Conflicting reports on the events of the Sviskere Massacre has turned the topic into a controversial issue in Cebran, though outside the kingdom's borders most people seem to agree that the more disturbing play of events is, unfortunately, probably the truth. Official Cebranese report labels the event as the necessary force required to protect their own against dangerous prisoners and treasonous rebels. Survivors and rumourmongers describe the event as the extreme eradication of a town fed up with its rule.
"They say all you'll find in the fields of Sviskere is blood and ghosts. Bastards didn't even give the poor fools a proper burial.'— Anonymous Calen Woodsman
The Conflict
Prelude
On the dawn of the 12th of Storms, 341 4E, a priest was arrested by the Sviskere guards for unlawful practice of magic. Official reports say that he resisted arrest and this escalated to the guards cutting him down in the street, triggering an angry response from the nearby civilians. Before the massacre, Sviskere was noted for its large jail which often held imprisoned mages or prisoners of war, and so it is unclear why this particular event elicited such a strong reply. Some theorise that the priest was a known local that the populace was fond of, or that perhaps his magic had only been used to heal and aid the civilians. In any event, the majority of town and prison guard were sent to keep the populace quiet, creating an opening for the prisoners of the jail.
In the town square the guards failed at keeping the initial outburst quiet, and the situation quickly turned to violence, with civilians acting out for both the death of the priest, and the treatment of their neighbours. Allegedly the initial fighting was short-lived, and quickly took to civilians boarding up their homes and business, setting up temporary blockades and shelters. The guard set up in the guardhouse, sneaking a messenger out to get word to a regiment of cavalry that was due to arrive in town that day. The stand-off between guard and civilian lasted for roughly an hour, with both sides taking pot shots with crossbows, slings or simply throwing whatever they had around whenever the opportunity arrived.
During the stand-off, the prisoners of the prison launched a successful jailbreak killing the warden and the skeleton crew manning the prison. When the escaped mages made their way to the square they joined in the civilians' efforts against the guard, and are recorded of directly killing at least 8 guardsmen during a skirmish over access to the alchemy shop and its stash. Somehow the civilians and convicts caught wind of the approaching cavalry, with about half the civilians abandoning the town to flee into the nearby Calen Woods, right on the Cebranese border where the cavalry could not easily follow.
With the resistance splitting, the guards were able to subdue the remaining civilians, some of which were killed during the fighting, others were imprisoned and executed later for treason. The civilians and mages escaping pushed through the river on foot instead of taking the bridge on the other side of town, and some were washed away in the current. Approximately halfway between Sviskere and the Calen Woods is when Cebranese cavalry scouts sighted the rebels running across the plains. Shortly after, the cavalry force of heavily armoured Cebranese Hussars smashed into the group of retreating civilians, trampling and cutting them down as they ran. Survivors of the event claim that even at the edge of the Wood they could still see the bodies strewn over the fields, and still smell the blood in the air.
Historical Significance
Survivors were few and far between, though exact numbers are difficult as those that did survive often refused to speak of the events out of fear they would be hunted down. Others reportedly joined the bands of rebels known as the Calen-Seere that make their home in the woods they fled to. Outside of Cebran the story and rumours of the massacre sparked outrage at the actions of the Cebranese soldiers,
Sien in particular using the conflict as another way to justify their continuing war with the rival kingdom.
Sviskere was repaired and utilised from then on as a military outpost. The Cebranese crown learnt from the prison-break to improve the security of their border settlements, and prompted some Cebranese raids on the Calen Woods. Many superstitious folk refuse to travel the plains or the road to Sviskere blaming ghosts on tales of travellers hearing the echoes of terrified screams and mournful wails during the night.
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