The Last Mythspeakers

By the time the last sunlight had faded over the horizon, Lily was nearly alone in the tavern. The presence of a mythspeaker meant the usual tavern crowd had cleared out, leaving only her and the proprietor to hear the stories and pay tithe. She turned to look at the man. He was old, the last of his hair grey and ragged, his face aged by time and by decades of travel, and quite frail looking in the chair in front of the fire.
"Master speaker, have you eaten today?" The tavernkeep came around the counter with a bowl of beef broth. The mythspeaker accepted the broth and drank it down, spilling a bit on his lap. He put the bowl down and spoke.
"Shall it be only you two tonight, to hear my tales?" His voice was strong and deep, a sharp contrast to the man's overall appearance.
"Aye." Lily gave a nod. "I am from Asha, and we in the old country remember our mythspeakers."
"Good." The man closed his eyes. "Four nights ago I was in Hule's Town, at the lakefront. The fish harvest is poor this year. Orrym, the son of the baker, has eloped with his beloved Fyra, and they are rumored to have taken a power-wagon to the Stagonids." He opened his eyes and accepted a tankard of ale from the tavernkeep.
"How old are you, master speaker?" The tavernkeep gently wiped down the speaker's mouth with a napkin; she pushed his chair a bit closer to the fire. "Perhaps a doctor from the Academy...?"
The mythspeaker shook his head. "So I am and so I shall be. Two weeks ago, a noble's son slew a farmer's cow outside Guern County by crashing into it at high speed with his father's power-wagon. The farmer has complained to the District Commander, as Lord Sevilhn has not provided recompense."
Lily took a slow drink of her own porter. She had heard of that incident from the innkeep herself earlier that day, and it was the talk of the town, but such things never mattered to the mythspeakers, who were oft in their own worlds.
The old man closed his eyes, and when he spoke again, there was a slight quaver. "And to that end, a reminder of hubris shall be told. I will retell the story of the Vengeance of Biandreth..."

Culture

Culture and cultural heritage

The Mythspeakers are an ancient, loosely organized group of traditional oral historians and storytellers. In prehistorical times, mythspeakers were responsible for preserving knowledge across the generations as well as transmitting knowledge between cultures; they served as travelling teachers, translators, and bringers of news. They continue to do so in the present day, regardless of (and, in many ways, in spite of) the more modern spread of newspapers and journals, and the unification of language under the Principality of Etoile.
Although theirs is an old order, the stories they tell are not their own; mythspeakers retell the stories of the places they have been, and learn new stories as they travel. Each mythspeaker learns the stories of their predecessors, and teaches them in turn to the next mythspeaker to take up the mantle.
In modern Etoile, the institution of the mythspeaker is seen as a throwback to ancient days, as information travels far more quickly by printed journal and power-wagon, and history is preserved in written archive. Many attempts to 'modernize' the mythspeaking tradition have been met with silence, as the few remaining modern mythspeakers reject Progress wholeheartedly. Although permitted to carry on their ways, it is not uncommon for a mythspeaker to speak of news that everyone in the tavern has already heard, and tell of legends and myths that everyone has already read. Still, their steadfast adherence to old tradition has won a small number of admirers in high society. Their numbers are steadily declining, as few wish to take up the mantle; there are estimated to be less than fifty mythspeakers left in Etoile.

Common Etiquette rules

Mythspeakers provided valuable services to pre-Etoilean societies, delivering news, offering advice when asked, and teaching children. As such, it is customary etiquette to ensure that the mythspeaker in a community is cared for, with the locals obligated to provide shelter and food. In return, the mythspeaker tells their stories and moves on from a community relatively quickly, so as to not be a burden on local supplies. Even now, it is highly frowned upon to not extend hospitality to a mythspeaker when requested.

Common Dress code

Ancient mythspeakers were itinerants, and their customary traveling garb became iconic; hand-woven straw sandals, undyed roughspun wool cloaks, and wide-brimmed straw hats. Their dress is much the same in the modern era, causing them to stand out even more on the cobblestone streets of major cities.

Common Customs, traditions and rituals

Mythspeakers have followed the same customs for thousands of seasons. A given mythspeaker will travel by foot to a populated area that does not presently have a mythspeaker. During the day, the mythspeaker will sit and listen for stories, occasionally inquiring the locals about events or teaching children should there be no local school. In the evening, typically at an inn or tavern, the mythspeaker will begin to tell stories; first of the place they just left, then news of the greater world, then a legend or two of the ancient days. It is common practice to give alms to the mythspeaker each night for this service, and after a week or so, the mythspeaker will move on to the next village or town.
Mythspeakers approaching their older years will occasionally take in orphans or otherwise abandoned children and raise them in the tradition, teaching them their knowledge and having the child memorize all of the tales the mythspeaker knows, which can take over a decade. Should they prove able and willing, they will become the next mythspeaker of that lineage, and the older mythspeaker may be assured that their stories will pass down through history. Naturally, as the world has moved onwards under Progress, the number of children willing to become mythspeakers has declined over the centuries.

Funerary and Memorial customs

Mythspeakers who pass were historically given honored burials in the community of their death, as they were important links in pre-historic societies. They are less prominent in Etoile; as mythspeakers continue to travel until they die, the Principality requests that mythspeakers of advanced age report to a local authority as to where they intend to go, so that they can be recovered by power-wagon should they pass in the road. Modern burials of mythspeakers are at the expense of the state, but treated no differently than that of other paupers.

Common Taboos

Although it is unknown when the ban first was imposed, it is a strong taboo for Mythspeakers to either write down their stories and legends, or tell them to someone who intends to transcribe them. In addition, they cannot travel between communities by any method other than by foot, as per ancient custom. This has not prevented many of their stories from being collected and published, however. Additionally, mythspeakers tell no stories about themselves or their order.