Xurizu, at some point, decides to speak with Dashu privately.

The place he takes Dashu for this conversation is far removed from the mining settlement, just on the outskirts of emerging into the District of Earth proper. It is a place with certain significance to Xurizu, but to Dashu's eyes it is like most other caverns he has seen in the area so far: dark, hewn from hard earth, with an old, musty smell.

Whatever the purpose for this meeting, it is up to the Lunar to reveal.

Xurizu had been ... unsettled when he had sought out Dashu, to ask him to come out here.  Certainly more unsettled than the inspector had seen the normally fairly calm and collected lunar.  The route he had chosen to lead Dashu on to get out here also spoke of a knowledge of the caverns that he couldn't have gained whilst here, unless he had been slipping away at night.  When they finally reached this spot ... whatever significance it has, Xurizu nervously scratches at his neck, as he obviously decides how best to phrase this.  He eventually came to a conclusion, drawing in a little breath before he starts to speak.  His voice is quiet, when it comes.

"Dashu, I know what happened to Granite Creed, the mining foreman," he opens with.  He speaks no more for the moments, waiting for Dashu to respond, watching his reactions.

Xurizu's apprehension was apparent to Dashu the moment he asked to speak to the inspector.  It only became more apparent when they walked down the long, forgotten corridors and into the caverns.  However, Dashu somehow sensed that it was best to let the lunar speak on the subject first.  Momentarily, he pondered this trait in himself.  No one, even himself, would consider him to sociable or empathetic by any stretch of the imagination.  The reasonable answer was that this instinct was a product of his investigatory skills.  Still, Dashu had to admit that in the past week he had grown more fond of his fellow Exalts and the other humans.  Particularly this one who had spent his slavery much the same way he had: locked in a cell on the bottom most floor.  He didn't ponder this long though, as the Lunar halted and then spoke.  And Dashu was stunned.

"I... see.  And this is something you need to tell me away from the others?  You don't wish for them to know, I take it."

There is a little more of a nervous neck scratch.  "I ... don't know.  I'm not sure.  That's why I'm telling you first," Xurizu says, uncertainly.

"I know what happened to him because I killed him," Xurizu carries on, his voice quiet.

Dashu tried to take the revelation in stride.  Instantly a flood of questions came into his head but he tried to ask them slowly.  "I take it this happened when you were still collared since I was with you the whole time between loosing your collar and arriving here.  Why did they have you kill him?"

"Yes, while I was still collared," he says with a brief nod.  "But ... I don't know why.  I don't know if that's because I was never told, or just because I don't remember," he continues, speaking as though he considered both possibilities about equally likely.  And equally worrying.

Dashu looked slightly disappointed when Xurizu doesn't know, "Ah, well what do you remember? Who ordered you kill him?  What happened to the civilians?  What's with all the white dust?"

"Lady Sienna," he said, the name that the sorceress had provided just before fleeing as a flock of birds.  "I don't know what happened to the civilians, but if Pale Gaze had not given me that stone, I wouldn't know about Granite Creed, either," he says.

"Creed was already running when I found him here, with a woman I assume was his wife, Patience.  They were arguing over a parcel, which he was urging her to take, to bring to 'him'.  He ... called out her name, just as the Flying Guillotine took his head.  She ran off with the parcel--I don't know where."

Dashu looked almost sympathetically at Xurixu and said "Don't let what you did while you were collared bother you.  None of us could really deny our orders... you most of all since you had no memories.  I will say this:  this Lady Sienna, as we've been told her name is, is someone who I don't look forward to meeting.  I'll keep an eye out for Patience when I go back to town.  Do you know anymore about her that I can use to find her besides her hair color?"  Dashu then thought for a minute more and asked asked other question, "Did Patience actually see you kill her husband?  If so, it might be wise to take measures to keep you away from her if we do find her."

"She did not see me as killed him, as far as I am aware.  If she had done ... well, she would not have run very far with the package," he said, a little regretfully.  "I know that much."

He can, and does, however furnish the inspector with a more detailed description of her appearance, at least as much as could be picked out in the darkness of the tunnels.

"Creed's was not the only death in that gem, though," Xurizu says, after being silent for a little while, more neck scratching.

"Want to talk about it or is this something you'd rather sit one for a little while?"

"There ... isn't so much to talk about.  I only recalled Creed's death in detail when I saw his office.  I think I would need to see the other ... sites, before I could say what happened, beyond that I killed a person who looked like so and so."

"I hate it, Dashu.  I have so many blank spots.  Are they all filled with murder and death?"

All of a sudden, Dashu felt truly out of his league.  Offering comfort was not his normal modus operandi, but he tried anyway.  "Probably not... but even if they are, you can make more memories now that you don't have the collar on.  If... I mean when we get out of here, we'll be free to do something constructive, besides, for all you know, you might have only been drawn out to handle the monstrous people.  It's not like the Dragon's don't have enough assassins of their own to handle the small fries.  Don't be so quick to be hard on yourself."

Dashu's words seem to offer cold comfort.  "As far as I know, Creed's only crime was to plot rebellion.  I don't think he had even started to raise it with his workers."

"But ... you are right.  I can build better memories now.  Or at least try to."

Dashu once again found his way back into his element, "A rebellion?  Do you know how long ago the assassination was or who the 'him' Creed referred to was?"  Dashu stopped and then wondered out loud, "I wonder if this has anything to do with who released us."

"The files in his office, those that he had left, suggested he was in communication with 'Free'," Xurizu said, after some thought.  "Third seemed to think that perhaps 'Free' was a Celestial Exalt of some sort..."

"As for when ... it's hard for me to place exactly ... my memories have so little context.  I think it was about a month ago?  That would seem to fit with what I could gather from the notes."
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:29, Wed 25 Feb 2009.

"Hmmm.... I can't say I can put my finger on anything right now... but... I get the feeling we'll run across this 'Free' sooner or later.  Although my gut feeling tells me there's a possible connection between him, Pale Gaze, and the reason we are... well... free."

"That would be a real possibility, yes," Xurizu agreed.

"Though I would like to know more about him, before we do."

"Agreed...  I'll keep my ears open when I make it back to town.  You can come with me if you'd like.

Look, as far as I'm concerned, what you did when you were collared doesn't matter to whether or not you're welcome.  But it's your choice to tell the others.  I'll respect your wishes."

"Thank you," he smiled with genuine relief at the inspector.  "I will ... think about telling the others, though.  It is hard to know how to tell them, though."

"But I think I shall accompany you to the town, yes."

"Well we'll see what we find when we get there.. Won't we.  We should probably be heading back, before the others wonder where we are.  We didn't exactly let them know we were leaving and we wouldn't want them needlessly sending a search party."