The Non-Human Society Chapter 486 Three Hundred and Sixty – Vim – Meriah

Chapter Three Hundred and Sixty – Vim – riah

Stepping out into the rain, I glanced around the small brick road that Rapti's ho backed up against. I checked corners, other building's windows, the roofs… and was glad to not see anyone spying on us, or acting suspicious. In fact, I saw no one else at all.

A good sign. riah was not soone who would have ca to Rapti's ho had she been followed, but I always worried for her. Although she herself looked nearly human, she was such a person that I knew she had as many if not more enemies than I did. And that had always worried about her. This world was a cruel one, even for a normal person. riah wasn't just non-human; she dressed and acted a nun, and always traveled. Sotis even opting to sleep outside over a room at an inn.

Such people as her were often targeted, and that was even before taking into account that riah was always sticking her nose where it didn't belong.

"Um…"

I frowned and turned, wondering what was wrong. Why was riah being so slow? Yet I already knew what it was before I found riah standing there, hesitatingly keeping the door open as Renn stood in the doorway… sheepishly smiling as she glanced at and riah.

Right…

After the few monts of greetings, between riah and Renn, I had stepped out. Expecting, like always, for riah to follow without question. Alone. Because it was what we did.

Until now, of course.

"It's up to you riah. I've decided to neither shelter her nor keep secrets from her. Though I admit I'm being… resistant in my opening up completely. The only thing I can say, if you'll hear my opinion, is that Renn is likely the only other person on this planet you can actually trust. I can say without doubt she would never beco your enemy, for any reason," I said.

Renn stood up straighter, and I noticed Rapti behind her walking away. She had likely heard what I had said, but I knew she'd always pretend she hadn't. She knew what riah was like, full well, so knew better than to even stick around when riah wanted to be alone.

riah studied Renn, and then glanced over at . I noted the way her white eyebrows arched a little, as if in worry or sadness. "I hear you married her," she said.

"Hm. I have," I said.

Renn smiled, and then looked to riah. "I can stay. It's okay. I'm sorry… I just usually follow Vim without thought, so…" Renn apologized, and stepped backward. Back into the house.

I gave Renn a smile. She really was kind.

riah sighed, rather loudly. "It's fine. Co on. Just don't be offended if I be rude to you," riah said.

Oh…?

Renn paused, as riah gestured for Renn to hurry up and leave so she could close the door behind her.

"You sure…?" Renn asked softly as she stepped out of Rapti's house.

riah said nothing, only closing the front door to Rapti's ho once Renn was out of the way. I nodded to Renn and riah as I turned and headed for the road.

Where to go? Maybe the docks? It was late enough, and the rain was steady enough, that it was likely rather deserted at the mont. A good place to talk.

"I saw them earlier, but are your ears as good as they look?" riah asked Renn as the two followed .

"Hm? Yes? Though this hood is really heavy, and I have the hat on too. If you want to stay back far enough as to give you two so space, I can do that," Renn said without hesitation.

"No… It's fine…" riah mumbled.

Was it?

I kept back the urge to glance back at the two, as I slowly headed down the path towards one of the larger roads. To head for the docks.

Renn had her heavy cloak on. riah the traveling nun wore a similar cloak, though it had the gray colors of the church sewn into certain parts of her attire. Such as at her sleeves, and at the hems of her cloak. It was impossible to not know who and what she was thanks to her attire. So I knew neither would be too bothered by the rain and cold, especially being non-humans, but I knew better than to think we blended in. A nun walking around on such a gloomy afternoon was thing, but to do so with a pair that looked like rcenaries on first glance? Not the best camouflage for us… but it would have to do for now.

It had been slightly rude to Rapti, to walk out so readily after riah arrived, but I knew she'd understand. She too had known and noticed that riah had been impatiently waiting for to arrive, after all.

Plus…

"Well?" I turned to ask riah, who had been about to ask Renn sothing. Renn frowned at , as if upset I'd interrupted their light talk, but riah's eyes went wide as she nodded and harried forward.

Her hood nearly fell off as she ca to my side. "The bishop who burnt Lomi's village is dead," riah said with a hush.

Looking forward, as to pretend that she and I weren't actively in the middle of a conversation, I frowned. "Where'd you find him?" I asked.

riah glanced back, thanks to Renn's hurried footsteps as she picked up her pace as to catch up to us. She took riah's other side, walking opposing .

"I found his grave. And the ones who had buried him. One of them, so kind of nephew or sothing, had this in his possession," riah said as she rummaged into her side, beneath her cloak.

After a mont riah produced a small parchnt of paper. One that I took quickly, unfolding it near my stomach as to try and protect it from the rain as much as possible.

Upon the little parchnt, was a crudely drawn map and so light instructions. Such as to turn at a certain odd shaped tree, and to venture over a river that was small but flowed quickly.

I sighed as I recognized the map to the fox village. Leading from a larger human settlent to its south.

"The lad didn't know where the bishop got it. But the fool firmly believed whoever had done so had also been the one to kill him. Went on and on about betrayal and stuff," riah explained.

Folding the parchnt back up, I handed it back to her. Instead of putting it back into her pocket she offered it to Renn.

My eye twitched as I watched Renn unfold it and look at it too.

"Your letter here had heavy claims riah. Even for you," I said as I watched riah study Renn who studied the map.

riah didn't take her eyes off Renn as she nodded. "Yes. It did. I do."

So she wasn't denying it. There had been no misunderstanding, or mistaking.

riah truly believed Light and the rest had either been directly involved with the destruction of the fox village.

Great.

"This… is a map? To where?" Renn asks.

"Lomi's village," I said.

Renn stopped walking, but I kept going. After a few steps riah stopped, to look back at her. I ignored the two as Renn made an odd noise and I glanced down the intersection we were crossing.

There were only a few people on the street, and this was a main road. One was a guard, a knight of the city, and the other was a man carrying what looked like a box of so kind. Likely delivering sothing sowhere.

"Please, please tell this was made after the event…!" Renn asked hurriedly as she hurried to rejoin riah and .

"No, Renn. It hadn't been," riah answered.

Renn groaned. "Vim…!" she cried.

"Renn," I said gently, wondering if maybe we should have stayed at Rapti's ho. Maybe we could have asked Rapti to give us a mont alone. She would have obliged, she was kind that way.

"Vim!" Renn hurried over, and I heard the rustle of clothes and cloaks. I turned just to see Renn nearly push riah aside as she grabbed at my arm.

About to ask what she was thinking, as riah shifted and frowned at Renn, I found myself a little startled.

Renn, pushing soone she just t aside? That gentle woman?

Beneath her heavy hood, Renn stared up at with a look of utter devastation, as she lifted the map up. It was wrinkled in her tight grip, and now it was obvious it was soaked. "This drawing! The handwriting…!"

Wait…

"You recognize it?" riah asked right before I could as she hurried up to us.

Renn didn't even glance at riah as she nodded. "The Chronicler, Vim!"

Before more could be said, sothing broke.

Many sothing's.

I blinked, and heard the shouts of shock and screams of fear… as a nearby building shifted and the side wall of it collapsed into itself.

Renn and riah both turned, staring in what was likely as much shock as the people inside the building felt. I, however, only glared at the map in Renn's hand.

Surely not.

But…

Closing my eyes, a part of listened into the shouting and panic in the building, and the nearby other buildings. I listened for cries of pain, or desperation. In case soone had gotten hurt by the collapse of the brick wall. I heard nothing more than confused shouts and worry as people hurried to leave the building, fearing the rest of it was going to collapse upon them.

A quick glance at the building, and the portion of the wall that had shifted and fallen inward, I knew it was fine. It was only a few feet in width at the largest section of the hole, and I could see from here the large tree-pillars that held the rest of the building up. Even if it did break more, it wouldn't collapse completely.

Though…

"We should go Vim, quickly," riah said softly as I followed the crack that erged from under the house's foundation, rolling along the stone path and road to us.

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To .

"Right…" I nodded and turned. Renn held onto my arm, having grabbed it earlier and since she'd not let go, as I dragged her away from the house that people were starting to gather around.

We left the area before we beca the focus of attention, and I sighed again as we turned onto another road… and I lost interest in where we were headed. I knew we were no longer heading for the docks, but I didn't care anymore.

My mind was a ss, and my head wanted to hurt even though it didn't.

I didn't doubt Renn's mory. At all.

If Renn claid that writing and drawing were that old fake-saint's, then…

"Give that back to riah, Renn. Don't let it get ruined," I said, as I rembered the source of my new discord.

riah took it, folding it back up carefully as she also squeezed so of the moisture from it before putting it back where she got it.

"I'm to assu she's not wrong?" riah asked.

"Huh…?" Renn hesitated, so I nodded and answered for her.

"Renn has perfect mory. If she says that's the Chronicler's writing, then I have no doubt it is."

riah said nothing as Renn groaned and squeezed my arm again. "Vim…!"

"Give the rest of the bad news, riah. Since I'm buried in it anyway," I said.

riah nodded, her light cloak shifting as she did. "While investigating them, I tracked down so of the knights who did the deed. The bishop, and the nephew I had found, had not actually been there. They had only sent the knight order to do the deed. The knights I found confessed they had done the deed, and had done so at the bishop's orders. The bishop also ordered the deed and location to not be shared or told to anyone else. I don't know if they gave such an order to cover their tracks, or because they didn't want people knowing our kind even still exists or sothing, though," riah said.

"Wait… wait! Are we actually trying to say the Chronicler sent this bishop, the one that destroyed Lomi's ho, that map? Led them straight there?" Renn asked, her voice telling she wanted to doubt it… but couldn't.

Renn stopped, and since she still held my arm I had to too. She was holding far too firmly for to just keep walking. I'd not outright hurt her, or break a nail since she was keeping them short lately, but I didn't want to take the chance. Fingers could pop off easier than people knew, sotis.

And right now I knew I wasn't in full control of my strength. Thanks to my internal chaos.

"I confird they did the deed. Not only did a couple of them have ears, spoils of war, a few had encountered you Vim. They knew what you look like," riah said defiantly, as if daring Renn to claim she was lying.

"?" I asked. What…?

She nodded. "You killed a group of them not long after the deed, supposedly. At so bar in one of those logging towns not far from Ruvindale. So of them saw you do so. You beca a legend amongst their little group, claiming you were retribution."

Ah… I had indeed killed a few churchn while escorting Lomi out of that area. So those n had been involved…? I could have sworn I had asked and inquired about the village while crushing their hearts… maybe I had done so too quickly…?

"It was why their order had split up, Vim. You killed their important mbers, and the bishop got all weird. There might still be a knight or two left alive, that I haven't been able to track down, but at this point I never will be able to," riah said.

"You've done well. More than enough, like usual."

She scoffed at . "Hardly Vim."

"You… found their ears, riah? Really?" Renn asked worriedly.

riah only nodded, rain splattering around her as she did as it bounced and rolled of her hood.

I sighed as I glanced around, and decided we needed sowhere to sit. We weren't being followed or even looked at, even though we were standing in the road in the middle of the rain. Odds are it was because this was a port town. A lot of people here weren't as bothered by the rain as so other places. So we weren't too strange just yet.

"Vim," Renn said my na, bringing my attention back to the two won. They were looking at as if I was being strange… which ant they had said sothing. Or soone had asked a question.

"Sorry… What'd you say?" I asked.

"He's angry Renn. Be thankful all he did was that small crack," riah said to Renn.

"I can tell. I'm angry too, but this is not the ti to be so mindless. We need to talk about what has happened and…" Renn began to say, but I didn't want to hear it. Not at the mont at least.

I shifted, grabbing Renn's arm gently, the one that held onto my arm. She turned to glare at as I, as carefully as I could, got her to release .

"What about the rest of the northern church order?" I asked riah, while staring into Renn's glare.

"As I said… as far as I can tell the knights kept what they did a secret. By order and because of fear. Many of them firmly believed they were being punished, more than a few took their own lives. I found many of them buried like the bishop, and t their families. I'd believe one or two being alive, claiming suicide as to hide, but it was more than a handful and I doubt common peasants would lie about such things. Several had felt such guilt they had killed themselves only months after the deed," riah said.

Renn shifted, glancing at riah with a look of utter sorrow. "Why do you sound annoyed by such a thing?" Renn asked riah.

Had she…?

riah smiled at Renn, in such a way that I knew even Renn saw the utterly broken soul within her. "People who kill themselves in grief do so because they're cowards, Renn. They weren't strong enough to not partake in the evil when it happened, and weren't strong enough to pay their debts to the world afterward. They took the easy route on both ends of their mistakes."

"So you believe it was a group used and tossed aside on purpose," I said, before Renn could respond to riah's point of view on life.

riah nodded, her eyes leaving Renn's and going to mine. "Yes. The bishop had been involved in so corruption which I think had been used to coerce him. I don't have any clue how he died, but I bet it wasn't suicide. Older churchn like him don't have souls like that, it's the peons who do," she said.

Renn shifted, and I glanced around again. Was there a restaurant nearby…?

No.

Good thing.

I'd not be able to sit. Not without destroying the chair I attempted to do so in, at least.

Or the table. Or likely everything else around it…

Stepping forward, I ignored Renn and riah… as I tried my best to parse the information and the knowledge it gave .

"I have more proof Vim…! Not that I think any more or less would change the fact of what happened," riah said as she hurried up next to .

I didn't even glance at her, or Renn who hurried to join her.

"Mapple. One of the knights described her. Perfectly. Gave her na and described her. She had not been the one to deliver the letter, he had been clear on that, but she had arrived not long after they burnt the village down."

I slowed as we neared a new road. One that was familiar. We were near the docks, I hadn't gone off path, I was just slightly…

Yes. I was disturbed. And rightfully so.

"You're sure she had not just been nearby and overheard what had happened? She frequents the north," I asked, trying to pretend to be my mother and play devil's advocate.

riah snarled at . "She arrived at the village, Vim. As they prepared to leave."

I stopped.

Narrowing my eyes at her, I frowned and shook my head. "I had arrived as the village smoldered. I had found Lomi in a well. Only a day or so after they had left. I had not slled, or saw any trace, of Mapple."

"Then you didn't look hard enough. He had definitely claid it was Mapple. She spoke to the bishop and other higher ranks in the knight group, and then left. He rembers her clearly because she had taken the man's prize. Ears."

For a few long monts… I didn't move.

I didn't breath. Or blink. My eye didn't even twitch.

Mapple would have indeed taken the ears from a knight. To the knights they had been treasure. Spoils. Trophies of their kills. Mapple would have not liked that.

Yet…

"Would… would Mapple have actually done that…? She would have seen the fox village destroyed and done nothing? Said nothing?" Renn asked. She sounded closer than I thought she was. Hopefully she wasn't holding onto again.

I was a re heartbeat from destroying this whole area, after all.

"She had likely just been confirming the deed was done. Mapple does whatever her mother tells her. Or well… her mother's sister, in this case," riah said.

I wanted to nod. That was true. Mapple herself didn't have a bad bone in her body, but she didn't disobey her orders at all. Even if she wept afterward, she'd do it… for so long as the ones she saw as her saviors told her to do so.

A common trait amongst non-humans, regrettably. Though lately few were in such positions anymore to suffer such a thing.

"A map. Written by a hand familiar. Nas unique, with corroborating stories from multiple witnesses…" I whispered as I took in the situation.

"At the very least Vim, you need to verify it. This ti. You can't just…" riah's voice started to rise… but the world lit up. I glanced upward as the lightning flashed, and a very distant sound of thunder rumbled.

A storm was on its way. Arriving now. As we spoke.

Fitting.

Renn groaned, rather loudly. It was a mixture of a whine and a word. She sounded as if she wanted to say sothing, but was too distraught to do so.

I didn't bla her.

I felt that way too.

Turning, I saw the sea. Not far down the road was one of the docks. An empty one.

The sea looked dark. Foreboding. It was the type of sea sailors didn't willingly set out in. This was a ti for bars and barmaids, not hoisting the sails.

"You two… go back to Rapti's. I… need to think," I said as I turned to look at them.

"What…? Vim…" Renn was about to reach out again, as to grab my arm again, but riah stepped in for .

riah grabbed onto Renn's arm before she could get mine, and leaned close to her. "Hmph! Co on Renn. Let's beco friends while your husband convinces himself to be a stunted man."

"Stunted man…?" Renn asked softly as she allowed riah to turn her around and head back down the road, heading back to Rapti's house.

"His rules. He knows he needs to do sothing but will convince himself not to. I swear, sotis I wish I could find a way to make one of them a monarch or sothing so he'd just finally destroy them ruthlessly without thought!" riah said, loudly, as if to make a point as she took my wife away.

Being left alone… I sighed as I turned to look at the sea.

Walking towards it, I did my best to step as lightly as possible. I tried not to allow my weight to harm the fragile world around as I approached the edge of the dock. Where the stone road turned into wooden boards. Slippery ones, by the look of them.

Stopping before the dock, I stared out at the sea beyond. As if to get lost in it, and not my mind.

It wasn't too bad really. Although a storm was obviously here, just now arriving, the sea didn't look too rough. The boats docked not far from here weren't even rocking too badly.

While staring out at the dark sea… I listened and paid attention to riah and Renn as they left my area. They were talking about my indecisiveness.

The world beca blurry as I stopped looking at anything. I thought about that note. What riah had said. The truth behind those facts.

It wasn't hard to imagine how or why it had happened. The Chronicler, or Light or soone else, had seen a prophecy. One that had demanded they take action.

But… why?

What had Lomi and her people done to deserve such devastation?

Why not get involved? If it was sothing so drastic…?

Why get a whole village eliminated? A village for that matter that had existed for hundreds of years, without any complications?

The foxes had been a simple people, but good people. They hadn't provided anything to the Society but a lack of problems. They had never needed much. Never desired anything. Were always friendly and welcoming.

Yet even if they had been problematic…

A loud noise forced to pay attention to the world around , and I groaned as I turned and watched one of the larger ships roll over, cracking loudly as it snapped in half.

While watching the ship sink, I did my best to ignore that it had been my fault. The sea, the storm, and the world at the mont weren't cruel enough for such a thing to have happened. I was the only threat here, at the mont. Yet no matter how heavy my heart was, I couldn't ignore the fact I was utterly disturbing the world around .

I'll need to find out from Rapti whose house that had been, and who owned that boat. To compensate them.

It wasn't right that soone, sothing, like interfered into the natural order of the world around in such a way.

Yet…

Cracking my neck, I took a deep breath and tried to not break anything else around . I made sure not to shift my weight, and just… stand still for a mont.

Reaching up, I covered my face and squeezed my face. I covered my eyes, and tightened my grip… as if I was trying to crush my own skull.

I focused on the feeling of pressure on my temples and head. I felt my skin tighten, I felt the bones creak. I felt my own skull stress under the pressure, though not crack.

The Chronicler… Light… all of them. They hadn't just possibly murdered their own kind, our own mbers… they had interfered beyond the natural order. Doing exactly what I didn't allow.

It was one thing to use their prophecies to stop major disasters or calamities. To end monarchs. Or to stop great sorrow, like floods or diseases…

But what could have possibly been their reason to do such a thing to the foxes? What motive could have been good enough to cause such terrible cruelty and yet be justifiable enough to stay my hand and punishnt? What could they say to stop from doing what I knew I had to do?

What excuse? What reason? What rationale? What possible excuse could they, would they, give ?

I knew from experience they wouldn't have one.

"This won't end well… What should I do, mother?" I asked the world around … lowering my hand, as the rain fell onto my face.

My answer was a rumble in the sky. The storm was here.

Inside and out.