Rise of the Godking 51 Jeza's Tale

"Jeza and his twin sister, Jezo were born 25 years ago to servants of Lord Burrow, who was then only a normal Artist in the Courtyard. From a very early age, it became apparent that the sister had been blessed with brains, while her brother was all brawn. He grew tall very quickly, displaying strength that attracted the attention of the Lord, who sent him to be trained with the enforcers of the layer. The girl showed promise, too, and was dubbed to be trained with the accountant in the layer so that she could take his place. Until the age of 14, both of them lead happy lives even though they didn't always get what they wanted. Their parents raised them well, and were looking forward to retiring and living out the rest of their days in peace while the children supported them.

Everything went wrong when a noble from the surface visited Lord Burrow. The circumstances of his rise to the surface aren't clear, but at that time, itself, he had begun to make contacts with those above his station. Jezo had bloomed early, showing promise to grow into a beautiful young girl. The noble liked her. He wanted her. She denied him, and was dragged to the bedroom by his guards. Word spread to Jeza and his parents via the servants in the house. They arrived at the Lord's house and begged him to intervene on behalf of them. Their begging fell on deaf ears. When the nobles emerged from the room, they saw a glimpse of Jezo on the bed behind him, broken and bleeding and at first glance, dead. They couldn't control themselves. She was the heart and pride of the entire family, and the love that her brother bore her was unrivaled. But before they could even do anything, the noble didn't like the way they looked at him. He ordered them all killed. The parents died in front of Jeza's eyes, who went mad and killed two guards until he collapsed and looked like he had succumbed to his injuries. One of the attacks was seen to have almost cut his face in two, leading those observing to think that he would not survive. The noble ordered Lord Burrow to take his turn before he left, which he did while Jeza was unconscious. The Lord called for a healer, who did the best he could for the twins, for the parents had already died. He was heard to have declared that they would not survive for long, too. The last time Jeza was seen was when the Lord entered the room, and asked him what he was willing to do to save his sister. His answer was that he would willingly give up his life if it meant that she would live. All observers were made to leave the room, then. Thereafter, the twins were attended to by the personal butler of the Lord, hence no other observations were possible. A month after the incident, the Lord obtained a position on the surface to which he left.

Five years later, Jeza reappeared as Jezara/Jezaro. It was his wound that confirmed his identity. He has two natures, now, between which he can switch willingly.

Object left over from the incident: A wooden figurine of a bird that was found in Jezo's hand after the ordeal. Made by Jeza for his sister. Was drenched in her blood. Was given to Jeza during his recovery. Was found in the house after the departure of the Lord."

Daneel let out a long sigh as he put the parchment on the table in Mr. Merry's house. He then picked up the wooden bird, studying the maroon streaks along the wood, tracing his fingers along the wing that was the darkest, which was mostly where it had been held by the sister, and then the brother.

He had awoken at the exact same spot where he had been made to faint before. The sounds of the children playing nearby had been what had roused him, and instantly, he had turned around and left the place, intending never to come back if possible.

It had been obvious that the ones who had abducted him wanted to keep the location of their home secret, but he just wished that they had given him the option of having the sack put over his head, again, instead of being knocked out once more. Two lumps, each completely alike, were now on the two sides of his head, and each time he bent or made a motion that was too quick, they throbbed, reminding him of the embarrassing events he had just been a part of.

The tale was sad, indeed. In fact, he had even been expecting something like this when the man had mentioned its nature, but still, it had been heartwrenching to read of such a lovely bond broken due to the lust and greed of a noble from above.

There were some things that stood out, though. He had never known that Lord Burrow had such a humble background. This made him understand that he might be much deadlier than he had anticipated, as it was no simple thing to come from the Courtyard and rise so high on the surface. In fact, it was even unheard-of, and if he hadn't gotten the information from someone in the Courtyard, itself, he might have believed it to be a lie.

As for the reason behind his success being the good deed he had done for no other purpose but to assuage his own conscience…it was almost bizarre, to say the least, but for some reason, he liked it. 

As he played with the wooden bird in his hands, a plan slowly began to come to him. He let it form, though, calmly, even though he was excited as the purpose he had come here for had been fulfilled.

He got up only when he was happy with it, and had even finished making a backup plan in case it failed. When he had returned to Mr. Merry's home, he had found a different note saying that food was under the kitchen counter and that he could go to sleep in the spare bedroom. He had understood that he had been out for a long time when the sky had slowly become darker on his way back, but he hadn't realized that it was night in the Courtyard.

With nothing else to do, he had had his fill of the roast capon that had been left for him, marveling once again at just how great a host Mr. Merry was. As he had already decided that he would be leaving the next morning, he had more than his fill, knowing that he would definitely miss both the food and the wine here after he went back.

After a disturbed sleep filled with the faces of the people he had seen after waking in his body, he got up and walked out to find the man busy eating breakfast. He prepared to announce his departure, but stopped when Mr. Merry shushed him, and gestured at the food as if to say that he should eat first before talking.

Graciously accepting the offer, he had his fill once again. When he then said that he would be leaving, Mr. Merry simply smiled and wished him luck, before telling him to pass on the message to Gerard that he should come up once, too, so that they could meet and reminisce.

Holding high regard for the man who seemed to be one of the only good ones in this layer and the one above, Daneel made his way to the clump of crystals. The enforcers completely ignored him, for the most part, except for a few who glanced at him disappointedly, almost as if they had been hoping for a chance to beat him before he left. As soon as he emerged in the Refinery, he felt a faint ball of stress that he had been holding without his own knowledge disappear, and with his head held high and his mind blissfully clear, he made his way to his daily training.

Originally, if his stay in the Courtyard had stretched to a few days, he had worried about finding a way to reach the surface. Thankfully, he would have no trouble, now, and when he began the session with the twins, it almost felt good to see them.

He reached Gerard's house and surprisingly found the man's son's waiting for him. Their original arrangement had been that they would be summoned after he returned, and after enquiring about the reason, he found out that the news had reached Gerard beforehand, itself, via a letter sent by Mr. Merry.

Facing them all around the dining table, Daneel could tell that they were waiting for his confirmation. When he spoke, they hung on every word, and when he was done, silence descended on the room, but it was one pregnant with resolve…and hope.

"We act in three days. The plan is complete…so let's do this!"

Chapter end