Well, at least you guys are thorough in your investigations. Which is more than can be said for most fictional detectives. coughcoughDeckardcoughcough
-:-:-;-:-:-
[x] Investigate the Taint
-[x] Synagogue
Day 2
Afternoon
You underestimated the amount of time it took to get to the Synagogue. The last time you were here, it was the cool of the morning, and it took you at least half an hour. Now, you're stumbling your way across the bridge at High Noon, and all your layers are working against you. That last hundred meters over the water feels like an eternity as you shamble towards the shining Temple before you. You barely even register the odd feeling of rushing water against your Seal when you cross the other side.
When you do finally make it in the foyer, the cool air feels like heaven. The stone, normally icy this far north, is soothing as your face meets the nearest wall and you blissfully slide into a heap against it. You stay there for a moment, simply appreciating the cold.
"Um, excuse me, sir?" A timid voice calls.
You contort to see a woman, dressed very similar to the Maiden who slept on your lap. She wore a black robe with long sleeves that hid her frame, and a black headdress that wasn't very successful at concealing her brown hair and wide hazel eyes. She smiles at- oh wait your head is upside-down, she's actually frowning. She looks very concerned.
"Are you alright, sir? You're sort of causing a scene."
You turn your head to see a few other visitors to the church are looking at you strangely.
Oh god this is a public place, isn't it? You feel incredible heat rise to your cheeks as you lift yourself off the ground. "I-I'm fine, th-thank you," you manage to stutter out. "C-could you just point me to where I need to go for a Seal Renewal?"
The Maiden offers a pitying smile. "Of course. This way." She walks through a side door, you trailing a few steps behind.
As soon as you're out of the foyer you breathe a sigh of relief. What was wrong with you? Before you came here you used to be unflappable, and now you can barely handle an odd look in public or having a conversation turned on you. What was happening to you?
y o u b e c a m e w e a k
"So," the Maiden's soft voice shakes you out of your reverie. "How long have you had your Seal?"
"Only since yesterday," you reply easily. "I just got in town and realized I needed a Screening to study magic. Turned out I had a Taint and I was told I needed to come schedule some renewals for the Seal."
You almost run into the girl, whom you realize is barely up to your nose in height. "Oh?" Her voice doesn't sound soft anymore. If anything, you'd almost describe it as predatory. "You got your Seal yesterday, huh? Tell me, did you meet a young Maiden with blue hair while you were here, by chance?"
You blink. "Uh, yeah. She took care of me while I was unconscious after the Screening. Filled me in on the basics." You can see her shoulders shaking. "Is everything alri-"
"OhmygodyouretheboyAnnatalkedaboutareyoureallyfromafarofflandcanyouplaymusicisthatamagicinstrumentwhatdoyouthinkaboutAnnadoyoulikehersheseemstolikeyouMaidenscanthavelovelivesbecausetheyresupposedtobepurebutthatgirlsspecialsinceshesalreadyTaintedsoIhavetolivevicariouslythroughher are you getting any of this?" She's grabbing you by the scarf, yanking her face way too close to yours, a nasty glimmer in her eye and a wild smile on her face. "Details man, give me details!"
"I-"
What. "What?"
w h a t ?
"What, did you not hear what I said?" She huffs in annoyance. "Of course, the first guy she shows any interest in, and he can't even keep up with a few simple questions." She lets you go. "This is fine, this is fine, we can work with this."
"Work with wha-"
She claps her hands together, completely interrupting you. "Right! First, we need to get your renewal scheduled, and then gossip." She resumes walking, this time significantly faster.
"Wait, gossip? Who's interested in me?" You struggle to keep up with her without breaking into a jog. "Why do I feel like I'm being hustled?"
She slows down as you come to an intersection in the hallways. "Oh, my apologies. I'm Miriam." The Maiden collects herself and extends a hand. "I'm not normally this excitable but, well, Anna finding someone she can and wants talk to is the biggest piece of drama since Incident Number Two Hundred and Eighty-
Seven."
A pause. You hesitantly take her hand. "Den. Wha-"
"I have taken a solemn oath never to speak of the event in detail."
Dammit. "Now follow me so we can get your renewal scheduled." She continues her way down the winding corridor, you a few mere steps behind her.
-:-:-;-:-:-
It is only an hour later that you exit Library Bet with a small note in your hand. A reminder that you have five days until your next renewal. The paperwork was rough, but you managed a weekly schedule with a certain Priest Loammi, who you'd meet when you returned for the ritual.
"About that gossip," Miriam, now much calmer than before, gives you a mischievous look. You gulp. "Anna said you're some kind of wizard with your instrument. Is that true?"
You nod. "I specialize in Harmonic Magic. It's part of the deal." Her eyes widen the slightest bit.
"I've never heard of that kind of Magic. Does that mean you're a mage?" She seems surprised when you nod. "And here I was thinking Anna was just being poetic, but you really did use magic to improve her mood, didn't you?"
You try to remember, "I just played her a song from home. Harmonic Magic amplifies the emotions of the musician onto his audience. Anything she felt was probably the lingering feelings she got from me. How do you know about that, anyway?"
Miriam smirks. "She told me."
Really? "Well, I can't keep you here forever to give me gossip material. I have my own duties to get back to." She takes a single step down the hall. "Let me guide you back to the foyer."
"What do you do here in the Synagogue?" You try to spark some conversation after a minute or so of silence. "As a Maiden, that is."
"Me personally? I work in the kitchens and clean, mostly. I'm our top cook!" She smiles proudly. "It's quite fun, making meals and experimenting with all the different…"
Damn it…
She continues on about the wonders of the culinary arts, but you're not listening anymore. Your pace slows as well, ignorant as she continues ahead, equally unaware of your lagging stride.
What was that? you wonder.
Why did it have to be now, of all times?
Something… you can feel something. Something brushing on the edge of your mind.
It's okay, it'll be fine as long as they keep walking.
No, not your mind. You've felt magic that affected your mind, and this wasn't the same. This didn't brush against your consciousness in the same way. This went beyond that, or maybe around it? It felt like something was touching your core, in a way you could best describe as a
push or a
pull against your chest.
Move on, will you! Just go away!
The constant burning in your Seal lessens.
Shit, shit, shit, turn around, go away, go away go away go away!
You turn, looking down a side hall you don't remember being there a moment ago. Unlike lamp-lit corridor you stood in, no lights shined a way down this path. It faded into black a few mere steps in. There was something unnatural about that shadow, as though it were watching you intently. And beyond the shade, you knew, was whatever had reached out to you.
Oh, fuck me.
You just barely register the fading footsteps of Miriam, and you notice she's just about to round a corner down the hall. You nearly call out to her-
HELP, HELP SOMEBODY HELP ME!
You stumble. You can feel it, the thing beyond the shadows. It's screaming, it's calling, calling for you. You feel something in your Seal like something is trying to break through.
Get off me, bitch!
You can't speak. You can't breathe. You can barely move. Your eyes dilate. Your stomach twists as though being punched.
Oh, God, God please help me! Somebody, anybody, please?
The shadows watch you, judging you. They dare you to choose, to pull back their veil or to walk away. You can feel it, you can feel them studying you, waiting for you to make your move.
-:-:-;-:-:-
At the highest point of Temple Synagogue stands a solitary man, his arms raised to heaven. Upon his lips were the most ancient prayers of Zak, the supplication of the Old Tongue begging for salvation. The holiest of all words spoken in all of the world.
And even in the midst of this sacred ceremony of the highest import in all the land, High Priest Absalom paused his petition to God. On the wind, he heard the subtlest of changes. A voice, so quiet as to nearly be mistaken for that of a member of the congregation below. If the man had not been listening for it, waiting for the Word of his God, he would have missed it. And yet, what he heard was not his God. It was unfamiliar, foreign. It was the voice of another creature, no less important, and much more frightening.
"Father?" A Priest whispered from his bowed position on the platform below, trying not to disturb the ceremony. "Father, are you alright?"
The ocean behind his eyes tossed and turned, uncertain. Something was happening below, something that had not occurred in all the time he had been High Priest.
"The Labyrinth moves, Loammi." He replies rigidly. "It has revealed itself to someone new."
Loammi flashes through a range of emotions: surprise, fear, anger, rage, and finally a steely calm. "For what purpose?"
Absalom looks out over the city. From his vantage, he could barely see the little dots which meandered across the painted canvas of Temple City's streets. Buildings bled into one another, one color mixing with the next until he could only tell between districts, the beautiful white of the West end, the multi-colored and vibrant Southern district, the dull homes in the East, and the muted tones of the North. He had no idea of the exact number of residents in his City, but he knew they numbered well into the thousands, very likely into the tens of thousands. He knew each and every soul that resided here was filled with history, various scars and blemishes that shaped them into the person they were. Some were spotless besides a single Taint, and some were Clean despite every twisted act which choked them. Thousands of people, whose sins all weighed down upon him at this very moment. He felt the weight of each and every one like a chain around his neck.
If the Labyrinth were making itself known to someone new, they could all be put in jeopardy. The foundations upon which this nation was founded were shaking in ways even Absalom had not predicted. Was this the result of his own actions? Had his desire to change the ancient laws been the source of this sudden development? He looked to Loammi, who eagerly awaited his answer.
"I do not know," said the Wise and Holy High Priest of the Zakran Synagogue, and his response filled both holy men with an unsettling dread.
-:-:-;-:-:-
The Shadows challenge you with a Choice.
[] Enter the Labyrinth (Chase the Source Beyond the Shadows)
[] Leave the Synagogue (Resist the Calling)
