"What exactly do you wish to know? I don't know where to start."

"It would seem that this case turns on whether Mattin left Vanda Nossëo in order to kill a dragon, or killed her in response to Vanda Nossëo, which we have an obligation to deter, or if he left Vanda Nossëo for reasons unrelated to his interest in killing dragons. What do you think?"

"...I think I can't say it's all one thing and none of the other because the soul is messy, and I'm in my own head not his. I think he would have left Vanda Nossëo no matter what, whether a hunt was convenient or not. I think his desire to kill a dragon is not new, and he would have dragged us all out to do it in a few years even without you all. I think he knew it was likely you'd try to arrest him for it anyway, and decided it was worth the risk. Whether he did this because of Wilder religion, or out of spite, I have no better idea than you. Both are things I've seen from him before."

The judge thanks her and dismisses her.

She turns to Mattin. "Presuming that you are released as out of jurisdiction, where would you intend to go?" she inquires.

"Back to Bronzehill, at least until the Metal Kingdoms join as Anthel Camme has, if they do. After that, other realms of Spirit who have not joined, or of other planets entirely, who wield as few laws as possible, if I cannot find a space of empty wild."

"How do you plan to get to other planets?"

"Perhaps someone will take pity on me, if I can't earn passage while living wherever I've found. And the final option for a destination is the afterlife."

The judge mulls it over for a bit in her office and then comes back out.

She says he is to be dropped with whatever possessions his erstwhile companions agree are his alone, in the place he was when arrested; the dragons and animals in that area will be warned about him; if he enters Vanda Nossëo territory again including by any territory joining while he's there he is still wanted for murder and will need to serve out a delayed five year sentence, he is not free to walk around any part of Vanda Nossëo or polities with a mutual law enforcement agreement with them, he should be advised that the dragons are working on joining - but as long as there's anywhere he can get to that isn't interested in having laws against murdering dragons, he can live there.

Understood.

Just one question, Vanda Nossëo doesn't generally do conquest, does it? They obviously could if they wanted to.

Vanda Nossëo doesn't generally do conquest per se, no.

Assuming it's not complicated to identify which items are his, they can have him dropped off right where he was arrested right away.

The stuff can be divided straightforwardly, though everyone claims the dragon head, which they eventually agree can just be destroyed.

Mattin is dropped off there in the mountain foothills, gets his bearings, and then hikes north, having a slightly difficult time of it since all the animals avoid him. The whole series of trials has gotten a fair bit of attention on Spirit, with quite a bit of division. In the weeks after Mattin goes on a quick tour of the Metal Kingdoms (which is looking less likely to join by the day as more cosmopolitan people just emigrate to neighbors that have gotten colony planet land), gathering a small following.

Mattin gets more money from friends and coreligionists to pay his lawyer a bonus, before they go.

The group makes speeches and blog posts about the joys of anarchism and buys a bit of distant valley from the King of Bronzehill and puts up lots of signs saying "The state of Wilder. The only law here: Do as thou wilt." and starts building in the unremarkable bit of land. Several of them bring in modern amenities like magic songs, though.

Anarchist states usually collapse, but in the meantime they attract people who, like Mattin, do not care to or are not allowed to walk freely around in Vanda Nossëo, as long as they are permitted the use of the bus system or can afford to get a teleporter to courier them in direct!

That's probably going to be a problem for Wilder depending on who shows up exactly, but this is still the choice they're making here.

And they can make it as long as they want!

Meanwhile, they're still trying to hammer out a dragon statehood situation, Samara's halfway through her magic rock course, and there are shamanism students eager to learn all about this weird planet's new exciting magic system.

The dragons' Grand Moot has been firmly set for eight months from now. Next spring, for the majority of the dragon population. Dragons don't move that quickly. It seems like all the progress that can be made until then is more discussion with individual dragons, animal-spirits, and incorporeal-spirits.

Solomon the shaman goes through student interviews and picks based on intuition more than anything concrete. For the first actual lecture he has eight people (the first of a few sets of them) meet in a greenhouse he's bought with the grant money and filled with Spirit-native plants, two minutes' walk from a bus station. There's a clear spot with a ring of cushions and scattered chairs, he encourages everyone to sit.

"The foundation of shamanism is a spiritual awareness and understanding. You need to build an intuitive understanding and awareness of the world, and then of the principles and flows of this magic, in the shamanistic tradition. Now, I've taught two apprentices before but they were starting from a very different place, so I'll appreciate your patience. What do you all know already about shamanism?"

"My understanding is that it's sort of like druidism but possible to learn outside of the Materia neighborhood," volunteers a woman.

"There are some similarities," he nods. "And differences. Shamans often focus on the four classical elements of earth, water, air, and fire. We are in tune with nature. But we aren't going to be transforming into animals any time soon, unless you go to Cube. Most shamans spend a lot more time watching and listening than doing. Spirit natives can learn it for certainty, and this class is sort of a test for whether it can be spread- I think it likely, but one never knows for sure."

"Are we watching and listening for anything in particular?" asks a young man.

He smiles and makes an approving gesture. "To spirits. Most of the intermediate work is listening to them, working with them, coming to understand them. By learning to do what comes to spirits naturally, you gain the obvious, outward signs of magic." He lifts sparks from his staff with a snap of his fingers. "My plan is to start off each session with a bit of lecture-slash-discussion, and then guided meditation. So. What are the four elements? Fire, earth, water, air. But I don't mean 'the process of combustion' and 'oxygen and nitrogen molecules'. What does fire mean?"

"Like metaphorically?"

"Yes. Whatever comes to mind."

"I think that's going to vary crossculturally?"

"Fire is civilization and warmth and destruction," volunteers another student.

"It'll vary, yes. Everyone thinks a little differently. The thing I'm calling fire is - again - not a literal, actual fire. It's the magical element of fire, which forges metal and lights the way, which comforts and holds back the cold, which burns everything it can reach. Fire can be civilization, warmth, destruction. Anyone else?"

"Just for fire or any of them?"

"Fire for now, we'll do the others in a bit."