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[Thrax]

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A courier arrives in Magincia delivering a sealed envelope to an attendant of the Magnate.

The contents of the letter are as follows:

"Magnate Isk,

I enjoyed our conversation last eve. I do hope the discomfort of the physical ailment you exhibited there has passed and that you are on your way to a full recovery.

I am sending a transcript, a rough draft, as it were, of the speech I plan to give in Magincia at the ceremony to which you invited me recently. I know it may cause a stir or commotion, and thus think it wise to inform you of what I plan to say. Please tell me if you think it is entirely unacceptable. If it is, I shall speak on another subject.

Below begins the transcript.

'The Great Peril of Pseudo-Virtue
by Baron Thrax

The great failing of virtue is not virtue itself. Practiced by the sincere and good heart, consistently, it has merit, obviously. The failing is in the operator not the machine. Far too often the virtues are merely a vehicle for the proud and arrogant (anti-humble), power-seeking, power-wresting, entrepreneur to conduct their anti-virtuous activities behind a shield of piousness. With their mouths the light-bearing paladins deluge the rest of us with platitudes of righteousness, while with their mailed fists they enforce their will upon any who disagree or bring them displeasure.

For ages both Luna and Umbra have existed side by side, both declaring each has the answer to life's great quest: to find purpose and meaning. Luna's paladins, yea, all paladins, claim life's meaning is found in benevolent service to human, and probably, elf kind alone; that all other forms of life exist to adhere to their principles, obey them or, if they do not and resist, be destroyed. For example, they see no harm in taking dragons, ogre lords, and such creatures, and, much against their will, tame them, to use them against their own kind for mere profit and pleasure. (And do not think it does not give ultimate joy to any paladin to kill, especially when heaps of gold are for the offing!). They use what is "evil," impressing it into their service, and then, and only then, does it become "good" since it now exists to serve *them.* They, therefore, define "good" only by how it profits them: it is "good" when it serves their interests but "evil" when it is allowed to roam free. And noble Compassion? Whence lies its grave? Oh, they can show you its shrine, but its grave lies deep in their hearts!

So it is not really a question of whether something is inherently good or evil to them, but what party controls it. If *they* enslave it, using it to advance their own prosperity, it is somehow "good" and evil no longer. If the necromancers enslave it, then it, and they, are evil. Such is their perversion of logic and the shame they heap upon the virtues which they so closely and loudly profess to cling.

They have the umbrage to revile necromancers of using what is in its natural state neither good nor evil, that is, the bodies of the dead, as tools of "evil" to suit their own pleasures. (Remember, paladins define "good" as whatever they can enslave and control, regardless of its natural inclinations). Do they not countenance a similar thing? Which is worse, enslaving a living (evil) creature, or a dead (neutral) one? The former would have freedom granted it by nature were it not enslaved; the latter has had freedom taken from it by death already... it loses nothing. They would have us believe it is acceptable to enslave the living, but wrong to enslave the dead! This is merely one example of their hypocrisy and twisted logic where the virtues are concerned.

Now it is proclaimed by a certain paladin king that all necromancers are to be destroyed, that, and I quote, "To destroy a necromancer is not murder, but the path to Order and Virtue." What is clearly issued is an order for democide: a government's declaration requesting the "cleansing" of an entire class of persons. We await letters of marque and hefty sums of gold to be parceled out to those righteous bearers of light who will no doubt come flocking in droves to this new banner! To kill for righteousness and accrue wealth at the same time... one can almost hear the palpitating heart of the paladin, thrilled at such a thought! Never before, in the history of Britannia, has such an order been given by one of such rank. Even when "evil" mages, followers of Mondain, abounded in the land, as his religious clerics do today, never did Lord British himself issue such a declaration. He gave the right of self-defense for all, which is good and just, but not of democide. This is a new thing, an new tool of the pseudo-virtuous. Such persons become the very thing they decry. They, not the necromancers, are the new agents of death and destruction. They, better than anyone else, shame the virtues, giving ample fuel to those who need a reason to reject them.

But who is next? What if the whims of such deluded people lead them to issue an order to cleanse the world of others with whom they disagree? Will they proscribe certain religions? Philosophies? Occupations? Governments (yea, they already have!). Where will their influence, power, and reach end, and, if left unchecked, who will be able to stop them from imposing their will throughout beloved Britannia?

Consider my words. You have a choice between life and death. Conform to their will and live; resist and die, is their threat and the great peril of pseudo-virtue. Living free in the world, choosing one's own destiny, is the true call and nature of the Virtues; that which they have perverted and for which shall reap the evil they now sow in its name.

Beware the peril of pseudo-virtue, for it is a danger to us all.'

That ends the speech.

Once again, I offer my condolences and deepest sympathies to you and yours on your recent loss.

Your Servant,
Baron Thrax"