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

[galdorleod]

[ Howl gasps so sharply, the air catches in his throat and makes him gag. Perhaps it's just the heat and the pain scrambling together in his head to make him hallucinate, but he could swear he just heard the impossible come out of Dextera's lips. There's no time to contemplate it, though — only to feel, and after it slams into his already crumbling determination to kill, he can't continue his attack.

His talons open, releasing Dextera from his grip, and Howl springs backwards with all the force he can push down with using his long legs. Still pinned underneath him, Dextera takes the brunt of that squishing, crushing force, but whatever injury it might cause him is unintentional in the moment. The jump backwards necessarily yanks Howl's body away from the sword piercing him, sending a spray of blood across his friend and the ground as it pulls free.

Howl's head is cartwheeling. What is he doing here? What are they doing? Why isn't Dextera dead — why hasn't he killed him yet? What is this horrible pain? This skull-crushing headache? ]

[passio]

Agh!

[ although howl isn’t trying to hurt him, the force with which he springs back is enough to pierce through dextera’s flimsy clothes. he hadn’t gone into this expecting a true fight, and ‘armor’ has never been on his list of requirements—the neuro tower has never provided anything like that for him, either, only ever littered with the inventions of the research angels for a more magical slant of protection.

none of those things would have stopped howl’s talons, even if he had them. dextera drops his sword and cradles his stomach, already beading up with blood. experience suggests no internal organs were pierced, but that doesn’t stop it from hurting. it’s a pain he hasn’t yet endured here in horos—his eyes brim with tears as he squeezes them shut.

if howl wanted, he could kill dextera now without a problem. howl’s escape, however, gives dextera a moment to breathe. ]

…

[galdorleod]

[ In the moment, Howl doesn't know where all his pain is coming from. There's the wound in his chest, but the burning sensation radiating out from it couldn't have been caused by a simple sword. Is this the effects of that strange light? Is it the cause of the pounding ache in his head, too? The disorientation...?

There's too much Howl doesn't know about what just happened for him to risk continuing this fight. He has a job to do, not just today but for the next several days, and dying would be the fastest, easiest, stupidest way for him to screw it up. That immovable sense of obligation, as artificially forced onto his psyche as it is, is the polestar that manages to shine through the clouds of confusion and pain.

Gasping through clenched teeth, Howl gives Dextera one last long, uneasy look before launching off the ground with a hard, powerful beat of his wings. Blood spills and splatters from his wound as he speeds away, mind still racing. ]