District 1: Actions

Celdiur approached Ghalvas, a strong sense of relief running through his veins that he still lived. He placed a reassuring hand upon his shoulder.

"Thank the Goddess that you yet live, friend. After all this time I began to fear the worst. I am Sir Celdiur Moriendor, Knight Chaplain of the Order of Eventide. These men are my comrades, my Brothers-in-Arms. Weve been assisting your brother, Dhez'ral in his mission to find you and put an end to the misery that Octavius and his ilk have brought to Singal. Alas..."

Celdiur hesitated for a moment before continuing.

"We have all been decieved, myself most of all. A man that has the nerve to hide behind the guise of a holy man has played us all for fools"

He turned to Varys.

"Forgive me, Brother. I fear that much of our ill fortune these past days have been caused by myself. I confided in Father Illacus, believing truly that he wished to aid us in our search. I am the reason that you were ambushed here. My ill-judged trust in that man nearly got you all killed. And I fear that we now have little time to catch the bastard before he has a chance to flee. We must not allow that, Varys, else all of this has been for nought!"

Varys frowned and said "See that it does not happen again, Celduir. You know as well as I do that no one can be trusted in Singal. However, we cannot keep speaking of the past. Mistakes have been made, and I myself have made a few in letting this attack happen. We must continue moving forward."

He told his men, "Search the bodies for some sort of note. Celduir, I trust you can find Illacus and restrain him until further notice? He doesn't know that he has failed here, unless he is watching us. When you and your men approach him, seem saddened and talk about a sudden disappearance of your friend. Look for a golden signet ring on his hand. Then when he has his guard down, capture him. I want to meet him myself."

Varys quickly scanned the area around him, looking for anyone hiding in the shadows.

Haruch watched Varys's attempts at looking into the shadows for some time before shaking his head.

There is nothing, he said, the hint of a derisive smile playing around his mouth for a second.

The market square:

As Celdiur and his men approached the market square they could already see a multitude of people gathered around the podium, several guardsmen standing aside, looking clueless. A small, corpulent man stood on the podium, talking agitatedly. When he perceived Celdiur's group nearing the gathered crowd he pointed at them, a lot of heads following his gesture. Something on his hand blinking in the sunlight.

There are the villains, that burnt down my house, the villains that deceived the captain all the time, the villains that have plagued our district for so long and still have the chutzpah to walk around here openly!

Almost all heads now turned towards them and it was mostly unfriendly looks that met their eyes.

Varys looked at Haruch for a second, before nodding.

"Come, let's go see if Celduir has captured Illacus yet."

Celdiur could barely contain his rage at such an accusation. He bellowed forth as he strood towards the podium.

"Guilty?!? Aye, guilty we are, if it is a crime to uphold Astraea's justice and to root out all those that would spread distrust and corruption, my good Father Illacus! Or should it be Octavius Palatina that I address you as now, deciever!"

He stopped before the crowd, boldly displaying his defiance to the accusation for all to see. He took his eyes off of Octavius and scanned the crowd, a stern look upon his features, before addressing the assembly.

"People of Singal, I take a look at the many faces gathered here before me, and I see many that before have looked upon myself and my comrades with respect and trust. Those same faces, who have watched and listened eagerly to my every word atop that podium on which this deciever now stands, now look upon me with distrust, even anger, for reasons that I cannot comprehend. Because of a blind accusation made to fool you and keep you from knowing the truth behind these recent events. Alas, my friends, alas I can hardly blame you"

He had calmed down greatly now, and he slowly began pacing the length of the crowd.

"Aye, I cannot blame you for such distrust. For have the people of Singal ever been given a reason for doing so? All that you people have ever known is lies, deceit, corruption, intimidation and fear. You have lived your lives wondering what lies in wait around every corner, what evil lurks in the shadows of the nearest alleyway, even if your next word to the wrong person could be your last. The shadow of fear makes slaves of us all. The distrust that must of you feel is merely one of its many forms! You seek a life better than this, we all do. I know this as well as every other good soul that stands before me, and thus placing your trust in a man that has promised a greater existance, a brighter future, a man that has come to be loved and respected in your community for his works, is entirely understandable. But friends, that man's promises were but a clever disguise that fooled even I. And should you take the words of this man, a coward that has the nerve to hide behind the mask of a holy man, as truth over my own, then you will destroy any hope you have of banishing one of the greatest blights upon your lives forever"

Celdiur stopped, his eyes narrowing as he turned again to face Octavius, an accusatory finger raised towards him.

"For this man, my good people, has been the cause of the greatest threat in this district, as his thugs have ransacked, extorted, intimidated, robbed and murdered all who have been bold enough to challenge his evil ways. And worst of all, he has decieved each and every one of us as he walked amongst us, smiling, conversing and preaching the words of Eunomia Stabilitis. For behind the guise of the 'benevolent' Father Illacus lies the cold, unfeeling face of Octavius Palatina! How do I know this you ask yourself now? I will gladly impart that knowledge upon you. The battle that my Brothers and I fought in the sewers against this cowards henchmen yielded two prisoners, who were more than willing to cooperate with the good Sir Varys. The information they imparted upon us led us to what they called the 'usual meeting place', a dank, squalid vault deep within the sewers of this very district, in which we discovered, at long last, the missing preacher Ghalvas, severely weakend but alive, being held in the most terrible conditions. My fellow Knights tend to him even as I speak"

He looked back to the crowd with a look of feigned confusion.

"But how does that implicate the Father in all of this? Perhaps it was the staircase that led from the vault upwards into his very home that now lies in ashes, courtesy of the remnants of his gang that now lie dead below us, food for the rats! Wether he wished to kill us there and then, or wether he wished to destroy all evidence of his ill deeds, remains a mystery to me. But what I can tell you all now is that he failed in both! For my brethren have secured evidence that confirms his guilt; maps of the City Guard's patrol routes, letters taken from the home of Ghalvas himself detailing his investigation into a mysterious figure known only as 'O P', even a bill from an unfortunate goldsmith from the richer districts that paid the ultimate price for his services to this criminal!"

Celdiur looked up toward the shining object upon Octavius's hand and grinned.

"A fine piece of worksmanship that ring is it not Octavius? A true waste of talent having that goldsmith murdered in cold blood. A signet ring is it not? Two faced if I am not correct? Now why in the world would a simple man of the Gods need such a tool?"

He looked back to the crowd one last time, focusing mostly upon the guardsmen gathered at the sidelines.

"People of Singal, what more evidence must I give unto you to prove the guilt of the man that stands upon that podium? The choice is now yours. Do you turn your hatred upon myself, a humble knight of the Eventide that has fought tirelessly to bring this man to justice, or will you do the right thing and put an end to one of the greatest evils that has haunted your every step for so long now"

Celdiur stepped toward the crowd, his hands out at his sides.

"Only you can make this choice. What say you all?"

A number of people now turned their unfriendly gaze at Octavius, others seemed insecure and some still glared at Celdiur. While the people seemed to be still pondering the dilemma of who was lying and who was not, a commotion was seen going through the crowd from the manor to the podium.

Make way! bellowed a watch sergeant and a narrow alley opened through witch Captain Dhez'ral and ten watchmen hurried towards the podium. Octavius looked unhappy about that but the podium was surrounded by people on all sides and there was no way to escape.

If what you say is true, the captain called over to Celdiur, we should be able to confirm it by investigating this ring.

Hold him! he beckoned to two of his men and while one guardsman forcibly straightened Octavius's hand, Dhez'ral took the ring off it. Celdiur could see him nestling something out of it, then the captain held a small object into the air.

Look people of Singal, the ring has a changeable cameo, one showing the insignia of Damia Provideo, the other a castle and crossed arrows, the arms of Octavius Palatina!

Some people near the podium got nearer and examined the cameo, too, confirming the captain's statement. As the message spread through the crowd, more and more friendly people turned towards Celdiur, while calls for execution of Octavius grew louder.

You have all been deceived, squealed Octavius, they have replaced my actual ring with this one.

Some people seemed to believe this and parts of the crowd again turned against Celdiur.

Under the care of Vary's men Ghalvas had recovered sufficiently to walk by himself and the group had now reached the market square, observing the scenery. When Ghalvas perceived his brother and Octavius on the podium, he rushed forward, the rage obviously speeding up his recovery.

Octavius Palatina! he exclaimed while storming to the podium through an alley of startled people, your schemes end here! People of Singal, this is truly Octavius Palatina, the marauder captain who years ago raided mine and Dhez'ral's village.

Now all people turned towards the podium and soon the crowd chanted:

Execution! Execution!

Celdiur quickly followed Ghalvas to the podium to join Dhez'ral. Once upon it he approached the Captain and spoke in a quiet tone.

"The will of the people has been heard Captain, and it must be so. The courts and justices of Singal are too corrupt to leave his fate to them. We have our chance now to be rid of this blight forever. Let him hang as sport for the crows, Dhez'ral"

He turned then to the crows and beckoned Varys and the others to join him.

"The Eventide came here to provide you good people with justice, and justice we have delivered this day! Let the will of the Goddess be done! For all wrongs that Octavius Palatina has wrought, let them be avenged here and now!"

His speech further fueled the crowds lust for the blood of a criminal.

Varys quickly looked around and found a spare length of rope, making a makeshift noose out of it. He approached the restrained Octavius, smiling evilly all the while. He leaned over and whispered, "You thought you would get away? No one gets away. I hope you enjoy your stay in hell, scum. "

He slowly put the noose around Octavius's neck, tightened it, and attached it to the top of the podium.

He then backed away, approached Celduir, and told him, "Would you be as kind to do the honors? You have been an immeasurable, and invaluable in getting him."

Dhez'ral nodded and judging from the grim smile on his face he had no objections at all to this. He ordered some of his men to deal with the rope, took position on the podium near Celdiur and raised his voice:

Octavius Palatina, you have been accused of leading a criminal organisation that commited arson, murder, robbery, theft and smuggling on countless occasions. Furthermore you have been accused of kidnapping the preacher Ghalvas and assaulting the knights of the Eventide in an ambush. Sufficient proofs for these accusation have been provided.
People of Singal, do you find the defendant guilty of the accusations?

Guilty! Guilty! Guilty! roared the crowd.

The death by hanging has been demanded as punishment. Do you agree?

The crowd's cheers provided sufficient agreement. Dhez'ral fully turned to Octavius.

Sentence has been passed. You are to die by hanging. Do you have any last words?

Octavius defiantly looked at the captain and spit in front of his feet.

Very well, executioners, do your work! said Dhez'ral with a satisfied smile playing around his mouth. The men slowly pulled up Octavius and the crowd cheered "Die, die, die!" until the last bit of life had passed from Octavius's body. Unknown by the people on the podium, a hooded figure watched the scene from an adjacent alley, then turned and hurried away.

As the last breath of life left Octavius, Celdiur felt a sense of grim satisfaction that this bloody chapter was brought to an end. He turned to Dhez'ral and Ghalvas.

"It is done then. By Astraea's will we have brought this scum to justice. But you know as well as I Captain that whenever one evildoer dies, another will arrive to take his place. In order to continue our good works and ensure the safety of this district we will have to work together from now on"

He smiled now and changed the subject.

"Ah but still, today has been a victory. It should be celebrated as such. There will be much jubilation in the local taverns tonight. I believe that Ghalvas and yourself have earned a much needed brew. As for myself, I will return to the Chapterhouse to deliver a full report to Lord Azlanek. If you wish, send me word and I will be more than happy to arrange a meeting between yourselves and our Grand Master. Until then though, take care my friends"

With that Celdiur bounded down off of the podium and made his way back to the Chapterhouse.

Dhez'ral gave a friendly nod and Ghalvas waved them a good bye. Leaving the market square, Celdiur could hear the captain exclaim:

Tonight the first round is at the expense of the city watch!

Everything he might have added was drowned in the cheers of the crowd that now hurried towards the taverns to celebrate as the sun set in the west and shed its golden light over the roofs of Singal and the shadows grew longer.

---

The next day Jalal arrived at the chapter house with a message from Dhez'ral proposing an extended cooperation in his district.

Meanwhile in another part of Singal, the hooded figure entered a darkened room whose sole furnishings were a long table and seven chairs. The rear corners of the room were hidden in shadows that might have been a bit deeper than usual.

The man however seemed to be used to this. He started to talk to the empty room, giving his report of the eastern parts of the city. After he had finished there was a moment of silence, then a bodiless voice said:

The whole east you say? Then it is time to take appropriate actions. We will need an eighth chair.