aionlogs | EVENT #5: SOVEREIGN CITIZENS (GODSBLOOD)

Entry tags:

EVENT #5: SOVEREIGN CITIZENS (GODSBLOOD)

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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Given that she asked a yes or no question, she shouldn't be surprised that he answered in one of those two choices, a resounding no. She manages to be surprised anyway at the thought of someone simultaneously devoid of a drive to life into the future, yet driven enough to make that future come crashing down sooner rather than later. Once upon a time, she had the former but lacked the latter; she never had enough courage to plunge into an uncertain afterlife, one that posed a risk of turning her into one of the specters she so feared. ]

I think I'd be sad to see everyone come to an end. Even if the world that comes next will be better... there are a lot of people here I think are good as is.

[ Though she understands the void that must still occupy his heart after the loss of his loved ones. There's no replacing the people who were important to her either. ]

[ He stills at her response, a thoughtful looking crossing his face. It's not really something he's had to consider before. Sadness isn't exactly in his emotional repertoire. ]

Think that's supposed to be natural. I mean... I don't get it. Not really. But for most people, it makes sense if you'd be sad.

[ He's lying, even if he isn't aware of it; when they'd first met — when he'd been drunk as all hell and drowning himself in booze and sex — that had been grief. It just isn't something he can comprehend, so as far as he's concerned, it isn't something he feels. Hence the poor coping mechanism.

He shifts to be a little closer to her but leaves it at that; for as much as she always keeps her hood up, Amos is a lot less certain about actually physically reaching out to her, so he'll do his best to respect that particular barrier. ]

Just because there's still some good doesn't mean it outweighs the bad though, right? There's a bigger picture out there I don't think any of us can really see. [ The Regent can, though being his underlying implication. ] Maybe it's hard to get there, but doing the right thing isn't always easy.

[ She doesn't shy away as he comes closer. By now, she feels she has a reasonable enough grasp on his mindful nature that she can trust him not to pull a Gen — that is, to try to yank off her hood for some reason, which is about the most objectionable thing she could think of him doing.

She hears his points about a bigger picture and the right thing not always being easy, and they ring true to her as someone who was a cog in a thousand-year-long legacy. Though that legacy was something she ultimately rejected, she can remember what it was like to be dwarfed by something so much bigger than her that her brain was incapable of processing it. ]

If things have gone on for too long like the Regent says, then I understand the need to lay the world to rest. When it comes time for someone to die, it's better to let them do it with dignity.

[ She doesn't struggle with the idea of death. Everything has a natural end, and that's okay. ]

Everyone in Acamoth wants that, so I thought the people of this world were in agreement... but I was surprised to see that the people here seem to think so differently.

[ Maybe it should have been common sense, though. She's been immersed in Achamite culture for only a couple months now, but it's felt like much longer. ]

[ He likes Gen, and he would smack him upside the head if he knew that was a thing he'd tried to do.

Amos blows on his tea again as she speaks, listening; nods at her words before taking another sip. Okay, yeah, it's perfect now, and he gives her a small smile that's probably out of place considering the discussion at hand. ]

Yeah, I don't really know what everyone else's problem is. [ He... genuinely doesn't. The Regent knows more than any of them ever will; the Regent is operating in everyone's best interests; he hadn't thought about letting things die with dignity before, but he can get behind that idea. It sounds nice. ] The people here get real cagey when they find out you're an Aion serving the Regent, too. I don't get it. Don't think it matters in the end, though. What's gonna happen is gonna happen, right?

[ And the Regent's gonna win. He takes another sip of tea, hands curled around the cup. It's nice; being here with Gray is nice. ]

There are worse things than dying. Maybe everyone else hasn't figured that out yet.

[ There are worse things than dying. Yes, she would say that's true. ]

I think... for some people, it's not their own death they fear, but the deaths of the people they care about.

[ She peeks up at Amos contentedly drinking his tea. He spoke of things not mattering anymore with regard to his apprentice Peaches once his world ended. She wonders if he's really moved past his old life that cleanly. Even the Regent seemed affected by the loss of the people they once held dear. ]

... The Regent said that they were the one who ended our worlds, didn't they? Do you think that's true?

[ He tilts his head at the first sentiment, makes a small sound of agreement. Yeah, he can get that; the sign of the Lover is scarred into the back of his right hand, the universe's branding for him visible at any given moment.

But once someone is dead, they're dead. His people from his past life are dead. He's got new people now. Life goes on, until it doesn't.

So he only partially gets it, because what he needs in order to understand what she means in its entirety has been locked away inside him for most of his life, invisible and undetectable to him. Probably wouldn't have survived otherwise, but it makes him highly adaptable to losing people. And when he'd lost Peaches — when he'd lost everyone — it had all been in one fell swoop, and he'd had more pressing things happening to him in the moment, like being forcibly carted off to ingest the Kenoma for the first time.

Grieving is pointless, basically, so he isn't bothering with it, just continuing to drink his tea instead. He comes up for air at her questions. ]

Probably. Don't think they got any reason to lie. [ The Regent doesn't strike him as the kind of guy to make shit up just to make themselves look powerful. They clearly don't need that. ] I mean, if we're gonna be ending everything, then our worlds gotta go, too. I know the place I came from wasn't exactly innocent. The rot was in pretty deep. So... it's okay, I think. That it's gone.

[ He truly has learned how to excel at compartmentalization. Outwardly, Amos is calm and poised discussing this; inwardly, there's a whole lot of nothing, because if he ever did open himself up to his feelings one day he might never recover. ]

[ So Amos's world was that awful. She doesn't know very much about space travel except for what she's seen in movies — usually the horror variety — but there's plenty of room left to her imagination about why it might have been a difficult life to lead.

She can't say her world was especially good either; magi could only loosely be qualified as human beings. It was the special few who brought light to her world, made it worth enduring with all its evils and tribulations. Just as the special few do here.

In any case, his response is altogether calmer and more carefree than she expected, as mild-mannered as he usually is. It's calming, talking to him. ]

Does anything ever worry you, Mr. Amos?

[ She wonders what that's like, never being stressed or worried... ]

[ Space was actually the best part of his life. He appreciates everything there is that comes with being planetside — free air, fresh food, wide open spaces — but he wouldn't mind going back up the gravity well again, either.

Except they're still working on mere airships here, so it's not gonna happen. Maybe as a part of consequence for ending everything. That'd be alright.

Really, whatever he gets, he'll take just fine. Like the tea, which is cooling off some, which he might very well be done with soon at this rate.

He'd been looking out beyond the prison walls; he turns back to her. ]

Nah. Not since I was five years old.

[ Delivered in just as blasé a manner as the rest, in part because he's in a good mood. Gray's a good kid. He's happy to have her, but. ]

There something worrying you, Gray?

[ Because it'd be alright if there was. Probably better for her if that was the case.

Never being stressed or worried is a bad thing. ]

[ Not since he was five, he says. The age of five was when all of Gray's worries began. It's a curious contrast that serves to highlight how different they are despite how much she felt in common with him when they first met. ]

It feels like I'm always worried about something...

[ With a slighly self-deprecating air, she can more than admit that. If she could install a switch in her brain to turn off her thoughts when they get to be too much, she might be better off for it. ]

Mostly, I was wondering... is this the best way to win people over to the Kenoma? The prisoner seems a little like... a victim, maybe.

[ If they were going to execute a rebel warrior or leader of otherwise clearly important person, she would understand the power in publically executing them. But Vaeka, from what little Gray has glimpsed of her, seems like an astoundingly normal and sympathetic person. ]

[ If she'll let him, he'll move to let go of the cup with one hand, opting to gently place a hand on her shoulder. A steadying presence, he figures. He keeps his other hand wrapped around the cup, more than cool enough by now to not be of concern, and looks out at the distance from his post. ]

I don't think it's so much about winning people over as reminding them not to push their luck.

[ It's delivered with a wholly impersonal air. Gray may have reservations about this, but Amos doesn't, and it's all he can do to try to quell hers as he looks back at her. ]

If it can happen to her, then it can happen to anyone, you know? Maybe killing her will remind people of that. Save more lives in the process. That's not a bad thing.

[ ... Nobody said he was going to be any good at reassurances when it comes to the matter of someone else's life or death, though. He really doesn't see anything wrong with it, after all. ]

[ She's calm under his hand, familiar enough with him now to not shy away. It doesn't quite comfort her, but she can feel that he's trying his best to. She's more struck by how solid his hand feels, gentle as it is.

There's logic in his reasoning. One life for many, it's only economical. It also strikes her as mage-like thinking, political, goal-oriented. She understands it even if she wouldn't be able to make that judgement for herself.

As he looks at her, her expression remains not-quite-satisfied, fixed as she works through the smaller protests that drift through her mind. ]

Do you think they're wrong for wanting to be free? ... Or for still wanting to live in this world?

[ Understanding how something operates without being able to make the call on his own is practically his speciality. If he can create some kind of chain reaction — help others understand as he does, be that connecting logic bridge — then that's a pretty good use for him, actually.

Even if there are still doubts in her mind. That's fine. It's a matter of life and death, and while that means little to Amos, he knows that's not normal for most people. Gray's hesitation probably just means she's a good person.

Not like he was expecting to get it right in one go, either. He keeps his hand on her shoulder; the sign of trust is something warm. ]

Nah. I think they don't know any better.

[ So many people don't, it keeps becoming apparent. The Kenoma had made perfect sense to him as soon as he'd accepted it. The Regent had helped clarify things further. But not everyone really has that luxury, so. ]

Most people don't know how bad things can get. I think that's part of the problem. Doesn't make them wrong for wanting to keep living here, but doesn't mean that's what should happen, either. If the Regent says it's all gotta go, then it's all gotta go.

[ Just like that. It's easy to condemn countless to their deaths when it's all so meaningless. ]

[ Just like that. Because the Regent says so. He makes it sound so simple, and for him it probably is. Once upon a time, it was that easy for her too: listen to what your elders tell you, keep your head down, and make it to the next day. With a pop of clarity, she realizes that isn't quite enough for her anymore.

But it's enough for Amos, and she doesn't have it in her to debate him — because she can imagine what he'll say. She's been in that place even if she was unhappy being there, and she watched the rest of her village happily devote themselves to a mission on high without care for the whys of it, no matter that over a century had passed since they began their thankless work. She can't say if Amos and her villagers are right or wrong — only that it would be a disservice to the man who rescued her from her village if she were to blindly fall back into those trappings.

So she just nods to show that she understands his viewpoint... even if she doesn't necessarily believe in it for herself. More tentatively, she asks, ]

Were things that bad for you, Mr. Amos?

[ When she nods, he figures she gets it. He's done his job; he's assuaged her fears about Vaeka's upcoming execution; about everything they're going to be doing from here on out on the Regent's behalf. He's helping her find her place among the Kenoma's ranks, and that can only be a good thing.

Now they're apparently moving on to just him, and... that's fine, too. She'd helped him in the past. She clearly cares, has a kind heart. He trusts her, likes her, so he'll indulge. ]

Yeah. They were that bad.

[ A beat as he pauses, finishes off the tea she'd given him. ]

I know there are people here who want to live in this world. But if it was me, where I grew up, and someone told me everyone was going to die? I wouldn't have minded. It'd have been better.

[ She can believe that. As sensitive and mindful as Amos is, she can feel the cold steel in him too, the part of him that probably makes him a good fighter. His statement should feel immoral, maybe even frightening, but it doesn't. There's a part of her that understands how it is to feel so detached from everyone else that it becomes hard to think of them as people — though she may never go so far as to wish their deaths, and she's aware that she's a fool for being sentimental about people who would gladly see her dead.

She wonders what the difference is between her and Amos (aside from the obvious ones that come at a glance). It's strange to relate to someone so quickly yet exist in such a difference place from him. Maybe it's as simple as a gulf in experience. When she's as old as he is and has seen as many things, maybe she'll understand him perfectly, be just as faithless in state of the world.

In any case, he's finished his tea, which means their break time is over. She nods again to say that she understands his viewpoint and reaches for his empty cup so that she can deliver it to whatever kitchen exists here. ]

Even if your homeworld wasn't kind to you, I hope things have been better for you in this one.

[ Which may be a weird thing to hope for when they've been saddled with this heavy work. ]

[ He's in the process of handing off his cup to her, ready to go back to keeping watch proper — at least, until she offers him that sentiment. Amos pauses mid-action, something of a stupefied look crossing his face.

After a second or two of delay, he smiles a small smile, his head dipping slightly, finally letting Gray take the cup back. There's something pleasant and warm to this, and he feels it like an echo of the tea he'd just had, something in him lighting up the way he'd felt as he'd drank it. ]

I had some good people back where I came from. Found some good people here, too. [ She's one of them. He doesn't try to look into her eyes; more at the top of her hood, though his gaze is pointed enough he figures she'll get the message. ] Things have been good here. I hope they've been good for you, too.

[ Even as their ultimate goal is to destroy this world, along with every other one — but that doesn't mean they have to have a bad time along the way.

He gives her a small nod. ]

Thanks, Gray.

[ And after he sees her off, it'll be back to keeping watch, playing his part in ensuring a woman dies. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

EVENT #5: SOVEREIGN CITIZENS (GODSBLOOD)

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject