n the early days of the Land,
when the great wars between Order and Chaos raged all across its face,
in the years before Anz sent down the Shadows of his own crystal sword
to assist his chosen, there was a great conclave of the Northern
states. This was the first such meeting of great leaders of the Land.
For it was seen and known to all that the only way for the forces of
Order to prevail in those difficult times would be if they were
tightly bound, all nations of the North fighting as one.
Thus each of the great nations of the North, known then by names we remember not today, sent their greatest spokesmen to the conference to be held in the great cathedral of Anz far north near the base of the Glass Desert.
But they were not the only ones to attend this meeting, for the minions of Chaos take many forms, some hideous to behold and some as innocuous as mice. With the Grace of their Lord, several of the Touched disguised themselves as the simplest of Grey Men and attended to conference as servants for the great men attending.
As all wise men know, there are very few people as seldom seen, yet as often heard as a servant. A lord often fails to realize his servant is in the room, yet will often pick up things a servant says and treat them as ideas of his own. It was in this way that the servants of Chaos sought to destroy the unity of the North even before it could be forged.
It began with but a few simple ideas. ``When you give the opening address tomorrow, all will remember your great words... You're not, my Lord? But surely a man a great as yourself would be the obvious choice.'' ``Wasn't it shameful the way he cut you off? A man should know better than to interrupt so great a speaker as yourself.'' Slowly, the Renders of Order inflamed the prides and passions of those they ``served''. When the great session was about to begin, the glass dessert saw greater chaos than ever in its history.
Each delegate demanded to be heard. Each demanded that their way of arbitration was best. Those who were from what is now called Syndic began passing out little stones to judge who was worthy of speaking while those from what is now Tavet Mien asked each delegate how much Tholl they had harvested that year as a measure of rank. For weeks this continued. No delegate would yield to any other. Each insisted they be heard. The grey men, normally so precise in their planning, and detailed in their deliberations, accomplished nothing. And each day the army of Chaos moved forward.
Only one man saw what was happening. A simple grey man from beyond the Nonnig Forest, Robert was at the conference as one of the true servants of his master. He pleaded with his master to swallow his pride and let others speak for the good of all the North, but his lord was deaf to this sort of advice and wanted to hear only the flattery of his other servants. Robert was cast out.
He wandered North, determined to find a way to stop the forces of Chaos that were even then moving closer to his own home. If nothing was done, the Breaker would soon rule all. Farther and farther he wandered until he came to the throne of Anz. He pleaded in that precise and exact way that a true grey man address his Lord. For three hours he spoke, each word carefully placed, each phrase carefully chosen. He offered all that he had in sacrifice. At the end of the third hour, Anz spoke. He was pleased with Robert. So pleased that he decided to grant him his miracle. In sacrifice, Anz commanded Robert to never speak while another was talking, to never address more than one issue at a time, to never speak without an issue to address, to never change the issue being discussed without concent of the other party involved, and many other things as well. The list went on and on. In the end Robert agreed to all of it whole-heartedly if only Anz would save his chosen from the advancing horrors of the South.
Robert returned to the conference. He waited. He waited further. After several hours he realized nothing was happening. The chaos of overlapping and unintelligble voices continued. At first he was angry. Why did Anz not act. After He had already demanded such carefully crafted and explicit sacrifice of Robert, He should have done something. Anz should have at least given Robert some hint as to what would occur.
Suddenly Robert realized that Anz did give him the key to the North's survival. He picked up a heavy bowl and slowly, methodically, began to bang it on the table before him. As the delegates heard this banging, much like the pounding of a small hammer, they fell silent. When they were all listening, Robert repeated to them all of Anz's demands for sacrifice. As they heard them, they all saw the folly of their constant interruption and bickering. They all swore, as Robert swore at the Throne, to abide by these laws. At the end of that single day, the delgates went forth with the most comprehensive and detailed plan of cooperative battle ever to be seen by even the Red Lady's most holy tacticians. The countries of the north were saved.
So it was that St. Robert of Anz handed down the Edicts of Rational Deliberation. Even today Robert's rules can be seen in use by the decendants of that first assembly. Wherever there is chaos of thought and confusion of discussion, Robert's rules, a gift of Anz, can be looked to for salvation.