TRIBUNAL

[Equusheart]

Anahita nodded her head at the novice's words, though she made a mental note to check up on her later. Reached up a hand to gently brush the girl's check with the back of her hand in a gesture that seemed almost motherly. Turning away, Anahita moved to finally stand next to Meti.

"Well, this certainly is a mess we've found ourselves in isn't it," she said in a low hushed tone so not to disturb the silence.

 

[Dov]

The quiet is good, the quiet is what is needed to progress with a clear mind. Inside the temple is loud with rot and misery, and the novice has been engulfed in it for an uncomfortable amount of time. Chaundra takes a moment to absorb the quiet as a replenishing thing, and tries to convey the action to the novice as well as she takes a deep breath of the fresh, unfettered air of early morning. She takes on the stillness of one in control of themself, becoming a mannequin with her mask on.
"It was perhaps too much to ask of you, in the presence of the carnage, to describe your experience. That is understandable. Take what time you need to clear your mind of thoughts that muddle your recollection. As in meditations, find your center and see truth clearly as you are able. Describe it to me in as much detail as you are able," Chaundra instructs with the tone of a gamelan.

 

[dae mec]

Meti feels obligated to stay in the temple until the ghost is put to rest; she wants to know the results when they're fresh. (Well. Perhaps fresh is the wrong choice of words.) She notices Chaundra and the novice leave the temple, and internal tension releases while she remains externally still. That tension eases further when Anahita comes to stand next to her.

Since the novice is gone and there seems to be a lull with the ghost, Meti answers with little delay—though equally quietly. "It certainly is." She lets out a soft sigh. "Any luck with your investigation?"

 

[Grey]

Outside

The novice breathes. She closes her eyes. She lets the sun wash her face as if some darkness still clings to her.
"Thank you, holy Spinner. I-I think I can talk now."

She explains, haltingly, how she arrived late - just as the sun cracked the horizon. The cicadas fled the temple as she set foot on the lowest step, a faintly glittering green cloud that split apart and went into every sister temple in the city. How she heard breaking inside the temple, as if there was thrashing and vandalism.
How she slowly climbed the steps and saw the slumped figure before the altar, how she ran to her mentor and put a hand on her shoulder.
How she lit a lantern and saw the blood, and screamed.
And then the Wardens came, as locals reported the scream.

And you almost see all this, too - following the threads of Fate with your sight-beyond-sight, the ghostly traceries of every moment and the moments that could have been.
The tapestry of Fate, laid out before you with just a little focus, and-
Something is wrong. The strands do not lead, neatly and properly, to the murderer. You cannot find the murderer's thread.
Somehow they are outside of fate. A dark presence perceptible only in its absence, in the way it deforms threads around it.

 

[Dov]

Behind her mask, Chaundra's gifted eyes flicker to follow the past and present simultaneously. She blinks in an effort to clear her sight of the blind spot in fate. She has never seen anything like this before, never heard of such a thing from any mentors, nor read of it in any texts. She feels the unfamiliar coldness of the unknown fill her gut and chill her spine. The mask hides the way her face pales with the chill. The novice is waiting for her answer though. Chaundra has now seen the events second-hand, she cannot think of a reason for her sisters to further interrogate the novice. Chaundra can call upon the memory of what the threads showed her if they have questions. She thought it unwise to put too much more pressure on the novice's mind.
"Thank you, you have been a great help. I must convene with my sisters. Take time to meditate and pray, do what you must to heal your mind first and foremost," she instructs of her informant. "You may go," she dismisses.

 

[Equusheart]

Anahita gave a soft sigh and shook her head.

"Only that she was stabbed multiple times," she answered. "From what I could tell the wounds were made a cutting tool of some sort, I think. Though it didn't seem like it was very sharp. Who knows what it could've been."

dae mec (sorry it's short)

 

[Random Word]

As the novice is dismissed, Ceda turns her head to slowly exhale a cloud of smoke to the side as she steps forward. "Your Eminence," she bows her head respectfully, "The night spied something slinking through the alleys, and though it smelled of spirits and the sea, it was of neither. I am tracking its scent as we speak, and will inform you where its trail ends."

She glances up at Chaundra's mask, then pointedly at her palanquin, then back to Chaundra, "May I be of further service?" she inquires, archly. Deducing the silent if not, I'm going back to sleep is left as an exercise for the listener. Bonus points would be awarded for spotting the what did you expect, summoning me at this uncivilized hour? coyly concealing itself in the subtext.

 

[Ghosts_and_stars]

The ghost's request catches Pearl's attention. "Of course, may you rest peacefully. If you shall need assistance crossing over, I am here to guide you" . She nodded her head slowly and maintained a soft gaze in the ghost's direction.

 

[Grey]

The ghost requires a little effort to send on - unusual, since normally their god would have claimed them when they died.
What could be shackling them to their corpse like this? What could be hiding them from the gaze of their god?

It hardly matters now; you exercise enough power to open the way.
You alone witness the becoming - the moment the ghost sheds their human form in crossing over to the domain of Jade Cicada; the shining wings that sprout from their back, the scintillant green carapace their covers their flesh, and further changes you miss as they travel beyond where you are permitted to see.

 

[Ghosts_and_stars]

Witnessing the becoming brings great relief to Pearl. As perplexed as she was the spectacle, she decided that now was not the time to get lost in her thoughts. She said a short prayer to herself, wishing the ghost well on the rest of her journey. Pearl gathers the small bowl she used to burn the incense and put it away. She approaches Meti and Anahita as she overhears them discussing the scene. "From what I can tell, it looks like the wound was made by claws or bone tools... The ribs and the heart appear to be missing too..." She added and pondered her thoughts for a moment. "Must have been someone very strong...and powerful. I have never seen a ghost to carry the same wounds before. "

 

[Dov]

"Why yes, thank you for offering," Chaundra replies without warmth. "Please gather the others so we can all discuss what we learned and our individual plans of action," she instructs, just to give Ceda something to do, given that she is so clearly interested in lending a hand. "We will convene just there," she adds, pointing one elegant finger at a shaded area near the temple, but away from the bustle of the investigation.

 

[Random Word]

Ceda bows more deeply than strictly necessary, "At once, your Eminence." She spins on her heel and strides into the temple. Not even so much as a, 'Thank you for being so amazing, Ceda'. Or an, 'It's so impressive that you're already on the trail of a suspect, Ceda'. Well, she's not the only one who can see the future, and hers doesn't involve any more favours from me. She smiles just a little bit too widely as she raises her hands above her head and claps twice, the sound unnaturally loud and seeming to originate more from her shadow than her. "The Fates will a meeting, honoured sisters, and who are we to deny them?"

She turns on her heel again and saunters to the indicated area. She catches Isa's eye and gestures towards the shady copse, prompting a sudden flurry of activity as a picnic blanket, cushions, and light refreshments suitable for half a dozen are delivered and arranged just in time for Ceda to recline in comfort as soon as she arrives. She yawns, stretches, samples an olive, and then lets her eyes flutter closed as she waits for the august assemblage to assemble.

 

[Equusheart]

Anahita looked up at Pearl as she spoke, her frown deepening. This didn't sound like any ordinary murder, or even that done out of rage. This was something different entirely. And it worried Anahita. Who could be strong enough to leave wounds on not just the Priest's body, but on her ghost as well?

"Are we looking for a male then?" Anahita asked aloud, the words leaving her mouth before she could stop them. She lifted an apologetic hand and waved them away.

"Forgive me, I was simply thinking out loud." Anahita sighed as her mind spun. "It worries me. Why would someone murder a Priest? And why would they take the heart and ribs? For what purpose...?" Anahita's words trailed off, unable to come to a conclusion herself.

 

[dae mec]

She sees Pearl approach and gives her a short nod in greeting. Meti doesn't frown at her addition, but she tucks away the information as yet another reason to be troubled. Though the matter of ghosts is not one she has much experience in, she can certainly say that this case strikes her as also unusual. (The consequences of murder are more her expertise, so she can at least take comfort in the routine.)

"The altar was intentionally desecrated," says Meti to both Pearl and Anahita. "For whatever reason the criminal did so... perhaps it required a certain method of violence."

Meti's eyes flicker to the sudden activity by the copse, and it only takes a second to see that Ceda and Chaundra were there (or on their way). "Let’s not speak too deeply of the matter. We will have to repeat ourselves regardless," she says quietly. "It seems that the five of us will be meeting there.” Meti gestures to the copse before making her way to it.

The luxuries displayed—and Ceda’s lounging personage—don’t draw a visible reaction from her. She sits down in a smooth movement, her back straight, legs crossed, and rests her hands on her knees. Meti is used to stillness. Waiting is no hardship. A part of her, however, wonders whether it would be inappropriate to take a refreshment afterwards.

 

[Grey]

Shortly you're all gathered in the shade and provisioned with refreshments of your choosing, to discuss your findings.

One might expect Chaundra to break the quiet.

 

[Dov]

When the council joins her, she speaks to the group as a whole.

"We have seen in our ways what we can. Let us share our findings and draw conclusions. I spoke to the novice and gleaned information and non-information. Whatever committed these crimes has found some way to hide itself from my sight. It is disturbing, and I shall pray upon it and do what I can to clear my sight. What information have you all gathered?" Chaundra asks of the others. She feels self-conscious about the shortcoming of her power, but her feeling is not betrayed by her voice. Her mask hides any betrayal in her face. It is not their business that her powers have failed her.

 

[dae mec]

Meti is already sitting straight and still, but she shifts a little to signify her acknowledgement. "Sister," she begins, "I investigated the scene of the murder. The wardens reported that no one unusual had returned to the scene of the crime after they arrived. My personal scrutiny of the temple revealed two main details: the altar was intentionally desecrated by violence, but nothing else was stolen or even disturbed."

She adds, "This scene strikes me as different from the murder of the Priest of Whale. The injuries are similar, but that murder struck me as opportunistic, and there was no intentional desecration of shrines or symbols." Meti pauses for a second. "Those are the facts as I know it. I have theories and conjecture, but I shall wait for further information before speculating."

 

[Ghosts_and_stars]

Pearl stirs her tea and takes a sip before speaking. "As I was telling the others briefly before we all gathered, this murder is very odd indeed. I have never seen a ghosts to carry the same wounds as its physical self". She glanced at the others as she put her cup down. She took a deep breath and slowly exhaled before continuing as the image of what she had seen faded from her mind. "The being that commited the atrocity was very strong...it appears to me that whatever or whoever this was, had claws or some kind of bone tools." She lifted her hand to her brow and gently rubbed it. "I think there is something to be said about the importance of the ribs and heart... they are missing... " Pearl appeared to be deep in thought. "I wonder what they will be used for..."