It has been one day after Zephyr Blackpaws and Wyn were brought back to Rephidim and the Temple by the Champion of Ashes, and the 'comfortable accomodations' are just as dank and dim and smelly as he remembered from his last stay. Passing guards look in on the highly wanted assassin, snort to each other, then continue on. Breakfast consists of a bland gruel that resembles the output of a ship's food synthesizer that's lost all its programs for taste and texture, along with plain water. After that's done (and the spoon and bowl and cup have been removed to deny Zephyr any useful tools), there's been nothing to do but wait… And wait…

"I'm Krakaratz," a deep voice says down the hall. "Here to see the prisoner. A Blackpaw."

The guard down the hall responds, "Zephyr Blackpaw, eh? He's in maximum security. Highly wanted killer, you know, the word from up top's that he offed the Captain-Astromancer. The Big Guy. Really bad medicine. We're going to make a big-time example of him." Claws snikt. "Don't think you're gonna be able to help him, but you go in, you gotta take a couple guards. It's for yer own safety."

"I'm his lawyer. I gotta look out for his interests." Some coins clink on the counter.

Within the cell, a pair of black ears perk up at the sound of the voice. o O {Who?} The fox sits up a bit expectly, then narrows his eyes at the guard's threats.

The guard hesitates. "You know what they'll do to me if the fox escapes, don'tcha?"

Zephyr's eyes widen. o O {Lawyer?} He stands silently, self-consciously brushing at his fur as he waits.

"He won't. My… friend will see to that. He'll be there for the trial," the deep voice replies, full of self-assurance. "I'm not asking for much, I just don't want the persecutor to have any notion of what's up. You get my drift?"

The fox lightly grips the bars of his cell, poking his muzzle out in an attempt to see his… lawyer. o O {He's bribing the guard? So I might have a chance after all… that 'business' deal was for real. Maybe.}

"Okay. My friends'll just see you to da door. Yell if he starts ripping yer throat out." The guard thumbs to the two Jupanis nearby, who start escorting the shadowy figure down the corridor. Blunt head. A beak… An eagle in dark brown robes with a high-collared shirt, a bit of gold glinting at the collar, in the shape of an eye.

Zephyr quickly settles back down, idly grooming his fur and pretending he's not yet heard anything.

"Hello, Ser Blackpaw. I'm your lawyer. A 'Friend' sent me, so don't maky any waves or he'll be very disappointed," the eagle says as he comes within view through the door. One of the guards unlocks the door and starts the slide it open while the other rests his hand on a dagger.

Zephyr looks up slowly. He keeps his ears up and neutral, his paws in view, claws relaxed and hidden. Not moving at all otherwise, he quietly regards the avian as he enters. "A friend… I understand. I was told to expect something like this. I won't 'make any waves', don't worry."

Krakaratz steps in. "Good. I like my clients to be cooperative." As the door clicks shut behind him, the two guards nod to the avimorph and then conspicuously walk down the hall, making sure to be noisy.

The fox only watches the eagle, then slowly leans back against the wall, tail curling quietly back and forth. "So… " His ears flick. "Do you think I have a chance?"

As their steps fade away, Krakaratz reaches into his robes and takes out some kind of crank-wound gadget. He winds it up, sets it on the floor, and lets it go… *tinkletinkletinklecracklewhirrtinkle* It seems to be aimed at defeating attempts to eavesdrop on the two. "Ah. Good," the eagle says. "We can talk. Quietly, though."

Krakaratz kneels down by the fox's side, making himself comfortable. He speaks in a low whisper. "Krakaratz. Legal advocate licensed by the Temple and most of the more useful provinces. So tell me, who hired you to bump off the Captain-Astromancer? How did you do it, exactly?"

Zephyr's ears swivel at the gadget, and a halfsmile spreads across his muzzle. "Not bad… " He blinks at the eagle's question. "Who… But I didn't. I don't ever know who that was, the leader of this place, I've gathered."

"Don't lie to me, you'll just make it harder on yourself," Krakaratz says. "Give me all the details, everything you can remember about that night. We'll make it out like it was an accident or something, maybe. You made a really smooth getaway, but it looks like you got tired of running."

The eagle nods to himself. "Can't say I'm surprised. Thousand gold pieces is a lot to be on anyone's head. Bet you didn't even get offered a thousand for the job."

Zephyr idly looks at his paw as he speaks. "I'm not lying. Somewhere around is a vixen who looks like me. Name of Shadowspite, at least that's what I… remember. It gets complicated. But she set me up to take a fall for her, it seems. She's probably long gone."

Zephyr turns his head to look at the eagle. "Everything I remember? Alright… "

"You're not… Hmm. Yes, you'd better tell it to me from the beginning," Krakaratz says. He listens intently to the fox's story.

Zephyr's eyes focus somewhere off to the avian's side as he speaks. "I was here. In this dungeon. I didn't… cooperate, after I was brought here as an Exile. I figured with that chair and all, they were going to brainwash me. I've seen and heard of setups like that before. Plus they locked me in. So… I don't remember much, except for getting in some good bites. Then I was locked in that chair, pretty badly beaten up, while they gave me some language lessons. Some kind of VR setup they've got up there. Then they put me down here.

Krakaratz nods. "Big mistake there, they never let anyone get away with biting them. If they did, pretty soon people would start disrespecting them, and that would be the start of a long, hard fall."

Zephyr thinks… "Actually, I was more than a little hurt. I had both legs broken, some ribs, and a lot else hurt besides. I was down here for a while, they were going to… shave me. Then there was a shadow behind the raccoon going to shave me, coming up behind him and slipping something around his neck. Next thing I knew, there was a lot of noise, I was unconscious, and I woke up chained to a floor in some kind of warehouse. Still in sorry shape, and looking up at a vixen who was a dead ringer for me at a distance. Digitigrade and all, same muzzle shape, same ears, same patterns… I thought I was dreaming. I wasn't.

"Hmm. Interesting." Krakaratz nods, then holds up a hand for Zephyr to wait a minute. He rewinds the gadget, sets it going again, then gestures for him to continue.

Zephyr sighs. "There… it gets fuzzy." He pauses while Krakaratz winds up the noisy toy. "There was some… rituals? I don't know. But look… You can _ask_ the Inquisitors how badly I was hurt, with the broken legs and all. Mel… something, was the one that got in my face a lot. Some kind of magical healing, or something. If I hadn't had that, I'd be barely walking now, if at all. My legs would be all crooked and arthritic, but look… " He unfolds his legs from under himself, flexing one to display the normal curves of smooth fur and muscle beneath, from thigh to digitigrade foot. No scars, no strange angles, nothing that would suggest other than prime health. "I guess it was important that I be in good shape, and _I_ couldn't have afforded treatment like that. But that's not all… "

Krakaratz nods. "Maybe that's so. It is a bit odd that someone tops in the Assassin's Guild would turn to us for help. They're a pretty reclusive lot. So, after they had a healer see to you, what then?"

Zephyr closes his eyes for a moment. "I still… remember, some of her memories. That was the second ritual, I know now. To make me think I _was_ her. I guess so I'd act like her when she let me go. After that was over… and I only remember a little bit of it… I found myself out in the Temple square, with arrows flying at me and guards shouting. And I had no idea who I was.

"Hmm. Interesting." The eagle muses on Zephyr's story.

Zephyr shrugs. "After that… I got away, somehow. Into the sewers, and ended up out in the woods. And it took a while to remember who I was. I might not have, if not for… Wyn. She's someone I was… um… close to, in the world we both came from. Seeing her was what started me remembering."

Zephyr thinks hard, trying to remember. "As for Shadowspite, though… All I can tell you is that she looked just like me. There were others there, the only other name I remember, she said, was 'Maps', but I didn't see anyone else's face, and I was too beat up to get any scents." He looks at the eagle. "Nothing's been heard since about this other fox?"

"Hmm. Wyn. She's the one on charges for killing off one of those nobles. I heard she's out on her own recognizance, from Inquisitor Moffat's Office. Something about 'services rendered'. Well, she's got a different lawyer, anyway, she'll be fine." Krakaratz rasps his beak a bit. "Maps, that's a code phrase for 'Guy in charge of logistics for the team'. Could be anyone. They say Shadowspite works with the best… No, nothing's been heard. If you're right that it's a frame, we probably won't hear from him for a few years. Takes a long time for the heat to die down from something this big."

"So, your story is, you're an Exile, you just look like Shadowspite, just happened to happen in at just the right time for him – her, you say – to decide to use you for a stalking Dromodon. They captured you, healed you from wounds inflicted when you resisted Temple processing, set you loose, and you somehow escaped when you should have gotten killed by the guards to make everyone believe Shadowspite was really dead, is that it?" The eagle looks at Zephyr questioningly.

Zephyr blinks. o O {Killing a noble? Is that what she's accused of?} He looks quietly at the eagle. "That's not my 'story', that's the truth. And no… I can't prove who Shadowspite is unless I find her. I _can_ prove I'm an Exile, I can prove I'm not of this world… if it'd help. But that's… about it." He lapses into silence, thinking.

"Look, I'm your lawyer, and even I have a hard time believing that," Krakaratz says. "I don't think the Temple is going to buy it… Unles you're willing to give them some extra proof. You know what a Mind-Mage can do?"

Zephyr's ears flick. "A mind-mage? No. Unless that's what Shadowspite used on me, then… yes."

Zephyr's eyes widen slightly. "You're suggesting using one to read my mind, see if I'm telling the truth? That'd I'd agree to."

The eagle tilts his head, his eyes piercing. "You're agreeing awfully quickly… Wait, you're an Exile. Yeah, I can believe it. Look, buddy, it ain't for nothing people get *quiet* around mind mages. Yeah, they can read your mind, see if you're telling the truth. But nothing stops them from doing a little extra snooping around. Find out some dirty little secrets, then a few years later when you're minding your own business, some flunky comes along and tells you, 'Don't want Myrna to know what you do behind her back with that Kavi? Do a little favor for us'… No one trusts them. But maybe if you're an Exile… "

Krakaratz pauses for thought. "Then maybe you really ain't got anything that's worth blackmailing over."

Zephyr shakes his head. "Not that has anything to do with this world, anyway. Although… This Temple of yours seems to hold sacred knowledge about how to fix the junk and lights that are still working from who-know-what era. That mind mage would pick up an awful lot of that from me."

Zephyr says, "Not that I care. But the Temple might. "

The eagle winds the eavesdropper-knocker up again. "You're saying they'd be interested in some of what you know? Hmmm, maybe that's an angle we can use. What are we talking about here? Secrets of the First Ones? Magic of some kind?"

Zephyr chuckles softly. "Magic? Not really… just knowledge of technology they've forgotten." He points out into the corridor, indicating a flickering, humming light fixture. "That's a fluorescent light, powered by alternating current, which it converts to high voltage… high level of energy… and then sends through a tube of gas. The gas gets energized, and give off light. But they've got the power frequency too low, among other things. Don't know what their source is, but that light's ancient technology to me. Kind of like a clay pot might be to you. Still used, but been around forever."

"Huh. Sounds like magic," Krakaratz says. "I'll take your word for it. You don't care if a mind-mage gets a peek at all this babble that you're talking about?"

Zephyr shakes his head. "Of course not. They probably wouldn't understand it anyway… Just as it doesn't mean much to you. I just want to be sure it doesn't get me in any _more_ trouble with the Temple."

"Hmm. I see an angle." The eagle muses. "But just to be sure, I want to ask our 'Friend' to bring in a mind-mage of our own, double-check your story, if you don't mind. Saves embarrassment if something doesn't check out. Is that a problem?"

Zephyr shakes his head. "Not at all. Like I said… I have nothing to hide about this world, and not much else would make sense."

"All right. I'll go have a talk with a 'Friend' about this. You just stay right here and make yourself comfy. Oh yeah. Here." Krakaratz reaches into his robes and takes out several sticks of some hard meat jerky and a flask of something that sloshes. "Don't trust the food here. Some of my most interesting clients never made it to court. I'll be back again in a day or so."

Zephyr's nose twitches at the meat, as the thin gruel has been miserable for his teeth and seems to lack protein. He smiles, accepting both gifts, and holds out a paw. "I… thank you. I wasn't sure… well… just, thanks. And good luck. I'll… um… be here."

"Gehnoh." Krakaratz stands, turns off the little buzzing gadget, and stows it into his robes, then yells to the guards, "Okay, you can come and get me now, boys."

The Jupani release Krakaratz. "Surprised you made it out alive," one comments. "He's a big-time killer, that one. Got to watch him every second or he'll cut your throat and escape quick. Inquisitor's ordered double-guard at all time."

Zephyr settles back against the wall, quickly wrapping the jerky and flask in his tail's fur as the guards approach.

Zephyr watches the eagle leave. o O {That dangerous, am I? Hm… Might make it out of this one yet. And it sounds like Wyn's safe. That's the important part.}

"Naw. He's a regular Dromodon. Slow and easy does it every time. He won't give you any trouble, it's all a big mistake." Krakaratz laughs and slaps a Jupani back, then walks with them out of the corridor.

The day passes slowly. A passing gray lady Jupani in prison guard clothes stops by Zephyr's cell, eyes him distastefully, then slips his evening gruel and water under the narrow slot of the cell door. She flicks her tail, then walks on to the next prisoner.

Zephyr sniffsniffs at the gruel, rolling his eyes, and then… as the guard leaves, quietly tipping the dish into his cell's waste facilities before settling down with a bit of jerky. o O {That stuff'll make me sick… }

The gruel leaves a greasy, slightly gritty-looking residue in the dish. A sniff. Yes. Chemical.

This definitely heightens the gruel's resemblance to some of the worser offerings of a malfunctioning ship's food synthesizer.

Zephyr pauses in his gnawing on the jerky strip to sniff… and then leans down to inspect the dish. o O {K'hrai, the _worst_ port's synths didn't make anything this bad… this could be almost poisonous. Or… is it meant to be… }

Half an hour later, the gray wolf female stops by the cell to pick up the used dishes. Her shadow flickers on the far wall as her steps approach…

Zephyr sniffs at the dish again, thinking as the guard approaches… then makes a decision. {That was a chemical. Let's see what happens if… } He places the bowl as if he'd been eating out of it, smearing a remaining bit of gruel on his muzzle… and then lies down limply near it, legs tucked up, muzzle open, eyes closed, one paw held rigidly against his throat. He curls his tail up over his chest to conceal his breathing, and waits. o O {If it wasn't on purpose, I'm sleeping strangely. If it was… we'll see.}

The lady Jupani looks in the cell at the twisted and convulsed prisoner, breath catching in her throat. "He's dead… " she whispers. She looks back down the hall, then at the tray on which she had been carrying bowls, which is now heaped with used bowls and spoons. "Oh no, First Ones, they'll kill me if they find an important prisoner dead on my watch."

She sets the tray down, then tugs at the door, causing it to clatter. A voice from down the hall calls out, "Stop that noise!" One of the guards. The Jupani's breathing goes frantic as she stops.

Zephyr, not moving, thinks confusedly. o O {Wha? She didn't… then… rf. What do I do now?}

At last the Jupani appears to have made a decision: she begins walking away quickly down the hall, as if there were nothing wrong. The footsteps start to fade away into the distance.

Zephyr takes a deep breath, but listens for other footsteps. o O {Alright, maybe not her, but the kitchen? Was _something_ in that slop… }

The guard at the entrance to this cell block stops the Jupani. "Finished their dinners, have they," he says boredly. "Right, get them back to the kitchen."

An hour or two passes, but the dim lighting outside the cell, the fluorescent light tubes, stay the same. Soon, stealthy footsteps come down the corridor.

Someone's approaching from the other direction. But guards don't come from that way; there's nothing there but more cells, and a loop of hall around the block…

Zephyr's ears swivel at the slight sound. Having moved to lie on his other side against the cold cell floor, he turns over, back to his 'dead' position next to the bowl… the fur facing up now somewhat cool to the touch, he hopes. He lets his tongue loll out, and waits.

The figure approaches… Another guard? He looks in on the cell, sees a dead fox. "Hey! You, over there," the wolf-like face yells. "One of them's croaked! Cell 7C."

"What? Oh, Dagh take it," the guard down the corridor calls back. "That's Blackpaw's! The killer! You hold your position right there, he could be faking it to try and get out." Rapid wolf footsteps approach.

"Send for a medic," the first one urges. "If that Krakaratz slipped him a poison pill, maybe we can stomach pump him. Quickly!"

Zephyr, utterly confused, doesn't move. o O {They think the lawyer poisoned me? What?}

It sounds as if there are now three guards standing outside the cell. "I'll open it, you two keep an eye out. Finger on the trigger now." The door starts to creak open. Other prisoners, hitherto quiet, begin murmuring to each other.

Zephyr sighs inwardly. o O {Great. Maybe I can pretend to have passed out from the food.}

The first guard enters the cell slowly. "Come on, you're not dead, are you? Don't give us all white fur wondering. No sudden moves, just sit up… "

Zephyr doesn't move at all. o O {If they wake me up, reeeal slow… no sudden moves. Maybe there _was_ something in the food.}

The guard reaches down, picks up one of Zephyr's wrists, and starts to feel for a pulse.

Zephyr thinks quiet curses.

The guard pauses for a minute, then calls to the others, "Where's that Dagh-taken medic? Get him here fast! We could still save this one! Move, move!"

The guards shuffle their feet. "You go, Jacques," one says, and the other hurries off to the infirmary.

Zephyr muses o O {They're trying to save me… Was that poison, then? I guess I'll just wait and 'recover'… see what happens… }

"I'll give him rescue breathing," the first guard says. He quickly rolls Zephyr over on his back and begins attempting to perform some kind of rescue breathing exercise, apparently starting with a solid push to the belly, then – what's that, something smells bitter – a wolfish muzzle begins to press down against Zephyr's, a hand behind his neck to tilt it up.

Zephyr thinks o O {Gack!} He waits a second longer, then coughs, and coughs again.

A capsule of some kind, that feels soft-skinned, that's what the Jupani was trying to get into Zephyr's muzzle. Something is very wrong here… The Jupani breathes hard, then sits up again and while appearing to push, puts his other hand on the fox's throat.

There is a bitter taste in Zephyr's mouth…

Zephyr rolls to his side in a seeming reflexive move, his tail flicking up as he coughs hard into it, then again… trying to lose whatever it was in his mouth in the thick fur of his tail.

The Jupani tries hard to restrain Zephyr, his fingers apparently massaging Zephyr's throat to make it go down. He turns to the other guard and reports, "He's having convulsions! Give me a hand here, help me keep him steady." The other guard seems hesitant at first…

The capsule skitters on the floor, toward the drain. A tiny brown innocuous lozenge, one might easily miss seeing it… As the other guard does when he steps on it, causing a splatter of liquid beneath his feet. He moves around to the side to try and figure out where the first guard meant for Zephyr to be held.

Zephyr's 'convulsions' suddenly get a lot more violent… and well-targeted, as he brings his leg up hard in his roll, towards the larger Jupani trying to hold him.

"Dagh take it!" The larger Jupani curses as he takes the hit hard, and the other one moves in to grapple with the patient. This one shouts, "Hey! Take it easy, we're here to help you! Doctor'll be here in a minute."

As the fox gasps for breath after spitting, he manages to get out a few words. "Help?! He… just… tried… pill! Poison me! Him! He thrashes an arm in the direction of his attacker as he wrestles with the second Jupani. "Tried to force… throat!" His voice is still ragged from his coughing as he struggles.

"He what?" The guard looks up at the other in shock… But fortunately for Zephyr, the fox's words are enough warning for him to roll as the first Jupani's dagger zips through the air. The traitor lunges for the Jupani, intending to cut his throat and then Zephyr's.

Zephyr, not able to get up enough to intercept or completely dodge the attacking Jupani, does the next best thing… He ducks as the Jupani's knife arm flashes past, then snaps his muzzle forward, trying for a vicious, deep bite to it.

A close miss… But effective in that Zephyr's rolling weight succeeds in knocking the attacking traitor off balance. The other guard calls out, "Help! Guards! Get in here!" as he draws his own dagger to defend himself in close quarters. Footsteps sound from down the hall…

The traitor jumps back and measures his chance of cutting Zephyr's throat before he makes good his escape.

Zephyr, who once again has his breath, scrambles to his feet and back away from the traitorous Jupani… ears back, eyes narrowed, teeth and claws out. He growls lowly, balancing and ready to dodge, tail lashing angrily back and forth.

The traitor shakes his head. "You haven't heard the last of us, Shadowspite," he accuses and then leaps through the door and begins sprinting away. Several guards run past the door as well, and a white-robed priest rushes in, a hastily-packed bag bulging with jars from the apothecary.

The remaining guard in the cell looks at Zephyr with alarm. "Shadowspite… You stay right where you are," he cautions. "No funny moves."

Zephyr, his eyes more those of a threatened predator than a civilized being, keeps his ears back and leans towards the corridor for a moment… but only for a moment. The guard's mention of that name, his accusation, cause him to pause… and shake his head, his tail's motion slowing as he stands upright. "I'm not Shadowspite. But I'm not moving."

"Sure, sure. Take it nice and easy." The guard motions to the priest to come in, and several other guards take up station while the sounds of pursuit fade into the distance.

The priest looks at Zephyr's gruel-coated muzzle with distaste. "Your food disagreed with you?"

Zephyr takes a deep breath, and absently wipes his muzzle with a black paw. "You tell me. That bowl has something in it that's not food. And your guard just tried to force a pill down my throat."

The civet-cat sniffs disdainfully. "I see. You have this pill now?" He carefully stoops to pick up the bowl, then inhales cautiously at the residue. Then runs a finger along it and tastes it.

Zephyr shakes his head. "Of course not. I spit it out. Or I wouldn't be talking to you."

Zephyr's ears swivel as the priest tastes the gruel.

"Ah. A soporific," the priest says. "How much did you eat?"

Zephyr looks quietly at the priest. "It was drugged, then. Luckily, none."

The priest nods. "Well then, you are not in need of my service. I shall ask an Inquisitor to come in and take your statement as to this… Distressing incident." He seems almost offended that his time was wasted, and turns to the guard to be escorted out.

Zephyr moves slowly to lean against the wall, then slides down it. He doesn't look threatening now, just exhausted. "Shadowspite might have gotten me good, but I'm not in the habit of trusting. Good way to get killed." He nods to the priest as he departs. "Thank you."

Some time later, indeed, a tall sharp-faced saluki walks down the corridor and passes the cell door, speaking quietly to the two guards that have been stationed outside of it. "So, the Assassin's Guild has taken an interest in you, Zephyr Blackpaw," he says, skipping all the preliminary politeness. "I am Inquisitor Zeffel. Describe to me the incident as it appeared from your point of view."

Zephyr's ears flatten. "Assassins's guild, now?" He growls softly, then settles down and relates what's just happened to him. As he finishes, he looks steadily at the Inquisitor. "First poisoned food, then a guard tries to kill me. I'm in favor of justice myself, sir, and I'd like to see it carried out. I'd be happy if the real Shadowspite were brought in." He tilts his head. "Doesn't the fact that this 'assassin's guild'… if they're trying to kill me, doesn't that suggest that they _want_ you to think I'm Shadowspite, and have me die with you thinking that, to protect the real one?

Zephyr says, "If you had… a document of value, and wished to keep it in a safe place, wouldn't a good strategy be to replace it with a fake document, and have the fake be destroyed while all believe that it was the true original, thereby leaving the true original unthought of forever more? "

"Quite possibly," Zeffel says. "There are other possibilities. You might indeed be Shadowspite, and intend to negotiate turning in certain elements… Such as the name of the person who employed you to assassinate the Captain-Astromancer… in order to gain not only a pardon but also a reward. Shadowspite is reputed to be quite clever in these matters. There are times at which it seems as if there would have to be two of that rascal to carry out his errands." He rubs his chin. "In either case, however, I believe you now merit better quarters. More thoroughly guarded quarters."

Zephyr nods quietly. "Thank you, sir. I would appreciate that."

The Inquisitor's long trim muzzle tilts in thought. "The Prosecutor is most interested in assuring that you receive the full judgment of the law in regards your crime. I am told that you returned to Temple justice willingly and of your own free will. Would you care to share the reason for this?"

Zephyr watches the saluki. "Of course. First, because I'm innocent. Second, because I knew that I could never escape being killed or captured… for something I didn't do. And finally, that to risk that would be to risk someone I was with, someone I came to this world with, and who I care about greatly. I couldn't risk her life in trying to run. The only way to protect her… was to attempt to prove my innocence. So… That is what I've opted for.

Inquisitor Zeffel nods. "An admirable statement. I am charged only with the investigation of this attempt to murder a prisoner in the custody of the Temple, but I will add that you may expect a great deal of attention to be paid to the accomplishment of this trial. The Arch-Inquisitor would greatly appreciate the due punishment of a perpetrator of the death of the Captain-Astromancer." His eyes glint.

Zephyr thinks o O {Of course, the business is the _only_ reason I even got a bit of an ear from the Temple, now, for a trial. They would have been happy to just shoot me otherwise.}

The Inquisitor collects the tainted bowl as evidence. "Guards!" he snaps. "See that this prisoner is moved to Upper Cell Block C. The special suite. Have his things sent along there, and prepare a dinner for him."

He stands as if about to leave, then turns back to the fox. "Is there anything else you wish to add to your statement, Zephyr Blackpaw?"

Zephyr stands quietly, still looking at the Inquisitor, and nods. "Only that I would appreciate the punishment of the perpetrator of the crime as well. But I am not the guilty one. And if an innocent individual is sacrificed to appease those in charge, that… is hollow justice. I will undergo any questioning or methods you deem necessary to prove my innocence, even what my… lawyer terms 'mind mages'. I have nothing to hide, and say this on my honor."

The Inquisitor stays silent for a moment, and then nods. "Your innocence will be tested hard, Zephyr Blackpaw. But if you are found innocent, you will be released, free to go and washed of all shame that may adhere to a prisoner of the Temple's justice. Good night."

Zephyr nods politely to the Inquisitor. "Those are just terms, sir. Good night." He turns to the guards, to be taken to his new accomodations… standing quietly in silent pride.