by Janny Wurts
The prolonged absence of the Paravians now has created a schism that is growing increasingly difficult for each side to reconcile. The non-talented individuals do not discern the wider perceptions of their clan-born fellows. They see no convincing case left for the restraints imposed by the lapsed system of charter law. There is no such division of interests between the old blood lines and those who still follow charter law, since the underlying reason for the Fellowship's restrictions is still actively recognized.
The Designate Free Wilds, and Execution of the Compact
At the forming of the compact, which defined the terms for Mankind's permission to take sanctuary on Athera, the Fellowship Sorcerers had dispatched or contained the worst of the drake spawn. Paravians were in fact leaving their Second Age fortifications, which were tied to the web of Athera's mysteries by means of the focus circles. These structures are intersect points - connections that link the resonant flow between sites that comprise Athera's most exquisitely sensitive ground. The human families required immediate shelter. Those arrivals who already possessed the requisite awareness to inhabit a fortified circle, or who had talent that could be heightened to flower in proximity to such places were appointed charge of them.
The initial grants named in Third Age Year One went to individuals with the strongest heritable family traits - those born talents already able to perceive within the necessary range to handle the guiding purpose of their guardianship. These rulers also were charged to hold sacrosanct the high resonance land that could not be disturbed by any human activity. These areas were designated as sacrosanct areas deep inside the free wilds. Markers were set forth by the Centaur guardians delineating sectors where Mankind was not entitled to trespass.
Other acreage was not so critically reactive. There, new towns were built for those who had less natural 'tolerance' for the higher resonance state of the original Second Age sites. Such land was given over to agriculture and roads in allotments generous enough to allow Mankind to raise children and survive. The governing seats for these settlements had an elected council, presided over by a family lineage chosen for tenacity of character more than aware talent. These seats were appended following Third Age Year One. Here, humanity had license to keep their affairs as they wished, based upon certain precepts laid down by charter right to inhabit that territory. Alestron fell into this category. So did Hanshire. A mixed population lived in these subsidiary towns. The least sensitive people found most comfort in the smaller villages and tended to choose areas furthest from the free wilds.
Therefore, to a certain degree, acclimation to the higher resonance sites determined who came to live where, and who was comfortable setting down roots in each particular locale. This tended to isolate the older lineages to a degree - with marriages evolving with the need to raise a next generation of children able to manage the duties defined by the compact. Mixed bloodlines tended to fail more often, and parents were understandably protective of their offspring's chances of a successful 'testing' against the Paravian presence. Records were kept to track the tried lineages, and note the most favourable crosses.
While the general population in the towns were not inclined toward the traits of expanded awareness, it must be noted: the intuitive propensity to perceive is inherent in all of Mankind. Whether the quality remains latent depends upon how each individual aligns their focus and lifestyle.
Latent gifts of any kind can be awakened. Dormant awareness can be raised through training and initiation. Few town born voluntarily choose such a course, unless pushed by circumstance to change. Most might view the arduous study, and the disorientation of learning to adjust to such an expansion an uncomfortable process. Encounter with a living Paravian was powerful enough to incite an accelerated shift by resonance. Yet the change could shove human perception too far, too fast, and leave what appeared to be a husk with a broken mind. Living amid the free wilds also enhances perception - as would time spent in close proximity to a focus circle, provided that buildings and the life patterns of the surrounding inhabitants did not interfere too much with the delicate frequency of the lane flow.
Throughout the course of the early Third Age, mankind tended to clump into enclaves of greater or lesser sensitivity. Over time, this caused the old lines to strengthen their innate talent, while the less gifted ones devolved to a lower threshold of sensitivity. As centuries passed, half the population came to view the precepts defined by the Fellowship's compact as rote rules without meaning. The factual foundation was forgotten, then lost, lying outside the range of sensory awareness the town-born population understood.
For this reason, most Second Age sites fell to ruin after the uprising. (Jaelot being a rare exception). Town born alive now avoid such places, since crossing the free wilds, or travelling the forbidden ways, or spending time within old ruins, will alter human perception by resonance.
Throughout Third Age history, there were no social strata, or concept of 'nobility' attached to any old lineage gift. Nor was there any stigma attached to the town born without access to active talent. The cultural boundaries were not fixed, but fluid, defined case by case through choice and perceptual awareness. Blood inheritance is not a predetermined prerequisite. Yet without risking comparative insanity, a town born who set out to develop such enhanced sensitivity would require a gradual initiation to assimilate the shift.