xp_logs | Burn The Witch || Poking Around

Topaz, of course, doesn't listen to Amanda.

Topaz nodded along and did her best to look interested as Mrs. Singh went on and about the great work Father Saini had done in the city. "Yes Mrs. Singh...yes, I know..." Okay, coming around in the middle of the day probably wasn't a good idea. All she was going to get was the weird old religious people.

"And another thing he..."

Oh god this was going to be a while. Topaz forced a smile, half wishing she had listened to Amanda and just left. It would've been so much easier to let someone else deal with these people.

"They do tend to go on don't they?" Aadesh asked in a whisper as he stepped up next to Topaz and nodded at the member of the congregation that had been talking. He'd been watching the girl for a while, she wasn't like the other people who stopped by the church to ask about him. Mostly they asked a few questions and then either stayed or were out the door in 10 minutes their curiosity sated. She'd been here half an hour but was still trying to get information from his people. "It's hard to blame them though, the evil we face is truly terrifying. In the face of such a monstrosity people seek to take refuge in their faith, and it is our responsibility to rise to their need."

Topaz jumped, turning to look at the man who had appeared at her side. There was something so off about him - she couldn't feel him at all. His shielding was way too strong for a normal human.

Mrs. Singh murmured something and slipped away, allowing Topaz to turn her full attention to him. "Yes, sir," she agreed, the picture of meekness and innocence. She'd done her best to stamp down the British accent, having intended to blend into the background as much as possible. But it was still vaguely audible. "I've heard a lot about what you do here. It sounds interesting."

"I'm glad you think so young lady, Vimala wasn't it?" Aadesh smiled at her, "We certainly seem to have made an impression on you, this is the second time you've come back to visit us. Are there any questions I can answer for you about what we do here, or the evil we face?"

"That's right, sir." She cringed internally at the sound of her real name. "I was just wondering what exactly you were doing about this evil. If you don't mind me asking. It's easy to say 'we must cleanse the world' but if you're not part of the solution then you're not really doing much good, are you?"

"You're entirely right, just talking about it isn't going to do anyone any good, we have to act if we want to actually want to make a difference in this world," he agreed looking down at her, "you know I don't often do this, but would you like to see what we're doing to fight the great evil? Normally guests stay up front, but I think you understand what we're trying to do here."

"But I want you to stay clear until we get there, 'kay? You're our eyes and ears and we won't know what's going on if you go and get yourself caught."

This was exactly what Amanda had been worried about, Topaz knew - her doing something stupid and getting herself into trouble. She could walk away now, no harm done, tell Amanda there was definitely something weird going on in this place, and that would be the end of it.

That would be the smart thing to do anyways.

"I would love to see."

No one ever accused Topaz of being too smart.

"Excellent," Aedesh gestured at a doorway set unobtrusively into a wall, "After you then."

Topaz eyed the door for a long moment, then went to open the door. A set of stairs led down into what looked like a dimly lit basement.

Okay, you've found something, you've got something to tell Amanda when she gets here. Get out.

What was the worst that could happen, though? He was just one man. It was weird, but he was tall and skinny and didn't look like he could fight his way out of paper bag. Topaz could take care of herself. It would be fine.

So she went down the stairs. As she got closer to the bottom, she could feel the overwhelming sadness and anxiety and fear of the girls no doubt trapped down here. There was always something weird about this place.

And this was it.

"It's right in here," Aedesh nodded at one of his people on guard and pushed open the door, "The evil at the heart of our country. The one we must defeat if we are to be able to hold our heads up with pride as a country which has managed to save it's culture and more importantly the souls of it's people."

"The evil" in question was four scared girls, trapped in cells and crying. Topaz looked around, stunned. She'd known it was coming, but actually seeing it?

This guy really was a nutter.

Something heavy came down on Topaz's head and she stumbled, knees going out. She slumped to the ground, blinking heavily for only a moment before the world faded to black.

Aedesh looked down at the slumped over girl coldly and gestured to the guard, "You know what to do, get her in there with the others," his gaze swept over the girl;s huddling together in their cage, it wasn't often an unclean one walked into the church by themselves but he wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Not when there were so many poor souls in need of purification.