sxw 10 weekly spotlight

The Trial of Cyric by Kamikaze ( 10/06/2000 )

"We seem to have a problem here. Gomez and I have captured Cyric, but he appears to have no memory of recent events. He claims not to know Gomez and to be from an alternate reality."

"Another reality? Is that the best you could come up with, Cyric? Your crimes are legend among our order. There can be but one punishment for such as you... death."

"Does he offer any proof of this story? It seems unlikely, but Cyric has frequently meddled with forces beyond human understanding. I suppose if anyone could get thrown into an alternate reality it would be him."

"That is the problem. There is no proof, but he seems sincere. I sense no deception from him at all. In fact, he does not even seem evil at all!"

"What? Not evil? Impossible! He is one of the most evil men alive! Do not let him manipulate you... destroy him now!"

"There is no rush. He did not even resist capture. It is as if his powers are gone, and he is just a normal man."

"Odd. The Cyric I have heard of could easily escape capture. Could he truly be powerless?"

"Rubbish! He is trying to deceive you!"

"Perhaps you should hear from Cyric himself."

"You expect us to believe you escaped from Hell? All right... If you are so innocent, why were you in hell in the first place?"

"I was corrupted by evil. Yes, I may have committed evil acts in the past, but I have reclaimed my humanity. I am once more on the side of light."

"Right... and I am a Yeti. You are a liar, and a fool as well if you expect mercy from us! Kill this scum."

"Wait... as fantastic as it seems, this story might be true."

"Enough! Cyric was sentenced to die by the Order long ago. Carry out the sentence at once! I have put up with your defiance until now, but now you must choose. Are you a member the Order or not? Think well before you answer... defy us now and you will be cast out of the Order forever."

"Oh no... not that... Why would he want to be one of you when he can be one of us?"

"You stay out of this! He knows perfectly well that he has learned far too much about the Order for us to risk letting him live if he leaves."

"You would kill a servant of the light?"

"Sometimes sacrifices must be made. If you fools would accept that then perhaps you might actually be effective in the fight against evil!"

"You callous, cold-blooded viper!"

"Bleeding-heart sentimental fool!"

"Murderer!"

"Weakling!"

"ENOUGH!"

"You two are acting like children! I am not going to kill a man without a fair trial. We shall see if he speaks the truth, then decide. If the Order wishes to banish me then do so... I do not wish to be a part of a group that values vengeance over truth!"

"You insolent little pup! Fine, consider yourself banished. We shall meet to determine your fate tonight. You will be informed tomorrow morning of our decision."

"My fate is my own. I do not recognize your right to judge me. You seem to forget the extent of my resources. If you attempt to kill me or interfere with my work in any way, I will make sure everything I know about you is given to every major newspaper and television station in the world. I have already made the arrangements, so even if I were to die tonight it would still happen. I swear on my honor not to betray the Order's secrets, so long as you stay out of my life. Bother me in any way, and you know what will happen."

"Face it, he's got you. Oh, he is now under our protection as well. Just walk away and leave him alone... he's too independent to make a good member of your group anyway. Kamikaze, do what you feel is right about Cyric. Oh, and watch your back. The Order won't risk coming after you, but they will almost certainly come after Cyric. Farewell, and welcome to the Brotherhood of Light"

"No, we won't. Not now, at any rate. You want him, you can have him. But when he betrays you and escapes, then we will do our job. We agree to leave you alone as long as you keep your oath, but we will not aid you. Do not return to our monastery or attempt to use our resources. You wish to be in the Brotherhood? So be it... you are their problem now!"

"Is that what secret societies are like? You can keep 'em! So what do we do about Cyric?"

"Simple. We hold him until tomorrow night. Cyric is scheduled to wrestle. If he shows up, we'll know there really are two of them. And just in case..."

"This ink is almost impossible to remove. It will wear off in a few weeks, but until then if there are two Cyric's here I want to be able to tell them apart. Let's get some sleep while we can. I'll watch Cyric until midnight, then you take over."

"I give you my word... I will not attempt to escape. I want to prove that I am telling the truth. I still cannot believe you would risk your life for me!"

"Not for you, Cyric... for justice."


SXW WEEKLY SPOTLIGHT	10/10/2000 - 10/16/2000