A Rose In The Wind: A Saga of the Halmae -- Updated June 19, 2014

[Ilex]

15x03

Savina paid close attention to Lady Nishi's movements as the woman sat down on the edge of a chair opposite them and smoothed her skirts. Her stiff body and refusal to make steady eye contact with her visitors suggested not only aristocratic distance—an attitude Savina knew well—but also something else: she was nervous. I wonder if she has something to hide, or if she just thinks that Inquisitors are scary?

"Thank you for taking the time to speak with us," Tavi began. Nyoko gently brushed her eyebrow. At the silent hint that he was being too polite for an Inquisitor, Tavi fell silent. Savina could guess why: he was perfectly capable of giving orders, of course, but giving orders to an older woman of his own station went against all his courtly training.

Kormick jumped into the gap. "Lady Nishi, tell us about this book, The Lady's Ways. Your father copied it?"

Lady Nishi became, if possible, even stiffer. "I don't recall, Inquisitor-san," she said, and Savina thought she seemed evasive rather than forgetful.

Kormick persisted. "But he did copy most of the Alirrian books that are now in your library?"

"He did. Since the Affirmation, it is our right to possess Alirrian books." In a flash of understanding, Savina diagnosed the Lady's problem just as she might diagnose an illness from a single symptom: Lady Nishi feared persecution for her religion, so she feared Inquisitors.

Savina spoke up before Kormick could continue. "Lady Nishi," she said. "My name is Savina di Infusino, and I'm a Blessed Daughter of the Givers. I'm an Alirrian, and I—I assure you, the Inquisition respects the Affirmation now."

Lady Nishi looked from Savina's Inquisitorial robes up to her face. "You? An Alirrian?"

Savina pulled the necklace with her Alirrian holy symbol out from under the robes, showing it to the woman. She intuitively felt that the cure for Lady Nishi's fears lay not in Kormick's bluntness, Mena's sternness, Twiggy's logic, or Nyoko's protocol.

The cure was a personal connection. Following her instincts, Savina said, "When I was little, I always loved the holy days of Alirria. It seemed like the whole city was covered with flowers, and everyone was in such a good mood. But I didn't really—I didn't understand what it meant—until I was older. Then, one year at the Spring Invocation, I really heard the words of the prayers for the first time, and I loved them. I had my maid escort me to services every week after that, until I was old enough to join the Givers. And on this journey—I can't explain, exactly, but the Goddess—I've felt closer to her than ever. And I love her more than ever."

She held Lady Nishi's eyes with her own. Detecting what she hoped was a slight softening in the woman's gaze, Savina took a deep breath and continued. "I'm here as an Inquisitor because—Lady Nishi, this rite that your husband celebrates is contrary to everything I've learned about Alirria. I'm not accusing you of heresy, but I think someone has lied to you."

Lady Nishi said nothing.

Softly, Savina continued. "Allow me to ask… does the rite help you feel love and happiness?"

It was Lady Nishi's turn to take a deep breath. Then she shook her head no. "I tolerate it," she sighed. "I tolerate it because the book says that Alirrians must do so, and I am loyal to the Goddess."

"Allirian rites are supposed to be more fun than that," observed Kormick.

"Did your father practice it?" Savina pressed.

"No," Lady Nishi admitted. "Not before my marriage took me away from home, certainly, and he never mentioned it later."

"So it follows that your father did not have this book, The Lady's Ways, at the time you were married?" Kormick asked.

"I did not have exhaustive knowledge of his collection…"

But Savina sensed that she was saying "no." Lady Nishi didn't believe the book belonged to her father, but she was trying hard not to cast doubt on any part of his library, for some reason.

"Do you have any idea where it came from, then?" asked Kormick.

"It arrived with his library after he died. My serving woman Rin supervised the shipment."

"Is there anything else you can tell us that might be helpful?" Savina asked.

Lady Nishi shook her head.

"In that case," said Savina, "thank you very much for your help, Lady Nishi." Savina stood up, and the others stood up around her.

As they moved to the door, Lady Nishi jumped to her feet. "Inquisitor Savina-san!" she said. Savina turned around to see Lady Nishi crossing her arms self-protectively, obviously still more frightened than angry.

"Yes, Lady Nishi?"

"You will not—the Inquisition will not—you will not use this one false book, if it is proven to be such, as an excuse to destroy my father's library—will you?"

"Of course not!" Savina said, saddened that the woman would even think entertain such a paranoid thought, but understanding, now, why she was so reluctant to help them prove that the rite was a heresy: she was terrified that the Inquisition might overreact.

"And the Inquisition will not—you will not stamp out all Alirrian worship?"

"Never," said Savina.

Unexpectedly, Mena spoke up. "I do not follow Alirria," the Defier said in her low, even voice, "but I have put myself on a path to see her will fulfilled. One thing I know: no one can stamp out the Goddess. She is greater than we are."

After a moment, Lady Nishi nodded in quiet agreement. Then, without another word, she bowed them out of the room.

 

[ellinor]

15x04

"It is a forgery," Nyoko announced, straightening up from a close examination of The Lady's Ways. "A very, very fine forgery. I doubt even I would have noticed the telltale details if I hadn't been primed to look for them—"

"What are the details?" Mena asked.

Nyoko pulled one of the other books from the collection across the reading table. "This is definitively in the hand of Lady Nishi's father," she said. "Note the ascenders on the 'H's—do you see the pen flick here? And here? Now compare…" She pointed to a letter in The Lady's Ways. "No flick. Also, Lady Nishi's father closes his 'A' more decisively—you see? Here. And here. By Kettenek, it is remarkably well done..."

Mena and Twiggy were both bent over Nyoko, following her pointing finger. Kormick, standing nearby, cracked his back, which felt tight just watching them. He had always thought that one of the worst parts of this whole Justicar business was the occasional need to squint for hours at dusty law books while Brother Scribe exhorted him to memorize comically narrow and specific definitions of self-defense…as if "I had to get him before he got me" wasn't good enough for Kettenek.

"Kawazu-san?" called Nyoko. The man was standing by the door once more, chaperoning the books.

"Yes, Honored Adept?"

"Has any Adept been attached to this household in the last year?"

"No, Honored Adept."

"What about other professional artisans? Anyone with the skills to copy this?"

"No, Honored Adept. Lady Nishi’s father was a rare talent, and lived all the way across the Ketkath from here. There is no one in this area with his skill."

"An amateur couldn't do this," said Nyoko. "This is Adept-quality work."

"So whoever planted this forgery was either was an Adept, or had the money to buy one," Kormick said. "Assuming we're correct that Lord Nishi is too dense to have arranged this himself, we'd better not cross Lady Nishi off the list, since she has money and access."

"No motive, though," mused Mena.

There was a knock on the library door. Kawazu opened the door and a small, matronly woman stepped in.

"Inquisitors," said Kawazu, "Housekeeper Rin awaits your pleasure."

"Very timely," said Kormick. "Seneschal, would you mind giving us some privacy?"

The man frowned. "I cannot. My duties to my Lord's books—"

"Yes, yes, at any moment Twiggy over there might ignite a fireball that consumes your Lord's collection. Keep a wary eye." Kormick ignored Twiggy's gasp of outrage at the very thought. Instead, he took Rin's arm and marched her out of the room. "Where can we talk?" he asked the startled woman.

She pointed shakily to a door across the hall.

Kormick—and Nyoko, Mena, and Savina—followed the woman into a small sitting room. Rin bustled through the room, muttering while she straightened cushions: "This room, the maids have been negligent, I'm so sorry, I've no wish to annoy the Inquisition—"

Kormick noticed Nyoko rubbing her eyebrow as if suffering from a fairly severe itch, and he took the hint. "Rin," he said. "In a long line of things that have annoyed the Inquisition on this trip, you are but the latest. Be still."

Immediately, Nyoko looked like her world made more sense, and Rin came to a stop. Surprisingly, however, she didn't really look intimidated. She was studying them curiously, and as she came to Savina, she caught sight of Savina's holy symbol and brightened. "So it's true!" she said. "An Alirrian Inquisitor! The girls downstairs were talking, but then again last week they were in a frenzy because they'd heard Kawazu-san got drunk, imagine that! Drunk with the common soldiers, brawling in the yard, not a word of it true. But you're an Alirrian?"

"I am," said Savina. Kormick sensed that she was about to start talking about flowers and praying again. He hadn't really minded when she'd done it earlier—in fact, for some reason, it had reminded him unexpectedly of his sister—but he didn't want to take the time now. He cut in.

"We need to know how Lady Nishi's father's library got here from his estate after he died," he said.

"I packed it all up," said Rin. "Let me see. Suzu and Yuki helped me—or was it Emi? It was Emi, yes, because Suzu's boy was sick that night and—"

"But you were in charge," interrupted Kormick.

"Of course," she said.

"And do you remember packing one book in particular? The Lady's Ways?"

"That's the one that's causing all the trouble? I've thought about that, and I can't say that I do remember it. But I can't say that I would have remembered it, either. We were all half out of our minds, it was such a sad time. My Lady's father was a good man."

"Did he practice this rite?"

Rin laughed, shaking her head. "No, no," she said. "We'd never heard of it then, you see. Anyway he couldn't have done it—back before the Affirmation, you know, it wasn't safe for anyone to know that the family was Alirrian, and if he'd done that, well, people would have known. Such pretty books he made, too, you know, but he never showed them off. He couldn't. The Inquisition would have—" She caught herself, looking scared and apologetic.

"We understand," said Mena. "You're saying Lady Nishi grew up in an atmosphere of fear and secrecy until the Affirmation arrived."

"It didn't stop there," Rin said, shaking her head. "Her father never changed. He thought the Affirmation was a trick to flush out the heretics so they could all be killed at once. He nearly disowned Lady Nishi when she told everyone she was Alirrian. She made it a condition of her marriage, you know. Lord Nishi had to convert."

"She was very brave to take that stand," said Mena. "Did she share her father's artistic abilities?"

"Well, I always thought she had a good eye, and I told her so many a time, but no, she wasn't interested."

"And how do you think she feels about this rite?" continued Mena. Rin was proving to be a very useful source for verifying Lady Nishi's honesty, and Kormick found her convincing. He was ready to cross both Lady Nishi and Rin off his list of suspects. Infuriatingly, he wasn't sure that there was anyone else on his list of suspects. Yet.

Rin glanced at the door as if to make sure it was shut. "Between you and me," she said, "it's a terrible strain on the marriage. And the marriage wasn't perfect to begin with. Lord Nishi—" she lowered her voice—"is not the brightest star in the sky, if you know what I mean."

"Indeed, he is not the sharpest crane… crane's bill… in the flock," agreed Kormick, stumbling with relief into a decent metaphor after an inauspicious start. Rin nodded in satisfaction.

"I have one more question," said Savina. "If Lady Nishi had never heard of the rite, and you hadn't—then who told Lord Nishi about it?"

Rin blinked. "Ponoko-san," she said. "It must have been."

"And that is?"

"Our priestess," said Rin. "She doesn't just lead our services, of course. She advises Lord Nishi about the ways of Alirria."

Aaand…we have a new suspect, thought Kormick. He turned to Savina. "You're still dangerously naïve," he told her. "Don't forget that. But that was a nicely pertinent question to ask."

"Not that an Alirrian priestess would be behind such a terrible crime, of course," said Savina with dangerous naïveté. "Still, we should probably talk to her."

"Yes," agreed Kormick, sharing a dark glance with Mena. "We probably should."

 

[Ilex]

15x05

Arden's role in all these conversations was to stand by the door, pretending that she wasn't listening, that she was only there in case her mistress developed a sudden need for a glass of water. Mena knew she was pretending. Twiggy surely guessed. Kormick probably assumed. Of course, she was listening, enjoying the chance to sift through words and inflections for the clues that mattered.

She did wish that she could ask a question or two, but, as usual, the gentlefolk were decent, competent people, and they asked every question she could think of. It was infuriating, in a way. If she could despise them, things would be simpler.

As Lady Ponoko greeted them in her small chamber, hung with green and blue, Arden took up her station by the door, fixed a neutral, cool stare on the woman, and began to observe. Lord Nishi's Alirrian priestess-in-residence was, appropriately, a motherly woman, middle-aged and pleasant-looking. She seemed alert and solemn—aware of the seriousness of her position, being the advisor of an accused heretic—but not nervous.

"You have questions for me?" she said.

"Yes, Honored Mother," said Savina. "We need to know—well—let's begin with this. When did you become the priestess here?"

"I became the priestess shortly after Lord Nishi's wedding, after Father Disuku had difficulties with the transition to Alirrian worship. Before that, I trained at the Temple in Lord's Edge, may it be rebuilt."

Arden felt a chill. "May it be rebuilt." Please Gods… tell me Kormick's jokes weren't prophetic…

"…Rebuilt?" whispered Savina. Except Nyoko, they had all frozen. "What… what happened?"

"It was attacked and burned earlier this spring. None my sisters survived."

Arden closed her eyes against the shock. The room was silent. Inside herself, Arden fought a losing battle with a new obligation settling onto her shoulders: This wasn't our fault. It's not our crime. It is, instead, almost certainly the Tide's crime… but if we'd been there, we could have helped to stop it.

She opened her eyes. The others looked as miserable and furious as she felt. Savina was pressing her hand to her mouth, and a tear streaked down her cheek.

Kormick put his hand on the girl's shoulder. "We will see it rebuilt," he said gruffly. "I will see it rebuilt. I promise this, no matter how many years it may be before I can get back there." Savina reached up to squeeze Kormick's hand.

"I see," said Ponoko, "that my news affects you. Did you know of the Temple in Lord's Edge?"

Savina told Ponoko about meeting the Honored Mother there. It occurred to Arden that the Honored Mother, alone of the Alirrians of Lord's Edge, had arguably met a just fate—the once-intolerant killer had now become a victim of intolerant killers. Arden suppressed a shiver: Justice is cold. She looked down at the floor and prayed that the sorrowful and repentant Honored Mother would find happiness at last in the afterlife, his debt now truly, fully paid. And she prayed that Kettenek's justice would fall as coldly upon the murderers of all the Honored Mother's innocent sisters as it had upon the Honored Mother himself.

And presuming the Tide are behind it, she decided, then that entire organization must be punished. Somehow. She locked eyes with Mena, silently communicating: It's no longer enough to arrest only the criminal who caused this heresy in this district. The deaths of the Alirrians of Lord's Edge must be answered, too. She thought that she and Mena knew each other well enough now that they could guess how each other felt. In fact, she suspected that they had all, silently, just signed the Tide's death warrant in that room. Her companions were, after all, decent, competent people. They would do what needed to be done.

…although I have no idea how….

The others were also silent until Nyoko gently reminded them that there was a criminal investigation to be concluded: she bowed her head and said, "With greatest respect for the dead, Ponoko-san, the Inquisition here must continue."

"Of course," said Ponoko.

"Right," sighed Kormick. "How did you learn about this infamous rite?"

"Well, of course, it came to light when we acquired Lady Nishi's father's library."

"Yes, yes, we know that much. But how did it come to light? You were browsing among the books one afternoon, stumbled across it, and thought to yourself 'Yes, this seems perfectly reasonable and Alirrian to me?'"

"More or less, yes. After the Seneschal called my attention to The Lady's Ways, I read it very closely and—"

"Wait," said Kormick.

That's it, Arden agreed silently, her instincts in agreement with Kormick. Everyone seemed alert.

"Yes, Inquisitor-san?"

"Seneschal Kawazu showed this book to you."

"Of course. Among other duties he is the keeper of the library…"

"We noticed. How very easy it would have been for him to add a book to the collection and call your attention to it," said Kormick. "We need to search his chambers immediately and without warning."

Kormick stood up and made for the door. The others followed with equal conviction. Arden barely had time to pull it open. Only two of them said farewell to the priestess: Nyoko offered a quick formal bow, and Savina tossed a heartfelt, if hurried, "Thank you, Honored Mother!" over her shoulder.

In the hallway, they waylaid a soldier, who called his boss, and minutes later Yutaka, the captain of the guard, hurried up with a ring of keys. Kormick told him that they needed to search Kawazu's chambers at once, and Yutaka's eyes widened.

"Are you sure, Inquisitor-san?" he asked.

"Was there an iota of doubt in my voice when I said that?" replied Kormick.

Yutaka led the way to the Seneschal's small suite of rooms, unlocked the door, and stood aside. "Thank you, Yutaka-san," said Tavi. "While we handle this, locate Kawazu and have your men detain him." Yutaka bowed and strode away down the hall.

Kormick stood in the doorway of Kawazu's chambers and cracked his knuckles with disconcerting relish, a grin on his face. "Hoo-kay," he said. "Let's toss the joint."

They fanned out into the room, dragging out drawers and pulling aside wall hangings. Savina, of all people, found the lockbox under a loose floorboard. She tugged it out and set it on the mattress.

"There isn't a key with this," she said. "Has anyone found a key?"

"Oh my gods you're still adorable," said Kormick.

Arden suppressed a smile and didn't offer to pick the lock. She really didn't want to demonstrate that particular skill in front of her mistress and the Justicar, let alone everyone else. Plus, she didn't think it would prove necessary… since Kormick was already unslinging a warhammer…

He bashed the box open with a single stroke. Out fell gold, gems, and a black robe with a strange insignia on its breast.

"Please tell me that this symbol means 'Hello, I am a proud member of the Tide, an extremely evil organization,'" said Kormick, holding it up for Nyoko to see.

She frowned at it briefly. "At the center is a very old-fashioned symbol for Kettenek in his role as the Sea-Master," she said. "Circling it is a wayfarer's sign for a clear path. If we recall that the Tide's full name is The Restless Tide of the One True Path, then—"

"—then it says, "Hello, I am a proud member of the Tide," finished Tavi.

"I cannot Witness to exactly that," hedged Nyoko. Then she flashed a satisfied smile. "But speaking as a private citizen, I think you should arrest Kawazu at once."

Footsteps pounded in the corridor and Yutaka skidded into the doorway, breathing hard. "Honored Inquisitors," he said, "come with me, quickly. We've found him, but we have a problem."

They raced after him down the corridor, and then down two flights of stairs, into a dank cellar. Yutaka led them to a storeroom and stepped aside so they could see what lay within: a pair of feet stuck out from behind a crate.

"Is he all right?" asked Savina, hurrying into the room. They followed her, anxious to see if someone had already killed Kawazu and thus done their work for them.

But body wasn't Kawazu's. It was a soldier they'd never seen before, and he didn't even look injured. Before they could do anything else, four other soldiers sprang from the shadows, weapons gleaming. Arden and Mena, at the back of the group, wheeled to find Yutaka standing grim-faced in the doorway, his battle-scarred katana at the ready.

It was an ambush.

 

[steeldragons]

Niiice. Great update.

This is really good stuff. To be honest, I wasn't sure I would like it in the beginning...for a few reasons. And I hadn't read the previous campaigns (with Rose's mother). But you guys do a great job with the characters, their interactions and details of the cultures.

This is really a very entertaining read.

Thanks for the adventure.
--Steel Dragons

 

[Seonaid]

Oh noes! Cliffhanger!

 

[Ilex]

Thank you all so much for the lovely comments!! So fun, and much appreciated, especially at the end of a very tiring week.

A special thank-you also goes to spyscribe, who took notes at Session 15 because ellinor and I both happened to be out of town for different reasons when this was played. spyscribe is... shall we say an expert... at taking notes for story hours and other story-related enterprises, so I had fantastic, detailed material to work from and, at this point, have practically forgotten that I wasn't actually there.

Happy Halloween to all!

 

[ellinor]

on a side note

Happy birthdays to spyscribe, jenber, and thatch, all of whom have birthdays on or around now! It's a pleasure to make stories with you.

 

[Jenber]

Thanks, ellinor! You're the best.

 

[ellinor]

16x01

Wind whistled through the cracks of the storage cellar as, for the briefest moment of silence, Tavi took stock of the situation. Guards continued to pile into the room, and in seconds, the party was surrounded by nearly a dozen armed men. The guard captain, Yutaka, stood among the boxes and crates with a smug, self-satisfied glare.

But there was no more time to think, as one of the guards raised his katana and charged toward Rose. Rose shrieked in shock and fear. Without hesitation, Tavi ignited the green flame of his sword and closed the distance to Rose’s attacker, slicing the attacker’s shoulder before he could even turn. “What are you doing?” Tavi yelled. “We are here to help your Lord!”

“He is not worthy of that title!” Yutaka snarled. “Get the heathens! For Kettenek’s Truth!”

And suddenly, Tavi wasn’t just surrounded and protecting Rose, he was fighting for his life against a crowd of Tide zealots. The guards rushed in, and Rose teleported to a corner behind crates, where she would be safe from the fighting. But that left Tavi in the middle. One of the guards’ katanas connected with Tavi’s arm. It seared in pain. He could hear cries from Savina and Mena, too, although he couldn’t see them.

But wherever they were, he knew they were fighting back. Tavi saw one of the guards clutch his neck, blood seeping through his fingers…and then saw Arden wiping her blade behind him. Kormick strode through the crowd, swinging his warhammers, bashing a path through the guards, leaving them bruised and weakened, clutching their guts and knees. “Now you’ve made us cranky,” Mena announced, as she cut a swath through the crowd. One of Nyoko’s arrows whizzed past Tavi’s head and struck one of the guards. Then—suddenly—Twiggy teleported into the crowd of guards, and erupted in flame. Several of the guards screamed as their tunics caught fire. The guard in front of Tavi flailed, burned, and fell backward, and an abyssal maw opened up in the ground, swallowing the guard whole. Other guards backed away from the maw and its churning, gnashing spikes.

That cleared the room a bit, Tavi thought. But as he glanced looked more closely, Twiggy wasn’t in such good shape. She was fighting hard—her force orb pushed two more men into the maw—but she was paying the price. Her robes were torn, blood streamed from one shoulder, and her other arm hung limp by her side.

“Die, Alirrian scum!” Tavi couldn’t see who yelled it, but he could see the guards converge on Savina, swords in motion. In a flash, the girl was engulfed by guards, some of whom were still burning from Twiggy’s spell.

Savina’s retort rang out with divine power. “Alirria! Defend us!” Instantly, Tavi felt stronger. Now, if I can just get myself within sword’s range of Yutaka, he thought. Yutaka was on the other side of the room, bearing down on Mena. Blood had soaked her sleeve and she was limping. Tavi saw his opening. He slammed his sword through the air beside him, cutting through the air and dimension warping into Mena’s spot. As he appeared beside Yutaka, a burst of flame spewed from his sword and right into Yutaka’s gut. The man’s robes caught on fire.

Yutaka was hurt, but still dangerous. He wheeled around, bringing the full force of his sword down onto Arden behind him. It opened a gaping wound across her front and seemed, somehow, to renew Yutaka. Arden stumbled backward and caught her balance on a storage crate, grunting in pain. That’s too many of us hurt, Tavi thought, and too many of them still fighting.

Tavi kept Yutaka’s attention as Arden scrambled up the crate by her side and, with a wince, hopped to the next one, right behind Yutaka. She jumped forward off the box and stabbed, deeply, into Yutaka’s kidneys. He was pinned, still. Nyoko leapt up onto a storage crate and shot two arrows into Yutaka’s smoldering form. He slumped off of Arden’s dagger and hit the floor. Dead.

The remaining guards swarmed, for a moment, disoriented without their leader. “Your man is dead,” said Mena. “It’s time to walk away.”

“We don’t fight for him,” hissed one of the guards. “We fight for Kettenek.”

Mena stepped forward and kicked him, twice. Savina whacked him on the head with her staff.

“You fight for a perversion, and you are wrong,” Savina said. “If you think that this is Kettenek’s way, you will learn: Alirria takes care of her own.” A faint shimmer spread from her staff. Tavi felt stronger. The guards looked weaker. Consecrated ground, Tavi knew. And Savina was right: A few more arrows from Nyoko, stabs from Arden, blows from Kormick, and suddenly, there were only three guards remaining, injured but alive.

Twiggy stood over one, her foot on his chest. “This one’s unconscious, but alive. We can question him.” Tavi nodded in assent.

“Honored Inquisitor,” said Nyoko, addressing herself to Tavi as she lifted her bow and drew back her hand, “do you require any more of these heretical vermin to be alive for questioning?”

Tavi felt the cuts on his body and looked at his friends, their clothes torn and bloodied. “No.”

Two arrows flew from Nyoko’s bow at the same time. And at the same time, the last two guards were dead.

###

Savina tended to everyone’s wounds, and then turned to Yutaka's dead form. She made a sign of Alirria over his body, but it was hard to feel compassion for him. Heretic. Betrayer of Alirria. His pockets held nothing but a Kettenite holy symbol. Betrayer of Kettenek, as well, she thought.

“Looks like we’ll need to get our evidence the old-fashioned way,” Kormick smiled, and slapped awake the last living guard.

Mena fixed the guard in her stare. “You’re a loyal soldier,” she began, “but you’ve failed. We need to know who else fights on your side.”

As the guard looked down, his failure was written on his face, but it was mixed with defiance. “I am Azuma. I fight for Kettenek.”

“We are willing to do whatever it takes to find your allies,” Mena continued.

“I am Azuma. I fight for Kettenek.”

Twiggy glared at the guard. “And as Inquisitors, we act as Kettenek’s authorities. If you truly wish to serve him, you will answer our questions.”

“Plus, we dropped you once,” said Tavi. “We won’t hesitate to make it final.” Arden twirled her dagger ominously.

The guard’s eyes narrowed. “If I am to die,” he replied, “then kill me.”

Savina was shocked by the realization: this man wants death. But how do you scare someone who wants to die?.

“Not so fast,” she said, and steeled herself. “How’s that kneecap?” She bent down to evaluate the guard’s injured knee, without the usual gentleness in her healer’s touch. The guard bit back a moan of pain. “Or that ankle?” He pulled his foot back and winced. “We can heal your internal bleeding, you know, and you can live life as a cripple.”

“I fight for Kettenek. I deserve an honorable death.”

“You think so?” Savina said, poking again at his ankle. “I’m Alirrian. You were defiling my faith. Why should I care for yours?” The man’s face contorted.

He looked up at Savina. “If I tell you what you want to know, can you promise me an honorable death?”

Savina paused for a moment. “Yes.” He was not a good man, she thought, but getting his information would serve Alirria, and punishing him would only serve vengeance. She stood up, and met Kormick’s eyes with defiance, although she wasn’t sure whether she was embarrassed by her threat or by her mercy.


“So Witnessed,” added Nyoko.

From there, the guard’s information flooded out. Kawazu, the seneschal, was a member of the Tide. The Tide had forged the heretical ritual and incorporated it into the fake book, The Lady’s Ways. Kawazu had brought the book to the Nishi estate when he was hired to become the new couple’s seneschal, hid it among the couple’s collection, and brought it to Nishi’s attention. The goal was to utterly disgrace Nishi—the most politically powerful open Alirrian in the Sovereignty—and to incite open revolt, either from the peasants or from Nishi’s vassals. Worship of Alirria would be reviled, and Nishi and his wife (“the infidels”) would be lynched and drowned, in the tradition for Alirrian heretics. Kawazu had recruited the guard captain Yutaka, and his guards. It was, the guard spat, “easy.”

It was, Savina thought, disgusting. She marveled at how close the plan came to working.

They bound the guard then, and dragged him, together with the burned and broken body of Yutaka, through the estate, to Lord Nishi’s audience hall.

###

“What is the meaning of this?” Lord Nishi asked, a look of horror on his face as he stared down at the bloody body of Yutaka on his rug and the fettered guard at Mena’s feet. Mena couldn’t tell whether Nishi was more upset about the rug or the men. Not a heretic, she thought, but I still don’t like him.

Nyoko turned to the guard. “Speak.”

“Don’t forget the part about the drowning,” added Mena, and her armor whispered in dark agreement.

As the guard recounted Kawazu’s plot, a succession of emotions passed over Nishi’s face. Shock; horror; disgust; disbelief. Mostly, he did a lot of blinking. At the end, he fell backward into his chair, confused and horrified.

Tavi stepped forward. “The Inquisition will not permit this heretical ritual to continue.”

Nishi looked…relieved. “Yes, Inquisitor-san. And the book shall be destroyed.”

“Reparations shall be made to all who were subjected to the ritual,” Savina added.

“Yes, reparations.” Nishi still looked shell-shocked, and Mena couldn’t be sure whether he actually knew what “reparations” meant.

“Everyone shall be compensated for what they lost as a result of this false ritual," Mena clarified.

“Tell him to include the serfs, Mena,” murmured Arden from behind her. Mena thought of the man they’d met on the road, and sighed as she realized that Arden was most likely correct in assuming that Nishi, like so many of his comfortable rank, wouldn't think beyond the nobility harmed by the ritual. Poor, foolish, narrow man. She spoke again to Nishi: “Including the serfs. There was one whose daughter was killed, although her wedding was canceled.”

“I hadn’t thought…” Nishi searched for words. “I am sure something can be done…”

“Our lady cares for all,” Savina reminded him.

“We shall send a message to Lady Oroko, telling her she can kill the Tidesmen who are now on their way to her home,” Tavi said

“Which leaves Kawazu,” said Kormick. “Where is he?”

One of the servants stepped forward from the back of the room. “Gone, Inquisitor-san. I saw him leaving on his horse, hours ago.”

“Where would he go?”

“His only family is in Cauldron,” said Lord Nishi. “His aunt is Lady Kawazu Noriko, the Mother Superior of Cauldron.”

At that news, Nyoko suddenly looked grim. Mena shot her an inquisitive look, dreading bad news.

“The Mother Superior is the head of the Ring of Priesthood,” Nyoko clarified. “They are up the Circle from the Inquisition. They have the power to order the Inquisition to order or abort any inquest they wish. If Kawazu reaches the Priesthood before we can catch him, he can request sanctuary from his Aunt, and the Inquisition will not be able to touch him.”

Yes, bad news. Very complicated, very political, very Sovereign bad news.

“Then we must go now, Lord Nishi-san,” said Savina. “May our Lady be forever by your side.” Nishi looked almost dizzy, as if his world had been turned upside-down. Perhaps it had been.

Outside, Savina looked away as they beheaded the guard. An honorable death, Mena thought, for a dishonorable man. And Kawazu will see even less justice if we don't catch him before he reaches the city limits. We will have to move as if Sedellus’ wind itself were at our backs.

They rode hard toward Cauldron.

 

[spyscribe]

Awesome update, and thanks for the birthday wishes!