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Does he belong to the community of magical creatures whose appearance has been masked? Could he be a victim of this genocide?
After this incident, I rode for a long time before stopping again.
I was shocked. How could someone be punished for helping others? Wasn't the sacrifice of a life and eternal damnation enough? Was it really necessary to impose so much suffering on someone so devoted?
I was revolted.
It was profoundly unfair. And nothing shakes me more than injustice.
Haunted by the images of this poor colleague and unable to calm myself, I called Christy. I had to understand the reasons for such carnage if I was to ease my anguish.
My friend picked up the phone in a panic.
“Eltz, what's wrong? Is everything okay?”
The words stuck in my throat. After a long silence, I asked him,
“Why do Sin Eaters have to hide, Christy? Why? To protect themselves from whom? From what?”
I heard him swallow with difficulty. My questions must have taken him by surprise.
“You’re not really ignorant of the answer to that, are you? It's the Church that's out to get us... You know what the clergy claim?”
“No. I don't know anything about it.”
“They claim that in freeing people from their sins, we’re guilty of the sin of pride. As if we were claiming to have the powers of Christ. That's why we shouldn't be paid more than six coins...”
“And that gives them the right to kill us like dogs and expose our bodies to popular vindictiveness? It's unworthy of God's representatives! It's a service we render to the community at the cost of our very existence. Can't they see that?”
“I know... The price is even higher than you imagined, isn't it?”
I was furious. I hadn't imagined for a second that the reprisals would take on such proportions, but I refuse to give in to fear. No! They won't make me give in to panic or abandon my mission. I've chosen this path out of conviction, and I'll honor my commitment. It's a question of honor. And maybe even pride, after all.
I know, however, that from now on I'll have to be even more cautious, as furtive as the ghosts I free from their wanderings.
Eltz's journal
20
Ember
After a few minutes in the underground passage, I feel less feverish, although the unpleasant tingling persists. The distance between the hall of worship and me certainly has something to do with it.
How did these people know that the dead could enter these walls? There's no answer to this question—this simple spell alone proves that these monks aren’t what they seem! If they protect themselves from specters, it's because they're involved in many deaths. And most likely in mine...
Now that I've come to my senses, I'm feeling a little apprehensive. Where has Believ gone? Why isn't she back?
I can't quite grasp the rhythm of time, so I don't know whether she left me a few minutes or several hours ago. And all this for what? To find a body that I can no longer inhabit, at the risk of losing her own life!
This reality hits me hard. Why would she make such a sacrifice when I'm already dead? It just doesn't make sense.
I must find her and rescue her from the clutches of these unscrupulous monks!
I leave the underground passage and enter the suffocating basement. A strange atmosphere reigns here, a heavy feeling that creeps over me in addition to the horrible sensation resulting from the protection spell. Where do I go from here?
I re-attach myself to the bond with Believ, the one I mentally forged when we first met, and make my way through the gleaming stone corridors.
Soon there is a rumbling sound, preceded by sharp, peremptory words.
