[color=7bcdc8][h3][center]Corpus and Gala[/center][/h3][/color]

A small tickle of rain made the world glisten, the air was cool and pleasant and the sounds of chirping animals and water droplets falling made for a calming soundscape.

And yet, the goddess felt increasingly more uncomfortable in this comfortable setting, having been forced to travel all the way back to her node because of unclear news. When she met the scouts and hunters inhabiting one of the many frontier lodges, she did not waste time with simple questions.

[color=7bcdc8]What happened? Where is Croll?[/color]

The group in front of her was Bedjo's hunting party, some could even say his tribe, though only a small core group of four was truly close to their leader. Croll's son himself was not around, instead, the second in command answered for him.

"We discovered a smuggling operation of local goods with foreigners from the lands west. They seemed to have intensified while you were away, my goddess." the woman explained with a gentle and cordial expression.

[color=7bcdc8]"And?"[/color] Dzallitsunya's words were quick to the point and caught the woman by surprise, it was far from what she expected and it took her some time to know what to answer.

"Well, that is bad... right? A crime, of course. So we, uh, us four and Bedjo, started to approach and try to dissuade them from fighting."

The goddess sighed and turned. [color=7bcdc8]"To the point."[/color]

"Well, a fight broke off, some people were wounded, Croll's group harmed us and we harmed them back, some died, Croll fled."

The goddess froze in place, her rage impossible to hide. [color=7bcdc8]"Who gave you the permission to become agents of the law? Who gave you the permission to even think about harming another citizen without asking me about it first? HMMM? Look at this mess that you have created. Look at how much I will need to fix."[/color]

"B...but goddess. We were just upholding what you established and..."

[color=7bcdc8]"Do you think I was not aware of Croll doing some under the table negotiations? It did not matter I was giving him a chance and you idiots stuck your nose where it did not belong, I never asked for your help with this, you overstepped and you caused me great harm."[/color]

The mortals recoiled at the sudden rage of a typically quiet goddess and in a sense Dzallitsunya felt bad, she could not blame them. She opened up her arms and made movement with her open palms to silence and calm all those around before clapping.

[color=7bcdc8]"Nevertheless, what is done is done, I will track Bedjo and Croll before the situation worsens"[/color]

And with that she turned, starting to leave the shelter, observing one last time the wounded few frontiersmen who now stared at the floor nervously. She noted their wounds.

Then she froze again.

She turned and started to approach another one of Bedjo's confidants, she got awfully close, almost pressing the man between the wall and herself. With a quick move, she took his own dagger, the man now sobbing in a nervous breakdown, and with his dagger, she compared it to the wound in his own belly. She made a few movements in the air with the knife at different angles, until one matched the wound in his belly.

"Goddess?" the second in command tried to distract her but her approach now just resulted in her hand being grabbed by the goddess, the sleeves being pulled down to allow her a better look at the wounds in the scout's arms. They looked closer to clawing and nail marks against it, not like anything she had ever seen in combat before.

As the dots connected, they formed a disgusting image.

[color=7bcdc8]"What have you done..."[/color] this was not a question to them, it was almost a lament.

[hr]

The arrival was not the typical cold wind and ringing bells, but a strike like silent thunder. Bedjo was now facing the goddess, the loyal man gasping at the sudden arrival but holding his ground where many would fall back or trip down.

[color=7bcdc8]"Why have you done this to me? What have you done to your father?"[/color] there was no context but the man immediately knew what she was talking about.

"I found it necessary to strike at evil where it stood. My father was never going to listen to me. He would continue committing crimes, undermining your rule, he had been since you made Zed your husband, perhaps even before!"

[color=7bcdc8]"That... was... calculated! I understood what he would do, it did not matter! I had got Zed married to me, his sister would only take up the leadership of the clan in his name, that is the cities under my control, then your father Croll would slowly move out, because he wanted space for his business, and become less of a clan and more of an entity that holds the outer realm and its resources. It was perfect, perfect and ruined it."[/color]

The man stopped. "But, he would use that power for crime. I am sure of it, he was smuggling. He wanted to get enough power to strong-arm you into a position of his liking."

[color=7bcdc8]"That bloody past tense, you already did it, didn't you? Murdered him. Your mother too? Where are the corpses? Every divine action costs me some power that would be better spent somewhere else but if its to bring back a brilliant mind like his I am willing to take that sacrifice."[/color]

"The... sulfur pit. It was done weeks ago, in a moment of rage, when he... insulted your intelligence. My goddess. Please. Whatever I did, I did out of love for you. I believe in your views of the world, I believe in gentle nights for all. He... he was lured by the ways of those who dwell in sunny lands, he wanted personal riches and..."

The goddess hadn't been listening, she had been calculating, the sulfur would have melted the bodies, how hard would it be... too much, it was too unnatural to turn back now. [color=7bcdc8]"Who truly insulted me here is you. Who acted in my name without my person. Who assumed I was not aware of how Croll saw me. He was a smart man, perhaps greedy, but also driven. I was allowing him leeway, to see if his ideas could work or if the troubles I had with it would come true. He was a good man, if the troubles appeared I was sure we could agree to stop them."[/color]

She turned, staring at the boy. [color=7bcdc8]"You, meanwhile, you are worthless to me. Your greatest act was using your human chaotic nature to have your little potential strike at someone with far more. Congratulations for that."[/color] he tried to speak but was immediately cut off. [color=7bcdc8]"And speaking of that, how can I know you are not even worse than a fool. You and your father, there was little time between you and him. Very few years. If your father ruled the clan to 70, how old would you be? 52? 55? I can see why you would want to speed it up and coup at his domain."[/color]

He stood still, before shaking his head vehemently. "Of course not! I would... never. I just... felt like, what he was doing was wrong. I thought I was helping everyone...."

The goddess shook her head. [color=7bcdc8]"Sincerely. At this point. I don't want to even think about it. You are not worth the trouble. I do not care if you were foolish or greedy. The damage is done. How much effort and brute force it will take to make up for all that was lost? Just too much. I cannot even be angry at you. I am just exhausted. You deserved to be punished, to wish for death over having to repay your kin-slaying sin, but that would require thought, and there is no space in my mind for that."[/color]

The world moved slowly and he could not quite follow, but the image was not good. "My friends, they just helped me to hide the bodies, you shouldn't... ack" he clawed at his neck as a quick and rapid slash had cut halfway through it. He fell in front of the goddess' feet, strength quickly leaving him, darkness approaching, and then, a consuming whiteness, true nothingness.

The goddess stood a moment staring at the now lifeless body. Mortals were truly terrible at times. Zealous devotion had just caused her problems suspicion and greed had not. And yet the little zealot had died lying to her face, because she had seen the wounds his friend had, some were indeed made up to make up a fake fight, but those clawing of hands at the arm, that was the result of someone strangling someone unarmed, who that was? Had the mother got involved as he tried to hide the body of Croll, resulting in his friends killing her? Was it some assistant, or a helper? An innocent civilian? Had they conducted a purge of those Croll-aligned?

The sheer possibility of damage was just too great, so many of her most useful subjects and even personal friends could be among the dead now. She whispered names in silence while overthinking, from Marana, to Turillo, to Kadja, and many others. A prayer for them to be safe, a foolish act she recognised, for in these lands there were no gods but her.

[hr]

She loved humans, she really did, and she wanted them to be safe and free, she did not want to impose a will and stifle their creativity. That was a valid mindset.

On the other, it was absurdly irresponsible to fall back and not exercise her full power as a god, no other god did that, and whenever a mortal had power, one could be certain they would use that power for whatever whim they had.

There was, after all, no garden without a gardener, the flowers had to be selected, the plants nourished, and the weeds to be cleansed. To avoid such responsibility was not noble but cowardly, to pass the sin of poor decision making to the mortals and leaders.

And so, she had decided, she needed to expand herself. If the node expanded her will to the realm on a spiritual level, it was time to do the same in a more physical manner, to acquire the knowledge and decision making power and speed necessary for these trying times.

[color=7bcdc8]"Greetings."[/color] she finally acknowledged the crowd that had formed in the currently empty central temple of the city. People she had picked for a variety of reasons, some she trusted, some who were skilled, and finally, those who had never been blinded.

Those born in the cave, Zed's tribe, had never seen the sun until they left, some did not even after because they were shielded by the Shadow Petal all the way to the Twilight Swamps, after that, they still had not seen the orb of fire, by never leaving the fog and mostly being awake at night. Just looking at a bright light was enough to make one unable to see well in shadows for a long while, so it became the belief that those who never saw the overwhelming solar light were obviously unblinded. The goddess did not initially believe in this myth of the cave dwellers, but, not only she was becoming partial to the unhealthy factors of sunlight, but the sheer respect these people had was also quite useful for her purposes.

[color=7bcdc8]"In the last days I have seen more of the world, met more people, talked with other gods and saw how the world really works out there. We, our way of life, may seem steadfast and secure, but even the strongest rocks can be broken by the constant flow of water. Troubles within and outside are endless, my initial belief that the gods would tame the chaos and bring about something good was wrong. Man-eating beasts, corrupt agents of intrigue and much worse."[/color]

The crowd was quiet until now, merely listening to the goddess, there was some anxiety and tension considering the size and secrecy of this meeting but so far they already had assumed all she spoke about.

[color=7bcdc8]"Knowing these troubles, I believe we must adapt. I wanted to create a country of full honesty and transparency, I thought being among mortals was enough, that I could lead by example. As unfortunate as it is, that was foolish. There is a time for everything, a time for cold when you must warm-up and a time of heat when you must cool yourself. Similarly, simple honesty and consensus while useful in general may become worthless at times. It is something harsh, but still true, there are times when mortals do not know what is best for themselves. It must be scary to hear someone say that, but it is what it is, the best vases aren't made by asking the opinions of a whole village on it, but by the firm hands of a skilled potter."[/color]

This brought up some murmur among the crowd, speculation on just what the goddess was aiming for was wild.

[color=7bcdc8]"I will be reforming the way this land is run. The clan system, the family arrangements, even the hunting bands, all will be disbanded. In its place, this lands and all other of the duskland will be ruled by an able government body, it will have clear rules, clear limitations and clear freedoms. To do that, I will need to dwell beyond the realm of the honest and direct, the world of intrigues and whims, of deception and hiding the truth, it too must be part of the state. It makes no sense to ignore that realm, we cannot destroy it, but we can tame it, and make sure these things are done for the benefit of our people."[/color]

[color=7bcdc8]"For that purpose, I will need a system. In your body, you have a nervous system that collects and transmit information, imagine how weak you would be if your skin could not immediately inform through pain that there is a leech in your leg, by the time the issue is noticed even the people with the most vitality could end up sick. My issues with the land are the same, and so, if I am to rule, I need the information to know if I am ruling effectively. I need a bureaucracy to know which granaries are full and which are empty, which lands are losing people or receiving immigrants. if there is a drought or if there is a flood, or even a new illness. I need to know where all the bridges are, who and what crosses them, I want to know how well the roads are kept, what passages the hunters and travellers are using, I want to know what opinions the people whisper while drinking tea or wine. I want a name for every face, I want every death and pregnancy to be reported. I need the agents to act if foreign forces try to lure people into system that smell like perfume but are in truth a pit of decadence, I need the agents to dissuade a citizen from doing something foolish way before that happens."[/color]

[color=7bcdc8]"And you, who I invited here, are those who may become this system. What I offer you is not the role of clan leaders or kings, you will be handling data and protocols, and, if necessary, sometimes you may act to protect the order and the land. I will need your full devotion if you accept, with the blessings will also come obligations. Your mind will be fully exposed to me and unlike most work, you will never be allowed personal material gains from this. To accept this offer it will mean to sacrifice yourself for the benefit of the rule and the people, for all of your life and beyond that. I will perfectly understand if some of you do not accept it, to those who do, step forth, for now you will be one of my Moonbound Magistrates."[/color]

[hider=summary]
A terrible act happened while Dzallitsunya was away, the fight between Croll and his son Bedjo became heated because the zealot son felt like Croll was betraying the goddess by trading with others and getting influence and power to impose his will against her decisions. Ultimately, Bedjo slayed Croll.
Dzallitsunya liked Croll very much and expected him to do that, she executes Bedjo soon after and decides its gloves off time.
She starts to reform the entire governing system to make it far more bureaucratic and centralised.
For that end, she creates a special group of people, the magistrates.
[/hider]

[hider=might]
Starting= 4

-4 (Advanced curse or bless a group)
The Moonboud Magistrates are a group meant to be the core of Dzallitsunya's government. Sharp senses, strong minds and reliable memories which can be accessed by Dzallitsunya just by being in their presence.

Meant to be the unseen forces of her rule, they are blessed to be invisible, having to use makeup, ink and eye-drops to counter that, this gives them an almost paper-white complexion, with no colours in their eyes and hair outside of the grey-scale. Blessed by the shadows, they have trouble being out in direct sunlight unless it's the dim weakened sun of Dzallitsunya's lands.
[/hider]