...Arwintar...Synod…
As Ainz finished reciting from his sacred text, the real challenge began. "While these recitations of your text tell us your laws, they do not tell us that you are a god." A stern voiced priest said boldly.
"True." Ainz said, drawing murmurs of surprise from the tiers of seats. "But what would?" Ainz asked. "I have shown many times that I am vastly more powerful than the old gods, I have seen the transcripts where Neia pointed out how my accomplishments surpass their own many times over, so let me further my question by asking… why do you worship the six, or the four such as it were, as gods?"
Silence fell, and a priest, one Ainz recognized as a member of the Theocracy who had been freed as guiltless in the trials after the war. "Because the six gods chose and protected humanity against eradication."
Nods were everywhere.
"A truthful answer, and, I suppose as good a reason as any." Ainz said politely, he walked slowly, majestically about the circle in the center, "Have I not also done the same?" He asked.
Stunned silence answered him. "Before you respond," he said as he raised one skeletal finger, "consider this. I did not choose humanity alone, but all the honest and just of the world, has it not been made clear over the course of all of this, that all who abide by the social contract are good servants to my will. You enjoyed your time off in this city, in that time you had to have seen elves and dwarves, trolls and giants, perhaps even a dragon or two, you must surely have seen many such beings if you were out and about. Further, some of you come from the Draconic province, others from Roble, others from Re-Estize, others from the former Theocracy, others from the elf kingdom, still more are from here, you have come to this place from lands I have long ruled and lands I newly rule, and wheresoever I rule, have you failed to see not only humans prospering, but all others as well?" He asked pointedly.
"In the way of the old gods, humanity was always at risk, wasn't it? Wasn't it?" He asked twice for emphasis, in a voice that demanded the truth be spoken.
"It… was." A priest answered.
"Raise your hand if you deny his answer." Ainz said and pointed to the one who spoke.
No hands went up.
"Is humanity at risk now?" He asked. "Raise your hand if you can name a threat to your lives from inside or outside of my borders."
Silence greeted him again. "If you argue as some do, that the basis for the worship of the six is that they saved humanity and protected it, then on that basis, I stand far beyond them."
"You also killed many of us." A priest said harshly.
"I don't deny that." Ainz said, "Yet can you name a time I did not offer humans who opposed me, a chance to save their lives, to avoid my wrath and live in peace? Did I not offer the King of Re-Estize a chance to yield peacefully? Did I not offer peace to the Slane Theocracy? Did I not offer the kindest terms for war that this world has ever seen, such that few would die if those terms were kept? And will anyone deny that the conduct of those who called themselves my enemies, has made them the destroyers of human lives?"
His retort was electric, but there were uncertain looks traded among some of those present. He caught those looks, "Oh, I see some of you are unaware of the atrocities perpetrated by the Slane Theocracy and their allies during the course of the war. Well I have come prepared for that. I call for a two hour recess for you to read the transcripts of the trials, the witness statements, and if necessary, I will bring survivors here to speak to you as to just what the defenders of the six gods did and were willing to do in the name of promoting their beliefs. Just one word of warning." He said, and looks turned fearful, as they wondered if he was about to threaten their lives.
"Keep a bucket handy. If you are not as vile as they, you will be sickened by what you will read." He said, and drew a stack of documents from his pocket dimension, and handed them to a servant who began to walk the tiers one by one to hand out stacks to be passed down. The vote for a recess passed with ease, and it was so. Few left their seats to read in private, most remained where they were, but Ainz chose to walk out, and he found Leinas standing like a statue with sword drawn and point to the stone, her eyes alert and watchful for any possible threat, when he emerged and stepped in front of her, only then did her posture change.
"Your Majesty." She said with reverence. "How did they receive you?" She asked.
"Well enough." He replied, "There is a two hour recess for them to review past events, I doubt all will believe what they read, but I also doubt they will have the will to demand witnesses either." He added.
"Why is that, sire?" She asked as she fell into step beside him as he walked away.
"Because when horrors like that are disbelieved, very often that disbelief is a lie even to themselves, at their core they will know it to be truth, and not have the courage to truly face it by listening to the victims. Some will deny what stands in front of their eyes, we could take them to the ruins of Wenmark and show the horror of the pits, we could take them to the brothels that still stand, and they would deny the bloodstains before their eyes, they could look at the graves and dig up the many bodies, and say they died by something else. To those committed to denial, no evidence of atrocity is enough, not even when they look it square in the eye. Even if we brought those imprisoned still to tell them what was done, what they themselves perpetrated, the denier will not allow themselves to believe." Ainz said with a soft disgust in his voice.
"How do you know that, Your Majesty?" Leinas asked in a hushed and profoundly disturbed voice.
"I have seen it before, the place my servants call, 'First World' where I once was, had such atrocities happen, some worse than any that have happened here, though not for lack of trying on the part of those we defeated. No matter how much was recorded, how much evidence was presented, what those who perpetrated their atrocities admitted to, there were always those who were willing to deny what was before their eyes, eager to lie to themselves because they did not wish it to be so." Ainz said with a dismissive shake of his head.
"I-I see." Leinas said unhappily. "Where do we go now?" She asked, not caring for the subject.
"Nowhere, we will simply stroll for a bit, though if you have not eaten, we can pause for that if you like." He said patiently.
"If it is your will." Leinas replied dutifully.
"Leinas." The Sorcerer King said in a voice of gentle rebuke.
"I… am getting hungry, yes, Your Majesty." She said as her stomach emitted a very loud growl.
Ainz chuckled a bit as he declared, "We will pause at the first establishment."
"Thank you, sire." She replied gratefully.
Five minutes before the end of the two hour mark, Ainz was again approaching the door, as Leinas took her place beside it, she whispered softly, "Thank you, my lord."
He gave her an acknowledging look as he walked back in. As he took his place at the center, he looked at the faces of the priests and priestesses of the old gods. There were distressed and distraught faces, some were resigned, many were disgusted, others were horrified, some were hard as stone with denial. The lengths to which the Slane Theocracy had gone to, not to mention some of their allies such as those fanatics led by the fallen paladin, Remedios Custodio, was most well known among veterans and survivors who were first hand witnesses or survivors. The atrocities of Wenmark were known chiefly by elves and by the hundred of Neia's elites. However, no public report had yet been disseminated as it was only just recently completed and compiled. Now they were looking at it, and the result was just what Ainz had intended it to be.
"I see you have all been reading. If any of you desire confirmation of these things, we can travel to where the bodies rest and once there, I will give you shovels, you can dig them up yourselves if you do not believe me. I can call witnesses who survived, I can call those who still live who perpetrated their crimes and compel them to speak the truth to your satisfaction. Let any who dares to doubt the truth of what I say, speak now or forever withhold their denial." Ainz' words were hard as adamantite, inviting anyone to dissent from his report. There were no takers.
"So now we come back to the question again," Ainz paused before continuing. "Have I not done all the old gods did, and more, and done so without setting humanity against their neighbors? Who will deny it? Who will deny the justice of my actions?" He asked.
Again, there were no takers.
"Now I will say something else to you, I will tell you what I told Neia Baraja, and you may take this as you wish." He said in a more gentle, accommodating voice.
"The truth is, your decision here means little." He said, and the tone of silence went from curious, to cold.
"Before you reject that statement, hear the rest." He said as he added, "Those of you who vote against me on the final day, will you begin to call me god because your peers vote for it? Or will you deny me that in your hearts until the very end of your life?" He asked, and the various priests looked to one another questioningly.
"By contrast, those of you who vote in favor of confirming my status, you who are my devoted followers, will you turn from me if the vote goes in the opposing direction?" He asked rhetorically.
Ainz held his arms up above his head and opened them as if to embrace them all. "The truth is, that in the end what you vote for is only to influence those who believe 'you', those who serve will continue, those who deny will also continue, I have no intention of wiping out my doubters by force, what manner of god would be threatened by a mortal's lack of belief? I will of course crush those who attempt to harm their neighbors on this matter, no matter which side they be on, because a god that does nothing is no different than a god that does not exist, and what use is a god who would tolerate such behavior?" He asked, casting his rhetoric to attentive ears.
"The way in which you vote on this matter may change the course of history and shape the future in many ways. However, your acceptance or rejection is more your own than anything. Those who believe, will not change, those who deny, will also not likely change. The true significance of this vote is not the question of my deification, the true significance is whether you accept these changing times, or cling to a past that, whatever its virtues might have been, simply no longer works. You may make the future easier, or harder by your choice, but the wheel of time will roll on, whether you are within the wheel, or under it, is up to you." He said, his noble voice carrying to the very top of the tiers of the building.
Questions peppered him for another two hours after that, but he saw the weariness begin to hit them as the day wore on, and finally the session came to a close, and Ainz walked out. He and Leinas were the first to depart, and just as he did so, much to his surprise, he received a message. He paused, and Leinas stopped to wait on him, watching expectantly as he answered Skana.
…Outside the Poison Maker's Home...
"Smart move." Skana said with venom in her voice. She put the tip of her sword to the woman's lips, and pushed the end of her sword just a little further, two small cuts appeared where the razor sharp edges touched, and the eyes of her captive began to widen with ever greater terror. "But speak that way to me again, and you'll lose those pretty lips, don't forget bitch, I hold you heavily responsible for what happened to my wife, the only reason you're not begging for death right now is that you're not the only one."
The poisoner swallowed hard her breathing became heavy, deep, and rapid, as if she'd run for miles or finished a marathon session of lovemaking.
Her eyes went downcast and she nodded fearfully. "I didn't know who it was for." She said softly.
"Would it have mattered?" Skana asked in a hateful voice.
She was silent.
"You are a smart one, you're not stupid enough to lie to me." Skana said and pulled her sword back ever so slightly.
"Now, who?" The Black Justice vice commander asked.
"There's a nobleman, lives in Kami Miyako. He's bought from me before. I don't, I don't know what he does with it, and I don't know if he works with anyone else or if he acts alone, I swear, but he's the only really rich client I have, I usually go through a bandit named Burl, he might know more…" She was speaking rapidly, a mile a minute, but she froze when Skana shook her head.
"He didn't, he's the one who led me to you, how do you think I found this place?" Skana asked with a casual wave of her hand, "You did do a great job of hiding yourself, I'll give you that much. He traded your security for his continued life, you really shouldn't have given out your location to people with no sense of loyalty." She added with a hint of rebuke.
She cursed from her place on the ground. "I'll kill that asshole."
"Don't worry about that, he's a lot worse off alive than dead." Skana said with a dangerous little smile on her face. "He'll be wishing he was dead for the rest of his life, you though… well, I'd like to submit you to the same fate." Skana said and put her sword to the woman's throat. "Nobody knows better how to make a woman suffer, than another woman, and there are so many, many things I'd like to do to you for your part in what was done to my wife, and to myself." Skana's voice had no hint of mercy in it, only a sea of hatred whose waves broke upon the shore of the poisoner's courage and shattered it to pieces. A foul smell filled the air.
"But…" Skana said and pulled back her blade again, "I'm a loyal servant of his majesty, and your… skills might serve him better. Burl was useless trash, but you might find a way to spend your life atoning for what you did, and from what I hear the… baptism into his service for scum like you, is almost as good as any revenge I might take." Skana's voice was hateful, but reflective. "Now, tell me his name and where he lives, and we can end this little exchange."
"Count Medif… his name is Count Medif." She said as she looked at the ground. The girl was broken, Skana could tell, those pretty hazel eyes went dull with defeat. "He lives in what is left of the noble district, I don't know exactly what estate, but I know he lives there." She said, her body was starting to shake. "Please… don't hurt me… I'm just doing a job…"
"Then call this a hostile takeover of your business." Skana said viciously. "Now... what else can you tell me about him?" She asked.
"He's… connected. Ties with the bandits in the woods here, most of his guards are former bandits, I think he's worked with Zuranon in the past, given some of the things he's bought from me, but I don't know for sure. He's also… kind of fat." She said with a hint of disgust.
"Fat? While living in Kami Miyako these days?" Skana asked in almost disbelief.
"Yes, don't ask me how." She replied. "But at least he'll stand out."
"There is that." Skana said casually. "That everything?" She asked the desperate woman.
"It is." She said, barely getting the words out.
"Good, by the way, what's your name, I want to remember it." Skana said.
The woman went silent. The tip of the sword was cutting her lip again a moment later.
"Numenev… my name is Numenev." She whimpered.
Skana looked down at her with greater hatred than she'd ever felt in her life, she pushed the tip of the sword down, Numenev's eyes widened in fear, her mouth opened just so the sword would stop cutting her lips, she felt the metal scraping over her teeth, she was shaking her head, her body was trembling uncontrollably, the sword cut into her tongue, tears were falling from dull hazel eyes, muffled pleas were coming from her as the sword went closer to the back of her throat.
"I want to… god how I want to… you don't deserve life, you almost took everything from me… twice. You… you… YOU!" Skana shrieked as tears came down her cheek and she braced her arm as if she was about to thrust the sword the rest of the way and finish the trash off, but she stopped.
"No. Not yet. One day maybe, but not yet, besides, if anyone should get you, it should be Neia, you should belong to her before you do to me." Skana said as she breathed as hard as Numenev for a few moments. The sword pulled out, and she sheathed the blade.
She rarely messaged the Sorcerer King, but this once, this once she thought it appropriate, so she drew out the requisite scrolls and connected to him. "Your Majesty, I've caught the one who made the poison that killed me, and almost killed your pope, if it pleases you, I will send her through a gate right now."
"She's alive?" The Sorcerer King asked in surprise.
"She is. I thought she might serve better atoning for her wrongs by putting her skills to use in your service… after a proper baptism." Skana said casually.
A moment later the Sorcerer King replied, "You made a good decision, her baptism will be today, a gate will be opened immediately, send her through, and let Neuronist receive her."
"I would be pleased and honored to do so, sire." Skana said joyfully.
Numenev was silent and terrified, the woman standing over her seemed beyond insane with rage a moment ago, yet now she was casual, even happy. Poisoner or not, young or not, she wasn't stupid, she knew this did not bode well for her. She stared hesitantly at the whorling hole that appeared in front of them and grunted when Skana picked her up by her bonds, straining her bound limbs painfully backwards, and tossed her through the hole like she was a sack of potatoes.
Skana walked away with a song in her heart, this was wonderful, absolutely wonderful. There was… probably only one more to go, and then, then she could say her wife was as safe as she could ever be, the last of the guilty would suffer. She wondered idly if he was a front for someone else, but she doubted it, a Count was fairly highly placed, most of the nobles had been purged, the fact that this one hadn't been, meant he'd managed to avoid standing out in any way in the Slane Theocracy's hierarchy of rule, or evidently running afoul of the Sorcerer King… or he was relatively new to his title. There was time enough to ask the question of 'why' later.
Getting to the city took a few hours, but the sense of urgency Skana had felt since Neia's suicide attempt had at least eased with the comfortable understanding that the one who had almost stolen her life away was close at hand.
As she walked back, her mind went over and over the events of the recent past, she started second guessing everything Neia had said to her for months, looking for hidden meanings, signs, indications that she was thinking of or even planning out how to end her life. Now with the benefit of hindsight she could see, she thought, more clearly. The almost desperate sexual embrace, the heavy drinking, the frenzy of excess in her attempts at finding or expressing happiness of any kind. It all masked what lay beneath, what was truly going on. Now with Neia's near death at her own hand, the mask was taken off, and wave after wave of guilt washed over Skana's soul.
She remembered the Sorcerer King's words, that 'she hadn't failed' her wife, but for all her trust in his majesty, even he could not wipe away how she felt.
...Illyana's House…
Neia sat on the grass and stretched out her legs, it was exactly as the elven nurse had said, a paradise. Everything was heavenly, she felt almost completely at peace. There were others in the same area, but they too were lost in their own thoughts. Some lay on the grass, clearly asleep, some had their heads in the lap of a young woman, others she saw were being… of all things, 'cuddled' by small pups.
Neia however, was comfortable alone, and let herself get lost in the scenery, nothing was going to disturb her in this place, not even her memories. She was so lost in the moment that she didn't feel time slip by, nor did the top tier fighter even notice the approach of Pestonya, who had the sense to walk the long way around and appear in front of her.
Neia saw the dog woman approach, she'd seen her before, and she'd heard of her work on the orphanages in Re-Estize, and as such this had favorably disposed Neia towards the odd looking woman before they officially met. Still, she didn't feel the need to say anything yet.
Pestonya however, was another matter. She crouched down near to Neia, staying just a little to the left of her so as not to obstruct the warrior woman's view. "You are well here? Comfortable? -woof"
Neia nodded a little anxiously. "Yes, thank you… this is so wonderful, I really have no words…" She trailed off.
"I'm glad, and you're welcome, you have done so much for my lord, I wish I could do more for you. -woof." Pestonya replied.
Neia didn't deny it, she was no fan of false modesty and was not unaware of her own significance to the course of events, even if she had trouble sometimes accepting it.
"I did what had to be done." She replied softly.
"I know. -woof" Pestonya said.
"I." Neia began, then stopped cold.
Pestonya moved to sit beside her.
"Would you like to lie down? -woof" Pestonya asked and tapped her lap gently.
Neia blushed. "I… I've never lain like that except with my wife." She said.
Pestonya's lips did not move like a human's would, but Neia could feel the gentle smile in her demeanor.
"It'll be alright, I just want you to be comfortable. -woof" Pestonya replied.
Neia was reluctant, but slowly laid herself down on her side and rested her head on Pestonya's thigh. The dog woman gently stroked her hair and face but said nothing.
"Her house is… truly beautiful." Neia said softly, repeating her earlier praise.
"As it should be. -woof." Pestonya replied. "Can you tell me about her? -woof"
Neia was silent for a long time. "I should have killed her." Neia said at last.
She didn't feel any judgement coming off of the dog woman at her brutal words, and after a while she felt comfortable enough to say more. "She asked me to, us to do it. Begged for us to kill her even. Got down on her knees and begged us to kill her." Neia said softly. "CZ took out her weapon, she put it to Illyana's head, she was about to use it. I stopped her. I stopped CZ from killing Illyana." Neia's voice cracked and she couldn't see through her blurry eyes.
"I thought I could do anything, endure anything, I promised her a future that she'd fall in love with, that she'd have a life, I promised her that… I promised her and came up with a plan so that she wouldn't suffer anymore until we could spring the escape. Everything was going to work out. Instead… instead… instead…" Neia trailed off and as Pestonya drew her arms around the legendary woman's head and drew her close, all Neia could do was bury her face in the folds of cloth and embrace and soak it in her wet remorse and regret.
It would be a long time before Pestonya said a word.
AN: -End Chapter-(Thoughts?)