Chronicles of Espiria Season 2
Episode 16 – The Mystery of the Monastery
Written by the Dude
A teenage Path of Ascension nun walked through the halls of the Temple of Ascension in Ranhorn with tears in her eyes. She sought out the Grand Priest, for she had news that needed his immediate attention. She knocked on the door of his personal study; as she waited for an answer, she heard the sound of a chair scooting across a hard wood floor, just before the Grand Priest opened the door.
"Sister Belinda? What brings you here?"
He quickly noted that she had been crying.
"You look distraught, my child. Come and sit."
Belinda took a seat opposite the Grand Priest. A thick book lay in her lap as she collected her thoughts. She noted that the floor of the study was carpeted from wall to wall and wondered where the wood scraping sound might have come from, but that was a puzzle for another day; she had greater concerns on her mind.
"Your Grace, I have grievous news concerning the Path of Ascension. I fear that they have abandoned the principles of Dura and have engaged in heretical murder."
"That is a serious accusation to make against your sisters." the Grand Priest responded, his tone as serious as the accusation. "Do you have proof?"
Belinda handed him the book in her lap.
"This is a copy of the reports on their most recent heresy investigations, going back at least six months. The Celestials alone know where more such records might be."
The Grand Priest flipped through the volume, stopping partway in to read one record more closely.
"As you can see, there was barely any investigation at all; the inquisitor had drawn a conclusion before ever setting foot in the home of the accused."
Halfway through reading the report, the Grand Priest turned pale. Belinda continued to make her case, but he barely heard her.
"Have you shown this to anyone else?" he asked without looking up.
"No. I confronted Mother Cecilia on this matter, but you are the only other person I've shown this to."
"You did the right thing, my child." he said as he closed the book. "Let me handle this from here. I will summon you if I have further need of you in this matter."
"Yes, your Grace."
Belinda stood and turned to leave, but before she left, the Grand Priest laid a hand on her shoulder.
"Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I'm just sorry that it had to be you who discovered this."
Belinda looked back with a half smile. "You could not have known, your Grace. The Path deceived us all."
Belinda left the Grand Priest alone. He continued to thumb through the book as the wall behind him slid to the side with the sound of a chair scooting across a hard wood floor, allowing a Path of Ascension monk to enter.
"Did you hear all that, Godric?
"I did." Father Godric said. "Did she mention Mother Cecilia?"
"She did."
Father Godric sighed in frustration. "She's only recently been appointed Mother Superior of her convent, and this happens. We're lucky the girl came directly to you."
"Nothing stops her from making more copies! I approved half of these investigations myself, you know! If anyone else were to find out about this..."
"No one else will, your Grace. I will see to it that Belinda and Cecilia are adequately silenced."
The Grand Priest recognized the murderous tone. "Do not harm Belinda, Godric! Athalia will not condone the killing of an innocent, even if she risks the Path!"
"If you insist, your Grace." Father Godric thought for a moment. "Belinda has your full confidence, I assume?"
"She trusts me implicitly, as all priests should."
Father Godric wore a wry smile. "Then if you were to tell her that this matter was out of your hands, that the Path of Ascension enjoys royal protection, she would believe you, correct?"
"I suppose, unless she already knows better, but the Path...wait, you want me to lie to her?"
"Either that, or..." Father Godric drew a long stiletto knife from a hidden sheath in his robes.
Later that day, Belinda was off alone in a secluded section of the Temple grounds, standing before a small fire; she was dressed in her temple initiate robes, her Path of Ascension robes crumpled in a ball in her hands. She dropped the Path robes unceremoniously into the fire and watched as they burned.
"There will be justice, Mother Cecilia. Athalia will see to it. Pray that your harbinger is a servant of the king, for Athalia will not be as merciful."
Much changed for Belinda in the following years. She no longer wished harm on Cecilia, instead praying daily for her repentance and that of the rest of the Path. After the fall of the Barred Gate, the King and the Grand Priest often tasked her with inspecting the monasteries and convents of the Path to ensure that they continued to produce strong warriors for Athalia to use against the Hypogean invaders. On this day, she and Lucius were headed toward the monastery of Father Godric to do just that.
"I imagine this inspection will be like your inspection of Cecilia's convent." Lucius observed.
"Similar, but as a woman, I will have limited access to the monastic grounds, just as your access to the convent was limited. It will be up to you to inspect areas forbidden to me."
"I will do my best." Lucius said proudly.
Belinda smiled at Lucius as the monastery came into view. "Do you know Father Godric?"
"Not personally. I fought alongside his monks a few weeks ago when I was with Commander Hogan. They were quite formidable, so I expect them to pass our inspection easily."
"That will be nice, being able to leave early. I've never enjoyed being around Path of Ascension monks, even when I lived at the convent; they always made me uneasy."
"Speaking of uneasy, do you hear anything?" Lucius asked as he scanned his surroundings.
Belinda listened a moment. "Not a thing," she said as she tightened her grip on her staff. "Not even birds chirping."
As they drew closer to the monastery, Lucius knelt down in the grass, examining something hidden underneath.
"Blood."
He stood back up and readied his poleaxe and shield. They carefully entered the monastery, on guard for any sign of Hypogean activity.
The inside was as devoid of life as the outside. No monks walked the halls singing their songs of glorious justice, nor were they seated at tables studying tomes of doctrine. Weapons were strewn about the floor haphazardly, each covered in a black fluid that Lucius recognized from his service with Commander Hogan.
"Hypogean blood."
"This is wrong." Belinda observed. "What in Dura's name happened here?"
"Nothing good." Lucius answered as he stood back up.
As they continued to search the monastery, all they came across was more stained blades and some occasional spatters of human blood. Belinda paid little mind to the blood spatters; such was expected in a monastery of the Path. What was unexpected was the curious red mound near the stairs to the second floor; it emitted a horrid stench and filled the two priests with dread. They did not linger to investigate the mound, but instead climbed the stairs to the second floor.
The second floor was almost as unkempt as the first. Books and papers and various cleaning supplies were scattered as if they had been set down or tossed aside in a hurry. No weapons were found on the floor, blood stained or otherwise, and little blood of any sort was found up here. Unfortunately, no sign of the monks was found either.
Their luck improved greatly when they reached the third floor. As they passed the library, Belinda heard muffled whispers from beyond the door. She tried the doorknob, but found it locked. Lucius proceeded to cut the lock free and kick in the door, hoping to find the monks, but ready for their killers if he found them. As the door slammed open, a number of young voices cried out in fear at once.
"Brother Jeremy, you're so jumpy!"
"Says you! You squeaked like a girl!"
Four young boys and one adult stared back at Belinda and Lucius, their looks of fear turning to relief as they recognized their priestly attire. The adult and three teenagers were dressed in Path of Ascension robes, while the fourth wore the robes of a Temple initiate. Lucius remembered fighting alongside the adult in the group, recalling that his name was Brother Anthony. The boys spoke in loud whispers as Belinda and Lucius took in the scene.
"It's a girl!"
"I thought women weren't allowed in here!"
"Who's left to stop her? Besides, she's a priest; she might be able to help us."
"How? She's a girl!"
"So is Mother Cecilia, and she made you wet your pants."
"Did not!"
Belinda knelt next to the whispering boys and asked, "Are you all okay?"
"We're alive and uninjured, if that's what you mean." the initiate answered.
"What happened here?" Lucius asked.
"A Hypogean." Brother Anthony answered. "One unlike anything any of us have seen before. No amount of stabbing and slashing seemed to injure it. Not even the divine magic of our most powerful monks could slow it down. Father Godric was battling it with our most elite assassins when Brother Edward pulled us all in here."
"None of us are as powerful as Father Godric or as skilled with a blade as the elite assassins," Brother Edward, the initiate, continued. "But I thought if we could find something about the Hypogean in here, we may discover a weakness that would allow us to fight back."
"How long have you been in here?" Belinda asked.
"A few hours, maybe." Anthony answered. "And in all that time, we have yet to find anything more than a name: Mezoth."
"Then we must get you out of here." Lucius concluded. " If we can get you to Ranhorn, you can describe this Mezoth in detail to the researchers at the temple. Maybe they can find something more about it."
"Of course." Anthony said as he stood up. "Have you searched the monastery for any other survivors?"
"Unfortunately, you five are the only people we've found." Belinda answered.
The group carefully made their way back to the entrance to the monastery, ever watchful for the fiend behind the attack. Anthony paused a moment as they passed the red mound.
"Do you know what this is?" Lucius asked.
"No. It was not here when we hid in the library. I suspect it was left by the Hypogean."
"Lucius, put a binding spell on it for now." Belinda advised. "The temple researchers may be able to gather clues from it."
Lucius stayed behind to cast his binding spell, intending to catch up to the group once he was done. When the rest made it outside, all were surprised to find a noblewoman climbing out of a horse-drawn coach. Belinda was even more surprised when she recognized the noblewoman.
"Elizabeth Oakenfell?!"
Lady Oakenfell looked up, confused by the use of her given name, and was equally shocked to find Belinda on the monastic grounds.
"Belinda Augustin?! What are you doing here?!"
"I wondered the same about you!"
The other door to the coach was thrown open and a young teenage girl hopped out. She looked around until she spotted Belinda and started running to her.
"Belinda!" the girl shouted as she jumped into Belinda's arms.
"Rosaline, it's good to see you again!" Belinda looked back up at Lady Oakenfell. "What brings you two here?"
"Remember how Lady Oakenfell promised to find Matthew for me when you brought me to her?"
"I do remember that."
"Well, she found him! He's living with us again!"
"I'm glad to hear that!" Belinda said, excited to hear a happy ending to Rosaline's story, but still concerned that the monastery was not a safe place for their conversation. "But I still do not see what brings you here."
"Well, Matthew had a friend here named Edward, and Lady Oakenfell thought it would be a nice surprise to bring him home for a visit!"
"Really? You're Brother Matthew's sister?" Edward said, surprised.
"Are you Edward?" Rosaline asked, even more excited.
"Well, I'm certainly glad you found each other," Lucius interjected as he caught up to the group, "but we need to get out of here."
"Why? What's wrong?"
A loud, raspy roar cut through the unnatural silence of the monastic grounds.
"That's what!" Anthony shouted as he pointed toward the source of the roar.
The abomination Mezoth had the vague appearance of a man covered in fatty and muscular cancers. Its belly waggled before it like a grotesque tongue. Its four arms and two legs were enormous, and two of the arms held intimidating weapons: a huge sword shaped like a butcher's knife and a cruel looking trident. It wore a thick iron helmet on its inordinately small head, through which it surveyed the scene before letting out another roar. Lady Oakenfell nearly vomited when she noticed that the creature's mouth was not in its head, but in its belly.
"Elizabeth, get the children out of here!" Belinda shouted.
"But what about you?" Lady Oakenfell called back.
"Get the children to safety! Do not stop until you are behind the walls of Ranhorn!"
Lady Oakenfell hesitated a moment before grabbing Rosaline and Edward by the hand and shepherding the other young monks toward the coach. Belinda stood between them and Mezoth, Lucius and Anthony on either side. The creature seemed to focus its gaze on Belinda; as it stared, it grumbled a single word.
"Wellspring..."
Mezoth slowly stalked forward, drool dripping from its enormous mouth. Belinda and Lucius both unleashed bolts of holy lightning at the creature, both attacks striking it square in the chest; while the creature roared in pain as the flesh on its chest was scorched, it did not slow its pace. Belinda glanced back to see if Lady Oakenfell was gone yet; to her relief, she was just climbing into the coach. The three priests had only to delay the creature a bit longer and Lady Oakenfell and her passengers would be safely away.
"You will pay for your sins against the Path today, demon!" Anthony shouted as he drew a pair of blades shaped like falcon claws and charged at the creature. He drove the blades into the creature's chest, intending to open the chest and finish it quickly. Unfortunately, he rested his feet on the creature's belly, forgetting that its mouth was housed there. It opened its mouth and wrapped its tongue around Anthony, drawing him into its mouth. With little warning, it bit down hard, cutting Anthony in half at the waist. It then used its trident to pick up the severed torso and popped it into its mouth as well, leaving no trace of poor Anthony behind except a small pool of blood. Through it all, the creature did not slow its advance.
Having finished its meal, the creature noticed that Lady Oakenfell's coach was about to leave. It cast its trident at the coach, impaling one of the horses and frightening the other enough to make it break its yoke and escape. The coach was going nowhere. Lady Oakenfell climbed back out and gathered the children near the coach to make sure no one was injured.
As Belinda continued to assail Mezoth with orbs of Light and holy lightning, Lucius charged the creature himself with poleaxe raised. One swipe of his poleaxe had cleaved Hypogean ogres in half before, but this creature was so massive that the poleaxe barely sliced through its thick hide. He raised a holy shield to block a retaliatory slash from the creature's sword; this blow shattered the barrier and threw Lucius halfway between the creature and the coach. Through it all, Mezoth did not slow its advance.
Belinda continued to assault the creature, aware that it was steadily drawing closer, but knowing full well what would happen if she failed to stop it. Soon, it was close enough that it reached out for her; Belinda ducked out of its grasp and tried to stab it with the bottom of her staff. This in itself had no noticeable effect, until she passed holy lightning through it into Mezoth's body. It finally halted its advance as it convulsed and roared in pain, but this only lasted a moment until the creature pulled out the staff and got its hands on Belinda. With little warning, the creature threw Belinda into its mouth, swallowing her and her staff whole.
"Belinda!" Lucius shouted as he got back up.
He rushed at Mezoth, prepared to cut Belinda out of its belly if necessary. His swipe at the creature was blocked by its sword. Lucius raised his shield again, but this time the creature struck with enough force to cut the physical shield nearly in half, throwing Lucius off balance with the blow. It grabbed Lucius by the throat and was about to feast on him as well, when it suddenly froze. A loud, aromatic belch escaped from the creature as it dropped Lucius. He backed away and watched carefully as Mezoth continued to show signs of distress. Soon, it began to convulse violently, falling to its knees as its flesh began to boil. Finally, with one last roar of agony, it exploded in a flash of white light, a purple smoke scattering with the parts of the creature.
In the center of the flash, Lucius thought for a moment that he saw the divine silhouette of Dura herself; as the blinding light faded, however, the silhouette was revealed to be Belinda, covered from head to toe in the creature's entrails, a look of disgust and mortification on her face as she clung to her staff.
"Belinda!" Lucius shouted as he, Lady Oakenfell, and Rosaline ran to her. Seeing them all coming, she raised a hand to warn them all to keep their distance.
"Don't...touch me...you...don't know...where I've been..."
"Are you all right?" Lady Oakenfell asked, worried about her friend.
"I just...really need a bath. Like, right now. Probably more than one. With all the soap you can find."
On the other side of Lightbearer territory, Commander Kane stood on a hill overlooking a village, watching with subdued delight as the townsfolk turned and murdered each other in a mad battle. Watching Mehira work was one of his great pleasures, and the Mindcager was in rare form this day. His enjoyment of the spectacle was interrupted when a cloud of purple smoke slammed into a small wooden figure tied to his belt. Kane took the now-glowing figure and held it to his mouth, speaking to it as if through a microphone.
"I see you were defeated, Mezoth."
"..."
"Clearly you did not wipe out the monks at the monastery, or your host would not have been killed by one."
"..."
"What? Priests from Ranhorn? You allowed someone outside the monastery to see you?!"
"..."
"They had better be ignorant of your true nature! If they discover that your essence is housed in this figure..."
"..."
"What good news could possibly make up for this failure?!"
"..."
Kane's fury instantly melted into interest. "The Wellspring, you say? This does make up for your failure. Tell me where it can be found."
Later that day, Belinda was in the middle of her final bath when Lady Oakenfell announced herself and entered, being careful to keep the curtain between herself and Belinda. She was carrying a Path of Ascension nun's robes.
"We searched the whole monastery; I'm afraid this is all we could find for you."
Belinda peeked around the curtain and tensed at the mere sight of the robes. "I appreciate your effort, but I think I'd rather wear Lucius' armor than that."
"Careful; he might find that fetching." Lady Oakenfell responded with a wry smile.
Belinda merely smiled and rolled her eyes as her face vanished behind the curtain again.
"But seriously, Belinda, unless you want to wear a man's Path robes, it's either this or the dress you came in with, and I don't think that one will ever be clean again."
Belinda thought for a moment, then sighed in resignation. "Lay it on the stool by the curtain. Where did you find it, anyway? I honestly wasn't sure you would find women's clothing here."
"Believe it or not, it was in a locked cabinet in Father Godric's study."
"What?!" Belinda shouted, peeking around the curtain again. "What in Dura's name was he doing with a nun's robes? No, on second thought, I don't want to know."
Belinda disappeared behind the curtain again. There was a moment of silence before Lady Oakenfell spoke again.
"I've no way to properly thank you for what you and Lucius did out there. If anything had happened to Rosaline..."
"You and your household are precious to me." Belinda interrupted. "I'm just sorry that I've allowed my duties to the church and to this war to keep me from visiting you as much as I would like. I miss being your friend, and I miss watching Rosaline grow and mature." A wry smile formed on her lips as she peeked around the curtain again. "And I miss most of all correcting your teachings about the Light."
"I look forward to seeing you try again," Lady Oakenfell replied, joking defiance in her voice. "My teachings are based entirely on logic and reason, and nothing can overcome that."
"Challenge accepted." Belinda said. "And in all seriousness, if you ever need my help for any reason, do not hesitate to ask."
"I'll remember that." Lady Oakenfell replied. She then turned to leave as she said, "I'll give you some privacy while you dress."