January 14th
2005 A.D.
Azer Cathedral

Judoc idles lazily in his pew, his head searching out the familiar faces all around him.  Several seats down, Indrid Colt, his roomate and a self-important blowhard, has completely lost his attention and instead he is doodling on a scrap of paper that he has conjured to keep him entertained.  Across the aisle, Alevius Cleppo and Andros Wilmer sit together, the latter upright and attentive with an air of smug self-satisfaction.  Andros was the perpetual example of a student who would make it as a future Templar: handsome, talented, rich, noble... he had all the characteristics that the staff were looking for when making their selections.  Alevius exhibited several of these also, though for some reason he had not earned the status of golden child and the constant effort without recognition seemed to be getting to him.  He sat slightly slumped in his seat with the beginnings of hazy purple exhaustion developing under each eye.  A few pews in front of them sat Wayne Irons, a student for whom Judoc had much more respect.  Reserved, talented, and humble, Wayne represented for Judoc the one student who was constantly deserving praise and yet never received it, though he never once let on that the lack of attention disturbed him in the least.  Even now, the lad set dutifully, his full attention on the cleric conducting the mass.  Made somewhat aware of his own distracted attention by Wayne's example, Judoc refocuses to the front of the room, putting his attention back on the pulpit and the curate conducting the service.  The young man was droning at best, condecending and judgemental at worst - he had made the better part of his argument in the sermon suggesting that true evil was all around them.  Even the bishop seemed to be bobbing in and out of sleep as the man started in on his second quarter of an hour.

"As Mark says in our gospel, 'Do not be wise in your own eyes, fear the Lord and shun evil.'  We are told to fear the Lord... to shun evil.  But our gospel does not warn us of the dangers of intentional sin, rather the danger of 'being wise in our own eyes'.  It warns us that self indulgence, that overconfidence, that complacency will blind us to the evils that are assailing us each and every day.  I am reminded of Ezekiel twenty five, verse seventeen.  'The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men.'  Each and every one of us must walk our own path, we are beset by our own evils, but how will we defend ourselves against that evil if we cannot even recognize it as evil?  How do you fight that which you do not know exists?

In his mind, Judoc screams his frustration, impatience, and boredom.  He had come here to the Cathedral for services this morning on more of a lark than anything...  It was well known that to join the Templars, one must show his faith throughout the course of schooling and though Judoc was by no means the most devout of his peers, he was just beginning to get the impression, the vaguest possibility, that if he wanted it he could join the Templars when he left this school.  He presses his thumb into the back of his ring, straightening it with the help of his pinky, something that he had been doing subconsciously since he had recieved the gift from the provost.

He had panicked at first, when he had returned from 'finishing' his last exam.  He had wiped his staff clean and told no one of the exchange or even taken the time to construct a story that would corroborate the fire in the city and the presumed death of Thresher.  He had been terrified that he would be asked, that he would be investigated, that his mind would be probed in an effort to extract the truth... but to his great relief that event had not come to pass and instead he had walked in on a substancial gift and a short note from the provost himself.

Congratulations on your successful exam.
I expect great things out of you.
You'll find here a small reminder of the
needed qualities to become a Templar,
steel for the strength of character
and ruby for the fire that must burn
inside you and drive your every task.

B.G.

The note had come enclosed with the ring he was wearing now, and though he suspected the band was rather made of silver than steel, it was the gesture itself that had kindled the fire of greater accomplishment.

"Let us pray."  The curate says from the pulpit, signaling a near end to his ministrations.

With reluctance, Judoc lowers his head and clasps his hands together mimicking the same motions of nearly everyone in the service.

"Dear Lord, give us the vision to detect the evil around us, the strength to stand together against it, and the true faith to banish evil with your omnipotent love.  Amen."

---

Judoc did not leave the cathedral immediately after the service but instead wandered the nave, looking at all the stained glass and sculptures that dominate all around him.  He could say without hesitation that this church was beautiful, perhaps more so than any he had seen before, though he had not seen many.  Judoc stops a moment to nod at the curate, father Thomas, he had learned his name through the course of the service.  Thomas smiles and nods back, walking the side aisle through the nave where he turns into the transcept.  Here and there a few parishoners still mill about, though most have made their way out of the cathedral by now, likely standing in line to be recieved and blessed by the bishop as he does at the end of every sunday service.  Judoc wonders just how long he will have to wait to avoid that process without being obvious... for while he was interested in the benefits of seeming pious, he was not entirely sure he was ready for a total immersion just yet.

OOC:  This thread is for Judoc.  Sorry for the long winded and oddly ending post.  I had to put in quite a bit of information getting us from the last thread to here and I wanted to give you a chance to play your actual character reactions before we started going too far down this path.  Essentially I don't want to take too much for granted with how you would act/react.  I assure you something will happen soon.  Also, the ring you are wearing (the gift from the provost) is a 1 carat ruby mounted on silver which you managed to fit perfectly on your right hand ring finger.  It also doubles as a 5 point powerstone and is worth about $500.  Feel free to get me a quick PM if you want to use your money to buy any gear prior to this thread (we can do it during too).  Let me know if you have any questions.  Below is a diagram as to what the cathedral looks like, you are currently standing in the nave (where all the pews are and where the congregation observes mass).  There are a handful of people still in the cathedral, likely waiting for confession or for family members to disrobe (choir members or such) before they head home.

Cathedral
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:40, Sun 26 May 2019.

As Judoc sits in mass, only half paying attention, his eyes drift to the students sitting in the front of the chapel, Alevius, Andros, Wayne.  Of the three, Judoc would rather have Wayne on his side in a fight.  The other two would be too busy trying to save their own skins to be much help.

Up ahead of him is Indrid Colt.  It seems like so long ago now, those first few months.  Judoc had thought that he had found a group to belong to.  That was before Elliot burned Mariana alive.  Giles had left the school in disgrace after the badly funked shared spell.  Grobbik had been busy with classwork, and Judoc never saw him.  Indrid, of course, was Indrid.  His roommate is the closest thing Judoc has to a friend in this place.  Well, Grobbik, too, he supposes, but Judoc hardly ever talks to either person.

He turns his attention back to the sermon.  He tries not to smirk as the curate admonishes them not to view themselves as wise.  A message for every student in the College of Battle Magic, no doubt.  Shun evil, eh?  Does evil include murder in its definition?    He has seen evil, or what is generally described as its physical manifestation, in that imp that he and Elliot had banished.  But the curate's definition seems rather overbroad.  Could he recognize evil?  Is there even such a thing, or is there merely acts men label as evil for their own purposes?  Is it all about control, the Church's control, the Templars', perhaps even the Empire?  Judoc is willing to play the game, but surely these people don't actually believe this stuff.

He idly twists his new ring, a beautiful ruby set in what he thinks is silver.  Even better, the ring is a powerstone, that coveted tool of mages everywhere, and a much better one than the powerstone Judoc wears around his neck.  The only bad thing about powerstones is that they can't be near each other to recharge.  Judoc is considering selling his old one, or finding a place to store it.  Perhaps he could trade it for something, a knife, perhaps.

The ring had been a surprise.  What would Graves say if he knew Thresher was alive and well?  Six months.  Not nearly long enough.  Well, people escape from burning buildings all the time.  Judoc is sure he'll think of something to explain Thresher's reappearance.

He bows his head as the curate delivers his benediction.  Vision to detect evil.  Strength to stand against it.  True faith to banish evil.  Almost sounds like a list of spells.  Which, perhaps, might explain what religious faith is all about.  Maybe Jesus and Mary and all the saints had just been mages of various sorts, working their "miracles" and passing them off as acts of God.  Judoc could use some protection against evil, and strength to stand against his enemies.  Yes, he can see the appeal of all of this if there were true power available.

He waits for a little while as the parishioners make their way out of the sanctuary.  So they line up there on their way out, and the bishop blesses them, is that it?  Well, might as well get this over with.  He goes to join the line of people exiting the cathedral.

Judoc breathes out a heavy sigh and gives in, making his way towards the back of the nave to exit out into the open air.  Another Sunday... he had started classes already and already the pace had grown to near exhausting.  Though exams were over for another year and a half, it seemed that his instructors expected that he stay in a state of constant preparation.  The queue has mostly filed out as he gets to the Narthex but he waits in line nevertheless as the late goers carry on in conversation with Deacon Samuel and Bishop Abram, seeming to think that because they are near last in line that there is no one waiting behind them.  Ahead, Judoc can hear the bishop blessing another man in line.

"The lord bless you and keep you always.  Am.."

Then, from back in the church an ear piercing scream tears through the silence!  Wrenching his head to the side, his eyes going wide, Judoc listens intently before he acts.  The scream sounds again, the high shrill cry of a child in horror.

"Deacon!"  Abram is abruptly cut off from his prayer, his eyes traveling back towards the doorway.  "Go see what that is.  I'll not have such disturbances in the house of God!"

Judoc waits in line, a bit impatient.  The wait seems interminable.  Did any of these people take this pomp and circumstance seriously?  He muses that there must be some true believers among the flock here.  And then, a scream!  Is that a child's voice?

"I'll go as well, ah, Bishop Abram," Judoc says, and he hurries off in the direction of the cry of alarm.  What could be causing such a disturbance on a Sunday?  Was the gift shop out of candy communion wafers again?  Was there even a gift shop here?

OOC:  Walk quickly in the direction of the scream.

"Yes your grace."  Deacon Samuel nods, hurrying towards the doors of the cathedral.  Judoc makes a quick response as well before starting off behind Samuel, catching just a glimpse of a scowl on the bishop's young features as he rushes off.

Samuel walks swiftly though he does not openly run and Judoc has several moments to start absorbing details as he keeps himself just behind the clergyman.  There are now a handful of people standing here and there... a man and woman standing together in a pew, an elderly gentleman looking up from the vicinity of the choir, a middle aged man rushing across the church in the direction of the north Transept.

"Holly! what..."

"Aggggghhhhh!"  The speaker is cut off by yet another shriek as the Deacon quickens his pace to furious strides.

"My child!"  The deacon rushes around the corner, kneeling down beside a young girl, perhaps only ten years in age.  On her other side is an older woman, likely her mother, who's eyes are wide and has one hand behind her head and the other one holding hands with the girl.  An older man, the same as the one who just ran across the church looks into each of the various shrines and altars before rushing across to the stairwell in the corner of the building, looking up though he does not ascend.

The girl herself has dark brown hair though skin of a shocked pale white.  She is lying on her back with her head slightly propped up and her eyes bulging as she kicks her heels off the carpeted floor in an effort to push herself back.  One hand is clasped in her mother's while her other hand points across the space...  Clearly, it seems to Judoc anyway, towards the confessional which sits near the shrine of Saint James the Great.

Seeing the girl is already taken care of, Judoc moves forward towards the confessional booth, a large wooden box seven feet tall and several feet across made of sturdy ash.  It has two doors, one on the left which stands closed, the door of the priest.  The other door stands slightly ajar and as Judoc cranes his head around he can tell that no one is sitting within.

OOC:  You are all standing in the north Transept.  There are three altars and shrines off to your right of various saints including James, Honorius, and Cuthbert.  The confessional booth is in the middle of the north wall with the left door closed and the right door slightly ajar, although it does not seem like there is anyone in it that you can tell.  The woman, girl and deacon are all lying/kneeling in the southern portion where the transept meets the aisle and the man is in the northwest corner looking up the stairs.  You are about five yards from the confessional booth.  It is now officially your show.
This message was last edited by the GM at 12:23, Wed 19 Apr 2017.

Ignoring the bishop's displeasure for the present, Judoc quickly follows Deacon Samuel as the latter heads back to the choir section of the cathedral.  He scans the crowd, noting the different people present - a man and a woman, an elderly man, a middle-aged man - where is he going?

Judoc's eyes go back to the deacon, who is kneeling beside a child lying on her back.  He follows her raised hand toward the confessional.  Curious.  He walks quickly toward the confessional booth and examines it carefully.  One door is open, but the booth itself seems empty.

He goes back to the girl and kneels beside her.  "What did you see, Holly?" he asks in what he hopes is a kind, gentle tone.  "What frightened you?"

OOC:  Find out what Holly can tell Judoc.

A few feet away from the confessional yet, Judoc makes the few quick strides over to the wooden box to give it a more thorough investigation.

"Please, my girl, breath deeply now and tell us what has happened."  The Deacon speaks to the girl behind Judoc, getting to the root of the same question that Judoc has in his own mind.

"I... I... I..."  The monosyllabic repetition is punctured by feverish hyperventilation, and Judoc wonders in his own mind how soon this Holly will be able to say anything of usefulness.  He can already hear her breaking down into sobs.

"He...  He..."

"Yes!  Who is he?"  The deacon interrupts, thinking he has struck upon the very crux of her problem.

Still a few feet ahead, Judoc leans the door of the confessional wide open, looking upon the inside with his first clear view.  It seems unremarkable.  The inside is constructed much like without, with a sturdy wood bench style seat built into the frame.  Each of the four walls is of solid construction up to about six feet or so in height where it changes from the solid wood to a weaved material to let light within the structure.  A small bar is built into the door to serve as a locking device for privacy.  As Judoc pushes his head in he can see a small bible propped in a small holder on the outside wall.

"Father Thomas!"  Holly's voice is now an outright wail as she breaks down into sobs.

"Our priest?"  Deacon Samuel's tone is utterly bewildered.

"He...  He..."  Holly struggles with the words, but they simply will not come between her ragged breaths.

Judoc notices now, the small screened window that separates the two sides of the confessional has been torn on two sides, and the material has been pushed through somewhat to the other side.  He leans in somewhat closer to get a better look.  Indeed, as he looks closer, he can see the mesh seemingly snapped cleanly along the two sides, letting the screen fold down to the other side, at the broken edges, the wood seems somewhat deformed with little nicks along where the mesh would have been.  Being so close now, Judoc can see slightly through the window and at first it seems the other box is empty, for there is no one in the seat, but a flicker of black fabric makes Judoc reposition his head to get a better look.

"He's...  Dead!"  Holly wails, her words now stuttered with great sucking breaths.

What?"  The Deacon's tone is bewildered and Judoc can already hear his walking in this direction.

His head now higher and to the right, Judoc can see a body, crumpled in the small space between the bench seat and the door, his head lolling against the outer wall, his eyes and mouth gaping open and his left hand fallen down on his robes just at the inside of his left knee.

"Father!"  The deacon rattles the door, attempting to pull it open, though Judoc can tell the locking mechanism is pulled closed.  "Father, are you in there?"

"My god . . ."  Judoc mutters under his breath.  Louder, he says, "I see a body inside.  Do you have a key?"  He steps back and scans the area around the confessional booth.  Mentally, he tries to construct what must have happened here.  Someone was in this box, confessing.  They cut through the wire, killed the priest, and then made their escape.  Was it via magical means?  Did they teleport away?  Or make themselves invisible?  Or was it more mundane?  Did the person simply walk away and join the throng leaving the cathedral?

He walks back to the girl and kneels down beside her.  "Holly, how do you know he was dead?" he asks gently.  "Did you see anyone leave the confessional booth?"

"What!"  The Deacon responds at once to Judoc's first comment, his voice growing ever less steady with each passing moment.  "What do you mean a body?  Is it Father Thomas?  A key?"  The deacon is aghast at the question.  "It's a confessional.  You can't lock it unless you are inside, and you can't get out unless you unbar it first!  It is supposed to be foolproof!"  The deacon rattles the door more, perhaps thinking that one more good tug would do the trick...

Judoc takes the moment to walk back over to Holly, thinking that she would be the key, the one with the most important information.

At Judoc's question the girl looks down and closes her eyes.  The girl's tears have swelled into thick tracks running down her cheeks and her breathing has mostly calmed, only disturbed by now by infrequent bouts of sputtering gasps of hyperventilation.  "I saw the booth was standing partly open, I... I... hadn't confessed this month and I went in.  I closed the door.  I said ' forgive me father for I have sinned.' and there was nothing..."

Holly opens her eyes, her lip trembling slightly as she tries to continue.  "I was sure I had seen him go in there, so I said it again, and when there was still no answer I stood up on the seat and looked in.  That's when I saw him."  Holly snaps here eyes shut again and shakes her head violently.  "Look at his face!  It's awful..."

Realizing after a moment, that she hasn't answered Judoc's question Holly looks up again, the whites of her eyes streaked with red.  "I hadn't seen anyone sir, not go in or come out anyway."

"Fuck!"  The deacon swears, giving the door one last rattle before he shoves it roughly back in doing little besides satisfying his frustration.  "What do I do?"

Nodding solemnly, Judoc says, "That must have been frightful.  I'm sorry you had to see that, Holly," he says.  "We'll find out who killed Father Thomas."  What would a kid have to confess, he wonders.  And who would have wanted to kill the priest?  Standing, he walks back over to the confessional.

"Brother Samuel, your language," Judoc says mildly.  "You're in a church, and there are children present."  Fucking priests, he thinks to himself.  It's like he's never seen a dead body before.

He takes a moment to consider the locking mechanism.  What he needs is a good Lockmaster spell, but he hasn't been exploring that area of the Movement college.  Perhaps Apportation will do in a pinch.

OOC:  See if he can spot the bar that locks and unlocks the confessional.  If so, cast Apportation to move it and try to unlock the confessional.

Holly nods at Judoc, her eyes still welled with tears although she manages to force a trace of a smile onto her lips.

In another moment he is standing by the confessional again, chastising the deacon for his foul use of language, in a house of God and in front of children no less.  "Of course you are right."  Samuel stands back, his hands shaking.  "I will get the bishop, I'm not sure I can help here just now and I'm sure he'll want to know as soon as possible."  Samuel starts off towards the back of the cathedral, leaving Judoc to his devices.

Unsure exactly how to best work the mechanism that latches the door, Judoc first investigates the open one, looking at the design and where the bar falls on the sturdy door.  However, it still seems hard to envision the thing without seeing it, so Judoc gets back into the booth again, standing on the seat like Holly had described, and angling himself until he has a view of the device.  With a few whispered words, Judoc manages to take hold of the bar by channeling his power, and sliding it back with one smooth motion.

As the lock is moved to its open position, the door bursts open from the weight the father's body is putting on it, and his torso falls out of the box, landing on the floor below with a small thunk and a muffled shriek from Holly outside.

Stepping down from the seat, Judoc walks back outside, getting his first good view of the body.

Still clothed in his robes from the service, father Thomas has very little exposed other than his hands and face, however his appearance is quite changed.  His pallor is pale and slightly blued, his lips almost purple in color.  His whole expression seems swollen almost as if he had been stung in a thousand places by tiny bees although there is no redness, abrasion, or marks of any sort.  His mouth and eyes still hang open as if he is still attempting to take his final breath.

OOC:  Yeah, I didn't do a great job explaining the 'lock'.  It isn't a deadbolt but a simple crossbar that is fixed from rotation in two places so that it only slides back and forth along its rail.  So when the door is closed it can be slid into place and preventing the door from being opened.  Aportation worked just fine in getting it open once you could see what you were actually moving.  You are down 1 fatigue point from the spell.

Not one to spend much time in confession (though perhaps he could always start, he muses), Judoc isn't very familiar with the inner workings of the booth, but he's able to figure it out easily enough.  With a subtle manipulation of mana, he turns the crossbar, and then he hurries around the confessional booth to see if the deceased person truly is Father Thomas.  Once on the other side, he recognizes the man from his sermon earlier.  Looks like evil caught up to you, Father he muses wryly.  An evil so far hidden.

Turning back to Holly and her mother, he says softly, "Don't let her see him like this.  Can you take her somewhere safe?  The Bishop may want to talk with her, so perhaps you shouldn't leave the cathedral."  He turns back to the body.  Judoc is not trained in the forensic arts, and he's not sure what he should be looking for.  The pale, blue face; the purple lips - had the man been strangled?  Why was the man's face so swollen?

Peering into the priest's side of the box, Judoc looks to see if he can spot anything.  Waving his fingers in the air, he conjures up a floating ball of light to see if he can pick up further clues.

OOC:  Cast Light and move it around the inside of the booth, looking for further clues.  I'd like to make an IQ roll to see if Judoc knows anything about what might have caused these symptoms.

Nodding her agreement, Holly's mother takes helps her up from the ground and shuffles her out of sight.

The other man, the one who had been searching the area as Judoc approaches kneels down beside him and looks at the father with a seriousness about him.  "He doesn't look good."  The man states the obvious succinctly.  "But he doesn't look like he has a scratch on him.  No marks of any sort, bruises or blood.  It's like he just died."

Though Judoc can't help but agree on some of the points, it seems plain to him that the father did not just die.  Though indeed he does not see any sign of physical harm the hue of his skin and the bloating make it seem, to him at least, to point to something other than an entirely natural death.

Moving on from the body, Judoc conjures a small ball of light and moves it towards the confessional booth, searching for clues.  He starts at the small window, where the screen has been punched through.  It seems to be much the same on this side, a clean tear on two sides, leaving a flap of material that has folded inwards toward this side.

Judoc moves his view to the rest of the booth and while at first he sees little of interest he eventually finds something that stands out.  There is a small imprint, just at head high on the outside wall of the booth where his light reflects differently.  Judoc moves his light closer and finds that indeed there is a small impression, a circle just an inch or two around that is imprinted in the wood.

As he turns around, one more thing stands out as he looks closely, just at where the bar lock would rest on the wood, there are small straight indents as well just the right size across to conclude that the bar had been pushed hard into the outside wall.  Judoc looks at the bar as well and at first does not see anything unusual until he looks just below, where he sees a small crack on the inside of the door, spreading parallel to the ground just below where the bar sits.

"What is this?"  Judoc can hear the voice of the bishop approaching from without.

OOC:  The indent you found is about head high and is on the opposite wall from the screen that is pushed through.  The door frame and door seem to have fatigue marks from being pushed outward (the way the door swings) when the bar was closed.

Frowning, Judoc considers the other man's points and then begins searching the booth carefully.  "I'm Judoc, a student at the College," he says to the man helping him search.  "Are you affiliated with the College as well? What did you see?"

His floating globe of light helps illuminate the inside of the confessional booth.  The window's screen seems to be where whatever it was that killed the priest had entered.  A clean tear - so a knife, perhaps?  How had this happened without Father Thomas making some noise of some kind?  Unless he had been silenced ahead of time.  Judoc recalls the spell Graves had used to soundproof the study room where he had been given the assignment to kill Thresher.  Something similar could have happened here.

Curious.  Something had punched a small circle into the wall of the booth.  He looks closer to see if he can see any kind of pattern in the cirle.  And why had the bar been pushed so hard?  Perhaps to keep others from coming in?  Or had Father Thomas been in a state of nervous apprehension right before he had been killed?  Perhaps the sermon had been a plea for help.  Perhaps he had known something about the danger he was in, either some intimation or by more direct means - possibly a threat?

As the bishop approaches, Judoc extracts himself from the confessional and steps back to allow the bishop to see for himself.  "Your Grace," he says, hoping that's the right title one uses when speaking to a bishop.  "I'm Judoc, a student at the College of Battle Magic.  Father Thomas has apparently been murdered."

OOC:  Is the circle on the interior or exterior of the outside wall?

The man shakes his head as Judoc asks if he is a part of the Templar College.  "William Hammersmith."  He extends a hand for Judoc to shake.  "I'm Holly's father, I didn't see much to be honest, I was just coming in from the other side when I heard her screaming.  I thought there might have been someone pulling some sort of prank, or else attacked her...  I don't know what I think, but I ran to look all over on this side and I didn't see anything.  I didn't go all the way up those stairs, but I didn't hear anything as I was listening.  The person who did this can't have gone far though can they?"

As the Bishop approaches, his face contorts wildly upon seeing the body on the floor.  His jawline hardens and his eyes narrow.  "Murder?"  The word is spoken like a curse rather than a question.  "This is a house of God!  I should think not, there's not a spot of blood on him, where is your proof?  Deacon, perform the last rights and call a healer to ensure there is nothing to be done.  I shall see if our groundskeeper is still here.  It can't hurt to get ahead of this."

And with that, the young bishop whisks off, mitre still donned on his head and crook in hand, stepping quickly towards the back of the church.

Without speaking, Samuel looks at Judoc, a pleading expression plain on his face.

OOC:  The small circular indent is on the interior of the outside wall.  Sorry if that was confusing.  I missed even thinking that you would want to investigate the exterior, but on doing so you find nothing of significance.

"Good to meet you, William," Judoc says, and shakes the man's hand.  "I agree, they can't have gone far, not without magic, anyway."  With magic, it would be child's play to escape.  A teleportation spell, for instance, or rendering themselves invisible.  Judoc bets this is what has happened.  However, they cannot rule out mundane methods, either.

When the bishop asserts that it's not murder because the priest isn't bleeding and that, bizarrely, this is a house of God, Judoc only gives the briefest of nods.  "As you say, your Grace."  He's not really up on his Biblical lore, but it seems like he's heard some stories about murders in the sacred places.  Pretty brutal stuff, really.  Still, the bishop's words do cast doubt in Judoc's mind.  Maybe the priest simply died suddenly.  A bad heart, perhaps, or something like that.

The bishop moves quickly away.  Did you do it, you bastard?  Judoc wonders.  Did you have Father Thomas murdered?  If so, why?  What was in it for the bishop?

"I'm training to be a battle mage," Judoc says.  "So I'm skilled in healing.  If anyone can heal Father Thomas now, it's me."  He kneels down beside the priest again, traces a pattern with the fingers on his right hand, and touches the priest's body.

OOC:  Right, I figured that's what you meant.  Cast Minor Healing for 1 FP.

Once this is done, Judoc will start searching the cathedral, staring at the confessional booth and going outward in expanding circles.  He doesn't know what he's looking for, but he'll look for anything that seems out of place or like it doesn't belong.

Judoc relays to let Samuel that he is as an accomplished healer as any but the man simply shakes his head, "I'm sure you are, but you don't know how he is...  I'll be back."

Judoc kneels down by the priest, thinking to see what help he can give the man though he knows in his heart this man is dead.  Still, he makes the motions and channels the mana through Father Thomas's body.  Though he knows the spell has succeeded, it has made no difference... the man is certainly dead.

Though as Judoc casts he sees an odd fold in the priests robes.  He looks further he realizes that it is a pocket sewn into the robes, difficult to notice with all the black material.  Reaching in, Judoc feels a small, coin like object that he removes.  The small circular object seems to be the pendant of a necklace.  It is pained on the outside with a pattern and has a small circular hole punched in the top large enough for a small string or chain to slip through.

Quickly searching the rest of the corpse, Judoc finds little more.  Just the man's crucifix which hangs around his neck.

Walking back over to the confessional, Judoc looks yet again, searching for any further clues.  He stays for a moment on the thin screen and realizes now that while most of the tear seems like a clean cut, the material has been warped slightly near the corner where the fabric has torn away with four small circular dots spaced in a line.  Furthermore, there seems to be some tearing that goes down the left side of the window as well, though the fibers there seem stretched more than anything and the break in the few threads at the top actually happened within the wall where they rested.

Judoc searches for anything further, but only finds a bible on the seat (one in each of the booths) which do not seem to be tampered with or abnormal in any way.

Making small circles from the booth, Judoc slowly and incrementally makes his way outward looking for anything further in the main church, though he finds nothing.

It is nearly a half an hour later when Samuel returns with another man, presumably the healer, and only a few more minutes later as Abram himself returns into the Nave.

"Ah, good Seamus."  Abram says, plodding his crook onto the ground with each step.  "Take a look at the father and tell us what you think..."

The healer, Seamus, steps towards Father Thomas and leans over to examine.  "Certainly dead."  He murmurs.  "Signs of asphyxia, burst blood vessels in the eyes, bluing in the lips...  Bloating is odd though...  No sign of trauma to the face, neck or chest.  Yes, I think it's fairly certain that he choked to death on something."

"Ah yes."  Bishop Abram nods soberly.  "As you see Samuel, the good lord giveth, and the good lord taketh away.  This is a tragic accident.  I have already talked to Remus and he is putting together a pine box.  We should move him from the sanctuary for now, so gruesome..."

The symbol in Father Thomas's pocket
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:39, Tue 06 June 2017.

"It's fine, it's fine.  Yes, go fetch the healer."  The priest is obviously dead.  Although healing magic is but one of the areas in which Judoc has shown great promise, it is by no means his main focus.  He has spent more time in learning how to destroy his adversaries instead of healing his fellow soldiers, but he is an apt pupil, and the spell comes easily.  But the priest is deader than the polished wood of the confessional booth, and the mana Judoc channels cannot restore life  where it has vacated its former dwelling place.

But wait - what is this?  Some hidden compartment, hidden within the folds of the robes?  Judoc reaches in and extracts something, a coin or something similar.  Whatever could this be?  Quietly, without really knowing why, he tucks it inside his own robe.

His attempts at reigniting Father Thomas' extinguished spark complete, he once again combs the booth, looking for any other clews he can uncover.  He picks up both Bibles and flips through the covers, looking for a note or scrap of paper that might have been left behind by the killer.  If there really was a killer.  Judoc admits the possibility that the priest might simply have given up the ghost.  Still, his instincts tell him that something is afoot here although he finds no fresh evidence.

He returns to listen to the healer's pronouncement.  He nods his head gravely as Seamus notes the different indications.  Bloating.  OK.  No sign of trauma.  The priest choked to death on something?  Very odd.

Judoc lingers behind to see if he can observe anything else, but for now, he doesn't intrude.

OOC: Stick around, see if he can learn anything else.  Ask Seamus what was odd about the bloating if he gets a chance.

"It's just not normal for choking."  Seamus answers to Judoc's question.  "You'd normally see the discoloration, often marks on the neck if strangulation was the cause, but the bloating just doesn't normally happen.  It almost looks like they just fished him out of a river."

Seamus stands, wiping his hands off on his knees, and picks back up his medical bag.

The bishop proves to be a man of schedules and with the pronouncement and lack of evidence for any crime, he directs Samuel to move the body out of the Sanctuary before he walks back to the front of the cathedral.  With the help of Erdrick Bode, the groundskeeper, Samuel sets off to move the body, with himself at the shoulders and Edrick at the feet.  Making slow steps the two remove the body from the Sanctuary off to the south to some out of the way place.

"Well."  Seamus says, perking his eyebrows up and giving Judoc a thin smile.  "There is more work to be done I suppose and I can't stay here all day.  Wish I could have been more help."

OOC:  Seamus is about to leave, the Deacon and groundskeeper have departed for the moment with the body.  Near the sanctuary itself (the raised dias towards the back of the church) a few older women have walked out, seemingly members of the altar guild who are there to polish the brass after the service.  Let me know where you want to go from here.

Fished him out of the river.  Judoc can't help but think back to his first experience with Loke, the choking sensation, the feeling of drowning alive.  A similar spell could have been used here, he surmises.  Perhaps one of Loke's students?  But why kill the priest?  Did he have any enemies?  Who would have wanted to see him dead?  It's a good thing Judoc is present.  These clergymen seen either wholly oblivious or suspiciously incurious.  If anyone can get to the bottom of this mystery, Judoc can.

Still, he knows that he's jumping to conclusions here.  This could have been just a natural death.  Other than the strangeness of the death, right after a mass when the priest had denounced hidden evil, and the oddness of how the man had died, there isn't very much evidence that Brother Thomas actually had been murdered.  But the young student hopes it is so.  The prospect of investigating this mystery makes him eager to discover what might have occurred.  He can almost feel himself salivating at the thought of running to ground the real killer, not out of a sense of justice, but for the thrill of the investigation.

Thoughtfully, Judoc watches as the women leave.  Could one of them have done the deed?  And how?  He watches them for several seconds, half-hoping one will grin mockingly at him and give herself away as the murderer.

As the healer turns to leave, Judoc says quickly, "Before you go, Brother Seamus, do you think there would be anyone who would be glad Brother Thomas had died?  Would anyone stand to gain anything from his untimely demise?"

OOC:  After Samuel's answer, Judoc will stay to search the cathedral for any more clues he can find.  He'll take as long as he can, unless people get impatient for him to leave.

Judoc is electrified by the possibility of investigation and even as the others in the room move to leave he is compelled to stay, eyeing the women of the altar guild as they slowly work their way around the rails of the sanctuary.

At the question, Seamus shakes his head.  "No, I don't believe there is anyone who would have meant harm to father Thomas."  The answer is quick to come, but the man thinks on the idea for a moment longer before continuing.  "He was well liked enough, though I fear his sermoning left something to be desired.  But he was a deep thinker and was better man to man than he was against the whole congregation.  Better listener than a talker I suppose."

Across the room, the Deacon Samuel walks back into the Nave and noticing Judoc, William and Seamus he makes his way back over to the small group.

"Well, I'm off."  Seamus nods at the others before making his way out to the back of the church.
.
"This all seems most odd."  William remarks.  "I think I'm quite with you, it's hard to swallow that this is any sort of accident or natural death."

Just making his way up to the conversation, Samuel grits his teeth and shakes his head vigorously, as if shooing away a fly.  "I don't think anyone believes this is totally natural, even if it wasn't murder.  That's just the bishop."  Samuel lowers his voice and leans in toward the two men.  "He's fiercely ambitious, I'm sure he wanted this whole thing cleaned up immediately so as not to put a black mark on his record.  Really, a suspicious death in his own cathedral?  The father could have probably had a dagger in his chest and His Grace"  The words are said with some distaste.  "Would have said it was a slip that did him in..."

William suppresses a smile and a chuckle under his breath.  "Yes, he does seem rather aloof doesn't he?"

Samuel shakes his head again, this time s slow, deliberate motion with his eyes rolled over to one side, looking towards the ground.  "Man thinks he is going to be one of the curia or something.  Writing the archbishop as oft he can, pressing the governor for as much money as the city can give, treating the college like it is his own success story...  I don't care if this was an accident, I would still like to know what happened."

"Wish I could help."  William sighs.  "I should probably get along to Holly, I can't imagine this has been easy for her.  Father Thomas was one of her favorite people."

Samuel turns his gaze to Judoc, frustration and exhaustion written across his face.  "And what of you Judoc?  Can you assist me?  I doubt it will be taken well if I look too hard for further answers and besides."  Samuel wrings his hands has he exhales a single, hollow, laugh, "I've just inherited double the workload."

Taken in by the intrigue of the whole situation, Judoc agrees instantly.  "Thank you."  Samuel exhales with a slight smile.  "I'm going to disrobe for now.  I'll be back by to see if you need anything of me."  And the man walks off.  William bids goodbye as well as he makes his way towards the back of the church.

Judoc and starts off his investigation with a renewed search of the nave and transepts.  He combs lightly through each of the altars to the saints near the confessional, renews his search of the boxes themselves and even combs through each of the pews searching for additional information but for all his effort he only discovers a pew with a short leg, so that it rocks alternatingly between three of them, and a kneeler that is fraying its cloth covering into a long strand of excess yarn.

As he looks up to the front of the sanctuary, Judoc sees that the two women have finally finished in their cleaning and are headed back again towards the back of the church, one of them eyeing Judoc for a moment with what seems like distrust.

OOC:   Couple of notes.  You mentioned Seamus in character (the healer) and Samuel (the deacon) in your OOC comment.  That being said you can assume they would have both been there and said about the same thing.  He's a good guy and they wouldn't know anyone who would want to hurt him.  Also, I didn't phrase it well, but the women actually came in to the Sanctuary to clean it in the last post (not leaving it).  So they are still there about 20 yards away from you doing the cleaning.  They were not present when you first ran back into the nave/transept.

Nodding his head, Judoc takes in what the healer has to say of the priest.  It seemed to fit what Judoc had observed of Father Thomas.  That sermon, railing against the presence of evil.  So, a good man.  Had he been naive, or had he been speaking of something specific?  Had he been attempting to warn a soul away from the path of evil and gotten killed for his efforts?

As the deacon approaches, Judoc turns to face Brother Samuel, listening to what the man says.  Curious.  Deep currents run through this cathedral.  Samuel mentions the bishop's ambition, and Judoc knows where that might take a man.

When asked if he'll help, he responds immediately, nodding his head and saying, "Certainly.  I'll get to the bottom of this."  And he means it, too.

As his investigation of the area around the confessional yields no new clues, however, his initial enthusiasm begins to wane.  He checks the pew's short leg, imagining a hidden weapon concealed within.  He looks at the kneeler as well.  Perhaps the priest had been choked to death with a piece of yarn?  Almost certainly not.

He watches as the two cleaners leave this section, and he smiles at them.  He wonders if they know anything.  No telling what they've seen here.  Maybe they're just not happy to have him poking around the cathedral.  He decides to walk over and strike up a conversation.

"Afternoon, my good women.  What a shocking tragedy today, isn't it?"

OOC:  Go over and talk to the women.  Get their reaction to the news of Father Thomas' death.  Ask if they've seen anything suspicious recently.  Ask what they thought of Father Thomas.

Judoc wriggles, twists, pulls each of the legs on the lopsided pew, but to no avail they all seam solidly attached.

Sighing with frustration, Judoc makes his way over to the two women now leaving the sanctuary, and though one has made it through a doorway before he manages his greeting, the other turns and nods a Judoc with a face of thin-lipped seriousness.

"Awful, just Awful."  The woman starts.  She is middle aged, the flecks of grey starting to weave their way through the thick brown hair that is tied back in a bun.  Likewise, her face seems to be just starting to crease into wrinkles just above her cheekbones and on her forehead.  "Peggy said she heard poor Holly scream and writhe their on the ground when it happened.  OF course the whole thing was chaos.  Came back straight to tell us when the bishop walked in, of course he was furious."

Judoc asks a few pointed questions, and the woman seems happy, if not eager to answer.  "Oh, no I haven't seen anything suspicious.  Unless you call that Malcombe boy skulking around outside instead of coming in to services suspicious.  His parents have been coming here every Sunday for years and he just up and leaves, rooting around the grounds and the graveyard of all places rather than sitting through worship!"  The woman sounds utterly scandalized by the prospect.  "Father Thomas was a kind soul though, knew all of us by name and family... asked after most of us when he came by.  Very kind.  He's been here for on thirty years now, this would be his third bishop.  Seemed happy here in the congregation.  Knew just about everybody, which is saying something for a church of this size."

The Deacon walks back into the church, now dressed in a simple black shirt with priest's collar and a pair of black pants that match well enough.

"He's raving!"  Samuel says as he walks in, realizing only a moment later that Judoc is engaged in conversation.  "Oh, Miss Judy."  Samuel remarks as he recognizes his mistake.  "Always so prompt in your duties."  he smiles as she returns the gesture rather thinly.

"Well,"  Judy says, looking back at Judoc.  "I should be getting home.  I'm sure my husband is already there and there's much to be done!"

Shaking his head in sympathy, Judoc listens to the cleaning women talk, nodding his head in the right places, tsk tsking at their description of the Malcombe boy.  Sounds like the kid shared some similarities with Judoc, and maybe he had seen something.  It was worth seeing if Judoc could find the kid and talk to him.

From everything he has heard, Father Thomas was practically a saint.  Could he have had some dark secret he was carrying, something that was worth killing the priest to bury?  And where did the disc fit in?  A secret society, perhaps?

"Maybe the Malcombe lad saw something," he says to Judy as Brother Samuel comes up."Any idea where his family lives?  This entire business is such a tragedy.".

REalizing he had taken up enough of the woman's time, Judoc smiles and says, "A pleasure to meet you, Miss Judy, and thank you.  We shall see justice served."

He waits for the cleaner to leave, and then he says quietly to Brother Samuel, "If Father Thomas was murdered, we'll find who did this.  Criminals always make mistakes."  He pauses for a moment.  "I keep coming back to Father Thomas' sermon.  He didn't go into specific detail, but I can't help but think his sermon was a warning to someone about something very specific.  I believe he was killed because of something he knew.". He fishes the strange disc out of his pocket and shows it to the deacon.  "Have you ever seen anything like this?" Perhaps the priest has been a member of a secret society, and this had been why he was murdered.  Judoc feels so close to solving this mystery.  He just needs the right clue to lay the whole case bare.

Judy shakes her head as Judoc asks where Malcombe lives.  "I believe the Farrow family lives in the freeman district, but I know not where.  His father Westley is a laborer and field hand in the summers.  I believe Sia is hired as a seamstress at Talbott's."  Judy smiles her goodbyes as she departs down a short staircase at the side of the sanctuary.

Samuel shakes his head at Judoc's thoughts, a bewildered expression adorning his face.  "Perhaps.  If there was any deep secret or foreboding warning then he never spoke of it to me."  Soliciting further ideas, Judoc shows the deacon the small pendant, but the deacon's expression only furrows in concern.  "Pentagram?  Isn't that a devil worshiper's symbol?  But I do not know what all the other marks are..."  Eventually Samuel shakes his head.  "I'm sorry, I would be speculating...  If you wish though, the Bishop"  Samuel cannot keep the spite out of the word as he nearly spits it onto the floor.  "Has instructed me to get the father's things together, he is already petitioning the archdiocese for another priest and he thinks that we must have the spaces available as soon as possible."

Samuel sighs.  "I know of no family the father had here, perhaps we will be able to find something in his things.  Though I am sure he would not object to his affects being donated for good use it always saddens me when a person blinks out of existence with no family to remember them."  He smiles weakly at Judoc.  "Perhaps it happens all too often with the church and I fear it will happen to me as well."
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:50, Sun 11 June 2017.

Judoc lifts a hand in a goodbye wave as Miss Judy takes her leave, and then he turns to listen to Brother Samuel.  Judoc nods his head.  Devil worship.  As a student mage, Judoc knows that pentagrams have a variety of purposes, but yes, communicating with demons is one possibility.  In his gut, though, he senses that Father Thomas was either part of something, a secret organization of some kind that he was about to reveal to the world, or had come across someone else's involvement in such an organization and had been killed.  Either way, Judoc feels certain that Father Thomas was killed to silence him.  He had probably gone to the confessional booth to meet a person who was part of the secret society, little suspecting that he would be killed for his troubles.

"Brother Samuel, I noticed that you and Bishop Abram were giving benedictions as the congregation left today.  Wouldn't Father Thomas have been there as well?  Or was it common that he meet after mass to hear confessions?"  Judoc tries to remember the last time he had gone to confessional.  He had been very small, he thinks.  He had stolen another boy's sweetbread and had wolfed it down before his father could stop him, and as punishment he had had to go to confessional.  It was apparently good for the soul, but Judoc didn't relish having to bare his, even though it was fairly anonymous.

At the mention of the priest's belongings, Judoc says quickly, "Do you think I could go through them first?  Perhaps I can locate more clues that can aid in our investigation."  He nods his head and looks thoughtfully as Samuel says he might share the same fate.  Not murdered, of course, but dead with no one to mourn him but the church.  "You can't take it with you," he says gently.  "When we die, all we will have is our good works.  As the Holy Scriptures say, our true treasure is in heaven, safe from thieves and the evils of this world."  All of which sounds terribly boring to Judoc.  He'd hate being a priest.  Not being able to screw and carouse, store up wealth, make a name for himself?  Perhaps that's why Bishop Abram is so deadset on becoming famous himself.  He's seen the end result of a life devoted to God, and he wants a better deal.

OOC:  OK, go check out Father Thomas' things.  See if there are any more clues to be had in his possessions or his room.  Then, go to the freeman district to see if Judoc can hunt down Malcombe Farrow.

Samuel shakes his head at Judoc's first question.  "No it was fairly standard practice that one of the two of us would go to hear confessions right after church services completed.  The other would give benedictions with the bishop and then do whatever else was required to tidy up.  Today was simply his turn for confessional."  Samuel sighs slightly.  "Though I suppose I should admit that even if it wasn't his turn there is a fairly good chance that he would have ended up there anyway.  I think he liked doing it, he certainly liked it more than I did.  It can be so exhausting at times, or downright shocking, but normally just exhausting."

Samuel leads the way towards Father Thomas's small room, housed off in one of the side buildings to the cathedral, Samuel points things out as they walk, his own room, their kitchens.  It seems that the two share the small building and care mostly for themselves, unlike the Bishop who has his own attendants and larger lodgings.

"And here it is."  Samuel stops in the doorway of the small room, ushering Judoc forward with the gesture of a single hand.  "Neither of us collected much but I suppose it's possible that there is something that could be of some use."

Judoc walks in the small, perhaps ten foot square room.  It has a single window on the east wall with shutters that are currently thrown open, letting the chill air from outside in with a gentle breeze.  The rest of the room seems sparse, desk, wardrobe and bed with little else around.  Unsure exactly where to start, Judoc simply does a cursory examination of each.

To Judoc's left is a wooden desk with a high-backed chair tucked underneath the hollow.  There is a single built in shelf, perhaps a foot above the desktop, where a handful of books sit neatly in order of descending height: Deamonology, On Missions: Spreading the Word, Great Faith: Healing the Soul Through Exorcism, New World Catechism, and Mathew to Acts: The Deeds of God.  On the desktop itself, The Bible lays open on the chapter of Proverbs, a short stack of blank paper lays in the center of the desk with an inkwell and quill tucked neatly under the shelf behind it.

Judoc pulls out some of the drawers of the desk, finding other writing equipment, some fresh paper and a charcoal pencil along with a penknife and quills as well as a replacement bottle of ink.  In another he finds a handful of small trinkets, a necklace with a small wooden cross as its pendant, a knuckle sized milky green stone, a coin purse with a handful of farthings and pennies in it, an empty small wooden box and a small stack of letters that are up on their sides.  In another drawer, Judoc finds several sets of folders with loose papers in each of them, with titles like Accounts and Expenses, Ministry of the Grounds, Prayer Lists, Diocese, and Correspondence.

After the desk, the bed to his right seems little to look at.  It is pulled up and made just a thin set of sheets with a wool blanket, a mattress that is a few feet wide and perhaps six long raised a foot or so off the ground by a frame of solid wood.  A soft pillow of down sits at the head.

Walking over to the wardrobe, Judoc pulls open the door to again find the evidence of an organized man.  A few hanging wires sit empty on the left hand side, though there are a pair of stoles hanging in the middle, one with brightly stitched colors, yellows and greens, blues and reds, each pattern is a square about four inches wide that are stitched together to make the garment, the other stole is entirely purple.  To the right side are several shelves, one dedicated entirely to several black shirts with white collar, almost identical to the one Samuel wears, although there are other shelves filled with various other garments of shirts and pants, belts, socks and undergarments that any normal man would have.

OOC:  It is about 1400 on January 14th.  Feel free to continue searching or more specifically honing in on anything in particular, this post is the results of about a minute or two of taking in the obvious first.  Otherwise let me know when you are ready to go track down Malcombe Farrow.

Judoc nods his head at Samuel's explanation of confessional duties.  He tries to imagine himself in that role and all the tawdry stories he would hear as a result of parishioners' confessions.  Much of it was probably mundane stuff - Father, please forgive me, I yelled at my wife the other day when she burned the gruel - but what tantalizing stories had these men heard?  Best that those hearing the confessions were as morally upright as possible.  Otherwise, the potential for misusing that kind of information is staggering.

When the deacon shows Judoc into the deceased priest's quarters, Judoc stops a moment to take a mental inventory of the room.  Although some men use the church as a stepping stone to greater power and influence, Father Thomas had apparently not been one of them.

He decides to start with the desk.  He picks up each book in turn, flipping through them randomly, looking for loose pieces of paper or perhaps marked or underlined sections that might give him some clue about the mysterious medallion he had found or why someone would have wanted to murder the priest.  Next, he looks at the Bible and checks the chapters and verses that are on the open pages.  Perhaps the priest had read these words this very morning.  Once he notes the page number, he leafs through the Bible as well, again looking for any notes or loose paper inside.

He picks up the paper on the desk and holds it up to the open window, curious as to whether some tracings of a message might be discerned on the blank sheets.  Going through the desk itself, Judoc notes the different items, checking the necklace and pebble to see if they might radiate magic.  He picks up the empty box and checks it for hidden compartments.  "May I go through these letters?  And these folders?" he asks Samuel.

Next he turns his attention to the bed.  He lifts up the pillow, checking beneath it, turns over the covers, and checks beneath the bed.  Throughout, he looks for anything hidden around the bed, any notes, letters, or hidden items.  Once he is finished, he remakes the bed to match the state he found it in.

Remembering the hidden compartment in the priest's garment, Judoc checks the rest of Father Thomas' clothes, looking for similar hidden pockets.  As with the bed, when he finishes he puts everything back as he found it.

OOC:  If the deacon gives permission, Judoc will skim through the correspondence and the folders marked Prayer Requests, etc., looking for anything unusual, or noteworthy.
This message was lightly edited by the player at 07:55, Fri 09 June 2017.

Before attacking the contents of the room, Judoc takes mental notes, methodically placing everything in his mind, attempting to make connections and similarly exclude the chaff from the information that may actually be relevant.

Starting with the books, Judoc's main goal was to find the obvious information - Any heavy notes, loose papers or anything else that was significantly out of place or otherwise to start to develop his conception of the priest.  Starting with the largest of the books, Judoc first turns the Deamonology to have it's binding up, flipping through the pages, though there seems to be nothing between them that is hidden nor falling out.  Next, he cuts to a few pages randomly, looking for notes but the book seems to be fairly clean of them.  He reads a few sentences to realize that the book seem to be a list of deamons and their description:

145

Succubae

A succubae is a Lilin-demon in female form that appears in dreams and takes the form of a woman in order to seduce and destroy men through sexual exploitation.  The male counterpart is the incubae.  While they often kill their prey of weak souls outright, at times succubae can prey on the same victim repeatedly, leaching away their morality and humanity with each feeding.

A succubae may or may not appear in dreams and is often seen as a shape shifter, coming to her victims in the form of seductress or enchantress, in their true form, however succubi are frightening and demonic in appearance.

Putting the book down, Judoc picks up the next, On Missions which proves to be a complete opposite.  The book is well used and the binding is starting to deteriorate, breaking across the spine on page 225.  The book is also completely littered with notes, nothing loose but rather ink and pencil notes jotted into margins on nearly every page.  Skipping through to the page where the binding is coming loose (on the rationale that it is the most used) Judoc begins to read:

225

rather it is the very expectation that a mission shall be primarily in order to spread the word of God spoken as by Christ Jesus.  Unfortunately resistance, both spoken of our message and shown through violence should be prepared for, if not expected.  It is incumbent upon the missionary to weather the spears and arrows both metaphorical, and if needed, physical in order to spread the word of God to both heathen and ignorant cultures alike. 

The text carries on in much the same vein and Judoc looks over to the margin, deciphering some of Thomas's notes on the subject:  While the idea of the great missionary in the wilderness is intriguing, in practice it is not the repetition of the same words and scriptures that will turn converts, but rather the slow evolution of the compulsions and morals they already hold toward those that are taught by Christ.  Fling yourself against the hardened wall of a man's heart and you shall surely die before convincing him to take any opinion of but his own.  But if you engage him in reasoned conversation of his own morality you can teach him how Jesus both preaches and praises the ethos that he already holds...

Judoc picks up the next text, Great Faith and as it's title states it seems a case for as well as instructional manual on faith healing.  Judoc combs through the pages to find no notes again this time with crisp pages and he only reads a few words about banishing everyday evils before he opts for the next book.

New World Catechism and Matthew to Acts are much the same as On Missions with various markings throughout the books and notes that make it difficult to pick out anything specific since it is almost all underlined and annotated.

Moving on, Judoc glances at the bible, scanning through the text on the open page and gets nearly half the way down before he recognizes something familiar from that day.

Proverbs 3:7

Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil.

Unlike the other books, there are no markings on his bible, and again, Judoc lifts the pages and combs through them to see nothing inserted between the pages.

Lifting the stack of paper to inspect it, Judoc moves over to the window searching for hidden text on each sheet, ink that has blotted through the paper, or otherwise shadows from any sort of indentions, but although he sees some scratches on the top sheet (like something was written on the sheet above it) it seems impossible to decipher any words or letters from the blank page.

Going through the desk, Judoc handles the cross and the stone, waiting for revelations of magic but nothing comes.  Turning over the two objects in his hands and finding nothing out of the ordinary, he eventually moves on to the wooden box.

Judoc turns to the box, opening the wooden cube again, Judoc places his fingers throughout the inside, feeling for any hidden compartments or switches that may store some secret though he finds nothing hidden.  Likewise, placing the wood on all sides between his thumb and forefinger, he finds it difficult to believe there is any room for a hidden compartment.

"May I go through these letters?  And these folders?"  Judoc starts to the deacon.  Samuel seems a little wary of the decision though he eventually concedes.  "It is to help the investigation isn't it?  Just... be careful of anything that might require... discretion.  There are many who feel most comfortable confiding in the church."

Unsure how to take comment, Judoc pulls out the letters first, thumbing through the first one in the stack he notices a boldened insignia in the corner and enormous letters adorning the top.


Thumbing to the next page, he reads a congratulatory letter from an Archbishop Decatur on his promotion to Curate, it seems to suggest some personal acquaintance more so than a compulsory act of the church, though after only a few lines of reading he deems it of little worth to the investigation.

Beloved Thomas

Judoc is instantly intrigued on the next piece of paper that he thumbs through.

Your decision cuts a dagger at my very heart, you who I thought were the only love I would ever have him my life.  While I rejoice in the path that you chose, and revel at the thought of the good you will do in this world (I can envision you clearly as a minister!) it saddens me terribly that this is assuredly an end to our love.  And while each of us may make promises of friendship and well wishes of writing often I cannot but think that the pain will be too awful for me to bear to think of you of anything but a lover.  I know you will do great things.  I know the very man you are will transform men and wives in their entirety to follow the wonderful God that you speak so elegantly of.  Still, I know that I cannot follow you in this venture.  Seminary will be long, arduous, and far, far from here.  There is little doubt you will be sent somewhere great upon your success, and you shall not be allowed a wife.  Therefore, to free us both from the pain that is surely coming, I release you from my love, and wish you the best of luck.  May you bless a thousand souls as you have blessed mine.

Love,
Indra

Unsure of what to think, Judoc simply moves on to the next of the letters, trying to keep his mind from running off with too many theories before he has the all of the facts.

Thomas

This one is newer than the others.

The bishop is fucking mad.  I know that you already know this, but the word is beginning to infest things here as well.  He cares nothing for his church, for his congregation, or even for his diocese!  He cares only for his unchecked ambition which careens like a juggernaut across the landscape of this whole island.  He fiddles with Graves as if any in the college cared even remotely for the faith.  Besides the few we know, have you ever seen a Templar here at chapel?  It is all because he seeks power and powerful allies!  That asshole runs this entire city and Abram is a slavering dog begging for a piece!  Is there nothing we can do to check his ambition?  Is there nothing we can do to reclaim our church?  I am exhausted by my trampling thoughts, though I fear the answer is no.  I entreat you to write to the archbishop though I know not what help it can accomplish.  Thank you, thank you, thank you my friend for staying true, keeping the faith, and being a real man of the cloth.

Kind regards,
X

OOC:  I know that this is already exhausting, but I'm not remotely done.  Hold off on posting for a minute, I feel like this saga deserves at least an addition of 2 to our post count.

His thoughts lingering on the last letter, Judoc puts the writings back and moves on to the folders in the other drawers, quickly moving through the contents of Accounts and Expenses which has a long list of donations by which parishioner by name or otherwise marked X, and another several pages of employees, volunteers, and ministries of the Church organized by amount.  Several of the notes on these pages are written, crossed through, or added as if these pages were the acting documents and finances of the church.

Ministry of the Grounds Likewise has some documents on the hired personnel for landscaping, the architectural drawings of the cathedral and some contracts of business with various signatures.  There is also a short list of funds specifically for the gardens, graveyard, and beautification funds.

Prayer Lists contains only two sheets of paper, thought this too looks like a sort of living document, with various scratches and added ink.  The first sheet has names of parishioners on the left side and various conditions on the right, with deceased marking the lines where the person has died.

Charity Keslering    Consumption deceased
Allen Connerson    Dementia
Badley Strong      Crisis of Faith
Brian Wulfric      Sodomy
Aaron Paulus    Cholera deceased

And so on...  The second page only seems to be a list of doubled letters.

TS
UL
CD
AC
BR
PK
HF
MS

This list is considerably shorter than the first and has no annotations other than the single markings crossing letters off the list.

The Folder of Diocese seems to hold correspondence back and forth between the parishes of the diocese and the cathedral.  The vast majority of which seem to be priests requesting a visit from the bishop for the purposes of confirmation or baptism.  Here and there Parishes ask for monetary relief in one form or another, but there is nothing that draws in Judocs attention so he moves on...

Correspondence seems to be various letters, some from above (the archbishop or in one case Jordan Siegebreaker with correspondence) though mostly again from parishioners asking for prayer requests, financial assistance in troubled times or otherwise from members of other churches in the diocese.  There are a fair few letters signed from Baron Graves, one that thanks the Bishop for his attendance on the students and another that thanks the church for its donation towards the education of the students, but there seems to be little here that points to murder of the father.

Already tired by his exertions, Judoc moves over to sit on, rather than search, the bed, putting both hands down on the edge of the mattress as he tries to collect his thoughts.  How long had it been, an hour already?  Looking over towards the doorway is the first time he realizes that Samuel has left, perhaps some time ago, to potentially attend to other things.  Shaking his head to try and attempt to reclaim some energy, Judoc stands up to go through the specifics of his sleeping arrangements.

First looking underneath and into the pillow, Judoc quickly moves on to the sheets the mattress, and then lifts the mattress up to search underneath.  It is a light thunk on the floor that alarms Judoc to the fact that he may have found something.  Moving onto one knee he places his head near the floor and sees a small, palm hand sized book that has fallen down, and scooping up his discovery Judoc turns to the first page (as it has no title).

Hello!

I suppose it is fortuitous that this next book starts with such an auspicious event!  The arrival of the new bishop.  Though I am saddened to see Bishop Decatur leave, it is with great enthusiasm that I relay that he has been promoted to archbishop!  He does not have an archdiocese yet but it is almost certain that he will not be in the area as the Megelan Archbishop Garfondo is only 62 years in age and unlikely to resign or retire soon enough for it to be placed as Decatur's charge.  Still, my heart bursts with pride for my friend and mentor and I am cautiously excited for our next bishop to arrive.  Certainly I will report back with my findings!

Judoc flips over a few pages before getting an idea and starting from the backside of the book, reading the last entry.

I fear for R.

It has been seven months now and his symptoms have only progressed.  The blackouts seem to be getting more frequent and when we speak his tone has changed from the confident youth I knew to a panicked and horrified child.  At times when we talk, he weeps for minutes, unable to speak as I can only comfort him.  He thinks he is dying, or otherwise going mad, losing his mind or his soul.  When I pray with him I feel such fear, and at times horrible anger.  I have been researching his condition and all of my work has pointed to two possibilities - first that his mind has been taken, injured beyond natural repair, from what I do not know and he has not told me.  The second possibility is even more horrifying and I shall not speak of it.

Intrigued, Judoc puts the diary (for that is certainly what it is) back down on the bed and remakes the sheets to the same neat standard they had been when he walked in the room.

Lastly, Judoc makes his way to the closet, searching each of the garments and the shelves closely, though he finds nothing else of value.

OOC:  Again, sorry for that, but you did ask to search literally everything in the room.  Also, the editing is probably subpar, because I didn't do it.  Forgive me for the misspellings and if some combination of words doesn't come together to make sense it's likely because my typing was going slower than my thinking and I just wrote too many or too few words not because I'm intentionally trying to be duplicitous or difficult to understand.  I wasn't sure the detail you wanted of anything specifically, so I gave you a few rolls here and there to see what it was that you picked up on.  It has been over an hour, but you are not entirely sure of the time.  Feel free to continue searching if you want, letting me know what specific stuff you want to peruse further.  Otherwise we can continue on to try and find Malcombe.

As Judoc pores over the flotsam of the priest's room, he looks for anything that might give him a better idea of what had happened to the priest and what leads he might be able to follow up.  The book on deamons seems interesting to him.  He knows from personal experience the reality of these creatures, and toys with the idea that the evil Father Thomas had warned of was one of these succubae.  Their true form might be horrifying, but it wouldn't be all bad to be sexually ravished by one of them, not if the form were appealing enough.  Eh, he doesn't need to go down that road, he thinks.

The Father seemed much more interested in missions than deamons, though.  Interesting how he compares it almost to a military campaign, an attack on the walls being suicidal, but diplomacy being the key to winning someone's heart.

The other books seem to not be very useful, but the text in the Bible is interesting.  That was the text from this morning.  He allows himself a small smile.  Again, it almost seems like a warning to Judoc, not that he needs one.

Holding up the paper to the light, he sees some indentations on it.  Looking around, he picks up the charcoal pencil and rubs across the sheet lightly to see if he can make out any words.

The letter from Indra touches him.  Although Judoc is a man of the world and has little time for such romantic entanglements, the story is intriguing.  Thomas had gone through with his decision to be a priest, even though he had this woman?  Based on his notes in the missiology book, Thomas was apparently a fervent believer.  Judoc wonders how hard it had been for Thomas to give up this relationship with Indra.  Had he felt sorrow?  Relief?  Regret?

Curious.  More about this bishop.  From what Samuel had said and now what he is reading, a picture is emerging of Bishop Abram as a grasping, weak-willed man, begging for scraps and striving to rise as far as he can.  Judoc doesn't fault the man for his ambition, but it seems the bishop cares for little else.  Had Thomas sent the letter?  Judoc wonders.  Could that have been enough to have had the priest eliminated?  And who was this X?  Perhaps the deacon?  Or someone else?

The accounts books seem unimportant.  The prayer list - perhaps there is something useful there, but maybe not.  The priest's prayers don't seem that effective.  The second page.  Curious.  Doubled letters - probably initials?  Judoc goes back to the desk, takes one of the blank pieces of paper, and jots down the initials.  They could be nothing, but perhaps they might make more sense later.

He continues to peruse the rest of the folders.  The various items of the Diocese and Correspondence seem mostly irrelevant.

How long has been going at this?  He's read so much already, and other than confirm what he's already heard about Thomas and Abram, he hasn't uncovered anything new that might indicate who had done the deed.

And then, just as he is beginning to feel fatigued, something falls to the floor.  Ducking down, he retrieves what appears to be a diary of some kind.  Now this might be useful!  Again, he reads words that intrigue him.  Who is R?  A child, apparently, one who was suffering a great deal.  Fear.  Anger.  He is reminded of a proverb he heard recently.  He's not sure who wrote it, but it something about fear leading to anger, anger to hate, and hate to suffering.  Perhaps this was linked to it as well.  And the second possibility?  Judoc is eager to know what that might have been.  Demonic possession?  Sexual abuse?

Standing up, Judoc looks around the room.  He feels reasonably confident he has learned everything he can from this place.  Now to find Malcombe.

OOC:  Something kind of like this:  https://youtu.be/SFcJ3IHFGqQ

He'll copy out the initials on the second page of the prayer lists folder.

Next, let's track down Malcombe.

Rubbing the charcoal pencil across the top page of the blank paper, Judoc's stiff smile turns gleeful as he watches the grey outline form against letters and words that slowly spring to the page.  He has uncovered a handful of paragraphs before he finally starts to read at the top.

those evils surround and permeate our lives.  The devils of hate, pride, injustice, and fear which seek to override our best intensions of faith and love.  For even those, faith and love, cannot conquer the evils of this world, they cannot conquer the evils of your heart... without you.  Only with our eyes open to the truth, our hearts exposed in humility, and our minds free from the biases of self indulgence and righteousness will we finally see the correct path and walk with God.
Let us pray.
Dear Lord, give us the vision to detect the evil around us, the strength to stand together against it, and the true faith to banish evil with your omnipotent love.  Amen.

Shit.

Judoc had thought he had something, but he was foiled again by the preparations for today's sermon.  Scrawling the flat edge of the charcoal all the way down to the edges of the page, Judoc finds nothing else of note.

Still, Judoc is invigorated.  There was a substantial mound of evidence here, he just had to put it in context.  Theories swirled in his mind, waiting to be corroborated or disproven, the evidence splattered across his mind like the pieces of an incomplete jigsaw puzzle.  I can work my way through this.  Judoc thought.  I just need to make the right connections... and find the last pieces."

Judoc takes some quick notes to copy the second page of the prayer list, stuffing the copy into a pouch before he looks over the room quickly, finally deciding he has seen all that he can in a single sitting, Judoc departs the room, making a quick search and finding Samuel in his own chambers to let the deacon know that Judoc's search is complete before heading off to the Freeman district to search for young Malcombe Farrow.

Luckily, the Feeman district was quite close to the Cathedral, only a mile or two walk as the crow flies.  Though he had limited information to go on, only a few names, Westley, Sia, and Malcombe Farrow Judoc felt fairly confident that he could find his way to the young boy... however, after the better part of an hour searching through the district, Judoc still had little to go on.  He had searched through several neighborhoods, hailing strangers and asking of the Farrows, but no one seemed to know who they were, or where they lived.

"Excuse me miss."  Judoc hails an older woman, hoping her to be knowledgeable on the community due to her age and apparent community status.  Judoc is not ready for the response.

"Miss?!"  The woman shrieks, turning her head around to Judoc as her hips sway dangerously midstride.  "An what the fuck do you mean by that, ye half grown child?  Are ye invoking your noble's rights you fucking dog?  Get back to your own quarters you coin feeding succubus!  You're not needed here!"

OOC:  It is currently 1700 on January 17th.  Sunset is less than an hour away and you have been spinning your wheels in the freeman's district for the past hour or so.  Above is the result of a particularly nasty reaction roll.  If you wish to continue searching for Malcombe, roll vs. reaction or your best social skill (label it appropriately).  If you fail, feel free to roll again, but each attempt will take on average 10 minutes of your time.

The rubbing proves to be effective, but once Judoc is finished, he finds he only has the text to that morning's sermon.  Well, so much for that.  He tides up the room quickly, doubting that anyone will be behind him but not eager to leave too many clues behind that someone could use to follow his thoughts.  He can't wait to see how all these pieces fit together and he can uncover who killed the priest.  Right now, his primary suspects include the bishop and Graves, but the motive seems to be missing, unless Father Thomas was about to reveal something that would torpedo the Bishop's chances of gaining an archdiocese.  Yes, yes, that must be what happened.  Perhaps it was tied in with this boy who might be demon-possessed or whatever had caused his mind to change.  Abram was attempting to cover up the incident for whatever reason, and Father Thomas had gotten too close to the truth.  Perhaps the medallion had been used to summon the demon.  By the bishop?  Possibly, possibly.  It was a more outlandish theory, but it kind of fit the facts.

His investigations complete at the cathedral complex, he heads now for the Freeman district, curious to uncover what Malcombe Farrow might reveal about this case.

He is unprepared for the fusillade his innocent question has drawn.  The manners of these people!

"I have no idea what you are implying, madam," he says, attempting to calm this unreasonable old trout.  "I'm looking for a family, the Farrows.  Westley?  Sia?  Young Malcombe?  I've been sent by the church to get some information from them."  He smiles sickly.  Noble's rights?  Not in a million years, you old goat!  Just the thought of it is enough to make the bile burn his throat.

"Get out!"  The woman shouts, hardly even listening Judoc's request for information...  Though he is drawn to try and settle the misunderstanding as to why this woman has reacted so harshly, Judoc gives that situation up, deciding instead to attempt his luck elsewhere.

It is perhaps a half an hour later when he finally manages someone who seems to know where the Farrows live.  "Oh they're up there by the old walls!"  The boy is young, perhaps thirteen and Judoc surmises that it is quite probably that he and Malcombe are friends of some sort.  "I knows him."  The boy smiles at the question.  "But we don't see each other much any more, he runs with a different group.  He lives just over that way though, red clay brick building about halfway down the street, been there for as long as I can remember."

Judoc thanks the lad and continues on, watching as the sun makes its way to, and then sinks below the buildings beside him, the pale blues of the evening give way to orange, and the sky in the east begins to darken with the oncoming night.

Finally finding what he believes to be the right building, Judoc knocks on the door, which is answered by a petite woman of middle age.  "Can I help you?"  The woman asks, opening the door just enough to get her face and shoulder into the crevice.

OOC:  You know the drill, reaction roll or social skill of your choice.  I was trying to keep the plot moving so apologies if there was anything else you were going to ask the kid, I figured getting here in one post was better than playing out a conversation where you were unlikely to gain anything.  It is now about 1750 and the sun has set, and darkness is not far off.

"Fine, fine!  I'm going!" Throwing his hands up in the air, Judoc glares at the ridiculous woman and storms off.  The nerve of that old crone!  He tried to be polite, but there's no overcoming the old bag's poor manners.  Grumbling, he stalks off, hoping to find someone more reasonable.

At length he does, and Judoc thanks the lad before walking off in the direction indicated.  He reaches the building that matches the boy's description and knocks and waits patiently.  When the door is opened a crack, Judoc smiles.  "Good evening, madam.  Sorry to trouble you at this hour, but I've come from the church.  My name's Judoc.  I'm a student at the Templar's college.  There's been an accident at the Cathedral today, and someone mentioned they saw Malcombe nearby.  I wanted to see if he had seen anything today.  Is he in?  Could I speak with him?"

OOC:  Aim for a polite, friendly, deferential tone.

"An accident?"  The woman answers, concern in her face.  "I hope that everyone is ok."

However, after a moment, her expression takes a more stony turn as she opens up the door more widely for Judoc to step in.  "You don't think that Malcombe had something to do with it do you?  I swear that boy is going to reap an awful wrath for his actions.  Did you know he skipped church today!  We brought him with us and everything, and just before the service he up and goes!  Never saw him again until after.  His father took care of that well enough, but if you are saying he was up to something else other than just skipping church, then he may have another thing coming!"

Fuming, the woman leads Judoc into the house and closes the door behind him.  "Malcombe!"  She shouts, making Judoc near jump out of his skin.  "Get your ass over here!"

The woman leads Judoc into a kitchen of sorts with an open space in the middle with a table.  She offers Judoc a chair, and then moves over to the fireplace where a large bird carcass, perhaps a goose, is roasting on the fire.

"What mom?"  The voice creeps from the entryway of the room and Judoc spies a young man, this one early teens as well that is peering his head around the archway leading into the room.

"Don't you sass me!"  Sia (certainly this is Malcombe's mother) responds, prodding the bird as she turns it over on it's spit.  "This man wants to know what you were doing while all the devout were at church.  Says there was an accident that you might know something about.  Well."  Sia stands, balled fists on her hips as she turns towards the child.  "What do you have to say for yourself?"

Judoc considers how to play this.  What would be the best use of the information he has?  Should he tell everything he knows, or give it out in bits and pieces?

"No, madam, everything is not ok, I'm very sorry to say," he says, walking through the door, "although rest assured, we do not think Malcombe is involved in what has transpired.  Rather, I'm interested to learn what he might have seen.  Anything can be beneficial and help us secure justice in this matter."

He sits in the chair and takes in the room at a glance.  Nearly supper time, apparently, with the meat on the fire.  He turns his head as a young lad looks into the room.  Malcombe, apparently.

"Hello, Malcombe," Judoc says, as though speaking to an equal.  "It's all right.  You're not a suspect."  Not yet, anyway, Judoc thinks, although he doubts this young man had a hand in this dark business.  "I'd like to know what you saw while you were waiting for mass to be finished.  Did you notice anyone leaving the cathedral in a hurry right afterwards, or anyone skulking around during the service?"

OOC:  Judoc will ask questions about what Malcombe saw.  He will keep his tone civil and aim for a friendly, nonthreatening tone.  After he has the chance to question Malcombe as to what the boy has seen, Judoc will reveal that the priest was found dead under very suspicious circumstances and will hint that perhaps Father Thomas was murdered.  He wants to see what Malcombe's reaction to this information is.

Sia takes a moment to look at Judoc after his less than entirely straightforward statement, but in the end seems to decide there are more important things to do.  She turns around and goes to fetching a pot from one of the cupboards and some vegetables from her stores.

"Well."  She calls from over her shoulder as she busies herself about her pantry.  "Do let us know if there is anything we can do.  Church ain't just for healing from God but from all the neighbors pitching in."

As for Malcombe, he takes the news that he is not a suspect somewhat skeptically as he slowly moves towards the table and takes a seat on the opposite side and half way down.

"I didn't mean to leave the service, mister, but I had to use the outhouse and, well, it didn't seem right to walk in when it already started."  Malcombe flicks a glance over at his mother who seems busy at the moment chopping a cabbage into small pieces.

Malcombe looks back at Judoc, the nervous look on his face somewhat abated.  "So I stayed out by the Narthex, and listened in from there, but I didn't see anyone coming or going sir until the service was over, when the recession came out."

Behind Malcombe, Sia's voice explodes over the conversation.  "He doesn't need you lying on top of all your other sins today Malcombe!  God already knows where you went during church and why and apart from your father, he's the only one to punish you for it.  The man just wants to know if you saw anybody while you were out sinning!"

Malcombe's eyes bulge and his shoulders shrink down to the table with the reprimand.  "No ma'am."  Is all he manages, though the words are muffled with half of his face shrinking to below the table.

Seeing that this conversation is not getting where he would like it, Judoc lays bare the situation.  Father Thomas is dead, and while there is no direct proof, nearly everyone agrees that murder must be a consideration.  Sia gasps and turns from her chores, her hand over her mouth as she crosses herself and closes her eyes for a moment in prayer.

"Who would have any reason to murder that man?"  Sia asks, the emotion clear in her voice as it nearly breaks.  After a moment, she realizes she has a knife in her hand and puts it down on her cutting board with an overzealous haste.  "Him being a man of God, and he was so kind!"

Judoc however, had been watching Malcombe, who as he mentioned the foul deed seemed to go from abashed and nervous to downright horrified.

"I didn't have nothing to do with it!"  He blurts out.  "The services were started and if I were to be whooped for a farthing, I might as well have been whooped for a pound!  I went to the graveyard and climbed the trees until I saw the congregation come out!  I didn't see nothing or do nothing sir, I promise!"

"Malcombe!"  The voice of her mother bursts out over his words, forcing Judoc to concentrate to understand what he is saying.  "You were in the graveyard during mass!"  she turns about, the knife back in her hand as she glares at her son.  "You wait until your father gets home!  This is not done with!"

OOC:  Sorry for the oversight on my part.  Malcombe's reaction is hard to read beyond what is in the text here.  If you want to see if he is lying about anything, tell me the specific things you are wondering about if he is lying or not in private or OOC and I'll roll vs. detect lies (defaults to per-6) for each of them.
This message was last edited by the GM at 06:19, Sat 24 June 2017.

Judoc slowly collects information from Malcombe as he watches the young man, curious to find out what the boy knows and saw.  The responses aren't very encouraging.  Perhaps this is a dead end after all.  He glances over at Sia.  She seems to be able to tell when Malcombe is lying.  Or is she just naturally a suspicious woman?

"Well, not everyone thinks Father Thomas was murdered," Judoc says dryly.  "The bishop is convinced it was a freak natural death, but based on what the healer, Brother Seamus, said about Father Thomas' body, our priest didn't die naturally."

He leans forward with interest as Malcombe protests that he saw nothing.  "When the congregation left the cathedral, who did you see?  Anyone that seemed out of place, or who didn't normally go to mass?"  It would have been very natural for someone to slip in, attend the service, and then leave with the crowd.  Had it been another student, perhaps, tasked with the job of killing Thomas, just as Judoc had been told to kill Thresher?

OOC:  Ask Malcombe who he noticed coming and going.  Did anything surprise him about who he saw?

Once Judoc is finished, he will return back to the College to consider his next move.

Judoc stares at every muscle movement of the child as he speaks, trying to discern whether he speaks the truth or is lying through his teeth, although, unfortunately, he is simply too unskilled in the art of reading emotions to determine whether or not the boy is lying.

Malcombe seems somewhat more tamed after his outburst, and as such, Judoc lays into his most important of questions.  His eyes ever darting towards his mother, Malcombe creates his best list of the people who had attended.

"The first ones out were the bishop, father, and deacon of course, but the father didn't stay out long.  The people started processing out not long after.  Plenty of families, merchants, knights and beggars, nothing out of the ordinary."

Judoc presses on names of the people Malcombe saw, but unfortunately, Malcombe does not know many of the men who left.  Judoc instead is left with the impression that the boy saw the normal recession, which included plenty of citizens of the city, along with a handful of instructors and students from the college...

Thanking the two for their time and help, Judoc makes his way back to the dorms of the college.  Thankfully, he makes his way through the darkness unmolested and arrives in his rooms none the worse for wear at a reasonable hour.  Though no one else seems to be around, Indrid Colt is coiled up on his bed reading a tome of magick as Judoc enters.

OOC:  Ok, ball is back in your court.  If there is any specific branch of this story you want to shake, feel free to fast forward IC to what you want to investigate, or at least putting yourself on the course to that path.  If you are stumped, that's fine, I'll fast forward to a point where something potentially relevant may happen.  You may also try and get something out of Indrid, although he can be a chore to talk with at times, since he was at the Cathedral this morning as well.

Nodding, Judoc listens as Malcombe describes who he saw.  Disappointment shows in his face when the boy cannot give him any new information.  He had been sure Malcombe would hold the key to this mystery, perhaps Graves climbing down from a window and skulking away down some alley.  This lead is apparently a dead end.

Standing, Judoc takes his leave of Sia and her son.  "Thank you, Malcombe, and thank you, Mrs. Farrow.  I appreciate your time."  He starts back to the College, pondering this mystery.  How would he have committed this murder?

Obviously, it would be a simple matter to be alone in the confessional booth with Father Thomas.  The priest wouldn't even see him.  The screen had been tampered somehow.  Judoc favors flashy magic, not stealthy, secretive work, but that spell of Loke's that had made Judoc feel as though he were drowning.  Judoc wouldn't be surprised to learn that his least favorite teacher was behind this, but somehow, this doesn't seem like Loke's style.  Why would he kill the priest?  No, the bishop seemed a more likely suspect.  There was plainly some dirty dealings going on as the bishop attempted to curry favor with Graves.  Perhaps Father Thomas had intended to blow the lid off of the whole cancerous mess, but nothing in the priest's quarters made Judoc think this.

"Hey, Indrid," Judoc says as he enters their room and goes to sit as his desk, leaning back in his chair.  "Crazy thing today.  Somebody killed Father Thomas.  Did you see anything out of place before or after mass this morning?"

OOC:  Judoc will ask Indrid if he saw anything strange this morning.   He'll also talk to Wayne Irons.  He'll skip Cleppo and Wilmer.

He also wants to find out who R. is.  He'll go back to the cathedral, try to find Seamus and Samuel, and ask them about who R. might be.

Judoc's mind whirls at hurricane force as he finds himself, rather than consciously directing himself, into his own small barracks room.  Recognizing Indrid Colt had been there in the morning, Judoc stabs out in the dark to see if Indrid knows anything about the mess, but instead finds himself with another spoke of the story that juts out in an askew direction...

"What?"  Indrid stares, gawking as he lets his book drop onto the bed.  "You aren't serious!  In church?"  Indrid leans back on his pillow forcefully, the linin exhaling a forceful puff as he sinks into his headboard.  "This whole place is crazy town!  Did you hear about a couple of days ago when the Provost was attacked?  Well..."  Indrid is quick to revise his statement as Judoc's eyes bulge with surprise.  "Not him exactly but I heard that there was a knocking at his door in the middle of the night and when he went to see what it was there were gouges taken out of it like someone had hammered it with a dirk!  I'm telling you,"  Indrid leans back, arching his back upwards as he sprawls out on the length of his bed.  "Giles had it right, take a few classes, get some skills, and then get the fuck out of here.  He's probably living the dream down in Min right now, sunny days on the beaches with nothing but a few hours of watch to bother him..."

OOC:  I'll leave things here for now in case you want to ask Indrid more questions.  If you want to want to try and find Wayne to ask him what he knows, go ahead and roll vs. reaction or social skill of your choice.  If you get neutral or worse, then assume that nothing of value comes from your meeting.  Once you are done with Indrid (and we have figured out the Wayne thing), I will fast forward and put you back at the Cathedral.

"Baron Graves' room was attacked?"  Judoc is perplexed.  Who would be mad enough to attack the provost?  There wasn't anyone else in the city that Judoc is less on being on the wrong side of.  "Gouges, huh?   Must have been someone with a death wish."  Judoc finds it difficult to see anyone who would want to kill both Thomas and Graves, unless it was some kind of anarchist faction.  He knows the Row would love to take out Graves, but knocking on the door in the middle of the night doesn't seem their style.

"Man, you don't know the half of it."  He sits down on his bed.  "You know why Elliot left?  He was straight-up asked to kill somebody.  After that crazy night when he burned Mariana up, he must have been fingered as prime assassin material."  He pauses and plays with his ring for a second.  He doesn't mention that he, too, had been asked to kill.    "But I'm not leaving any time soon, not until I pick the brains of all the teachers I can and learn what they know.  I'm telling you, Indrid, I've learned so much here already.  And there's still so much they can teach me."

OOC:  OK, Judoc has nothing more to ask Indrid.  Let's go see what Wayne knows, if he saw anything strange, or if he saw anyone going to the Confessional booth.
This message was lightly edited by the GM at 17:45, Wed 19 July 2017.

"What?"  Indrid looks scandalized by the conditions surrounding Elliot's departure.  Though Indrid seems keen to share more gossip, Judoc decides he doesn't want to get too much into the extent of information he knows on the college so he cuts the conversation short.

Though he wants to find out as much as he can tonight, the hour is already late, and Judoc decides to attack the matter of Wayne tomorrow.  However, despite his best efforts to catch him for a moment of conversation in the dining hall, and then between classes, and then during lunch, it isn't until well after the dinner hour when Judoc finally manages to track him down Wayne is in the library buried in a pile of books.

"No, I don't remember seeing anything..."  Wayne starts, pushing his book away from him with a face that says he welcomes the distraction.  "Seemed like a normal service...  I didn't stay after to try and plow through this assignment for Neranmal.  Why?  What happened?"

OOC:  It is now about 1900 on Monday the 15th of January.  Wayne doesn't seem to know anything obvious, but I stopped here in case you wanted to ask any specific questions.

"I'll tell you more about it later," Judoc tells Indrid when his roommate wants to know more about Elliot.  Judoc is keen to pick up more gossip but unwilling to say too much about what he knows regarding the circumstances of Elliot's departure.

That night, he dreams of the dead priest's body.  He sees a figure running from the church, and he races in pursuit, but when Judoc exits the church, he finds himself in a classroom.  Elliot is giving a lecture, and Judoc sits down beside Indrid.  No, Loke.  The person beside him changes again.  Now it is Graves sitting beside him, telling Judoc that he must track down the murderer and kill him.   At that moment, Judoc realizes that he himself is the murderer, and he tries to scream, but cannot.

Still thinking about the previous night's dream, Judoc drifts through the next day's classes.  The student mage is still distracted by the priest's death the day before, and he knows that he can solve this puzzle if only he can gather all the pieces together.  Someone must have seen someone or something out of the ordinary.   Perhaps Wayne will have a piece of the puzzle.

When Judoc finally unearths the other young man in the library and asks Wayne if he noticed anything odd, Judoc is disappointed to hear that Wayne saw nothing unusual.  "It was after the service," Judoc explains.  "Father Thomas was found dead in the confessional booth.  I think he was murdered."

OOC:  Judoc will give some details if Wayne asks - who found the body, the suspicious nature of the priest's death.  He won't reveal the small medallion he found, the diary, or his suspicion that the priest was killed to cover up some kind of conspiracy.

"What?!  Wayne seems completely nonplussed at the news, "And you're... looking into it then?"  Without an answer, Wayne closes his eyes, putting his forehead into his two hands as if deep in concentration.

"I don't remember anyone odd there."  Wayne rubs his temples, trying to massage some obscure helpful tidbit into his memory.  "I don't know all the locals yet, but the ones I recognized are normal enough.  Brother Moloran and Brother Caraway come often enough to be normal.  Y"  Wayne stops himself midword, and Judoc can't help but notice the awkward pause.  Nevertheless he continues as if he never missed a beat.  "Indrid isn't always a regular, but he's there often enough, Andros too.  Alevius is there every Sunday I have been...  Shit! who would want to kill Father Thomas?"

OOC:  Just to make sure you know, you are driving the show at this point.  So long as you keep responding here I'll keep posting for Wayne so let me know when you are ready to move on and where you plan on going from here.  If at any point you are stumped let me know and I can try and maneuver things appropriately.

Nodding his head, Judoc confirms that he is indeed investigating whether or not the priest had been murdered.  He takes a seat and leans in.  "Please don't say anything to anyone about this," he asks Wayne, pitching his tone lower.  "Obviously I've made a great impression on the church, but if Father Thomas was in fact killed, I don't want everyone to know that I'm running his killer to ground until after I apprehend the man."  Or woman, of course.  Once Judoc gathers all the clues, he is sure he will be able to deduce the murderer's identity, but it wouldn't do to give the person warning and spark a flight.

A twitch of a grin flits at the corner of his mouth.  Wayne had been about to say that it was unusual for Judoc to be there.  In fact, he muses, he himself was the most out of the ordinary attendee yesterday, a fact that gives him another advantage.  The murderer hadn't known that Judoc would be there.  Judoc's presence would be the other's undoing.

He shakes his head.  "By all accounts, the man was practically a saint.  But I have a few leads I'm following up on.  This was no ordinary crime.  Someone wanted Father Thomas dead, and that someone will kill again if they feel threatened."

Judoc stands.  "Let me know if you hear anything, or see anything," he says and smiles grimly.  "I will see justice done.  Father Thomas will be avenged."

OOC:  Next, let's see what we can find out about the medallion.   Is there a teacher Judoc can ask about the symbol?  He will draw it rather than show the coin.  Also, look through the books for Satanic imagery or secret cult symbols that might match this one or any of the small glyphs.

Wayne nods at Judoc's response.  "I'll let you know if I hear anything, and let me know if you need any help...  I've been going to the cathedral long enough that it would be a good way to give back."  Knowing that the last thing he will do is ask anyone for help, Judoc thanks Wayne and makes his way out back towards the door.

Almost as an afterthought, Judoc detours through Religious Studies section of the library, grabbing a dozen books from the shelves and heading to his own little study nook.  He flips through a few pages of Symbols of God before realizing that the book is entirely about symbolism rather than symbols.  Pushing the book to the side for The Crusade Against the Underworld Judoc is nearly a half and hour in and barely flipping through pages when he sees a flash of a picture that makes him pause.  Pushing a page back to look at it again, a knight with sword and shield rasied to do battle with a six legged lizard with the head of a goat.  Judoc's eyes search the picture, pause over the shield which is emblazoned with a cross and a field that includes stars and a lion in the top two squares.  His eyes linger over the sword, a thick claymore that the knight seems to be wielding expertly with only a single hand.  It is when he is almost ready to give up that Judoc notices again the small edge of a circle with the corners of a star on the knight's tunic.  The etching is mostly blocked by the shield but after taking the small medallion out of his pocket to check, Judoc is sure that the symbol on the picture is entirely the same.

Judoc's eyes zoom towards the caption of the graphic and reads, St. George battling the beasts of the underworld.

Entirely unsatisfied, Judoc pushes back a page and starts reading at a random paragraph.

St. George was known as the dragon slayer, but in truth he battled various foes that were demonic in nature.  His greatest feat was certainly the slaying of the undead dragon Xecandroda but he would have never hat the skill to defeat this beast if he had not first worked his way through a field of infernals plaguing the world.  Perhaps his most important and least known battle that paved the way for his greatness was against the dread beast Golgorath, pictured below, where George counted first on his brawn before realizing that he could not possibly win the epic battle without employing his holy magic.  Divine Calm stopped the beast from attacking long enough for George to sever the beast's left front leg from its body and slash intently at the thing's face.  Though Golgorath spewed vats of acid towards the saint which dissolved his shield whilst upon his arm, the knight finally managed to thrust his sword deep into the demon's eye its only true weakness.

Cursing the lack of information, Judoc skims fore and aft, but finds nothing else in this work of the symbol.  Distraught, Judoc resorts his piles, looking first after the tomes dealing specifically with demons, then he stacks a short pile dealing with saints, finally the rest of the books he throws to the side, thinking there was little likelyhood they would lead him to his goal.

It is on his third subsequent book, Protections from Devils that Judoc finally finds pay dirt.

Symbol in the Book
Devil's Trap

The devil’s trap is a mystical symbol used to immobilize and control demons. It is similar to a circle of salt but more powerful and persistent as it is usually etched or painted in place, and can't simply be brushed or blown away. If a demon walks inside the outer circle of a devil's trap, it cannot physically leave it, and is trapped. Devil's traps also inhibit the use of some demonic powers. Devil's traps have been used not only to detain a demon, but are also drawn at entrances as a deterrent to prevent access to a building, room, or container. The devil’s traps originate from The Lesser Key of Solomon, which is a grimoire. It contains rituals and spells for invoking and controlling both demons and angels.

Judoc sits back in his chair, just now realizing how tired his eyes feel from constant reading.

OOC:  It is about 2230 on the 15th of January.  You have been looking over these works for about the past three hours.  Nice job on your default roll.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:23, Mon 07 Aug 2017.

"Sure, thanks," Judoc says, smiling.  "See you around."  He turns and walks off, considering what to do next.  What he needs is an expert on symbols.  Loke is right out.  The man has quite a bit of information tucked away in that vicious head of his, but Judoc isn't about to go to him for help.  Or - why not do some research right here in the library?  Surely the answer is in one of these books here.

Soon, loaded up with a stack of books, Judoc begins his own research.  The going is slow for a while until he sees something that grabs his attention.  Looking closely at The Crusade Against the Underworld, he sees an interesting picture, an archetypal knight battling a weird sort of beast.  He's familiar with manticores and gryphons, but this six-legged, goat-headed lizard is nothing he's ever seen before.  Very curious.  He looks more closely, at the knight's weapon, shield, and clothing, and then he sees something on the knight's garments.  Is that the same circle?  It must be!  Saint George, eh?

He turns back a page and skims through the text.    He feels a shiver of excitement as he reads through the text.  Likely as not, none of this ever happened, or at least not like the book describes, but every legend has a kernel of truth in it.  Here, the symbol is the link.  He reads of how the knight used his magic to stop the beast before stabbing the brute through the eye.

Could there be a connection here with the child whose mind had been robbed?  Perhaps invaded?  Judoc had assumed the priest's sermon was about the evil that lurks in the hearts of men, but perhaps he was warning about a different sort of evil, malevolent, supernatural.  Now this is getting good.  He reads on, but finds nothing further in the book about what the symbol might be.

And then he hits paydirt.  The Devil's Trap.  He secretively slides the symbol from his pocket and compares it to the illustration.  They're the same, no question about it.  Odd that the symbol is normally painted or etched.  Why would it be so small?  He holds the symbol under his desk, out of view, trying to sense if it might have magical properties.  He had touched it before and had sensed nothing.  Had Father Thomas been paranoid?  Had he planned to use the circle somehow but had not been able to?  The grimoire, The Lesser Key of Solomon, tickles his attention.  He wonders where the grimoire is now.

Yawning, he wonders what time it is.  He's been at this for hours.

So, he knows now what the symbol is.  He's sure Father Thomas was attempting to protect himself from a demon of some kind.  Perhaps it's what killed him, or perhaps the priest had been the victim of misdirection, thinking he was facing a demon but in actuality the threat had been very physical and very deadly.

He reads a little more of the book to see if he can discover where The Lesser Key of Solomon is now.

OOC:  See what else the book says about the symbol or The Lesser Key of Solomon.  Then, return the books to the shelves and ask the librarian (if one is still on duty) about The Lesser Key of Solomon.  Then, go to bed.

Tomorrow, return to the cathedral.  Try to find out who R. is from Thomas' journal.  Ask Samuel, and show him the disc, too.

Judoc searches the book for more references to The Lesser Key of Solomon and finds them scattered here and there in references to specific demons but never with more expounding information.  Making some notes for himself, Judoc makes his way towards the librarian's desk to see if there is anything else he can glean from this visit.

"The Lesser Keys of Solomon?  Brother Raymond asks, putting a finger to his chin as he leans back in his chair.  "That book must be a millennia old and I think most of the copies must have been lost in the dark ages.  I would think perhaps there is still a copy in the Megalos library perhaps, but we do not have a copy here."

Disheartened, but not broken, Judoc thinks to leave, but before he can voice his farewell, Brother Raymond cuts off his thoughts with further discussion.

"But there are many books that have most of the same entries.  Lesser Solomon is always referenced as a Grimoire, but it isn't one as you or I would think of it.  Rather it is more of a collection of occult knowledge...  We might have some similar recent works such as Pseudomonarchia Daemonum or Deamonology if you look in the religious studies section."

Judoc thanks the brother and makes a quick pass through the aisle of religious studies though he finds neither of the titles.  He makes his way to bed, his head swirling in the deviancy of the occult.

---

Though the sun is already threatening to pass below the horizon, Judoc stands at the giant archway of the cathedral.  The expansive wooden doors stand closed before him like a barricade, the iron latticework stretched wide in leaf-motif reinforcement.  Where the two doors meet, there are smaller seams in the woodwork here and there, and a large brass knocker on each of the twin monstrosities.  Judoc can hear nothing from within the Cathedral, though he thinks to himself he did not come here for nothing...

OOC:  It is about 1720 on the 15th of January.  You came over to the Cathedral immediately after your classes but you still have little time before darkness falls entirely.  I think you were done at the library so I moved us on to going back to the Cathedral.
This message was lightly edited by the GM at 05:51, Fri 11 Aug 2017.

The Lesser Keys of Solomon.  In tradition, Solomon was apparently a powerful sorcerer and could command demons to do his bidding.  What Judoc would give to get his hands on a copy of that book.  And if there were a Lesser, might there be a Greater as well?  He nearly drools at the possibilities.

But Megalos is too far, even though he's sure they'd let him take a look at the grimoire for research purposes.  If only the College had a copy!   Brother Raymond's suggestion that he try later copies is a good one, though, so thanking the librarian, Judoc hurries off to the Religious Studies department, although he cannot find either of the books Raymond had suggested.  Perhaps the Religious Studies professor has copies.  He decides to inquire tomorrow.  Professors always love to see students thoroughly invested in their scholarship.

After a fitful night's sleep and a day of classes that seems interminable, Judoc at last is free, and the young mage walks with quick strides in the direction of the Cathedral.  Unlike on Sunday, the gates are barred, which gives him pause.  He does not often visit the church, but shouldn't it be open during the day?  Perhaps it is the late hour.  Whatever the reason, Judoc grasps the knock on the right and gives it three quick, firm raps.

OOC:  Would the Religious Studies professor have copies of Pseudomonarchia Daemonum or Deamonology?   I'd like to hunt him down after Judoc finishes with the cathedral.

Judoc moves the knocker back and forward, rapping on the brass hard enough to make a dull knock that reverberates through the wood.  It also seems to hard enough to split some of the seams in the wood and after a moment Judoc realizes that there is actually a much smaller door built into the woodwork.  With a gentle push, the smaller portal opens freely inward, spilling the outside light into the gallery and Narthex which have only the dim illumination from some oil lamps and a few westward facing stained glass windows.

Judoc pushes his way inward, closing the door behind him.  A quick peek is enough to find out that there are a handful of people speckled about the pews praying silently and on their own.  However, Judoc sees nothing of the staff just yet, not the bishop, nor the deacon or anyone else he can recognize.

OOC:  It's probably worth a shot to try out the Religious Studies professor.  I can move on to there after you are finished here.  Sorry for making you think you couldn't get in, the point wasn't to get stopped up on the trivial but rather to set the stage.  I assumed when you figured out it wasn't actually locked or barred you would walk in (as there are a few worshipers here already) rather than sitting outside waiting for someone to answer (which probably wouldn't happen).

Feeling a little silly, Judoc raps on the door of the church, but no one comes, and he notices that there is actually a smaller door built into the larger one.  He enters quietly and finds parishioners praying, but he doesn't see Brother Samuel.

He finds a quiet place to kneel and pretends to pray while he waits.  Where might the deacon be?  Are there offices somewhere?  He resolves to wait a few minutes and then go explore.

OOC:  Ah, sorry, I thought the doors were locked.  Judoc will wait a few minutes, pretending to pray.  Then, he will wander around the church and look for the deacon.

Judoc moves in to the nave, taking up a place in one of the pews as he presses his hands together in front of him and closes his eyes in thought.  Where was the deacon?  Would he be downstairs in his living quarters or elsewhere in the cathedral?  With so much to do at the cathedral and with only one person do be in charge of it with the father gone, it didn't make sense for Samuel to be far from here.  After another few moments, Judoc deems his time spent in fake prayer sufficient and pushes himself upward, making his way towards the stairwell that Samuel had showed him yesterday that leads to the downstairs offices and the deacon's living spaces.

However, Judoc does not make the entire way unmolested.  As he walks through the narrow hallways of the lower level, just a dozen or so yards from the Deacon's room, a white haired and balding gentleman notices Judoc and approaches.

"Good afternoon."  The man says as he widens his mouth slightly to make a thin smile.  "The church upstairs is open for prayer.  Is there anything I can help you with?"

OOC:  You are only a few yards away from the rooms that Samuel showed you on Sunday, but they are around a corner, so you can't see anything of the deacon at this point.  Father Thomas's old room is in that area too along with a few other rooms that Judoc didn't venture into.

"Ah, yes, Brother, I'm sorry to disturb you."  Judoc smiles his winningest smile.  Who is this fellow?  Some clerk or secretary, no doubt.  He privately curses his unfamiliarity with the cathedral.  Judoc has made it his business to learn much of the art of magic, but thus far he has only been to the cathedral this past Sabbath.   Likely this man is a staff member that he has not seen before.  "Yes, I stopped in to pray today, but I was hoping to speak with the deacon, Brother Samuel.  I know he's frightfully busy right now, but I wanted to follow up on a few points we were discussing on Sunday.  Is he in?"

Perhaps this man might know who R. is.  If so, Judoc can simply get the information from him.  If not, well, he does not relish the thought of staking out the cathedral until he comes across the deacon.   Judoc is eager to run to ground whoever had a hand in the priest's death, but this is hardly his only priority at the moment.

Though the man in front of him does not wear vestments but rather a clean smock and pants, Judoc has become so accustomed to calling everyone brother or sir that the word simply flows off of his tongue before he has a chance to guard it.  Immediately he knows that the title is misplaced for the man's thin smile grows like a brook which curls off into the distance.  Still, the man does not stop Judoc but listens on to his explanation and beckons with a few fingers.

"Of course good sir, The deacon's offices are just here."  The balding man offers as he turns his shoulder to walk the few yards left to the rooms that Judoc already knows.  "He does love visitors to distract him from his many duties."

Though Judoc already knows the way, he submits to being walked the last few steps by his new acquaintance.

"Oh Samuel."  The man starts after rounding the corner.  "Samuel, you have a visitor."

Judoc hears the smooth tenor of Samuel from within his room, "Yes Marcus?"

"Yes I say a visitor."  The balding man, Marcus, continues, his tone dry and self-satisfied.  "And you do remember how the bishop encourages ministry to our visitors?"

By this moment the two have reached the threshold of the deacon's room, a small space with a bed, wardrobe and a desk much as Father Thomas's had been.  Deacon Samuel is sitting at his desk with an empty space before him, his hands clasped in front of him, though Judoc would swear the expression he sees is on of exasperation.

Samuel looks up to see Judoc, his face brightening slightly before he turns his attention back to Marcus.  "Yes, thank you Marcus, you are ever attentive to the Bishop's needs."  He finishes with a half smile as he stands, diverting his attention to Judoc.

An awkward moment passes, where it seems Samuel thinks that he has dismissed Marcus and Marcus seems intent on showing Judoc through the door.  Walking past the threshold, Judoc returns the older man's smile, forced through it is, and another few short moments of awkwardness pass before Marcus nods to Judoc and backs away from the doorway, walking back the direction he had been going when the two had met.

As Marcus finally takes his leave, Samuel closes the short distance to Judoc before saying in a harsh whisper, "What have you discovered?"

OOC:  Sorry, I should have been more descriptive on the older man's clothes, or at least your assumptions about him but I swear your unintentional faux pas will matter nothing in the long term.  It was just a good opportunity to get back into some of the character building that I have lost in the recent past.  If you had to guess, you would say that Marcus is not in the ministry in any form since he is not wearing vestments of any sort, but he is likely an employee of the church.  Roll vs. IQ-5 and PM me if you succeed.

Instinctively, Judoc finds himself disliking this man.  Of course Judoc is not familiar with the intricasies of the church, and from the way the man talks, Marcus isn't very respectful toward the deacon, either.  Or should he be?  Judoc isn't quite sure where deacons fall in the church hierarchy.  Bishops he knows, and priest, but deacons?  It sounds like this Marcus fellow enjoys sucking up to the bishop.  Well, perhaps Judoc will pick up on the minutiae of church honorifics later.

"Brother Samuel, good afternoon," Judoc says, moving past Marcus to enter the deacon's room.  "Thank you for showing me the way, Marcus."  He waits until the other man has left and says quietly, "I guess I shouldn't have called him Brother.  I'm not really too familiar with church savoir faire."

"I have two things to report today," Judoc says.  He reaches into his student robes and pulls out the disc he had found on Father Thomas.  "First, I found this in the confessional booth on Sunday," he says.  "The devil's trap.  I assume Father Thomas was using it either during exorcism or as protection against evil.  I wanted to ask you if you knew how he might have used this."

Next, he pulls out his journal.  "I also wanted to ask you about a child named R.  I am certain that this child is at the heart of this mystery.  Father Thomas mentioned two possibilities in his writing, that either the child's mind had been taken from him, or something that was evidently so horrible that Father Thomas dared not put it into words.   Do you know who this child might be?"

"There was also a boy outside the cathedral during the service, a young lad named Malcombe Farrow.  I went to interview him, but he saw nothing out of the ordinary."

As Marcus makes his way out of the room, Judoc confesses his lack of familiarity with the church and that, perhaps, he should not have called the man brother.

"No."  Samuel admits.  "Nor probably me.  Brother is normally an address for monks or members of a brotherhood such as your Templars"  He offers.  "But outside of an abbey, you won't find many of them these days...  Marcus is simply a freeman that assists the bishop and can be simply addressed as Marcus, and I as Samuel or if you wish to be formal Deacon Samuel."  Samuel's grin spreads across his face as he fails to keep his happiness under control.  "But perhaps soon enough I will be The Reverend Samuel Hagrit if not Father!"

Samuel's brief moment of pride is eclipsed however, with Judoc's word of news from his investigations.  Judoc brings out the Devil's Trap to show to Samuel and the man's reaction seems little less than shocked.  "Exorcism?!"  Samuel nearly spits.  "It's unheard of in this day and age!  Certainly there are annals dedicated to the practice but I haven't heard of a single recent story of it in seminary.  I can't imagine that Father Thomas was practicing it, let alone using pagan symbols in the practice...  Are you sure that he was he was attempting to use it rather than perhaps researching it on his own?"

At the second point, the comment about R. Samuel's eyes bulge slightly, but he quickly closes his eyes and shakes his head.  "I can assure you, that I have no idea who this R. is and that I condemn any practice of perpetuating the sins conferred and absolved through confession..."  The deacon pauses uncomfortably, opening his eyes again as he looks Judoc square in the face.  "It is not right."

Nodding, Judoc says, "I suppose that if I am to join the ranks of the Templars, I need to be familiar with proper forms of address."  Judoc has little interest to join an order that tolerates the maliciousness and downright hatred that Loke and Graves display.  The two men are distasteful to Judoc, though he imagines the Legions probably have some of the same types of individuals.  They don't make the pretense of hiding behind Christian titles, though.  Judoc would far rather serve with people who are honest about what they are than with hypocrites, but sanity and reasonableness are far more preferable to whatever diseases some of his superiors at the College have.

"Deacon, then, sir, or Reverend Father when the time comes," Judoc says, smiling.

The conversation takes a different tone.  Judoc frowns and considers the question.  "I do not know if Father Thomas were actually practicing exorcism," he says after a pause.  "From his journal, it seems to me that he was dealing with someone who might have been possessed by a demon.  Though I do not know how a demon could actually possess someone." Judoc thinks back to his adventure with Eliot.  "In one of our lessons at the College, a demon was accidentally summoned.  With a classmate's assistance, I hunted down the creature and destroyed it, or at least banished it back to hell.".   Judoc the Slayer.  Has a nice ring to it, he thinks.

Judoc nods and rubs his chin thoughtfully.  "I did not understand the context of Father Thomas's notes," he says at length, "but from his writings, it seemed that some outside force was acting on this R.  Father Thomas was trying to help this child, whoever R. is.  This goes beyond sin, I am sure of it.  Father Thomas believed that either the child's mind was being taken away, or something so terrible that he could not put it into words.  Coupled with the devi's trap, I suspect demonic possession may be that thing that Father Thomas could not bear to say, but also, it could be some kind of mental or physical abuse."  Judoc rubs his chin.  There was also the possibility that Father Thomas's murder was completely unrelated to this whatsoever, but Judoc has a thread, and it has grabbed his imagination.  If this avenue exhausts him, then he will have to try other means.

"Please, sir," he says.  "A child's sanity, and perhaps their very life, is at stake.  Until I am disproved, I can't help but think this is related to Father Thomas's death.  Do you have any idea of who this might be, or a list of parishioners that I could access?  I realize this is highly irregular, but I want to see justice served."
This message was last edited by the player at 07:22, Thu 31 Aug 2017.

Judoc's faux pas passes uneventfully, and the conversation seems to turn towards more nefarious matters as Judoc seats himself on the bed.

Deacon Samuel seems to mull over the possibilities of Father Thomas's actions prior to his death and his demeanor does not seem to get any more positive.  Rather, his expression seems that he is wrestling with a thousand thoughts of his own.  "So you are telling me demons are real then..."  Samuel slumps.  "To be honest, Father Thomas had rather mentioned it in a round about way a few times before he died.  I think just a week ago we were talking of faith and he grew suddenly serious and told me 'there were far greater and more dangerous evils in this world than the stains on men's souls.'  I wasn't sure what he was talking about then but now I'm almost sure he meant otherworldly evils.  Demons if you will..."

Judoc continues his discussion of R. and Samuel seems to grow more and more uncomfortable, at one point burying his face in his hands.  Judoc entreats the Deacon for more information, or at least a list of parishioners that he could reference.  For several moments the deacon is quiet, to the point where Judoc is about to entreat him again, more aggressively but just as he is about to speak, a quiet and unsure voice rises from Samuel's mouth.

"I do not know who R. is."  Again, there is quiet from a short time but Judoc keeps his silence and the deacon again begins to speak with a flat, empty voice.  "Yesterday when I was cleaning through Father Thomas's things I found a diary on his bed, I'm sure you must have seen it... it was right out in the open.  It seemed it was as much a place for him to vent his frustrations as to keep track of his thoughts.  There were many references to parishioners, some of whom I recognized based on the description of their actions.  It seemed to me they were simply referenced alphabetically in the order they appeared in the diary.  B. was a rather common subject of Father Thomas's complaints, a woman whom I am sure I know..."

Samuel grows quiet again for a moment, collecting his thoughts before looking Judoc straight in the eye.  "I'll have you know that it is a base dereliction of my duties of the cloth to relay information procured from confession and that I believe that Father Thomas was misguided if not morally corrupt in adding passages gained from the confessional booth.  The only reason I will repeat it is Father Thomas seemed to think quite plainly that the boy was in trouble and perhaps if we could not save Father Thomas perhaps we can still save him."

After another moment's respite, and stealing himself for the following words, Samuel continues.  "I do not think that R. is a young boy as you are thinking, rather, I think he is something more of a young man.  He started appearing in the diary perhaps six months ago as a troubled youth who was having blackouts, not from vice but simply during the day perhaps in the course of his studies he would loose several hours and wake standing at another place with no knowledge of the passed time.  The entries remain much the same and focus mainly on Thomas's sympathy until the one you must have read based on your knowledge..."

Samuel looks up at Judoc, a mix of guilt and sorrow written all across his face.  "I don't know what else to say, only that I don't think I can help you find him."

Judoc is startled by the deacon's unawareness of the reality of supernatural beings.  "Does not the Bible mention supernatural powers, Princes of this world?  Although the pitiful creature I banished was no prince.  More like a toad, really, and easily stuck."  Judoc had assumed that churchmen would be experts on supernatural creatures.  Apparently he had been mistaken, a quite uncommon occurence.

He nods his head at the confirmation of his own theory.  "Believe me, Deacon, there is real evil in the hearts of men, and in some who adorn themselves with crosses.  Their evil is potent and far-reaching, and they have more hands to work the Devil's devices.  But I would not be surprised by the existence of more robust diabolical powers than the scrambling imp that I dispatched."  He rubs his chin.  "I am sure that some kind of supernatural threat is mixed up in this, but with a human master.  Or perhaps the roles are reversed.  Still, I will continue to investigate."

Nodding his head, Judoc accepts the deacon's belief that the priest had been wrong to keep a record of what he had heard.  That was the man's opinion as a man of the cloth, and Judoc respects it, but Judoc cannot see the harm in keeping a record of such things.  "Very well," he says at last.  "I have other avenues to pursue although I would dearly like to talk to R.  Think on it, and if you change your mind, please let me know."

Standing, he nods his head and smiles.  "Thank you for your time, Deacon Samuel, and I'll return again when I've uncovered more useful information."  He feels vaguely unsatisfied with what Samuel has not been able to tell him.  Judoc is certain that R. is at the heart of this mystery.  Perhaps he will be able to find out more.

OOC:  OK, let's talk to the Religious Studies professor next to see if Judoc can find a copy of Pseudomonarchia Daemonum or Deamonology.

Judoc will also be at church next Sunday.  Perhaps he'll get lucky and bump into R.

Deacon Samuel looks back up at Judoc with a wince of a smile.  "The Bible has many references with many interpretations.  It at times condones the murder of entire tribes and at others encourages us to turn the other cheek and forgive our foes.  Certainly there are references to devils and Satan but there is much debate on how those passages are to be interpreted.  While my position requires me to say that the Bible is factually accurate, sometimes I hope that it is in truth more symbolic than explicit.  If you have read any of the prophet chapters you will know that if they are to be taken for truth in whole this world is in for a great reckoning."

The deacon can only nod at Judoc's continued response, though he pipes up as Judoc begins his exit.  "Please, do not think I am turning you away.  I will do my best to research this demonic avenue - for the materials certainly exist, it is just looking for them.  Let me know what else you discover and I shall do the same the next time I see you.  However, I cannot make myself feel comfortable attempting to break the anonymity of the confessional booth."

Judoc makes his way back to the door and as he pushes the deacon's door back open he sees Marcus just fiddling with the door across the alcove.  As Judoc exits the man turns his head and smiles then walks off in the other direction.  Unsure what to make of the moment, Judoc makes his way out of the Cathedral, and back towards the College of Templar Magic.



It is perhaps two hours later, for Judoc stopped in his rooms after making it back to the college, that he is standing outside the offices of the Baron Raisalter, the religious studies professor.  Though Judoc had taken a class from the Baron a few semesters ago, he was not currently taking any, still he had no discomfort in approaching Raisalter and asking for help.  The man was kind at his worst and generally was both thought provoking and insightful.  Knocking on the door, Judoc receives a muffled "Come in!"  From inside and he pushes his way within.

Raisalter looks much the same as he always has.  A man in his mid fifties, Baron Raisalter is greying at the temples though his skin has the smooth elasticity of a young man.  His mouth seems to be perpetually taught in a smile and his persona often times matches the expression, feeling first and processing his thoughts much later.  "Judoc!"  The man says, grinning if possible even wider and pushing a book slightly away from him on his desk.  "What a surprise!  To what do I owe the privilege?"

OOC:  It is 1940 on the 15th of January.  Most of the professors hold office hours, but it isn't unheard of to try and get extra help after hours from some of the more helpful professors.  That being said, since you have gained healing spells since character creation, I think it is safe to say you have had at least one class with the Baron Raisalter even if you don't have one now.  Your overall impression of the man is overwhelmingly positive.  He is a good teacher, he encourages individual thought and discussion, and isn't the arbitrary disciplinarian that many of the other professors are.  He also isn't a big stickler on formalities and tends to discourage people from calling him the proper formality, "Your Lordship".

Judoc nods his head as the Deacon speaks, but internally, he marvels that Samuel can justify his beliefs and the contradictory Biblical positions.  He himself has never really studied much of the Holy Scriptures, but Judoc is amused that it can simultaneously speak so much of love and the slaughter of one's enemies.  The stories of slaughtering thousands, even millions, appeals to him, and though the military tactics may be questionable, there seems to be quite a lot of war stories within its pages.

"The concept of 'turning the other cheek' is difficult to reconcile with some of our own warlike actions," he says thoughtfully.  "When I was younger, I wanted nothing more than to be a battlemage in the Megalan army, but there is also an appeal now to me to join the Templars.  I cannot see how I can 'turn the other cheek' in this kind of context.  Perhaps we can speak further of it sometime, Deacon Samuel."

He nods his head at the Deacon's parting words.  It was too bad that Samuel could not provide Judoc with the list of names, but Samuel has already revealed that it is not a boy that is mentioned, but a young man.  Doubtless there are other avenues to securing the parishoners' names.  Regardless, Judoc is sure he will seek out the truth of what really happened to Father Thomas.  If the priest truly was murdered, Judoc will ferret out the culprit, with or without the names from the confessional.

As the student mage leaves, Judoc spies Marcus hovering nearby.  Was the man eavesdropping?  Judoc is willing to wager that he was and how much Marcus heard.  Either Marcus is a party to the murder or is so far up the bishop's ass that Marcus is spying on Samuel.  Judoc makes a mental note to warn the Deacon next time the two talk, but if Marcus is the sort to curry favor with the powerful, Samuel is probably already well aware of the other man's loyalties.

Once he returns to the College, Judoc considers his next move.  Although he is rapidly running through his avenues of investigation, he is confident that he will unravel this mystery, no matter how long it takes.  He knocks on the door of Baron Raisalter, and when Judoc is welcomed in, he enters the room with a smile.

"Baron Raisalter, greetings.  It's good to see you, sir."  Judoc bows his head in recognition of the Baron's status.  "We had an incident a while back in one of our classes, where someone inadvertently summoned an imp in a botched spell.  I've been doing some reading about magical protection from evil, and I wanted to get your opinion about some of the texts I've come across.  Are you familiar with The Devil's Trap or The Lesser Key of Solomon?  How useful are signs like the Trap against supernatural creatures?"

The Baron Raisalter's smile fades quite completely as Judoc mentions the summoned imp from his classes some semesters ago.  His eyes almost roll as his thin lipped response is issued from his mouth.  "Yes, I heard of your summoned nuisance...  Though exceedingly rare to summon a being through a dimensional void it does on occasion happen... though I'll admit catastrophic failures seem to be slightly more prevalent when certain conditions are present."

Judoc goes on to ask more pointed questions as to the devil's trap and the Lesser Key's and Raisalter's smile returns though it is through an appraising eye as if Judoc is trying to set up Raisalter for some sort of verbal trap.  "Well certainly this is beyond the normal scope of my lectures!  And I assume you will forgive me if I need more than a few words to explain my thoughts for you see, there are more than one type of creature that can be summoned as the result of a failed spell.  For certainly there are many plains of existence from which we can encounter beings on our worst days.  Many of those plains simply hold beings of magic such as sprites or lycanthropes or elementals, however some few of those plains are what we call 'hells' from which we summon beings made of evil magics such as demons or the imp your class summoned.  Now, to be clear, the only thing which affects all of these beings is magic, often they can be aspected, which may make a difference, but magic will work all the same.  For some of these creatures, such as the beings of hell, true faith will have an effect... possibly of banishment or protection or outright destruction based on the faith of the follower and the power of the demon itself.  The tome you speak of, the Lesser Keys of Solomon, is an interpretation of the powers of demons, or the creatures of hell, by a man who was gifted in neither magic nor true faith.  It has been changed and perverted through the centuries, at times even steered towards the right direction by those with actual knowledge but in general it has skirted the very outer edges of truth.  It has been recreated in various forms, many of which exist to this day.  As for the devil's trap, I do not know of it in specific, but I would guess that it is probably a combination of symbols, some of which magical, such as a pentagram, and others of which religious, such as a cross or star.  I can guarantee to you however, that it will have absolutely no effect when used by someone without a firm grounding in either magic or faith and likely would be far less effective even then in comparison to a simple spell or a crucifix."

Raisalter appraises Judocs look for a moment, smiling just a touch wider and continues his thought.

"It turns out that even in the cases of the extremes, whether it be the summoning of beasts from the netherworlds or battling a particularly nasty load of laundry falling back to our basics is always our best bet."  Raisalter stops for the moment, waiting for a response, though he still appraises Judoc with a knowing eye.

Rubbing his chin, Judoc nods his head thoughtfully as Baron Raisalter discusses matters of true faith and protection against evil.  From what Judoc has seen already, human evil is far more potent than that from other dimensions.  He smiles wryly.

"The accidentally summoned demon was banished easily enough with fire and steel.  It was rather pathetic, to be honest.  I was just wondering why someone might have this."

He pulls the Devil's Trap from his pocket and shows it to Reisalter.  "This belonged to Father Thomas.  I found it right after he died last Sunday and thought at first he was some kind of closet devil worshipper.  He must have thought it would protect him from a denizen from one of the planes of hell.  Father Thomas died in a very strange way, in the confessional booth right after a sermon in which he preached against the evils that exist in our world."

He adds, "I trust in my skills and knowledge.  I'd rather have a good powerstone than expect some kind of divine intervention from a symbol to protect me."  He subconsciously twists his ring.  "So this medallion would do nothing for me.  I can't even detect any trace of magic about it."

He rubs his chin.  "Did you know Father Thomas personally?  I don't think I ever had a conversation with him.  He seemed like a man with great faith, but he certainly had access to a truckload of crucifixes.  He must have thought this would give him extra protection, and he must have expected some kind of demonic attack."

"The Bishop seems to think that Father Thomas's death was natural, but the manner seems highly suspect to me.  The healer in the church, Seamus, said Father Thomas's face looked like he had drowned, which seems odd to me."

The Baron looks at the medallion briefly, turning it over in his hand without much apparent interest... that is, until Judoc mentions father Thomas.  At those words, Raisalter's expression turns quizzical and he reverts his gaze directly back to Judoc and at the mention of the man's death, Raisalter's eyes begin darting this way and that as if his retina's are focused backwards, searching frantically through his mind for some unknown answer.

Unsure of how to react, Judoc simply finishes his thoughts, though he isn't entirely sure that the baron is paying attention any longer.  As Judoc's last words fade into the following silence the room remains quiet long enough to make the setting entirely uncomfortable.

Without ever looking back towards Judoc, Raisalter stands, walking back towards his window as he peers outside.  "And here I thought you were talking about an imp you summoned..."  Raisalter turns back around, leaning over slightly gripping the back of his chair with both hands as he looks up towards Judoc.

"Father Thomas came to see me less than a week ago, as you can imagine the topic of conversation was similar.  He asked me questions about demons, what they were capable of and what it took to banish them.  He seemed enormously uneducated in the subject and I thought him somewhat misguided in his searches, some clergy are apt to blame the character failings of men on external forces while congratulating themselves on their own piety.  I am afraid to say after a few minutes I recognized he was using me as a sort of textbook and I encouraged him to do a little foundational reading and to talk to me if he had any questions."

Raisalter flips the medallion in his hand, looking on the symbol again as he laughs emptily.  "Seems that he may have taken some incorrect assumptions away from our discussion."  He passes the medallion back across the table to Judoc.

"He died in the confessional booth you say?  Of drowning?"  Raisalter pauses for a moment again searching his mind for answers to questions unknown.  Eventually, he looks directly back at Judoc, his words direct and explicit.  "I urge you to be cautious if you are involving yourself in this Judoc.  While I still think it much more likely that you are dealing with a gifted magic user rather than a demon, the possibility of a demon having done this is frightening.  The reason why you barely ever see them is because the overwhelming majority of demons summoned into this world are so chaotic in nature that they cannot hide what they are.  Those few that have come into this world and have stayed for any length of time must master not only their appearance through spellwork, but also their actions through an exceptional power of will.  Trust me, if a demon came into a church just after mass and killed a priest in his own confessional, without witnesses, it is not only an exceptionally powerful magic user but it also is capable of understanding how to wreak the most evil it possibly can.  That is not something you would want to take toe to toe."

A memory comes unbidden to Judoc's mind, a memory that continues to stalk him, sometimes while waking, sometimes asleep.  Brother Loke choking him to death, callously illustrating the importance of proper decorum at the expense of a beginning student.  Oh, if only Loke were the murderer of the priest!  How satisfying it would be to arraign the Templar for murder.

Judoc clasps his hands behind his back and shakes his head sadly.  "What a waste of a decent human being.  At least he seemed decent.  He definitely seems to have been interested in exorcism.  I believe that he thought one of his parishioners was possessed, but the church has been tight-lipped about it."  He shrugs his shoulders.  "The whole affair seems rotten to me.  Who profits from the death of a good man?  I'm probably wasting my time looking into this, but I'm most curious about what actually transpired."

The student is certain that he is near the truth, that somewhere close at hand is the final piece that will make all of this crystal clear.  Every day, the trail grows colder, but Judoc is sure the murderer is still close at hand.  All Judoc needs is an eyewitness or a clue that will expose the perpetrator.

He rubs his chin at the thought of a demon killing the priest.  "Now, a demon.  If a demon had killed Father Thomas, that would explain why I didn't see anyone fleeing the confessional booth.  It could just as easily have been a mage who cast Invisibility.   Father Thomas's sermon was on evil just before he perished, and at the time, I thought he was referring to natural, human evil, but supernatural evil - "  Still, human or demon, Judoc is confident he can handle himself no matter what the threat's nature is.

Besides Loke, there was also the Bishop.  He had been quick to rule the death a natural one, though anyone with a brain could see that the death was unnatural.  Killing the priest could have silenced any potential scandal that the bishop might have been anxious to cover up.  The bishop could have hired someone to do the work.  Or could it have been a member of the Row?  Or might the Row know something?

Raisalter shakes his head along with Judoc, sympathizing for the priest.  "I don't know who would benefit...  You say the church has been tight lipped, perhaps he knew something he shouldn't or perhaps he offended someone...  If it was a demon, an attempt to exorcise it certainly would have made the thing a little angry..."  Raisalter quirks an eyebrow at his own comment, shifting his back over to Judoc.  "You said the priest thought one of his congregation was possessed?  Why did he think that?"  Raisalter pauses for a moment, twitching his chin with two fingers.

"Of course, if it was a demon, and someone was possessed, it's possible the killer might not have fled at all, but found themselves 'woken up' near the dead priest...  Or perhaps 'woken up' somewhere else entirely after casually walking away from the scene..."

Raisalter listens to the rest of Judoc's thoughts but simply shakes his head.  "I don't know what to tell you Judoc but I will say that if you find any more evidence of demon's I would encourage you to come straight back here.  I am by no means an expert but it is not something that you should be attempting to tackle on your own... and in that possible scenario it has already proven to be violent."

Cupping his chin with his right hand, Judoc thinks back to what he read in the priest's diary.  Although Thomas had not stated directly that the young man was possessed, it seemed clear to Judoc that the priest had thought so, and the presence of the Devil's Trap only confirmed this suspicion.  "Father Thomas had a diary," he says after a moment.  "In it, he describes interactions with a boy or young man who seems to have a changed mind.  Father Thomas thought there were only two possible causes for the changes - either the young man's mind had been taken from him, or there was something even more horrible that he refused to consider.  That, coupled with his near obsession with evil and demons, leads me to believe that this young man may be possessed."  He begins pacing now, hands behind his back, eyes gleaming.  "If the boy or young man is possessed and Father Thomas attempted an exorcism but failed, then yes, maybe this demon did kill the priest.  I didn't factor in demons' natural affinity for magic.  Yes, this makes more sense now.  Samuel, the deacon, is appalled that Father Thomas would have made notes about his counseling sessions.  Violates the sanctity of the confessional, apparently.  Samuel wouldn't give me the name of the young man, but the priest referred to the boy as R."  Judoc continues pacing, his mind sifting through the evidence he has gathered thus far.

"I was on the scene immediately, Baron.  A young girl had discovered Thomas's corpse.  Her parents were present, and the Deacon and Bishop arrived soon thereafter.  It's possible that the girl slipped into a trance or something, but she didn't mention anything about that, and there's still the matter of R.  I doubt there are two demon-possessed parishioners at the Cathedral.  I find it incredible to think that there's even one."

He finishes pacing at last and nods his head at Raisalter's request.   "Certainly, sir.  Thank you."  After a moment, he adds, "This kind of investigation is invigorating.  I've been focusing primarily on battle magic, but do Templars ever engage in this sort of thing, ferreting out the truth of some crime?"

The baron nods at Judoc's explanation.  "That seems to follow.  It at least seems clear that the priest considered demonic possession.  What sort of timeline are we working here?  Had there been multiple entries in this diary of declining mental state and for how long?  And when was the entry dated that you read?"  The baron taps his chin thoughtfully.  "I only ask to try and put things in context.  If the diary entry you read was older, a month or more it's unlikely to be relevant but if it's more recent there's a chance the father could have been killed in his pursuit of the truth.  Assuming the demon is false, perhaps in finding the real cause of the child's problems or assuming the thing is real perhaps the attempted exorcism went dreadfully wrong."

The baron listens to Judoc, nodding along during his thoughts as he rolls his eyes.  "I hate to be a pessimist, but the church has quite a vested interest in the secrecy of confession.  There are many rich men who have some small conscience and an interest in eternal salvation.  You would be shocked at the amount of money that wealthy men pay into the coffers after having divulged their deepest secrets in the interest of still making their way into heaven.  If there was even a suggestion that those confessions would make their way into the public eye you can be assured that that whole source of money would dry up..."  Raisalter pauses a moment before he looks back at Judoc.  "As you can imagine the instructors at seminary, the bishops and the curia are most insistent that remains a top priority in the education of new clergy."

Judoc continues, discussing the moment he discovered the body, and while he nods along with Judoc at first, midway through he turns his head slightly with a skeptical look.  "Judoc.  You say you were on the scene immediately, but a girl discovered the corpse.  How long ago had the death occurred?  How do you know it hadn't been resting for minutes or hours before it was found?"  Raisalter pauses a moment before he answers his own question, "I suppose if he was found in the confessional, it wouldn't have been hours but if there were no witnesses to the murder how do you know if you were really on the scene immediately or if the body had lied there while you were unawares to the murder?  However, I think you are right that there are likely not two possessed persons or the father's journal entries may have been a bit more panicked."

As Judoc finishes his thoughts the baron nods with a smile.  "Perhaps... I have spent my whole Templar career in the realm of faith and shadowing the clergy until I came here.  There are fewer investigations in matters of faith than perhaps there should be.  I can't speak too much outside of that, but I know there are organizations outside of the Templars who deal specifically with investigation.  I am certain that the legions have their own investigators, though I think they deal mostly with defectors.  If you are interested in this than I would encourage you to continue, it is something we are far too poor at here at this college.  If you do what you enjoy, you will learn far more and be far better than if you hate what you practice.  Likely you will find that you can make some niche for yourself whatever your hobbies are."

OOC:  I'm not trying to draw out the conversation here but rather just responding for the NPC in character.  If you are done here with the conversation than don't feel like you have to make any long responses to the NPC questions.  I'm happy to move on to any follow on investigation you want to go to or if you are stumped at where to go from here just let me know and I'll fast forward.

Judoc considers Raisalter's questions.  He appreciates the chance to refine his reasoning.  Not that Judoc wouldn't be able to figure out all of this on his own, of course, but he can see the value in talking over problems with someone else.  "No, there was no date in the entry.  It was the final entry in his diary, so it must have been the last thing he wrote before he died.  From what I recall, Father Thomas mentioned the symptoms had continued for seven months and that blackouts had continued, which jibes with what you said about passing out during times of possession.  It was the last diary entry, though, still fresh enough to be the reason he died."

It is not surprising that the church accepts large donations from wealthy benefactors eager to erase the evils they have done.  Fear is powerfully motivating, adn what can be more terrifying than spending one's eternal afterlife buring in a lake of fire?  Judoc considers the possibility remote, but he can also understand why someone would want to cover all eventualities, no matter how unlikely they may be.  The wealthy gain a relatively cleaner conscience and the church reaps the finances necessary to build their magnificent cathedrals.  Never mind that the money would be much better spent on improving the lives of the poor or eradicating hunger.

At Baron Raisalter's next question, Judoc bristles slightly, but he concedes that the man makes a good point.  "Let me see," he muses.  "I was one of the last to leave the cathedral.  I was in the nave, admiring the scultpures and stained glass.  Father Thomas had finished his sermon probably ten or fifteen minutes before.  The bishop and the deacon were speaking to worshippers as they exited the cathedral.  The girl, Holly, said she had seen the priest go in the booth, and she said she had not seen anyone else enter or exit the booth.  She went in to confess, and she discovered the body.  Father Thomas's face was slightly blue.  His face was swollen, as if he had been stung a thousand times or had drowned in a river.  His mouth and eyes were still open.  The healer said he most likely choked to death on something."

"I find it highly unlikely that he choked on something unless he was eating an early lunch during confessional.  Perhaps it was a poison of some kind, but I don't know much about poisons.  My money is on a spell of some kind."

And so, with little else to add, the conversation with Raisalter ends on an assertion that magic is behind this murder and there is little evidence to suggest otherwise.  Indeed, Judoc reasons to himself, that having eliminated all of the impossible, that which remains, however improbable, must be the truth.  Judoc spends the remainder of the night making a few inquiries at the library, and this time manages from Brother Raymond that the library does indeed own a copy of Deamonology, though it is currently on loan and unavailable.

The rest of the week passes in utter frustration.  After his significant gains on Monday, Judoc is released from his classes on Tuesday with high hopes of finding new information or breaking open a whole new angle of the case.  He decides to make his way into the city, looking to see if he can find his contact at the Row, Canaa, though he remembers quite well the man had said on their last meeting that it was Judoc who had owed him the favor at this point.  Though he is loathe to give himself more work, Judoc decides that the risk is worth the potential reward.  However it is not to be, and after looking the majority of the afternoon for the man, or Thresher, or Baccus, or anyone he knew affiliated with the Row, he is left with nothing more than the memory of a few angered glances and the utter refusal of help.

Wednesday Judoc dedicates to the Mages Guild - searching for information on demons, trying to find a copy of one of the demon texts he has been looking for but again he finds no real clues though he wastes an entire hour talking to an elderly wizard who in the end seems to know nothing of real demons and is just pumping Judoc for money.

And so when Thursday comes, Judoc has the full expectation of spending the afternoon with more productive sleuthing so he is horrified when a furious Brother Moloran tells Judoc off for his hastily scrawled out assignment on the use and combination of elementalists in warfare.

"This is shit!"  Moloran bellows, throwing the scroll in Judoc's face as the class begins.  "If you think you have done enough in this class to coast to the finish than you are markedly mistaken!  You can spend tonight in detention, redoing this work and tonight's until it is up to standard!"  Moloran storms off towards the board, where he begins into his lecture on aspected magery as Vincent, a student of Judoc's year from the Hall of Bishops chortles just quietly enough at Judoc's plight.

And so that evening comes, with Judoc arriving with all of his study materials and pens ready to waste an entire day of searching, allowing the killer to get that much farther away from the scene.  Moloran nods at Judoc as he enters though it seems his anger from the morning had passed.  Judoc sets himself up at a desk and looks around, noting the other student in front of him is Alevius Cleppo, another student from his year, though this one from the Hall of Nobles.  Cleppo looks like a victim of the stomach flu, his face paled and motions lethargic as he scrawls his own work in slow movements on the parchment in front of him.

It strikes Judoc that Cleppo had been there on Sunday, one of the few schoolmates of his along with Andros Wilmer, Indrid, and Wayne that he had recognized.  Alevius had always seemed more of a shadow of Andros Wilmer, the golden child of their class year, than anything else but Judoc wondered if perhaps he had seen anything that might have been of value?

OOC it is 1730 on Thursday the 18th of December.  As you have been spending every afternoon looking for a murderer, your work has obviously suffered, though this is the first interaction where you have earned a telling off rather than just a bad homework grade.  You are effectively detained in the classroom until all your work is done and Brother Moloran is not one to tolerate shenanigans.  You obviously don't need to roleplay doing your homework but I figured based on your tweaked random encounter roll (would have been weird to run into a bugbear in the school) you might want to take advantage.  Alevius has always struck you as a bit of an ass but that is perhaps some projection from Andros, his good friend, who is in fact a complete asshole.  Let me know if you want to try and talk to him in the detention, or if you want to wait for him outside once you are done (doesn't work if he finishes before you though) or if you wan to try and track him down later or if you want to just ignore it and move on to your next fast forward encounter.

As time passes and Judoc has no further brilliant ideas, he grows restless.  His studies take a backseat to teasing out the riddle of who killed Father Thomas.  That it was a skilled magic user is obvious to Judoc, but now with the added wildcard of a possible supernatural killer in play, Judoc finds himself relishing even more the opportunity to unravel the mystery.  He briefly considers asking to join the Mages Guild, but the one elderly man he talks to nearly destroys Judoc's patience with the man's utter uselessness.  His connection proves futile as well, not that they would be keen to see Judoc again anyway.  The worst of it is that Judoc's focus on sleuthing out clues has affected his attention to his coursework, and as a result, Judoc actually has detention.  He, the most promising student in his class, forced to waste time redoing an assignment that was perfectly acceptable already!  The ignominy of it all!

So here Judoc sits, stewing, painstakingly revising his work on elemental spells in combat.  What an utter waste of time.  Judoc knows all of this already.  Just like every other professor, Moloran thinks his class is the most important.  The killer could be planning his next move, or covering up his tracks, or any of a number of other things, and here Judoc sits, revising.  Gah!

Quill scratching away on parchment, Judoc looks up for a moment and looks thoughtfully at Alevius Cleppo, one of his fellow students.  Cleppo had been at mass on Sunday.  Perhaps he had seen something?  Judoc finishes off a paragraph about using Ice Slick to freeze the ground solid and create a slippery surface for enemy troops, and then he leans forward.

"You hear about Father Thomas on Sunday?" he says quietly in Alevius's direction.  "They found him dead in the confessional booth after mass.  He choked to death, and his face looked like they fished him out of the river."  Judoc begins working on another paragraph, this one about using a Flash spell and a Thunderclap spell to blind and deafen enemy ranks.

OOC:  Try to engage Alevius while working on the material.  Try to see if he saw anything unusual or if he'd heard anyone talking about what happened.

Thinking perhaps that Alevius had seen something worth discussing, Judoc starts off by getting the other student up to speed.  Father Thomas is dead, he died in a confessional, he looked like a water zombie.  It seemed a fairly succinct statement of the facts to Judoc, though Alevius seems unimpressed.

Alevius turns his head slightly, his eyes looking towards Judoc with an empty and appraising look for several moments before he simply turns back to his paper and whispers under his breath, "Eat shit Judoc."

OOC:  LOL, sorry for the bad reaction roll, perhaps I should have let you roll that one.  Of course, you are welcome to continue roleplaying the encounter as much as you wish but if being spurned like that is enough for you let me know and we can fast forward again.  Again, if you know where you want to go next let me know, otherwise I'll determine where the next scene is based on likely scenarios.

For a moment, Judoc considers wrapping both hands around Alevius's neck and squeezing as hard as he can.  Instead, he settles for hissing, "Thanks for nothing, asshole," and returns to his work.  His next example is an Utter Dome spell to protect his own company and a Rain of Fire spell to immolate the enemy.  All of his own troops except for Alevius, that is.  Hope you pack asbestos armor, you son of a bitch he thinks, writing furiously.

And so, the rest of the detention goes on, Judoc so frustrated that he stabs a hole through his paper as he dots an i.  And while Brother Moloran does suggest more edits even after the work is complete, Judoc manages to make his way out with enough time at least to manage a decent job of his other assignments... even if he can't accomplish anything as far as his investigation is concerned.

Judoc spends all day Friday determined not to land himself in another situation that will endanger his free time.  A single detention was one thing, but if a megalomaniacal teacher were to try and take away his weekend liberty, Judoc wouldn't be able to take it.  With perhaps some luck, Judoc manages to make it through the afternoon and has a whole weekend open to the possibilities of the investigation.  Unfortunately he finds himself fresh out of leads to investigate.  Still, Judoc walks the now highly familiar path between the college and Azer, hoping that something will come to him as he travels.

Partially because he thinks of nothing else and partially because it is one of the first landmarks in the city, Judoc decides to check in with Samuel at the cathedral to share what he has learned and to see if Samuel has anything of his own to offer.  Judoc heads straight down for the offices, finding it most likely that Samuel will be there.

"Judoc!"  Samuel starts immediately, standing up from his desk with a smile.  "I wanted you to look at something!  We had talked on Monday about the possibility of demons and I've been looking through Thomas's book for any clues.  This is the only marking he's made in the whole book as far as I've seen."

Judoc gasps at first, though it is not at the notes that Father Thomas had written, but at the markings of the title of the book at the top of the page.

Deamonology

Judoc looks down at the mark that Samuel is talking about, a thick slash of ink underlining the title of the page.

Agares

Agares (also Agarat, Agaros, or Agarus) is a demon described in demonological grimoires such as the Livre des Esperitz (as Agarat), the Pseudomonarchia Daemonum, the Lesser Key of Solomon, and the Dictionnaire Infernal as a duke "under the powers of the east," an "old man, riding upon a crocodile, and carrying a hawke on his fist," who teaches languages, stops and retrieves runaway persons, causes earthquakes, and grants noble titles. The Lemegeton and the Pseudomonarchia Daemonum both list him as the second spirit, and state that he commands 31 legions of demons, while the Livre des Esperitz (which describes him simply as an old man) gives him 36.  The Book of the Office of Spirits places him (as Agaros) second under Oriens and describes him as an old man riding a cockatrice, sans hawk.  The Grimoire of Pope Honorius (which refers to him as Agarus) is more brief, omitting the crocodile and hawk, and omitting his functions beyond languages and titles.  The Grand Grimoire features him as a subordinate of Lucifuge Rofocale.  According to Rudd, Agares is opposed by the Shemhamphorasch angel Jelial.  Sloane MS 3824 mentions Agares, throughout invocations to summon spirits that guard treasure, and in the "Experiment of Agares" meant to draw him into a crystal.

Judoc looks at the opposite page, where there is a drawing under the name Agares.
Agares

OOC:  Roll vs. Perception-2.  Note that the above "Deamonology" entry is ripped straight off of Wikipedia.  It is laziness and does not count as an anachronism as all of these books would likely have crossed over or had duplicates in Banestorm Yrth.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:06, Tue 10 Oct 2017.

Frustrated by his lack of progress and the distractions of his schoolwork, Judoc keeps his head down in order to avoid attracting any more undue attention.  Finally, the last class is finished on Friday, and the young mage heads into Azer, hoping to discover fresh clues to help him close the case on this mystery.

Brother Samuel is in, and Judoc enters, although first he looks around to see if Marcus is lurking nearby.  Judoc is sure the man is a spy of the bishop's and a toady of the highest magnitude.  Samuel's words surprise him, and his surprise turns to shock at the site of the book.  Deamonology.  Excellent!  Precisely what he wanted to see!

He eagerly reads the page that Samuel indicated and pores over the information.  Agares.  What he reads concerns him.  This is no mere imp.  This creature, if real, is a formidable beast.  Languages.  Catches runaways.  Creates earthquakes.  Bestows noble titles.  A commander of legions.  Judoc knows little of demons, but this one sounds like a major player.

Looking up from the book, Judoc says quietly, "So Father Thomas underlined this entry?  Why, do you think?  This entity sounds very powerful."  He looks down at the page again and the illustration.  "I have banished a demon before.  Well, with assistance from a fellow student.  That creature was puny, weak.  This looks very powerful."

He rubs his chin.  "Do you think I could borrow this book?  I'd like to show it to Baron Raisalter.  He's studied protections from evil, and he may be able to give further insight."  Judoc looks through the book again, searching for further clues regarding the late priest's interest in the text.


OOC:  Is this the book from the College or another copy?

Check the book for further markings.  If Samuel is amenable, Judoc would like to borrow the book and show it to Baron Raisalter.

Samuel does not ask why Judoc has lowered his voice, but he seems to take the cue and whispers back.  "It seems so, unless the mark was there before Thomas had it...  Though he was rather the type that wrote just about every thought he had in his books.  I guess I just assumed it would be him."

Judoc flips through the pages, unsure what he is looking for at first, but then smiles as he flops all the pages over to look at the back cover.  Judoc's grin splits wide as he looks at the stamp at the back of the book.  Templar Colllege Library.

"Odd."  Samueul remarks, this time forgetting to keep his voice low.  "I hadn't seen that before.   Though I suppose he could have picked it up when he went there last week..."  His voice trails off as Judoc asks his follow on questions.  "Sure I suppose.  It looks like it wasn't his book at all so it's probably better if you take it and turn it back in for him.  I'm sure he would have wanted that."

OOC:  No other markings of note on the book, though if you search it thoroughly enough you will find a section that talks to the devils' trap.  It will not be significantly different from what you read in the other book in the library.

Keeping his voice low, Judoc says, "Deacon Samuel, I know you aren't keen on the idea of exorcisms, but Father Thomas was bent on discovering all he could about protection from demons.  Perhaps he wasn't attempting to exorcise the demon but simply to banish it.  He used this Devil's Trap for protection, and he went to the College to learn more about how to battle supernatural evil.  Deacon, Father Thomas was killed over this.  He may very well have been killed by this very demon."

He looks at the page again and frowns, shaking his head.  "But why this one?  What made Father Thomas suspect that this demon was involved?"  How had the priest gotten the name?  Had R. given the name?  If so, why hadn't the priest mentioned the name in his diary?

A wild thought grabs Judoc.  What if the bishop had been the one who had summoned the demon?  The thought was preposterous, but Bishop Abram had been obsessed with gaining recognition.  Had Abram thought this demon had the power to grant the bishop what he coveted more than anything else?  The thought seems ridiculous, but Judoc mentally files it away for later.

He thinks back to the sermon.  Father Thomas preaching the sermon, droning on and on.  Judoc had thought he would never finish.  Even the bishop had been nodding off . . . the bishop . . .

Suddenly, Judoc's blood runs cold.  No.  No, it couldn't be.  He begins pacing back and forth.  Now who is going mad?  The bishop?  But so many pieces make sense.  The bishop's quick desire to cover up the murder.  His annoyance that Judoc was investigating.  His pursuit of a higher position.  The letter calling the bishop fucking mad.  And bloody fucking Agares, the giver of titles.  Oh, son of a bitch!  If only Judoc knew who X might be!

But what of R.?  Where does the young man fit into all of this?  Judoc has no idea.  The boy is the only piece that doesn't fit.

He stops pacing and runs a hand through his hair.  "Deacon Samuel, I need to ask you about the Bishop," he says very quietly.  "Last Sunday, did you notice him go to sleep during the sermon?  Do you remember when he woke up?  Was it after Father Thomas had left the pulpit?  Also, Father Thomas had a letter addressed to him complaining about the Bishop from someone named X.  Any idea who that might have been?"

In a normal tone of voice, Judoc says, "Well, I really need to get back to work on my weekend homework.  Thank you for your clarifications about church doctrine.   This whole turning the other cheek thing seems to fly in the face of everything I've ever thought.  I'll see you at mass this Sunday."

OOC:  OK, I've officially freaked myself out.  Oh, wow.  Take the book.  Go see Baron Raisalter immediately.  When Judoc steps out of church, he's going to cast Armor 4 on himself, just in case our boy Agares is waiting for him.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:15, Tue 10 Oct 2017.

Samuel's facial expression run a wild gambit from confused to shock, defensive to even flashes of frustration, though he quickly manages to compose himself to respond to some of Judoc's insinuations and accusations.

"I don't doubt that you are right.  Thomas seemed to be quite involved or interested in the possibility of demonic influences.  I admit it is even possible it was a factor in his death but he did not go to the college to learn about battling evil."  Samuel can see Judoc's argument already building and he holds up his hand to cut off the response.  "He went to the college because one of us goes every week.  It is almost always the bishop because he likes liaising with the Baron Graves - usually it's an informal and quite short visit.  But when Thomas went he stayed the entire day... from the way he was talking he visited the entire campus and he was quite preoccupied when he got back.  Although perhaps he did some research, along the way."  Sameul finishes lamely, looking back at the book in Judoc's hands.

When Judoc asks of the bishop, Samuel is slightly taken aback, especially at the note of the man's falling asleep during the service.  "No... I didn't realize he was falling asleep..."  Judoc asks of when he woke up, and of the relation to the time that Father Thomas had finishes his sermon.  Samuel's expression is rank with confusion which only deepens after Judoc mentions the letter.  "No... I... I don't know.  Father Thomas never really involved me in any of his correspondences, though if it was specifically complaining about the bishop I imagine it would be another priest in the diocese..."  Samuel's face turns somewhat red as he admits, "The man is not well liked, Thomas and I used to complain about him together all the time.  But... you can't be thinking that he is involved can you?  The man is self-involved and self-congratulating, but he's not evil.  He wouldn't do something like this?"  Again, Samuel's comment finishes lamely with a slight warble that makes the statement sound more like a question.  Samuel is flustered, and when Judoc stands suddenly to leave he is completely surprised.

"Uh, of course, I'll see you Sunday, and I'll let you know if I find anything else."

Horrified, Judoc flees from the cathedral, though he takes steps to guard himself first.  With a few words and magic gestures Judoc makes his skin tougher than an ogres, though there is no discernable difference to his appearance.  His eyes swinging this way and that for trouble in the form of Marcus or worse yet, the bishop himself however, thankfully, he meets no resistance in his flight.

After making the long walk back to the college, Judoc is somewhat mentally and physically fried, though he makes his way immediately to the religious studies professor, barges through the doorway, and spews his book upon the man's desk, flipping open to the page for Agares and pointing viciously at the page title and its underline of recent ink.

Though at first Raisalter is taken aback by the display, he quickly turns the book around to face him, reading the entirety of the page.  "Is this our demon?"  Raisalter asks with a sober expression.

OOC:  It is 1830 on Friday the 19th of December.  You are down 8 fatigue from the use of your spell and an additional fatigue from the constant walking there and back again to the city.  If the deacon's remarks prodded any further questions feel free to ask in OOC or private but you seemed pretty ready to get back to Raisalter.

Deacon Samuel seems sure that Father Thomas wasn't trying to battle demons, but it all fits together in Judoc's head - the Devil's Trap, the interest in demonology, Thomas's questioning of Baron Raisalter, the notes about R., the thundering sermon about evil.  It all fits, or mostly fits, anyway.  Judoc can just imagine what the bishop and Graves get on about.  Father Thomas's correspondence clearly spelled out Bishop Abram's thirst for prestige and rank, and cozying up to the man who practically owns Azer is a solid strategy to achieve those aims.

The deacon's reticence regarding the bishop gives Judoc momentary pause.  There's an outside chance that some other person or being is involved here, but Judoc finds the bishop highly suspect.  He cannot rest only on circumstantial evidence, though.  What he needs is to catch the bishop in the act, or perhaps raid the man's office.  Could he do that?  What are the ramifications if he is caught?  It's for the greater good, he tells himself.  He has to know who killed Thomas, and if Judoc has to resort to breaking and entering, so be it.

As he hurries away from the cathedral, he half expects to come face to face with the bishop himself, or worse, Agares.  Judoc is no coward, and he knows he can thrash any non-mage he might encounter, unless he's outnumbered, but he's never faced a highly knowledgeable and more experienced mage in combat before, and he's certain that Father Thomas was slain either by spell or demonic power.  Perhaps the books are wrong about Agares, and perhaps he's not even the demon involved, but even Judoc's impressive arsenal of spells may not be enough to fight an actual demon lord, and he's certain a mage like Graves or Loke would  curb-stomp him, at least at this stage of his training.

After no demon presents itself, Judoc feels slightly ashamed for being frightened enough to cast his protective armor, and he allows the spell to dissipate was normal.  Judoc, lad, get a hold of yourself, he chides himself.  He can't be turning tail and running at every sniff of sulphur.  Demons have rules, too.  They can be bound by a pentagram. If you know their name, you have power over them.  I've got you, Agares, you son of a bitch, he thinks more confidently, feeling far braver now that he's put some distance between himself and the church.

He hurries to Baron Raisalter's study, hoping that the Religious Studies professor is in at this hour.  Judoc is not disappointed.  "Looks like Father Thomas borrowed our copy of Deamonology when he came to see you, sir," he says, pleased with his discovery.  "The only mark here is Agares.  What do you think?"

He waits for Raisalter to respond.  After his words, Judoc nods his head.  "I have a theory, sir, and I'd like to run it past you.  It sounds incredible, and I half-question my sanity in proposing it, but I'd like your opinion about it."

"Here's what I've uncovered.  Father Thomas died in the confessional booth, looking as if he'd drowned or been stung by a thousand bees, soon after giving a sermon denouncing the evil hidden in public.  He spoke of evil we couldn't see, and implored us to look and have true faith to banish it.  Then he was dead.  No one saw anyone suspicious go to the booth or leave.  In fact, no one saw anything."

"In his room, he had evidence of researching evil spirits, like succubi.  He had correspondence from someone else who signed the letter X., which called the bishop, and I quote, 'fucking mad', and entreating Father Thomas to write to the archbishop to check Bishop Abram's aspirations.  Samuel said that if the bishop were corresponding with anyone, it would most likely be another clergyman.  Perhaps their correspondenfe was intercepted."  No doubt by that fucking rat Marcus, Judoc thinks.  No wonder he had been so interested in Judic's conversation with Samuel.  The spy was probably looking for more tidbits to report back to his master.

"When I was in mass, I saw the bishop nodding off as if asleep.  The deacon didn't notice, but  then I remembered what you asked about someone waking up afterwards.  The bishop was also keen to pronounce the death a natural one, which others ascribed to his desire to hush up anything untoward and keep his own prospects secure."

"And then we have this demon, Agares, who grants titles.  Had it been harassing R.?  Had it met the bishop and recognized a more powerful vessel, one who might  e tempted by what the demon could offer?"

"I know, this is all circumstantial, but it fits the facts.  The bishop had motive, to silence Father Thomas to protect his own ascendance through the clerical ranks.  He had opportunity, being right there in the service and apparently falling asleep during the sermon.  And he had the means if he had somehow made a pact with this demon."

Judoc shakes his head as if to talk himself out of this brilliant theory he'd been able to construct.  "So am I crazy?  From what you know of the bishop, is he the kind of man to do something as mad as make a pact with a demon to gain further rank?"

OOC:  Before Judoc leaves, I'd like to ask the deaon if Judoc can somehow secure an interview with the bishop.  I think this will be very difficult to do, but maybe Judoc can play up the Templar angle and ask the bishop's advice on his opinion of the importance of faith as a Templar.  I mainly want to observe him and find out where his office is in case I decide to break in and search it later.

Raisalter does not answer immediately, but waits for the preponderance of Judoc's information, deliberating the theories in his own mind for a time before he begins with asking more questions.  "So you know that Father Thomas had been researching demons, and you suspect that he had honed in on Agares due to this marking?"  He pauses for a moment as he rests his chin on two fingers.  "Seems like a sort of a stretch.  If only we knew what he did it might make the logical jump a little easier."

"Let me see if I can summarize."  Raisalter continues, looking at Judoc.  "A week before the murder or so, Thomas came here, asking me questions of demons, though when he did not get satisfactory answers to his hunches, he went to the library to check out this book to further his knowledge...  Perhaps after that, though I'm not sure if it had been written before that the difference is important, Thomas writes in his journal suspicions that a boy in his congregation may be possessed by a demon."</b.  Raisalter pauses for a moment, as he strokes his chin in thought.

<b>"Now I think there is something in the middle here that we are missing, something that we don't know yet, because if he did mark this book to note the name of the demon we are dealing with then he must have known significantly more than when he wrote his entry.  He prepared a sermon on resisting evil and immediately after giving it on Sunday, he was killed while sitting in the confessional booth."

"Now let's fit your theory into this puzzle."  Raisalter paces back and forth glancing back at Judoc as he attempts to make all the same connections Judoc has made for himself.  "You suppose that perhaps what we have missed was that Father Tomas had written correspondence back to X, or otherwise that he had received another letter and it was taken to the bishop?  Perhaps there was a confrontation that exposed the demon and the demon's name?  But then..."  Raisalter shakes his head forcefully as if shooing away a bothersome fly.  "But then why would the priest only have been murdered on Sunday as opposed to directly then?  Perhaps there would be more suspects immediately after the mass?  If the father had died in the Bishop's offices certainly there would be less ambiguity as to the perpetrator.  Still, if Father Thomas had known the connection between the bishop and the demon then why would he not seek help immediately?"

Raisalter turns in his pace, sighing forcefully as he picks his thoughts back up.  "There is something we are missing, the critical piece where Father Thomas learned or began to suspect not demons in general, but this specific demon Agares.  And I think perhaps I have misled you...  When I spoke of 'waking up' from possession I did not intend to make you think actual sleep was involved.  Instead, possession is more like a drunkard after a night of succumbing to his vice.  He simply wakes, in his bed, with no memory beyond the second or third drink having touched his lips.  In this case, the victim would 'wake' when the demon had left remembering nothing previous until the moment when he was possessed.  I think it unlikely that the bishop was under possession if he was physically sleeping during the mass and if he was it was by an exceptionally lazy demon.  I think it far more likely that your demon was the one accosting the boy R. if indeed his problem was based on being possessed."

Finally, Raisalter stops and looks back at Judoc, his face still pensive, though doubt has crept into the lines of his face.  "I cannot say I know the bishop well.  He seems to me a braggadocios twit who is friendly with enough people to have warranted his early promotion.  Perhaps his ambition is such that he would be willing to treat with a devil in order to further his career.  However, I think the prospect unlikely.  Demons are certainly interested in owning the souls of people in power, but I think you overestimate the bishops reach.  He oversees a diocese, and visits churches on the isle.  He has no effect to overall church policy or to the more personal lives of more powerful people.  He is also not a mage, which would significantly limit the powers of the demon while he was possessing the vessel.  Lastly, while the bishop is perhaps an arrogant and self-righteous prick, I have trouble seeing him as truly evil.  I have never seen him cause harm or wish harm on another, though perhaps he has a blind eye to the harm that is happening all around him."

"Still."  The baron continues, picking his voice back up a tick as he continues pacing.  "If that is the best lead we have, then it warrants further investigation.  There is no sense in being in disagreement when either of us could be right and there is evidence that may prove one of us vindicated.  Again, I warn you to be careful Judoc.  Though any named devil is bad, this one seems particularly so.  As I have said, the worst thing about the highest ranked of demons is that they are intelligent on a level that puts other demons to shame.  I imagine demon royalty is even more so."

OOC:  I think it is important to note that the book that you were talking about with Succubi was actually the same book that had the underlined entry of Agares.  You failed the perception roll that would have let you notice the single mark of ink or the stamp in the back of the book.  If you recall, you mostly passed over it due to the fact that it was relatively clear of the same gross notation the other books had.  It is perhaps unfair that you didn't recall the title was Deamonology when you were talking with the librarian only 1 day of game time later, but I had always intended to steer you back in that direction so I don't feel too bad.

Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, Judoc follows Raisalter's train of thought.  The Baron approaches the issue more rationally than Judoc has, the young mage has to admit.  Nodding his head, he says, "Yes, precisely.  Those are the parts that don't fit my narrative.  What of the boy, and how did Father Thomas narrow in on Agares?  From what I've heard from others, the bishop is not an outright evil man, and it does seem out of character for a man of god to treat with demons."

Judoc begins pacing again.  "If my theory is untrue, then the demon must still be tormenting the young man, R.  It is essential that I speak with him, but the Deacon refuses to give me who R. might be, as you said before, to protect the act of confession.  Perhaps I will be able to narrow in on his identity after mass this coming Sunday."

His mind tumbles sifts possibilities.  Surely the answer will come to him.  If anyone can get to the bottom of this mystery, then Judoc can.  They will call him the Inquisitor after this, if this is the path that lies before him and not the army or whatever entanglements the Row will bring.  Judoc's keen sense of curiosity has been whetted, and capturing this foul murderer will be quite the coup.

He stops and shakes his head, sighing with frustration and grinning wryly.  "I greatly appreciate your taking the time to listen to my theories, Baron.  I cannot be so open with my peers, and I fear to reveal too much to Deacon Samuel.  I'm going to try to see the Bishop and see what I can learn from him, but both you and the Deacon are quite skeptical that he is dealing with supernatural evil.  What of protection magic?  Will Armor and Shield be enough?  Is there such a spell as Protection from Evil?"

OOC:  Judoc will speak further with Baron Raisalter, but it's ok to move on to the next event.  Judoc will check in with Samuel to see if Judoc can secure an audience with the Bishop.  He'll also attend mass on Sunday.  He'll be looking for someone who might be R.

From this point on, Judoc will be a semi-regular attender at mass - say 1-3 times a month.  He is not devout, but he sees the value in at least seeming to be.

"That's a thought."  The Baron remarks at Judoc's mention of protection spells, he makes his way back to his shelves and rustles through a cabinet for a moment before returning to Judoc with a small stone that fits easily within a palm.  "Armor and Shield will work normally, though most demons are strong enough to manage significant damage to mere humans.  Other defensive spells will operate just as they would against a human opponent or mage."  Raisalter places the small stone in front of Judoc and he notices that the thing is emblazoned with a Templar's cross.  "I am sure there are talismans or amulets that protect specifically against possession, but they are rare and likely prohibitively expensive.  This"  He points to the small stone, "However may be of some assistance to you.  It is a spell stone, if you have come across them in your studies, specifically designed to turn spirits.  It works like a normal spell, you must concentrate for a moment, then crushing it in your hand you release its magic.  I am not sure if it is powerful enough for our demon, but it may buy you valuable time if you find yourself surprised."

And so, left with two nagging questions hanging as frayed ends to his investigation, who is R.? and What else did Father Thomas know? Judoc talks over the fine details with Baron Raisalter for another thirty minutes before the suppositions and hypotheses get so outrageous that the two determine that they are wasting their time until more useful information is acquired.  Judoc bids the professor goodnight with his thanks and makes his way to his dorms where he turns the information over in his mind for hours before preparing himself for bed.  Even when he tucks himself into his sheets however, his disorganized mind churns on end with the possibilities of his interview with the bishop, Samuels stubborn unhelpfulness, and the ever-present bloated and discolored face of Father Thomas as he spilled from the confessional booth onto the floor of the church below.

In his mind, Judoc approaches the priest for the first time...  He is looking for something new... some new evidence he didn't see or didn't process when he first saw the body - he recreates every feature and every detail.  Bending low over the man's face, Judoc notices for he first time that the man's lips are moving, mouthing some word in the softest of tones.  "What?"  Judoc whispers back, unsure what the correct protocol is when talking to a corpse but he felt that sort words were the best choice to coax out the clue.  Again, the corpse mouths something in near total silence.  "What?"  Judoc repeats, putting his ear nearly all the way to the dead man's mouth.  "Are."  The priest barely breathes, and Judoc leans in closer, trying to make out any follow on words but all the dead priest does... is explode.

Judoc sits bolt upright in his bed shaking the cobwebs of sleep from his mind.  "Wawwazzat?"  Across the room, Grobbik heaves himself forward, throwing the sheets off of his chest like a spray of sea foam off the brow of a ship.  As his head clears into wakefulness, Judoc is struck by the empty state of the room, which only a year ago held places for Giles, Elliot, and Mariana was ever present...  Now their small room seemed much larger for just the three of them - and it is with that thought that Judoc recognizes that Indrid's bed lays empty.

OOC:  It is 0300 on Saturday the 20th of December.  You aren't sure what woke you up but it was loud.  It is worth noting that it is against school rules to be out roaming the halls after curfew.

Accepting Raisalter's spell stone, Judoc examines it curiously.  "With any luck, I won't need to use this, but thank you, sir.  It's good to have another weapon in hand.  I'll return it after the demon's been dealt with."

As he returns to his quarters, his thoughts continue to be occupied with the mystery, and he curses the church's ironclad reticence to reveal any details about the goings-on of the confessional.  He smirks.  Wouldn't do to upset the free flow of gold into the church's coffers.

And then, he has another brilliant idea.  If Deacon Samuel wouldn't divulge the young man's name, perhaps Malcombe Fowler would.  He might know the identity of R., or at least give him some leads.  It couldn't hurt to track him down and ask.  He resolves to go looking for the boy on the morrow.

That night, Judoc sleeps fitfully, still preoccupied with the investigation.  He is so close to the answer.  He just needs one more puzzle piece to fall in place, that Aha! moment when all his theories resolve into what really happened last Sunday.  Perhaps this is why his dreams are haunted by Father Thomas's corpse.  What was it trying to tell him?  Who killed you, Father Thomas?  Was it R.?  Agares?  The Bishop?  And then the dream shatters explosively, and Judoc is thrown awake.

Or had it been a dream?  He looks around his chambers.  Something had awoken him.  He looks over and sees Indrid's bed is empty.  "Grobbik?  Did you hear that?" he whispers.  Standing up, he slips into his shoes.  Gathering his ring and his spell stone, he picks up his staff as well and steps as quietly as he can out into the hall.

OOC:  Put on shoes.  Take ring, spell stone, and staff, and go investigate the sound.

Judoc's whispered question to Grobbik receives a delayed and worthless response.  "What?" The goblin asks, his eyes already sagging again as he eases his body back down to the bed.  "I don't know what you... said." he yawns as he finishes the last word and Judoc can tell that there will be little useful information coming from his roommate.

Instead, Judoc decides to investigate matters on his own, slipping on a pair of shoes as he grabs his staff, powerstone, and the spellstone recently granted to him from the Baron Raisalter as he makes his way towards the hallway outside his chambers.  The passageways at this late hour are illuminated with he same dull blue glow as Judoc remembers from the servant's quarters and storage spaces downstairs, which leaves an eerie, shadowless light upon the floor.  Judoc looks in each direction down the hallway and as of yet he sees nothing.

Judoc grits his teeth for a moment, for he isn't entirely sure which direction the sound came from.  On one hand, to the left is the front entryway and the administrative spaces of the provost and other higher-ups of the college.  And on the other, to the right are the professor offices and the dining hall.  Before entirely putting himself in jeopardy of being caught in the hallways after hours, Judoc takes a moment to determine which way he wants to go.

OOC:  Sorry for the choose your own adventure aspect here, but it is rather important which direction you go.  You can either choose randomly, or if you wish to spend a hero point, I will roll 1d2 for you 3 times (1 for left, 2 for right) and if you get the right direction to head towards the origin of the noise on any of the three rolls I will choose it for you.   Regardless of the direction you choose, roll one time against stealth and one time against perception.

Seeing that Grobbik will be of no use, Judoc exits their room and looks cautiously outside.  Which way should he go?  Where did the noise come from?  If Judoc was awakened, no doubt others would be, too, and though the student mage is pretty sneaky, it wouldn't do to run smack into Brother Loke at this time of night.

And so he waits, hoping for his keen intuition to help him decide the correct way to go.

Judoc leans on his intuition to tell him the right direction and though he reasons there are many potential sources of the blast, the most likely would be some sort of intruder who would come in through the front entrances.  He picks his way towards the left, keeping towards the edge of the corridor and watching and listening for both foes and professors who might now be skulking the hallways.

Judoc manages his way to the end of the cooridor and takes a moment to listen at the large oaken doors that bar the way to the entryway.  Hearing nothing, Judoc slowly releases the latch, but never the less a groan is elicited from the mechanism as it raises the iron bolt from the floor.  Judoc opens the heavy portal just enough to peer his head into the room beyond.

He is quite surprised to see Brother Hilath and Brother Moloran standing a mere two dozen yards away.  They stand not a foot apart from eachother and speak in hurried whispers.  Judoc strains to hear the conversation, but his heart catches in his throat as he watches Brother Hilath turn his head to look directly toward Judoc!

Luckily, just then, another distraction overwhelms the moment.

The door to the Provost's offices bursts open and Judoc does not need to wait for the tone of voice to know that the Baron Graves is smouldering in anger.  The man is fully dressed in his armor, his sword hanging ready at his hip, and his houlders thrust forward as if he is expecting to draw it at any moment.  His face is drawn up tight like a bowstring as he barks commands with little regard to whom he is talking.  "I want him, and whoever else you can find awake and ready for questioning!"

Brother Moloran's voice sounds scandalized, raising an octave above its normal level.  "But sir!  He was attacked!  He needs to be..."  Moloran stops as Hilath cuts him off with the gesture of his hand.  The older mage steps back from the conversation and turns towards the doorway where Judoc hides as he walks forwards deliberately.  "Who is there?"  Hilath asks as he readies his hands in front of him for spellwork.

OOC:  Rough stealth roll made worse by a damn near crit success from the professor.  However, the lighting is poor and you think it unlikely that he has recognized you even if he knows where you are.  You could attempt to hide, there are other dorm rooms nearby you (roll against stealth), or you could attempt to hide behind cover somewhere in the hallway (if that is your choice, roll against scrounging and stealth).  Otherwise, you could come clean and let them find you (roll your best option of reaction, or social skill).  Feel free to think of any other option you may have through spellwork or other skills that I may have ignored.

Several thoughts occur to Judoc simultaneously.  Chief among them is Shit!  Shit!  Shit!  Two professors practically right outside his room, and worse, Baron fucking Graves on the warpath.  Worst of all, Hilath has apparently spotted Judoc.  And where the fuck is Indrid?

He doesn't think they've seen his face, and he could simply melt into one of the dorm rooms and hide, but this is a prime opportunity to find out what's going on.  Had he really heard an explosion?  What had happened tonight?

He makes a decision he knows he's going to regret, but he steps out of the shadows with his hands where the professors can see him.  "It's me, Judoc," he says.  "I was sleeping, and I heard a tremendous noise!  Was that some kind of explosion?  Are we under attack?"  Yes, there's going to be hell to pay with him being outside at this time of night, but this is a solid chance to find out what all the commotion is about.

Judoc's heart thrums in fast percussion, over and over, so loud he can hear it in his ears despite his attempt to cover his infraction with a reasonable explanation.  Though Judoc knows, even as he is speaking, that he is too nervous just now, that his words are not convincing.  The fact that Judoc is speaking barely seems to register on Hilath's face and the old Templar simply gestures with two fingers "Come."

The word is not exactly angry, though neither is it anything less than a command.  Judoc swallows his nervousness, knowing that at this point there is nothing left for him to do but follow and he pushes himself into the grand entryway so that the other two teachers can now see him.

Moloran's face registers shock and disbelief as Judoc exposes his identity.  His gaze lingers on Judoc's staff and the young teacher blurts out "Judoc, how could you!"

For the second time, Hilath cuts off Moloran, this time with a single word.  "Enough."  Though Moloran seems to have several more comments to make, he holds his tongue, with his eyes maintaining their focus upon Judoc with disappointment and anger.

Judoc is more concerned however, with the reaction from the Provost.  Graves had already threatened to throw Judoc out of school once as punishment for failing to kill a member of Murderer's Row, Thresher.  It had been a mere month ago, and Judoc knew all too well that Thresher was still alive but in hiding, though the ring he was wearing was proof enough that the Provost at least thought Thresher was dead.  It was a precarious situation to say the least, and if there was one person at the college who Judoc wanted to keep on his good side it was the Baron Graves.  Judoc turns his head towards the provost of the school and watches as the headmaster's explosive rage simmers to an expression of calculated appraisal.  The moment passes quickly, and Graves moves to address the two professors.

"Hilath, put him in my office then tend to the other one.  Cast whatever you need to put him in a shape to be questioned as soon as I am done.  Do not let him leave."  Hilath nods at the direction and prods Judoc forward as the Baron continues to speak.  <b>"Moloran, send out word to the others, keep all the students in their rooms and with whoever is available start searching the corridors for intruders, there may still be someone here we are missing."

Hilath keeps Judoc moving forward step by step towards the provost's offices.  He had never been in them himself before, though Grobbik had told him several months ago what they looked like.  The outer office was for brother Hilath, the administrator of the college and assistant to Baron Graves, the provost.  Two other doors in the room led to the Provost's office and to the Provost's quarters.  To Judoc's right as he walks in the outer room is Brother Hilath's desk, a massive monument of organized chaos which held all the administrative documents of the college as well as personal scheduling and notes for Baron Graves.  Draped about various places on the walls are various historical documents and paintings, including the original charter of the school.  However, there was one thing that was not as Grobbik had mentioned, and it was what took up all of Judoc's attention during his short walk across the room.

To his left, his knees pulled up to his chest where he sits upon the floor is Alevius Cleppo.  The arrogant bastard seems worse if anything from the last time Judoc talked to him in detention a few days ago.  His face is paled, cradled between his two hands as it sinks towards his kneecaps, shaking back and forth in a slow repeated motion.  The boy's face is scrawled up in wrinkles, his eyes wincing and his jaw clenched as if he is fighting hard to hold back tears.  Just beside him, the doorway to the Provost's quarters is hanging limply from its frame with two of the hinges having been ripped from the wall and its center cratered inward slightly, projecting the shards of splinters outward at the edges.

As soon as he takes it all in however, Judoc is through the next doorway where he is directed to sit on a chair that faces towards the Provost's desk.  "Stay."  Is all Hilath states before he takes Judoc's staff from him and is back out the doorway into the office without.

Here is the provost's office, Judoc has much more time to take in the surroundings.  Like the office without, the furniture here is built with function in mind.  There is a small bookshelf in the far left corner, stacked with a variety of leather bound tomes and books that look varied in age and wear.  In front of him, the Provost's desk is large and rectangular creating a barrier that goes most of the width of the room.   Beside him are another two chairs, all of them wooden backed with no arms.   Judoc looks at the wall opposite him, taking in the wide expanse of a intricate and colorful tapestry depicting the Provost, armored, sword in one hand and helm cradled in the other as he stands in front of the Templar coat of arms.  On the wall to Judoc's right, an oil painting is displayed, life sized of the Baron from the waist up, holding the knight's cross.  Beside that is a framed document, difficult to discern from this distance, though Grobbik recognizes the coat of arms of Emperor Diophrates adorning the bottom right by the signature.

Behind him, the door opens and closes, as the provost makes his way to the desk and seats himself.  The man seemed to have regained his calm for the most part, though his brows arch menacingly and he leans forward aggressively in his seat.  "Judoc."  The man starts, bringing up both of his elbows to lean on the desk in front of him as he gestures with one hand.  "Start where you need to.  Tell me what you saw."

Judoc begins to feel something like a gentle breeze across his face, although there is no open window...  And Judoc would bet his life it was not air that was moving.

OOC:  You are being cast on, if you wish to resist, roll against will.  Regardless of whether you succeed/fail/do not resist, you can act and speak normally in the next post.  For expediency's sake I assumed that you would not resist anything up to this point.  Hilath has taken your staff although you still retain your ring.

Being out in the halls after hours bears serious consequences. Nevertheless, Judoc tries to justify his actions with an explanation, but his words fall flat even in his own ears.  Judoc knows he really shouldn't have been out of his room after curfew, but he absolutely had to know what was happening, consequences be damned.  It was just a bit of bad luck that he had blundered into two Templars right outside his room.

Graves is a much bigger problem.  The provost does not know that the man he had commanded Judoc to kill was still alive, and worse, that the Row had been able to entangled Judoc in their machinations.  Were they behind the uproar this night?  If so, how many agents did they have in the College, and why had they not contacted Judoc?  Not that Judoc wanted anything to do with them, not if it put him at greater odds with his teachers, but he did owe them, heavily, and he wonders when he will be called upon to repay his debt.

Too, Judoc wonders just where Indrid is.  His bed was empty - was Indrid involved in what was going on, or was he somewhere else, maybe a midnight rendezvous with a girl?  Graves mentions the other one, and Judoc groans silently.  They're going to think the two of them are in on whatever's happened tonight.

Grobbik had described Graves' office, so although Judoc hadn't seen it before personally, he was familiar with the basic layout.  But what shocks him is the large hole in the wall where the door to the Provost's office should stand. Judoc gapes at the destruction, and almost simultaneously he notices Alevius Cleppo.  Had Alevius done this?  In heaven's name, why?  And then Judoc is in the inner room, Graves' personal office, and Judoc does not look forward to his coming interrogation.  If there is one person in the College that Judoc respects for their power, it is Graves, and too, Judoc knows he's playing a dangerous game with the Row.  He's still not sure which side he's on, the power-hungry Graves or the criminal-minded Row.  The Templars aren't all like Loke and Graves, that's for sure, and the last time Judoc had met Thresher and the man's friend, Judoc hadn't exactly parted on amicable terms.

So now he sits, waiting for Graves and his inevitable questions.  Too, Judoc is burning to know what happened with the door.  He and Grobbik had talked about the previous in incident when parties unknown had attempted to gain access to Graves' inner sanctum. Was anything missing?  He looks around the room, but he knows that he wouldn't be able to tell if there were something out of place.  He imagines what paintings of himself would look with the Knight's Cross.  He has no doubt that if wanted to, Judoc himself could one day be provost of the College.

Graves comes in, and Judoc stands when the provost enters and takes his seat after the Baron does.  The gentle breeze feels good until Judoc realizes that he should not be able to feel any wind.

"Sir, there isn't much to tell.  I was dreaming, and the dream suddenly exploded.  I woke up and went to investigate the explosion, because it seemed very real.  I met Brother Moloran and Brother Hilath almost immediately.  The damage here, sir - were we attacked?  Is this some kind of retaliation?"

The provost's lips curl up slightly at the ends, giving his countenance an almost devilish look, but as Judoc finishes, Graves merely shakes his head.  "Now is not your time for questions.  What was Cleppo doing here in my offices?  What is it that he wanted?  Are you telling me you know nothing of what has happened tonight, though you were standing just outside where the trespassing occurred, weapon in hand and ready for battle?"

Judoc is relieved to see that Graves's temper does not flash in this line of questions, but stares intently at Judoc with no perceivable emotion, waiting for an answer.

OOC:  Sorry, but since you mentioned the fight was "right outside your room" a couple of times, I should probably jump in to clean up the confusion.  At the first post when I asked you if you were going left or right, that was right outside your room - between that and the next post you walked about 50-100 yards down a corridor towards the main entryway of the school, I just ran quickly through it because nothing happened as you were going until you got to the oaken doors separating the doors from the entryway.  I probably should have done a better job talking about the distance - I thought it was irrelevant but I can see how it could be confusing if you thought all this was "right outside".

Nodding his head, Judoc accepts the Provost's censure.  Judoc knows he was in the wrong, but he simply had to find out what had happened.  As for what Alevius was doing there, Judoc hadn't the foggiest idea.  Cleppo had always struck him as a Templar wannabe who didn't have what it really took to be a Templar, and Judoc is surprised that Alevius would somehow be up to his eyeballs in something that would harm what little chance he had of actually making it into the Templars.

"Sir, I have no idea what Cleppo is doing here.  He's in my cohort, but he and I are not really friends.  He's an asshole, sir, but I didn't think he was suicidal."

"As to why I was ready for trouble, sir, I thought we were being attacked.  Or something.  The explosion alarmed me, and I thought there might be hostiles on the grounds."

The Baron Graves quietly appraises Judoc's answers, staring intently into Judoc's face as the silence drags on.  The situation is discomforting to say the least and Judoc is tempted to speak again just to break the silence though he knows not what to say.  Just as Judoc's lips part to say something about the weather, anything to break the silence, he is reprieved from the task.  "No.  I don't suppose he is...  Good"  He says, as he puts his fists downward into the table as he stands abruptly, gesturing with his hands towards the door.  "I'm glad to see that you had nothing to do with it."

Judoc is somewhat surprised by the sudden dismissal, especially after such a prolonged staring contest but he does not need to be told twice to leave.  He jumps up quickly from his seat and makes his way towards the door.

As he opens the portal, Judoc is struck by the momentary scene outside, Brother Hilath staring down Alevius, who is turning his head swiftly down and toward Judoc, his face exhausted but defiant, blinking a single tear from his eye to roll down his cheek.  "I do not know!"  Alevius shouts in a whisper, though as he sees Judoc his face hardens to a stone look of hatred, and he quickly breaks his confrontation with Brother Hilath as he walks freely towards the Provost's office, shoulder-checking Judoc subtly as the two pass.

"And what am I to do with this one?"  Hilath asks, his tone disconcertingly calm.

"Send him to bed."  Graves responds flippantly, "He knows nothing."

Hilath shifts his glance from the provost to Judoc, an intent look of judgment that Judoc can feel scouring the back of his soul.  "Yes, your lordship."  the administrator responds as the door to Graves's office latches closed.

"Don't forget your staff now."  Hilath gestures towards the wall, where the oaken stave rests freely against the wall.  "Come on."

OOC:  Graves is too focused at the moment to entertain follow on questions from you and it is clear from the moment that he stands that the two of you are done for now.  You recognize that attempting to get information out of him is a lost cause and likewise Cleppo does not have any interest in telling you anything.  If you wish to try and wring some information out of Hilath, you may roll against fast talk.

What could Graves be thinking?  Judoc would dearly pay to know Graves' thought process on this, and Judoc wonders just what Alevius had been up to. Was it a prank gone wrong?  Had someone gotten to Cleppo in order to send a message to Graves or actually try to steal something from the provost?  Perhaps Graves has a valuable artifact or some kind of dossier that someone wants, and they hired Alevius to recover.  Tempted by greed, the student had tried to break in twice and was eventually caught.  Judoc's not satisfied with this theory, but there are obviously undercurrents here that he doesn't know about.  There was a good chance that Alevius had just been in the wrong place at the wrong time and wasn't even involved, but the other student's behavior hadn't been that great recently.  Alevius was in trouble somehow, and maybe this drove him to try to break into Graves' office.  Part of Judoc is pleased at this thought, and part of him dearly wants to know what's going on with Alevius.

As Judoc leaves Graves' office, the young mage looks at Alevius with a mixture of curiosity and pity.  Are they about to lose another student from Judoc's year?  Mariana, Giles, and Elliot are already gone, and perhaps Alevius will be joining the exodus soon.  And where the hell is Indrid?  Could Alevius and Indrid be conspiring together?  Judoc finds the idea implausible but not out of the realm of possibility.

Collecting his staff, Judoc nods at Brother Hilath and falls in behind the administrator.  "It seems incredible to me that anyone would try to break into the College," he says.  "There's no more dangerous place for thieves in all of Azer.  And to be so noisy about it - it seems very clumsy.   But I find it hard to believe that Alevius would do something like this.  This happened before, right?  A rumor was going in that someone tried to break into the Provost's office a week or two ago."

OOC:  Try to get some information from Hilath about the details of the attack, who he suspects, and why this happened.

To most men, Brother Hilath is a stoic.  He is imperturbable, as perhaps is required from anyone who would be Baron Graves's number one assistant for so many years.  However, To Judoc the Obscure, the Merciful, to Judoc, Hilath is just another wall with which to bounce off his ideas.  He talks of thieves, of the incredible stupidity of targeting the college, of Alevius Cleppo, and through all this Hilath keeps his head pointed forward, leading the way back towards the hall of soldiers.  But as Judoc speaks of the attack a week ago, he knows that he has struck gold.

Hilath pauses a moment in his step.  "Yes."  He continues his pace forward, pushing his way through the doorway into the corridor that separates two of the dormitories of the college.  He turns his head back towards Judoc.  "Yes, something like this did happen, a week ago to the day.  The door to the provost's quarters itself was attacked, gouges all in it's face, though the portal itself was not breached and the Baron was not in at the time and did not arrive until the morning...  It seems odd, the pair of events, as if someone is trying to attack the Baron himself."

Judoc does not have much time to think on the matter however, for the two arrive at his dorm room and Hilath opens the doorway for him to enter.

"Have a good rest, Judoc, I would not attempt to make your way back out of your room tonight.

As Judoc makes his way into the room, he glances towards his left, where Indrid's bed lies, and sees a convincing lump amidst the covers, and hears the heavy breathing of a sleeping man that seems to him just the slightest bit forced...

Much like his boss, Hilath makes it readily apparent that the conversation is over and he expects Judoc to head to bed.

As Judoc plys Brother Hilath with questions, the administrator has little to say until Judoc hits on the previous week's attempted break-in, and it is thus that the student gains more information, though Hilath merely corroborates what Judoc has heard.  He finds it significant that Graves had not been present when the failed burglary had taken place.  They had not intended to harm Graves, then, but had merely intended to gain access to his office.  It is clear to Judoc that Graves has something that someone else dearly wants, an artifact, perhaps, or some information, something valuable enough to throw away caution when attempting to steal it.  Surely Alevius isn't involved.  Ridiculous.  Why jeopardize his future for this, unless he is desperate?  It is unfortunate that Judoc and Alevius do not get along.  Judoc would dearly like to know what the other was doing outside Graves' office.

When he arrives back at his own quarters, he nods his head.  "Yes, sir, of course," he says, bowing his head.  He returns his items to their places and climbs in his own bed.

When he is sure that Hilath has departed, he whispers, "Indrid.  Are you awake?"

OOC:  Try to get Indrid to talk.  Tell him what Judoc saw, the blasted door, Alevius there on the scene, and ask where Indrid was earlier.

Judoc scurries to his bed, placing his staff against the wall and waits patiently until the door closes, perking his ears for the sound of retreating footsteps.  It is several moments before he finally feels safe speaking out and he is not disappointed as Indrid perks up in his bed and rests his back against the wall.

Judoc tries to recreate the scene, jumping up from his bed and creeping down towards the entrance hall, the discussion of the two professors right outside the professor's office, the Baron's initial fury at the situation.  Judoc attempts to talk himself through the confusion as he reaches the next part.  Moloran had seemed certain that Judoc had somehow been involved in the attack... likely the person who had damaged the door and injured Alevius.  But the Baron had seemingly brushed aside the insinuation before the questioning had even started.  In fact, he had never asked Judoc what he had been doing, but instead he asked what Judoc had seen.  Judoc describes as much as he can about Alevius, the door, and the short interview with the Baron before being brushed aside for the Baron to question Alevius...  Who Graves had been furious, raging even when the other professors tried to delay his interrogation.  Somehow it seemed that Moloran had been convinced that Alevius was a victim, and Judoc the perpetrator... but Baron Graves had seemed only interested in Alevius who was completely unable to stand when Judoc had arrived.

Judoc's discussion drifts off with his train of thought, his words dipping into silence as he ponders what the Baron knew, or what prejudices he had, that made the differences in his initial suspicions.  Judoc can't help but think of the moment he left the office either.  Alevius had been so indignant as he nearly shouted at Hilath 'I don't know!'  Judoc felt that the reaction had been immensely important, and he wished he had opened the door just a moment sooner to get some clue as to the question.

But as Judoc falls into silence, Indrid immediately makes up the difference.  "What?  It was attacked again?"  Indrid leans back, tipping his chin upwards as he looks toward the ceiling in thought.  "That is so weird.  So someone was definitely trying to get into where Graves was sleeping right?  The first time they didn't have a good enough spell, but the second time they managed to blow the hinges off before Cleppo came in and found them?  I wonder what spell they used to take him out?  I only heard one blast.  Seems weird he was out there at all though, he's not normally the type that does anything without Andros, the scumbag.  I bet he was the other one there and he just left Alevius there to sell him out when he was sure that the Baron would have woken up.  Seems like they used a pretty stupid spell to blow off the door, it was almost certain to wake up everyone in the castle, let alone the Baron who was probably half deafened and jumped to the ceiling as soon as it happened."

Judoc drags himself out of his thoughts to ask the burning question he had been looking to have answered since the moment he had woken.  Where had Indrid been?

Indrid claps his mouth shut the instant Judoc asks.  It is a few moments before he speaks again.  "I was taking a piss dude.  Do you think I was involved in this?  I was down the corridor standing over a chamber pot and I hear the muffled burst somewhere far of and feel the castle tremor for a moment and I poke my head out to see what was going on.  I made my way almost back to our doorway before I see the doors on the far side opening, I just made it back to our doorway when I see Moloran poking his head out and shining a beam of light down the hallway like he's looking for a murderer.  I decided at that point I'd just wait things out and see what people knew tomorrow."

Though the tone of the conversation has taken a rather cutting turn, Grobbik seems entirely unaware and continues to snore lightly in his bed.

OOC:  Another important distinction that you would have known but I'm not sure is carrying over.  There are three rooms in Baron Graves's offices.  The outer room is where Hilath works as a sort of administration officer.  His inner office is where Grave's desk and all of his work is.  The other room, the one the door was blown off of (and the same one that was attacked last week) is a door to his quarters, where his bed, bath and personal effects are.

Reflecting on the events of the evening, Judoc sifts through other possibilities.  OK, maybe Alevius wasn't trying to break in.  Maybe he was there to stand guard for some reason, or maybe he was trying to play the hero, and he got in the way of whoever was breaking in.  Was it the Row?  Are they trying to assassinate Graves?  If so, they're doing a shit job so far.  The bastards will probably call on Judoc next to get the job done, but there's no way Judoc's going to murder for them, either.

What was Alevius's role in all of this?  What did Graves know, and what had he thought Judoc might have seen?  What question did I don't know! answer?  Who attacked you?  How many were there?  Did they steal Baron Graves' magic whatsit?  What spell was cast on you?

In the dark, he nods his head in agreement with Indrid's words.  It had seemed like a dumb plan.  Andros probably was there, too.  OK, so if two student mages had been on guard (and why not fully-trained guards instead?), why use such a loud spell?  To scare Graves?  Not likely.  Stealth was completely out.  He tries to think back to what he had seen, heard, smelled.  Why had the spell been so insanely loud?  It just didn't make sense.  Why not use Shatter or Disintegrate?  Why wake half the castle?

"Sorry, mate, but I had to ask.  So did you see anything?  Andros or Alevius?  Anyone else besides Moloran?"

Judoc thinks back to the arena sands again.  That day when he had spared Thresher's life was a turning point for him.  He had chosen then to not be a tool of Graves' machinations, though he hadn't realized the true purpose of the combat at the time.  That fight had set his feet down a path that might lead places Judoc didn't want to go.  Ridiculous, he thinks.  There's always a choice.  Judoc may not be a paragon of virtue, not like the late Father Thomas, but he still has his principles, and he'll be damned if any outside force attempt to coerce him to betray his own sense of right and wrong.

"Indrid, were you part of that arena combat a couple of months ago?  They intended for us to kill our opponents.  It was supposed to be an execution.  I bet this is those people pushing back.  I've heard rumors.  This all seems so clumsy, though.  If someone wants to kill Graves, why not hire an assassin?  Explosions in the middle of the night are hardly subtle.  Maybe it was an Explode spell that was heavily amplified in some way?"

OOC:  Thanks for the clarification!  So the room layout is Hilath - Graves' office - Graves' quarter?  I guess Hilath sleeps elsewhere?

Indrid lays back in his bed as Judoc starts speaking, interrupting for a moment to answer his question.  "Naw, I haven't taken Moloran yet, and after hearing that's how he runs things, I might just wait for another year to two before going through it.  No need to rush something that could kill me, you know?"

As Judoc continues, Indrid shakes his head as he shifts himself down back under the covers.  "I don't suppose that's surprising.  Governor probably asked him for some wizards to take care of all those criminals.  I'm sure the last thing he wanted was for all of them to get back out on the street, you know?  I can't imagine anyone would be stupid enough to try and break into the college at night though.  I bet there are all sorts of enchantments to keep people out.  You're right though, seems clumsy at best if it's someone trying to get back at him.  At least they weren't caught though I guess..."

Indrid yawns heavily and rolls himself to the side, dragging a handful of blankets along with him.  "I bet Alevius is in up to his neck - he's the only one they caught in there right?  I'll bet it was Graves himself who blasted his head off and was a bit overzealous.  Knocked him on his ass so he couldn't even speak anymore.  Probably didn't want to admit it to the other two so he just played along while he was interrogating you."

OOC:  Yeah, the office looks something like this.  Hilath sleeps in the same area as most of the other professors, near the back of the college (students sleep closer towards the middle).  I have all this stuff mostly worked out in my head, but I feel the architecture probably isn't relevant for the most part to the story.

 ________________________________
|          |                     |
|          |    Graves           |
| Graves   |     Office          |
|  Room    |                     |
|          |                     |
|          |                     |
|          |_/  _________________|
|          |                     |
|          |  Hilath's           |
|          |   Office            |
|          |                     |
|         \                      |
|          |                     |
|__________|_/  _________________|

Lying on his bed, Judoc listens to Indrid's ideas.  Judoc flipflops between his theories of Alevius trying to break in and the Row staging some kind of attempt on Graves' life.  The problem with theories are their very nature.  You just have to find the best explanation for what fits the facts.  If things don't fit, then you can either ignore them, make them fit, or look for a new theory.  The attempted break-in certainly seemed amateurish, which fits in with Alevius being responsible for it, but the Row wants Graves gone, which fits in with them trying to break in.  Judoc has to concede that Indrid has a good point, though.  There's no doubt tons of spells and such protecting the school.  But what if someone came in through those tunnels Judoc and Eliot explored?  An infiltrator might be able to bypass a lot of the security.  That would take forever, though.

Enough thinking for one night.  Strange things are afoot, that's for certain, and perhaps Judoc will learn more later.   Turning over in his bed, he gives in to sleep, hoping to dream no more of dead priests.

Judoc decides that nothing will be discovered for tonight and turns himself over in his covers and sleeps a deep sleep with no further dreams of priests, murders, assassins or burglars.

When morning comes, Judoc takes the extra time at the college to pursue any story of what may have happened last night, though the only person who seems to have any information is Wayne Irons, who repeats what he has heard from Andros Wilmer.  By his account, Alevius got up last night to go to the bathroom and was attacked somewhere along the way, knocked unconscious and was taken to the provost's office for interrogation while he was still soggy-headed.  The account doesn't mesh with Judoc's memory at all, for he was sure that Alevius had seemed that he was regaining consciousness in the Provosts offices rather than recovering himself after having walked from some other place in the castle, but despite all of his questions, Wayne simply repeats that he is only telling Andros's story.  Judoc marks the discrepancy down and decides to attempt to make something of the day on his real investigation, rather than hanging around the castle.

And so, Judoc heads down the road towards Azer yet again to head towards the cathedral to see what progress Samuel has made on an interview with the Bishop.  To Judoc's shock, Samuel replies that the bishop has stated that he is available at Judoc's earliest convenience.  Though the news is slightly unanticipated, Judoc decides there is no reason to avoid the invitation and proceeds upstairs towards the bishop's offices.

"Ah yes."  Marcus greets Judoc, his smile overly expressive and disconcerting, "Come in, come in.  For his grace has absolutely insisted upon seeing you as soon as you could make yourself available."  Judoc cannot admit that he is surprised by being greeted by Marcus, though the sign is ominous never the less.  Marcus peeks his head into the office behind him, whispering something for a few moments before turning back to Judoc.  "His grace is ready for you."  The old man smiles and Judoc thinks to himself that the man's features would looks somewhat more genuine if his teeth were stained black.

Never the less, Judoc had come here for a reason and he decides that scoping out the Bishops office is the most important task of the moment.  He walks through the doorway to see the young bishop sitting behind his desk, his hands spread palms down as he appraises Judoc fully.

The office itself has little in the way of niceties.  The sturdy oak desk is large and has little in the way of decorations anywhere about it.  In front of the desk is a short wooden table with a few chairs around, and behind the bishop Judoc spies a small shrine to Saint Honorius, but even there are few decorations besides the sculpture and kneeler itself.  On the left side of the room, Judoc sees a full length closet, though the doors are closed and he is unable to determine what lies inside.

"Young man,"  The Bishops demeanor is calm and smiling, sweet as poisoned honey.  "I have heard that you wished to meet with me.  To what do I owe the pleasure?

OOC:  Ok, sorry for the rush, I realize that I went through quite a bit of stuff to get here, but if you have any questions or want to revisit anything make a note and we can get there later.  For now, you are sitting in the Bishop's office, no need to make a reaction roll.  However, if you are looking for any specific information from him feel free to roll vs. fast talk to get as much as you can.  Also, if there is anything speicif you want to look at in his office roll vs. Observation to get any pertinent info.

In the morning, Judoc takes some time to see if anyone else might have seen or heard anything the previous night that can help him form a more complete picture of what had transpired, but he learns little.  He listens as Wayne relates his third-hand information, but Judoc highly doubts that Alevius had been dragged to the provost's office.  It makes little sense to him, and he suspects Andros knows far more than he admits.  Perhaps Judoc will hear more of this later.  In the meantime, he has a murder to solve and a demon to banish.

He is still composing theories as to what happened to Father Thomas.  The Bishop is mixed up in this, Judoc is sure of it, and the man's high office will not be enough to protect him from justice.  Judoc still likes his possessed Bishop theory, but he admits to himself that the boy is most probably the one who is possessed.

At the news that the Bishop will see him, Judoc is at first highly surprised, but he congratulates himself on his good fortune.  This chance to observe the Bishop up close will prove very useful in either corroborating or disproving his theory on whether the demon Agares is manipulating the man.

Once at the Bishop's office, Judoc cannot help but be repulsed by Marcus.  Judoc is convinced the man is a spy and toady at the very least, and he would not be surprised to find that the man had a role in killing Father Thomas.  There is something unnatural, even sinister about the man.  Judoc nods his head politely in thanks, but privately he regrets having to turn his back on this creature, even for a moment.

The Bishop is little better.  Here is a man choked with ambition.  Who couldn't say what a person might do in advancement of his own career?  Judoc tries to avoid looking like he's casing the place, but he makes note of the closet in case he needs to make a more surreptitious return to this office.

"Your Excellency, thank you for agreeing to see me," Judoc says formally, though inside he is thoroughly creeped out by the bishop's dangerous smile.  Is this the face of a man possessed by a demon?  Or does he see in Judoc a means to an end of some kind?

"I was wondering if you could clear up some matters of faith for me.  I'm studying at the College this year, and I haven't been a regular attendee at mass so far.  Still, if I want to become a Templar, I think I need to work on being more devout.  I'm very intrigued by the idea of faith strong enough to resist evil.  How does one cultivate this kind of faith?  And as I've looked into the scriptures, I've seen warnings against magic, which affects what I'm studying.  How can Templars such as I aspire to be both master the art of magic and practice the Christian faith?"

OOC:  Is this a similar setup to Graves' office?  Is there another room nearby where the Bishop might sleep?

Carry on with this train of conversation.  Be sure to mention Templars, faith, and devotion regularly.  My intention is to explore what kind of man the Bishop is and if he might be capable of having Father Thomas killed without directly alluding to the death unless Abram brings it up.

Bishop Abram's smile evaporates upon the first word that Judoc speaks as he looks across the desk through narrowed slits of eyes.  The man's brow furrows in the center and his whole expression broods of concentration.

"Yes."  The word is interjected immediately as Judoc closes his mouth.  The Bishop stands in one swift motion and turns his back to Judoc as he walks several feet to the side of his shrine where a broad window is placed.  "You certainly do need to work on being more devout.  As I understand it you attended mass infrequently or not at all since you have been to this college and I don't doubt that your mind has seldom dwelled on questions of faith..."

Abram's shirt rustles as he arches his back and looks over his shoulder, glancing at Judoc through the corner of his eye.

"Yet it dwells there now.  Why, is this the third time that you have been here in the past week?  What could have made the change?"

The bishop turns fully, facing Judoc again and as he sits in his chair, Judoc realizes for the first time that the bishop is quite tall and has broader shoulders than he had realized.

"I think perhaps there are some other things that you should be working on." The bishop continues, honing his eyes back onto Judoc as the slight glint of a smile returns to his lips.  "Honesty for one, for certainly you have no interest in increasing your faith, otherwise you would have gone to my deacon or have invested your time in reading the Bible.  So I ask you again Judoc, and this time I would ask that you not blaspheme this room with your lies.  Why are you here?"

OOC:  No, the Bishop is rich enough that he does not sleep in the cathedral but has his own home and servants in the Noble's district.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:38, Thu 16 Nov 2017.

All in all, Judoc had expected a rather different welcome from the Bishop, a Hello, there, young Templar-to-be, it's so good of you to take a deeper interest in the faith, perhaps playing to Bishop Abrams' desire to ingratiate himself with Baron Graves.  But no, this is full-on suspicion, no doubt fueled by whatever Marcus had told the Bishop about Judoc's comings and goings.  Abrams is sharp, Judoc realizes.  He won't be taken in by bald-faced lies.  Well, then, tell the truth, or at least a part of it, and see where that gets him.

"I'm interested in the power of faith to protect against evil, your Excellency," Judoc says, leaning back in the chair.  "Demons exist.  I've personally banished one back to hell myself.  As a mage, I'm interested in being the best fighter I can be, and that means fighting anything, including supernatural evil.  I want to know how to combat it with every weapon I can find, and it seems that true faith is one approach to doing so.  What do you know of fighting evil, sir?  I get the whole resist evil, and it shall flee idea, but that seems an oversimplification."

"You are interested... in evil."  The bishop cuts across Judoc's words, the corners of his mouth flickering into a smile as his eyes stare down Judoc like a smoldering coal.

"You are fascinated by it, you seek it at every turn."  The bishop turns his body square, his shoulders facing Judoc as his eyes continue to stare hotly in Judoc's face.

"Not a week ago you were sleuthing about my church, slavering over the body of our fallen priest as you sought to convince that his tragic death was murder though it was not possible!"  Even the man's jaw is taught, a thick vein protrudes across his forehead as his fist clenches by his hip.

"Now, finding no evidence to support your wild claim, you use my fallen priests personal effects to slander this parish!  Suggesting that the parishioners are vessels of demons and worshippers of the like!  You wish not to combat true evil, but to find it in even the most mundane of settings and cast yourself the hero against your imaginary foe!"  The bishop's face shines with self righteous fury, his eyes set upon Judoc as his fists tighten.

"You say you seek to hear what I know of battling evil?"  The man steps forward to within feet of Judoc, his face flickering in and out of smiling hysteria.  "I know that it must be combatted at every turn, and that for each head that you cut from the beast, two more shall appear, more sinister and devious than the last.  So I say to you Judoc, take your obsession with evil away from this cathedral, cease your chase of demons or I assure you, you will find them, but it will be in your own actions and the mar of your own soul."

OOC:  Needless to say, the bishop is not happy with you right now.  Though the last two sentences read like a sermon, they are spoken more like an ultimatum and the bishop's body language makes him seem like he is on the border of taking physical action against you.  His whole persona is feverish and crazed and he seems to be deeply invested in each word he speaks, putting particular emphasis on getting out of the cathedral.

Several thoughts shoot through Judoc's head simultaneously.  First, the Bishop is smart, dangerous even.  He knows quite a lot.  How has he learned so much?  Marcus?  It has to be.  Either that, or the Bishop really is possessed by a demon.  Second, this bishop killed Father Thomas, Judoc is convinced of it, and if the madman killed one of his own priests, he won't hesitate to kill a student, either.  Either he possesses the heart of a devil or he's insane.  Either option is deadly.  And third, Judoc is about to lose control of his bowels in fear.  His normal backbone of steel has has been transmuted into jelly at the bishop's ferocity.  The only thing Judoc wants to do right now is to get the hell out of the cathedral.

At Abrams' approach, Judoc takes a step back.  His heart is pounding.  Could he be wrong?  All of the evidence he's uncovered - could it mean nothing?  It's all circumstantial, and the only other man who seemed to know anything about the possibility of someone being possessed here is the dead priest.  Judoc is almost certain the Bishop had a hand in the priest's death, but he has nothing conclusive.  Should he use the spell stone?  But what would that prove?  A Get behind me, Satan would have all the authority of a leaf slapping in the wind.  If only he had some kind of spell that could detect demonic possession!  At least he would know then whether or not he's dealing with humans or fiends.

God forgive him, he doesn't want to run away, but to stay is suicide.  And then he horrifies himself by blurting out, "Father Thomas's face looked like he drowned!  Or was stung by a thousand wasps!  He was killed, sir!  I'm leaving, but surely you must care about justice for your fallen priest!"

OOC:  Attempt to leave the office and cathedral.  If it looks like some demon is going to come out and grab Judoc, use the spell stone to buy some time to escape.
This message was last edited by the player at 11:04, Sat 18 Nov 2017.

Judoc's mouth is traveling at speeds that his fear cannot keep up with.  Though he is repulsed by the bishop's progress and he yearns to flee, he never the less spits retorts as he turns to run.  Judoc only barely makes out the bulging eyes of the bishop and the face of personified anger.  But that image is gone in a moment.  Judoc turns and sprints through the open doorway, thankful that at least that one barrier to his escape had not been set.

"Noooo!"  Abram's cry pierces the air around him as Judoc breaks the plane of the doorway.  Judoc grips the stone in his pocket, so tense that even a flinch of a threat might cause him to squeeze the thing into nothingness.  Though Judoc expects whole legions of the underworld to meet him, the room beyond is empty save for Marcus whose expression seems absolutely scandalized.

Judoc pays the other no mind, his chest heaving as his legs run at full tilt towards the nearest escape into the daylight.  "Judoc!"  The bishop calls after him.  "Seeking evil begets evil in your own heart!  You are deceived!  Agggh!"

The cry fades into nothingness as Judoc forces his way through a doorway and out into the open air of the daylight without.

OOC:  It is 0930 on the 20th of December.  It doesn't seem like you are in any imminent threat of demonic attack and neither the bishop nor Marcus chased you out of the Cathedral that you could tell.  If you decide to flee, then let me know where you plan on heading from here.  If you want to hang around here than give me a modifier that will affect both your perception roll to get information as well as the perception roll of the people around the cathedral to find you.

Judoc tears out of the bishop's office like a bat out of hell.  He doesn't stop until he clears the cathedral's gates, and then he skids to a stop and turns to look back.  His face flushes with shame and anger.  He's certainly made an ass of himself.  He had been so sure that his deductions were correct and that the bishop had been possessed by evil.  What a fool Judoc had been!  What a waste of his talents!  He is meant for more than piecing together conspiracy theories about demonic possession and shadowy murder cabals.   How would any of this earn him a commission in the legions, or even a place in the Templars?  You took your eyes off the prize, he thinks bitterly.  All that investigating, for nothing!  He doesn't care about the faculty's reactions when they hear what he's been up to, but from his position, he finds it hard to see any benefit to himself.

Oh, it had seemed so convincing to him as he had assembled the various bits of information into a coherent whole.  Father Thomas's sermon, his puzzling death, the curious medallion, the enigmatic journal entries, the borrowed library book.  Judoc knows that demons are real.  He's seen one up close, seen it summoned to Yrth and banished back to hell.  Why would such a creature want to kill Thomas?  Who else would want the priest dead?

Ultimately, Judoc has no motive, no means of death, no suspect.  His investigation has officially reached a dead end.  He looks back at the cathedral.  Dare he show his face again there?  He scowls.  Yes, he has made some rather harebrained blunders, but he'll be damned if he'll let them keep him from returning.  Oh, he'll be back.  This very Sunday, too.  The bishop would not dare keep a committed believer from the blessings of fellowship.  Too, there is still R.  Judoc holds out hope that he can still find the young man and speak with him.

Why had the bishop been so quick to agree to see Judoc?  At first, Judoc had expected some sinister intent, perhaps the bishop thinking he had an opportunity to somehow seduce the student.  The thought repulses Judoc, but the priest had been so nauseatingly pleased to see him, especially given Judoc's irritating investigation.  Had Abram agreed to the meeting simply to tell the young man off, or has there been a darker intention?  Judoc finds himself unsure.

He keeps watching the cathedral, half expecting the bishop to come flying out of a window and leave for a witches' black mass.  Now that would be a tale worth telling.  Judoc presses against a wall and tries to see what he can see.

Judoc curses himself as he breaks out into the open air of the morning.  There were no legions of hell, no thunderclouds swirling around the cathedral, and despite his most fervent imaginations, no witches or mages on broomstick bursting from the cathedral walls.

Though his first suspicions are shattered, Judoc realizes none the less that he has flaunted a bishops authority in front of his face and that perhaps he should not linger over long, at least in plain sight.  Judoc continues his pace, for a few dozen yards before he finds a ditch with some shrub cover to drop into and try and view the scene that he has left.

It takes only a few moments of heavy breathing before Judoc's patience is rewarded with a buzz of activity.  Judoc is almost certain that he recognizes the first person that leaves a Marcus.

"JESSUP!"  Several other words follow as the man runs screaming from the front doors of the church but the distance and hysteria blurs their meaning as Marcus turns and sprints towards a side building.  In only another few moments, the man has disappeared again into another building and for several moments, things seem quiet.

Still, Judoc knows that such an outburst will not be the end of the reaction so he stays and waits, long enough that he thinks that he might be wrong after all... but in another moment two large doors open in the side building and a carriage with two horses tethered makes quick work to the front of the cathedral.  Though the view is partially blocked, Judoc is sure that he sees the purple shirt and white cuffs of the bishop burst from the front door and enter, before the vehicle begins moving again at a hasty clip.

As Judoc crouches in the ditch, waiting to see if something happens, he considers the chain of events that has led to this current predicament.  He had known going in that the bishop wouldn't take kindly to his uncovering what really happened to Father Thomas.  Even now, he cannot buy the idea that Thomas died a natural death, not with that ghastly face that tumbled out of the confessional booth.  No demon had materialized to halt Judoc's flight, so the demon must possess R.  A bishop's soul would be a sweet prize, but Abrams must be obsessed with his diocese's reputation, and anything that tarnishes that reputation have to be covered up and disposed of, such as stories of demon possession or priests who don't fall in line.  Judoc pieces together must have happened.  Thomas was counseling R., and R. was becoming increasingly unhinged.  Perhaps it was a demon, this Agares, and perhaps the boy merely suffers from some disease of the brain.  Abrams becomes obsessed with banishing the demon.  He visits the Templars, he talks to Riesalter, he checks out the books from the library.  He fashions the Devil's Trap as protection.  He delivers a sermon denouncing evil.  This much is clear, but what happened next? 

Scenario A - the demon gets wind that Thomas is wise to him and decides to take matters into his own hands.  R. is present at confession, and Agares takes the opportunity to kill Thomas with magic.  Then, he casts Invisibility and gets the hell out of there.  Why?  To keep his nice, warm, human host before Thomas figures out how to exorcise him.  Who is R.?

Scenario B - Abrams finds out about Thomas's suspicions and realizes even the whiff of demon activity will torpedo his shot at becoming archbishop.  He attempts to discourage Thomas from pursuing this further.  Thomas rejects Abrams' entreaty and delivers a sermon about evil.  Abrams has someone silence Thomas permanently.  Perhaps a skilled mage from the College?  Someone like Judoc, but with fewer scruples?

He sees a few holes in this theory, however.  He's already seen that Graves is more than willing to send assassins to kill criminals, but to murder a priest?  That seems a bridge too far, even for Graves.  Also, sending a possible Templar assassin right at the end of mass is problematic.  Too many potential witnesses, including Judoc and the other students from the College.  And Abrams hadn't really been paying attention during the sermon.  If he had orchestrated such a dark deed, wouldn't he have been keenly focused during the entire service?  The psychology just doesn't fit.

All this Judoc contemplates as he lies in the ditch, along with what he's going to say to Deacon Samuel when Judoc tells him about dropping the case, when Judoc's patience is rewarded.  Ah, Marcus.  And minutes later, a carriage, and a person who must be the bishop.  The carriage speeds north, no doubt heading to the Templar college.  Either Graves is part of the plot, or the bishop is terrified that Judoc will uncover the truth.  Either way, most suspicious.

Rising from the ditch, Judoc begins muttering a few words of incantation.  He must see where the bishop is going.  This may be just the break he needs to solve this mystery.

OOC:  Cast Flight.  Follow the coach, but try to stay low and out of sight.

Judoc watches for a moment as the carriage departs from the cathedral.  The horses pulling it are swift, but he has no doubt that with a little help from his magic he will be able to close the distance and he does not desire to be close enough to be seen following along.  When enough separation has developed, Judoc manipulates the mana around him, willing his body off the ground and sending it hurtling forward through the air at speeds that would rival a surging steed.

Wind blasts against Judoc's face and he smiles devilishly.  For though the magic itself if fatiguing, the matter of flying caused him no effort whatsoever.

Several minutes pass before Judoc's confidence begins to waver.  Certainly he has kept pace with the carriage, which has continued unwaveringly along the path to the college.  However, the distance to travel was somewhat more than Judoc had expected.  He had made this trek several times in the past few days and the trip had become habit as much as anything else.  Though the walk had taken most of an hour each way he had assumed that at the pace of a horse-drawn carriage the trip would be significantly reduced.  Perhaps it was, but Judoc had drawn upon much of his internal strength and the strength of his powerstone and he was still not close to the college.  Knowing the route as well as he had in the recent days, he would guess he still had another third of the journey left or about a mile.

OOC:  Since much of the land is completely open between the Cathedral and the College you had to give the bishop a sizable head start to avoid likely detection.  You succeeded in your cast and have had your spell active for 6 minutes and have gone about 2 miles.  To get all the way to the College you would likely need to 'fly' for another three minutes.  Let me know if you want to start burning into further fatigue or HPs to keep following at this pace.  If you want to stop and walk, it will probably take you about 12 minutes from here.

His incantation complete, Judoc rises from the ground and begins flying forward faster than he can run.  Despite the whirlwind emotions, he can't help but grin as his magic propels him forward, whipping his hair about his face.  This is glorious!  Magic's ability to work wonders makes him positively giddy!

However, now is not the time to revel in magical flight.  Judoc must get to the castle as quickly as he can without being seen by the bishop, but even as he flies ahead, he eventually realizes that he will not have enough juice to make it all the way.

Frowning in disappointment, he looks for a place to land ahead and allows the spell to dissipate naturally.  Well, apparently he won't be there in time to eavesdrop on the bishop and Graves' conversation.  What would they say?  Exactly how pissed off is Graves going to be with this episode following so closely on the heels of that break-in?  Judoc shrugs it off.  He'll think of something to smooth things over. He knows he's walking a tight line here with his recent actions, but he's smart enough to be able to navigate these uncertain currents.

OOC:  Let the spell end naturally.  Land and continue to the castle on foot at a walking pace.

Disappointed that his magic is not lasting but not dwelling on the misfortune overlong, Judoc simply lets himself drift to the path and begins the rest of the trek on foot.  As he expects, the carriage slowly drifts away and out of sight.  Judoc wonders how much time the bishop and the Baron will have alone together and how his future may be affected.  The more he dwells on the matter, the faster his feet move one in front of the other and the lengthier his strides become.

What seems like an eternity later, Judoc watches as the towers of the college battlements materialize in the distance and crawl slowly upward from the hilltops.  He quickens his pace and soon he recognizes the form of the carriage, sitting idly just off from the main entrance.

Something else catches Judoc's eye as well, a single form standing just in the entryway.  At first, Judoc is sure it is the bishop and he scurries off the path to keep himself from being highlighted.  However, as he takes a second look Judoc recognizes the close cropped white beard and the favored blue-trimmed robes of Brother Loke.  The figure remains there for a moment and then retreats within the doorway.

OOC:  Give me your big picture intentions for what you want to do here.  You'd guess that the bishop has about a 10 minute head start on you, give or take.  You can walk straight to the provost's office if you wish to try and explain your case, or if you wish to take a more stealthy approach that is available too.  In the second case, pick a modifier to your stealth roll for the avenue of approach you take into the castle - the better the modifier the longer your route is going to be (i.e. walking around the outside of the castle to use a side door).  Otherwise, if you aren't planning in heading to the provost's office, let me know where you want to go (your room, Loke's office, Baron Raisalter's offices, etc.) and whether or not you want to take a stealthy approach as above.

As Judoc walks quickly to the College, he wonders how this recent development will impact him.  He doubts that the College was directly involved in the priest's death, and he finds the possibility that the bishop contracted Baron Graves to supply an assassin remote.  Abrams is a man who values his position above all else, and Judoc doubts that the priest would risk his standing in such a way.  That Abrams desires a close relationship with Graves seems evident from the bishop's many trips to the College.  Since the professors rarely attend mass in the cathedral, Judoc doubts that the provost sees Abrams in quite the same way, probably more as a tool that he can employ when needed.

He imagines the conversation between Abrams and Graves.

"Your student is poking his nose around where it doesn't belong!  I demand that you censure him!"

"I see.  Judoc's been asking questions, hm?  Well, I'll bring him to heel, but in return . . ."  That this conversation might negatively impact his future seems terribly unlikely.

Finally, after what seems an eternity, Judoc finally reaches the College and then stops short in surprise when he thinks he sees the bishop.  But no, stranger still - Loke lurking about.  Quite odd.  What had he seen?

Judoc looks in the direction of the provost's office.  Going there right now seems rather a poor decision, but perhaps Loke had seen something worth mentioning.  But would he say anything to Judoc about it?  Of all the professors, only Loke seems outwardly hostile to Judoc.  Although the young mage has a healthy respect for Graves' ability and influence, Judoc at least knows where he stands with the provost.   Loke, on the other hand, seems an actual Mephistopheles.

But what had Loke seen?  What might he say about this situation?  Why had he been waiting at the gate?  In spite of the repulsion Judoc feels for the man, curiosity eats at him, and he decides to follow Loke.

OOC:  Let's approach cautiously, with a +1 to Stealth.  See if Judoc can follow Loke.

Judoc waits in hiding for a few more moments, allowing some time to elapse for Loke to lose interest and head back to wherever it was the man passed his days.  But, Judoc thought and he maneuvered he way out of his hiding spot and toward the front doors, not enough time for Judoc to lose his trail entirely.  Judoc creeps to the front step, darting a glance through the windows before he nudges himself within the doorway and waits a moment for his eyes to adjust to the relative darkness.

"Ahh."  Judoc cringes internally as Loke's voice pierces the darkness.  "The man of the hour.  I believe your presence is requested in the Provost's office."

Approaching from his right, from the direction of the research classrooms and more immediately, the Graves's offices, Loke has a smug grin about his face that stinks of self-congratulation.  "...And you absolutely reek of magic..."  Loke adds as if he can smell Judoc's spellwork from twenty minutes ago.  "What have you been doing?"

OOC:  You seem to be proving that you aren't much of a sneak.  Despite your precaution, you managed to be detected.  I don't want to assume too much, so if you want to run, you are more than welcome to try, but it is clear that Loke expects you to come with him to see the provost.

Quietly, Judoc creeps forward, curious to know why Loke is lurking about.  Though Judoc could give shadows lessons as he stealthily approaches the College's entrance, Brother Loke, arrogant as always, somehow knows that he is present.

Gritting his teeth, Judoc nods at the professor's words.  What's the worst that can happen?  Graves tells him off and forbids him to investigate any further?  Judoc has already decided to do precisely that.  Father Thomas had been killed, he is certain of it, but the bishop has made it plain that Judoc is no longer welcome at the cathedral, and the mage has other things to focus on, like learning a faster spell than Flight.

"I'd better go see the provost, then," he says, attempting to be respectful but with an edge in his voice.  "And I was practicing my flying," he says, somewhat grudgingly.  How could Loke tell he had been casting?  Very curious indeed.

OOC:  Judoc will head for the provost's office (again).  He won't wait to be led there by Loke.

Judoc walks quickly towards Grave's office, seeking to avoid Loke's influence but the professor falls in lockstep with him.  "Of course."  Loke responds with a chuckle to the explanation, as if he is not entirely convinced of Judoc's veracity.  Judoc does not appreciate the company but he does nothing to change the matter, with the thought that anything he can do at this point to avoid further admonishment was probably in his best interest.

"He is in with the bishop."  Hilath says without even looking up from his scroll when the pair walk in.

"Yes."  Loke responds with his normal smugness.  "Talking about this one I fear.  I believe his presence may make the matter simpler."

As Hilath looks up with an appraising glance, Judoc can just hear the raised decibels of the conversation within the office.  "Fine."  Hilath concedes finally.  "It's on your head."

Loke gives the man a twitch of a smile before pushing beyond into the inner doorway dragging Judoc in tow.

"He is going to ruin me!"  Abrams complaint is on the verge of a whine as the doorway swings open and both men turn their heads to Loke and Judoc.

"What?"  Baron Graves spits.  The word is as much of an accusation as a question, but as he recognizes Brother Loke and Judoc his face shifts rather markedly from anger to exasperation.

"Yes yes yes!"  Abrams leans forwards from his sprawled position on his chair, his eyes digging into Judoc like spears.  "And here he is!  The devil crazed boy!  The murder seeker!  He seeks to topple me and uproot the diocese!"

"Thank you."  Graves says when he can get a word in edgewise, though he sounds more exhausted than thankful.  "You may go now Loke."

Loke does not immediately move, but several moments pass in silence.  "Your lordship, I had thought..."

But Graves cuts off the professor just as he gets started.  "That is all."  The Baron stares at the professor intently and there is no mistaking the finality of his words.

"Yes your lordship."  It does not take watching Loke's reaction to recognize the icy tone of his voice.  Never the less, the elder teacher turns and walks from the office.

"Judoc, close the door."  The baron asks, a speck of patience returned to his voice.

"Yes!"  Abrams adds with enthusiasm.  "Let us see what we shall do with this defamer!  Perhaps expulsion, perhaps I shall advise to the Curia for excommunication!"

"You shall do no such thing."  Graves retorts back immediately.  "Judoc and I have had our misunderstandings in the past, but I assure you he has no intent to defame you, do you Judoc?"  Graves shifts his glance back to young man, waiting for answer.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:18, Thu 30 Nov 2017.

Judoc takes in the scene in an instant - the bishop raving, the provost barely tolerating.  Just as Judoc has thought, Abrams was here to complain about the student, and Graves just wanted Abrams to shut up.  The young mage quickly obeys and shuts the office door, then stands, hands clasped in front of him, waiting.  It was ludicrous to think that the bishop could have been possessed by a demon.  Here is a man who is solely concerned with his own reputation.  Abrams wants nothing more than to rise as high as he can in the church hierarchy.  Judoc can empathize.  He, too, wishes to make a name for himself, either on the field of battle as a Megalan battle mage, or, he is surprised to consider, as a Templar himself.  If he is to follow the latter path, then he needs to learn to navigate these political waters.  The first step he can take is to placate this bishop, which should be easy enough.  Appeal to the man's ego.  Make him feel secure.  Assure him that no ill will was intended.

At the provost's words, Judoc nods his head quickly.  "You are right, sir.  I have no wish to impugn anyone."  Except maybe Loke.  And maybe Marcus, too.  No, leave them, Judoc, he thinks.  Rise above such pettiness.

To the bishop he says, bowing, "Forgive me, your Eminence.  At times my imagination runs away with me.  It is true that I was investigating Father Thomas' death, but I found no hard evidence of any wrongdoing.  Please forgive me for the disruption my curiosity caused.  I won't trouble you or the cathedral again."  Would this be enough?  Perhaps not, but if Graves can demonstrate that he can rein in his student, perhaps Abrams will be satisfied.

Graves nods with Judoc's answer and turns his attention to Abrams.  "You see bishop?  He would have you a cardinal!  And looking after a man's death is no slight on you after all.  He was just one of your priests."

For Abram's part, he seems mollified after Judoc's first words.  "Well, I suppose it wouldn't be right to go after a Templar after all.  It's all Thomas's fault anyway, the man died in the confessional.  Practically during services!  The whole matter is horrid and anything that prolongs it only draws more attention."

"What difference does it make anyway, Abrams?"  Graves flips his hands palm upward in question.  "If Judoc finds nothing, you are vindicated, and if he finds foul play you become the bishop who found justice for his priest who was murdered!  You should be thanking and helping him rather than attempting to cut him off below the knees."

Abram's eyes begin twitching in their sockets for a moment as if trying to find fault with the statement.  "You think they would praise me if we caught such a culprit?"

"Undoubtedly."  Graves smiles lightly, for the first time in the whole engagement.

"Well."  The bishop glances between the baron and Judoc.

"I assure you Judoc is the man you want to take things through to their completion."  The Baron assures.  "You should be helping him."

"Just keep things quiet unless you know something has happened."  Abrams eyes Judoc, though most of the menace is gone from his countenance.

OOC:  Left things open for you here.  Let me know what your intentions are for your next line of investigation, or if you have none but don't take things too far on your own.

The conversation veers into territory Judoc does not expect.  Rather than being asked to halt his investigation, he is actually being encouraged to continue!  Conflicting thoughts flicker through his head - surprise, gratification, amusement.  Graves is adept at manipulating the bishop, who had just been advocating for Judoc's expulsion from the College and perhaps from the entire religion.  The young man feels a thrill of excitement at Abrams calling him a Templar, too.  Submerged is the sense of injustice Judoc had felt at being asked to kill that day on the Arena sands.  He had spared Thresher's life not out of a sense of moral outrage but because doing so had been the most expedient way to end the combat.

Yet Judoc is not fully committed to being a pawn used by others.  Graves has his own agenda, but as long as it does not conflict with Judoc's own desire for prestige and recognition, he is pleased to have the provost's support.

He ducks his head.  "I am sorry for not approaching you first, Bishop Abrams," he says.  "In truth, I was prepared to completely halt my investigations.  However, if I have your blessing, I will continue to explore this mystery."  Although Judoc is now sure that the bishop had  nothing to do with the murder and that breaking into the his study is  off the table, Judoc has not run out of leads, not yet.  Who is R.?  The young man is the key to everything.  Once Judoc has him, he'll have the whole case.  Every day that passes, the trail grows colder, but if Thomas has been murdered, Judoc will find the perpetrator and bring them to justice.

OOC:  Judoc will be very grateful to both Graves and Abrams.  The only remaining person to talk to is R..

"Yes, well I suppose oversights may happen at times."  Abrams concedes, removing his look from Judoc as he unruffles a wrinkle in his clothes.  "but see this as a lesson of keeping those in charge informed.  Certainly that will serve you in your future."

"Wonderful then,"  The baron stands, spreading his arms palm up.  "We're all settled then.  I'm glad I could be of service but I have many matters I must attend to."

Both Judoc and the Bishop stand, with Judoc leading the way to the door as he is closest.  Just outside, Loke still stands with his back towards the door, breaking off a conversation with Brother Moloran as the pair step from out from the inner offices.

Moloran perks up as the door opens, bending his head to look past Judoc.  "Your Lordship, do you have a moment?"

The fatigue in the Baron's voice is plain.  "Moloran, if this is not a matter of life and death, could it possibly wait?"

Moloran glances a moment at the bishop and then another at Judoc before answering.  "It's something I can't seem to take care of on my own...  It's rather urgent..."  The pause is brief before Moloran follows it up.  "It's about a student."

"Very well."  Baron Graves sighs from within his office.  Loke nods at Moloran and departs, with Judoc close behind him.

Judoc's mind boils as he leaves the office.  Though he felt as though he was all the while getting closer, cutting off avenues that were no longer sound but he was still stuck on the same point he had been at the very beginning.  Who was R.?  The only places he knew to look were Deacon Samuel, who had already cut off his advances, and Father Thomas's Diary, which it seemed that now Samuel held as well.  What avenue did could he possibly have besides these?

OOC:  Ok, it's now 1000 on the 20th of December.  The ball is back in your court.  Let me know where you want to go and what you want to do and I'll move forward to that point.  Otherwise, I'll fast forward to the next mentionable event.

The meeting had gone even better than Judoc could have hoped.  Not only had he gotten off scot-free, he had also secured official permission to continue his investigations.  He stands in the outer chamber for half a moment, collecting his thoughts, and then goes to find a place to rest and regain the energy he had expended on his Flight spell.

What avenues remain open to him?  The deacon had declined to reveal who R. might be.  Judoc could conceivably wait each Sunday to see if he could find out who R. might be.  Perhaps Malcombe would know.  If Samuel won't tell them, then perhaps the boy might.

OOC:  Judoc will return to his room to rest and reflect on the case and think about anything he might have overlooked.  Then, the next chance he gets, he'll return to talk to Malcombe and see if the boy knows who R. might be.

Exhausted from his brief excursion of the day, Judoc decides to recover his energy back in his dormitory and once there he is reminded of his mounting studies clamoring for his attention.  He was still a student in this school after all and passing his classes came before investigations.  He would have the entire next day tomorrow to devote to searching the city as he already knew that he would be attending church with the blessing of the bishop.

Judoc spends the hours of the afternoon devoured in his books, attends the school dinner, and retires early, hoping to get to the Cathedral early, perhaps to try a new round of peppering Samuel with questions... if he could only think of them.

But for the second time in as many nights, Judoc finds his sleep broken.

A nudge at his chest is repeated with additional vigor, Judoc coughs and stirs, his vision fogged for a moment but even as it clears the scene in front of him seems surreal.  It is Alevius Cleppo, crouched down with his face pressed near to Judoc.  "I have to show you something."  Alevius says simply, turning his head as he starts walking, his body crouched low, back out the dormitory door.

OOC:  It is 0200 on the 21st of December.  Make two rolls for me, one labeled HT and one labeled ???.  If you fail the HT roll you are at -1 DX and IQ for as many minutes as you fail the roll by due to grogginess (you do not suffer any fatigue penalties).
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:00, Mon 04 Dec 2017.

After spending the remainder of the day studying up on new spells and considering new combinations of spells, Judoc collapses in bed, worn out from the day's confrontations and studying.  He sleeps dreamlessly, blessedly free from exploding priests, until he is rudely awakened a couple of hours after midnight.

Groggy, he blinks stupidly around him as he wakes from his stupor.  "Wha-?  Who?" he manages, trying to focus on the face in front of him.  Alevius?  What the fuck?  "Get outta my face," he hisses softly, and as Alevius moves away, Judoc sits up sleepily.   He wants nothing more than to turn over and go back to sleep, but curiosity compels him to ease out of his sheets, rub his eyes, and climb out of bed to follow Alevius, although not before making sure the spell stone is safely tucked in a pocket.  "If this is a prank, I'm gonna kill you," he says quietly, adopting the same hunched over posture as he shadows the other student.

OOC:  No gear except for the spell stone.

Grumpy and lethargic, Judoc pulls himself out of bed and throws his shirt from the previous day over his head with the spell stone still bouncing happily in its pocket.  Reluctantly, he begins to follow Alevius though from the first he suspects that the young man may have less than pure intentions as the two are not friends.

Judoc walks swiftly to catch up, the now familiar dim blue light that radiates eerily through the corridor lighting the way down the hallway like St. Elmo's Fire.  Judoc reaches the end of the hallway now just behind Alevius who holds the heavy door into the front entrance open and he bemoans to himself that Alevius could not have waited until morning.  Not only would Judoc have had a full night's sleep but Judoc would not have to deal with this cursed half-light which almost glowed over Alevius's pale skin accentuating dark circles under his eyes and making the boy appear much gaunter than Judoc knew him to be.  Whatever his appearance in the light, Judoc could see the quick alertness of his eyes and the sharp and deliberate movements of his limbs.

"Quiet now."  Alevius whispers as he pushes out into the main entryway.

While Judoc throat tightens at first, thinking perhaps that the other is taking him on some expedition back to the provost's office, he breathes a sigh of relief as Alevius instead turns, taking a servant's hallway around towards more secluded portions of the castle.

The two make their way down a servants stairwell and Alevius glances about before pushing out into the corridors under the castle.  Judoc feels his skin wrinkle into goose pimples as his breath wafts out from his face in a momentary puff of reflected blue.

While the majority of the workings upstairs, both on the ground floor as well as the upper floor and the towers dealt with the students: providing them berthing, a place to eat, classrooms to train, and libraries and briefing rooms to study the lower floor of the castle was dedicated to the servants who made everything upstairs possible.  Though magic dominated above, the ability for it to happen at all came from a platoon of servants dedicated to cleaning, cooking, washing and repairing everything for the spaces above.  These invisible ghosts would wander through classes and dormitories unknown to the students as they were engaged elsewhere only to return later to find their beds made, their classrooms cleaned, their food prepared.  It was easy to forget these people were here at all and likely Judoc might not know at all if he hadn't... been here before.

Alevius stops before a solid doorway with iron keylock.  One that Judoc had adventured into only months ago.  Just beyond was a stone stairwell leading further down and on into a storage room where all sorts of foodstuffs and barreled drink resided.  All sorts to include a secret passage that lead to the underground.

Alevius is only stopped for a moment, glancing in both directions before he produces a thick iron key from his pocket.

OOC:  Consider yourself free from the affects of the grogginess.  Not sure if you would have said/done anything up to this point but I figured moving on was the more important point for the moment as being caught out of bed in or out of the servant's area would probably have led to similar punishments.

Following quietly behind the other student, Judoc can't help but wonder where Alevius was taking him.  His mind still fogged by sleep, Judoc stifles a yawn as pads along the deserted halls.  He at first suspects that the other young mage may be leading him back to the Provost's office, and after two brushes with Graves in as many days, Judoc is not keen on further trying the provost's patience even though the two have an understanding.

As he descends further within the castle, Judoc can't help but notice Alevius' fatigue-worn face.  Alevius has been doing this for some time, Judoc realizes.  What has he been up to during the wee hours of the night, and why had he decided to take Judoc into his confidences now?  Some secret, that's for sure.  Otherwise, why all this cloak and dagger business?  And for whatever reason, Alevius had decided to bring Judoc into this, likely against Cleppo's wishes.    Somehow, Judoc takes a smug satisfaction in this midnight sojourn.  Likely Alevius and whoever his cronies (probably Andros) are need of Judoc's help.

Odd that they're retracing the steps he and Eliot took back when they banished the demon.  And funny that Judoc is investigating possibly another demon.  Weird coincidence.  And Alevius has the sky, whereas Eliot needed a spell to enter.  How had Alevius secured the key to this door?  "Cleppo, you better have a hell of a good reason to drag me down here at this ungodly hour," he grumbles quietly.  And if this is some kind of hazing prank, Alevius is going to need some healing before this is over.

OOC:  Follow quietly.

Judoc rankles his brain for the meaning of this midnight excursion, the unlikely reality that Alevius would have the key to this door, and any deeper meaning behind Cleppo's fatigue.  It seemed one thing was certain, this was not the first night that Cleppo had been wandering the castle.

Almost exactly as he had remembered from the last time (though this time he didn't have to hide), Judoc descends the staircase into the low-ceilinged storage room, following the outside wall by the light of one of the blue stones pilfered from a wall sconce.  This time from a closer view he watches as Alevius pushes on a hidden lever, opening up the false wall that slides back and away with a mere push.

The two make their way down the short tunnel, to where the edge of the castle walls end, and the tunnel opens up into the cave.  Again, Judoc is struck by the stench of shit and piss that must collect or funnel through these caves from the castle above.

As Judoc presses his sleeve against his face, Alevius ushers them off the path.  "It's just ahead here."  Though the youth is no longer whispering, his voice still falls softly and no returns echo back from the cave walls.  The two make their way off the path, headed on a slow descent into the earth.  Again, slowly the noxious smell dies away, though this time it is replaced with the stench of decaying flesh, and the floor of the cavern gradually becomes slick with a thin film of moisture.

Up ahead, Judoc can barely make out the eroded carcass of the imp eaten away at places, its thick skin clinging to its form tightly as if its insides had been removed by spell-work with nothing replacing them.  However, Alevius pays the decaying mass no mind and instead makes his way over towards the small ledge.  Placing a hand on the edge, Alevius lowers himself down perhaps only three or four feet before he hits bottom.

Judoc crouches down to look ahead before he takes the leap below and he sees the blue light reflecting off a brownish-black sand on the ground below that seems to be wet and hard-packed.  Judoc glances ahead and just sees the flicker of a soft light off in the distance.

"Come."  Alevius urges as he continues his trek forward.

God, the stench of this place!  Judoc covers his nose in an effort to stave off most of the noxious smells down in the cave, but doing so fails to completely mask the odors.  When Alevius turns off the path, Judoc follows, suspicious of the other student but highly curious as to where all of this is going.

He notes with remembrance the corpse of the imp.  Odd how corporeal a supposed demon can be.  They reach the ledge that he and Elliot had stood over.  Then, Judoc had wanted to explore further.  He realizes now that further secrets are buried down here in the caves' depths, and he can't wait to see where they are going.

Scrabbling down, he looks around with interest and then follows Alevius further into the subterranean passage.

His eyes engorged like bloated ticks, Judoc follows on, letting Alevius lead the way as his curiosity sends his his gaze spasming in all directions while his sandals crunch softly in the hard-packed sand.  The soft light ahead melds with the bluish glow cast from the pair of students, making things difficult to see in any real detail.

Still Judoc walks on, a soft buzzing growing about his person like the hum of a thousand bees vibrating his very core.  Judoc can taste the magic here, a bittersweet tang on his palate like the extracts from vanilla.

Ahead of him, Alevius stops, his breath projected in front of him in a reflected blue mist.

"It's just ahead."  Alevius whispers, his footsteps stopping though he beckons Judoc onward.

The words reel Judoc back to the present, his attention refocused on himself and the scene ahead.  He can now make out the soft outline of a dark silhouette some twenty yards ahead.  Behind lies soft shapes of grey and reflected ripples of purple light.  Though Judoc's curiosity draws him onward his mind explodes with unanswered, furious questions.

What is happening here?  Why hadn't Judoc and Elliot found this place?  How had Cleppo?  What on Yrth is creating that light ahead?  Who else knows of this place? All these questions and more flit through Judoc's mind as he attempts to make sense of what he is seeing.  There is strong magic here, and he savors it. Could this be why the Templars founded their college here on the site of all this raw mana?  From his studies, Judoc knows that some areas of Yrth have much higher mana than normal, and others have  low mana, like Caithness.

Looking ahead, he tries to see more clearly what is in front of the light.  He continues ahead, almost hypnotized by the play of color.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:06, Thu 14 Dec 2017.

I am afraid that our eyes are bigger than our stomachs, and that we have more curiosity than understanding. We grasp at everything, but catch nothing except wind.
- Michel de Montaigne, The Complete Essays

Since he was a child, Judoc had sought out truth in the unknown.  Perhaps it was since Judoc had always been overlooked, his elder brother always praised for his strength and vigor.  Perhaps that had made Judoc value knowledge and wit rather than meager strength and martial skill.  It was often a slavering Judoc who would sit at the library, researching a fact or figure to show up his father or brother.  Judoc clung to gossip, thinking it would make him more knowledgeable and powerful.  Judoc often saw the answer as more important than the understanding... perhaps it was to his deficit.  Perhaps such was the case right now.

Judoc stepped forward boldly, his eyes focusing through the darkness on the shadow figure ahead of him.  His thirst was insatiable.  He had to know who that was and what was going on.  It is for several moments that Judoc is without pause but all at once a chain of events throw his eyes swirling about the room.

At first Judoc hears rather than sees the body of Alevius collapsing to the sand behind him as if the boy had been held from marionette strings that were suddenly cut.  His head twitching back to look, Judoc sees Alevius sprawled out in the darkened sands behind him even as a bright purple light flares the room into a near-daytime luster.  His eyes darting back out in front of him, Judoc sees the cloaked figure in front of him stir.  Beyond the figure, Judoc sees the squared edges of a wide grey altar, with two purple candles blazing with an intense fury.  Beyond that scene, Judoc can now make out soft waves of a blackened underground lake lapping at the darkened sands below him.

"Ahh..."  The voice sends involuntary chills through Judoc's spine, though he has spent most of a year and a half training himself not to fear it.  "Here he is Alevius...  Here is our devil crazed boy."  The head beneath the black robe turns, one foot shifting in the sands to accommodate the new positioning.  Judoc would swear the underground air seem to take on an entirely newfound chill though there was no breeze nor other change to explain the discomfort apart from the light that was refracting through the still white beard that turned ever closer toward Judoc.  "Our murder seeker."  The words seemed to have new meaning now that they were spoken not by Bishop Abrams but by Brother Loke.

"Uggghhh."  Alevius gasps softly from the sands behind him.

OOC:  Brother Loke is about 10 yards ahead of you.  Alevius Cleppo is now about 10 yards behind you and has collapsed to the sands.  Give me a normal 60 seconds of action unless you want to start combat.

So much is happening down here in these subterranean depths.  The stillness echoes in Judoc's ears, and the wet sand crunches under his feet.  Cleppo slips to the ground behind him, and vaguely Judoc remembers Baron Reisalter's description of a demon surrendering a possession.  Either that, or someone else had been in control of Alevius. The sudden light reveals a gray altar, purple candles, a cloaked figure.  A black mass?  A demon summoning?  Judoc's hand goes to his pocket, and he grasps the spell stone.  Too bad he had left his staff behind back in his room.  This could be it, the final showdown between the demon and the mage.  Raisalter had said not to engage the demon if Judoc came face to face with one, but how hard could it be to banish another demon?  He and Elliot had easily defeated the last one.  (Why had its insides been scooped out?  Was that its natural biology, or had someone recovered the thing's internal organs?)

And then, the voice of the person Judoc hates more than anyone else, more than Marcus, more than his father.  His tormentor, Loke, the man who had made Judoc feel like he was drowning like a fish on land.  Of course.  Judoc had suspected Loke when he had first saw how Father Thomas had died.  Had it been Loke?  An invisibility spell would have been all that Loke had needed to get away scot free.  Judoc has trained for this, studied the spells of destruction in order to wreak havoc on a battlefield.  He could deal with Loke despite the other man's greater learning.  Water beats fire, a small voice says in the back of his mind.

"Brother Loke," Judoc says, his voice hard.  "You killed the priest, didn't you?  Where's Agares?"

OOC:  Keep my distance.

Brother Loke steps forward from the altar, his mouth twitching at Judoc's words as the shadows soften across his features.  "Oh no, I'm afraid it was Alevius who killed the priest.  Loke says with mock concern.

"No!"  Alevius moans behind Judoc, reminding him that the other is still collapsed on the floor behind him.  Judoc shifts his direction slightly and backsteps farther, trying to keep his distance from the Templar ahead.

"Yes, it most certainly was."  Loke continues, and as he creeps closer to the light of the enchanted stone.  The old man seems fatigued himself, though his self satisfaction is spewed out all across his face.  "I'll admit I helped you along, cast a spell of my own making, though it was undoubtedly your lips that cast the spell..."  The old man pauses, refocusing his attention on Judoc.  "The interfering twit had it coming.  I'd spent months developing my connection with Alevius until I could control him without seeing him, without being in the room, from across the town.  Then the priest inserted himself and he pressed and prayed to his pathetic god... I felt his summoning at one point...  I could see his face, I saw his terror.  I knew at that point he could not be allowed to live."

Loke takes another step forward and Judoc finds himself retreating to abreast of Alevius who still lays in the sands, his breathing labored though he has pushed himself to his side.

"I should have known the damage I had caused to Alevius and discarded him then, but the boy's degeneration into nothingness has drawn attention.  He is not the tool he once was.  Moloran has already told the headmaster that the boy is unable to continue his studies, that he believes the boy has not slept truly in weeks, that he should be sent home for a semester or more.  I cannot afford for more investigation.

Loke stops his forward progress, some six yards off from Judoc and Alevius.  "Which is why your intrusion is so welcomed."  Loke smiles.  "For I could not kill off Alevius by himself without causing further scrutiny... but if I kill off both of you, your disappearances will be forever intermixed, the one contingent and informed by the other.  Did Judoc kill Alevius and flee?"  Loke smiles viciously, glaring at Alevius.  "Or did Judoc spurn Alevius's advances and the latter killed Judoc and himself in his misery?"

OOC:  Ok, the jig is officially up, and I'll put all the answers requested on the table.  You didn't figure out the mystery on your own and I didn't want to draw out the thread interminably with you exhausting all the possible storylines (Malcombe unfortunately only became an NPC because you asked about him and had no information about the case).  However, I think overall you did some pretty good investigating with only a few avenues of investigation that were untapped.  In payment for any and all questions answered I'm interested in your feedback on the thread.  Both questions and feedback can be OOC or private as makes the most sense to you.

Loke is now 6 yards away from you, although he has stopped his progress.  We didn't really go into detail earlier, but if you wish to have one of the blue enchanted light rocks from upstairs in a hand, you may declare so now.  Your spell stone is in your pocket, and I'll even say your powerstone is on your finger, though it is only partially charged.

You are not officially in combat now, so you may continue the IC conversation (or take any other action) if you wish.

Fly, you fool! Judoc thinks as the priest's murderer confesses.  Oh, yes, Loke claims that Alevius did the deed, but the Templar is as culpable as if he had cast the spell himself.  "Alevius used the same spell you cast on me that day, didn't he?" Judoc says warily.  He had been training in part to one day triumph over Loke.  Fire versus water.  Judoc should have picked up some Lightning or Plant spells to round out his repertoire.  He had suspected Loke from the first, but no witnesses had placed him at the church on Sunday.  The spell, drowning in air, is a speciality of Loke.  The Templar had left his fingerprints all over the crime scene.

Alevius' involvement surprises Judoc, however.  So R. was actually A.  Of course Thomas wouldn't have been so indiscreet as to put the person's actual initials in his diary.  And all this time, Judoc had been thinking the boy was from the town, when in reality Thomas had been referring to a student from the College.  It is as though the boy's mind has been taken from him.  The thought chills Judoc.  Loke has worked a grievous ill on Cleppo, but Judoc isn't surprised in the least.  Loke had revealed himself to be a petty, sadistic man from the first day.  Had he also been attempting to kill Graves?  If so, why?

"So Alevius cast Invisible on himself to escape the murder in the cathedral?  And your spell allows you to see through his eyes as well?"  He warily keeps his distance from Loke.  The Templar is tired now.  Perhaps Judoc can take him out with a few Flame Jets.  "Where you trying to kill the provost as well?  Did you have Alevius attack Baron Graves' room those two times?  To what purpose?"

OOC:  Keep him talking as long as Judoc can.  Yes, if he can have his ring and one of the blue stones, he'll take them.

Though Judoc's mind screams at him to flee he yet stands firm, drunken with the sudden flood of free information he had been seeking for a week.  He finds himself rooted, watching Loke as the professor's face takes on a cast of blue with another step farther into the light.  The upward shadows catch his face, making the whole of his upper face and eyes seem like recessed black holes.

"Yes, it was the same, I'm glad you remember."  Loke pauses for a moment, his fists clenching and releasing as the air seems to shimmer vibrations of magic.

Alevius whimpers beside Judoc, pushing himself back in the sands as he pushes himself to a single elbow.

"Oh no,"  Loke answers, his eyes focusing again on Alevius.  "He teleported to outside the church...  Though he wouldn't remember.  My spell gives me complete control of him.  He has been my unknowing puppet..."

Loke looks back to Judoc as he asks his final question.

"No, I have much bigger goals for the provost.  His body would serve our purposes perfectly but the man has proven to be much more of a challenge than I anticipated.  His damn necklace has foiled my attempts to break his will through normal means and my efforts to take it have come to naught.  Grobbik proved to be less than useless, telling the man of his goals and no doubt putting him on edge.  Alevius too has been unsuccessful, for the first time the provost was gone and I lost my temper...  When Alevius went back the provost had trapped his door with a concussion spell that immediately knocked the boy unconscious and broke my control over him."

Loke looks up as a smile breaks on his lips, the fivers of his body and clothing wavering as if he were a trick of light and mirrors that had been suddenly cut by smoke.

"Ah."  Loke murmurs.  "The spell is ending."

The form of the professor shimmers into nothingness, the whole of the room dropped into black as he seems to drain the whole room of light.  Judoc feels and hears a pop like a burst of explosion from a fire as Alevius screams out from beside him.

The light returns to the room in a swift wave, revealing something monstrous and bestial.  Some ten feet tall it seems to have the torso of a man with the long flowing, bleached white hair.  It's face seems to be that of a feral cat.  Both arms, if they can be called that, end in wicked claws and the thing has the single-toed hooves of a horse.

"Goodbye Judoc."  The thing's mouth does not move as it begins it's motion forward with a single massive step...

Demon!

OOC:  Two rounds of combat please.  I'll stop you if anything happens that might change your plan.  It is 5 yards away, and you have your ring (with a charge of 2) and a magic light stone in your left hand and nothing in your right.

If the description wasn't enough (it never is) the demon looks to be massively strong and is somewhere around the size of a small giant.  Aside from his enormous claws he doesn't look to have any other weapons, though it is readily apparent by now that he knows quite a lot of magic.

Best of luck - Assume no light penalty due to your stone.  If you have any other questions feel free to ask.

The revelations tumbling out of Loke's mouth make Judoc giddy with excitement.  The Templar is spilling all the details of his scheme and how he has manipulated both Clevius and, surprisingly, Grobbik.  Loke has even plotted against Graves himself and planned to take the man's body probably the same way he had commandeered Alevius'.  Our purposes, eh?  Either Loke is working with others, or he's employing the royal we grandiosely.  Judoc has to admit grudging respect for his tormentor.  Loke has played cunningly, but now, all his schemes will come tumbling down once Judoc subdues him and enables Alevius to testify against the professor.

But something seems wrong with Loke, almost as if the professor isn't quite himself.  Something about his eyes, and now, his image is shifting, almost melting.  Judoc gapes with astonishment and, for the first time, alarm.  Holy shit, there really is a demon!  Mustering up all the bravado he can summon, Judoc says, half-choking, "Agares.  Finally, you reveal yourself."

Hand trembling, Judoc grasps the spell stone in his pocket and concentrates.  Taking on Loke is one thing, but a fucking demon?   This situation just escalated from dangerous to hell-raising.  About the only way this could be more terrifying is if he had to fight a fucking demon dog.

Just beside Judoc, Alevius looks like he's down for the count.  If Judoc leaves him, Agares will definitely kill the other student and leave no one to corroborate Judoc's story.  Alevius is a punk bastard and one of Judoc's least favorite people, but Judoc the Merciful can't abandon another student to die.

OOC:  Grab the spell stone.  Concentrate.  Use it to turn this demon if he can.

Judoc's trembling hand reaches into his pocket, taking the time he knows he needs to concentrate.  The process is excruciating, The demon makes quick work of the few paces, drawing back a single massive claw for a strike that would surely cleave Judoc in two.  Alevius's breath seems to have failed him as he stares blankly at the scene unfolding.  Just as the thing is about to strike, Judoc crushes the small stone in his hand, letting forth the energy of the spell.

At first it seems that nothing happens and Judoc prepares himself for the worst, but the fatal strike is not sent forth.  Instead, Judoc realizes that where once the demon stood solid and real now two of the monster overlap as if Judoc had gone suddenly cross-eyed.  The twin forms stand motionless in space, then slowly begin to converge back together.

Judoc does not need more than a moment to prepare himself to flee.  His body shaking and words spilling over themselves, ne nevertheless manages to cast twice the spell of flight, once each on himself and Alevius.  The magic springs from his fingers eagerly, it seems less effort than normal, though sweat trickles from his forehead from the exertion all the same.  Taking not a moment to waste, Judoc grabs Alevius by the wrist and begins moving them both at a breakneck speed from the scene of death and the suspended demon lord.

"Agh!"  Alevius shrieks as the two clear the chest-high bluff of stone that leads back up into the cave.  "Oh God, oh God, oh God!"

Judoc cannot blame Alevius for his fear.  At his swift pace of flight and with only the blue stone's light to guide him, Judoc's vision can discern the floor and obstacles only fractions of a second away.  Judoc doubts that if there were something that popped out in front of him he would have enough time to brace himself for impact let alone attempt to avoid it.  Still, faced with the options of certain death behind him and possible serious injury ahead, Judoc knew where he would place his bets.

Apart from that problem, it takes Judoc only moments to realize he is not entirely sure where he is going apart from up.  The cavern expands in all directions, sloping gently up ahead though Judoc was twisted and turned around enough to not be sure exactly which way he had come from.  The last time he had been here Elliot had led the way from the cavern, his steps sure and unfaltering as if led by a beacon...  A beacon which is hopelessly beyond Judoc's abilities or grasp.

But as he mulls over his dilemmas, Judoc becomes aware that his first and greatest is not entirely behind him.  "NOOOO!  The cavern shakes around him as the voice of the demon reverberates across all surfaces.  Judoc glances back, though the darkness seems to extend back forever.

Ahead, it is only the reek of the sewers that greets Judoc.

OOC:  Congratulations on a binge of successful rolling.  I'm assuming your destination is back up to the castle, but the scenery is so similar here that you'll need to make a navigation (underground) roll to get back to where you are going.  The roll defaults to IQ-5.  Success will direct you back to the tunnel that leads to the secret doorway and your margin of failure will dictate how wide you swing from your mark.  Secondly, before you get there you are going to need to renew your flight spell (or not).  It does not seem like the demon is following you, though you have no means to prove it.

As a follow on remark, as an aviator I think I've been remarkably generous in allowing you to travel 10 yards per second in near complete darkness and in tight confines.  However, I thought it a better course of action to put all of this in one post than to break it up into several to force you to roll vs. aerobatics or slow down.

Every hair is standing up on the nape of Judoc's neck and the backs of his arms.   During this entire investigation, his theories about Thomas' murder have bounced back and forth from a human source of evil to an infernal one, and now, face to face with this supernatural threat, Judoc wonders if he has finally gone up against something that he is not ready to face.  But no, this is not the end for the young mage, for he has Raisalter's spell stone in his pocket.  As he concentrates, the monster comes closer and closer, but then, just as Judoc had planned, the demon is frozen in place, curiously almost oscillating.  "Let's get the fuck out of here, Alevius!" he manages to blurt out, and casts his spells to give both of them wings.  The spells go off easily, seemingly confirming his suspicion that this area has more mana than normal.

The two zoom back through the tunnels, narrowly avoiding stalactites and stalagmites lit only by the glowing blue stone Judoc carries on their voyage back to the surface.  After a minute, Judoc allows the Flight spells to end normally.  Surely he has put enough room between themselves and Agares.  But which way now?  From the blackness, he hears the demon's howl.  If the stakes were less dire, Judoc would permit himself a smirk, but he knows that he and Cleppo are not out of the fire yet.

"Can you walk, Alevius?" he asks quietly, looking around the underground cavern.  He is sure he knows the way, since this is the second time he's been down this way.  The gut-retching smell of the sewers points toward the exit and the stairway up to the castle proper.

"Come on, we need to hurry."  Still holding onto Alevius, Judoc prepares to cast another spell.

OOC:  If Alevius seems unable to walk on his own, cast Levitation on him.  If Alevius can run, cast Haste on both of them to give them each +1 Move.  Then, run toward the smell of the sewers.

Onward the two students fly for heart-wrenching moments of fear, both for their pursuer behind and for the chance of striking themselves dead upon the rocks ahead.  But when no further torment comes, Judoc ends his spell naturally allowing the two students to land lightly on their feet then pauses for a moment to assess their situation.

"I can walk."  Alevius responds.  "Though I fear not quickly, I hadn't known Loke was..."  But whatever Alevius had been about to say, the words choke violently in his mouth as his body shudders, his face hardens, his eyes widen, and his hand jerks rapidly in the process of spellwork.

"Die."  Alevius spits as crackling energy begins to spark between his fingers.

OOC:  You didn't have enough time to appraise the situation and cast any further spells so no further fatigue was lost.  Roll vs. IQ to avoid a mental stun at Alevius's swift change.  You are standing one yard apart from each other.  There isn't any real terrain of note apart from loose gravel on top of the earth floor.  You have gotten to where the ground is mostly dry, however it is still uneven.  I can't remember off the top of my head whether or not you can step and concentrate at the same time, but if it is allowed then you must roll vs. will to avoid spoiling your spell.

"Fight him, Alevius!" Judoc roars as the demon takes possession of Cleppo once more.  Judoc had hoped it would not come to this.  He knows Alevius is no longer in control, but the other student must be dealt with now.

Faced with the possibility of running or fighting, the mage chooses the latter as he begins wriggling his fingers to summon a jet of flame.  A proper mage duel, this.  A pity no one is here to witness Judoc's inevitable triumph beside the two combatants.

OOC:  I was afraid of this.  Begin casting Flame Jet, the 1D version.  Every turn, use it to Attack Alevius.

Though Judoc does not relish the thought of putting Alevius down, he thinks less of Alevius as a demon possessed upstart attempting to take his life.  Far better would be the prospect of Allevius coming to his senses on his own, however it does not seem that outcome is to be.  Judoc is so surprised by the switch in Alevius's demeanor that he only barely has the time to cast his own defenses.  Alevius throws his hands forward, straight for Judoc's chest and lightening arcs in spectacular display of light at a range that could barley miss if Alevius had tried.  Only by the power of Judoc's magic does the bolt stray wide, breaking off to the right and high, illuminating the entirety of the cavern for the briefest of moments as Judoc can see the slowly sloping grade descending ahead, though as it darkens into nothingness the explosive bolt of light ruins Judoc's night vision entirely.

It is with some luck that Judoc has chosen his next spell, a sword of flame that spouts from his hand, which provides not only a weapon to strike with, but also another source of light to aide the nothingness of the blue stone.  Judoc strikes out high, hitting Alevius high across the chest with a blow that sears his garments in an instant but Alevius rears back for his own attack.

Judoc stumbles backwards thinking first of spellwork, but he is not prepared for the physical attack of Allevius, and the other manages to glance a blow across Judoc's chest that brings Judoc's breath back in full.

Judoc lashes out again with his conjured weapon of fire, but this time only glances a blow across Alevius's shoulder.

His face bloodied and his eyes reddened by exertion, Alevius pauses for a moment, his eyes glaring intently at Judoc and his hands working aggressively to conjure additional magic.  Judoc does not pause, but strikes again with his saber of flame, slicing clean the garments and flesh at Alevius's hip.  Alevius's lips cease their movement as his eyes roll to the back of his head and Alevius Cleppo hits the ground of the cavern, unconscious.

His hand still spouting cascading flames, Judoc looks off into the distance, though he sees no further disturbances...

OOC:  I had to use a hero point to keep you from being mentally stunned on the first turn (and taking a 3d lightening bolt to the chest) but apart from that you fared remarkably well and dispatched your foe in only three seconds.  Alevius seems both seriously injured and grossly exhausted (though potentially still possessed).  You can't sense any additional dangers for the moment.  Due to high skill, you have not burned any additional fatigue.

Fire versus Lightning.  The purity of righteousness against the taint of supernatural evil.  Judoc and Alevius are locked in elemental combat, and as keen as Judoc is to face off in a true wizard battle, he knows that Alevius is not in control.  The lightning strike very nearly catches Judoc flatfooted, but he effortlessly conjures up an instantaneous barrier against the blast.  After a moment, Judoc's flame jet erupts, spilling its light out across the subterranean environment.

Cleppo seems incapable of shrugging off the effects of the demonic possession, so Judoc lashes out again and again with his conjured flame until Alevius falls.  Hoping that the other is merely knocked out, not killed, Judoc squats down to check Alevius's pulse, and then he straightens back up to consider his options.  Agares will be on his heels shortly, but Judoc does not want to abandon Cleppo to a likely death, as much as it would be easier for the young mage to escape on his own.  Too, he needs Alevius alive as a witness.

OOC:  Check Alevius' pulse.  Keep the Flame Jet burning for illumination.  Cast Levitation to lift Alevius and take full Move each second to head for the staircase.

There are several moments where Judoc does nothing...  Staring into the darkness beyond, into his unconscious foe below, searching with his ears into the silence but eventually it is the overwhelming stench of the sewers that causes him to cough and move on, first searching for pulse, which he finds surging normally in the student's neck.  A quick once over and Judoc is sure that Alevius will live, though the burn on his chest bubbles furiously through the charred holes in his garments.  The burn on his hip seems not quite so bad, and though Judoc had not struck him there, Alevius bleeds in thin rivulets from each nostril.

Not wanting to tempt fate, Judoc weaves his hands in a quick motion.  "Levitare!"  In response, the unmoving form lifts from the ground as Judoc feels the stabbing pain of draining mana from his own body.  Still, Judoc does not make anything of it and sets out towards the outer walls of the castle.

The walk seems longer than he remembers, made worse by the levitating form following close behind him and the seemingly constant renewal of his spell.  Onward to the tunnel, through the doorway into the castle, and up the stairwells leading to the storage room and the servants quarters and up to the grand entryway.  Though Judoc does not know at first where he is going, the more he moves the more apparent it becomes.  Though the provost was undoubtedly powerful, Judoc was not entirely sure the man was on his side... not to mention Alevius had already discovered the penalty of trying to sneak up on the provost during the night.  Instead, Judoc moves towards the instructor's corridors, looking for Raisalter's office.

Judoc is only partially aware of the toll he is paying against his body.  His head slowly smolders into a throbbing headache, and the soft patting of blood droplets against the floor is his first evidence of the nosebleed that begins to trickle to the back of his throat.

But eventually, Judoc finds himself at Baron Raisalter's door, exhausted, his face bloodied, and with a seeming corpse floating along behind him.  His fist balled up in anger, Judoc knocks as viciously as he can, sending the echoing ripples throughout the castle.

"What, who's there?"  The groggy voice sounds from within.

A few moments later, Raisalter, in his bedclothes shows at his doorway, his mouth agape after only a moment of looking at Judoc and Alevius behind him.  "Judoc!  What the hell are you doing at this hour!"

OOC:  You made it successfully to Raisalter's door without impediment.  Whatever you wish for the Baron to do, roll against fast talk.  Note your dwindling fatigue and HP due to your continuing spells.

"I found the demon, sir," Judoc says, exhausted from the late hour and weakened from the toll levitating Alevius had taken on his body.  "Sorry about the hour," he continues.  "It was Loke, or had replaced him.  Cleppo's still under the demon's control, or at least he was a few minutes ago.  May I come in?  The demon's still out there somewhere."

Defeating Alevius had been the easy part.  Forcing his own body to power the Levitation spell had been harder.  How many stairs had he climbed from the sewers up to the castle?  Judoc's head hurts, he's bleeding from spellcasting, and the demon is still alive.

He waits to be either admitted inside or left standing out in the hall.  "Sorry about the hour," he says again, and then continues with his tale.

"The spell stone worked just as you said it would.  The demon was controlling Alevius remotely and used him to kill Father Thomas when the priest started to guess what was happening.  It's still in control of Cleppo, I think, so we need to break its hold over him."

He looks to where Alevius is hovering in the air.  Judoc doesn't feel pity for the other student, but he does feel some kind of connection with the other young man somehow.  The two are not friends, but Judoc remembers again Cleppo's tiredness, his thorough blasting by Graves.  Cleppo had been there that day when the demon had accidentally been summoned, and he had been there during the arena duels.  Alevius probably killed his man.  If the situation had been reversed, if Judoc had been the one possessed, would Cleppo have tried to save Judoc?  Doubtful.

"Alevius came to me tonight and took me down to the catacombs beneath the castle.  It's a place of strong mana, and there was an altar and some strange purple candles set up down there.  Loke was there and boasted about his entire plan.  He had sent Alevius to try to attack Baron Graves.  He said they, whoever they are, wanted the provost's body but that the Baron had an amulet that protected him.  Then Loke changed somehow into this giant demon thing with claws, a cat's face, and horse's hooves.  I used the stone and the demon kind of shimmered/froze in place, and I got out of there with Alevius, but it took control of Alevius and tried to kill me, so I had to knock him unconscious."

Judoc pauses, collecting his thoughts.  "Can you free Alevius from its spell?  And we need to warn the College.  I thought of going to Meloran, too, but I figured it would be best to see you first.  Or should I go warn Baron Graves right away?"

OOC:  Ask to come in.  Warn Raisalter that Cleppo is still possessed.  Tell Raisalter everything.  Ask him to help warn the other professors, at least Meloran and Graves.
This message was last edited by the player at 07:39, Fri 05 Jan 2018.

”What?!”  Raisalter’s first reaction is to the assertion that Loke was in fact the demon, though Judoc does not let himself get distracted with the interjection.  Instead, he continues to talk, his head clouded and throbbing from the toll that his magic has taken on his own body.

”Sit down.”  Raisalter insists, motioning for Judoc to deposit Alevius on a long, wooden bench that seems to offer little comfort.  ”You two have been killing yourselves.”  Raisalter’s tone is reproving, though he continues to listen to Judoc as he spreads hands across out across Alevius’s head and chest, his eyes closed as he listens.

The words are freeing to Judoc, who having spent so long on this mystery wishes only for its full truth to be realized.  He speaks even as Raisalter casts various magics on Alevius, even as Raisalter stands and begins to look upon Judoc, even has he sends forth a flood of mana into Judoc’s own body, clearing some of the haze and tiredness from his mind.

”We cannot keep this to ourselves.”  Raisalter says as Judoc finishes.  ”We go to see the provost.  I have a hard time believing everything you say but one way or the other it matters little, it will be up to him to make the decision.”

And so the two set out leaving Alevius with Raisalter’s assurances that he will be safe.  It is not long before the two are sitting in front of the provost, Judoc explaining, his mouth dry and his head foggy from the late hour.

”Tell me again.”  The provost’s words are maddening and Judoc wants to scream that they are wasting time, but he obliges, his tone beyond impatience.  It is only a moment before Graves cuts him off with two words.  ”Show me.”

The confusion in Judoc’s head is only momentary, for his racing thoughts speed from his awakening an hour ago, down the servant’s stairwell, through the storage room, into the sewer tunnel and down the slope to where the underground lake laps on the sandy shores.  There stands Loke and then Agares, towering high and lumbering toward him with a sharpened claw pulled back and ready to strike.

At once Judoc is brought back to the present with a feeling like the peeling of an orange skin from his mind.  Beads of sweat have rippled across the provost’s face, but his stern demeanor remains.  ”Get Moloran, Neranmal, Hilath, and Balantine – check to see if Loke is in his offices, but do not confront him if he is.”  Raisalter nods and exits the room.

The next few hours make for only a blur in Judoc’s memory.  The band of professors make their way down the same path, towards the underground lake, find the small altar and search the environs though they find nothing.  Then reclimbing back again to the castle the group heads to Loke’s office as Judoc is deposited back in the provost’s office.  Foggy headed and exhausted, Judoc is sure that he drifts to sleep before again hearing the sounds of the door opening and closing behind him.

”Gone.”  Grave’s explanation is singular and complete.  He sits opposite Judoc, his cold blue eyes locking into a stare.  ”You have been exceptionally foolish tonight.  You know our rules and have flouted them now on multiple occasions.  You are lucky to be alive.”  Graves sighs, sitting back in his chair as he places a single, gauntleted palm upon his cheek and forehead.  ”Though I must admit you have enlightened me on several vexing issues and have likely saved Cleppo from expulsion.  I see now that he had been driven to exhaustion from several nights and days of possession by this thing when before all we saw was a student who could not complete his work nor stay awake for his lectures.  I had already written to his father.”  Graves’s eyes narrow, looking Judoc full in the face.

”I think perhaps both of you could do with a semester off.  Cleppo to rebuild his mind after being made a plaything for hellspawn and you as I expect our disappeared friend may yet have a vendetta to accomplish.  I have a thought to where I could use you.  Siegebreaker has been pestering me to send a student down to one of the border forts on the other side of Megalos.  What say you?  I’ll overlook your flagrant rule breaking in exchange for helping me keep Siegebreaker off my back?  And in the deal you get to lay low while we make some effort to clear this Loke business?

OOC:  Congratulations!  You made it through your thread without dying :D.  You can close things up here with a final post.  I'll get you your rewards from the thread when I get the chance to organize my mind.  I thought briefly of the pros and cons of letting you play out some of the stuff in this post, but when it is all said and done, there isn't much that you could have had an effect on so I figured tying everything together was the prudent move given my limited time these days.  Graves is essentially offering you a deferred semester with a work program which gets you away from a murderous demon for the time being and also helps Graves.  Feel free to ask in PM if you have questions to particulars.

Weary beyond belief, Judoc is relieved to collapse on the bench as he tells his tale.  Thus far he has held himself together sheerly through strength of will alone, and he gladly welcomes the chance for a temporary respite, though Loke/Agares may still be somewhere on the castle grounds.  Still, the demon has greatly underestimated his adversary, and Judoc doubts the creature is fool enough for s direct assault on the College.  How much control does it still have on Alevius?  Exhausted as Judoc is, he still keep a watchful eye on his fellow student, just in case Agares attempts to kill him again.  Raisalter's restorative magic proved rejuvenating, and Judoc sighs with relief as the fatigue and self-induced injury are washed from his body.

At the professor's decision to go to the provost, Judoc nods his head.  Every second counts, and so he hurried with Raisalter to Graves' quarters.

Judoc's reception does not go quite the way he envisaged it.  Rather than immediately acting on the crucial intelligence Judoc has obtained, Graves insists of Judoc beginning again, and then ripping right through his memories to pull the visuals from Judoc's mind.  Bloody hell.   The amount of knowledge the provost has at his command continues to impress Judoc.  When he gets over the initial shock of his mind being invaded, he finds himself lusting for this sort of power.  One day, he too will learn spells like these.

After showing the professors the hidden sanctuary beneath the castle, Judoc finds himself once again before the provost.  The student is sure that he will be thanked profusely for rooting out a demon who had been concealed beneath the College's eaves.  Too, Judoc had saved what had once been a promising student from being expelled from the College.

But no.  Graves highlights Judoc's repeated infractions of curfew breaking.  Out of bed at night?  After all Judoc had done?  How galling!  True, he could have been eviscerated by the demon or electrocuted by Cleppo, but as he has always done, Judoc has emerged perfectly intact.  In fact, the only physical harm he suffered had been self-inflicted due to Levitating Alevius.  Graves should give Judoc a medal for what he'd done, not censure him!

Wise not to let his displeasure show, Judoc is somewhat pleased at what Graves offers him.  Though taking a semester off seems less than ideal, some time learning the art of a soldier will come in handy should he join the legions later in his career.  Who knows?  He might even accumulate some valuable leadership skills during his time with the army.

"I'll do it, sir," he says, stifling back a yawn.  "And I'll go report to the bishop in the morning that we've located the killer and taken care of matters.  If you don't need me any further, I'd better get back to bed."