The fire crackled in the center of the camp, a pale ember against the devouring dusk. Smoke spiraled up into the bruised, darkening sky, carrying the scent of charred pheasant and wet earth. The cold had teeth tonight. It bit into the thin canvas of the tents, into the threadbare cloaks the refugees huddled in, into the marrow of my brittle bones.
I stood at the edge of the gathering, hesitating like a coward at the lip of a battlefield.
They sat in loose circles around the fire, scattered and shivering, heads bowed against the night wind. Faces hollowed by hunger and hard living, clothes stitched together from whatever scraps they'd scavenged during their flight from the Domains. I counted maybe sixty, maybe more. Some faces too tired to lift, some too wrapped in their own grief to notice anything at all.
Moose roamed in the pasture a safe distance away while we gathered around the bonfire. A man approached, purple-fringed cloth wrapped around his body like Kuti's. He handed me a bowl of brown soup with a pheasant leg and chunk of bread floating in the murky broth.
Tav received his portion, eyeing it suspiciously, probably wondering all the different ways it could give you food poisoning. Then he took a big slurp and wiped his lips. "Could be worse."
He turned to me. "Aren't you going to eat?"
I stared down at my soup. It didn't look that appetizing, but that wasn't the problem. Humility's Mandate dug so deep into my soul, I didn't even feel like I deserved to eat. How could I keep living like this?
"You're not going to eat because you're used to good food, huh?" The man who had handed me the soup scoffed.
"No no, that's not it at all—" I started, but he cut me off.
"Well, you're in the outlands now, there's none of that tasty stuff out here, so eat what you get. You'll be helping us hunt and harvest soon enough." He barked as he strode off to serve others.
"Do I even look like a noble?" I grumbled internally. Even in my past life as a mercenary, I ate better than most, but nothing like nobles or royals. Now in such a tattered state, I looked worse than a slave—worse than a madman.
"What is up with those people?" Tav complained, thick brows furrowed in anger. "Zero manners, same as that Kuti girl. They're probably from the same domain with those clothes. You don't even look anything like a noble. You look like shit! No offense."
"None taken." I answered truthfully. My pride wasn't hurt because I didn't have any.
I thought back to yesterday, before the Temple incident, in the healing room. Tav seemed calm and controlled then, and he still did here to a degree, but he was far freer now, less refined. Mostly because of his interactions with people from other domains.
Tav was from Humility, which focused on treating people equal and lower to yourself. Even though Tav said he hated the place, it had obviously still rubbed off on him. Maybe Kuti and this man's behavior were normal in their domain. I didn't bother voicing that to Tav though.
A repeated clanking noise rang through the quiet night which was previously only filled with the sounds of people eating and a few conversing. Everyone's eyes naturally rose up to the person who had made this sound to draw our attention.
Her.
"Hello everyone, as we may all know, I am Veraque Mitis, the Virtue Priestess of Kindness. I hope you're all finding some measure of peace in our safe haven?"
The people grumbled, their eyes shifting with distrust. They still didn't trust the Virtue Priestesses. Why would they? Safe haven was a stretch. This place was nothing more than a wide strip of land in the open, with about fifty tents sprawled sparsely in the area. There weren't even any sort of protections like gates or guards we used to have back when I was with my mercenary squad.
Any wild beast could kill us. The Great Whites, Lance-tooth Lirks, Gribs, even the moose in the distance could ram us if we got too close. I stared at the bandages on my arms. I am a testament to that fact. Come to think of it, why hadn't they?
"I know the living conditions are not as suitable as those in your previous domains..." Veraque continued, her voice gentle yet measured. "But I admire the courage each of you has shown in seeking a better life, however humble our beginnings may be."
"Are you kidding? Anything is better than staying in Diligence. You'll get worked like a dog!"
"Chastity would kill you if you went against her rules."
"I don't want to be in a place where there's a possibility of being put to Waiting."
Several people shouted, complained, and muttered in fear and pain about how bad their lives were in the other Virtues' domain.
Veraque's eyes crinkled with righteous sadness and empathy. "I understand your suffering. The methods the other Virtues use are extreme, and I apologize on their behalf for what they've done to—"
"There's no use of apologizing! You're a Priestess, right? You want what's best for us, right? Then fight them? Or at least talk to them to stop!" A man at the back stood up to shout and lost steam at the end, sitting back down with his hands on his face, voicing my questions from earlier.
"Fighting isn't an option, for me at least," Veraque said, lowering her voice meekly before regaining composure. "And the Virtue Priestesses have a right to lead the way they choose righteously. I don't have authority over that, but together, we can rebuild something new, as equals under kindness."
The people started to yell again, but Kindness rose a hand to silence them.
"I understand your frustrations, but I think you should at least treat me with the respect I render as a Virtue Priestess and let me finish. I do deserve that at least, right?"
The people hurriedly sat back down as if remembering the horrors the VPs had done in their domains. Tav folded his arms and stared intently at Veraque, mentally scrutinizing her.
"As I was saying, I can't do anything about the other Virtue Priestesses, which is why I created this safe haven in this land beyond their domains. Here we can live peacefully under the virtue of Kindness. Here we can rebuild and start over, a better life, free..."
"What do you think of her gimmick, Bon?"
While Kindness rambled on about her manifesto for peace and prosperity in the new world, Tav quietly posed a question to me.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, her whole trying to save the broken." Tav continued, his voice low and tense. "I think it's calculated. There have been six to ten VPs of Kindness over the years. Not once did they intervene. And now she shows up collecting the damaged goods from other domains? Building her own following? That doesn't add up."
I thought back to my time. Even then I hadn't heard of the VP of Kindness. I only met Patience and Chastity, heard of other squads going to Diligence, Temperance, Humility and Charity, but never Kindness. And according to Tav, she had only appeared in this generation? Did they just stay hidden during that time?
"Also, there must be an ulterior motive to helping us," Tav pressed. "Maybe she wants to use us for something. I've noticed she collects people with specific skills. And why take only the broken? Why not fight for the healthy ones too? I don't know. What do you think?"
"I... don't know," I admitted. "I hate the Virtue Priestesses, but Kindness has been nothing but, well, kind to me and everyone. I truly don't sense anything nefarious on her like I have on the other Virtue Priestesses. But I could be wrong."
Tav nodded while I continued, as the crowd and Veraque were now in the stage where questions were thrown and answered on why they should trust Veraque, or how they would survive and make livings for themselves here.
"I don't have any doubts about Kindness' behavior. I only want to know one thing. What's her 'ability'? Or no, that's not the right word. What did Domitia call it, Holy Mandate?"
I tried not to let the pain of the memory of her mandate acting on me, but I'm sure Tav's rueful eyes caught it anyway.
"I don't know what it is, but I do have a guess. See those moose over there?" He said, pointing to the distance.
"Yeah?" I had thought about the moose before, but it seemed Tav was already ahead of me.
"They don't attack, even though they're the cause of the highest animal-related injuries and deaths I've seen in my time as a healer, especially around large gatherings of humans. And yet, they don't do anything."
"So?" I asked, what does this have to do with Kindness' mandate?
"I'm just taking a wild guess based on her personality and Virtue, but I think her mandate has the power to ban violence. I mean think about it, she even got the moose to pull the carriages. No normal person can tame moose. It's what fits her the most."
"Is that so." I mumbled, drifting off. Then this might actually be the safest place to stay.
"But that must just be her Secondary Holy Mandate. I wonder what her Primary is."
Secondary? Primary? "What does that mean?"
Tav looked at me oddly and sighed. "I keep forgetting you don't know all these things."
"Remember Domitia? Of course you do. Her Secondary Holy Mandate is Sacrament of Submission, and it affects others external to herself. On the other hand, her Primary Holy Mandate is Veil of the Meek, which affects herself."
"So secondary is external, primary is internal. But this doesn't really help us."
"It does, actually." Tav leaned in, voice dropping. "Any information about their mechanisms will be imperative to bringing them down. The Priestesses might be powerful, but their Mandates have rules, limits. If we understand those limits..."
"You're still trying to do that?" I said, aghast. I knew firsthand that it was a lost cause.
"Of course. It's part of my primary drive to stay alive right now," he said resolutely, eyes drifting back to Veraque's presentation. "And with these many people from other domains, we're bound to gather more information about the other Virtues. Everyone here has seen something. Experienced something. We just need to put it all together."
"Okay, now that we've got all that settled, any more questions before we call it a night?" Veraque said as she clapped cheerfully.
The crowd was still wary, but most didn't look as angry and lost as they had before arriving. There were no more questions. Veraque nodded, her smile never faltering as she wished everyone a restful night. People began to disperse, some in small groups whispering among themselves, others trudging alone back to their tents. The clanking of bowls and utensils marked the end of dinner.