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.