EVENT #5: SOVEREIGN CITIZENS (GODSBLOOD)

[aionmods]

Sovereign Citizens

GODSBLOOD

At the height of the Sovereign's moon, Vaeka Lovenskol's execution is announced. Outside of the City Hall, a dignitary of Achamoth is flanked by an entourage of Kenoma, reading the words of Regent from an unfurled letter: Vaeka stands accused to conspiring against the Regent and abetting the fugitive menace known as the Pleroma. Though the details are not made public, rumors spread quickly, some far more wild than the actual truth. The full truth, after all, is something only the Regent's agents and the Pleroma themselves know, and even to them the manner of her exposure is unclear.

Though losing a proud daughter of an influential family, there seems to be little that the people of Godsblood can do besides accept it. After all, they are still a city of the Regent's empire, and for all the freedom they've enjoyed, there are limits. If she was truly aiding the Pleroma, the sworn enemies of the Regent - and in an organized manner, if the rumors are to be believed - can they truly object? Or would challenging the Regent's claim simply invite more death?

As with many things, the families of Godsblood are torn. Tensions are thick for the five days leading up to Vaeka's appointed execution by hanging, with everyone having an opinion and few wanting to go on record talking about it too loudly. As such, the people's frustrations come out in other ways. Bloodites are uncharacteristically unfriendly to strangers in this time, keeping to their own and treating everyone else with overt skepticism.

Those that have arrived as part of the Regent's official envoy, or seen guarding Vaeka, will receive a particularly icy reception. No longer are the Kenoma curious wanderers on personal business. Now, they are here as the hands of the Regent; few of the Godsblood citizens are foolish enough to challenge them outright, but they are ever an honest people.

Early on, the Kenoma and the rest of the Achamite contingent sent with them will be able to take over a jail in downtown Godsblood to hold Vaeka until her execution, clearing out all other Bloodite prisoners and employees in the meantime. This means they have a relatively secure position to guard their prisoner from, which is a good thing; after all, the Regent did outright invite the Pleroma to stop them, and Pleroma are nothing if not stubborn.

EXECUTION DAY

After five agonizing days of waiting and several high visible conflicts between the Pleroma and Kenoma, finally the hour of Vaeka's execution arrives. A gallows is set outside of City Hall, ready to welcome its newest victim, and a massive crowd has gathered in an spirit of anxious anticipation. Some worry that violence may break out in the streets, even without the Pleroma's agitation, but gradually the minutes tick by and the gallows remain empty.

First one minutes passes. Then five. Then fifteen. Slowly, it becomes clear to the people of Godsblood that Vaeka will not be arriving. Are the rumors true? Has she been saved? Have the Pleroma been successful, despite all odds?

As the hours pass and the crowds disperse, Vaeka Lovenskol is not officially reported as either living or dead. Fortunately, Godsblood is a place where information has a way of getting around, whether those in charge like it or not. Some are saying that she was seen being whisked away as if by powerful magic, following a bloody fight at the jail in which she was being held. Where did she go? Maybe her supposed connections to the forest people did her good, some surmise.

The days following Vaeka's failed execution carry a strange and uncertain energy. Where before there was tension and distrust, Godsblood now finds itself in a surreal reality where the Regent's word is apparently not absolute. Then again, do they really want a repeat performance?

QUESTIONS

What is the best way for Aions to travel to Godsblood?
For Pleroma, this is very easy, as they are likely to either already live there or be able to easy take Greentruth's portal. For Kenoma, they may come directly from Achamoth by boat as part of the Regent's envoy or arrive via Eustace's portal which is set up in a shed a fairly long jaunt outside of town. Once there has been some time to get established, Misa will be setting up another portal leading straight to the prison where Vaeka is being stored.

Are the Kenoma permitted by the Regent to kill other Godsblood citizens?
Though the Kenoma are authorized to kill any Bloodites that try to physically fight them, they are expected to keep things clean. The Regent prefers to only punish the guilty, and having the lines be clear will create less of a hassle in the future. Generally, Godsblood is not in a state where physical resistance is likely to happen unprovoked.

Comments

[wolof]

[ She watched him sweep his arm behind, and nodded. ]

Woe to our timing, hm? [ She asked, a quirk of her lips. ] Now that we're dealing with... this mess... [ A breath in, and then out. ]

Everything else feels put on hold, the streets are empty.

Have you had any encounters, with them? [ The Kenoma. ]

[deushexmachina]

I've kept a low profile, [surprise to none. Jayce carries his shoulders with invisible rocks thatched to the blades.] But I've considered reaching out. [Even amidst his darkest hours, he couldn't surrender that last ounce of hope.]

Of those you talked to, [he presumes,] which was the least contrarian?

[wolof]

[ Her eyes tracked his motions, the way he looked like a man who carried the weight of the world on his shoulders, or the weight of...something, perhaps. ]

There were some...willing to listen, I think. Emet-Selch seemed...amenable? Or at least did not directly attack me last time we were here in Venera. [ It helps, of course, that Akua is not the type that would burst forth with righteous fury, either. ] There was a girl as well...Misa? She seemed... interested in exchanging ideas. She didn't attack on sight.

I think there are more, too. Although... even the Regent was willing to talk, although I suspect they were more keen on selling their vision, than exchanging ideas.

[deushexmachina]

Didn't directly attack you? The bar's low, [he concedes, a shake of his head.] I prefer the proposal of exchanging ideas. That's progressive movement, Akua.

[The adjective carries particular praise with Jayce.]

The Regent. [His smile wanes to a squiggle of lips.] I've not had the pleasure.

[wolof]

[ Akua couldn't help but laugh. ] I've had good acquaintances try to kill me in Praes! [ Not trying to kill her was the endorsement! ] Although I understand. I think they can be spoken with, particularly if things are not... hot.

If they are to be...guided to a new way of thinking, it will be slow. We have to craft our intentions, and push them in new ways. There will be those, of course, who will not listen to reason, but... I think some can be reached.

[ There's a pause, then. ] I don't know if the Regent can be. They have age and conviction, a deadly combination. I've dealt with their kind before, but... I think the chances of exchanging ideas isn't going to work.

Their followers, however... I think we have a chance.

[deushexmachina]

Best to avoid cutting the head off the snake, if the snake's all fangs. [he nods, absorbing her wisdom.] And their followers? I'd propose we'd need a method of divining those more... malleable, unless you have something in mind already.

[wolof]

I don't know if there's a way of divining intent, but...

[ She considered, tapping the side of her face. ]

That's not without merit. Those that I've spoken to so far have been... rather driven toward the cause. We may have to invest time into them, to befriend and cajole.

[ It had taken Catherine years of putting up with Akua's own deceptions, to lead her to the correct path. ]

I'm sure, for many, there is a reason they look to this cause, don't you think?

[deushexmachina]

They must have a rationale. Who functions without one? How grounded in reality their dogma is, however — that's the question, isn't it?

[His shoulders slump, his eyes craned to the sky.] Diplomatic missions are rarely popular when war's already been declared. And what has the Regent done, if not that?

[wolof]

Quite so. Much of the diplomacy must be made in secret.

It's either that, or continue to fight. [ A pause, and she followed his gaze upward, to look at the sky, and consider the possibilities. ]

I've been mired in war before. Surprisingly, an entity like the Regent will prevent us from doing much, but... perhaps with our foe's backs against the wall, we can offer another way. It would, at least, allow us to hold an advantage, long enough that someone may listen.

I've found that occasionally, the threat of dire consequences, can occasionally convince those that may otherwise be unconvinced that there may be a different path.

[ She knew Jayce was a pacifist, but... Akua had known war and violence since the cradle. It was simply how one did things, at times. ]

[deushexmachina]

[Her implication didn't escape him.]

Then you already have an idea of how to... corner them? [Flush against the devil and the deep, blue sea. He wondered which one Akua would consider herself.] Because I don't believe for a second you'd offer justification without a battle plan.

[Last two words bitter as burdock root in his mouth.]

[wolof]

You mean, other than simply forcing them?

[ It's said with the hard steel, then. Sharp and chill. ] You are correct, of course.

It's a matter of finding some, alone. I do not doubt that they have been coming into Godsblood. If they are coming into our territory, it is likely that we would need to pull them aside, and speak with them. I've made some effort, trying to understand them -- and they are all so similar to...those that would have destroyed my own world.

We need to find their reasons, what would make them consider if just for a moment, a reason for them to choose otherwise. Make them consider that.

If we have to... forcefully coerce the information from them, that's easy, dear.

[deushexmachina]

I would rather it didn't come to that. [He's earnest in his statement.] But — I also understand. The necessity. [It's permission; Jayce wouldn't hinder Akua's methodology, not if she could get the results. He winces soon as he commits these words, Viktor's phantom words echoing against the back of his skull.]

All for the greater good, of course.

[wolof]

[ She can't help it, the laugh that escaped her. ]

For the cause, yes.

[ The difference is key, for someone so wrapped in Villainy that she'd purposefully drawn the eyes of below, and forced them to let her intercede for them. ]

If we have no other recourse, we will have to act, to ensure those that haven't considered the alternatives, to do so.