CHOCOLATE DESTINY, ARC 2

"Sir, the ninjas killed the man on the ground, the ninjas killed the innkeeper. That's the simple course of events."

"You'll have more eyewitnesses if you head that way and apprehend that sinister looking bunch." Amos points off towards the direction the ninjas left in.

Daliu is impressed by the speed and precision of the all the guards and their leader. Trace on. He steps forth, presenting himself to the guard leader.

"I am a eye witness sir."

The commander's eyebrows rise. "Oh, why didn't you say so before? Tell me what you saw."
Amos now sees that true to his words, four guards have already split off in pursuit of the Fei agents.

"I am a disciple of Father Mayhew, and his mentor: the priestess at Belle's Cross' church of Equinince," asserts Daliu, showing his Tricorv. I will tell you what I saw."

Daliu points to each party as he says their name. "The violent group of ninjas were hunting the cloaked man. Touka moved to assist them. Gray-"
thatShadow
"-felt threatened by the ninjas, since they threw knives in his general direction, and fired a warning shot to fend them off. His shot missed, since he had had a few drinks beforehand (as men will do in an inn), but the ninjas retaliated, and their bullet hit the innkeeper. "

"These conflicting accounts are all due to the multiple actors involved in the incident, and the mayhem ensuing in the inn. Jorah's bad singing was also very distracting."

"Gray is innocent, my good guardsmen. I swear it upon my Tricorv. If you trust in the Faith, allow me to prove it. I will ask Lee Gray to confess his sins on the spot, and PURIFY him afterwards. If he lies during the confession, the wrath of Saint Anthony himself will be upon him, and misery will follow his every step. It would not be hard for you to capture him if he sings falsely."

The guards standing by are all staring in amazement.
"Who is this boy? Never heard of a priest this young before..."
"Hmm...that does sound like a good idea," the commander ruminates. "I know you're eager to prove yourself, but I'd feel more comfortable if we got the priestess to watch over and verify, or something. Is that alright with you?"

Daliu shakes his head. "Let us do the deed now, if my kind guardsmen will allow. We should act while the blood is fresh, so that God himself may cast judgement on this scene. We may seek the Priestess' help afterwards if there are any gaps to be filled. For the confession and purification, I will be more than enough."

"Look my little brother. Confess my sins sure, but purify? Well, as long as it doesn't involve me consuming any unknown substances nor any inference with my person..."

Gray looks back and around.

"As long as we do it right here, in broad daylight, and it doesn't violate the above conditions, it's fine with me.

"If there's no reward, can I go to sleep now? Amos is finally done fucking himself, so I should be able to use the room, yes?"

"I work to preserve your freedom, Gray, and maybe even your life. Do not seek to cut corners when speaking to God. He will KNOW of your sinfulness. He will know."

"Can anyone give me a room key please? Tired as balls right now."

"Truly I believe that there is a different order to this world. I am entertaining your rites as a sign of respect, but I will not allow anything that violates my beliefs. For some reason it seems that you(Daliu) both are meaning well for me, and are attempting to exercise power over me, a power that I shall not give you."

Gray stares hard at the guard.

"Take me in for trial if it so must, but I will not undergo any rites that subject me to anything that might violate my sovereign right over my body."

"Alright, we'll talk to her afterwards. Go ahead, uh, whatever your name is?"

She simply stands aside and watches, curious about the religious rituals here and how it compares to her the ones in her homeland.

"Aight, whatever, I'm audi. I'ma be at duh inn. Come back whenever you're done with your shitty fucking ritual."

Daliu nods. "Let us begin." He turns to Lee Gray.

"Fear not, Lee Gray. I will neither exercise power over you, or rob you of your 'sovereign right over [your] body'. The only power exercised here is the cleansing power of Faith. However, I suggest that you do more than 'entertain' these sacred rites. By admitting and relinquishing your sins, you will gain true freedom."

"Now, we will start with the sins of your past. Cooperate, and this shall end quickly. Have you ever directly or indirectly caused suffering on this continent?"

"It would be a lie to say no, even eating meat causes the pig to suffer."

Jorah arrives at the inn, grabs a free drink in the absence of the inn-master, and sits down.

Unfortunately for Jorah, the two guards searching the inn spot him. "Hey, that's stealing!"

Daliu sighs and shakes his head. He looks into Gray's eyes, seeing past his facade.

"You are being pedantic. Focus on the intentions behind your actions, whether they be greed, or a callous disregard for human life."

"In these dark times, you may have have stirred up resent between refugees and the townsfolk of the port-towns they fled to. You may include times where resources were scarce and you, or others, seized what you needed by force. Lay these sins bare before God, so that their power over you is extinguished."

"Relax, I plan on paying. My buddies are out there helping you guide wit da case. They'll pay the tab when they return"

"Wha.. what? Child, where did you get the idea that I would do something like that? I may be poor, but I'm not poor enough to do that yet."

Gray looks genuinely surprised that Daliu would even say something like that, and after the surprise fades from his face, he adopts an expression of not anger but sorrow.

(Acting check)

"It must be the trauma that had been inflicted upon you when your family was killed in Enarou's fire that has caused you to develop deep resentment for the hungry refugees who caused that very flame, and in due time that hate extended to every foreigner that has ever cross over into your hometown. I am deeply sorry for your loss, but you cannot go around hating as there are as much good in every one of us as those you love."

Daliu shakes his head again. His eyes continue to pierce through Lee Gray's facade.

"You lie, Lee Gray." Daliu nods knowingly to the guardsmen. This is his first warning. "Do not make these fine guardsmen wait."

"Lies will lead you to prison, and to eternal punishment after life. But I know the truth is waiting inside your soul, singing for freedom. Admit your past sins, born of desperate times, so that I may prove you innocent of these present accusations against you!"

Daliu raises his hands in a gesture of religious piety.

"My home was destroyed in the fire of Enarou, and for that I harbored hatred in my heart. But through the guidance of my adoptive father, and then Father Mayhew and the Faith, I have let that hatred go. Equinince teaches us to forgive and forget. But we must first admit our sins, as I already did long ago."

"You admit that you saw the flaming destruction in Enarou firsthand. But your sin is so deeply rooted that you confuse yourself, thinking that I wish you harm. I have nothing but love for you, and all people. You ordered your mob to light those homes on fire. Admit your sins, leave your past behind, and move forward, Lee Gray."

"Man, what are you trying to get me to do? Admit to things I haven't done? If this is what the purification truly entails, then why don't you ask me why I didn't eat human flesh last Tuesday, and try to get me to confirm that I did? Both are equally ludicrous."

Gray is flabbergasted at Daliu's incessant pestering.

"You're the one who is making these fine guardsmen wait with your insistence on this topic. Although I have patience to repeatedly assert my innocence, I think it is best to continue on to your next inquiry my good sir."

OOC: Read the A Child's Confession thread. The experience is real enough to Daliu to make it truth in his mind.

Daliu shakes his head and sighs.
"It seems you are not ready to face your sins. Admission of sin is the basis of purification, and its power to verify the truth. We cannot move forward like this."

Daliu nods towards the officers. "He is at your disposal, guardsmen. Perhaps there are other crimes this man is hiding if he is not willing to admit his past sins. My power ends here, since Lee Gray will not cooperate. Good luck with your investigation."

He faces the rest of his companions. "I must take a sidetrip before I continue to Jaquim, on behalf of the church. I may see you later."

Daliu heads to Dorou, in the Northeast.

She sighs somewhat disappointed at the result of the ritual. "...Uh, what happens to me now?" She sees Daliu leave and mutters a prayer to the goddess of travelers to keep the boy safe.

"Uh, you guys know we're standing right here," a guard remarks.
The commander shakes his head. "I'm sorry son, I think you're letting your personal feelings take over. This guy's not confessing anything, yet somehow you already know what he did. If you're so concerned about our time, let's forget this little rite and try him and the woman before Lord Gilberm."

Gray reveals a sad little "it didn't have to be this way" smile to Touka.

"Sure, lead the way Mr. Guard."

She sighs, ignoring Lee's look. "Lets just hope grandfather doesn't hear about this, last thing this town needs is a 9ft tall oni rampaging through here."

[@Daliu: Divergence initiated https://churchofproz.forumotion.net/t1367-chocolate-destiny-a-detour-to-dorou#27294]

Touka and Gray are led over to the nearby castle. It is gray, blocky and quite gloomy in the afternoon sun.

The castle is aflurry with armored men-at-arms and servants dressed in green and blue striped livery.
The town guards wait with Touka and Gray in a hallway outside the Lord's court for several minutes, while the commander briefs the court of the situation and the results of the investigation.
"Viscount Gilberm will see you now," the herald announces. The group marches within.
The ceiling is high, with small windows lining the upper rim. To the left and right are three rows of wooden benches, upon which a few well-dressed knights are seated.
On the far wall of the room hang two large banners, one bearing a blue hydrangea upon a field of green, the other a long, sinuous red dragon curled around a white four pointed star on black.
Under the banners are three elevated high backed chairs behind a long table with several rolls of parchment.

In the middle sits a stately man in his middle years with a short, bushy beard. A solid blue cape partially covers his embroidered tunic. To his right is a robed clean shaven man with a receding hairline writing something down. The left seat is empty.

"You stand in the presence of the Viscount Rubio Gilberm, Lord of the Sienna Riverlands." The herald turns to face the bearded man on the high seat.
"My lord, these two are the ones suspected of the murders that occurred in Belle's Cross this day."
Viscount Gilberm nods. "I will first determine guilt. You, come forth." He points at Gray.
"Tell me, what is your name, and what is the extent of your involvement with the murders?"

"My good lord, my name is Lee Gray of Abatos, and I am a witness of the murders."

Viscount Gilberm leans forward, staring intensely into Gray's eyes. "Did you kill or injure any men today?"

"No."

Gray is adamant.

Gilberm steeples his hands and thinks in silence for a minute. "Very well. Step back, Lee Gray of Abatos. You, come forth." He points to Touka. "State your name and involvement with the murders."

She steps forward. "Touka Nishikujou, I assisted a third party and subdued a fleeing man, injuring him in the process, regrettably my actions lead to his execution by said third party."

Ooc:

"Yes, I have heard of this third party. Step back, Tooka Nisheekoojo." The foreign name is distorted on his tongue.
The guard commander now stands besides the two of you.
"Do you know of any others besides that third party involved in the murder that we need to bring in?"
"No my lord," the commander answers immediately.

"Do you require me to say anything more sir?"

Jorah continues slowly sipping his drink.

"Yes, in a moment." Gilberm stands up. "Sir Esteban, gather a complement of men and ride out to find those Feiren murderers as soon as possible."
"Yes milord." One of the knights at the benches gets up and leaves.
"As for the two of you. You are both outlanders, so you will not be penalized for neglecting to address me properly.
Lee Gray of the Abatos Republic. You have committed no crime and are free to go.
Tooka Nisheekoojo. I judge you guilty of aiding in the murder of a commoner. For your punishment you have the option of either losing your hand, or serving 2 decades in a hard labor camp."

"No offense meant sire." She bows to him." If I may ask, could please choose another punishment, I'd rather not see another group of people wiped out because of my mistakes. Do you have any other punishments I could receive? If you have none, I will work."

"Why yes, I'm glad you asked. You can serve your 2 decades in my dungeon, or be conscripted into the royal army and sent to the border."

Why can't you guys be like my mother's homeland and have a gladiator combat or something." She mumbles to hherself. "Look can I pay restitution instead?" She takes out her bank documents and holds them out to a guard to take to the lord. "I can pay up to five gold bars before my clan starts investigating."

Apparently left alone because of his sudden mental absence. Amos reels back into focus and wonders where everyone went. Just he is about to ask one the innspeople he catches himself and realizes they are probably deep in drama and deadly adventure. While he has confidence that he will inevitably join them he instead takes the time to head to the market and purchase components.

"May I propose some other course of action, my good lord? It will be fairly inappropriate for a young lady such as she participate in labor or serve in the army, but perhaps maybe she could aid you in the apprehension of the true murderers. After all I bet it was an act of goodwill that she tried to apprehend someone who she falsely believed was a criminal, a cloistered young woman such as her has little ability in identifying the various parties and forces that run amok in these troubled times."

Gilberm slaps the table. "I did not give you permission to speak, Lee Gray. Wait for your turn or leave my castle if you cannot respect my authority."
To Touka he says, "You try my patience, outlander. I cannot accept blood money for a man who was not directly in my service. If you still wish to settle it this way, you must be imprisoned while the victim's heir is summoned. If he deems the payment sufficient, you will be set free."

"I have no problem with that, though I figured I'd ask, do you have a gladiatorial arena I could fight in to prove my innocence in like my mothers home country?"

"Trial by combat, to prove your innocence? You have already admitted your guilt and complicity in the murder, are you trying to go back on that?"

"Thats what that is? Mother never did tell me much of the specifics about her homes traditions, she always described it as having the guilty fight a champion, where if they win they walked away with no penalties, lose and they die."

"Well, I shall take my leave then. Good day."

Gray makes his way back to the inn looking for people he knows on the way there.