102 lines
3.5 KiB
Plaintext
102 lines
3.5 KiB
Plaintext
The door outside of the Hierarch's office imposed, an intricate tangle of gold and silver around carefully carved wooden panels.
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Master Yury was waiting, with Master Clover.
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―Are you ready?, Clover asked.
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―I'm not sure, Sarla said.
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I still don't really know what value I can provide.
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―No, putting that aside, are you ready to see the remains?
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I expect it to be unpleasant.
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Sarla nodded.
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―Any information at all is helpful, Yury added, with a kindly smile.
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Auroklos insisted you were more likely to be helpful than he would.
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Investigating murder is not something any of us has needed to practice.
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# Clover sighed.
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# ―And Laurence is just waiting for us to make a mistake.
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Upon walking in, stepping over a muddy carpet just inside the door, Sarla felt herself shudder on seeing a red smear leading to Rikka's body.
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The top half of the former Ennearch of Strength looked pained, with an expression of fear across his face.
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Further down, his forelegs were digging into the carpet underneath, as though he died mid-crawl.
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His rear legs were missing, or rather had been replaced with dirt, soaked in blood.
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The dirt trailed further back as well.
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―He was being returned to earth as he crawled, Sarla said, questioningly.
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Yury looked patient, but said nothing.
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―There are two trails of bloody dirt initially as the magic started on his rear legs, until they merge into a larger trail here, Sarla said, gesturing to the spread.
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Until he couldn't keep moving.
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And this one.
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Sarla followed the dead Ennearch's gaze to the other corpse in the room.
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This yak was unfamiliar to Sarla.
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He wore a Master's cloak, although of a colour Sarla took a moment to recognise.
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―That dark green is Reason?
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A Master from the Office of Reason?
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There was a chunk of stone protruding from the dead yak's chest.
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―Is that marble?
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It's been shaped using magic.
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Could that be Dwarf magic?
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Sarla moved to touch the shard, but Clover barked at her before she could.
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―Sorry, just looking, Sarla said, stepping back.
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There was dirt across the room, and a clear sign of a struggle in the crumpled carpets and broken floor tiles.
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―That patch of mud near the entrance, it's odd, right? Sarla said.
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Can I touch it?
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Yury nodded.
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Sarla probed a corner of the patch with her pencil.
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―The tile here is gone.
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Marble is a pretty dead stone.
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I can't remember how dead, Sarla said trailing off in thought.
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Well, I could look it up, but it's quite hard to manipulate.
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It's been weathered very quickly, and for such a dead stone that's a lot of power.
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Keeping it wet like this takes moisture control as well, and I don't know any Soil mages who have that control.
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Sarla paused.
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―No offense meant, Master Yury.
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―And none taken, Yury said, impassive.
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Continue.
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―It's the carpet that's most impressive, Sarla said.
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Clover and Yury drew closer as Sarla gestured.
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―You see these circular swirls.
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That's the cotton fibres growing upwards.
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And they're torn, like something ripped upwards through them.
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Sarla walked back to the yak from Reason.
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―Yeah, the ground under him is mud, too.
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The shards of stone across the entrance, all from here?
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So this is our soil mage.
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The soil has come up his hooves, Sarla said, as she knelt closer.
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After thinking a moment, Sarla rose.
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―So they can't have killed each other, right?
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The public announcement is just for show?
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Clover looked surprised, but Yury simply nodded once, curtly.
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―By the authority of the Council, you will keep any thoughts on this secret to others, Sarla.
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Sarla nodded.
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―So tell me, young one, what is it you think happened here?
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