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 Shops are open, and its people are withdrawn but superficially friendly when meeting strangers.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

Oh, you don't need to know where she lives.

[ He said it, idly. He moved throughout the room, his hands behind his back, as he stepped, over to a potting wheel, the surface still slick with leftover clay and water. ]

You see, I've watched her for a few days, now. She visits her friend every night, and every night, she comes here, after she's done. I suppose it's inspiring, or some nonsense.

[ A wave of his hand, dismissive. Who would think that an evening liason would be inspiring? Not Silco, obviously. ]

So, she should be along, soon enough. Lucky for you, you'll get credit too, for your...commitment to the cause.

[ Matt's eyes narrowed slightly. Now probably wasn't the time to point out the benefits that visiting a friend at night could provide--stress relief, morale boost, a basic affirmation of not being alone in this rotting world--even if Silco struck Matt as the kind of person who'd value those things. The uncharitable characterization of Flora's nightly activities was the least of her problems.

And the least of Matt's.

He hesitated a moment, tracking Silco's path through the room. Part of him wanted to just nope out of here--fake phantom pain or something, which would barely even be lying--and leave Silco to it. But that struck him as ... kind of cowardly. So what if he didn't personally arrest the woman who'd lent him her roof? That wouldn't make his hands clean. ]

I don't need it, [ Matt murmured, folding his arms over his chest. ] Credit, I mean.

[ He very much did need credit. ]

[ Silco's single eye narrowed, and his lip curled into a slight smile, almost a little mean, in the way he appraised him. He didn't need the credit? His expression questioned that, with the way his single eye was narrowed -- the other incapable of moving entirely -- and his head tipped, to match the smile. ]

Ah, and yet, you came here.

[ And there it was, weight in the room. Silco's fingers wrapped around a mug, and picked it up. It clearly wasn't glazed yet, the still drying clay firm to the touch, but not hard. He looked up from the cup, his fingers moved along the lines of the ceramic. It wasn't as nice as the cup he'd kept on his desk at home, by a long shot.

He set the cup down. ]

Surely, you sought her out to do the Regent's bidding, yes?

[ Interesting.

Amos' devotion to the Regent made sense to Matt. Despite what Amos said about himself, he was good enough to be able to see the good in them, and selfless enough to follow that good without compunction. Silco, on the other hand ...

Maybe Matt was letting his own personal prejudices cloud his judgment. But he couldn't see Silco's invocation of the Regent coming from the same place. There was something a little too canny about it, a sense of calculations Matt couldn't guess at. He watched Silco for a long moment, breathing softly and steadily. Slowing the pace of his heart. ]

Everything I do is for the Kenoma, [ he said eventually. That was true, at least. ] What's going to make it more likely to succeed.

[ Matt's assessment is correct, of course. Silco's devotion is to the idea of Kenoma, out of a need to lash out at the universe, the world, the very idea of an existence without the two things -- Zaun, and his daughter -- that would tempt him away from destruction. Even those two, would have to be particularly placed, to pull him away from the goals.

But while Silco's devotion to the Kenoma was true, Silco's loyalty to the Regent was...surface. He followed the orders, because he agreed with them, but without the blind devotion that Amos had. He was crafty, and sneaky, and his question, and proposal, brought forward to Matt had served its purpose. He'd invoked the Regent's order for a reason, and...

Matt's response certainly served another, didn't it? ]

Well, excellent, then you won't mind helping, now will you?

[ He asked, his hands spread, two eyes stared -- bored into him -- and his one normal eye blinked, that still-open one still staring. ]

You are going to assist, aren't you? She...trusts you, after all.

[ Speaking of calculations Matt couldn't guess at: why did Silco even want him here? It seemed unlikely that he felt a genuine desire for his company. The paranoid part of Matt's brain (an increasing portion) thought it had to be because Silco knew Matt hated all this, despite the fact that Matt hadn't actually said as much to anyone but Liem. However Silco had gleaned the knowledge, then, he wanted to humiliate him, or to watch him hurt, or he viewed this standoff here at Flora's as some kind of hazing or dare.

But as unsettling as Silco's possible motivations were, they didn't actually matter.

She trusts you.

Flora mattered. Nervous Flora, whose hands created such startling and marvelous things. Who had been torn, during the days of the Innocence, between safeguarding her artwork and getting to safety. If she had to be arrested and tried and put to death--and she did, because Matt could maybe stop one Kenoma, but he couldn't stop everyone, and then what?--wasn't it better if he were there with her? An Aion who at least cared about her?

This whole world had to die eventually.

After another pause, Matt answered: ]

Sure. [ With the kind of careful calm that could come off as disinterest. It was a tone he manifested for interminable dinners with his family and their wealthy friends, when stating his real opinions wasn't an option but fully disguising them was impossible. ] What do you need my help with, exactly? Shield spell, levitation, live fire ... diplomacy?

[ Pauses truly did say a lot, didn't they? Silco watched, and waited. He didn't feel the need to fill the spaces of silence with anything, and he certainly didn't feel the need to give anything away. Instead, he waited, because he knew Matt would give himself up, either in word, or in lack of word. Silco didn't think Matt was committed, after all. Not like he was. He didn't believe that Matt would be willing, or able to take her in.

So he wanted to make him. Maybe because it was uncomfortable. Maybe because he thought Matt would hate it, but he did want to see him do it. Prove to him, that he was committed to the cause.

Silco didn't even have the blind devotion that others held toward the Regent. It wasn't even that. It was simply... that if he were doing it, he would also do it this way. It made sense. ]

Let's call it... Diplomacy, of a sort. You can convince her to come in willingly, and if she tries to run, well...

[ He shrugged, and using his arms and hands, it looked larger, thanks to the coat that helped dwarf his smaller frame. ] I'll be here. Watching.

[ Matt's expression flickered: clear surprise crossed his face, followed by a falling disdain, as his freshly minted resolve began to waver. It was one thing to serve as a semi-willing accomplice, another to actually be this woman's arresting officer. One thing to know this whole world was doomed, another to specifically pick out an individual for it. It was--

It felt wrong. He couldn't get around that. He could come up with reasons for the execution of rebels, reasons he had no choice but to partake, reasons that it ultimately didn't matter when or who or how they killed--but he couldn't make it feel like the right thing to do. ]

Great, [ he said hollowly.

Matt turned away from Silco, facing the door. Breathed even and slow, counting each inhale, hold, exhale. The contradiction between what he felt he should do and what he'd agreed to do thrummed in his bones, bringing with it a strange thrill. The fingers of his missing hand fluttered, as if playing inaudible notes on some stringless instrument, and for a crazy moment, Matt felt like if he craned hard enough, he might be able to hear the photo negative of a melody.

(The next time he looked around the little shop, Silco was nowhere to be seen.)

Eventually, Flora's key turned in the lock. The door opened. And there she was--a pretty, broad-shouldered woman of about thirty, nearly a full foot shorter than Matt. Her green eyes widened in alarm as she exclaimed, ] Oh!

Sorry, [ Matt protested, holding up his hands, ] it's me, Flora, it's Matt.

Matt ...

What are you doing here? What happened to you?

[ It took a few moments for things to calm down, and then for Flora to invite Matt to sit and have some tea, though she warned him she was quite tired and didn't have long. They made excruciating small talk: Matt murmured something about an accident when she again inquired about his hand. Flora said something about her latest pottery commissions. She seemed even more nervous than when Matt had met her in the middle of the Innocence contagion, but he supposed, given everything, that it made sense. Through it all, Matt felt Silco's eyes on him. Or perhaps only the one, smoldering like a bloodstone. His heartbeat felt loud in his ears. ]

... Listen, Flora, [ Matt said eventually. He leaned forward in his seat, lowering his voice. ] I've got to tell you some things, and I promise I'm telling you because I want to help you, okay? Just stay really calm and ... keep breathing while I get through this. Okay? Yeah? [ Matt took a deep breath himself, waiting for Flora to match him, and nodded. He exhaled, shaky. ]

The Regent knows what you're doing. You're on a list. And right now, you're surrounded. [ That was effectively true, if not literally. Flora stared, stunned into silence, and Matt's expression twisted in sympathy. ]

You're going to be arrested, [ he said softly. ] I can't stop it. [ His heart beat wildly in his chest. He'd fallen off the fucking cliff now, and as he groped for more words to say, anything else to make this moment end, his mouth said: ] But if you cooperate, I might be able to help you.

[ --That, in contrast, was almost definitely untrue. Matt hadn't heard a thing about rebels making deals. But he opened his mouth and this TV interrogation bullshit came out, with the kind of fluency Matt almost never had when he was making shit up. Like a melody had gotten stuck under his tongue, and he was humming it without realizing. Like a magnet drawing him towards some foregone conclusion. ]

[ Silco faded from vision quickly, silently. If Matt thought that he was gone, or that he'd left, he need not worry. In fact, Silco took to making a game out of it, while she did things like prepare tea for him, after she'd arrived. Did the pottery float behind her? Did something move slightly into or out of place? Silco didn't often leave signs that he was around, but he could do little more than do so, lest Matt forget.

And he did want to make sure he remembered that Silco was there, watching. He wasn't on Regent's orders to evaluate him, but Silco had seen a weakness in Matt that should be stamped out. A softness. A willingness to listen to people, and to hear their stories. He was clearly soft on the broad woman who'd walked in, and Silco saw that softness as something to exploit. To force him to confront, and smother right before his eyes.

He wouldn't lie, he was starting to enjoy, watching people turn into monsters before him.

Once the tea was set, Matt started in earnest.

So open, and honest with her. He almost thought it was funny, how she was shaking her head no, almost disbelieving of the fact that he was here, telling her this.

What? No, you can't -- She said, and Silco saw her eyes water, just a touch, her lip trembled. She wanted out, and wanted to use her Aion connection to do so. He stalked behind her, and watched her, waiting. He would snap out his hand if need be, but... He wanted Matt to do it.

Please...tell them I ran. I'll hide in the kilns, until they leave. Nobody will touch them again. ]

[ Yeah, Matt couldn't help but note Silco's presence. He did his best to ignore it, though: One, because he didn't trust himself not to broadcast his awareness to Flora, and two, because ...

Fuck Silco, essentially? Like Matt had no object permanence and could possibly forget he was here. Like Silco thought he was some puppeteer pulling Matt's strings. Matt didn't agree with how they were doing this, the timing of it, the callous disregard for the sacrifice they were asking these Venerans to make--but he knew that it did have to happen.

He must not have been doing a very good job of not perceiving Silco, because he caught Flora's gaze drifting to follow his own, on the cusp of catching the two-headed vase floating off the shelf by itself. Matt hurried to grab her attention back, blurting perhaps a bit too forcefully: ]

I can't do that.

[ Flora's gaze snapped back to him--shocked, hurt. With the beginnings of anger against him. Matt shook his head, wincing in apology. ]

Listen ... they already know everything. Everything. Do you understand what I mean? [ Matt set down his mug, trying to catch Flora's eyes with his own. He met her gaze with wide, earnest eyes. ] They're trimming the vine here. And ultimately, I don't believe the Kenoma's picky about who it trims first.

If I were in your situation, I wouldn't want to do anything that could put the people I cared about at risk.

[ He was doing surprisingly well. It's almost laudable, but Silco did not doubt that he would have let her go, had he not been here. Silco may not have the most kind opinion of Matt, though. When he pleaded with her, he watched, stopped playing with her things, stopped acting the child, and instead stepped forward, closer.

You don't... know anyone -- I don't have anyone

She pleaded, while Silco rolled his eyes. Almost everyone had a weakness, one simply had to find them. If he had thought Matt would be here for long, he would have already gone, and brought her friend that she had her dalliances with back here, like a prize. Something to threaten her with. He didn't, so her friend remained save in her bed, but Silco watched carefully, to see if Matt would react. He knew, of course, that Matt knew where she'd been before, because he'd said it.

He pulled out his knife, silently, ready to strike with the hilt, if needed, but he waited. Cautious.

If he played it right... ]

You were just there, [ Matt protested softly, which pulled a sharp inhale from Flora. It was so strange. It felt almost like two people were inhabiting his body, only neither of them were him: One seethed with guilt, piling useless objections on top of each other, should should shouldn't, how could you; the other thrilled to see Flora's reaction, to feel himself crossing a line he couldn't uncross. His left hand plucked at inaudible notes, straining to hear what came next. What would happen if ...? Meanwhile Matt, the actual Matt, floated somewhere up above himself, watching it all unfold. ]

You can't, [ Flora said weakly. ] You can't do this.

This is bigger than either of us, [ Matt's mouth said. ] I can't stop them from taking you in. But I think that if you're calm, and you cooperate, maybe they won't think you're so dangerous. And they won't think it's worth it to start chasing down the people you spend time with.

I can come with you and vouch for you, and maybe we can keep anybody else from getting hurt.

[ The way the woman looked so... dejected.

Like the hope that there would be one kindness out there for her, that one chance to get away, was starting to slip from her fingers, like one of these fine pots, that had just one thing off, and collapsed on the wheel. Silco had felt hope like that slip out from him, once before. Something in him stirred, and delighted in the fact that he enjoyed it.

After all, any obstacle should be eliminated. Even a young potter would be the kind of person, who could change the scope of this war, if he let her fester, and grow. Matt had to know that.

Her voice trembled, when she responded. You promise? And Silco was certain that she thought that it was a lie, but... whoever she'd been seeing was more important. A weakness.

He slipped his knife back into the space beneath his coat, where he kept it. He watched, waiting, for him to seal the deal, and throw her entirely off the cliff. ]

[ Matt, for his part, did consider this to be a war; just not one that had much to do with people. Humans had only ever made up a fraction of the total life that existed in his world, and taken up a fraction of a fraction of the universe's timeline. They were specks among specks.

Still, as one speck to another, Matt resolved to himself that he would try to help Flora. He'd tell them she came willingly (provided she actually did, and didn't try to make a break for it). And he'd stay to watch her trial--her execution, if they'd let him. Maybe he could pull some Aion strings.

With that settled on, it didn't entirely feel like a lie when he said: ] I promise.

[ Flora started to cry.

Which like, Matt could have expected, but it still hit him like a punch to the gut. Instantly, tears pricked at his own eyes. He'd always been a sympathy crier, ever since he and his sister were kids. Matt dragged the back of his hand across his eyes, trying to swallow past the lump in his throat. (Trying furiously not to think about whatever Silco thought of this.) He staggered up from his chair.

After a long moment, Flora stood too. ]

[ Silco, being a cold hard man who only cried when he injected painful medication into his eye, felt for just a moment: truly uncomfortable.

The woman crying, he could understand. She was caught, she had no way out. What was she going to do? She was giving up, and crying was so often the act of someone who was truly without options. He watched her, and was just fed up -- and then Matt started to cry -- started, although Silco saw him try to pull it away.

He rolled his eyes, and finally, when she stood, placed a hand on her shoulder, from behind, and he dropped his concealment, and smirked. ]

There now, we'll take you to our nice...jail cell, where Matt can keep you company, since you two are...so close.

[ Did it sound sarcastic? It was. Flora would find no comfort from him. ]

You are going to come quietly, aren't you?

[ He asked, pulling out a pair of cuffs, from one of the pouches hidden by his large coat. ]

[ Flora startled, uttering a shocked exclamation, and half a moment later, Matt saw why: Silco was behind her, hand on her shoulder. His eyes narrowed.

God. It wasn't enough Silco was here, he had to reappear in the worst way possible and pull these Bond villain moves? Matt couldn't remember the last time he'd genuinely wanted to set someone on fire. The mug on the table below him started to tremor, as if juddered by a miniature earthquake.

Matt inhaled sharply, and forced himself to calm down by degrees: breathe in, hold, breathe out. After a moment, he exhaled on a harsh sigh. ]

It's okay, [ he said to Flora. ] You don't have to wear those if you don't try to run.

[ Flora looked between him and Silco, shrinking away from his touch insofar as she could. Matt couldn't tell exactly what was passing over her face, but he suspected she realized Matt's discomfort with Silco was nearly as great as her own.

After a moment, she hung her head, her shoulders slumping profoundly. ]

Yes. I'll go.

[ The three of them exited onto the street, heading for the Veneran jailhouse where rebels were stored until their faux trials. Once again, Matt found himself floating above his body, the streets passing by in a blur. Venera was a beautiful place. But as he walked, his eyes kept catching on its decay: chipped and cracked statues, faded murals, garbage left to stink in the street.

He did speak up for Flora, for all the good it did. He stayed awhile outside her jail cell, though neither of them said much. And when he finally left, he vowed to return the next morning with better food. Matt exited into the nighttime street, his betrayal curling and coiling in his belly. ]

[ Silco enjoyed it. He watched Matt's eyes narrow, when he realized that he'd appeared, watched the mug tremble on the table, as if he could barely hold back whatever power he held, to vibrate violently, to the way the woman shrunk from his touch. It was... All quite good. Silco had gotten used to having power, to having people respect him, in the form of doing his bidding even though they didn't want to.

The entire way back, Silco has a... swagger to the way he walks. It's something... almost menacing about it, with the way his shoulders hunched slightly when he stepped about -- but he looks bigger somehow, like the shot to his ego is enough to bring a little bit more of Silco's true nature out. He even smirked at Matt, once, scarred lips completely full of it, when he noticed the boy looking at him. As if he was happy about all of this.

Which mind, he didn't mind. Weaknesses needed to be rooted out. For Silco, that would normally be to threaten, or bully -- or outright kill when necessary -- but the Regent had asked for them to be killed, and... well, Silco didn't really care one way or the other about this person. Really though, was there anyone Silco cared about? Certainly not in this world.

He'd stayed outside, after Flora had been taken in, and logged. Once he was confident Matt was finally fully in compliance. He was smoking a cigar, when Matt stepped out, into a cloud of cigar smoke. ]

I honestly thought you wouldn't do it.

[ Matt could have figured that Silco would be waiting for him. For a few minutes, sitting miserably with Flora, he'd almost forgotten the man existed. But as smoke hit him in the face, prompting a sputter and a wave of his hand, that ugly reality set back in. Matt's eyes slid to Silco's face, an unwonted glint in them of storm or steel. His spine straightened. People who'd known his mother would have recognized this look as one that belonged to her, somewhere between "you can't speak to me that way" and "I want to talk to a manager."

Matt breathed in, tasting ash. Let the breath out slowly. ]

Yeah. I know what you thought.

[ He could guess, at least.

What Matt wanted more than anything right now was to get back to the inn and take a bath and just cry for a while. Staring into space could potentially be substituted for the crying, he was flexible on that score, but the main point was--he had no desire to stay here. He started walking, hoping Silco wouldn't follow. ]

[ Silco wasn't going to follow, not now. Matt was clearly upset, and while Silco didn't care about that, he also knew that he had enough magic power that he was likely going to snap, at some point.

No, Silco just wanted to remind him, that he was here, that he was waiting. That if Matt was going to stumble, he would make him worse. He'd make sure he remembered that there were monsters, and if he wasn't going to be one for the Regent, or the Kenoma, then Silco would make sure he remembered that they could be monsters. That they could and would do so.

He suspected what the Regent wanted, and if by example, he could get them all closer to their shared goal? Then so be it. ]

You did good work today. [ He said, and raised his voice. ] I'm sure the Regent will... thank you, for your diligence.

[ Matt stopped short. Even with his back to Silco, the set of his shoulders was noticeably tense.

When he finally spoke, he turned his head slightly, pitching his voice to carry. But his tone held the same flat and colorless quality that it had back in Flora's house, when he'd first agreed to do this. Like Matt was shoving all his emotions in a drawer that could only just contain them. ]

I'm not doing this to be thanked.

[ Resentment flared in his stomach, molten and acidic: Is this some kind of game to you? Do you even care about a better world? For a moment, Matt was sure the words were going to spill out.

But he breathed, managing to swallow them. In the end, all Matt said was-- ]

Good night.

[ --Before turning the corner and vanishing down the block. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

EVENT #5: SOVEREIGN CITIZENS (VENERA)

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cw: eye trauma

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