VNP-8471
Byㅤ Ethagon
Published on 28 Aug 2024 09:03
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by Ethagon
VNP-8471
The Supreme Court of Esterberg, serving as a permanent seat of the Summer Court.
Item №: VNP-8471
Specifications: VNP-8471 refers to the Summer Court, a supranational Court pertaining to legal matters concerning reality. In theory, the Court is capable of changing any aspect of reality in the states over which it holds jurisdiction. In practice, the court is careful to change only minor aspects of reality, since all its judgments are final.
Its operation resembles that of other supranational courts such as the International Court of Justice or the International Court For the Paranormal. Any legal entity, be it a person, a group, or a member state of the UN, can bring a claim to the Court. VNP-8471 will deliberate over the claim and if it deems it justified, change reality accordingly.
Historically, the Court has always appointed someone involved in the claim, be it plaintiff or accused, to bear the weight of the judgment. This often takes the form of a punishment or forcing a responsibility related to the claim onto the weightbearer.
The Summer Court has no fixed location. It is impossible to interact with the true Summer Court itself. Instead, a claimant may perform a legal ritual, the Rite which brings Summer, at any court to turn that court into an arm of Summer to handle the claim instead.
The rite may fail either because Summer rejects the court or the judge has not, or is not allowed to, consent to the rite.
The Summer Court is part of the Cycle of Seasons, a legal system dating back to the time of the First Fae Empire. This cycle was temporarily broken by the introduction of the Veil of Normalcy in 1868 and has been operational again since 2022-06-21.
Normalization Protocols: Efforts are to focus on educating the public about the Summer Court. Information about it will be integrated with the larger campaign to inform about Fae customs and history. Law schools will be sponsored by Vanguard for the inclusion of the Summer Court legal system in their education. If possible, Vanguard agents are to be stationed near instances of the Summer Court to warn people about the potential consequences and the finality of the judgement compared to other courts.
A documentary will be released as part of Vanguard's documentation program which will focus on the history and key actors of the Cycle of Seasons.
Cycle of Seasons Primer
The Cycle of Seasons consists of four institutions. Each of these institutions has one domain and the power to transfer legal matters to one of the two "neighbouring" institutions. The four institutions are:
The Autumn Court handling matters which are in decline (called "CEASE" by the Cycle).
- Location: The Court is located in the extradimensional realm "The Lessening Forest" partly intersecting with the rubble of former SCP Foundation Site-118. Ways to it can be found in other places, dominantly in forests with an autumnal look to them.
- Current State: After an attempt to usurp the SCP Foundation was thwarted by its dissolution, the Autumn Court has fallen back into infighting. A process previously rendering the Court nonexistent outside of autumn in the northern hemisphere has ceased with the repairing of the Cycle. The Court's hierarchy is loosely oligarchic. As the Court has a corruption problem, Vanguard recommends only taking claims to it during times of Summer-induced stability.
- Ruler: The Autumn Court is officially ruled by the three entities Fe, Eal and En (all corrupted SCP Foundation personnel) who only speak with the authority of the Court together.
The Winter Court handling matters of non-existence (called "IS NOT" by the Cycle).
- Location: The Court exists in a realm superimposed over our own and has been classified as an afterlife. It can only be entered by any who had a brush with death or crossed the threshold already.
- Current State: The Winter Court has been largely unaffected by the breaking of the Cycle, showing low activity in both the current and the last century. The only noteworthy change is the Wild Hunt, an organ of volunteers working in the name of the Court, transferring to Spring under the name of 'The Wild Parade'. As the Court does not have any official organs, it is impossible to bring a legal claim to it. It can at best serve for personal discoveries.
- Ruler: The Father of Winter The Winter Court is without Ruler.
The Spring Court handling matters of things on the surprise and creation (called "BECOME" by the Cycle).
- Location: Previously located in VNP-4000-ARC, but abandoned after multiple incidents. Spring now resides in a realm inside the video game "A Midsummer Night's Game Online"; another extradimensional location which grew out of VNP-4000-ARC called the Climbing Woods; and the aforementioned Wild Parade, a wandering circus.
- Current State: The Spring Court currently exists in the form of the Early, High, and Late Spring Courts each under a different authority with its own approach, manifesting different aspects of Spring. More information is available in the Spring Courts threefold announcement archived by the Sidhe Lounge.
- Ruler: Glaisnir (Early Spring), the Climbing Monarch (High Spring), and the First Guest (Late Spring)
The Summer Court handling matters of existence and permanence (called "IS" by the Cycle)
- Ruler: Truth
The first signs of the Summer Courts return appeared as soon as the Veil had fallen. Daytime was just a few minutes longer, the summer in the southern hemisphere was the most evenly warm one in centuries and the sun shone brighter all year round. On a more individual level, a group in the Serpent's Hand noticed their Truth Glamour had become more potent.
An individual called Lavender from the group made contact with the Summer Court. She was able to enter a communion of sorts with Truth. It became clear the Summer Court intended to fully manifest on the next northern Summer Solstice. Vanguard searched the Wanderer's Library, and contemporary witnesses of the Summer Court were asked to gain a better understanding of the impending manifestation.
The United Nations Global Occult Coalition was independently able to divine the return of the Summer Court. On the question of whether this arrival could be and, more importantly, should be stopped, both Vanguard and the UNGOC came to the conclusion the Summer Court would be an inviolable asset in defending reality against hostile actors.
On March 20th 2022, the first-ever World Occult Forum was held. The Forum was open to leading experts on the occult, members of Vanguard, and the Global Occult Coalition, as well as delegations of UN member states and observers. The two main topics of this first WOF quickly emerged to be the ramifications of the Impasse and the impending return of the Summer Court.
The Forum was able to reach a consensus of sorts on how to interact with the Court after its return. After the Forum the UNGOC's Council of 108 voted for recognizing the Summer Court as an international legal institution. Vanguard spread information over its official channels to inform the public about the Summer Court.
Yet although the Forum had been open to national delegations, few made use of that opportunity. While Vanguard warned about the Court, it did not garner much public interest. As such when the Summer Court announced its presence globally, many were surprised.
The Announcement
On 2022-06-21, every person on Earth heard a message in their native language. The message began at exactly noon of that day depending on a person's current timezone. The following is the British English version of the message.
Once upon a time, there were Names.
The Fool, a human name, a name for many;
the Acolytes of Summer;
and Truth.
One day the Fool came upon a cultivated land and in it, the Fool found other Fools.
"Who owns this land?" asked the Fools each other.
"I do," an old Fool said. "I walked this land first. I claim it as mine through the Right of Priority."
"I do," a second one said. "I cultivated the plants of this land. I claim it as mine through the Right of Toil."
"I do," said the youngest of the Fools. "Whoever owns it, I will be left to look after it. I claim it as mine through the Right of Inheritance."
Fools, came a voice from up high. None of you fulfil what you claim. Whose rays touched this land long before any of you? Whose light tended to more plants than any worker? Who will watch this land long after the youngest of you have left?
None of the Fools could argue with this, but they were not satisfied. If they had no claim for the crown they must simply usurp it. Yet how could they reach the voice?
The old Fool built a tower of institution, rules old and calcified. Indeed the tower was high, simply standing as it always had. Yet the arch of history would bend against it and the tower could not reach that high.
The second Fool cultivated his plants into a tree of hard-earned progress. Indeed the tree was ever-growing. Yet no growth could cross the boundary to perfection and the tree could not reach that high.
The youngest Fool climbed atop a mountain out of all that stood the test of time. Indeed it stood as solid as anything could and the top was just out of reach. Yet the mountain was shrinking as few things were truly permanent and the mountain could not reach that high.
So was it that all the Fools gave up.
The voice spoke again. As none of you can reach me, only some of my rays can reach you. I cannot give you the crown, but of those who came closest, I will select my acolytes.
And so the Fools bowed before Truth, the Ruler of Summer forevermore.
For Summer's Domain is that which is. Everything of worth is found here, yet no one has the right of it.
…
…
This is how it was a long time ago. Yet Summer passed to Autumn. So came the long Veil of Winter, only recently lifted by Spring.
Now it is time for the Return of the Summer Court.
After the message was spread around the globe, the Rite which brings Summer began to take effect. As prepared by Vanguard, the message was followed by worldwide special broadcasts with record-breaking viewing figures.
With the personal confrontation through the announcement, heads of state showed much more interest in the Summer Court and any possible infringements on their power. Before the situation could devolve into individual actions, Poland called for a session of the UN General Assembly upon request by the UNGOC.
Here the Coalition revealed its decision: The Summer Court would have a permanent seat in Esterberg and be subjected to its own laws as well as international and Esterbergian law. Any other instance would be subject to the same rules as Esterberg, otherwise, a judge would not be legally allowed to consent to the Rite which brings Summer. The Court's authority would extend to all UN member states. UN observer states, such as Vatican City, would be excluded from this scenario. The fact that reality in Vatican City was already completely under the authority of the papal Office would make an inclusion superfluous.
This proposal and the Coalition's tone of declaring it as fact met with the disapproval of the member states. While the UNGOC had been trusted with handling occult matters of the world in the past, taking matters so deeply affecting all states into its own hands was too much. The GOC Delegation explained it had already agreed on this matter with the Summer Court. To supersede said agreement a new Resolution should be proposed, as long as it was created on the international level.
While the General Assembly still argued about implementation, the Summer Court began its work.
Case: Interaction of the Erlkingdom with Baseline Reality
Background: Starting on the 27th of July 2022 in Jena, Germany, "fog waves" were beginning to spread in an ever-increasing radius. Every child touched by the fog vanished. As this came with an ultimatum by the Erlking delivered to the remaining European royalty to return his daughter, the mist is assumed to originate from the otherwise only by dream accessible Erlkingdom. Attempts by Vanguard and local authorities to stop the spread and intersection of worlds failed due to the Erlkingdom only making brief contact with our world during which it dictates the way of interaction before disconnecting again (hence the waves). As all methods of undermining such connections require a proper connection to be sealed, stopping the phenomenon proved impossible.
Instantiation: On the 30th of July the case was brought to the Esterbergian Supreme Summer Court by Vanguard, who was actively consulted by the Father of Winter (one Name of VNP-5925). Due to the urgency of the case, it was decided any judgment would be applied retroactively, starting at the time the Judges convened for the first time on the 30th. Afterwards, the Judges deliberated behind closed doors to forego any retrocausal interference of the judgement.
Counterclaim: The Erlprince brought forth a counterclaim referencing multiple prior Judgements on Jurisdiction in which the Erlkingdom was determined to be outside the Summer Court's jurisdiction. He argued the judgment would extend to this case as well.
Verdict: The Court ruled the interaction to not be in line with prior established connections of the Erlkingdom and baseline reality. The Court acknowledged it had no jurisdiction over the Erlkingdom itself, but referenced past judgements that showcased its jurisdiction over manifestations of the Erlkingdom in Baseline Reality. The Summer Court decreed that following the 30th of July, the Erlkingdom can only slowly demanifest after connecting with baseline reality.
Weightbearer: The Court additionally ruled the Erlprince to have made the counterclaim in service of the Erlkingdom. As the Erlkingdom is outside the Court's jurisdiction, the kingdom can likewise not appeal to the Court. As long as he appears under his title, the Erlprince has been decreed to only exist outside the direct light of Summer.
As the Erlprince was unwilling to part with his title, he has spent most summer months either indoors or in the southern hemisphere. He has not been seen entering an instantiation of the Summer Court since.
Aftermath: Following the verdict the connection to the Erlkingdom was properly sealed upon its next manifestation, ending the by-then more than citywide wave causing the disappearance of children. The GOC used the case as evidence for the necessity of the Summer Court to protect reality from outside threats. VNP-5925 was brought as a speaker before the General Assembly to outline the historical importance of the Court in this task.
While talks in the UN were still ongoing, Germany pushed for an integration of the Court on EU level. Opinions among EU members differed, but with the stopped invasion by the Erlking hanging over their heads, the EU could come to a swift agreement. A corresponding law was passed the year after.
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT LOG #8471-5925
Foreword: Dr. Angulo interviewed the subject in his home after the complete manifestation of the Summer Court and the situation had stabilized somewhat.
[BEGIN LOG]
Dr. Angulo steps towards a door. An old man opens it before she can knock, but stands in the shadow of the house.
Old man: Ah, Maria. It has been quite a while. Has life been treating you well?
Dr. Angulo: Not recently, thanks to 118. Vanguard still holds a grudge over Autumn.
Old man: It is a good thing that Site is buried. But six feet under is no place for you, not yet. Come in.
The old man leaves the door open as he steps further inside. Dr. Angulo follows suit.
Dr. Angulo: (half-loud) So how should I address you, Mister?
Old man: (from further inside) Again with this. You came in with a Name on your tongue, no?
Dr. Angulo: I didn't want to presume, like last time.
Old man: (chuckles) I'll take it as one of three gifts. Call them amendments. Now my Name, please.
Dr. Angulo: Very well. VNP-5925.
Dr. Angulo moves into the living room and sits on the couch across from VNP-5925 who has prepared tea for the two.
VNP-5925.
VNP-5925: (sighs) A much gentler Name then your last gift. Yes, this will do quite well. (sits down) Do they want me for another speech?
Dr. Angulo: Not at all. You've done enough for us already.
VNP-5925: What pleasant news. I'd be the last one standing between any kids who want to meet their Santa, but to change Names in so many languages at once is still exhausting at my age. What takes you here then?
Dr. Angulo: Vanguard wanted me to ask some last questions about the Cycle. And I'm here to express my thanks in the name of all of us.
VNP-5925: No, that is not quite the answer. I was asking what takes you here.
Dr. Angulo: Me?
VNP-5925: You can't tell me you've been stuck at interviews for 40 years.
Dr. Angulo: Thankfully it didn't get quite that bad. If I'm being honest I just wanted one last interview with Sa- (stops) I guess I shouldn't use that name here.
VNP-5925 closes his eyes and leans back.
VNP-5925: Don't worry too much about other names, I'm still settling in. (mumbles) Mm, still varied, so much friendlier.
Dr. Angulo: In that case I'll ask a question that's been on my mind for a while. Is it Father Winter or Father of Winter?
A cold briefly flares up before settling again.
VNP-5925: It's both, of course. But only the latter has anything to do with the Cycle.
Dr. Angulo: Are you still a part of it?
VNP-5925 furrows his eyebrows but keeps his eyes closed.
VNP-5925: My hut will always stay at winter, but it hasn't been my game for a long time. There may be some fossils like me hanging around, but no. The Cycle is better off in younger hands.
Dr. Angulo: (hesitant) In that case is there any chance you would consider–
VNP-5925: (chuckles softly) Don't get greedy now. You already have one Santa working for you. Too many Santas spoil the season.
Dr. Angulo: Alright. So what do you have planned?
VNP-5925: (quiet) Hmm, a few things. Maybe speak to that Roberts of yours, from Santa to Santa. Settling into this name. I'll have to 'normalize' myself, I think.
Dr. Angulo: Oh that's something that Vanguard does for all former–
VNP-5925: (mumbles) Shush. You will let me do this. I'm owed that much. There's a teacher in this Name, I can feel it. Maybe I'll part-time as one of the Lounge's oral storykeepers. Mmh, that would be nice. The file I'll write as well. Only then… mine…
Dr. Angulo: Is that the second gift?
VNP-5925 smiles with closed eyes but doesn't answer.
Dr. Angulo: What's the last gift?
VNP-5925 makes a small noise.
Dr. Angulo: VNP-5925?
VNP-5925 begins to snore.
Dr. Angulo: Oh.
Dr. Angulo quietly leaves the house.
[END LOG]
The Erlking case had shown the Summer Court would not wait for a UN resolution. While talks on the international level did not stop, states began to take action on their own. The United Kingdom did not have to do anything. The Summer Court had already been regulated through the Arthurian Charter before the establishment of Veil. Thus the Camelot Eternal Summer Court (sitting in London) simply began operation again, as if it had never stopped. The government of the United States of America had not come to a decision yet when its Supreme Court declared the Rite which brings Summer unconstitutional after a case related to the Summer Court was brought before it.
Russia planned to let the Summer Court act solely through the Summertide Knights in its borders.
Case: Restoration of Summer Nobility to the status of Summertide Knighthood
Background: Dating back as far as the First Fae Empire some Fae Familities swore fielty to the Summer Court in inviolable oaths. When called upon they would take up arms as the Summertide Knights and enforce the will of Summer. The knights and their families, elevated to a class of "Summer Nobility" were able to act in the name of and with the authority of the Court in a limited capacity. This included the ability to make local, though not final, decrees about reality. The creation of the Veil and the subsequent vanishing of the Summer Court severely diminished the capabilities of the Summer Nobles and the title of Summertide Knight vanished. The return of the Summer Court notably changed nothing about this circumstance.
Instantiation: The Summer Nobility originally planned to bring the claim to a court in the Basmanny district of Moscow, Russia, but the Summer Court rejected the rite. Next, the claim was then brought to the Camelot Eternal Summer Court. This instantiation was rejected by Summer mid-trial, making it the only case of an instantiation being successful at first before breaking apart. It is assumed the Court of Camelot was rejected due to the judge also being of Summer Nobility. Finally the case was brought to the Esterbergian Supreme Summer Court on the 16th August 2022.
Counterclaim: A counterclaim was brought forward by the individual Lavender with evidence of large parts of the Summer Nobility colluding with the Lady of the Lake in her efforts to keep the Cycle of Seasons broken. She argued this disqualified them from returning to the status of Summertide Knighthood.
Verdict: The Court ruled a reinstantiation of the Summer Nobility depended on them having held to their oaths during the time of the Court's absence. The Courts investigation found while none of the oaths had been broken in wording, every single one had been broken in spirit. To bring this wording in line with the oaths not being able to have been broken due to their inviolability, the Court decreed the families of today to not be the families it had originally made the oaths with, their similarities ending with the blood they shared.
The Court acknowledged the Summer Nobility to have been colluding with the Lady of the Lake, but any efforts on her side to break the Cycle of Season could not be legally proven.
Weightbearer: The Summer Nobility at large and the personnel of the judges of the Camelot Eternal Summer Court specifically were banished to the Autumn Court for crimes against summer.
As the Nobles were banished to the Autumn Court with remnants of Summer in them, this caused uproar in Autumn's political climate. Historically the Summer Court has reinstated banished individuals into its service after a complete reformation of the Autumn Court. However, no such promise had been given. It remains to be seen if this will cause Autumn to enter a period of Summer-induced stability or if more banishments are required.
Aftermath: The Court's rejection of the Summer Nobility was met with a degree of approval, with Western press describing the verdict as "housecleaning" to keep up with modern times.
Less positive reactions were caused by the case's counterclaim, Lavender being accused of trying to slander the Lady's reputation. With the Lady being one of the most prominent survivors of the destruction of Avalon, the upholder of the now defunct Arthurian Charter, and a supporter of elements of the Cycle, like the former Wild Hunt, it was seen as impossible for such an influential Fae figure to be in opposition of the Cycle of Seasons.
Russia saw the decision of the Esterbergian Court as an attack on its sovereignty and forbade all of its judges to consent to the rite. Other states soon followed its example of a complete disavowal of the Summer Court.
The United Nations could soon be divided into states which did not tolerate the Summer Court at all, and those who had an interest in allowing it to operate with restrictions. The latter group came together to draft the first version of what is now known as the Summer Court Treaty.
This Treaty would allow each state to make independent restrictions based on their own legal system to the operation of the Summer Court as long as it would not result in rejection by the Court. As any decree would be universal among signees two independent instances would review the judgement before it would be finally approved by the Esterbergian Supreme Summer Court.
As a few nations remained indecisive the GOC noted the GOC would retract its agreement with the Court as soon as the Summer Court Treaty had been signed by a majority of UN member states. For any state without laws to deal with Summer, the Court would start operating as it had before the creation of the Veil. This was enough to make the remaining states decide on a side to pick.
At that time, the Summer Court did not deal with human states at all, existing alongside rather than with them. Knowledge of it was not very widespread and thus it was mainly used by Fae and magicians keenly aware of deeper occult lore. The Summer Court was not hiding per se, but more so made no attempts to keep itself known, assuming its existence a given for any denizens of Earth. As a trial could change reality, people in the know were thus incentivized to keep the workings of the Summer Court, as well as the rest of the Cycle, largely to themselves.
Instantiation was either the domain of Fae Courts deep in forests made for this purpose or created by tricking a human judge into consenting to the Rite which brings Summer. These instances were much more prone to decreeing local reality changes. To this day, reality sometimes has different characteristics depending on the state. The United Kingdom has been the most largely affected by this phenomenon.
Case: Segregation of Fae to Offroad-Spaces in England per the Arthurian Charter
Background: The Arthurian Charter was in its original version an agreement between the humans and the Fae of England to facilitate a peaceful coexistence. Among other things, it detailed the segregation of the Fae to a number of extradimensional spaces, named "Offroad-Spaces" which would be off-limits to humans. Soon after a second version of the Charter was created. There the Lady of the Lake served as the representative of all Fae and the English Crown as the representative of humanity, while the Charter practice still only affected Great Britain and the Five Fae Kingdoms. All England-specific parts of the Charter like the creation of Offroad-Spaces and the Segregation of the Fae were left out.
This second version ended up being the enforced version of the Charter until the Veilfall. Outside of Avalon and the other Kingdoms, the number of Offroad-Spaces requested by the first version was never reached. A former member of the Fae-extremist group Triumviraté named Aerandahll made a case to the Summer Court. Offroad spaces should exist and the human-fae segregation of the first Charter should be enforced.
Instantiation: The case was brought to the Camelot Eternal Summer Court, having been reaccepted by the Summer Court after the judges' replacement, on the 19th of December 2022.
Counterclaim: No counterclaim was brought forth during the allotted time. This is assumed to be due to this case not getting any media attention at this time as well as unfamiliarity with some of the specifics of the Court's structure.
Verdict: The Court ruled it would no longer make new decrees which take effect only in a part and not the entirety of reality in its jurisdiction. Furthermore, the Court pointed out it would have likely ruled against the case on grounds of the forced segregation not being in line with the international law the Summer Court was currently bound by. Additionally, further evidence was needed to show that the first Arthurian charter was not legally replaced but rather expanded upon by the second version.
Weightbearer: Aerandahll complained about the decree, blaming his failure on the Judge he was forced to plead his case to. The Camelot Judge asked if he planned to bring this claim to other instances. Directly after Aerandahlls confirmation, he was trapped in a copy of reality consisting of versions of every single Summer Court instance active at the time. He had to plead his case to all of them, only succeeding in a small minority of instances. Aerandahll was released back into baseline reality in the Esterbergian Supreme Summer Court just in time to witness Esterberg confirming the original judgement of the Camelot Eternal Summer Court.
Aftermath: The case garnered media attention in the UK after the verdict was announced. A common thread was the focus on the power of the Court being theoretically able to evict all Fae from mainline England past any government involvement. Vanguard focused on education about the trial system and the option for counterclaims. A bill proposing mandated government involvement for all Summer Court trials was drafted but never passed for unrelated reasons. Trying to take part in the Summer Court Treaty instead of going their own way was talked about. However, the Treaty was leaning strongly towards recognizing the Court in Esterberg as the highest authority of Summer. Submitting their own Camelot Eternal Summer Court to the Esterbergian Supreme Summer Court was not a popular sentiment and thus rejected by the government.
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT LOG #8471-6471
Foreword: Interview was conducted by Special Investigator Klara Lambrecht in the Esterbergian Supreme Summer Court as Supreme Summer Judge Edrisglair refused to be interviewed by anyone else.
[BEGIN LOG]
Lambrecht: First of all, thank you for agreeing to this interview at all.
Edrisglair: No pleasure.
Lambrecht: Why choose me then?
Edrisglair: We have a minimum of prior contact which is enough for me to make the assessment that you want this interview to be over as fast as I do.
Lambrecht: You're not wrong.
Edrisglair: Yes.
Lambrecht: You could have just not agreed to the interview.
Edrisglair: That is correct. It is however less of a waste of my time to do this interview once than to continuously remind people to not misuse the Summer Court and its assets for purposes it was not intended for.
Lambrecht: Do you get many court cases?
Edrisglair: Putting my Esterbergian Supreme Court duties and my Summer Court duties together, adds up to an amount slightly beyond the Court's capacities. I suspect the question was aimed at Summer Court cases specifically. There are a lot of frivolous cases addressed to the Court which never reach my desk. Claims requiring my attention are rare, but they require an amount of consideration that adds up to a similar amount of time as the many normal court cases we handle, often more.
Lambrecht: Arent judgements on both your supreme court trials as well as your summer court trials final?
Edrisglair: An accurate assessment. However the first is final for the constitution of a city-state, and the second is final for the reality of all which is reached by the warmth of Summer.
Lambrecht: You mentioned being overworked by having to shoulder the duties of essentially two courts in one. Why did you take on this extra responsibility?
Edrisglair: It was never in doubt that I would judge for Summer upon its return. Our civilization is built on systems of justice. This must extend consequently to all aspects of our world, including our evidently malleable reality. And I can't simply shirk my responsibilities for Esterberg, which needs its judicative as well.
Lambrecht: Ever since the collapse of the Veil there's been talks about integrating Esterberg into Poland. Where does the Court fit into all this?
Edrisglair: I don't comment on politics. I will say that the Summer Court will remain regardless of Esterberg's political status barring circumstances like the physical destruction of Esterberg or complete democratic cessation.
Lambrecht: Is there a statement you'd like to make for anyone ending up watching this?
Edrisglair: (glaring into the camera) Do not waste my time. I have made clear how overworked the Court is. Engage fairly with the Summer Court and we will treat you fair. I will not tolerate any attempts to involve Summer in some scheme or other. This is soon to be a UN-recognized institution. Treat it as such.
[END LOG]
Case: Declaration of O5-7 as an Enemy of Truth
Background: This trial marks one of the few where a group made the initial claim. The group consisted of signees of a petition for holding the former O5 Council accountable for their alleged crimes against humanity. A larger focus was given to O5-7 specifically for her oversight of Foundation intelligence operations. It is likely the goal of the claim was not in the decree itself but to draw O5-7 out of hiding.
Instantiation: The case was brought to the Summer Court instance set up in Den Hague on the 19th December 2022.
Counterclaim: N/A
Verdict: The Court ruled O5-7 to fit all criteria for the declaration as one of the main enforcers of "The Grand Lie", as the Court refers to the Veil. O5-7 was thus decreed an Enemy of Truth.
Weightbearer: It is assumed being decreed an Enemy of Truth is equivalent to bearing the weight of the judgement.
Aftermath: The declaration stopped all work on the Summer Court Treaty dead in its tracks, as opinions about the decree were split. Some viewed it as an overextension of the Court's responsibilities, finding judgements about specific people outside its preview as well as the verdict biased due to a personal grudge of the Court. Supporters of the decision pointed out the decree held no legal consequences and was more of symbolic nature.
Detractors countered with the label having historically ended in the lynching of the "Enemy". Overall the opinions against the declaration outweighed the ones supporting it in number. Interest in the Summer Court Treaty vained.
The fate of O5-7 remains unknown.
Enemy of Truth
Sources are unclear what exactly being branded as an Enemy of Truth entails. At minimum, anyone you interact with will know you are an Enemy of Truth as soon as you make a statement. Some sources go so far as to say all truth in your vicinity will twist against you to make your life a living hell. Summertide Knights would go on quests to slay Enemies of Truth three years after their branding.
So far people have been branded an Enemy of Truth after being decreed so by the Summer Court, drawing the ire of Truth in communion, or by overextracting a spell to the point of breaking to gather Truth Glamour.
The latter had been historically the greatest source of branding. Summer Court instances were often formed for minor cases to get a declaration out of the Court which could be drained of most or all of its Truth Glamour.
Now some permanent instances of the Summer Court have taken to giving out Truth Glamour directly for anyone to use. Most instances forbid the direct extraction out of the Courts statements outside of this supply. Notably, the Esterbergian Supreme Summer Court has a zero-tolerance policy for trying to extract glamour from it.
Of those branded with the label only those indirectly put under the protection of the Lady of the Lake survived to old age.
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT LOG #8471-4041
Note: The planned interview with the Lady of the Lake could not be scheduled as the hotel she currently resides in, Memories of Avalon, did not forward any attempt at communication from Vanguard. Carter Hotels, the owners of the hotel chain, declined to comment.
With interest in the Summer Court Treaty veining, the search for alternatives started. One such alternative could be found in MC&D Ltd. sponsored product: Avalonian Lakewater. The mist was said to bring all reality it covered completely under the control of whoever used it. This water was of the Lady's Lakes whose domain the Cycle of Seasons had agreed never to touch.
Making a pact with the Lady of the Lake could thus proof a viable alternative for allowing the Summer Court access. The Lady was only hesitantly open to such pacts, citing a desire to stay on friendly terms with the Cycle.
It was in this time another important case was brought before the Court.
Case: Reversal of the Tree of Life's infection
Background: A genetic infection of VNP-6002 created by Dr. Eugene Muller had damaged the tree so far as to drive all animals of the kingdom Aeternae into extinction. An appeal to reverse this infection due to its threat to all life on planet Earth was brought to the Autumn Court in 1980, which transferred the case to the Summer Court. Due to the non-availability of the Court at the time, this caused no change.
Instantiation: On the 20th of March 2023 the case was brought to the Esterbergian Supreme Summer Court.
Counterclaim: N/A
Verdict: The Court ruled the infestation could not be reasonably reversed by its authority without significant changes to the timeline. Any consistent application of Summers power would remove the infestation completely and retroactively. It was the Judges' opinion that the Court was not in the business of directly cleaning up after others' mistakes and would generally not entertain the notion of changing specific events.
The Court acknowledged this mistake to unfairly target the entirety of planet Earth. It thus decreed a restriction on VNP-6002. Henceforth, and in limited capacity retroactively, VNP-6002's influence over an organism's genetics decreases the further the organism is from VNP-6002. Beyond the Atlantic this influence is negligible. To not affect the chain of events more than necessary, animals of the kingdom Aeternae were decreed to have only survived in select spaces unobserved by people since the kingdom's extinction.
As the Summer Court had been declared unconstitutional by the US's Supreme Court, the decree had no affect on the USA. As such the Court would only consider a complete reversal of the infestation after this judgement had been reversed, and additionally after more serious measures to reverse the infestation had been tried.
Weightbearer: Any person who directly or indirectly facilitated the infestation, as well as any of their descendants, were decreed not to set foot in any state recognizing the Summer Court. Any attempt to do so would result in travelling to Northern California instead, until a cure of the infestation had been tried to the best of their knowledge.
Aftermath: This case drastically changed opinions on the Summer Court Treatie. Only a state in accord with the Summer Court would have access to the no longer extinct kingdom. With each signature more hidden spaces were found. A large number of them were turned into Aeterns preservation zones, some by Vanguard, others independently. The kingdom is currently slowly expanding again into ecosystems of signees of the Treaty.
Recognition
As with the rest of the Cycle of Seasons, part of the duties of the Summer Court involves recognizing organizations, inventions and other phenomena as part of its domain, the domain of 'IS'. The Summer Court is a lot more selective than other courts of the cycle. It prefers for all recognized parties to permanently stay a part of 'IS'. To still work properly with the flow of the rest of the cycle, the more lenient status of "Pending Recognition" has been created. While application to the Summer Court directly to gain this status is possible, it is made easier by passing the trials of the Late Spring Court first.
- Recognized Organizations:
- United Nations (only recognized in its function as "Forum for the Exchange between Nations")
- Wanderers' Library
- Summer Court
- Organizations pending Recognition: (abbreviated list)
- Global Occult Coalition
- The King's School, Canterbury, England
- Marshall, Carter & Dark Ltd.
- Recognized Inventions: (abbreviated list)
- Wheel
- Written word
- Electricity
- Recognized Treaties:
- Universal Declaration of Human Rights
- The Summer Court Treaty
One year after the return of the Summer Court all UN member states with the exception of the UK have either signed the Summer Court Treaty or rejected the Court in total. Opinions about the Summer Court change from country to country. There are no larger trends of approval and disapproval, as attention is largely only brought to it when an instance makes a judgement of political significance, particularly judgements from Esterberg.
Many paranormal enclaves, none of which are as of yet formally recognized by the UN, have independently agreed to sign their own version of the Summer Court Treaty. The enclaves have been for the most part laxer than the states in legally restricting the Summer Courts' authority. The Yeren city of Druv'tuul in particular has declined to restrict the Summer Court at all and chose to employ a different rite to invoke the Summer Court's authority. When asked for a comment on this King Eldröl Gérunda had this to say:
"The Cycle of Seasons was founded during the Fae Empire, but to think of it as a Fae institution? We had the Cycle under our thumb for 50 thousand years! Longer, if you think of Druv'tuul. No one should be surprised we found our own ways to handle the courts. I couldn't be happier about Summer's return. In the name of Druv'tuul, there is only one thing I want to say to the once again complete Cycle of Seasons: Welcome back!"