Back: Liannas Tale | Lianna | Lianna looks for facts

Heading to the prison the sky darkens looking like the approach of rain. Calling at the gate of the small fortification named for its chalky walls that protrude from the cliff behind it, produces a watchman who ambles forward with a limp. Hearing her credentials, the watchman leads Lianna back to a room and tells another to bring Aranis.

After a short wait, the guards produce an middle-aged woman, her beauty not yet all drained, who looks to be hardly the worse for the wear for living in a prison. But perhaps she cleans up even more nicely. She seems to be wearing a formal dress, now somewhat dirty and tattered, giving the impression that she was thrown in here with it, and has not had any chance to change attire. Her face attempts to mask curiosity about her visitor.

"Let me guess," she begins, deciding not to sit at the seat made available to her. "The Marquis sends a Paladin in order to ferret out my secrets? Have the holy warriors sunk so low as to now be pawns of the elite?"

A look comes over her face, and she reconsiders her haste to condemn Lianna suddenly, "But how rude of me. Living in such a place will make one rude you see. My apologies."

She gestures to indicate the whole of the prison.

"To what service can I put myself?"

"Oh, I like her!" Lianna thinks. Then checks her instinctive response: being likeable was one of the skills that a woman in this position would have developed. But she feels honest. So far.

She leans back in her own seat, deliberately projecting relaxation. "Someone seems to be assuming that paladins can be used as the toys of the elite, certainly. My objections to that are one of the main reasons I'm here." Careful - the truth, yes, but don't be tempted to give her too much of it.

"I was asked to investigate a certain mystery - and yes, quite possibly nobility were trying to use us as a weapon in their private war. But the gods agreed to send a paladin, so there really is something going on that needs looking into, whether they knew it or not. They, too, are tools of the gods, after all...

"Then your name was raised, almost at random, as a possible source of information, by someone who obviously didn't think anything you said could be believed in any case. 'Her type are completely unprincipled' was the phrase, as I recall."

She smiles, taking any sting out of the quote. "Coming from that source, one could make remarks about pots and kettles, if one were being rude. It made you my obvious choice for a reliable witness, anyway."

Then she turns serious again, level green eyes meeting the older woman's in complete honesty and with no sense of talking to anything but an equal.

"When I asked for divine guidance on where to go first, I was told very firmly to come here. I don't believe for one moment that you actually have anything to do with the ostensible reason I was called in, but when the gods tell me to talk to someone, I do that. So, here I am. What would you like to tell me? You assumed that the Marquis - of Greensward? - had sent me, so shall we start with why you thought that?"

At the back of her mind is one nagging doubt - if these disappearances are genuine, is Aranis in danger of disappearing, too? And if so, is it her duty to warn her? Probably - but let's see what she volunteers before we start prompting.

"Well, I'm very close to the Marquis, and know all of what goes on in his household. I think that he doesn't trust me anymore. He's a paranoid, you see," she tells Lianna.

¤She's dissembling,¤ says the sword. ¤The Marquis doesn't trust her, but it's not paranoia.¤

« I'd guessed. Trusting this lady more than an inch would be a mistake, if the Marquis ever trusts anybody, which he probably doesn't. It's not paranoia when they really are out to get you. And yet she's being honest in a way - she didn't seriously expect me to believe that. It's just the story she feels obliged to keep up. I know it, and she knows that I know it. »

"You have temporal authority as a paladin, do you not?" Aranis changed the subject. "You could have me freed, couldn't you?"

Indeed it might be dodgy, but since the Marquis has leveled no formal charge, Aranis is only here because nobody with authority had called to have her released. Still, doing so would no doubt anger the Marquis who no doubt expects that such help will not be forthcoming to Aranis.

"In theory I could, yes," Lianna agrees. "And if I was convinced that there was no just reason for you to be here, and that you would be safer freed, then I might even do that. But if the Marquis is annoyed with you, what would he do once you were freed? At the moment, he thinks you're safe and has no reason to go further - or does he?"

Of course, annoying the Marquis is beginning to feel like a good reason in and of itself - but not just yet.

She watches Aranis thoughtfully, wondering just how good her control really was. If the rumours of addiction are true, she should be well into withdrawal by now, but there are no obvious signs.

«You're the healer, not me. What do you think? Is she hiding something? You get a kind of pull to heal anyone who's hurt, don't you - anything here?»

¤There’s something. She’s trying not to think about it. Let me probe a little. Keep talking to her.¤

"Oh, I think that the Marquis might stoop quite low to take care of me should he feel that I'm a threat to him again. But that's a chance that I'm willing to take," she seems to be getting somewhat agitated. Lianna notices Aranis scratching at her wrists obsessively. "Have you ever been in a prison? If you had, you'd understand."

"Only on a short-term and voluntary basis", Lianna agrees. "Not quite the same." Though the time she had broken into Stalter Street, got the information she had been after, and got out again, without ever being discovered, had been... interesting. Now that place had fleas, far worse than this. She’d burnt everything she’d been wearing, afterwards.

¤Yes, there’s something wrong. The restlessness, for one thing. I’ll direct her thoughts that way, see if we get a response.¤

Aranis stands again, and starts pacing back and forth. "Trust me that the Marquis does me an injustice by putting me in here. I've never been anything but a faithful servant. There are places I could hide, if I got out, places I could go..."

¤Half of her actually believes that she's been a good servant to the Marquis. The other half isn't so sure. She's done something to him.¤

"Just why are you here?" Aranis changes the subject again, stopping pacing, and scratching her wrists again subconsciously. "If the Marquis didn't send you, who did? Who is it that's trying to pull your strings?"

Lianna shakes her head, still smiling. "Sorry. There’s more than one profession has principles about client confidentiality, believe it or not."

¤Got it. Once I’d increased her sensitivity, she couldn’t hide it from herself any longer. That’s lotus withdrawal all right. Itching wrists and backs of the hands, restlessness, inability to concentrate. That last will make her easier to question, she can’t really think about what she’s giving away to you with the drug pulling at her.¤

«You increased her suffering just so you could have a better look at it? Inufil, that’s cruel! »

¤The Truth is more important than one mortal’s temporary discomfort. And you’re too soft, girl.¤

«No, it is not! The ends do not justify the means. Not for us!» She shuts her mind to the sword, clamps down on the anger.

Aranis has noticed nothing of the silent argument – Lianna’s easy smile remained unchanged throughout. "You know, this would be so much easier if you’d try telling me the truth, instead of half-lies and evasions. I’m not asking you to incriminate yourself. Even anything embarrassing won’t go any further. But then people try to hide such silly little things... Drinking too much, or taking drugs, for instance. I don’t know what they imagine I’d do if I found out about it. After all, if I refused to help anyone with any human weaknesses, I’d be out of a job, wouldn’t I? Using Purple Lotus, for instance. It’s not illegal. It’s not immoral. It’s not even socially unacceptable. It’s just stupid, isn’t it?"

She watches Aranis’ eyes widen, and hands move away from her wrists, as she realises that at least one of her secrets is out.

"Locking someone away from their source of drugs, and forcing them through withdrawal, though – that’s cruel. That, I object to. Here." She tosses a small packet across. "What you do with that is up to you. But I’d suggest weaning yourself off it, unless you enjoy giving people a means of controlling you."

Aranis catches the little parcel, sniffs it, but does not unwrap it immediately. That much control remains, despite Inufil pushing at her mind. "And in return for that – what? I have to tell you all the Marquis’ secrets? You leave me here, and if I want more, I do as you say?"

Lianna refuses to get angry at that. It’s the obvious conclusion for the woman to reach, given the types she associates with.

"No, I don’t work like that. No bribes, no blackmail. Just a gift, with no strings attached. It would be nice if you’d tell me what your problem with the Marquis is, let me help with it. But if not – that’s your choice. I’m not forcing you into anything."

She gets up, slings Inufil’s scabbard over her shoulder. "I may as well be off, then – unless you want to change your mind?"

Aranis considers and then stalls, "I...uh.."

Then she seems to decide on something, "The Marquis has secrets. Any man in his position does, but he has some good ones. No suprise that I've discovered them being in his house for years, of course. And I wouldn't use them against him - it makes no sense to bite the hand that feeds. But, he's doing two things in particular that I just can't abide. Nobody would. All I tried to do was to persuade him to be more kind. And this is the treatement I get."

Lianna starts to reach for Inufil's judgement on the accuracy of any of this - and then stops. No. She wasn't letting it do any more "persuasion". Useful yes, but unfair.

She throws her hands down in disgust, and then resignation, her eyes drawn to the packet in her hand, "But I can't make these secrets public. If I do, then what do I have left? Could you promise me safety from his revenge? Could anyone? No, best to simply escape, seek the safety of another noble household, and blackmail him just to ignore me. Doesn't that make the most sense?"

Lianna frowns slightly at the mention of blackmail, but says nothing.

"I'm sure I could find a position as a placee with one of the more elderly nobles of the city," she seems to be off daydreaming about it as she says this. Then she snaps back to reality, "If you could find me such a position, and then release me, then all would be well. Would you do such a kindness for one so abused?"

She holds the packet forward a little as an example of the abuse.

That last pose is a little too obvious for Lianna's taste - at least, if the woman imagines she might be fooled by it. But, like her own mother's play-acting earlier, meant as a joke between them, the threat is real.

"You're right that no-one could promise you safety from his revenge," Lianna says slowly, thinking this through. "I can promise you that I'd try, but not that I'd succeed. No, I can quite see that you don't want him thinking that you'd given away his secrets. If it did become clear to him that they were known, would it be obvious that you were the source, though? I can promise you one thing. If you tell me what these things are that are going too far, he will never learn from me that you were the source. If that means I can't use the information until I've relearnt it from some other source, so be it. At least I'll know what to look for."

"Either way, I'd suggest you give up the blackmail plan. That's just about guaranteeing he'd do his best to silence you, and as you say, there's no way of protecting you from that. No, what you need is to do something, go somewhere, that he won't expect. Going to another noble household is too obvious. Let me think about that. I have an idea or two, but I'd need to check them out."

She is running ideas through her mind as she speaks. Her own presence here will have been reported to the Marquis, of course. So any of her contacts who he knows of or could easily learn of are already ruled out.

"I would be very grateful for that," says Aranis. "As for the information...

Aranis seems to be considering Lianna's words and her character. She's impressed by Lianna's many qualities, and the directness of her approach, but seems to be quavering momentarily over her decision.

Aranis' body language changes as she comes to a conclusion.

"I have no other choice, you are my only hope. My son is out to sea, and my daughter is does not attend well her mother - I think she spends my money while I am imprisoned," relates Aranis.

"But to the point, I will tell you one of the secrets about the Marquis - he has, for years now, been involved in some dark project..." the word slides out of her mouth like an epithet. "He traffics with a man named Tzanrol, a priest of Zanar and the goal of their plan - which has gone on for a decade now - is to create a new process to dye cloth. I think that the announcement that he intends to make at a fete at his estates will be to show the results to the world. Apparently the results are so stunning that they believe that the wealthy will pay any price to obtain garments made from this process."

"What I can tell you is that when Tzanrol is around, people disappear," she says, her reminiscence causing her to act as though stunned by a blow, her vision out of focus. "Many people. The Marquis either knows this, or turns a blind eye to it."

Lianna knows of a sole Paladin of Zanar in Kaitaine. And indeed the Zanarians are odd amongst the religions of Kaitaine, believing that their god is one above all others. If they had their way, all in Kaitaine would worship Zanar - and they were the sorts to take steps to make this happen, too. But abductions seem out of the question. The Church of Zanar works actively to convert people to their very strict codes.

"But, as you said, you cannot simply approach Tzanrol to find out the truth. If he was targeted, the Marquis would know it was me," she pleads. "You gave me your promise, no?"

She looks hopeful, but also as one who realizes that things are now out of her hands.

"I gave you my promise", Lianna agrees. "And even without that, approaching Tzanrol directly is unlikely to do anything but warn him, at this stage. No, I'll be a lot more indirect than that." What was the name of that Paladin? She can't quite bring it back to mnd, he doesn't often show up at Ketil's Yard.

"Who do you know of who has vanished?" she asks. "Any specific names?"

In addition to relaying the names that Lianna already knows, Aranis adds one more. "There was a servant named Narnlis, a lovely man who worked in the wine cellars keeping things organized and neat. I believe that he had learned something about what was going on. But he disappeared shortly thereafter. His widow lives in Marl's Arm, the poor thing."

"This is odd because otherwise the staff seems to have been immune to the disappearances," she concludes.

Lianna nods, but does not respond to Aranis' expectant look as she might have hoped.

"No, I'm not taking you out of here quite yet. Too obvious, and I want to have a hiding place ready prepared for when you leave. But we do have one more thing to do before I go. You're going to tell me a lot of trivial gossip from the Marquis' house. Nothing important, nothing interesting. Just enough that if anyone asks, I can honestly say that you told me a lot of irrelevant details and it was terribly boring." She grins. "I always tell the truth. Just not necessarily all of the truth - I'm sure you're familiar with the principle."

Aranis gives Lianna a "who, me?" look in jest, and then lays out more than enough information for Lianna to be credible in her story.