Within the high city center at the middle of town, protected by the old walls that marked the town's limit countless generations ago, sat the Prodesse Dominicus. A great cathedral measuring over a thousand paces long, the cathedral was both a monument of architectural pride as well as religious. With it's high, narrow towers pointing regally into the sky and it's carved statues and pillars that decorated every face of the magnificent building, the citizens of the city spared no expense to express their deep spirituality to the One with such a magnificent construction.
No buildings were built within a hundred paces of the structure, and few were built that close, for the grounds surrounding the church were as austere as the building itself. Paths of carefully cut stone wound around fountains and gardens, each tended carefully by those that sought to earn the One's favor or blessings. Trees, a rare sight within the city itself, were planted and maintained, giving the grounds an almost lush appearance yet never blocking the view to the great cathedral's glory. The highest point of the city was at the top of one of the cathedral's high parapets, a point topped with the holy symbol of the religion.
On the fifth mark of eveningtide, Fredric stood in front of the great church. More accurately put, on the front steps of the church, he stood hunched over with his hands on his knees, breathing like a man just rescued from the depths of the Scillus. Sweat dripped from his head as he tried to catch his breath. It seemed that his usual work out regime, which consisted of long periods of sitting followed by short but intense periods of pastry eating with a smattering of jawboning thrown in to keep him limber, had not sufficiently prepared his body for the marathon that he had just finished.
The original plan for tonight did not include running like a madman through darkened city streets. No. As a life long Mouthie, he knew just how long it took to walk from ‘Fort Freedom’ to the Prodesse Dominicus. He had intended to meditate a little and then slowly stroll to his destination. Unfortunately, at some point his meditation degenerated into hibernation, which caused his planned contemplative walk to Dominicus’s house of worship to become a mad dash down the treacherous, uneven streets of the city. It was a miracle straight from Dominicus himself that Fredric arrived on time. It was only by the One’s own grace that he didn’t break his neck at some point during his blind sprint through the shadow filled streets.
The inexperienced insurrectionist truly felt the One’s hand guiding him tonight, even before this rigorous run. Once he had returned to his flat, he had eaten and attempted to study the priest’s books. “Attempted to study†being the appropriate description. While he did add to his knowledge regarding the book and ledger, the sum of his knowledge was still very nearly zero. While that pursuit did not work well, prayer did.
He had been troubled by something during his discussion with the pretty half-breed at the library. As a good Oneist, he brought his troubles to the god in prayer and it seemed as if he got an answer. Whether it was divine or not, at the very least, he had an epiphany. He gathered all his writings and quickly planned out a different presentation for the Archbishop. With that done he decided to meditate before setting out. That turned out not to be his best decision ever. However, in his defense, he was punctual, if a bit sweaty.
After checking that his backpack and its contents had survived his unscheduled scramble, Fredric entered the cathedral. Leaning on his walking stick, he paused just inside the vestibule to allow his eyes time to adjust. He then continued in search of Inquisitor Belvourne.