Post #2819775 in Fractured Kingdoms, a roleplay on RPG

It had been surprising to an extent that someone had tried to kill Ivelda. It was not a surprise they failed. Rumours and whispers were already milling about what happened in the throne room. Ari overheard some, but decided not to give them much thought. He was more focused on his place in line. It looked like he would be interrogated by Benedicto, who’s real name was Viliame. He kept a blank expression as he watched Viliame work. It was interesting to watch though. He did feel bad for those he already interviewed, especially the last one. Ari noted to bake her something that she could share with her family today. He was sure it would be welcomed after Benedicto’s questions. Ari’s blank expression disappeared as he returned Benedicto’s smile, sharing a friendly expression of his own.

“Thank you, Sir Carama,” Ari said as he took a seat. He carefully crossed his ankles and placed his hands over each other in his lap. He had nothing else to say as this was a new experience for him. Ari decided he could only be polite, even if things went horribly wrong. He couldn’t help to wonder where Tempetse was and if she was okay. It was a hell of a day not to be connected. They could catch up later though if things went well.

Benedicto walked around the chair three times, observing the gentleman that just took place upon it, before he even opened his mouth to speak. He looked different, more relaxed than the people before him. This was strange after he must have been able to see the reactions of his predecessors.

”Please state your name and the province of your birth”, Benedicto said calmly, keeping up his smile. As he asked it, he paused his walk, now standing right in front of the young man.

Ari succeeded in resisting the urge to have his eyes follow Benedicto movements. He just looked straight ahead while keeping a small smile on his face. He decided a smile was better than a blank expression. He noted how Benedicto circled him as if he was a predator getting ready to attack his prey. Ari was calm, but he felt calmer when the prince stopped moving. He hadn’t seen him use violence yet when interrogating the others. Ari had little faith in positive outcomes though, so he was ready for violence if it suddenly occurred. He looked up at Benedicto from under his lashes to not mess up his posture. He met Benedicto’s gaze with friendliness and kept the smile on his face before replying.

“My name is Ari Hunt. I was born in Serein,” he answered. Ari would keep his answers short and sweet. He could always change how he responded if needed. It all depended on how his interrogator liked or disliked his answers.

The preacher’s smile did not faint. He had been to Serein many times, and although there was beauty to be found, it was not apparent. There was more wildlife there than people. There were not more than a handful of churches there, and as per his reports they were not visited as much.

”Serein…”, Benedicto let the name hang in the air and started walking again. He paused quickly, standing behind the stable hand now, his fingers again touching the wood softly. ”A resolute place where beauty might have once existed. The last time I was there it had all but been abandoned. You were wise to leave such a depressing place behind…”

Ari just stayed stilled as the other man spoke and moved about. He was saddened to hear Serein was abandoned, but he was not surprised. His parents were the first to leave when it was obvious things were going to get chaotic. He imagined Serein wasn’t as beautiful as he remembered. He imagined if he saw it now in person, it would be a depressing view. He wondered if there were any wild pegasuses running around Serein.

”And look at you now, living in the Kingdoms capital. In the service of someone as honorable as our Holy Goddess Ivelda’s Beastmaster. He brought his head closer to Ari’s, his voice no longer more than a whisper. ”Tell me more about how it came to be that your luck changed for the better the way it has…”

“One of our Holy Goddess Ivelda’s people, Ellen Jacobson, decided to take me in when I was twelve years old, just a boy. I had been orphaned when my family was murdered. We were leaving Serein as my parents believed the kingdom was changing for the worst. It seems they were right as you confirmed it is a depressing place now. We had been attacked by bandits while on the road. I was only able to escape into the woods as my sister sacrificed herself for me,” he said before taking a pause. The smile on his face now faded. His expression was blank once more. It was a short pause though as he pushed down his rising emotions from the memory. Now was not a time to let emotions come to the surface.

“I stayed in the woods hidden for days until hunger drove me out. This is how Ellen came to find me...I ended up traveling with her back here, and living with her until she passed away. After she passed, I ran the bakery for some time until I heard the local inn needed help in their stables. I offered my help and ended up doing more stable work than running at the bakery.I worked for them for two years before the opportunity to work at the royal stables presented itself. I applied for the job, and I was lucky enough to be hired. This is when I was twenty, and I have been happily working here for around five years now. I hope this answers your inquiry. I can give more detail if needed,” he finished, letting a smile grace his lips once more.

Ari had decided short and sweet answers would not work. It seemed Benedicto liked to talk a lot, so he’d mimic that when possible. Ari was hoping his sad story would gain him some sympathy. With how the prior interrogations went, he wasn’t sure. He never liked to speak of his past or think of Serein. It was pointless and reminded him of how everyone who ever entered his life for too long seemed to die. Tempeste was currently the only expectation and likely the only person he could say he was close to. He did his best to keep his distance with her. He didn’t need her to meet an unlucky faith as Ari seemed to be cursed.

The preacher listened intently to the story. The young man’s story would call for sympathy from most people. But Benedicto was not ’most people’. The people he had interviewed so far sounded like people whose biscuits hadn’t quite baked yet, but this one was different. More perceptive and looking to please the preacher in a less obvious way than the others.”Ellen Jacobson…. she sounds like a good person. She must have been a vessel for Ivelda’s grace. Through her Ivelda saved you from a horrible faith. How do you honor the memory of Ms Jacobson?”

“I honor her by keeping her bakery running to an extent. I’ll fulfil orders at night, so I can deliver them in the morning. She always wanted her bakery to outlive her, and she loved seeing all her customers happy. Although, she would be happy that I went off and became a stablehand. She liked when I learned or did new things. Her favorite thing to do was to surprise people with treats or food, so I do the same. I help the less fortunate like she did as well. I didn’t want those she helped or gave her services to to suffer even more after she passed,” he replied.

”So… you choose to honor the vessel instead of your actual savior? That does not sound like a faithful servant of our Goddess. You are ignoring the true force that kept you alive and healthy until this day. Benedicto stayed standing behind the chair. His smile could not be seen by the Sereinian. ”Same as you, the man who tried to murder our Queen failed to see the true force and power in this world. The true reason why we exist. I hope you have not fallen so far from our path that you harbor the same intentions as that man.”

Benedicto paused when he heard some commotion to his left. As he looked over he saw how one of Tyann’s beast slaughtered one of the people being interrogated. “GIVE. ME. YOUR. FULL. HONESTY. And this won’t happen to you! Do NOT touch me!”

Although Ari would not be able to see what happened as it was out of his sight, he would be able to hear the shouts of Tyann across the courtyard. ”Oh my… it seems not everyone is getting through this interrogation unscathed. Is there something you are not telling me?”

As he spoke he kept looking over at the scene unfolding. He was not bothered by the blood that came spewing out of the corpse. His attention was grabbed by the woman that was now being led to the castle for further interrogation in the Dungeon. ”Am I supposed to think nothing of it, that the person taken to the Dungeon right now also seems to be of Sereinian descent?”

“If I have not told you something, it is not intentional. Please ask more questions if you feel as if I am leaving something out or giving too little information,” he replied. He had not looked before as he didn’t want Benedicto to think his attention was elsewhere. Ari felt like he had to look now because of the comment about Sereinian descent. He kept his face blank as he turned and saw who was being led to the dungeons.

Ari was cursed it seemed. Tempeste was the one being led to the dungeon. With how things went with some people in his life, she’d likely be murdered. He didn’t dwell on it as he had not answered Benedicto’s second question. His gaze left Tyann and Tempeste to meet his interrogator's gaze. Slowly, he let a frown grace his lips and worry fill his eyes.

“I know her. Her name is Tempeste. She is Sereinian, and I would say we are friends. Tempeste is a kind and caring young woman. The other stable hands always talk of how well she is at her job when they come back from being injured. She even helped treat Ms. Jacboson as she came closer to her end,” he paused to push his hair back, press his lips together into a tight line, and shake his head in disappointment, “Although..if she has anything to do with the murder attempt, she would be my enemy as she’d be Ivelda’s enemy. I never guessed she would be a traitor, but I have faith truths will be told in the dungeons. Even though she is my friend, I trust in Tyann’s judgment as well...it seems we will need to wait and see if Sir Eike can confirm if she is a traitor or not,” he said.

“Additionally, I am sorry if there was some confusion with my earlier answer. I had taken your question as you asking how I honor the memory of Ms.Jacobson, not Ivelda. I do know Ivelda is my true savior as Ms. Jacobson was her vessel. I honor Ivelda different ways. I make sure I do my job well here so all the animals I care for are healthy. It makes sure they can do their job well, like the animals Tyann used today. I even help with training some, so when they are needed, they are tamed and not wild. The best way I believe I honor our Holy Goddess is by being loyal to her, and going to church. I plan on going to church today to pray for Ivelda’s safety and that no one else will try to murder her. She is our savior, and I can’t imagine what we would all do without her,” he added. Ari had not forgotten Benedicto’s earlier comment and wanted to cover all his bases. The last thing he wanted was to go to the dungeons.

Benedicto’s smile disappeared slowly the more the young man was telling him. If he was hiding anything, he was doing it well. He grew irritated with not getting anywhere. As soon as he thought he was going somewhere, he was stopped dead in his tracks. Benedicto would like to trust the judgment of the Beastmaster as well, but then again, hadn’t that same Beastmaster appeared in front of Ivelda in a drunk and disorderly state? Still being bugged by the little voice in his head, he decided to try something different.

”Please tell me what you know of Lilith… she is familiar to you, yes?”

Lilith?” asked Ari, confusion lacing his voice. Why was Benedicto asking about Lilith? And did he mean the Lilith Ari was thinking of? Lilith who couldn't save anyone about 13 years ago? Who was likely dead with the princesses? Ari did not believe Lilith or the princesses were alive like some of the rebels. At this point the rebels were working on defeating Ivelda on their own.

“Can you give me more details on this Lilith? Maybe I know or have seen her, but haven’t had the chance to learn her name. Is this, Lilith, familiar to you?” he asked. He decided he could get more information for the rebels. If the princes knew of Lilith, Ivelda’s sister, then that would be very interesting. It was worrisome as well though as who knew what Ivelda said of Lilith. No one knew exactly what Ivelda had down to the princes. It was obvious they had no idea who they truly were.

”Oh my, excuse me, but I believe my interrogation is scheduled for much later, and will certainly not be conducted by you.” Benedicto answered sarcastically when the stable boy asked him a question. He continued partly as a bluff, finally having the feeling he threw Ari off of his game. ”I told you to tell me more about Lilith. If you know 20 Lilith’s you will tell me about every single one. Any further delay in answering my questions promptly will secure a second Sereinian being seen off to the Dungeons. I assure you, Sir Eike will get any answer far faster from your mouth than I will.

“I apologize,” said Ari sat himself in the chair properly again, and bowed his head. He decided it was best to stay in his chair and try to bow to some extent. He didn't dare stand in case Benedicto thought he was trying to escape.

“Please forgive me as I meant no offense or for it to seem as if I was interrogating you. I was just trying to find out more details of this Lilith in case I saw her before. There are many people who I know the faces of, but not the names. I do not know of anyone named Lilith unfortunately,” he finally answered. It was the truth in Ivelda’s world as she had forbidden certain topics.

“Please send me to Sir Eike if you see it fit,” he added.

Benedicto let out an angry ”Hmphhh”, basically sighing in anger. He could imagine his face being red by now, although he could not see it himself. He finally thought he had landed on something, but it panned out badly again. This man was driving him up the wall. Benedicto moved around the chair again a few times, again holding when he was in front of the chair. He looked him in the eyes. ”You are free to go… BUT… I will remember your name, Ari Hunt. And if I ever hear your name negatively again, I will be on you like a Tyann on a disobedient beast.” He paused for a moment to let the words sink in. ”If I hear your name negatively again, you run… understood?” He crossed his arms waiting for the answer.

“Understood,” replied Ari before he slowly stood, bowed, and walked away. He made sure to keep a blank face and not smile. Ari was pleased he made it through the interrogation without being sent to the dungeon. The only worrisome thing was that Benedicto would remember him now. He always tried to go unnoticed and blend into the background the best he could.

The next issue was he had information for the rebels, but no Tempeste who could give it to them. It seemed Benedicto apparently knew of someone named Lilith. Ari wished he had gotten more information, but would not dwell on it. He decided to be grateful for not having the same fate as Tempeste. He smiled once in the stables to greet the little staff that was there. Ari would work on trying to make each one feel better. Humans were like animals too. He knew calming and or comforting them would be best for everyone; their work day would suffer otherwise he imagined.

Benedicto looked at the man as he got up. He was in a bad mood now, not getting what he wanted. There was a gut feeling that he had been fooled, but then, how could a stable boy fool one of the Queen’s most loyal and trusted advisors? He shook it off before he continued down the line. After interviewing about 8 more people he was done with Tyann’s staff. The way he was able to torture the last few made him feel a lot better about himself. He had made a list for himself to go after certain people in town, certain family members of the people he interrogated.

He moved closer to his Goddess. ”Almighty Goddess, I have completed the interrogations. It is my conclusion the stable staff was not aware nor involved in the despicable attempts on your life today.”

Snippet #2819775

located in Rhindeval, a part of Fractured Kingdoms, one of the many universes on RPG.

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