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The local militia captain rapped on the doorframe, "We've found the suspect, Judge."
"Excellent! Bring me to him. Let's get this headache over with," Theod replied.
A short walk later, the captain gestured to a door. "He's in here."
Theod held himself tall and thought of the ideals that had brought him to The Judge's Order. He hasn't been out in the field long, but even a new judge's rough cloth robe and wooden badge of office can project the presence of the original for long enough to make an imposing entrance.
Stepping through the door to a suddenly hushed room, he asks "Which is the accused?"
He's presented with a slightly bruised man, hands tied with ropes.
"Do you swear to tell me the truth today, as I have sworn to use that knowledge well?"
The man growls "Yes", which Theod knows is true, and then "Much good may it do you!"
There is a feeling of overwhelming light, and cracks in it, spreading through space.
When he can make sense of his surroundings, he is... not there.
fairshot
The clerk nods.
"...You probably want to do your imposing thing before the first time you see the mayor," he says helpfully.
"...You probably want to do your imposing thing before the first time you see the mayor," he says helpfully.
fairshot
"Yes, well, I'll be sure to check which door is his before I walk in. I'm not used to having to do this to be taken seriously; the Order is well-established at home. Thank you for your help."
fairshot
And he goes and finds where the mayor's office is, and checks with bystanders to make sure before he even goes into a secretary's office.
And: Imposing entrance!
And: Imposing entrance!
fairshot
"Hello, I am a judge from another world. I have several skills, one of which you have just experienced. The mayor is not yet expecting me, but I believe he will be interested."
Theod sure is getting a lot of practice with this 'imposing entrance' thing. It might be going to his head a little. And he might not be trying to stop that. At all.
Yeah, this is fun.
Theod sure is getting a lot of practice with this 'imposing entrance' thing. It might be going to his head a little. And he might not be trying to stop that. At all.
Yeah, this is fun.
The secretary scurries. She comes back with a mayor.
The mayor is a little less impressed with the aura. "I hear you have some mage tricks?"
The mayor is a little less impressed with the aura. "I hear you have some mage tricks?"
fairshot
"Not mages as you know them, exactly. I am a judge of the Order of Judges, which is not present in this city or this world. I can verify the truth of statements made to me, either in a context where someone is in my custody or by extracting a clear promise to be truthful. I can also determine appropriate and effective punishments that will be effective at discouraging further misconduct, including distinguishing offenders who are unlikely to stop short of death from others, and calm and intimidate suspect and unruly groups of people. This makes me unusually good at many tasks needed for securing peace and justice in the community, and I am told that you are the person I'd need to speak to about continuing that role here."
fairshot
"If you're willing to promise to answer a few statements truthfully, I can demonstrate that immediately. I can't compel honesty, and you may pick the questions, so your secrets will remain safe; if you're still not comfortable, I can do it with any person of your choice, or you can request confirmation from Kaja di Ragnar, paladin of the Winter Light, who's already been a witness to it.
For the sentencing, it's more difficult to use, and especially to calibrate, without a specific crime. If I were to sit in on a trial, that would both be easier to demonstrate, and allow the presiding judges to assess it's usefulness. In honesty, that gift is the one I expect to mesh least well with your judicial system."
For the sentencing, it's more difficult to use, and especially to calibrate, without a specific crime. If I were to sit in on a trial, that would both be easier to demonstrate, and allow the presiding judges to assess it's usefulness. In honesty, that gift is the one I expect to mesh least well with your judicial system."
The mayor hmms. "I'll ask the sister about it. It would shorten some investigations if it works the way you say it does - what constitutes being in your custody, if it's intractable to get people to promise you honesty?"
fairshot
"Generally, it's applied to prisoners already in custody; they are informed that a specific judge is now responsible for them, and once they are aware, that judge's truth sense applies. Refusing the oath for a specific matter is treated as evidence of complicity, so it's mostly come up with those already in jail or acting as witnesses in other matters in exchange for lenience. I'd be interested in investigating the limits."
fairshot
"Yes, that's fair. We're the backbone of the justice system in most of the known world, there, so it's hardly strange magic. I'm not expecting it to be quite as smooth here."
"If people under arrest don't understand what you do, it may be that your power won't work that way either."
fairshot
"No, on that count it's fine. There have been occasional cases of the suspect not knowing that the promise was made to a judge, and it stayed effective."
"By tomorrow morning I should have a statement from the Order about you and then we can try you on whoever's in lockup at the moment."
fairshot
"All right. That would be a reasonably good opportunity to demonstrate the sentence-giving, as well."
"Do you have to pronounce that authoritatively to the prisoner in some way, or can you just relate it to someone else in another room?"
fairshot
"I don't need to do it immediately at all; I could do it for several prisoners, and then relate my finding in the next room afterwards."
fairshot
And instead, what happens? This is probably not the time to mention that, nor his misgivings about pre-sentencing lockups in general. It's not exactly their fault, not everyone has divinely-guided judges around.
"Is there a particular time I should return tomorrow?"
"Is there a particular time I should return tomorrow?"