aionlogs | EVENT #5: SOVEREIGN CITIZENS (VENERA)

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EVENT #5: SOVEREIGN CITIZENS (VENERA)

Sovereign Citizens

VENERA

In contrast the Aion's last visit, they now arrive in Venera on a completely average day... or so it seems. Unlike Godsblood, Venera has been given no warning as to what's about to befall it; the Kenoma are simply authorized to arrive and begin their bloody work without fanfare. Even their entourage of Achamite soldier don't stick out that much; in the time since the plague left, the city has refilled with occupying forces. Notably, the Hylician ones seem to be keeping out of the way, almost as if they've heard some things and would rather not be involved too closely in what's to come.

As opposed to the ghost town it was during the plague, Venera is now reasonably active, with most attending to their usual business. Shops are open, and its people are withdrawn but superficially friendly when meeting strangers. Initially, the targets of the Kenoma hit list will have no way of knowing what's coming for them, but after the first couple attacks word will begin to spread. Those that have recently been engaging in seditious behavior will become harder to find, leaving their usual homes and workplaces to stay elsewhere, and making other attempts to escape the Regent's attention.

Once those alerts have been raised, the Kenoma will have to engage in more detective work to find their targets, questioning other Venerans and seeking out fugitives in the homes of their family and friends. In the meantime, some of those who believe they are in danger may become desperately enough to seek out the Pleroma directly, imploring them for aid. Unfortunately, seeking out one sect may just as easily draw the attention of the other. Most uninvolved Venerans will be too terrified to intervene one way or another, reluctant to aid in the persecution of their neighbors but fearful of consequences. If your Aion travels openly, it will take some effort to pin them down long enough to hold a conversation.

SEEDS OF DESPAIR

Several days into the culling of Venera, the Aions will have witnessed the city gradually withdraw into itself. The streets become vacant as more and more people decide it isn't worth the risk to be seen outside, abandoning work and play alike to hide out in their homes, refusing to answer their doors to all except the most desperate pleading. Those that can't avoid their daily obligations are quiet and morose, trying their best to remain unseen and unremarked upon.

If your character has been observed as a Kenoma, either now or in their previous visits to the city, the citizens will look upon them as if they are the messengers of death. If you are seen as a Pleroma, they will resist your gaze, as if fearing your presence alone might leave them marked. In rarer cases, you will see those with stronger spirits, with glares of hatred or determination. They are powerless now, but seeds have been sewn, and whether they are the seeds of despair or of action are yet unclear.

By the time the Kenoma's hit list has been fully addressed, several have been killed and several more have been rushed from their homes to flee the city entirely. There have been holes left in the tapestry of the community they were once part of. One way or another, their absence will be felt keenly by those they left behind.

QUESTIONS

What is the best way for Aions to travel to Venera?
Estinien has plans to get an early start for the Pleroma by teleporting to the Lover's shrine and flying somewhere closer to set up a portal from the ocean caves near the Godsblood Lodestone to a spot of farmland closer to Venera. Paul will be setting up a portal directly from Achamoth to one of the Achamite outposts in Venera.

How much force can the Kenoma use while interrogating Venerans?
While they are generally not permitted to kill Venerans who haven't tried to physically fight them, they will be permitted to apply both physical and mental pressure upon those that refuse to provide them with information regarding the whereabouts of their targets. This duress should be proportional to the resistance the Veneran is offering. The Regent is not inviting them to terrorize Venera on a level to a level they cannot reasonably blaim themselves for.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Likewise should they look his way, Barnaby will gesture for Cid and Meteion to take point; he'll run on the assumption that Cid is just as in the dark as they are, and he's reaching for his blade for self-defence rather than intent to enter and cause harm. Working together, for now, seems prudent.

While they head inside, Barnaby presses his back to one of the walls outside, to try to surreptitiously peer through the windows to see if he can discern anything happening within.

It's dark. No lights on inside the room but the ambient light from outdoors begins to shine a bit of illumination on the various features. It appears to be a kitchen, but there isn't much time to consider it.

As the door opens Cid is met with the the end of a sword through the narrow opening; an Achamite sword. One that has been blunted considerably to the point of being laughable even for practice. On the other end is a young man with pointed ears and dark messy hair, shadowed but much of the room. He's breathing quickly as is visible by the way his chest is rising and falling.

"Drop your weapons!" he orders in a hushed hiss.

Meteion will feel mounting trepidation from Cid. He looks calm enough, but the sheer amount of anxiety that comes with being badly outnumbered by Kenoma he isn't familiar with isn't exactly something he can hide from an entelechy. And no sooner does he take in his situation does he have a sword in his face.

Maybe he should try to react. The sword almost certainly couldn't hurt him, he doesn't think. Though he doesn't want to test the theory, not when dissipation would be bad. He drops the crude sword to the ground, cursing his luck. If he loses it completely....

He's not completely helpless, but like hells is he revealing his one and only trump card. He raises his hands to show he's otherwise unarmed.

"I-I don't have one!" Meteion stammers, lifting her hands behind Cid. Well, she has the tiny dagger, but it's not in her hands, and it's more a joke than a weapon. If this fellow actually wants it, he can come take it from her, if he must. She certainly doesn't plan on using it against anyone.

"I don't mean you any harm--we were coming to see if you were all right!" Meteion doesn't really give a rat's rear about the Achamite soldiers, if she's honest. And she's helped Cid get someone out of Venera...there's no reason to think she wouldn't do it again, if asked.

Liem can barely see the man behind the cracked-open door, but he does catch a glimpse of the laughably dull sword as its owner menaces Meteion’s companion. He wouldn’t expect a soldier to wield a blade in such poor condition, but if the person on the other side of the door isn’t a soldier, then what happened to the pair that vanished into this home?

“We saw soldiers slipping back here,” he adds reasonably, holding his hands out to either side, unloaded crossbow dangling from one of them. “Then heard what sounded like a struggle.”

It's impossible to see anyone else in the room from outside, and Barnaby can hear a new voice from within, so he enters the building to bring up the rear of the group. "I'm unarmed," he says quietly. As for the soldiers: "If they're still here, I'll search the building for them." He can trust the others to tend to this man if he's wounded or in distress.

His eyes shift from one person to the next, taking in their garb and their expressions. A heavy silence hangs amongst them as the young man considers their words. Then he presses the sword forward, close to Cid's neck.

It's slow, but the the once dull blade to begins to sharpen on it's own right before their eyes.

"You were following them? ...Or me?"

To his credit, he doesn't panic. He also doesn't even attempt to reach for his own dropped weapon upon the floor. "I was following them," he says as calmly as he can.

Meteion will feel a twinge of fear from him, but he's otherwise doing a remarkable job of keeping himself calm. "I have allies who came here for the same purpose." The fact that he isn't dressed liked the others, and doesn't so much as glance back at them could be a sign that he isn't talking about the others, but he keeps his focus on the man holding the now-sharpened blade to his throat. "My thoughts were that I could distract them long enough to allow their target chance to escape... though it seems the cautious approach was unnecessary."

The young man's gaze does go from Cid and slowly to see the other figures standing outside the door. A heavy pause hangs in the air between them all, the blade unmoving from Cid's neck.

But eventually he orders them,

"In. All of you. And watch your step."

Cid is first, blade kept pressed against his skin. As they step into the dark room their feet may find the broken ceramic on the floor. It looks like a cabinet has fallen over with several plates and glasses shattering on impact. But there lay the bodies of the two soldiers on the ground, unconscious and bleeding.

Barnaby glances over his shoulder once more just to make sure no one is following the group inside, before he follows the others into the room. He heeds the warning and is mindful to avoid the jagged shards of ceramic and glass, then he freezes when he spots the two bodies on the floor.

"Are they--?" He pauses, seeing the subtle rise and fall of their chests, and his instinct is to go to them, but he's conscious of the sword still pointed at Cid's neck. He addresses the young man. "Will you allow me to tend to their wounds? Then you may take them prisoner."

He doesn't have healing magic or anything of the sort, only first aid knowledge, but his professional hero instincts are that he can't leave two people to bleed on the ground, even if they're now his enemy.

Liem’s eyes widen slightly as he beholds the apparent sharpening of the young man’s blade, but he acquiesces to his demand, slipping carefully into the dark room after the others. His booted feet neatly avoid the shards of ceramic littering the floor, taking him to a clear spot with an unobstructed view of the rest of the space. As he spots the bleeding bodies on the floor, he wonders if that trick with the sword (an illusion?) allowed the man to catch the soldiers off-guard.

Unlike Barnaby, however, he seems to have no compunctions about leaving them where they lie. If this man is one of the Regent’s targets, it would be simpler if the soldiers who found him were to perish.

“How did those soldiers find you here?” he glances from the prone bodies back to the dark-haired man. “If they’re the only ones who would know you on sight, it might be best if they didn’t wake back up.”

Cid, to his credit, obeys.

His gaze flickers to the soldiers briefly, but most of his attention remains on the blade at his throat. Given he'd been determined to stop them by any means necessary, he can't be too bothered by this man beating him to it.

With the sword against his neck, he can't exactly safely speak, but his eyes do try to catch Liem's all the same. Though he honestly can't believe someone with the Kenoma is saying they should kill the soldiers, it would be a solution to their immediate problem, regardless of how much Cid is against it.

Meteion skitters in, wringing her hands. She doesn't speak yet, not so much as a whisper, but it does seem to have upset her to hear Liem call for the Achamites' death so readily.

She bears them no love, but they were only doing what they were commanded to do...

"You have us at your mercy. And what Liem says is true...but is it also not true that these soldiers were doing what they were ordered to? I am not saying it was right, but they might have families to consider and protect. Not everyone is in thrall to the Regent."

Even she gets thin-lipped at speaking the name, because the bird certainly spares them no love, now. If she had ever done so.

Once all parties are inside, he shuts the door behind them, content to leave them in the literal dark for now. What little light filters in through the shades of the window are all that will be allowed.

Barnaby's request is met with a curled lip. "Keep them as prisoners? Where, exactly? They came here to kill me. You think I should show them leniency?"

Barnaby can make his case, though whether or not this young man will entertain it is still up in the air.

His gaze darts between Liem and Meteion, distrustful but willing to listen.

"I was hoping you could tell me that." Cid will continue to play the part of his hostage and he places his free hand on the man's shoulder as he steps in closer. "I'm not the only person that's been targeted, right? They're moving in the shadows, trying to pick us off one by one. They don't care about families. They don't need to be in thrall to the Regent to be complicit."

Slowly he looks from each member of the assembled team.

"So tell me...are you? Where do you stand?"

"Then I'll take them off your hands -- or better yet, he and his allies with the Pleroma can," Barnaby nods to Cid across the room, ironically a prisoner himself for the time being. "They might have valuable knowledge that will be worth keeping them around, or other Achamites could be willing to take them in an exchange."

The Regent might not care for the lives of their followers, and he doubts many Kenoma Aions do, but it isn't necessarily true that their followers will all share that same attitude. It's worth exploring all avenues, if nothing else.

"As for where I stand, I no longer have any allegiance to the Regent, and--" He hesitates, wondering just how much he should say in present company, his eyes flicking across the assembled group. He decides to throw caution to the wind and continues, "...I can feel the Kenoma's grip on me weakening by the moment. All I want is for the people of Venera to be safe, free from the Regent's tyranny. Everyone's suffered enough."

Regret colours Liem’s cautious expression at the effect his suggestion seems to have on Meteion, but he doesn’t rescind it. Regardless of what compassion or even justice might dictate, thwarting the Achamites’ efforts remains his main priority in this city. If these soldiers possess dangerous information, it would be foolishly sentimental to allow them to return to their fellows. Though he will freely admit,

“Chances are good that if these soldiers have the location of your home, others do as well.”

If this man is to successfully disappear into the city, he’d be better served to at least not leave behind soldiers able to recognize him on sight. Nonetheless, he doesn’t object to Barnaby’s attempt to persuade the young man otherwise. The Pleroma might indeed find use in a pair of Achamite prisoners, after all.

“In this, he and I are of a similar mind.” He nods toward Barnaby. If he’s surprised to hear him admit to a lessening attunement to the Kenoma, he doesn’t show it. “The Regent has taken things from all of us, and would have us be complicit in their cruelties as well. The only thing keeping me here is the desire to undermine them however I can.”

Though the blade is at his throat, he doesn't want to remain silent. He's been careful trying to avoid outing himself as an Aion, but given everything that's happening in the city, it's probably obvious to those paying attention anyway.

"My allies and I have secured a means of swift egress out of the city," he says carefully. "We're bringing as many as we can with us."

It's a multi-layered offer; to keep the soldiers alive but captive, should the young man be receptive to it, and also an offer to lead him out of the city. Cid doesn't say any more on it, because though the others have all indicated their discontent with the Regent, so long as they remain in the grip of the Kenoma, he can't speak too freely about the Pleroma's actions.

Meteion wrinkles her nose, brow furrowing. "The Regent is mean. I no longer believe they have anyone's good in mind, except their own. I reject them, and the Kenoma they stand for!" She stomps her foot, petulant.

She's rejected the Kenoma in thought and in deed, and now the words complete that triad. As to whether or not anything will happen, only time will tell. But it's a worried glance she casts at Barnaby and Liem. They need to be careful, so careful. Meteion remembers that something happened to Howl, though she isn't certain of what, exactly.

"It's hard for normal people, though. You've already seen what's gone on here. I can't blame normal Veneran citizens for fearing the Regent. But even that gives them power. What if killing these soldiers also helps push the pendulum closer to their goals?"

To have four Aions in his home and three of which are so clearly willing to defy the tyrant that would have their heads if they found out... He narrows his eyes in the darkness, almost unbelieving. A stroke of luck? Or is it fate?

After a tense moment, he finally lowers his sword and takes a step back from Cid. The man can finally move without a blade to his throat.

"Do what you want with them," he says with a nod towards the unconscious soldiers. Barnaby will be able to work unbothered by their assailant. "But I see them again, I won't be as nice as you want me to be."

He keeps the blade at his side and at the ready should he need it but he now regards his guests with a more open sense of curiosity. The Kenoma in particular, all of whom are supposedly throwing their orders to the four winds. Whether it's brave or stupid is something he has yet to decide on.

"So...you weren't sent here to get me. But that means you were here to off someone else, isn't that right?"

Once the sword is lowered, Barnaby moves to tend to their wounds, tearing strips of fabric from their clothes to make makeshift bandages and try to stem the bleeding. It's hard to tell in this dim light whether their wounds are fatal, but perhaps intervention now will stop them becoming so.

Besides, if these two ever have the gall to come after the man again after being so soundly defeated, they'll be foolish indeed. Saving their lives now poses little risk.

"We were provided a list of names, but I have no idea who you are, so I can't say if you were one of them," Barnaby answers frankly, looking up only briefly from his work. It's difficult to see in the dark, but he's managing. "Are you suggesting someone else lives here?"

He doesn't expect him to reveal any information about himself or any other Veneran, given the circumstances, so his questions are more curiosity than anything.

“You’re right to think we would be seeking the Regent’s targets,” Liem adds, relaxing only slightly once he sees the blade lower. He glances down at Barnaby as he begins to work, but he seems reluctant to draw near them and offer any form of assistance. His gaze returns to the young man after only a moment.

“But only to help them evade capture.”

"I'm not very good at fighting, so the most I would have been doing was reporting to others who were better at it," Meteion admits, moving to help Barnaby tend the fallen soldiers. More because she can sense what still pains the soldiers, and respond accordingly. And let him know if they're going to regain consciousness any time soon. It seems to be getting hazy, though, her empathy, and she's a bit confused by that.

As for the soldiers' waking? Meteion hopes that does not happen soon.

"I wasn't, though. If I saw people helping the accused out, I tried to show them safe ways out, or warn them if there were guards or soldiers coming. Finding another way. He knows, he was one of the ones I helped." She gives a nod to Cid, then.

He can't help his eyes widening at Meteion's outright rejection. It actually distraction him from noticing the blade lowered from his neck for a moment, but he does glance back at the young man just the same.

...Hmm. He's quite good at defending himself. No wonder the Regent was after him. It means he's a powerful ally for his fellow Venerans. "Meteion is telling the truth. I was able to get someone to safety because of her." And he's incredibly grateful. He couldn't so easily fight off anyone and protect Elise.

As for how he'd come across the young man in the first place... "I knew if there were soldiers about, someone must have been nearby." As a Pleroma, he didn't have a list, but he'd been summoned by the Regent along with everyone else. He glances at the sword pointedly before continuing. "It seems you're quite capable of taking care of yourself, though."

Despite their opposing missions it does seem that these four have all come together with a similar purpose. His measure of their worth and trust is slow and calculating, but they clearly have piqued his interest.

"No. If they came here, I'm the target," he says with a sense of finality. What furnishings they can make out of the house would indicate that it is an abode that has been lived in for several generations, though whether or not it is usually a lively and packed house is left unanswered.

"'Tristan' should be on that list."

Cid's comment gets a huff. It is harsh but minutely amused. His free hand goes to his hip and his grip on the sword in his right tightens.

"I have to be. The Regent would see my family wiped out if they could."

Tristan turns the sword over and stabs it right into the stone floor. Strangely enough, there is no sound of cracked stone or reverberation from the sword. Instead it seems as if a perfectly formed sheath for the swords tip has conveniently formed in the very floor before them.

"And now, you four will make sure that doesn't happen."

Barnaby gives a slight smile of gratitude as Meteion moves to help him tend to the soldiers, and decides to leave the second soldier to her while he finishes tending to the first, ensuring sufficient pressure is applied to the most severe wound to staunch the bleeding.

To Tristan, he nods in confirmation -- his name is indeed on the list, even if Barnaby's own personal investigations hadn't taken him this far. He pauses in treating the soldier and looks on in surprise at the way Tristan stabs the ground, a magical sheath seemingly forming around it.

"Of course. We'll do everything we can to protect you and your family." Even if what that entails, he isn't yet sure.

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