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[Azerath]

Grand Inquisitor Zosimus had all the symptoms of old age, a balding head, white wispy hair, liver spots, and wrinkles from head to toe. Even his eyesight was poor. He sat at his desk in his office at the Basilica of Saint Beraneous holding a piece of magnifying glass up to the letter he had received. Two words were written in big bold type. APOSTASY. OLONA, “Inquisitor Lucas!”

Inquisitor Lucas was a much younger man. He had all the symptoms of youth, arrogance, rashness, and ambition. Yes ambition. He had already made a decent name for himself by combating heresy. A name among those who paid attention to that sort of thing anyway. He wore fine black robes with a red sash and a large silver medallion of the moon around his neck. A gangly man, he had to duck as he entered the Grand Inquisitors office. He bowed, “Your Eminence.”

Grand Inquisitor Zosimus didn’t look up from the letter, “Father Lucas, you are to head to the village of Olona. The suspicion is apostasy. A brother of the Order of Saint Bella will meet your there with more details.”

“Is that all, your Eminence?” he asked with his head still bowed.

The Grand Inquisitor looked up, and pointed to a bag on his desk, “For expenses. Also, make sure to wear something a little less...conspicuous.”

“Of course, your Eminence,” Father Lucas bowed, and turned to leave.

“Requesta be with you,” Zosimus called after him.

“And with you,” he responded. Inquisitor Lucas packed his robes and changed into plain clothing before leaving the Basilica. He headed down Palantine Hill to the streets of Soacio where he chartered a carriage.

He had reached the village by nightfall and entered the local inn. It had a large common area with several rooms for guests on the second floor. He bought a room and placed his belongings in it before returning to the hall. Sitting in the corner was a middle aged man in black robes, with brown tonsured hair, a few white strands throughout, and a wooden symbol of the moon hanging from his neck. Inquisitor Lucas sat next to the man, “Praise Requesta brother, what brings you to Olona?”

The man turned and smiled, “I’m waiting for someone, my friend. I was hoping they’d arrive here today, but it seems they may have been delayed.”

“Or perhaps not,” said Lucas.

The monk shot him a look of puzzlement before he smiled, “Forgive me, Father, you’re not what I expected.”

“Oh no?” asked the Inquisitor.

“That is to say, I was not expecting someone dressed so...forgive me for saying so...but plainly, Father...I’m sorry,” the brother looked away in shame.

“No need to apologize brother. This is no mere heresy. The man or men know what they’re doing is wrong, and will try to hide it from us. The Inquisition finds it best not to reveal our presence when this is the case.”

“That is wise, father. Very wise, I am called Efrem.”

“You may call me Lucas. In fact, for the time being I insist you call me Lucas. You can read and write?”

“Yes, father Lucas.”

“Just, Lucas. We’re trying to hide my identity for now, remember?”

The brother looked puzzled again, before shaking his head yes, “Of course, Lucas.”

“Good, if people ask, I’m looking to join the Order of Saint Bella. Now that we’ve established you can read and write, you will assist me by recording our investigation. I was told you had more details for me.”

“You best get comfortable, Father, or, I mean...Lucas,” brother Efrem unraveled a scroll, “The local priest was a friend of mine, and I heard he’d been murdered. Pretty brutal too. No witnesses, so the locals don’t know who the killer is. The day before last I arrived in the village of Olona for the funeral. It’s a closed casket affair, but he was a close friend of mine so I insisted on seeing the body. Nearly lost my lunch. Half of him were burnt, the bottom half. The top half, they cut on him. I'll never forget what I saw, I drew it here.”
Brother Efrem gave Lucas the scroll, it was the image of a rampant flame. The Inquisitor took a glance, and muttered, “Incensum.”

“Incensum?”

“He’s a devil. Disguises himself as a god of fire.”

“Yes, I’m no expert on devils and things, but I do know my history,” brother Efrem pulled out another scroll, “Before Olona, there was a village of barbaric people that lived here. They worshiped a god of fire. They took Requestians from their homes and burned them alive, as sacrifices to their god.”

“I imagine that warranted a response,” said Lucas.

“Of course,” brother Efrem looked back at the scroll, “The Patriarch himself appeared before the Pregadi to plead for military intervention. The Republic sent soldiers in, and they rounded up every man, woman, and child. For every citizen they had sacrificed, the Republic killed ten. They then tore down the temple of the fire god, Incensum, and dragged the priests out into the streets where they faced a special punishment. Their first idea was to burn them alive, but apparently that would have been some kind of an honor for them. So instead, they burnt the legs, while drowning them in a trough used to water pigs.”

“So, you posit this is some sort of centuries old reprisal?” asked Lucas.

“It explains the marking and why only the bottom half of his body was burnt,” said Efrem.

“It’s enough to open a formal inquiry at the least. Send word to the local garrison, by pigeon. No messengers. I want them here by the morning. Once you do that,” Lucas sighed, “take me to the local Church. I have to examine the body for myself.”

“You don’t trust what I saw?” asked Efrem.

“No, I believe you, that’s why we’ll send word at once. But it is proper procedure that I see the body for myself,” said Lucas.

[Azerath]

It was already late by the time Efrem had sent the letter, and the pair stumbled through the darkness to the burial site of his friend; a secluded spot behind the Church. A man was there with a lamp watching over the site to prevent grave robbing. He looked very annoyed when they asked for his helping digging up the body, but agreed to help.

Once the coffin was up, they opened the lid and were assaulted by the stench of death.

“Requesta’s cunt, that stinks!” said the watchman.

Efrem and Lucas turned and glared at him.

“Apologies, brothers,” said the man.

“I think we can take it from here,” said Efrem. He grabbed the shovel from the man and tossed it on the ground.

The man went to take the lamp, “leave it,” said Lucas. The man walked away, grumbling to himself. The priest was dressed in what must have been his finest robes, and he looked normal enough for a decaying dead man, but it was dark, “hold up the lamp.”

Efrem held the lamp up, and Lucas looked over the man in more detail. “Yes I can see where he was cut on his face here, but I can’t tell the pattern,” said Lucas.
“It’s clearer on his chest,” said Efrem.

Lucas opened the priests robes and looked at his chest. The rampant flame was much clearer here, “Yes, it is much clearer. Can I see the lamp?”

Efrem handed Lucas the lamp, and Lucas set it on the ground. He then picked up the shovel and whacked Efrem as hard as could with it. Efrem fell with a shout. Lucas stood over him with the blade of the shovel at his throat, “Who are you really? You said you saw half of him was burned, the other half cut on, but how could you see the body if he was covered in these robes? Nobody would let a lay brother examine the body of a priest, even if you were friends. So how did you know about the marks?”

Efrem was calm and collected, “I snuck in to check the body before it was displayed for the funeral.”

“Why would you do such a thing?” asked Lucas.

“He was my friend, and he was murdered,” said Efrem.

“That’s quite adventurous for a monk. I don’t believe you,” said Lucas.

“Lucas! Behind you!” shouted Efrem.

“You can’t be serious...I'm not going to...” Lucas was cut short as he was struck hard from behind. He lurched forward onto the ground and turned around just in time to have his assailant jump on top of him. Even in the dark, Lucas knew who it was. The dead priest they had just exhumed! Lucas struggled as best he could, but the priest had him pinned. It wrapped cold, dead hands around his neck and began to squeeze. Lucas couldn’t breath, his body started to tingled, his vision faded, and he felt like he was going to sleep.

Then he heard a loud whack and took in a rush of air to his lungs. The world came back in to focus and he began to cough. Soon he had pulled himself up to the seated position and had a pounding headache. He took a few normal breaths and saw Efrem putting the body of the priest back in the coffin. His face had been smashed in and his fine garment was splattered in blood. Efrem turned to look at Lucas. He had a wet spot on his black robes, probably the priest’s blood. Efrem put the lid back on the coffin and shoved it back in the hole, then threw a few shovels full of dirt on it before he left.

“Wait!” Lucas shouted after him, but Efrem had disappeared into the night. Lucas wasn’t sure what to do. He stood up, and looked around. He started to rebury the body, but the reality of what had just happened struck him. His heart began to beat faster and faster. He grabbed the lamp and ran back to the inn and to his room. Once there, he moved a dresser in front of the door, then the chest with his clothes, and finally the bed.

“No, no, no,” Lucas said as he paced about the room, “I need to go back out there. Someone else dressed as a priest attacked me, or the priest wasn’t dead. Yes, must be. I will find this person, or the priest. I will find them, I have to find them,” Lucas looked out his window, “tomorrow. In the daylight. Yes, tomorrow.”

Dawn came slow for Inquisitor Lucas, but once it had he opened his window and peered out. No soldiers had come, “Efrem has betrayed me. That’s fine. I don’t need soldiers. It is the duty of every Requestian to aid the Inquisition. The village will help me bring these apostates to justice, and the men who attacked me. And Brother Efrem. He probably is an apostate. Yes, and he's trying to drive me crazy by having someone pretending to be a dead man attack me. Of course! I must find them, all of them, and then I'll know the truth.”

Lucas dressed in his priestly vestments and left his room, “You there, Innkeep. Inform your village leaders and what law you have that the Inquisition has reason to suspect apostates dwell here. Tell them and everyone else you see to report to the village square immediately.”

Lucas marched through the village shouting to everyone he passed that there were to come to the village square. Once there, he climbed to a raised platform and began to shout, “Good people. The Inquisition has discovered evidence of Apostasy within your village. Those who wish to confess their crimes now before me and holy Requesta will be given a chance to repent. Those who remain in the shadow will be found out, and they will be handed over to the secular authorities for punishment.”

“Anyone who has seen this image,” Lucas pulled out the scroll of the rampant flame and held it up for all to see, “come see me immediately. Also, there has been a monk in black robes in town the past few days, a brother Efrem. Bring him to me. Bring me brother Efrem!”

A large crowd had gathered by the time Inquisitor Lucas had finished, and they all chattered worriedly among themselves. After a few minutes, a fat man climbed up to where the Inquisitor was, “now, now. Calm down everyone. I want you all to rest assured the situation is under control.” He signaled to two larger men in the crowd to join him.

“You are the mayor of this village I take it?” asked Inquisitor Lucas.

“Close enough,” said the man, “and these two gentlemen will assist you.”

One of the men grabbed Lucas and held him.

“What are you doing? I am an Inquisitor and priest of Requesta. Unhand me!” Lucas struggled as best he could, but the man was much larger and stronger than he was. The other man clubbed Lucas over the head and the world went dark.

[Azerath]

Lucas woke up to cold water being splashed in his face, he coughed and sputtered. The sun was high in the sky and the fat mayor stood in front of him. He could feel the heat from a large fire that burned several yards away. All around, villagers had gathered. He tried to stand but one of the large men force him down to his knees.

“Good news, Inquisitor. We found brother Efrem,” said the mayor.

The other large man forced Efrem into a kneel beside Lucas.

“Now that you’re both here, kneeling on the bones of our ancestors, we can begin,” said the mayor. He took a burning piece of wood from the fire.
Lucas tried to stand again, but was forced back down, “our deaths will not go unnoticed, the Church won’t let this apostasy stand. You and your people will be cut down as your ancestors were.”

“Incensum will provide us an army. One that doesn’t eat, doesn’t sleep, doesn’t need to be paid, and doesn’t feel fear. Every death over the past 100 years will fuel the army, and rise again to take their revenge on the Republic.”

“You’re insane!” shouted Efrem, “The dead can’t be made to walk.”

The mayor smiled,“Watch then, and become believers,” the mayor put the end of the torch in the ground and flames spread out from it like fissures then went out. Where they stopped, the ground shifted and hands of bone burst from the dirt.

“I’ve seen enough,” said Efrem. He spun around on the man holding him and jabbed him in the neck with a hidden blade. He then threw a knife at the man holding Inquisitor Lucas. It sunk deep into his eye socket and the man slumped over. The mayor stood in shock as Efrem walked up to him and kicked him in the back of the legs, forcing him to his knees.

“I invoke the Writ of Extermino Maleficum. You are all guilty of Apostasy and crimes against Requesta. May the Goddess have mercy on your souls,” he reached into his robes and pulled out a crossbow that he fired into the air. A high pitched whistled emitted from the bolt he loosed. He then held the mayor’s head back and slit his throat. The ground stopped shifting and the hands of bone sunk back beneath the dirt.

The villagers were silent. They stood, waiting, but nothing happened. They started to advance on Efrem when the ground started to shake and they turned to see soldiers of the Silver Sun Republic mounted on horses, racing towards the village. They scattered in every direction, but the village was surrounded by infantry as well. They were cut down with ease. Within the hour, every last inhabitant of Olona had been slain.

When it was over, a captain reported to the Inquisitor, “Inquisitor Lucas, the village of Olona has been purged of Apostates, as per your request.”

Inquisitor Lucas didn’t know what to say.

“Thank your men on behalf of the Church,” said Efrem, “tell them they have done a great service to Requesta today.”

“Praise be to Requesta,” said the Captain.

“Long live the Republic,” Efrem responded.

[Azerath]

Efrem helped Lucas into a carriage and sat besides him. Lucas was silent the entire time. Efrem pulled out a quill and paper and handed it to Lucas, “They’ll want a report on what happened here.”

Lucas stared at it, “What should I write?”

“The truth will suffice,” said Efrem.

“Who are you?” asked Lucas.

“I’m nobody in the strictest legal sense, but you could say I’m a servant of Requesta, just like you,” said Efrem.

“Why did you bring me here, it seems like you had the situation well in hand yourself,” said Lucas.

“Well, you know how the Church loves its paperwork, and the request to purge an entire village for apostasy can’t come from nobody like me. I wouldn’t even have a name to put on the bottom. That sort of thing requires an Inquisitor, a well-known Inquisitor all the better. You see, Father, an entire village can’t go up in flames without someone answering for it. People are bound to have questions. When people see that it was Inquisitor Lucas who ordered the purge, they'll say 'well if Lucas ordered it, it must be warranted.' We could have tried to keep it quiet, that's the way I usually like to go, but that was just too many people. Plus, now I can try to find the people who aren’t asking questions,” said Efrem.

“What do you mean?” asked Lucas.

“A lot of people just died,” said Efrem, “Some of them had family in other places. Those people are going to want to know what happened to their kin, as they should. But some of them know why their family members have been killed, they aren’t going to be making inquires because they won't want the attention. It’s those people I need to visit.”

“How do you know who has family?” asked Lucas.

“Church loves its paperwork,” said Efrem.

"You could have just told me the truth."

"I could have?" Efrem snorted, "if I had told you an entire village had turned to devil worship in order to raise an army of the dead to attack the Republic you would have cursed me for a madman and left straight off. Best you saw it for yourself. Besides, you drew out their head priest for me, worked out better this way."

"The dead can't walk," said Lucas, "we saw no such thing."

Efrem laughed, "of course not, Inquisitor. Of course not."

Lucas had nothing more to say.

"Cheer up, Inquisitor. We just saved a lot of lives, and you're a damn hero."

Lucas began to write his report. Efrem watched him for a time before he began to write something of his own.

The carriage arrived in Soacio and dropped both men off by the front gate of the Basilica of Saint Beraneous. Efrem took the report Inquisitor Lucas had written up and bid him a good evening. He then walked up several flights of stairs to the highest offices in the Basilica where the report was taken from him and he was made to wait for a short time before being allowed in.

Upon entering the office he bowed low once, took several steps and then bowed again in front of an enormous desk, and knelt, “Patriarch Pius, I have come to give my report on the village of Olona, your Holiness.”

An old man in a heavy robe sat by a fire in the back of the room, “Rise my child, we do not like to stand on ceremony when there is nobody else around to be impressed by it. Come, join us by the fire.” Once Efrem had joined him the Patriarch waved a piece of parchment about, “we have read the report by the Inquisitor. We trust you have as well.”

“I have your Holiness.”

“And how about your own report?”

“Here, your Holiness,” the Patriarch took the parchment and began to read, “You have the Inquisitors hand writing exact. Your talents unnerve us at times.”

“Forgive me, your Holiness.”

“Nonsense, you employ them to further the glory of the goddess, there is nothing to forgive. What is your take on this whole ordeal?”

“I believe the dead should stay buried, your Holiness.”

The Patriarch was silent for a time, “We couldn’t agree more.” He took the Inquisitor’s report and threw it in the fire. “We are most pleased with the service of Inquisitor Lucas, he should be rewarded. Early retirement to one of the Republic’s islands. One with good weather. One that doesn’t smell like shit and fish guts. See that he has a suitable pension. A dedicated servant of Requesta should be well taken care of.”

“What of the village, your Holiness?”

“That does seem a troublesome spot doesn’t it? Send that Medici boy we hear so much of, the Exorcist.”

“Azerath, your Holiness.”

“Yes, of course. Send him to banish that devil for good this time. Give him whatever support he requires. I hear the area is perfect for raising pigs, and we do so love our pancetta.”