Heirs to the Final Empire: Roleplaying Thread

[Gamma Fiend]

Glam Urbain strode along her keep's perimeter, Grace trailing obediently behind her. She had been a good girl, and would serve the House proudly and with aplomb. She just wish she could have done more for her as a mother, not as a Houselord. But the treacherous political climate of Luthadel demanded such.

"I wish my father hadn't burnt down as many bridges as he did amongst the other nobles. Her so-called peers. Even if she thought they were all idiots, she didn't openly insult them like the late Lord Urbain did. No. She'd teach Grace more tact than that. Until then.

House Urbain will be

Action 2: marrying off Grace to an NPC house.

And will also be attending the Trades Fair! Showcasing Fine Urbain Wines, Ubrain Threads clothing line, and my valued Jams and Jellies!
 

[Wyrmhero]

Time!

 

The Generation is over. I shall probably post the write-up tomorrow, as well as the stats for your Houses, but Stewardship people will have to wait a bit to find out about that aspect.

[Orlok Tsubodai]

Today seems as good a day as any to explain the previous actions of House Tekiel.

I am incredibly sorry about the pyramid scheme. It was not meant to cause a wealth loss from each House. Indeed, when I set it up with Wyrm, we had discussed that cashing it would cost me reputation. I had not even considered that other Houses would also suffer for it. I acknowledge that this apology might mean little, but thought I ought to make it anyway. It has come to my attention that many of you might be angry about it. Indeed, I have just escaped an attack on a vast scale, which appears to have been triggered by it.

Once more, I offer my most sincere apologies. It was never intentional, and I was as surprised as anyone else. I hope you can all forgive this.

Yours,

Lord Tekiel

[Mailliw73]

Lord Votir Zerrung, leader of the House proclaiming to be the tigers of Luthadel, surveyed the scene before his eyes. The General, Cladent Vinid, had surrounded his Keep. His servants relayed to him the circumstances: The general was taking him to court.

Whatever reason the general had for attacking House Zerrung, Votir did not know. But he sure as ash wasn't going to be escorted to court by the scum backstabbers Vinid called soldiers. He would be escorted by his own guard and would go of his own volition. If anyone should be prosecuted, Cladent Vinid was at the top of the list. His plans to attack Houses alienated him from everyone, Lord Ruler included. The gracious Lord wasn't pleased by overt actions of war and Cladent's ancestors had been the first in the Empire to attack one of the Lord Ruler's own nobility and now Cladent himself had threatened the same. Votir readied himself for a long day and called his soldiers to readiness. Strike swiftly, aim true.

You SE players should really enjoy this next little bit.

[Shallan]

It is rather amusing. And just so you know, I am not attacking you. A lawsuit is not the same thing as a battleground- especially if you aren't even the defendant.

And those "scum backstabbers" you mentioned happen to be the Lord Ruler's army.

Edit: Wrong place

Edited August 30, 2015 by Shallan

[Mailliw73]

Votir doesn't know what's happening. This is the RP thread.

Um, you have your own army separate from TLR's. That's what he's referring to.

[Wyrmhero]

Interlude

"Sir?"

 

Rowan Oriell gave a small groan as he was woken early. He sat up on his four-poster bed, looking to the side to see one of his guardsmen at attention. "What do you want? Can't it wait?"

 

"...Sir, we have a fairly large army camped outside our Keep, sir."

 

"An army?" Rowan jumped out of bed and threw open the curtains to look down over the balcony, ignoring the protests of his wife behind him. He burnt Tin, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the dark red light of the morning sun. "House Vinid? Hmm... No, not just them. Some wear the uniform of The Lord Ruler's own soldiers..."

 

He took a key from beside the door and opened up the balcony, stepping onto it. "What is the meaning of this?!" He shouted down. "Leave my property at once!"

 

"Not until you come down to answer the charges brought before you! Either come down to be taken to trial, or we will force you to!"

 

Lord Orielle looked at his wife, who was just as confused as he was. "Trial?" He muttered. "What have I done that they could accuse me of?" He turned back to the troops outside. "Ask them what charges these are. And upon whose authority they dare to act," he muttered to his guardsman.

 

Sometime later, the guard returned, looking rather worse for wear from the climb back upstairs. "The charge of treason is brought to you by Lord Vinid, General of The Lord Ruler's forces, and upon his authority."

 

"Treason?" Lord Orielle raised an eyebrow at this. "Interesting. Tell them that I will be with them after I have dressed and eaten, and not a moment before. If they wish to force me to come along with them, they will have to lay siege to this Keep. I doubt they will want to do that if they can avoid it."

 

---

 

Lord Queade sighed as he sat on the bench in his own courtroom. He grimaced as he looked over at the man sitting in his usual seat before the courtroom. High Prelan Benedict was old now, true, but he still commanded a considerable amount of respect and had a well-honed withering stare. Lord Queade didn't exactly dislike the man, but it did feel odd to be displaced like this. Particularly when he had just had the building refurbished and a new - and until now unused - chair put there.

 

The High Prelan subjected the entire room to his gaze, before finally settling on the accused: Lord Farrsolin, Lord Zerrung, and Lord Orielle. Aside from a minor scuffle in the first instance, and a large number of barbed words shared on all sides, they had been brought here more-or-less willingly.

 

"Subjects of The Final Empire," Benedict began, "you have been summoned here, in one capacity or another, to judge these three men and their ambitions. They have been accused by Lord Vinid of conspiring to evict one of The Lord Ruler's appointed representatives from his rightful place. We shall hear from both sides, I hope, before making that decision."

 

"Hopefully this trial shall be brought to a conclusion soon enough. Regardless of the outcome, The Lord Ruler and the Steel Ministry shall consider the matter settled after this. As their peers I ask you to judge them, and to do so correctly, so they may be punished for any crimes committed, or pardoned if such a thing has not occurred. "

 

---

 

Generation 3 has ended. Generation 4 will begin in one month's time, on the 3rd of October. I won't be sending out information for now, as it's meant to be down-time rather than strategising time.

 

In the meantime, we have three players accused of treason and dragged to court, so why not let the players decide whether they are guilty? Until 6 PM on the 3rd of October, you may discuss, attack and defend each other verbally (preferably via RP). At the end of this Interlude, (or rather, just before), you may PM in a vote to me for each player, stating whether you think they are guilty or not on the charge of treason.

 

I will be mostly hands-free for this month, though I will be checking in whenever I have the time to make sure that things are proceeding in a pleasant manner. Have fun!

 

Generation 3 Player List

1. little wilson - Gwynne Wilson
2. Gamma Fiend - Gerrund Urbain
3. Unodus - Lucy Uethorn
4. Adamir - Anders Farrsolin
5. Blank Fate - Doran Artorius
6. Venture Mistborn - Rowan Orielle
7. OrlokTsubodai - Nestor Tekiel
8. Comatose - Mikhail Elariel
9. Aonar Faileas - Cifan Izenry
10. Quiver - Tyren Queade
11. wblk - Shen Wair
12. phattemer - Apollonus Erikell
13. Araris Valerian - Valeri Penrod
14. Renegade - Naryan Garde
15. Shallan - Cladent Vinid
16. Haelbarde - Casper Heatherlocke
17. Mailiw73 - Votir Zerrung
18. The Crooked Warden - Octavia Protegat
19. Kasimir - Aniketos Heron
20. RadiantRaven7 - Ryna Ravir
21. CraigJohn - Jessica Sarasvati

 

PMs will be sent out in a month.

 

Edit: I also feel it's worth pointing out that you aren't really voting to lynch people, the Cycle lasts 1 month instead of 2 days, and anyone who shouts 'Objection!' will be keelhauled.

Edited August 30, 2015 by Wyrmhero

[Gamma Fiend]

*Ahem*

[Aonar]

Lord and Lady Izenry sat in the stands, decidedly uninterested in the proceedings. House Farrsolin already had a reputation for bad business, and while the accusations against Zerrung and Orielle were surprising, they were of little personal interest to House Izenry. 

 

Silence ruled after the High Prelan's announcement; everyone waiting for someone else to speak. Moments became seconds, and seconds became minutes. Ah, rust it all. If I'm going to have to be here all day, I'm going to have to make things interesting somehow.

 

Cifan stood slowly, joints creaking slightly with age. "Lord Vinid," he began, speaking slowly, "you are the one who has summoned us here; I believe it is your duty to open the trial. Present us with all the facts you have gathered against these supposed traitors, and make your argument. And please, do not take more time than is necessary. I am already missing my daughter's wedding for this; between your own insipid remarks, and whatever duplicitous tales my fellow Lords and Ladies are bound to concoct in their manoeuverings, I will most likely miss most of the reception as well, assuming you do not get to the point quickly."

---

 

Edit: I also feel it's worth pointing out that you aren't really voting to lynch people, the Cycle lasts 1 month instead of 2 days, and anyone who shouts 'Objection!' will be keelhauled.

 
OBJECTION! 
 
...Sorry. Not sure what came over me. *Cough.* Anyways, it's your move, Vinid. Explain to us why exactly all these people should be charged of treason.

Edited August 30, 2015 by Aonar Faileas

[Araris Valerian]

An Penrod surveyed the gathered Lords and Ladies. She had been rather worried, what with all the cries of treason going around. But apparently treason wasn't quite the same thing as having a solid relationship with the skaa, or any unruly activity said skaa were involved in. House Penrod would have to get copies of all of these proceedings, of course, and it would be interesting to hear what the defendants had to say. She personally doubted that Lord Zerrung was guilty of treason, since her sister was now married to the heir of that house, and when her mother had examined that house's records everything had been in order. But with all the intrigue going on across the empire, anything could be kept a secret for a long time.

[Mailliw73]

I'd first like to clarify what voting actually does, Wyrm.

Votir stood, anger barely contained beneath the surface. "Cladent! I was informed by you that I would be here to, and I quote, "You still need to come to the court to potentially testimony. You're guaranteed safe passage to the courthouse by my lieutenants.*" Votir fumed. "Now you accuse me of treason, when you wrongfully informed me of appearing in court to testify only."

"Not only did you abuse your power in using armies-your own, and many not your own, including some of The Lord Ruler's and our acquaintance, Lord Orielle's-to threaten me to come here for reasons you contrived, you were the one with plans to remove Lord Tekiel from the Empire," Votir sat.

"Please, spend time inventing your reasons for my guilt. I'm waiting."

*From a missive from Cladent Vinid to Votir Zerrung

[the winter system]

Can I be part of this, even though I missed the Generation? 

[Wyrmhero]

Can I be part of this, even though I missed the Generation? 

 

You may not be. I am still irritated you jumped the gun and started discussing game-related information between players.

 

I'd first like to clarify what voting actually does, Wyrm.

 

If the majority vote for guilt for any player, I will be applying penalties to Allomantic Strength, Infamy and Reputations for the next Generation.

[Mailliw73]

Okay, so the vote will be the determining factor, it just won't be for an execution.

Shallan, it's all yours.

[Shallan]

This prosecution, led by Lord Cladent Vinid, seconded by Apollonus Erikell, does seek to prove the guilt of Lord and House Farrsolin on the counts of High Treason Against the Final Empire, Mutiny Against the Lord Ruler, Conspiring to Eliminate a Noble House, and Promoting the Rioting of Skaa, Conspiring to Blackmail a Noble House

It seeks to prove the guilt of Lord and House Zerrung on the counts of High Treason Against the Final Empire, Mutiny Against the Lord Ruler, and Conspiring to Eliminate a Noble House.

It seeks to prove the guilt of Lord and House Artorius on the counts of High Treason Against the Final Empire, Mutiny Against the Lord Ruler, and Conspiring to Eliminate a Noble House.

It seeks to prove the guilt of Lord and House Orielle on the counts of High Treason Against the Final Empire, Mutiny Against the Lord Ruler, and Conspiring to Eliminate a Noble House.

 

It will prove these accusations without a shadow of a doubt, and will nearly guarantee a unanimous 'guilty' vote.

 

On the case of Lord Farrsolin. The prosecution introduces this evidence into the court:

     

"I covertly supply you with an army, with the understanding that you will not reveal my part in your negotiations with Tekiel, and that one of your children, once he/she comes into power, will repay me either half the forces I lend you or half their worth in wealth, or one of your children is sent to marry one of mine.

       Route two, I send assassins after Tekiel Mistborn, which will most likely be traced and involve me into a direct conflict with House Tekiel, and potentially House Elariel. I may be able to bring House Zerrung onto my side, and possibly House Artorious.

      Route three, I follow the first option, while covertly gathering allies among other Houses and sending Mistborn to sabotage Tekiel structures."

     

"I have set wheels in motion. The fall of House Tekiel begins tonight."

 

"Wait for the sounds of a thousand skaa in open riots - and what one skaa does, a hundred consider doing. Lord Tekiel physically won't be able to focus the attack; he will have to withdraw his forces to quell his own skaa. That should leave you safe enough to re-gather your forces and set up a defense while an army composed of Zerrung, Artorious and Orielle soldiers march into Tekiel land.

              My allies will topple Fadrex City, and I will send Lord Tekiel an ultimatum; he will supply every house amassed against him, save for House Orielle, with three Wealth, three Allomancers and a single Mistborn. I do not wish to remove House Tekiel in its entirity, for that would require eliminating the entire Tekiel clan, children included. For now, I will settle on breaking them and keeping them on a tight leash from then on."

 

"My skaa are in civil unrest; I will transfer the Orielle soldiers to your command to execute the plan. Remember, you have never had any association with me. The riots have temporarily disrupted any and all profits from Seran and the surrounding region."

 

"The Orielle contingent is under your control. The contract expires by the end of the year, at which point I will transfer a sizeable portion of my own forces with instructions to remain until the reign of your successor's heir or until I call them back."

These messages were sent from Lord Farrsolin to Lord Erikell. Erikell, under my instructions, had been pretending to go along with the plot in order to gain more information for when the time came to end it. Given that they had planned to march on Fadrex City this year, the time was now. I hope this shows you the guilt of Lord Farrsolin. This is a civilized society, and he can, of course, defend himself against the accusations presented here. The prosecution rests.

Edited August 31, 2015 by Shallan

[Wyrmhero]

A minor point I'd like to add here - While I am fine with you bringing your correspondence to court (that is, submitting your PMs between each other as evidence), I'd like to request that this is the only way such things are shared. I do not want players 'proving' such things by taking a screenshot though. Letters can be falsified, and a screenshot doesn't represent anything in game terms.

Also, to answer Mailliw's comment earlier - The punishment may include execution. We shall see.

And now, carry on with your regularly scheduled slaughter. I am going pretty much dark (or tablet-only) until Friday. See you on the other side of the week.

[Aonar]

Lord Vinid spent several minutes shuffling papers around, then finally made his piece. It was, in Cifan's opinion, a tad long-winded, without ever really saying much. Oh joy. If this is the best they can do, then it might be faster just to get the case thrown out than to let it take it's course. More fun that way, anyways.

 

"Before we start actually attempting to determine guilt, Lord Vinid, you may wish to reread some portions of the Lord Ruler's law," he said, rolling his eyes. "Mutiny in this instance is equivalent to treason, and as such, cannot stand as it's own charge and must be dismissed.

 

"Furthermore, all it seems that you have proven here is that Lord Farrsolin sent you soldiers, under pretense that you would use them to attack Lord Tekiel, and that Lord Farrsolin may or may not have incited a riot among Tekiel's Skaa. And this is is assuming all of what you've stated is objective fact."

 

Lord Izenry sat back on his chair, crossing his arms. His tone was distinctly bored as he continued, although it remained loud enough to be heard clearly throughout the court. "All I see here is a largely circumstantial case for conspiracy to commit treason, conspiracy to extort a House Lord, and the incitement of a riot. Well, that, and of course a very strong case for entrapment, as it appears that you, through Lord Erikell provided Farrsolin with means, motive and opportunity to commit treason, in hopes that he would, and you would be able to prosecute him. Which, I daresay, is most definitely not commendable behaviour from our Lord's own General. On that note, I would also like to question your own degree of involvement in affairs; you state that you dealt with Farrsolin through Erikell’s mediation; yet somehow you ended up with all the referenced forces, suggesting, perhaps, that you were more closely involved than you are willing to admit.

 

"Unless you provide better evidence and a more compelling argument, then I know that my vote certainly will not fall in your favour. In fact, I will quite possibly vote in favour of your own prosecution; I do not think I, or any Head of House should be comfortable with the fact that you are willing to entrap one of your fellow Nobles for your own ends. If this is your strongest case, I might recommend just moving to drop all other charges."

Edited August 31, 2015 by Aonar Faileas

[Shallan]

You suggest much, Lord Izenry. It may be circumstantial, but I see no reason to drop all charges without the defendant saying a word. Without him denying any of the charges, we have no reason to drop them. As for the Entrapment; he sent a message to me first basically stating: "Want to destroy Tekiel together?"

One last thing. Do you wish to act as Farrsolin et. al.'s defense? Are you speaking on their behalf? I fear it may not be such a wise decision, since it would associate you with them once they are found guilty. Are you merely an observer and a member of the jury, or do you have some personal stake in the outcome of the trial?

[Aonar]

"I would not necessarily drop all charges, Lord Vinid," Cifan said, surprised to receive such a direct response, "I would however, consider dropping those that are illogical and impossible to press, namely mutiny and conspiracy to destroy a Noble House, as the first is redundant, and the second, by your own account, does not appear to fit the intent of his actions. I would also like to note that where you use the term blackmail, I assume you mean extortion, as he planned to obtain the wealth through the threat of physical violence, rather than defamation.

 

"If that is truly what he sent to you, then yes, entrapment would no longer apply, as he clearly demonstrated mens rea, and as such his actions likely did not come about as a direct result of your interference. I would note however, an aspect of your account has changed; you no longer claim to have had Erikell mediating your communication with Farrsolin, and this does not help your credibility."

 

On the last item, Cifan thought for a moment. Farrsolin is likely a lost cause, but from what I have heard, the others may not be so. And hey, I wanted to make things interesting right? "I have no personal stake in this trial; although I have some trade relations with Zerrung and Artorius, I would not consider either of them close allies. However, if there are none else willing to step forward, then I will gladly act as the defence, insomuch as my clients can be proven innocent. I am not so good a man to attempt to defend the indefensible."

Edited September 1, 2015 by Aonar Faileas

[Mailliw73]

It seeks to prove the guilt of Lord and House Zerrung on the counts of High Treason Against the Final Empire, Mutiny Against the Lord Ruler, and Conspiring to Eliminate a Noble House.

 

It will prove these accusations without a shadow of a doubt, and will nearly guarantee a unanimous 'guilty' vote.

 

On the case of Lord Farrsolin. The prosecution introduces this evidence into the court:

     

 

"Wait for the sounds of a thousand skaa in open riots - and what one skaa does, a hundred consider doing. Lord Tekiel physically won't be able to focus the attack; he will have to withdraw his forces to quell his own skaa. That should leave you safe enough to re-gather your forces and set up a defense while an army composed of Zerrung, Artorious and Orielle soldiers march into Tekiel land.

              My allies will topple Fadrex City, and I will send Lord Tekiel an ultimatum; he will supply every house amassed against him, save for House Orielle, with three Wealth, three Allomancers and a single Mistborn. I do not wish to remove House Tekiel in its entirity, for that would require eliminating the entire Tekiel clan, children included. For now, I will settle on breaking them and keeping them on a tight leash from then on."

On your charges, none of them even make sense. High Treason against the Final Empire: Tekiel's House now represents the entirety of our gracious Lord Ruler's domain and blessings. I will jot that down for future reference, thank you for informing me, Cladent. Mutiny against the Lord Ruler: Are you implying that Lord Tekiel is the Lord Ruler? I do believe that is heretical blasphemy. Conspiring to eliminate a Noble House: You have the best chance here. But still, you don't have a case. In your own evidence, Lord Farrsolin, the supposed mastermind behind this, stated: "I do not wish to remove House Tekiel in its entirity, for that would require eliminating the entire Tekiel clan, children included. For now, I will settle on breaking them and keeping them on a tight leash from then on." So Lord Farrsolin desiring not to eliminate a House is now proof that he planned to? You'll have to explain that.

 

Second, that's a brave statement. I'll have you know, all of you gathered here, that I did not participate in massing forces to attack any House. But, what the others don't know, Vinid, is that you were. From missives between House Zerrung and House Vinid: 

"On a separate note, Farrsolin told me to contact you about plans regarding Tekiel."

 

"Can I assume you were on Farrsolin’s side? Basically, the current plan is that my army will surround his city under the pretense of protecting it, and I’ll possibly get command of his army, and then we can do whatever."

 

"Yep. If I wasn't, he wouldn't have told me to contact you. To help out, I need some clarifications:

How are you going to get command of Tekiel's army?

Are you attacking the city of Fadrex itself?"

"Thanks. Basically, Tekiel thinks I am protecting the city. I then pull a ninja move on him and, with it already having been surrounded, reverse my role.

Farrsolin said the plan was to not take the city but to make the demands of Tekiel without actually having to take it."

"Oh I see. So the plan is to threaten Tekiel, saying you can attack his city and cut it off from the rest?"

 

This does show that I was communicating with forces conspiring against one of the Lord Ruler's designated Stewards, but also proves that I did not mass any troops, while Vinid used both his own troops to lie to a chosen Steward with plans to lay siege to one of our magnificent Lord Ruler's cities. 

 

I also accuse Lord Vinid of slandering the name of House Zerrung under false assumptions as well as threatening and lying under oath as the General of our Lord Ruler's army. Lord Vinid informed me that I must attend court today while an army massed of Vinid, Erikell, Orielle, and Lord Ruler's soldiers surrounded my Keep. When he told me that I would be attending to testify, I came of my own volition, but was immediately detained upon arrival and accused.

 

If Lord Izenry wishes to provide information and/or cross examine, fine by me. I invite all of you to speak up if you so desire. If you have evidence to the contrary of one of the prosecutors or defendants, speak and condemn the true dissenters. I shall be my own defense for now, but I will call upon others to witness if it is needed. I hope that you make the correct decision in this trial.

[Shallan]

You appear to have your facts wrong, Lord Zerrung. Of course my forces were surrounding the city; they were there to protect it. Lord Tekiel can confirm that this is the case. As for the non-mediation of Erikell, given that J speak for the prosecution Inthiught it appropriate to include them and I as one unit. A less confusing pronoun would be 'us', which we will use from now on.

[Aonar]

Lord Izenry listened carefully to Vinid's denials, before addressing Prelan Benedict, "May I have a moment to confer with my client?" After a brief nod from the High Prelan, who looked somewhat bemused at all which had so far taken place, Cifan stiffly made his way down to the stand. Leaning close to Zerrung, he whispered, "Lord Votir, I appreciate your impassioned self-defence. For the most part, it was quite good, and will probably help our case. However, treason does apply, as Farrsolin planned to lay siege to Fadrex, which is one of our Lord Ruler's cities, and threaten his chosen representative there. Also, I can't cross-examine you, as you're my client. That would be Vinid's job."

 

Taking a few steps back, he raised his voice, to make sure everyone could hear. "Now, based on my witness's statements, I would like to call the prosecution properly to the stand, so I may ask of them a few questions."

 

With a certain amount of reluctance, Lord Vinid stood. "Thank you, Lord Vinid. So, I have three questions. One; to your knowledge, did Votir Zerrung contribute in any provable, material way to Farrsolin's conspiracy?”

 

“Second, did you at any point claim that Zerrung was being brought to this court with the express intent of testifying against Farrsolin, as opposed to your actual actions, in addition to implicitly threatening him with extreme force, should he not comply?”

 

After a pause, Lord Izenry continued, “And third, did you or Lord Erikell at any time support the conspiracy in truth, and not in pursuit of justice?”

[Curious Anamaximder]

" You are mistaken of my involvement in this, Lord Vinid. I have not recieved contact from Lord Farrosolin or Lord Zerrung about trying to take Fadrex City or topple House Tekiel. The Orielle soldiers you claim were going to invade Tekiel Land are soldiers hired by Lord Farrosolin, which I believe he owes me them back. Therefore, my soldiers are not a part of this conflict, they were acting under the command of Lord Farrosolin. Your proscecution, Vinid, does not mention me in any other treasonous task, so I am innocent. I rest my case. Thank you." Lord Orielle said, and then sat down.

[Blank Fate]

From his position in the stands, Daresso Artorius quirked an eyebrow and stood, making a respectful gesture to attract the attention of this self-styled 'prosecution'.

"I must say," he began, "I did not expect to be a defendant at this hearing, though I do thank you for having the decency not to surround my Keep with soldiers." One of his guards gave the heir to House Artorius a questioning look, but was waved aside, unconcerned.

"I would like to formally deny House Artorius' involvement in Lord Farrsolin's plan to extort Lord Tekiel. My father was approached by Lord Farrsolin with a request that our House either side with him or step aside and remain neutral, and we opted for the latter in no uncertain terms. We committed no soldiers or other resources to this scheme, and Farrsolin's claim to the contrary is, at best, a woeful misunderstanding on his part. Should anyone present have any compelling evidence to the contrary, they are welcome to present it."

[Adamir]

Anders clasped his hands behind his back, watching other houses discuss his eventual fate. He had been quiet for too long.

 

"I believe Lord Erikell is getting greedy," he spoke. "I do not deny conspiracy against House Tekiel, as evidenced by the letters; what I do deny are the slanderous allegations that I acted on them. I was attempting to provoke Lord Erikell into acting against Lord Tekiel in my place. But that is not the point I wish to bring across. What I object to," Anders clenched a fist, "is the sheer audacity in accusing Houses Orielle and Artorious. Orielle was as innocent as the skaa who makes the coin a Mistborn uses to assassinate another man, and the forgeries that you proclaim as 'evidence' agree that Lord Artorious will remain neutral; I myself am quite surprised he did not betray me. The accusations against them prove the underlying motivations of Houses Erikell and Vinid for this... inquisition. Profit. Whatever is taken from the accused Houses is granted to the 'injured party', if my understanding of Final Empire law is correct. House Farrsolin is not a House of warriors, it is a house of schemers, and the worst schemers, such as myself, are the ones who forget that they are cut from the same cloth as those they work with.

 

"I thought I could trust Lord Tekiel in an attempt to obliterate the Erikell name for crimes against the Final Empire, just as I thought I could trust Lord Erikell to follow orders and expose himself as the warlord he was. The plan was simple. We would provoke Lord Erikell into military action, expose him and use it to bring the Lord Ruler's koloss onto him and House Vinid. Any losses sustained by House Tekiel would be re-compensated several times over with the total sum of wealth from House Erikell, while I would claim House Vinid.

 

"Then, the mark turned around and betrayed me. Schemers trying to scam other schemers, forgetting the other side is just as likely to do so themselves. I freely admit to one charge of Conspiracy against a Warlord for the Good of the Empire and one charge of Conspiracy against House Vinid to puppet them so as to further Farrsolin goals. I am cruel, but House Erikell is brutal; my cruelty is the cruelty of necessity, to quarantine and eliminate a diseased village to spare others the suffering they would otherwise inflict. I ask only that we look to House Erikell's rampage throughout the untamed skaa. Hundreds needlessly murdered; even if we were to go by the notion that skaa lives matter not, those are hundreds of expended workers who would otherwise have been growing crops and working forges for the benefit of the entire empire.

 

"The greatest schemer and the most brutal dictator are standing side by side. Lord Ruler help us all."

 

Is there any neutral party who can actually recite Final Empire law? Say, a particular neutral party who has been working entirely in the legal system for the last several generations? Also, to verify, the messages had been edited - I stated that Lord Artorious would remain neutral, but I couldn't find a way to cram that into the rp post without it becoming forced.

Edited September 4, 2015 by Adamir