Interlude: Promise, A Soul-Drinking Dagger, Matt's Hiatus
Subject: Interlude: Promise
Attention, Acolytes! Save your fidgeting for the practice yard, or I will tell the training master that he is not beating enough energy out of you.
Better. I am Perception, your training master for the principles of the Path.
We speak of the Path, today, and each day when you come to me, until you understand it. The Path is long, and takes many turnings, and you will be expected to know them all before you are granted your final sash, so pay attention.
Your teachers say, "The path is not straight, nor is it soft." Can you tell me what this means? No one? How sad. It is the founding principle of our order. What have you been doing here for the last eleven years that you can not explain to me what we believe? Yes, well, kicking and punching and rolling in the dirt are all well and good, but this is the truth: None of it means anything without principle. What do I mean? If you are the greatest warrior the world has ever known. If you can shatter a mountain with your fist, and create deep chasms by striking the ground with your foot, but you lack the principle to guide your fist and your foot, then you are nothing. Less than nothing, because power without direction is catastrophe.
You will learn direction and principle with me.
"The path is not straight." This defines the constant battle between order and chaos. A road is a manifestation of order. It is an attempt to force the world to conform to our needs. And roads are good things. Without them, much that we take for granted would be far more difficult. It is good for man to build roads. But the world does not bend to the will of men. If you are making a road, and come to a mountain, what will you do? Will you stop and go home? "The mountain has stopped me!" No. Will you smash through the mountain, so that your road can remain straight? You will shatter yourself upon the mountain long before it bends to your will. No, you will bend the road, and find the path through the mountain that the mountain itself will give you. And in the end, you will still have a road. There will still be order. But you will not be shattered.
The path is not straight because the world is not straight. If we wish to impose order on things beyond their capacity for order, we ruin both the world and ourselves in the process. But, we do not have to give in to chaos either. A patient man may find the way to lay a path nearly anywhere. Order within chaos. Structure with flexibility. Adaptability with guiding principle. This is why "the path is not straight."
"Nor is it soft." The price one pays for principle and order can often be high. Just as building your road up through the mountain is more difficult than building your road across flat ground, so too is adapting to change while maintaining guiding principles.
Let me tell you a story.
Of the seven Kaishin that have graced this order, the last, and some say greatest, was Promise. He was the son of a disgraced monk of the Path, and the tale of his birth and his journey back to his home is dark. We will talk about that, and the redemption of his father, another time. I wish to tell you the tale of his greatest victory.
It was in the time we call the "rise of sand and shadow". Dark powers moved in the earth. Some say the gods wrestled, and the world and its peoples shook from the power of their battles. We of the Path know little of gods and their ways. What we do know is that across the world, that time was marked by great upheavals, and great evils.
Promise became a beacon in that dark time. His gift was the gift of foresight, and he used it to show men the good futures open to them if they chose the right path. Always by his side stood his father, once called Mission, but later given the name Resolute. In dark times, men may grow to fear the light. And, though it is a great shame to our race, there were those who sought to control or destroy the gentle Kaishin. But with Resolute at his side, none could touch him.
A great king rose up in the south, in the deserts of Kunedane. His horsemen spread across the land, bringing all in subjection to him. In time, his eye turned to the mountains north of him, and he began conquering here. It was in these lands that he first heard of our order, and of the Kaishin and his ability to see the future of men. The great king sent his eldest son to call on the Kaishin, and demand his fortune be told.
This son was brash, and hotheaded, though he was considered a great leader of men. The king intended to send his son east, conquering those lands as well, and spread his dominion over our entire continent. Then they would rule together, as father and son, over a kingdom too vast to be reckoned. And while the great king did not believe in a monk who could foretell the future, he did understand that the people believed it. If this monk could be made to foretell his son's great conquest, then the people would be more easily subjugated.
And so the great prince arrived in all his splendor at the gates of our order, followed by a thousand of the fierce desert horsemen. He demanded to be brought to the Kaishin, so that his fortune could be told. He was given entrance, as were all who sought audience with Promise.
Once brought before Promise, the great prince demanded that the Kaishin tell the people that he was the foretold ruler of this land. That resistance was foolish.
Promise said, "I will tell the people nothing. A man's past is his only possession. His future is his only reward. How he spends either is his only true choice. But I can show you what I see, and you may decide what to do with it."
These words angered the prince, as no one had dared speak to him as an equal in all his life. The prince said that if Promise did not do as he wished, then his men would burn the monastery, and kill all the monks.
Promise said, "You are the great prince. You can do exactly as you say, and none will be able to turn your hand. But I can show you who you will be afterward, and your victory will be ash in your mouth."
The great prince then said he would kill Promise himself, and show the people that he was stronger than their simple minded prophecy.
And then Resolute stepped in front of his son, and the prince quaked. Children, you wonder, why would the great prince quake before this monk? You must know, Resolute had become the greatest of us, some say the greatest warrior our order ever knew. His hands could carve diamond, his feet moved swifly enough to walk on falling leaves in autumn. They say his eyes were as flat as stone; the eyes of a man who has faced something worse than death, and come away the victor. This man stepped toward the prince, and the prince saw his death in Resolute's flat stony eyes.
But Promise reached up one hand, and touched his father's arm. When he did this, Resolute lowered his hands, and stared sadly at the prince. The prince, still fearing for his life, launched himself at the monk while his guard was down, slashing with his sword. Resolute watched the sword come at his throat as slowly as a falling feather, for when he fought, Resolute moved like the wind. But even though he could have turned the sword and crushed the life from the prince a dozen times, he did not move. He watched the sword slowly move toward him, and then cut his throat.
And Resolute died on the steps of the Kaishin's seat.
But for all his brashness, the Prince was no fool. He saw that Resolute had stood impassive while the stroke fell. So he asked Promise, why did the man do this thing?
Promise answered by holding out his hand. When the prince took it, he saw all that Resolute had seen. He saw himself dead at Resolute's hands. His father, the great king, howling in grief, and burning and murdering across Bannock's Ire in his rage. He saw the beginnings of an empire falling to ruin as the people, given the choice between resistance and massacre, chose to fight. He saw Promise and his father alive, while all around them was in ruins.
But then he saw himself alive, with Resolute dead at his feet. He saw, even in the harshness of war, the possibility of something better. A crown weighing heavily on his gray head, but a single country that spanned the land, and a happy prosperous people with no fear of their neighbor attacking.
Promise then said, "Your future is the gift he gave you. How will you spend it?"
And the great prince wept at the Kaishin's feet.
But now we live in a strong country that spans the land from sea to sea. The people live long, prosperous lives. And in the palace of the Emperors' stands a golden statue of the Kaishin, Promise, and the body of his father at his feet. The words, "Strength and Sacrifice" are etched upon it. Strength and sacrifice were the lessons that Resolute taught the emperors of our land with his life.
The road is not straight, nor is it soft.
Now, go. You smell of sweat and the dirt of the practice yard. It will take me a month to clean my floors. Next time you come to me in such disarray, I will teach you MY version of a hard path, and you will not like it.
From: Mark
Subject: Re: Interlude: Promise
Gee this almost makes me want to have Ty kill Melani. :)
Mark
From: Ty
Subject: Re: Interlude: Promise
Granted.
From: Mark
Subject: Re: Interlude: Promise
I did say almost.
And there was no smilie with that comment Ty.
Well if you kill her I can always roll up an Paladin. :)
Mark
From: Ty
Subject: Re: Elementary, My Dear Farron; 2
The magistrate gives Sa'id a blank look. "I know almost nothing. I have been here most of the night with the body. Ever since he was discovered. I do not concern myself overmuch with such things in any event. The rendering of justice within the city walls is my domain, and I stick to that."
Sa'id nods, and moves around the corpse, his mind already shifting gears into the cold and mechanical analysis that is required for such investigations. It is not the body of a friend, it is a puzzle, waiting to be solved. "Have you seen other murders of this type?" The magistrate shrugs. "Men cut to pieces and stuffed in the sewer? More than we'd like. In a city this size, men will always find a reason to carve each other up. The weapon is unusual. Obsidian is wickedly sharp, even sharper than steel. But its brittleness makes it unreliable. I am surprised this weapon did not chip or shatter during the attack, or after the fall into the sewer. The obvious glee with which he was cut up is worrisome. This was not a convenience killing, or a murder for profit. Someone enjoyed this." He sighs. "I hate the crazy ones."
Sa'id notes the lack of bruises on the body. It does not look like Cadfael put up much of a fight. He also sees that most of the cuts did not bleed very much. He says to Farron, "It is possible that the stab to the heart was the first wound. The lack of blood from the cuts could indicate that Cadfael was already dead when the attacker began to cut him up. Which, of course, leads us to 'why'? Why cut him up after he was already dead?" The magistrate nods. "Like I said, someone enjoyed this." Farron represses a shudder.
A few moments later, a young acolyte from the temple arrives. He greets the magistrate like they've worked together before, and immediately goes to the body. "They say he was a priest? Is this correct? To which god?" Sa'id replies, "He was a servant of Pelor." The acolyte nods. "Then it was not self inflicted. To those who serve the sun god, self mutilation and self murder are anathema."
This seems obvious to Farron, until he remembers that with the plethora of gods and religions in the world, this is a question that would need to be answered.
The acolyte places one hand on Cadfael's chest and begins mumbling. When he has finished, he says, "There is no poison. But, something feels... odd." He begins another prayer. When he has finished, he gasps and jerks his hand away from the body, "Hie! There is something foul here! This man could not be raised, even were one of those trained in the rites here to attempt it. His spirit has been taken. His body is a shell. All that made up this man has been stolen by something. This is evil indeed."
He turns to the magistrate. "Do you have the weapon?" The magistrate hands him the glass dagger, but as soon as he touches it, he lets out a yelp and drops it to the stone floor. Surprisingly, it does not shatter. "That weapon is a thing as foul as any I have ever seen. It was the device by which this man's spirit was stolen, though the power that resided in it is gone now, the echo of that terrible deed reverberates through it."
From: Karl
Subject: Re: Interlude: Promise
That was fantastic. I'm truly impressed! Thank you.
From: Karl
Subject: Re: Interlude: Promise
Or just import your cleric from Tom's game. It's not like the fish will miss him. :-)
From: Mark
Subject: Re: Interlude: Promise
Derek has a soft spot in his heart for Slash.
Mark
From: Matt
Subject: Hiatus
I'm getting my everloving ass kicked at work this week, so I'm going to be incommunicado until at least next Monday. Sorry, but I even have to schedule breathing at the moment, and just typing this email is preventing oxygen from getting to my brain.
I'll catch you all next week.
~Matt
From: Ty
Subject: Re: Hiatus
We'll wait for you. :0
From: Ty
Subject: rennik hiatus
I think I will just do some Farron and Sa'id turns until Monday. That will decrease my work load a bit too, and let's us get Rennik back in time for the mother of all battles.
If you are mad about it, blame Matt! :)
From: Raja
Subject: Re: Elementary, My Dear Farron; 2
Sa'id's heart sinks. It makes perfect sense. The weapon is a conduit for the drinker of souls. If it had pierced Promise's skin... anywhere, not even at the mountain. But Mission could not be warned.
Cadfael was not, then, at Pelor's side. There was no mercy, no peace in his death. Just... oblivion. As though there were no gods at all. A week ago Sa'id might have found the thought of a godless world comforting. Not so now.
Choosing his words carefully, Sa'id says: "My friend Farron and I have seen a weapon like this before, and very recently, but it was not here in the city. Our small group, some of whom have just departed with Nesalin's soldiers, disrupted a sacrifice ritual deep in the jungle. A dagger much like this was to be the sacrificial weapon. Brother Cadfael was with us. He rescued the child... the intended sacrifice... personally, with the aid of his god. The group conducting the ritual is the same group whose army now marches on Overlook. What disturbs me is that this group was able to kill him here in Nesalin. We had thought we would be safe here. He wanted to go to the temple for prayer last night."
He swallows, hard, and avoids looking at Cadfael's body until he has recovered his clinical frame of mind. Sa'id is well aware of the risk he has just taken, but if the investigation is to proceed smoothly he has to establish more of a rapport and a trusting relationship with the magistrate. Nothing would get done if Sa'id kept everything he knew about the dagger and the followers of Kor Garesh to himself.
"Where, in relation to the castle and the temple, was the body found?"
OOC:
Great interlude, Ty. :)
The soul-drinking daggers remind me of Steven Brust's books and the soul-eating Morganti weapons. Only much eviller.
Everything I said I'd want to do in my last email (tracing the route, going to the wizards' school, etc.) still stands.
Also, that acloyte can detect evil... I'd like to keep him around as much as possible, that's a VERY useful ability. Too bad we don't have a paladin handy...
From: Ty
Subject: Re: Elementary, My Dear Farron; 2
Raja just sent this to me, so I am replying to everyone in it.
IDM:
The acolyte stares at Sa'id like he is a madman. The magistrate opens his mouth as though to speak several times, but just closes it without a word. When Sa'id is done, the Acolyte just shakes his head. Farron feels compelled to say, "Well, it's true."
Finally, the magistrate speaks. "Wizard, I have no idea what to do with such a story as this. I do not question your word, for I have no cause to do so. However, I must wonder how this helps us. We are still left, in my opinion, with a simple problem. Who stuck this dagger, soul stealing or not, into this priest. That is the one and only issue I plan to resolve. If the murderer worships evil gods and sacrifices babies in the jungle, then hanging him will be doubly satisfying. But he will hang all the same.
"Now, to answer your other questions, I will turn you over to the guardsman who was the first to see the body. He can take you to the place he was found, and tell you what he knows. Is that satisfactory?"
Sa'id nods. "Is it possible for the acolyte to join us?"
The cleric shakes his head vigorously. "No, I have many other duties to attend. I am already running late." It's clear that he is a little frightened by Sa'id's story.
The magistrate introduces the two wizards to a young guardsman named Wilk, and asks him to take them to the murder site.
[I will wait to do any more until Karl sends me his turn]