Political Matters of Religion

It ended up being several hours of questioning. King Solan wanted as much information and as many details as he could get from the traitors - as much to understand what all they had done as to confirm that Ahsch's claim of binding their words to truth was correct. After all, there was a possibility, however slight it may be, that the Dominant Mage was simply using some form of mind magic to force the two royals and the inquisitor to say whatever he wanted - the fact that the King interspersed random questions about the three's lives, duties, and previous acts - some of which Ahsch was vaguely familiar with, others of which he had no idea what they were talking about - indicated that the King was checking to see if the hrafthi was puppeteering or not.

Unfortunately, the truth that the High Cleric of the Church of Irzton knew was that if the Church had a Godslayer in its possession, he was unaware of it. Though he was unable to deny the likelihood that the Church had lied about not having one.

In the end, Byrdrek and Fauna admitted that they were in the early stages of orchestrating a coup - the very early stages, as the first move had been the assassination of Kirasiel's father and elder brothers. From there, the plan had been to play a long game, including their latest plan to force either Kirasiel to marry Byrdrek, or eliminate her and do the same with Stella. Once they'd forced either of the Celes girls to give birth to a boy, they would have been removed, and the child groomed to obey Byrdrek and Fauna, allowing them to gain even greater control over the house.

As devout members of the Church of Irzton - and royals who donated generously (a fancy way of saying 'bribe regularly,' as far as Ahsch was concerned) - they were able to call in favors from the Church, including applying greater pressure than usual to the newly-founded Order of Enochiel, as they knew that Ahsch and Kirasiel were, in some way shape or form, involved with each other. Hence the veiled 'warning' Fauna had given the hrafthi at the Royal Ball. Then, when Kirasiel had gone to them, panicking over Ahsch's commands, she had revealed a few pieces of knowledge, including his professed immunity to death from living people, and his divine nature - though she hadn't outright stated he was a god-to-be. It was at that point that they had requested 'something capable of slaying the divine' from the Church - alongside a sizeable bribe, as well as revealing what they knew of Ahsch to the Bishop of the Church - and received the pin-like object that Ahsch now knew was the Godslayer. After that, they re-hired the assassins they had used to kill Kirasiel's family, used their influence within House Celes to send a messenger to Ahsch in Kirasiel's name, and had him killed.

As Kirasiel had said during the investigation, the inquisitor - who was also a devout Irztonite - had been bought by the two traitorous nobles, and did not reveal their part in the murder, didn't note the injury caused by the Godslayer, and threatened the Head of House Celes during her questioning. The inquisitor also admitted to not properly investigating the Celes murders almost a year earlier, though she had only been assisting in that investigation.

It wasn't only those guilty of treason who were questioned, as King Solan also spoke at length with Ahsch and others in his group - mainly Kirasiel and Avery, and Ahsch, reluctantly bound all of their words for the duration to Truth as well, though only after he warned them through Daydreamweave.

In the end, King Solan sat back for several long moments before he looked at Byrdrek, Fauna, and Inquisitor Jarsi. "The three of you shall be confined in the dungeon until such time as a proper inquisition can be conducted. A royal hearing shall be held before your peers, and We expect that, barring the discovery of extensive evidence that exonerates you, you shall be executed shortly after for high treason." With a gesture, the doors opened, and a small platoon of guards marched in, magic-binding shackles at hand. Byrdrek and Inquisitor Jarsi quietly - and Heart Sight confirmed, fearfully - allowed themselves to be shackled, but Fauna immediately began screaming, vacillating between pleas for mercy and obscenities directed at Ahsch and Avery. Ahsch kept an eye on his wife, who resolutely glared at the floor, and did a remarkable job of keeping the veritable hurricane of emotions from showing.

Once the three had been taken away, Ahsch turned back to the King. "We believe you had a second matter to discuss, Lord Ahsch Odestag?"

The hrafthi nodded. "Yes, Your Grace. As I mentioned earlier, I am considered the Prophet of Enochiel, and am the founder of the Order of Enochiel. It has come to my attention that in the course of my seven-month absence, the Order of Orror and the Church of Irzton have begun to... shall we say, 'intimidate' and 'pressure' the faithful of Enochiel, including threatening their freedom, making extraneous accusations of criminal activities, refusing service, and more. While I understand that some of the teachings of Enochiel run counter to the local spirit of Orrorist and Irztonite belief, upon review of their literature, I was unable to find anything that is explicitly contrary to the teachings of either god. Furthermore, it is my humble belief that the role of religious figures is that of guides and advisors, not... bullies."

The King's gaze flicked up to the Irztonite Cleric. "Do you have a response for these allegations?"

The man cleared his throat. "We are aware of the protests that the Order of Enochiel has give over our conduct; however, there is nothing that forbids any of the religions of the Kingdom of Starlight from refusing to provide their services. Furthermore, as far as I am aware, our Clerics have not made wildly false allegations against any citizens of the Kingdom."

Ahsch's jaw clenched, but he forced an amicable smile to his face. "Cleric, have you or any of your peers ever walked within 50 feet of a loaded, docked cargo boat in the noble's quarter?" As he asked the question, he bound the cleric's words to truth.

The man blinked. "I... suppose I must have, as the streets there are not wider than 50 feet and I have walked past docked, loaded cargo boats. Why?"

"Are you aware that doing so is technically a criminal act, as established back in the founding of the Kingdom when the Capital was still mainly a lakeside and river-borne trading hub? Are you further aware that the law was never struck from the books, nor was it ever amended, despite the fact that those cargo boats do not dock very far from the paths as they did centuries ago, and - as you pointed out - the streets are not wider than 50 feet?"

It was the cleric's turn to clench his jaw. "I... was not aware."

"If you insist on threatening those whose only sin is worshiping a god who lacks your... conservative views of pleasure and what one is allowed to do with their own body - especially when doing so when their only 'crimes' are such minor or outdated ones that the laws are not even enforced - then my only request is that you also consider waylaying every other citizen of the Capital who has committed these crimes. Should you need a refresher, I have a list of several hundred instances, as provided by the worshipers of Enochiel."

The cleric was quiet for a moment. "I will... pass on your request to my superiors, Lord Odestag," he said, extending a hand for the papers.

Ahsch nodded, handing over the list. He then turned back to the King. "While I will not ask for revisions of the laws, nor for any special treatment for either the Order of Enochiel or our faithful, what I do ask for is consistency and the condemnation of hypocrisy. Most services performed by the various religions of the Kingdom of Starlight are a matter of public record, including whom the services are performed for. Irztonite clerics have served as legal counsel for both plaintiff and defendant, for the state, the individual, and the business. Orrorist priests have wed criminals who have served their sentences, including a wedding of particular note between two felons who were executed only hours after their marriage. These services are further granted to worshipers of Utsus, Kakais, Bikulla, and Krutune, even if the individual in question does not worship either Irzton or Orror.

"Such behavior is, in my opinion, exceedingly childish considering that, as I stated before, none of Enochiel's teachings contradict the teachings of Irzton or Orror, nor does Enochiel demand or request that his worshipers restrict themselves to worship him alone, nor him above any others. Their only valid complaint is that they dislike some of his teachings, and are upset that others are drawn to those same teachings. As I am sure the representatives of Utsus, Kakais, and Bikulla can agree, the purview of providing guidance, support, and advice for those who seek it is not the place for such petty squabbles over who is more popular."

In a show of support, A'uro, the Shepherd, and Marus all stepped forward around Ahsch. King Solan gazed at the four of them for a long moment, then at the Irztonite Cleric. "The laws of Our Kingdom are not a weapon to be wielded against its people. We encourage you to remind your superiors of that fact, in advance of the message We will have delivered to them. Furthermore, We find myself in agreement with your four peers here: matters of faith are not a political field. Discrimination against the faithful of any other religion that has been sanctioned by the royalty of the Kingdom may soon find itself on the wrong side of Our law. Perhaps you or your superiors would care to pass on that warning to the Order of Orror - again, in advance of the warning We will send."

The cleric bowed deeply. "Of course, Your Grace. I will pass on your words faithfully."

"See that you do. You may go." Silence reigned in the chamber until the Irztonite had left, leaving only Ahsch's party. "Which leaves the final matter of this audience. Lord Ahsch Odestag: you were to explain yourself to Us."

Ahsch bowed. "Yes, Your Grace. And please be assured, the words I speak are bound to truth, as I speak with the voice of Enochiel." There was a collective intake of breath from the King, Queens, as well as A'uro and Marus, as the gnosis in Ahsch's words were felt by all. "In short: I am not merely the Prophet of Enochiel, a mortal chosen to bring his word to those who will listen. I am Enochiel, or rather, a mortal who shall become him in time. Part of that which allows me to become a god also allows me to reincarnate - I will warn you all right now, my reincarnations are infinite, as far as I am aware, and I have or will come into possession of methods to return to the Kingdom regardless of where or when I reincarnate. I also assure you all that I have no ill will towards any here, and will only act with the severity and decisiveness demonstrated today should that which is precious to me be threatened. My only request is that all present give their bonded word to keep this secret."