place a ban on traveling to Gaspard territory, and anything caught leaving it is to be treated with suspicion.
  
  
• The platoon who ended the rebellion is disbanded a few months later due to an influx of bouts of madness, transfer requests, and stepping down from the post. While each knight and their reasons are listed, there are three knights who stand out in particular:
  • Catherine Rubens stepped down from her knighthood to become a simple guard for a Halonic deaconess. There she has remained in the grace of the church for seven years.
  • Haeferic Mercer was deemed unfit for service due to his sudden and severe cough. He has since passed away from asphyxiation and smothering by fungi as of a year ago.
  • Esredes Rosemond requested a transfer from the platoon shortly after the initial incident, and was granted permission to station at the Dusk Vigil. Despite his checkered past of heresy and blasphemy, Mister Rosemond has obtained a pardon and has since been working as a political advisor.
    
    
• There have been many attempts to settle in Gaspard territory since then, by both common and noble alike. All attempts at settling have ended in failure or tragedy, see Church Records: Tales from the Mist for more information.
  • The only instance of successful settling has been under the kind hand of the current lord, Ashleigh Duran de Gaspard, despite hopes otherwise.