Wren
Ch. 14
“…Well the thing about that is that we don’t really worship the goddess anymore. Since we developed our modern understanding of the gods, nobody really worships them anymore.”
“Guess that shows me for never going to the services. So if you don’t worship, why do the temples still exist?”
“Well there’s the obvious stuff, public services like healing, like your friend is taking advantage of now, or like providing shelter for those without somewhere to stay. Also we’re a place for the community to gather. People have lifelong friendships here that they’re not just going to give up because they don’t worship anymore.”
“Ok, so why not just call it a community center?”
“Because we still preach. Even if we don’t worship the goddess anymore, we still value her domain and want to spread the word of its virtues.”
“The virtues… of deceit…”
“Well, all things in moderation. Obviously it’s bad to lie to someone else’s detriment, but say you have a wife—”
“Husband.”
“—Sorry, husband. Say you have a husband, and he puts on an… unflattering outfit. Now you’re not going out anywhere, so he doesn’t need to look great, but he asks you how he looks. Most would agree that the right thing to do there is to tell him that he looks great, even if he doesn’t.”
“That seems like a pretty niche case. In most cases, lying is still bad.”
“Something being rare does not justify ignoring it. So how’d he get injured?”
“I don’t know. I just found him like that. Decided to be a good person and bring him here.”
“So is this one of the niche cases where lying is ok?”
“What do you mean?” Rich tried his best to look offended, but he knew she had him figured out.
She just looked at him, waiting for him to tell the truth.
“I stabbed him thinking he was somebody else. I was out for blood and the guy I was trying to get had just rounded a corner and been killed by him. I just jumped out and started swinging without making sure I had the right guy. How did you figure it out?”
“I could make up something about how the followers of Kesis are blessed with being able to see through all attempts at deception, but really it was just an educated guess. You’re not great at lying. I can guess why you didn’t bring in the other guy.”
“There was no other guy, really. The guy I was after was a shape changer. Now they’re just a puddle on the floor.”
“A puddle?”
“Yeah, apparently that’s what happens when you kill one of them. They just melt.”
“Interesting. I take it you’ve killed a few of them then?”
“Yeah. Well, one. And that one would’ve been my second if not for the unfortunate victim. I expected more objection. After all, most people think they’re sapient.”
“Most people aren’t followers of Kesis. Ever since it was discovered that they’re not sapient there’s been debate over whether what they do counts as deception. I doubt you could find a single follower who doesn’t know.”
“Well on that note, since you all are into deception, is there any chance you could—”
“Wipe his mind so he doesn’t remember the attack?”
“I wasn’t going to go that far, but if you’re offering…”
“Only for the right price. Our coffers haven’t exactly been full to bursting lately, and we provide some pretty valuable services to the community.”
“You can just call it extortion. You don’t need to justify it. I know how this works, I just never expected it from a temple.” Rich removed his coin purse and handed it to her. “I hope this is enough.”
“Plenty” she said, hiding her shock at just how much was in the purse. “If you don’t need anything else, I’d recommend getting out of here before he wakes up.”
“Thanks.”
He turned and walked out the side door, into the dark streets of Wrenfield.