psychic thread

[agentlenpc]

[The gentle brush against the Strangers' minds comes in early evening. It is, as all mental touches are from Fayura, soft and unassuming, much like a polite knock at a door. Once as many minds are connected as she thinks will open the door to her, she speaks.]

I am curious, Strangers, what you would do with the young man who shot and killed Councilwoman Vera.

Many of you come from worlds where there are laws against murder. While we have no such laws here, when a Blood male in a Queen's Territory kills another without cause, she may demand a price from him. Sometimes, that is his own life if he was negligent enough with his temper and sometimes, it's something less.

My trouble is this: if I execute him according to the laws of the Blood, of which he is not one, the Guilds will rouse their people into a furor and attack not only me, but the people of Draega. If I turn him over to the Ebon Council, the Guilds will do much the same, and that will incite the Council to strike back. And if I return him to the Guilds for accolades instead of punishment for taking a life, the Ebon Council will have cause to rip apart the Guilds and anyone in their way to extract from him the price for murdering one of their own.

Were you me, what course would you take? And please try not to shout over each other; this is as many of you as I could reach.

Comments

[unwieldy]

[ They're just going to ??? at each other. ]

And why should a known murderer be offered protection?

[sunborne]

Because it's the right thing to do.

[ he seems so sure about this. almost- no, most definitely so. ] We could hurt him, yeah, but we shouldn't hurt him. He was scared and angry and made a really, really bad choice because of it. There's no denying that.

But we don't have that excuse if we give him a taste of his own medicine. That'll make us worse than him, even.

[unwieldy]

[ Wow, Daylight, that is extremely... moving. And those words might have worked on anyone else if they weren't Haein. His stubborn nature is going to send him straight to the pits one of these days. ]

He's already a dead man. He forfeited his life the moment he took someone else's.

[ He's so disconcertingly casual about it. ]

Someone just has to deal the final blow.

[agentlenpc]

He went to the Last Meal to cause trouble. [ Allairavar says seriously and with consideration. ] Now, the young man has caused trouble and found it.

[ There is the distinct impression that Allairavar says this for someone else's benefit other than Haein's. ]

[sunborne]

But-

[ daylight can almost feel the weight of dialup's servo on his shoulder, asking him to calm himself before he says something dumb and reckless when his emotions get the better of him.

it's a struggle and then some but he just barely keeps himself in check. ]

He did. He- He caused trouble and lots of it. A lot of people are hurting as a result and he'll have to answer for what he did for their sake. I know that.

But... I don't like the idea of using retaliation against retaliation. Especially if the person is already at the mercies of others. He's going to face what he did down the line and it's got to be done right.

To prove that what he did isn't the answer.

[agentlenpc]

It is not precisely retaliation. [ Allairavar pauses. ] In the most generous interpretation, what he did was stupid at the very least. He and those with him purposefully rendered Lady Vera next to helpless and then turned weapons upon her.

Have you been in a position, [ He struggles for a moment, attempting to figure out exactly how to address Daylight. ] Lord Daylight, where your best protection has been taken from you and you are left vulnerable to those who wish your humiliation or worse? To cut off a Blood from their Jewel is to take their arm. Their leg. Their heart. That is what the landens did when they used muters and breakers on Lady Vera and part of why the Blood find it so abhorrent.

He is fortunate that the Lady Fayura seeks to speak with all of you and to try to find a different path for I can tell you without pause that had these landens tried the same with Lady Fayura, none of them would still draw breath.

[sunborne]

... Yes.

[ he remembers the fear he felt when datashock’s device activated when he confronted the mech for framing nightbreak for the murder they committed. feeling his arc core gradually shrink over time as the two fought— that’s not a fun memory to remember. that’s something he’d like to avoid doing for a long, long while.

and that’s something someone else experienced before they actually died.

he rubs his chassis while he tries to think of something to say, biting his glossa to keep himself from speaking out immediately. it’s amazing how quickly his emotions are shifting but he tries to sort through them first. ]

It’s a good thing she's seeking advice from other folks and stuff, yeah. This is a really messy situation for everyone.

I'm glad we can help her and you guys. I- I don't knows what's going on exactly but I do want to help out somehow.

[agentlenpc]

You are helping. Lady Fayura asked and you've answered. You've spoken your heart and there is value in that. [ He replies sincerely. ] You aided those trapped at the power plant and you sought to help in the city.

[unwieldy]

[ How are you his only support in these times, Allairavar. ]

A precedent is about to be set here. When the next assassination is plotted out, [ and it will, because that's how much Haein believes in people ] they'll look to see how he was punished.

[agentlenpc]

Or they will look at the Blood with further resentment. [ If that's even possible. ] The fallout is impossible to measure in these volatile times nor do I believe the potential should weigh as heavily as the act he committed.

[unwieldy]

It's going to be bad, that much is obvious.

[ Then, dryly: ]

But I guess that's what we're here for.

[agentlenpc]

[ Allairavar chuckles softly. The sound ripples through the psychic thread, but it is not unkind. ]

Lady Fayura hopes that you can help her bring good out of the bad.

[sunborne]

[ (is the introspection referring to haein or referring to daylight? it could go either way.)

daylight does falter a bit because he got hit in the face with a nasty case of the truth, losing his momentum and righteousness because he can't deny nor soften that cold hard fact:

the guy killed someone and killed someone on purpose. that needs to be answered too and if it ends up being an eye for an eye situation... ]

Only if- [ he tries to figure out what he wants to say, his mind a bit jumbled now. ] But only if it's called for in the end. When he's put through trial or judgement or whatever it's going to be called and that's the verdict. Not through 'accidents' or 'surprises' or things like that.

[unwieldy]

[ There's no hesitation on Haein's end. He says what he wants to say. ]

Why afford him the courtesy of a trial? We know he's guilty. Plenty of people were there to witness the murder, and I'm sure the councilwoman would consider her death a surprise. That her murderer might be offered this chance to explain himself must have her rolling in her grave.

[sunborne]

Because it's- [ he's going to sound like a broken clock now, but he's got to say it. ] -the right thing to do. It isn't fair. It isn't easy. But it's right.

My mom said- My mom said, 'Fine then. Take all the eyes you want. Satisfy your need. And, when you're all blind, tell others where to go now.' [ it's from an old speech she once made during her tenure as the main representative for earth on the council. something about the phrase stuck with him. ] I want to help everyone here in this place. It's why I agreed to this. That includes him.

[unwieldy]

[ An eye for an eye. Haein is well aware of the principle. In fact, he might possibly live his life by it.

Let the whole world go blind for all he cares. ]

It's a pretty speech, but that's all it is. [ His cynicism is really jumping out. ] You might think that way, but you can't change or help human nature. They're drowned by their egos and selfishness. It's been that way for as long as they've existed and it'll continue being that way after you and I are gone.

[agentlenpc]

[ Lady Fayura also brought the Inner Circle into the psychic threads she weaved with the Strangers. Verim has little intention of responding except where he feels it might aid the Lady. ]

Because assessing intention is important and because Blood males can be - [ Verim pauses. ] - hot-tempered when one under their protection is harmed. Keeping the young man safe for the time being ensures that his side can be heard.

He is deserving, at the very least, of explaining the circumstances to the Queen. However, Lady Fayura has explained the difficulties of the situation in this case.

[unwieldy]

[ Haein has been carefully listening in on the other branches in conversation. He doesn't know why he's getting as involved as he is, only that he'd been there that day and it had frayed at his edges with feelings he thought he'd be able to ignore during his stay here. ]

It doesn't seem like he's willing to explain anything.

[ Maybe there's more to it, maybe not, but giving people chances is such a foreign concept to him. ]

He sounds like a waste of time and resources.

[agentlenpc]

Fear drives many a tongue to still and the hatred between landen and Blood spans millennia in Terrielle.

Why explain yourself to a Queen that you think cares not for what you say? [ The tone Verim takes is one of contemplation.] Would your words be turned against you? Your friends? Could you expect that a Queen who is Blood would be sympathetic to a landen? Or, did he intend to kill Lady Vera and now hopes his silence and the clout of the Guilds might save him? Or at least make him a martyr. I've seen that as well.

If he were Blood, Fayura would ask that he let her into his mind to read his intentions and know the truth of his actions though it might destroy him. Unfortunately, those with a Jewel cannot touch the mind of landen without killing them.

[yesterweek]

[ Don't mind Calvin as he slides in here. ]

Would there be any chance that his sentence could be lessened even a little if he was cooperative in explaining his actions?

I mean, he killed someone, so he's obviously not going to be let loose... Still, if a death sentence is hanging over his head maybe he'd be willing to spill a little more information with the promise of that being taken off the table?

[agentlenpc]

[ Verim never minds. Unless ... no best not go there.]

Yes. [ Verim says without hesitation.] The possibility exists. The most predominant issue is what will Lady Vera's family and the Ebon Council - [ saying the latter name comes with a bit of anger.] - will accept in lieu of his life and if the Guilds are willing to abide by that price.

You and others have made the interesting suggestion of a ... jury. I do not hold out hope that a panel of Blood and landen could reach a mutually acceptable solution - [ and then wryly] - but I never expected to find a Queen I wanted to serve either.

[yesterweek]

Jurors have to go through a selection process first. Most of the time people really close to the case, or with some sort of knowledge base that could potentially color their views on a case before hearing the evidence are eliminated from the final set.

I mean, it sounds like it'd be hard to get a fully unbiased jury in this case, but you could still look for people who are as neutral as possible on this issue?

[unwieldy]

[ Hey now, Verim, don't start putting ideas in Haein's head. ]

Fine, then. Say he explains his side of things. Why does it matter what his motives were? It doesn't change the fact that he killed the councilwoman in cold blood. Based on the facts, he actively made the decision to murder her. To premeditate a killing like that, to actually go through with it, that's not something any angry person can do.

[ Haein would know, maybe. He's made of about 99% anger and he's never murdered anyone. Sure, he'll suggest it, but don't expect him to get his own hands dirty. ]

You can assess intent as much as you want, the outcome will still remain the same.

[agentlenpc]

[ As he speaks, Verim's tone remains easy and thoughtful.] We have no law against murder for largely two reasons: the anger of Warlord Princes - though it is not so simple as an emotion that runs hot and then burns itself out quickly - and that the Warlord Princes in a Queen's service may need to kill on her behalf. However, a reason just as important is the understanding that sometimes the killing is justified.

Even when it is premeditated.

Did he believe Vera to be a true threat against the landens or himself? Was there justifiable cause for that belief? Had she already harmed him or his family in ways we simply do not yet know? You are correct that the outcome will not change nor do I believe his motives will shine him in a good light in the end, but the effort should be made to find them.

[unwieldy]

[ Haein has a hard time wrapping his head around this idea. Retaliation has always been his tried-and-true method. He's never found a need to delve any further beyond that, and the only justifications he's ever sought out were his own. ]

It's a waste of time.

[ Stubborn, always so stubborn. ]

I don't understand it. Maybe you and the others have convinced yourselves that finding a motive will make it easier to deal with the burden or guilt when the final verdict comes for his life, maybe not. But all it does is delay the inevitable.