In The Temple of Kaos Ch. 02

The older priest nodded and, voice low, identified himself as Ronin, and the unconscious priestess as Virtue, the other priest as Seraphim, and the youngest as Sanctuary. Wisely, he didn't meet her eyes, out of fear or respect, something Eris privately noted. "We were sent here to meet a spy - one on the inside.

"We don't know their name or their rank... or even what they look like. We were informed that they would meet us at a designated area. That is where we were found."

San, for his part, remained silent, and a scorching glare from Ronin kept his eyes downcast as well.

"I see," said Eris calmly. At this she nodded, glancing just once at Rhamandan, her eyes guarded. What precisely they were guarding was anyone's guess. But she smiled again. "Ah yes. Sometimes vermin do make it up within the ranks. But I find it a good way to insure competitive guards, among others."

She lightly turned the staff in her hands before releasing it, the staff remaining upright as she eyed over the prisoners. "Of course you could have already met this traitor, I imagine, in any of the guards who brought you in, or the lower caste who saw you escorted here. Or perhaps even in this room."

Perhaps that explained the glance to Rhamandan; even he was not above suspicion. Not that he could blame her. "I do suppose I should offer a private interrogation since you four so rudely interrupted my nightly habits. So should I ask who among you five would prefer an interrogation away from your comrades? .....which of you will simper and beg and pray the least, I wonder."

"Don't touch them."

The words, this time, were quiet. San looked at her again, but this time it was not nearly with the heat and hatred as before. This gaze teetered at the edge of pleading. Begging, noted the High Priestess.

Weakness.

He wanted to spare his comrades pain, and even as now Ronin said nothing, didnt even look at the youth.

"Dont...touch them. If it's a victim you want, then take me. Spare them," he repeated, voice soft. "I offer myself."

At this she did glance to the youngest priest; part of her noted the clear change in tone, the quiet fear in his voice. Very well. Perhaps just once she would stay her staff, though the icy air around it was no doubt felt by those chained in the cells.

"I was going to take Ronin since he seems to be able to follow directions so far, very admirable in a priest, but perhaps I can reconsider." She nodded to Rhamandan. "Sanctuary, my earlier words still stand and with considerable weight. Be aware of that because anything you do to displease or anger me from here out will be dealt with not in your flesh, but in your comrades'. I offer that as a forewarning."

And there was no mercy in those eyes, no sense of humanity as she stepped to the youngest priest, a guard opening the cell with barely a look from her; the priest was still well secured, and if he had any hopes of escape, the staff floating slightly behind her, then resting nearly at his side, not quite touching him, likely dashed that. Freezing air there as the priestess herself stepped into the cell, unafraid, her eyes on the emblem on his chest, and likely little training could prepare him for the touch of her fingertips there, then over his mind itself as she reached out mentally. A pre-interrogation, as it seemed!

And that voice was cool inside him. No pain, yet.

~So young and with so much to live for, and you offer yourself as a sacrifice. Tell me, priest, what would you offer to see your comrades survive this? ~

Sanctuary's eyes closed, his jaw clenched, but he remained silent. Perfectly silent. His fists were clenched, the last sign of defiance he gave, more out of fear than actually trying to escape.

Even though there was no pain, he tensed sharply, his heart and chest tight and taut beneath her fingers, trembling very slightly, fully expecting pain at any second.

~Anything... I will do anything to spare them. I offer myself as full tribute to you. Any part of my flesh or soul to spare them.~

A part of flesh. Very Covenant of him. Still, had he proclaimed he would give his entire life, his faith, anything to save them, still, even with soul-reading, she would have doubted his faith in any measure. But this. So be it.

~Perhaps we can strike a deal. I am not an unreasonable woman despite what you have heard. Do as I say and their deaths will be painless. Do as I demand and their lives will be spared and they will be released from here with only memory tampering of the Citadel's location. Thus far, unless you displease me, their deaths will be painless. Cross me and I will change my mind. But I think we can work out a deal in which their lives can be exchanged for your own.~

Hardly unreasonable if she would take his life in place of theirs...hardly a tactical advantage though.

~However I would like to see evidence of this. Though you are very young and I am very skilled, some are still able to lie their way through a soul-reading. If you are released from your bonds and show respect, I will consider your offer fully rather than as a joke or desperate plea for your own life. And we can progress from there.~

And skilled as the priests he had trained under were, very few could send images to the mind, as mirage or otherwise, but this she did, a vague sense of the guards undoing his bonds and he....was to bow before her. Not attack. Not pray. Show respect in such a cruel way as only part of a salvation for his friends. And she waited for his answer, that cruel smile taunting.

His arms lowered as he was released, and at once, his body dipped sharply at the waist, then further to one knee. He bowed to her, lowered himself before her, exposed his back and neck to her, made himself vulnerable, weak, a full target.

For Angel and Virtue finally and muzzily awake, it was not a welcome sight to see.

For a good minute the priestess barely noticed the quivering youth at her feet, instead nodding at the quickly-thinking guard who released him so fast. A small promotion was in this one's future. And only when the guard had resumed his post did she turn her attention to the priest.

His size was interesting to her; likely he was in training to be a paladin or a high guard. Strange if he was fully a standard priest. She had her doubts. A

nd her staff floated back to her side, and for several minutes she let him bow, glancing to each of the three imprisoned before nodding. "Your faith serves you well, Sanctuary. Now on your feet."

She turned a glance to the guards. "Let us see how much he wishes to see his companions survive this in any measure. Take him to my personal interrogation room. Bind him first. Rhamandan, until you have my word, these three are to remain here and untouched. If Sanctuary's word is weak, you will be granted all three within minutes of his oath being broken."

She did not need to remind Rhamandan his fate if he crossed her; she had personally removed his own trainer and the past torture staff without qualms. "Seal them into lockdown and sedate them. You will then have the rest of the night off, but they are to be untouched for now."

Rhamadan hid his private disappointment well, and simply bowed in respect as Eris took her leave.

Sanctuary obediently held out his arms for binding, the guards moving swiftly, and then followed the guards out and away; he did not, could not meet Ronin's horrified gaze, or the stares of his other companions. The dungeon door closed sharply behind him, and he forced himself to remain calm, to keep cool and at peace in his prayers as he was led up and through the Citadel.

For Sanctuary, the escorted journey could not have been called easy by any means, but in a cold way, the Citadel was rather beautiful. The walls, once out of the prison hold, were smooth white marble, gold and black runes and etchings deeply carved into them. Images of the horns of Kaos were everywhere, but there were other art pieces as well, paintings and sculptures of Point Omega, of vanquished Covenant priests, of past High Priests and more.

The guards were silent as they led him up, and then down several long hallways and cold stairs, until he was blindfolded (so strange! as if he would live to tell anyone of where he was or what he had witnessed) and marched further on. This blind journey, one guard keeping a grip on his bonded wrists behind his back, seemed eternal, but it was within ten minutes that he felt himself being shackled into place, and then the blindfold was removed, the guards saying nothing as they left, securing the door behind them.

So this was her interrogation room. A place he had likely never heard of, but like the rest of the Citadel, done in stark whites and blacks, with thick red columns, several scrolls hung on the walls. And because this was a torture room and no amount of art on the walls could state otherwise, a long table lined with sharp instruments lay to his right, out of his reach to be sure. More alarming were the hooks that hung suspended from the ceiling, supported by those red columns, and the grate under his feet to let blood drain out.

And then she stepped in, the damnable woman he had bowed to, the one his comrades so feared, and so rightly so, but perhaps that made it worse with her power, how he was taller and likely stronger than she was, at least physically.

Her damnable staff floated behind her, finally coming to a rest some feet from him as she casually set her crimson cloak down on one large table that held no torture instruments, but did have thick cuffs set into it. And for a few minutes she ignored him, pulling some incense from a drawer and setting it to burn, releasing an almost exotic smell before turning her gaze to him.

If there had been any chance for escape, it was not in here; his bonds here were far thicker than they had been in the barred cells, heavy metal around his ankles and a thick bar over his stomach, thicker ones around his shoulders, and his wrists clamped heavily to the wall. The restraints were almost not needed, really, he knew enough she could have his comrades murdered within seconds of any displeasure, and the terror of their deaths kept him stiller than any blade against his flesh.

She approached him, so heavily held to the wall, and one cool hand barely brushed against his chest, over his pounding heart. If he didn't know better, and likely with never experiencing a female like her before, he might well miss the slight smirk in her eyes; up close he was rather intense. Almost overbrimming with that life force. Almost, in some way, handsome.

"My name is Eris, and you may call me High Priestess for now. I do not need to remind you that any delay, deceit, or hesitation on your part will result in your comrades' deaths being long and painful. My Inquisitors are skilled at keeping prisoners alive for months, and I don't mean on a healthy diet with good exercise. So, priest, we will begin this by you telling me about yourself. Your status. How you came to be a priest. How you came to find your way into my city. Family back home. Beloveds back home, children. Consider it filling out a very important application for travel or employment."

He inhaled sharply, the smell of incense oddly familiar, and after a moment found his voice. "Before being inducted into the priesthood, my birth name was Vessel," he spoke softly, eyes still down.

"The Covenant grants a new name to all those who complete training to enter the priesthood. I was orphaned in the war and raised in an orphanage run by the Covenant - many of my peers became priests or paladins. To serve the God we were taught of, to spread His light and love, became an ambition for many of us.

"The High Priest, Argus Maximus, asked for volunteers to be dropped off as close to the Citadel as we dared, to meet and gather information from a spy we had within the workings of the Citadel. We were not told his name, his codename, or his appearance, protection for him or her in case we were captured. We were told to identify them by a secret code - ask them how far the Red City was. They were to answer simply with, you've gone far too south. Once identified the spy was to turn over holy scrolls they had stolen from the inner sanctum. The spy...the spy never showed up. We were captured by your guards as we tried to move closer to the Citadel to find what had befallen him.

"I have... no family, except for my betrothed. She. Her name is Eilla. Young and healthy members of the Covenant are often paired in arranged marriages, if both are agreeable. And we are to be...we were to be married in two months' time, under the Dual Equinox."

Eris listened, and nodded slightly. There was fear in his body to be sure, but had she felt none she would have believed every word from him a lie. Somehow she was not surprised how similar practices were between the two eternal factions, for lack of a better word; it merely proved the gods had a good sense of humor.

"Very good so far." And so far he was. She might not need to fully threaten him moreso. Yet.

"Though four is a rather large size party for spywork, not that this information does you well now. But if you have a future in this, you might want to leave the number to one or two. As well, I do believe the Red City is further west." Not that any of those words indicated anything of treason....but there might have been hints, if fear didn't block them entirely.

"Now tell me about your companions. All volunteers as well? What information were you to get about my city? Defenses, guard rosters, locations of myself or Kronos for assassination?"

"Yes... All volunteers. The network of spies in the Covenant and in several other organizations involved in diplomacy, military, council, and other smaller cults, are all headed by a very small group of people. Not even Ronin knows very much about them. They keep it extremely quiet, for the protection of the people on the inside.

"Angel is married. Virtue has not yet been partnered. We all volunteered. The Covenant thought it best to send four for the sake of safety. As to the type of information we were to obtain, that was top secret - Ronin doesn't even know. They never said exactly, only to take whatever scrolls were offered."

It made sense, really. She had not survived the Cult itself so long by revealing much information herself. And she rested that cool hand directly over his heart with slightly more pressure, not reading, but the threat was clearly present.

"As some of my less elite guards would say, priest, for you are a priest, aren't you, even if not a high one or even beyond level one, let us get down to brass tacks. You have no hope of survival when my husband the High Priest returns. To a degree he holds more power than I do in the running of the City, so if you want your companions spared it must be decided quickly. I do admit that three in exchange for one seems rather poorly in my favor, but I think we can reach a decision. Offer me what you can and I will make my decision."

The open face that met her steel gaze was steadily growing more desperate.

"I offer," he breathed shakily, "anything and everything I have. Memory and accounts of rituals, weapon forging, training of any of our arts, servitude. I will do anything, anything you want... My mind, my soul, my body, they are yours if you spare my comrades..."

For a long moment Eris remained silent, and slowly, barely nodded.

He was good. Too often she had dealt with prisoners who begged and wept at the first sign of a threat. Even in this one's youth, he seemed smart enough to avoid the usual pitfalls. And for a long moment she looked over his face...and the smile grew.

"I will have their memories of this encounter erased. Up to a week prior to your landing here. In return for their lives, you will follow my every order, my every command. You will tell me everything I wish to know, and....I am not foolish enough to think once they have been released you will not attempt to go back on your word. So I want an unbreakable oath, priest, Sanctuary. Swear on your soul, fully, entirely, that in exchange for their lives, you will be a slave to whatever I see fit, for the rest of your life."

"Agreed," he said quickly, meeting her gaze finally. "Agreed. I swear upon my soul upon the faith of my Covenant, I swear upon everything I believe and have ever believed.

"If you spare my comrades, I swear full and unconditional servitude to you."

Beneath her very fingertips, the signet of his faith flashed a soft blue glow. A recognition of the validity of the oath by his very spirit.

After a pause she removed her fingers, nodding once. "Your word is your bond and life, and those are now mine. Your comrades owe you a great deal. It is a pity they won't remember leaving you here."

With that she touched her staff, the black pole glowing darkly as a mirage formed, a visual portal revealing the dungeon, and only Rhamandan was in view.

"Inquisitor, the prisoners are to have the last week of memories stripped from them, no more, no less. Have a guarded escort take them to Port Exidus and leave them there. Insure their sedation will not wear off until they are safely at that neutral port. As for the last prisoner, when I am through with him, he is yours." And she looked to the youth priest, half expecting to see tears now, a weeping mess of regret.

She was almost disappointed to find his face calm, stoic even. His eyes closed again, and he was silent, not even praying for deliverance.

She privately noted this as a good beacon. And she stepped from the chained and locked priest.

"A deal is a deal, San. They will be safe."

He finally opened his eyes, those dark blue eyes, warily watching the priestess, and his hands formed into quiet fists. The torture was coming now, he knew that, but had and held no regrets. His friends were safe, and his life was a cheap price for it. But he could not stop himself from following the priestess with his eyes, her long robes pooling on the floor as she stepped toward the table lined with blades.

And instead of picking up one of the curved blades on the torture table, she...opened a side cabinet, removing a rather large bottle of dark purple wine, and she eyed him almost critically. "Your comrades will be out of here soon, priest. And if I discover anyone has touched them without my permission, those disobedient fools will suffer far worse than you. I don't suppose you Covenant priests are allowed the vice of wine?"