To Kill a God

Enter Sandman

The church of the Reckoners prided itself on a hierarchy based on personal ability and power. And so Aura Bluefinch allowed herself to fill with pride whenever she thought back to the position she now held. There were only twenty other high clergymen in New York, and only three bishops above them. In a few years, if she worked hard and was particularly diligent, she might climb up to that rank. Archbishop, though, was a position held by the politically powerful. Keely, the local Archbishop, was an old fop. Aggressive and cunning, but magically weak.

Aura shook her head, trying to bring her attention back to the proceedings in the grand hall. One of the bishops, Lemay, was standing behind the podium at the front of the room, not ten paces to Aura's left. He was speaking in a low, somber voice that carried across the huge room. "And so we, the people, now know these old rites, these old worships, and these old gods to be false. There never was Man. No beings looked down upon us. No being held more sway than us. We, the creatures of this plane, must accept that we are our own lords and masters. But we must understand our flaws as well."

Aura listened a little more, feeling the swell of pride and anger that she always felt bubble inside her. Sure, she had heard a hundred such speeches, and sometimes she had to admit that they fell flat. But today was important. A meeting to punish a sinner, and a beastkin sinner, no less.

She gazed out at the mass of assembled people. Dwarves and elves, gnomes and a few orcs. One or two beastkin, mostly sitting with plenty of elbow room at the very back of the rows of wooden pews. The attendance tonight was fairly high, she noted idly before turning her attention to the stained glass windows depicting the people of the world rising above the false gods of Men.

Her reverie was broken when the bishop at the front stepped back, and a young, newly appointed high clergyman to her right stepped up and walked to the podium. Riley was new, and had a tendency to ramble. She had helped him prepare his speech for the night. Nothing in it was really new to her.

Instead of listening, she watched as the bishop walked to the far left of the stage, down the three stone steps, and into the passage carved into the stone wall. The room was built like a giant Y, with and elongated stem. The podium and the rows of benches reserved for the chorus and high clergy were at the intersection, while doors leading to the back rooms were placed in the wings, where the crowd couldn't see them. It was an newly built building, but it held the same sweeping ceiling and open floor space most churches seemed to lean towards.

Aura truly loved the place.

The doors at the far back of the room, the entrance for the common audience, banged open.

A few in the crowd, Aura included, jumped at the sudden noise, and Riley lost his feverish stride before coughing and starting over.

From outside, there was a faint, almost inaudible music, like the strumming of a strange harp and the wail of a screaming woman.

Her eyes drawn to the doorways, Aura was one of the first to see It enter.

It was tall, like a high elf, and wore a cloak of deep, forest green with a silvery trim over what looked like a finely tailored lord's suit. Clouds of darkness billowed out from under the cloak and pooled at Its feet. Illusion magic? She wondered.

It walked down the central alley, the music growing louder with every step It took. Soon, the chorus of the infernal song was joined by the beating of a deep drum that made the panes of glass on the walls buzz and rattle.