Eskhind/Conversations
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Hold there! Who are you? What do you want?
Find Eskhind
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Hold there! Who are you? What do you want?
Hindriarch Keh sent me.
Keh? I'm shocked that she even deigned to speak my name. I am a pariah now, beneath discussion. Does she demand remuneration for the scant supplies I stole?
Give back what you stole.
What I stole? I stole supplies to sustain myself and my sisters, nothing more, and little enough that no one would suffer for its absence. You would cut those from my hide?
You stole Kindrish.
*Eskhind bursts into forced, nervous laughter*
Is that her angle? To claim that I stole Kindrish? Her influence must be waning more than even I knew.
What are you saying?
What do you imagine I am saying? The aging, ineffectual leader of a village in isolation. A system that strives to forget anyone who sees the outside, no matter how much its inhabitants strive for a better tomorrow.
Bey Lah's isolationism provides ideal patsies for any crime the Hindriarch chooses to commit.
You claim innocence?
Yes. I am falsely accused.
See, Bey Lah strives to forget anyone who sees the outside. The gerontocracy ensures that its leaders will always be aging and fearful. Pariahs like me can be easily accused of crimes committed by Keh or her cronies.
I suspected this.
Well, good. I would give you a prize for your insight, but times have been lean.
As you say, the Hindriarch is obviously framing me. As a pariah, I am an ideal patsy for Keh. Much as I love my people, they are weak of will and do not question the Grand-Doe.
You think Keh stole the treasure?
Ay, you kendren are just as thick as the elders. I'd hoped otherwise.
Yes, I am suggesting that old Grand-Doe is trying to fool you, and the village as well. I'm not certain that she stole it herself, but an investigation might undermine her authority, and she cannot have that.
Why should I believe you?
Why should you believe me? Well, why should you believe Keh? Ayvah, think about this!
I'm not asking you to give me your unconditional trust, understand? Only to extend to me the same level of trust you give Keh. Is that not reasonable? Is that not just?
Lies.
Ayvah. I'd wanted Grand-Doe to be wrong about you kendren, but perhaps you are all violent fools after all.
I'm not asking you to trust me, only to extend to me the same level of trust you give Keh. Is that not reasonable?
Eskhind is rude
Rude? How dare--
No, I... I apologize for my rudeness. Please understand that we have lost so much by leaving Bey Lah. My mind is not in a gentle place, and being revisited by the tyranny I left behind is causing newly-closed wounds to open.
Forgive my tone, but please understand: I did not steal Kindrish. You are being used.
What should I do?
The proof is in the petals, kendren. You want justice? Find out what really happened.
If you find evidence, Warden Neelahind will support you. Speak to her. She is loyal to Grand-Doe, but more loyal to the truth.
I will return to the village and we will sort this out. The Hindriarch will have to tolerate my presence until my name is cleared.
Start
Go tell Keh that I will remain in Bey Lah until this is sorted.
Kith and Kin
Start
What is it, kendren?
Questions
Ask away.
Why
Why? Why did I leave a single parasang square piece of land upon which I was expected to live my entire life, forever obeying a woman whose sole qualification of rule is her gender and age? Why did I leave a place where we eat the same damned soup for nine out of ten meals and the height of occupational versatility is leatherworking?
The question isn't why I left, it's why I'm the only one who chose to do so, why none of my pleas were convincing to the hindren I love. If we would just open the borders, it would never have come to this.
Who
The Hindriarch is the most likely suspect, in my opinion. She might have kept it for herself or sold it. I've been suspicious of her pet bodyguard, Kesehind, for years--I wouldn't put it past him to steal the treasure himself.
That said, it might have been an outsider like you. I doubt any of the villagers had the nerve to steal such a valuable object, but I suppose it's faintly possible.
But it wasn't Neelahind. You won't find a purer heart in all of Qud than hers.
What
Objects out of place, certainly. Bey Lah produces little and sees almost no violence, so signs of the outside world should be easy to find.
You may wish to talk to the villagers, too. My people are starved for entertainment, gossip travels fast, and we are all notoriously poor liars.
Neelahind
Yes. We were close. More than close.
If it tore my heart to ragged halves to leave my people behind, leaving Neelahind shredded it into scraps.
Brother
I have no brother. My two sisters are all the blood family I can claim.
Keh believes
Keh believes that she gets final say regarding who is a sister or brother. Regardless of what the sibling in question thinks.
That's part of why I left.
Love and Fear
SonnetPrompt
Oh. Oh no. Yes, that's. That's mine.
I meant to burn it. I probably should have burned it. I wish I had burned it.
May I please have it back?
SonnetNo
You have me helpless. That poem is my clumsy expression of a deep truth that frightens me. It is a risk that I lacked the strength to take or leave.
My heart quails in your hands, kendren.
SonnetBurn
No! Yes? I don't know.
Yes, I wish I burned it, but I wish I had given it. I wish I had never written it, or I had written it better, or I had simply confessed in person. I wish I had a harder heart.
I wish you would give it back, or burn it, or give it to her.
SonnetIntentions
I was trying not to think too hard about any of this until you found my poem, so... I can't say.
But I can't ignore this sign of my cowardice, not after you found it.
SonnetGiven
Kendren... =name=. I will try.
I... thank you. Live and drink.
SonnetDelivery
Deliver it? But how do you even know who--
Mm. Never mind. My head is spinning. I think that if... the poem were to find itself in the warden's hands, that would perhaps be a good thing. Maybe.
After Kith and Kin
These dialogue options depend on several variables that happen in the ending:
- Who is Hindriarch
- Whether the outcome is fully resolved (the full 3 days after the accusation have passed)
- If the outcome is not fully resolved, whether the village will survive, be ravaged, or be doomed by illness
- If Love and Fear is complete
If she is hindriarch, a choice to give her 
Kindrish is available in every start dialogue.
To save space. this choice is omitted.
Hindriarch Esk, Love and Fear complete
Hah! Real justice? I never thought I'd see the like, not here. Well done!
I'll admit, I would have preferred to avoid becoming Hindriarch, but I'm hoping to bring my people to a more Democratic form of governance. Then I can vote myself out.
Hindriarch Esk, Love and Fear complete, fully resolved
If it isn't the hero kendren, =name=.
Welcome back to Bey Lah! Stay as long as you like.
Hindriarch Esk, Love and Fear incomplete
You have my gratitude for this exoneration, kendren. This worked out better than I expected thanks to you.
I'll admit, I would have preferred to avoid becoming Hindriarch, but I'm hoping to bring my people to a more Democratic form of governance. Then I can vote myself out.
Hindriarch Esk, Love and Fear incomplete, fully resolved
Welcome back to Bey Lah, =name=. Stay as long as you like.
Hindriarch Keh, Love and Fear complete
Kendren, thank you.
Things may seem grim, but I have a new strength with Neela by my side.
Hindriarch Keh, Love and Fear complete, fully resolved
Kendren! I am glad to see you.
Thank you again for bringing Neela around, and please forgive her reservation. She mourns the people she thought she knew, but our future will be brighter together.
Hindriarch Keh, Love and Fear incomplete
Don't you have someone else to bother?
Live and drink piss.
Hindriarch Keh, Love and Fear incomplete, fully resolved
Oh, it's you. Need to rest by the fire?
It's fine, my wrath has clarified. You were never the problem. Live and drink.
EskHindriarch
Extremely frustrating! But I am yet hopeful.
My people are resistant to change, but they don't seem opposed to the idea of a Democracy. I need to give them a measure of time before we hold an election, but they'll ultimately agree as long as I am acting Hindriarch.
Then, fates willing, they will vote me out. I'll be voting for Isahind, myself. Once I convince her to run.
Village ravaged
I couldn't save them.
I tried. I tried to save them.
Village doomed
I'm uneasy.
KindrishReturnAfter
(The node in 2.201.66 is erroneously titled KindrishReturn. The title was renamed to make the dialogue functional.)
Oh, so you have! Amazing work, kendren. We owe you more than we can give, but here is what we can give nonetheless.
You are more than welcome here in Bey Lah any time.
Start
=name=.