[ORGANISATION] Ad Libertatem [Now Secret but Not Gone!]

[provisionist1]

Several days pass, and you find yourself needing to fill an order for several crystals of various types, and four silver ingots. You know of a place in the wilderness to mine silver, but seeing as you need the crystals, you decide to venture into the dungeon caves deep below Hydlaa.

Deep in the caves, near the silver mine, you see a young and petulant rogue who introduces himself as Zak. Among his meagre possessions, you notice a crumpled-up bit of parchment with blue lettering very similar to the previous stories you've been reading. Noticing your interest, Zak picks up the crumpled message and throws it at you, laughing when he hits you square between the eyes.
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Something is Rotten in the Dome... Part IV

“Will the accused Klyros identify his name for the court!?!” bellowed the bailiff standing from the platform above.

The Klyros gazed humbly up at the Xacha, his face pale from fear and malnourishment. After he had been taken from his cell, he was hurriedly washed and given a slightly tattered and faded black robe to wear- the neckline of which he noticed was stained with blood from past executions. With shackled hands and feet the accused had been brought immediately into the courtroom of East Hydlaa and had been pushed down hard onto his knees by the guard lieutenant Rabartus Livrandar.

“Xirius
 sir. Xirius Dolaktisht.” He answered meekly.

The Xacha bailiff was dressed in immaculate red garments and bore the golden sash of legal authority. Next to him was sat Iragdun Salikarios, the Ylian Octarch of the Dome level, dressed in violet robes, golden armour plate, and many medallions. Looking at him, Xirius thought his magnanimous appearance was almost preposterous. He looked down at the Klyros and the rest of the courtroom with a cold indifference. Usually criminal courtroom proceedings would be beneath his high office, but the accusation of being an Onyx Dagger spy was synonymous with treason and thus required his presence.

“Xirius Dolaktisht!” the bailiff began again in a haughty voice- “you are here accused of thievery, espionage against the Octarchy, and communion with the illegal criminal association that call themselves the ‘Onyx Daggers.’ These highly grievous acts are tantamount to high treason.”

Xirius’ was not surprised at these accusations; they were the very ones the two ladies had devised when he was innocently caught many weeks prior. He readied himself to shout (or say, as he probably did not have the strength to shout) ‘not guilty’ at the next of the bailiff’s formulaic legal statements.

The Xacha continued- “we have already heard testimony from her grace the lady Molveni, Vigesimi of the Dome, and from her grace the lady Rikania, also Vigesimi of the Dome
”

Of course! Xirius remembered seeing both of them give an address at the annual Azhord harvest festival in Hydlaa last cycle. He couldn’t remember exactly what it was about, but seemed to recall it was something to do with the eclipse and the Diaboli. It was all very scientific, but he remembered it was well-attended by many prominent mages and government officials. But
 how would the court know about Molveni and Rikania? Xirius became very pensive and wondered exactly what was going on.

The Xacha bailiff continued the usual legal diatribe- “Although the customary penalty for treason is to be cast into the great crystal, there are worries about its instability given the upcoming eclipse. Therefore, the penalty will be permanent exile to the halls of the damned in the so-called ‘Death Realm.’” The Klyros heard loud murmuring from the indeterminately-numbered audience behind him.

“Xirius!” the bailiff shouted, pointing at him directly. “How do y
”

“Vaarkanon
” Iragdun addressed the Xacha mid-speech, sounding quite jaded. “I do not believe it will be necessary to have a full trial here. I have already heard the testimony of two of my most trusted advisors and I absolutely do not wish to hear the words of this Klyros bandit.”

“But your Excellency, what of the prop
” The bailiff questioned, but was again cut-off.

“My dear bailiff” Iragdun continued- “Jefecra himself personally found the diadems of office of both Molveni and Rikania in the sack of this rogue, an onyx ring and blade that confirms he is a member of that wretched gang, along with a
” Iragdun chuckled- “a very poorly forged writ of passage to the winch. This evidence is in addition to the testimony from both my trusted Vigesimi that they were robbed on the Bronze Doors road. I desire that no further time be wasted on this...” his eyes blazing with fury, Iragdun looked directly at the Klyros, who was nearly catatonic at these words. “
 This ‘Xirius.’”

“As you wish.” The Xacha conceded, bowing his head. He believed as much as Iragdun that the Klyros was guilty. The whispers of the crowd grew rather loud as this unusual but not unheard-of turn of events. “Xirius, as is the ruling of his Excellency, the wise Octarch Salikarios of the Dome, you are to be executed and your body burned at a pyre. Magic from Dark way masters will guide your exiled spirit to the Halls of the Damned. There you wi
” Vaarkanon was again interrupted.

“Wait!” A female voice shouted from the back of the courtroom. “This is entirely improper and unethical! The Directives of Jurisprudence clearly state that if there is any contrary or incoherent evidence, a trial cannot be dismissed by the Octarch.”

“Who are you!” Iragdun demanded, annoyed and nonplussed. “Speak!”

“Sir
 your Excellency.” The voice continued- “I’m merely a concerned citzen, who knows the law.”

“I’m afraid that she IS correct Excellency” the Xacha bailiff added.

The Octarch had clearly not foreseen this sort of setback, and Iragdun grumbled various incoherent curses, before recomposing himself though still sounding irritated. “Fine
 And what evidence can you present that is supposedly questionable?”

The female voice shouted gleefully from the back, much to the Klyros’ relief- “Xirius was not on the Bronze Doors road at the time of this supposed robbery, and neither were Molveni and Rikania, and I can prove it!”

*************** TO BE CONTINUED... ****************

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[provisionist1]

There have been rumours that Ad Libertatem has disbanded! Nothing could be further from the truth.

Following the arrest and incarceration (without trial!) of some of our members for minor infractions, AD LIBERTATEM is now a secret organisation.

Please read the edited first post for more information, and keep checking back for the next chapters of Xirius' story.

[Soloyos]

I was there when they was arrested, tbh they was breaking the law and would not listen. But I have had many good Rp times with them

[Shadowcarn Acolyte]

I find Ad Libertatem most interesting. It shares many goals with my guild, the One, yet it has a more extremist, reactionary manner. This shall lead to some interesting RPs...

[cdmoreland]

We are growing, and the enemies of liberty shall taste our steel!

[Caraick]

Woohoo! Bring it! 

[Gilrond]

Making your guild secret makes it less interesting.

[Caraick]

Making your guild secret makes it less interesting.

How in in the name of Dakkru's pretty pink panties can you draw THAT conclusion? 

[Gilrond]

Simple - it's less interesting for everyone around, since the guild virtually doesn't exist for them. May be for members it's more interesting at the same time. Depends on the perspective.

[Caraick]

If by invisible you're simply referring to the collection of pixels above a character's head, then yes. 'Tis certainly a grave crime to deprive the rest of the game of viewing that small little OOC nametag above your character's avatar.  That's the only thing that's changing for other people.

Think of the way your character would see it. They don't see the pixels. They just see the same group of people who travel around usually in a group together, and seem to spend a great deal of time together.  If PS ever manages to get to the level that character's faces can be customized to a recognizable level, you'll see the nametags, and guildtags above your character disappear.

So, really, nothing's changing.
I'm still debating sigging your line, for everyone's enjoyment.

[Gilrond]

Tags are only part of this, it rather applies to the perception of the guild. Hidden guilds are mostly hidden in both meanings. At least in my experience. So if they have some impact on the rest - (even though they are hidden) then yes, it can be interesting. If impact isn't apparent at all - that what I was referring to, it's basically a closed hidden club for members.

[Rigwyn]

Unless your character wears a bright, shiny bade that says "Hey, I'm a member of guild X" or a guild pecific uniform, it really doesn't make much sense to have a guild tag hanging over your head. Its just one more piece of information that you have to force yourself to ignore. Personally, I think secret guilds are more interesting as you never really know who's a member and who's not.

[cdmoreland]

As we grow in numbers our influence is felt. We are watching and acting in the interest of freedom for all.

[cdmoreland]

Free Theodor!

[Cairn]

Yeah. You absolutely should never pay attention to guild tags, ever. They're for game engine purposes only, not RP.