Lord of the Dead in the Land of Lust

CH9 - Identities

Amrita ascended the steps of the Grand Cathedral of the Goddess Reborn, a massive building connected, albeit with some distance, to the Goddess Reborns own Sanctuary where she lived and held court with those who were high enough of rank to earn such an honor. The Grand Cathedral was as large as its name implied, but while it was both wide and tall, most who entered it for weekly mass did not know the true extent of the building. The main hall was where Mass was held, where the high priests, bishops, and Archbishop and the like prayed, guided the masses and preached. It was a single, simple wooden door to the immediate right of the main doors, hidden underneath the balconies above, shadowed by a lack of torches, and guarded by a Dawn Templar that was her direct objective however.

Stepping up to the Dawn Templar she silently held out a hand, allowing Amrita to pull out a silver medallion and give it to her. The Dawn Templar looked it over for a second, taking note of the markings, the design, and the engravings upon it, before nodding to herself and stepping out of the way while opening the door.

Amrita gave a nod of thanks and entered, instantly turning in the narrow hall and ascending the stairs that were the only things in front of her, heading up to the second floor of the Cathedral, a place where only those of the Clergy could enter.

When she reached the second floor she was met with the sight of many clergy members moving about and doing their business is near silence. Some did talk with others, but none of them raised their voices beyond a certain level so that any of the populace who might be below in the main hall could not hear them.

Walking around the balcony and the majority of the second floor she came to a flight of stairs that led up to the Cathedrals third and highest floor, ascended them, and then began crossing the third floor. Unlike the second, where there were many people moving about and working, the third floor was mostly devoid of people and noise. It had no opening below to the main hall, and the marble columns and tiles along the floor made each step echo far louder than she liked. Eventually she came up to a door, similar to the rest, but made different by the fact that while it was made of wood, it was exquisitely polished and the wood itself was banded in thin silver bands covered in holy inscriptions and protective runes.

Taking a moment to steady herself, she rapped on the door with her knuckle only once. A second later the door clicked and slowly swung open, reveling a space that appeared to be an office.

"Enter," Beckoned an old sounding woman's voice.

Amrita entered as she was told the door swinging shut behind her by magic as she cleared it, and allowing her to take a second to look upon the room. As an office it was simple and utilitarian at first glance, not as gaudy as much of the rest of the cathedral. A desk sat at the back of the room, while lining both walls were shelves covered in books and other items, while a single door also sat between two shelves on the right wall. It was a further glance that truly made the rooms excessiveness stands out. The shelves were all made of Polished and stained Walnut, while the floors were not just covered in marble tiles, but the space between the tiles was filled with what appeared to be either Ivory or some other similar lustrous stone. The books on the shelves were all covered in strong hard covered with engraving and inlay on the spines, while scroll tubes of ivory and jewelry boxes of silver sat in other places. And as if to enhance all of it a chandelier of silver and crystal floated above the room by magic, covering everything in a scintillating glow that, personally, Amrita found very distracting.

At the back of the room, behind a desk seemingly made of Polished Rosewood and decorated with a brass and silver lamp, was the Archbishop of the church of the Goddess Reborn, the highest ranked Clergy member in all of the Seven Shields Alliance, held only below the Goddess Reborn herself. She was a very elderly Elven woman with hair that had long since turned from its brilliant blond to a dull grey, but her bright green eyes still held a strength in them that was hard to look at. She was garbed in a simple white robe, while her more regal robes and vestments of her station were hung perfectly upon hangers behind her. She must have been considerably old for an elf to look as old as she did, but as she spoke, she did not sound as old as such her tone holding power that she was clearly at home commanding others.