Chronicles of Espiria Season 1

Episode 20 - Mercy

Written by The Dude

Brutus was sitting in his chambers, contemplating the recent demon plague. The shamans were making good progress in battling the plague, and the people they freed were well on their way to recovery; still, old Numisu called it a demon plague, and Skriath said that the only path demons could have into Espiria was through the Barred Gate, located in Lightbearer territory. He began to wonder how the pieces fit together, when he was interrupted by the captain of his Blood Guard, Anoki.

"I beg your pardon, Paragon, but this Durri claims to bring an urgent message."

Anoki tossed the Durri at the feet of Brutus. It seemed dizzy from being jostled about like a rag doll, but was otherwise unharmed.

"What message do you bring your Paragon?" Brutus asked, his patience already thin.

"I have just come from the Temple of the Seers, my lord. The humans have sent a war party to the temple."

Brutus stood at this news, a snarl on his lips.

"A war party? At the sacred temple?!"

"I did not stay long enough to see how the battle fared. I only know that the temple guards, while brave, were weakened and greatly outnumbered."

Brutus was silent as he contemplated the news.

"Then this was the human plan! They have opened the Barred Gate and unleashed a demon plague on us! They hope to weaken us with a plague, then attack us while we are weak!"

"This does not sound like the act of a people who fight with honor, my Paragon." Anoki commented.

"And yet it is the only explanation that fits! Well, we will show the humans that there is strength yet in the Mauler clans! I invoke my right as Paragon, and I summon the Mauler tribes to my side! We will march on the Lightbearer lands and lay waste to their cities as they intended to do to us!"

Brutus stormed out of his palace with Anoki close behind. The Durri remained where he was for a moment, allowing a sinister smile to cross his face as his eyes flashed red.

Meanwhile, Belinda, Lucius, and Ira rode to the border of Bantus largely in silence. None were looking forward to the visit; the living had never been known to enter the land of the undead and return with the breath of life still in their lungs, not since the empire first fell to Thoran.

While the silence was oppressive to Belinda and Lucius, Ira rather enjoyed it; she rarely had a moment of quiet in the Dark Forest except when she was on patrol. What she didn't like was the open sky over the clear path; with nothing that she could use for cover, she constantly felt exposed, which made her nervous. She felt more at ease, however, as the sun began to set; if she could not hide in the trees, then perhaps her cloak would help her hide in the darkness. Strangely, Lucius felt more at ease as well as the terrain took a familiar tone with the setting of the sun. He suddenly realized why.

"I remember this place. I was stationed here as a cavalryman when I was sixteen."

"Sixteen?!" Ira said, surprised. "Aren't humans still children at that age?!"

"My commander certainly thought differently. He believed that anyone who could hold a weapon should be made to fight for Ranhorn, whether men, women, or children. The only exception he made was with Rigby; apparently, his role as brewmaster of the Noble Tavern was a 'necessary service'."

Lucius chuckled and Belinda smiled as she rolled her eyes, but Ira was stonefaced; while she had never tasted it, she had heard of alcohol from the Wind Whisperers and from Kaz, and found its ability to make your focus waver disgusting.

"Do you miss serving with him at all?" Belinda asked.

"Not at all, but I'm glad now that I did. He certainly made me a better paladin, and I'm thankful for that; but I'm also thankful to be away from the others in my unit."

"What was wrong with them?"

"Well, you know that I've always wanted to be a medic. Even when I was a cavalryman, I would practice medicine whenever I had the opportunity. And back then, the only opportunities I had were during battles. I saved many of my brothers in arms by laying down my sword and taking up a needle and thread, and they appreciated me for it while I was sewing them. But after the battles ended, my brothers would denounce me for what they saw as cowardice. I withstood it for a time, until they slaughtered my horse just to spite me."

Belinda was shocked. Ira was furious.

"I'd have killed them on the spot!"

"I wanted to, but it would not have brought back my horse. I left the camp that day, never intending to return. I suppose my commander could have accused me of desertion, but he probably knew that his men had crossed a line.

"Why did you never tell me this?!" Belinda asked.

"I meant to. After I left, the only place I wanted to be was at the temple, so I returned to Ranhorn and went straight there. I had hoped to speak with you about it and seek your advice, but you were busy speaking with your fellow initiates at the time, so I decided to listen in as I waited for you. Praise be to the Twins, however, for you were speaking to them about their troubles with bullies, and your advice was perfect, especially what you told them of the need to forgive those that persecuted them."

"Forgive?!" Ira said. "They killed your horse!"

"Forgiveness does not mean that they are without fault, nor are they absolved of any punishment. All it means is that you release the anger and bitterness that you feel toward them. It is a small example of the mercy we receive every time we sin; if not for the intervention of the Twins, Athalia would strike us down the moment we commit a sin."

Lucius continued to speak with Ira for some time about forgiveness, but Belinda barely registered; not because she was disinterested, but because Lucius' story struck her with guilt. Her attention returned as Lucius continued.

"When I arrived back at my unit, I saw that they were under attack by Maulers, caught off guard and in full retreat. I came to their aid by summoning a simple illusion to frighten the Maulers: a herd of war horses charging straight at them. Apparently the sight proved inspirational to the survivors of my unit as well, for they managed to reform ranks and help me drive them off."

"Impressive," Ira admitted. "They still should have died."

"Maybe, but where would we be without mercy?"

Recounting the story proved relaxing for Lucius, and he soon fell asleep. Ira soon after vanished into the night to hunt for her dinner; she didn't quite trust the rations of the priests. Belinda, however, could not sleep. She knew that she should have been glad to hear of Lucius' victory, but all she felt was guilt and shame at her own sin that the story inadvertently exposed. She spent the rest of the night begging for the forgiveness of the Celestials.

Back in Ranhorn, a very drunk Izold was staring at his dress uniform, which held more medals for his courageous deeds than most people knew existed. He started thinking back on the many battles in which he earned those medals, most alongside Commander Hogan. He grew increasingly certain that not only would he never have the chance to earn another medal, but that he would likely die in Ranhorn as a fat, useless drunk. As he continued to contemplate that fate in his impaired state, he grew just as certain that there was but one escape. Finally, he decided to take that escape. He put on his uniform, slung his weapons over his shoulder, and left his home, never intending to return.

A few days later, Belinda, Lucius, and Ira stood on the border of Bantus, apprehensive about crossing into what some mistakenly called the Underworld. They dismounted from their horses, since the horses seemed to have enough sense to stay away from the border of Bantus.

"So, are we going in or not?" Ira asked, trying to hide her nervousness.

"There's one precaution I would like to take first." Belinda responded.

She pulled a small vial of blessed oil from her pouch, touched her finger to the opening, and used it to draw a starburst, the holy symbol of Dura, first on Lucius' forehead, then on Ira's. She then handed the vial to Lucius and had him draw the same symbol on her forehead. As he did so, Belinda explained.

"This is the land of the undead; I've been told that it is covered in an eternal haze caused by the decaying corpses that serve as its citizens. As we travel further into Bantus, this haze will likely grow thicker, eventually becoming a poisonous fume. This spell will protect us."

Once Lucius had finished, Belinda said a prayer, and smiled as she saw the oil glow for a moment.

"Now we are ready."

"About time," Ira responded. "Let's go!"

Ira crossed the border first, hesitating only a moment, followed closely by Belinda. Lucius took a deep breath, then followed as well. At first, they were surprised at how easily they traveled; they had expected rough terrain, but the barren soil and bare rock that they walked on was as smooth as if they were in a meadow. On the other hand, cover was not easy to find, so if they were to encounter any hostile Graveborn, there would be no way to hide from them.

In time, they determined to make camp for the night next to a tall hill. At least, they thought it was night. The haze that Belinda had mentioned was already showing itself, obscuring the sun from their vision, so they guessed that it was evening based on how tired they all felt. Lucius built a fire from wood gathered from the long-dead trees nearby; the light of the fire could have attracted unwanted attention, but the three needed something to cheer them in the desolate land. After dinner, Ira lay down to try to sleep, covering herself in her cloak, not to stay warm, but to conceal herself any way she could. Lucius and Belinda stayed up longer, staring into the fire.

"You have something on your mind," Lucius observed.

"You may think it strange, but I wish Cecilia was here."

"I understand. Like her or not, she is helpful in a fight."

"There is that, but..." Belinda was silent a moment. "There is something I need to say to her."

"And what might that be?"

The voice came not from Lucius, but from Cecilia, a few yards behind Lucius and walking toward the fire, accompanied by a Mauler woman with a cruel-looking spear.

"Cecilia? What are you doing here?"

"Likely the same as you; we have all been given reason to believe that the origin of the demon incursion is somewhere here in the Bantus Empire. I discovered it in the Mauler temple."

"And may I ask who accompanies you?" Belinda asked.

"My name is Antandra," the Mauler replied, "guard of the Temple of the Seers. We owe this human shaman a debt for her help in repelling the demon plague; I serve as her bodyguard as payment of this debt until her task is complete."

"Pleasure to meet you. I'm Belinda Augustin, this is Lucius Lanward, and this is..."

Belinda did not finish before she noticed that Ira was not where she was supposed to be.

"Where is Ira?"

"Unless my ears deceive me," Cecilia responded, "she is behind me with bow drawn."

Antandra was quick to jump between Ira and Cecilia. Ira didn't seem to mind; she pointed the arrow at Antandra's heart, waiting for any reason to release it.

"I don't like humans as a whole, but at least they keep their warriors out of my forest!"

"Ira, stand down!" Lucius shouted.

"It's alright, Ira, Cecilia is a friend!" Belinda reassured her.

Ira held her ground a moment longer, then backed away, vanishing into the darkness.

"I see you gained your information from the Wilders." Cecilia observed as she and Antandra took a seat next to Belinda.

"They want the demons expelled from Espiria as much as we do." Belinda responded.

"As do the Mauler tribes." Antandra added.

"Then our first order of business in the morning," Cecilia concluded, "will be to find a lone Graveborn to interrogate."

"Shouldn't be hard," Ira commented, having reclaimed her place next to Lucius. "Just follow the smell."

"That reminds me..." Belinda said as she pulled her vial of oil out again and drew the same starburst on Cecilia's and Antandra's foreheads that she drew on herself and her companions. As she drew, she continued to speak.

"I am glad you're here, Cecilia."

"You gave me the opposite impression the last time we spoke." Cecilia replied.

"I know, and I have much to apologize for. Chief among my sins against you is that I have withheld forgiveness from you."

"You believe unforgiveness to be a sin?" Cecilia seemed confused by this concept.

"An egregious sin. One that Dura herself would judge me harshly for."

"Is it alright that I am confused?" Lucius asked.

Belinda looked to Lucius, then back to Cecilia, then decided that more of an explanation was in order.

"Lucius, I used to be a member of the Path of Ascension."

"What? When?!"

"I was fourteen. You had just been commissioned in the cavalry. The Grand Priest had spoken kindly of the convent, their devotion to the Light, the vast library of knowledge found only in the convent; so of course I was interested. They readily accepted me as a sister on the Grand Priest's recommendation.

"It was certainly strange. There weren't many people at the convent, and those that I did see were always in the middle of some study or other. I supposed that this was what the Grand Priest meant by devotion, but it still seemed strange that no one could take the time to even offer me guidance. Cecilia was the only one who tried, but she was present the least of everyone.

"I just accepted it all as part of their devotion until I met a young girl named Rosaline. She was not there as a nun; she was only there as a servant. I thought it strange that the convent would even have a maid; at the temple, I was always made to clean up after myself as a lesson in humility. When I asked Cecilia about it, she would only tell me that Rosaline's parents had been convicted of heresy and executed for it. That's when I knew something was wrong. We are each accountable for our own sins, but not the sins of our fathers; Rosaline should not have been paying penance for her parents' heresy.

"I began to look deeper into Rosaline's case and found that the 'heresy' they were guilty of was inviting poor starving travelers into their home. Even though the travelers proved to be heretics, no priest at the temple would have condemned the aid; helping those in need is what we are taught to do.

"I soon found that Rosaline was no isolated mistake either; the Path of Ascension was responsible for many more arbitrary executions. They would gladly kill five innocents if it meant that one guilty did not escape their grasp; all that mattered was snuffing out the darkness. And all this without the Grand Priest's knowledge or consent.

"I knew I had to get Rosaline out of there, so I used my family connections to bring her case to the attention of an old family friend in Oakenfell; she was able to save Rosaline from the convent and took her into her household. But that was all that could be done; the Grand Priest was horrified by my discoveries, but he could do nothing about it while the convent enjoyed the protection of the crown."

Belinda was silent for a moment. She looked Cecilia in the eye before continuing.

"What the Path was doing was wrong. But the hate that I felt for you was just as sinful. I should have released that anger and prayed for your repentance, but instead I held on to my anger and let it ferment. Dura was always gracious to those who begged her pardon; I cannot call myself a priestess of the Light if I do any differently. Cecilia, can you forgive me?"

Cecilia was surprised, and unsure how to respond at first.

"Belinda, you know it is not in my nature to forgive. However, I believe that you have performed adequate penance by helping me to destroy a demon. Such an act, I'm sure, can pay for a multitude of sins."

It was as close to forgiveness as Belinda could expect from Cecilia, and she readily took it.

"Besides, you were right about one thing. We should not have made the girl pay for her father's sins. I paid my penance for that sin when I lost you as a sister."

As Belinda was oft to do, she hugged Cecilia, who once again was unsure how to respond. Before she released Cecilia, she thought that she briefly saw the forms of the Twins scampering off. Belinda offered a silent prayer of thanks to them.

"Well, if killing demons pays for sins," Ira concluded, "then I think I've bought the right to a good party with a few studs."

"Um, that's not how it works." Lucius tried to correct her, blushing.

"I'll admit though, I am curious." Cecilia said. "Explain how you've earned this night of sin."

Meanwhile, Izold stood at the edge of the Bantus border, further south than the priests had entered by. A man in a nearby wagon looked warily at the dead land as his horse grew increasingly difficult to control.

"You sure you want to go in there?" the driver asked. "The only people who come out ain't necessarily people anymore, if you get my drift."

"Don't worry about me." Izold said as he glanced back. "If I have my way, there will be fewer Graveborn to cross this border in the future."

Without another word, Izold limped across the border, feeling more alive than he had since the battle with Brutus that first took his leg.

Feeling equally alive was Ira. She was very rarely at ease; Kaz and Lyca could only coax her to relax to any degree while telling stories of her past accomplishments. As Ira sat by the fire with her traveling companions, she recounted her battle with the demons in the Dark Forest, a battle which she remembered having a much larger role in than Belinda and Lucius remembered.

"...So then I put an arrow square in the eye, and the golem was like 'Aaaggh!' So I noticed that Belinda was throwing lightning at it, and that was kinda cool, but it wasn't really doing much because wood doesn't conduct electricity, so I pulled out my metal arrows and there's a spy on that hill over there!"

That last statement failed to register until the others noticed Ira readying her bow.

"Wait, what?" Lucius said, confused.

"I said there's a spy on that hill behind Cecilia! Antandra, you look pretty fast; see if you can catch him alive! Lucius, go with her in case the spy isn't alone!"

Antandra and Lucius were quick to comply once they saw the spy. Once they were gone, Belinda used her staff to light up the area around the fire, while Cecilia strained for any sound or smell that might betray the presence of another Graveborn.

While Ira, Belinda, and Cecilia guarded the camp, Antandra and Lucius pursued the Graveborn spy as he tried to escape. Antandra managed to get in front of him and cut off his escape, while Lucius tackled him from behind and subdued him. Lucius dragged the magically bound spy to his feet and held him while Antandra held her spear to his throat.

"You will tell us what you know, spy!" Antandra demanded.

"All hail Quadam!"

As the spy declared his allegiance, Lucius could feel the body lose consistency. Soon, the spy collapsed into a pile of dust at Lucius' feet.

"Who is Quadam?" Lucius asked.

"Whoever he is, I do not think we've heard the last of him." Antandra answered.