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Society's First Flaw

~ Society's First Flaw ~
The Grand Square of the Royal City of Rihen
1 year ago


The quarrel had begun before he came along, yet he had seen it to its end.

Semathal stood above the fallen half-demon, whilst the woman that had been accosted huddled up against a market stand. His eyes drifted to hers, utterly passionless despite how he had been her saviour. She mouthed the words 'thank you', yet dared not raise her voice, for she was speaking to the one who had murdered in plain sight of the crowd all around them. A crowd, that now lingered and watched Semathal where he stood, with his broken sword decorated with tainted blood.

The woman had been called a thief by the half-demon merchant, and he had attempted to cut off her hand with his cleaver before Semathal stepped in. Now, as he stood there in wait for the guards to come, he looked back into the eyes of the people, and he stepped up upon the market stand - his blonde hair spreading out in the cold wind.

"Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindles," he said, and his voice rang with conviction, "Faith... is currently the substance of things hoped for - yet also the evidence of things not yet real. I say that the deeds of righteousness shall be rendered into peace - the effect of righteousness then quietness and assurance forever."

The crowd was of consternation, yet Semathal overrode their murmur. "Quietness! Assurance! ...In that there will be no taint upon us beings that serve the Maiden. For too long, the wolves have dwelt with the lambs! The demons have lain with the Maiden's children since two centuries past; enslaved by the threat of worse, during an Age where we were but a shadow of what we now are! Yet look around you, and hear what I say, for we have yet to emerge from the embers of that great war! Deeds and acts of righteousness are now called for!"

The crowd heard him now, and listened, quietened by the threat he had bespoken. Those of mixed blood that were near looked less pleased, less riveted by his call. Nevertheless, they listened in scepticism.

"I travelled here from the village of Ekire," he told them, and he paced the top of the stand, "and I tell you now, that the days of the Demon Wars are yet over. My people, my family, was attacked by demons - even as we lived in the eastern parts of Caoen! How, you ask, is this possible? How indeed, but if they were not assisted? How indeed, if they were not granted passage? How indeed, when so many - perhaps even the one standing beside you - carry their blood in their veins! Yes, and if not in their blood, there are those who have succumbed to the Demonland's power - corrupted by evil and willingly seeks to destroy this great Realm that we have rebuilt! The Maiden smite them all!"

He raised his broken sword to the sky - a bloodied cross against the winter sun.

Now, the murmurs started, and those who bore the stigma - those who had been gingerly accepted into the lives of humans and elves - were frowned upon once again. Neighbours parted, and children were carried off. Semathal stood there, his austere face and booming voice delivering the truth everyone feared. Or was it truth made out of fear? Regardless, his words were heeded.

"I say this," he continued, his glare fierce and uncompromising, "follow me, for as the demons may have sown the winds of war once again... They shall reap the whirlwind! One man may do little, yet one man shall become two, ten and then hundreds - a unified Order against the hidden threat that soon might overtake us! I say resist evil, and it shall flee from you! Amend your ways and your doings, so that there is no taint among us any more! It is the only way to still stand in the Maiden's grace!"

He waved his sword towards the looming castle behind him. "To the Queen and King, the Council, I say that which everyone is thinking: Set your house in order! Amend your governing, clarify your reign! Tolerate evil no more! Banish or persecute the tainted, so that we might live as a free people for the first time since the Age of Light! For the fashion of this world as it was meant to be... is passing away at our great peril..."

He turned his glare back to the crowd, his sword lowering. "Can the dragon cast off its wings? Can the unicorn drop its horn at will? Can man change his skin, any more than demons change their putrid nature?" he said, and he heard cries that affirmed his beliefs - shouts that made his words manifest. "There is no new thing underneath the sun - nothing has changed since then. Now be the time, that the wicked shall cease to trouble us, and the weary people will be at rest, for now... be the time for cleansing. Now, shall the dust return to the land as it was; and our spirits shall return unto the Maiden who gave it. We are all weighed in upon her scales, and believe me... we are right now found wanting."

The guards had yet to come in eye-shot, and it was time to depart. There was unrest and strife forming between the citizens of Kerrajeh - between those who would forgive stained blood and those who wished to clean the streets with it. Semathal jumped down, his face hidden from the guardsmen that rushed into the square.

"Be sober! Be vigilant!" he cried as the crowd descended into chaos and anarchy, "Because your adversaries - roaming like rabid wolves - walk about seeking whom they might devour! Join me, protect me, and we will bring an end to ignorant ways! We shall enlighten the Realm of the truth, and purify our collected spirit!"

Mass-psychosis. Fear made real. A fearful young woman with pale skin and long, sharp teeth was held down by the mob, and Semathal stepped her way like an angel of retribution.

"And we shall preserve... the flesh of our children," he said with a voice made raw, as if to himself. His own dead sons and daughters flashed before his eyes, as he raised his blade again.

In the fighting that broke out upon the Grand Plaza, the Order of the Broken Sword was formed.

~ Fin

OOC Plot notes: So, I suggest that this character has formed this order and is purging the half-blood demons from the Realm, persecution-wise and politically - outmanoeuvring Royal Family and its Council. Our characters are brought together by a common interest in the demise of the evil preacher depicted here. Alternatively, you play sympathisers close to Semathal. Free-form and all for improvisation of the situation.

 
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