When Mercy Refused To Kneel

The pair stopped chatting and Sun took off at a jog, their feet splashing in the puddles that had really started to accumulate. They were going so fast and through so many side streets and alleys that she couldn't commit the route to memory. She wanted to know the way for future reference, but sun seemed incredibly intent on getting there now. It was growing later in the day, though, as she had snuck out after lunch. She probably should've headed out earlier, but he instinct to do thread weaving simply overpowered her more logical mind. Eventually, though, they reached what was clearly a main thoroughfare duelo how the buildings opened up and how many people they suddenly encountered. People played all sorts of instruments while others sang familiar hymns along to the music. Still others danced in familiar ways, but deeply unrefined. It was clearly the Thunder Dance in away Penny had never seen before. The music, though familiar, was similarly unrefined. It was interesting to see the common people celebrating and singing. She was soused to everything being perfectly clean and rehearsed. This was raw, unrefined, and unfiltered. It was wonderful in its own way. She couldn't stop herself from smiling as she watched. The joyful atmosphere was infectious. “Well, you're here. I should probably peace out." Penny blinked and looked at Sun. "But why? "It didn't make sense to her. It looked like the holiday was open to everyone. The cathedrals weren't a closed thing; anybody could go at any time. The Arcanum Lords all had different holy days (though they could overlap) but Cathedrals were all open to everybody regardless of day or time. Sun was a Vadis priest (or had been at one point, at least) so he worshiped the Arcanum Lords, so why not join in the festival? "I'm from Uln Dareth. Most Nytheri don't like us worshiping with them. Plus, I don't know any of the rituals, hymns, or dances. We do worship the Arcanum Lords but it's not in the same way as you do. It's not really my place to join in like this. A lot of Nytheri will be angry if I was allowed to join in. Some Unites have adopted Nytheri ways, but it just doesn't feel like the right thing for me personally." Penny frowned. "Nobody is telling you to convert." She had never heard of such a thing. Why would anybody before ed to leave their beliefs behind? The liturgy and stuff, she could understand. Those would vary nation to nation. as long as they worshiped the Arcanum Lords. She'd heard there were nations that Void worshipers led but she wasn't sure if that were true or not. She couldn't imagine how awful it would be to live in a nation that wanted to undo the Weave. It felt so ii. wrong. Why would anybody be against the Arcanum Lords and the very fabric of existence itself. "I wish you were right, but I've had my fair share of people tell me to go back to Un Darth. I'm just really not the type to be welcomed here. Nytheris isn't the most welcoming country unfortunately." He sighed. "But it was better than going to Nocthelmar. At least you guys hold the Arcanum Lords holy. There are quite a few nations run by Void worshipers that wouldn't welcome us. Nocthelmar was far closer but they persecute those that worship the Arcanum Lords." Penny's eyes widened. "So that isn't just a rumor? I thought Void Worshipers couldn't run kingdoms." Sun shook his head. "No, they definitely ran Nocthelmar. Some people fled there and took their chances rather than try to come to My ther is. I'm not sure what became of them. I'm not sure if they were forced to become Void Worshipers or simply jailed or possibly even killed simply for believing in the Arcanum Lords." "That's awful... Just because you believe differently doesn't mean you should be killed!" "What about Void Worshipers then?" Penny blinked. "What?" Where didthatcome from? "Void Worship is banned in Uln Dareth and Nytheris. You said people shouldn't be killed for their beliefs. Do you think Void Worshipers should be allowed to worship openly?" "I— Where did this come from?" She legitimately didn't understand this line of questioning. Void Worshipers generally wanted to destroy the Weave to her understanding. Was he sympathetic to Void Worshipers or something? She didn't understand. Void Worship was dangerous and needed to be suppressed for the sake of everyone. It really wasn't something that should be allowed to flourish. He was a Vaelis priest, loyal to the Arcanum Lords. Why was he asking her about a dangerous group that wanted to unravel the Weave itself? "I was just wondering." He shrugged. "But if youreallywant me to come with. I guess Ican." "I would appreciate it." she offered a small, shy smile. She didn't know anybody around here and she was terrified somebody would recognise her. She really wanted to blend in as much as possible. Granted. she knew having someone from Un Darth wouldn't help with that, but she also didn't want to be alone. The Silver Veil wing had told her to trust him, so she would do that. She wished there were a way to contact him long distance if she ever left the castle again, hat there was no feasible way of doing that as far as she was aware. It'd be a crazy technology to be able to talk to somebody across a long distance. "All right then." He motioned and she took the lead to go into the Cathedral. Inside, all sorts of stalls had been erected in the courtyard with people dealing wares and buying things. She'd honestly never been allowed to buy anything since she had never been allowed into the city like this before. She really only knew about buying things because of economics lessons and overhearing servants comment on the price of things going up. She had never handled money before and had zero idea of what anything was worth. All she knew was that she was hungry after the long trek. "Um, I don't have any money with me. Do you think you could buy me a snack?" He looked at her incredulously. "You didn't bring money to a festival?" He sighed. "Just keep in mind I'm not a walking bank, but yeah, I can buy you a shack. What do you want?" "Let's see what they have." stelegitimately had no idea what would be sold here. All she knew that was stew as peckish since the Trek had taken quite a while. Plus, her cloak was heavier than she anticipated. She had gotten it rain proofed by spells before leaving. but the material was a lot heavier over a joy than she thought it would be. She was worn oatfromjogg.in the heavy cloak for so long. She was absolutely worn out and needed something to fill her stomach. She wouldn't ask too much of San; one snack would hopefully help take away the peckish. They found a stall selling some sort of doughy bread knot. The smell emitting from the portable furnace was absolutely wonderful. She tagged San toward the stall and approached. "well, hello there!" the man behind the stall said." What can I do ya for?" "What are you selling?" Penny really wasn't sure what all these foods were. She had never been down to the storm call Festival, so she didn't know what kinds of foods were traditional or not. These looked good and smelled fantastic. She really wanted to try some. Fresh bread was one other few vices and she really adored it. She always had fresh golden table loaf each morning with her breakfast and savored every bite. She was really glad to have it. The sun batter glaze really made it extra tasty. "Eh? Never seen a hearthknot before? Well, I'll be then! They'll fill ya up good and well for a few hours. You do look a bit peckish. They're two bronze apiece. How many can I do for you title lovebirds?" Penny felt her face beat up. "W-We're not—!" "Two a piece, please," Sun said, completely unfazed. The man made a face but accepted the money. He handed them two warm, large bread knots slathered in butter and what appeared to be cloves of garlic, sprinkled with big, flaky salt. They were incredibly warm and helped chase away the chill from the driving rain and blustery winds. They were surprisingly dense but she certainly wouldn't complain. She was definitely peckish after the joy and the warmth from the hearthknots would help her in the cold. She took a bite and then looked at sun, her eyes wide. "These are really good!" Her parents had told her all commoners ate was gruel with hospices and that all commoner food was disgusting. These were savory with a hint of sweetness due to the type of butter that was used. Not as the sunbutter glaze that came on the golden table loaf, but good nonetheless. She knew commoners couldn't compete with the quality of ingredients that the royal family had, but this was still pretty good. The garlic butter was absolutely fantastic. Sun nodded. "I'd never had one before coming to Nytheris, but I had some while traveling through hereto Flor Wynne. They always helped chase away the cold of the road especially on rainy, stormy days or nights like today. They're good at filling you up when you're really hungry and they have a way of warming you up as well. I don't think they have any enchantments on them, but they definitely have something in the baking process that holds in some of the hearth's warmth." He took a bite of the hearthknot and smiled. "Despite how had leaving Uln Dareth was, these hold a special place in my heart because they helped me fill up for super cheap during storms like this." Penny nodded. "That sounds nice. This is the first time I've ever had them. The Ekoni family doesn't really allow too much deviation. I'm a Slerya adherent in secret. They really only want followers of Thyrssa in their service." At least she had come up with a plausible explanation on the fly. She was worried he wouldn't believe her or catch her in the lie. She felt bad for lying to him like this, but she didn't trust the other people around them. Honestly, She wouldn't be surprised if her parents sent guards to look for her. So far, she hadn't seen any Duskmane Sentinels among the crowd. She could recognise the Sentinels at a distance easily. They were large draft breeds, well over 20 hands high. Their dark, obsidian coats and storm-grey eyes made them standout immediately. She could also tell the deep black on Sapphire uniform that had silver accents at a glance. She was fairly certain her parents would have sounded the alarm by now, but she saw no signs of the Dustman Sentinels and could only hope they would remain away from the Cathedral. But it was the most obvious place she'd go today…. She just wanted to see a festival firsthand and not have to sit through hours of liturgy for once. "Interesting. If you're an adherent of sclera, why come down to Orthenos' festival?" "Celebrating other holidays doesn't make you any less devout. I observe all holidays to some degree." Usually she was just in the Cathedrals, listening to static liturgy that never changed. The first times it had been exciting to leave the castle, but now, she dreaded holidays because it meant hours upon hours of boring liturgy. She had always wanted to join the festival part of holidays and now she could. It might very well be the only time, though.. She knew her parents just wanted to protect her from the dangers of the world but it was hard on her. She knew there was no better position than princess, but still... She wanted to be able to experience things like this. This festival wassoexciting and she couldn't wait to see more. "That's entirely fair. I still celebrated most of the holidays in Uln Dareth despite being a Vaelis acolyte. Though the Dawnfire Festival was always the most important holiday for me. It was always the busiest. Granted, it isn't so busy for m in our little enclave..." He sighed. "I still get to celebrate but it's just not the same as at home." Penny frowned. "I can only imagine." She was glad she had never been displaced and hoped she never would be. Nytheris hadn't had any wars in several generations and she hoped that would continue for her reign, whenever she took over the throne. She wasn't sure when that'd be, but she could only hope her parents had more life in them for quite some time to come. Though she also knew her parents would be pushing for tert get married sooner rather than later... She really wasn't looking forward to that. She knew that she couldn't put it off forever, but she wanted to put it off as long as she could. He shook his head. "Was there anything in particular you wanted to see?” "I wanted to see the lightning duels." They weren't actual duels with lightning, but flashy magic duels where mages put on a show for the masses. They went on often during the day to her knowledge. She'd heard servants talk about the duels before and they sounded absolutely enthralling to watch. She'd had servants tell her what they'd seen in the days following the storm call Festival. It was so exciting that she'd finally get to see it herself. She really just wanted to experience life herself rather than having to hear everything second hand from trusted servants and guards. It was so hard to not have experienced life when she knew there was so much out there to see and do. "I think that's this way." San motioned and she followed him. People continued to mill about them They walked down a small alley way around the cathedral where the crowds thinned, but there were still people around. She wasn't really sure what to say to San, but she was definitely glad she had found him. He was from Un Dareth, that much was true, but he was kind and warm. She knew a lot of other people would have tried to use her for awful things. Then again, he didn't know who she was. He thought she was another commoner that just didn't get to leave her manor home very often. Or if he had seen through her lies, he wasn't letting on. They reached an area that had target throngs of crowds gathered around. chatting excitedly. She was short so she couldn't really see past the much taller people around her. "C'mon." Sun tugged at her cloak and she followed him. They skirted around the crowds and found what was clearly a tower. He led her up around the spiral staircase and up to the top. It seemed like a disused belltower that had fallen out of favor. It was odd he knew about this, though… He was from Uln Dareth; why would he know about a disused bell tower in a Nytheri Cathedral? It didn't make sense. But they had a perfect, unobstructed view of the dueling grounds. She could see two people circling each other and, then, bright flashes started to radiate from them. The figures darted to and fro, the crowd cheering whenever contact happened from the spells. She smiled a bit and ate the hearth knots slowly. Despite how long she'd had them, they were still warm. She definitely wouldn't complain about being warm in the cold, driving rain. They were sheltered at the moment by the belltower's roof, but they'd have to get down eventually. "Sun?" "Huh?" He glanced over at her. "Is something wrong?" "How did you know about this belltower?" She hoped it didn't sound like she was accusing him of anything. She really was just curious. The Silver Veil wing had told her to trust him and she was doing that. She wasn't second guessing any of his actions or anything like that. She just wasn't sure how he knew about as something as specific as a disused belltower in one of Florwynne's Cathedrals. "Oh, This? I used to be restless at night when I first came here to Florwynne. I'd roam about the city and discover things natives had forgotten about. I've found a lot of cool places like this belltower, old forgotten chapels, statues, parks, and so on. I wouldn't say I know the city like the back of my hand, but I know it pretty well. If you ever wanted to see some of those places, I'd be happy to show you." "It depends on what my...bosses say." Her parents would be furious when she got back, assuming they hadn't already sent the Duskmane Sentinels after her. Really, she was surprised they hadn't already broken up the festival to look for her. Something felt afoot to her. She'd been gone for several hours and her parents hadn't sent the Sentinels to the most obvious place after her. Her father was an Astral Weaver, so maybe that had something to do with it? She had no idea. She was really just shocked that she was being left alone and the city hadn't gone into lockdown over her being missing. But she knew her parents wouldn't be happy when she came home… "Your bosses sound as bad as slave masters to me." Sun shook his head. "They don't let you have much freedom, do they?" "Not really, no." There wasn't much she could do about what her parents did with her life. She had freedom to move around the castle feely. but that was it. Her parents just wanted to make sure that she was safe. She did object to the fact that she wasn't being taught about how to run the Kingdom; that was her main thing. She would take over from her parents one day and she didn't know anything about economics, politics, or anything like that. She would have to learn someday. but her parents hadn't started teaching her yet. She was nineteen and really needed to learn about her duties sooner rather than later. "That's sad. You're a commoner, Mari; nobles shouldn't be allowed to tell you what to do with your life." He scoffed. "Nobles really can be the worst." "Yeah, they can be awful." Even she couldn't deny it. She had seen how a lot of noblewomen treated their ladies in waiting. She was naive to the world outside of the court, but when it came to court. She knew how vicious it could be. She was more than aware of noblemen who raped their servants and forced them to bear bastard children. She knew of noblemen who took mistresses of lower noble status and then dumped the women once they found out they were pregnant. Noble women were gossipy hens who Played their own forms of politics. They could be far more vicious than their husbands when it came to getting a leg up in the world. "Anything else you wanted to see, Mari?" He looked at her. "Um... I would like to participate in the Thunder Dance it at all possible." She had been taught all of the traditional dances that accompanied the holidays. She had had them drilled into her to the point of perfection. She hoped she wouldn't stand out too much among the commoners while doing it. She was really excited to be able to see and participate in one of the dances for the first time. Tingles went through her body. She was [so] excited to see one of the dances for the first time! She couldn't wait to experience it for the first time! "We can watch this for a bit more and then go down to the Dance." He nodded and she saw movement at the back of his cloak. "Um, why is your cloak moving?" He blinked and looked over his shoulder. Hetook it off and revealed a blond monkey tail. Oh. "You're a Faunus." He nodded and path is cloak back on. "Yup. Got a problem with it?" There was no accusation in his voice, just curiosity. She shook her head. "No. I just wasn't expecting it was all." Her interactions with Faunus had been minimal as they weren't common in the Magisterium around here. They were more common in the lower orders of the Magisterium and in commoners. Some of her servants were Faunus, but that was about as far as her interactions with them went. She was definitely surprised the Silver Veil wing had told her to trust a foreign Faunus. She just was shocked that Selyra would instruct her to do such a thing. But if it was what the gods willed. who was she to disobey? The Arcanum Lords so rarely stepped in on a personal level like that. He nodded and put his cloak back on, then fell silent. They stood and watched a few rounds of the amazing lightning duels before Sun motioned to her to follow. She did so and he led her to a plaza. The rain hammered down on them but a large swath of people gathered around. A chorus of feet stamped around in a seemingly random and definitely chaotic manner. She watched for a bit until she understood what was happening. People performed the dance in coordinated, timed waves. The constant ebb and flow of the timing and motions made it seem more chaotic than it actually was. The people moved in rougher ways than she had learned, but she could see the logic behind everything. "Come on, Sun! "She looked at him. He shook his head. "You go have fun'/I don't know the dance." She pouted at him but he didn't budge. She waited until a group passing by started and then slipped into it. It took her a few minutes to gain her bearings. but once she did, she smiled. Everyone danced and whirled in time to the music being played nearby. this was as much fun as she'd thought it'd be!She'd learned the dance with her siblings that were able to dance and it had always seemed like it'd be a fun time. She was so glad she was right! Twirling and swirling, stomping and clapping in time... It was a blast! She went on for quite some time until she felt her energy starting to dip. She wasn't used to intense physical activity, so this was a lot for her. She could feel her throat and mouth incredibly dry from the exertion. She was used to always having something on hand to drink at all times, so this was unusual for her. She wasn't hungry at all, thanks to the hearthknots, but she needed something to drink after dancing so much. Thankfully, she found Sun again. "I know you said you weren't a walking bank, but could I get something to drink..?" She felt dry like a desert despite the rain pounding around them. "You did dance for quite a while, so sure." He smiled at her and offered his hand. She hesitated before taking it. He pulled her away from the throngs of crowds over to stalls where dealers peddled their wars. They found a vendor offering drinks in clear cups. It was an aqua color with dark droplets suspended in it. It looked wonderful. The vendor sold them two cups for five coppers. Sun winced, implying the price was a bit steep, but he didn't complain. She took a drink and her eyes widened. "This is really good!" Why had her parents said peasant food was bad? The hearthknots and this drink—rainmaker's tonic, the vendor had called it—were excellent. She wanted to try more festival foods! It had an herbal taste but in a pleasant way. and it tasted like crisp rain with a hint of green apple and sage. "Yeah, it's not too bad. Anything else you wanted while we're here?" He took a drink from his tonic. She shook her head. "No, not really..." "Don't want to hear the liturgy or anything? It'd get us out of the rain for a bit." Penny shook her head. "No thanks." She'd heard the liturgy for every holiday so many times over. It wasn't something she enjoyed a tall at this point. Honestly, it was getting late, so she should probably get home.. Sunset's in a few hours." She smiled. "I had a lot of fun today. Thank you." He grinned. "You're pretty fun to hang with, Mari. It’d be cool if we could hang again." She smiled sadly, "It would be. but I don't think I'm going to see you again." this was her first rebellion against her parents and it had turned out fine, but she knew that probably wouldn't always be the case. The Silver Veilwing had definitely meant for her to trust him, but she didn't trust the other people around them. She really wanted to come clean about her identity to him. She wasn't sure if anybody else would overhear and attempt to do anything with the information. She was stuck between a rock and a hard place really. "You were lost on your way here, so I doubt you can find your way back on your own. Where is your bosses' house?" she thought for a moment before answering. "They're staying at the castle right now. That's where I snuck out from." He flinched. "I can take you partway there but I don't wanna get caught by the guards. Nytheris is a lot better about human/Faunus relationships. but I still don't want to be caught by the castle guards. I don't think they'd be happy to know that someone from a noble house was consorting with a Faunus from Uln Dareth." He sighed. “What do you mean, better? But that does make sense." She felt attached to him and wanted to see him again, but that wasn't likely. Her parents would probably clamp down on her even harder than they had before. Knowing she had managed to sneak out... Yeah, they would make it next to impossible for this to happen again. She wouldn't give San's identity up to them. no matter what they did. She doubted they'd actually do anything rash to her like torture. but she'd probably be put under constant guard and 'd not allowed out of her room ever again. A pity, but actions did have consequences, and those would probably be hers. “I’ll answer when we’re farther away from the crowds, okay?” He grinned and Penny nodded. He squeezed her hand, then they turned toward the main entrance of the Cathedral and left.