As Celine regaled her life story, she might have been surprised to know that the assumption that she had made about Timaeus had been wrong. Truthfully, Timaeus did not know this woman who was struggling to take in enough oxygen from the thin mountain air. How could he? Timaeus had been gone for nearly four years and during the brief 12 month period that their paths could have crossed, Tim was so disinterested in the trappings of the court that he could only recall those he had known since childhood. Everything else was a memory that was lost to him at this point. Boring evenings at court certainly held no weight against the more exciting recollections of stormy seas and now heartbreaking memories of the man who had raised Timaeus and the father he would never see again. This name, Celine of Acaris, meant basically nothing to him at this moment, but he doubted that this was going to be the case by the time that the sun would set. After all, it was going to be impossible to forget a day like this.

Timaeus could see out of the corner of his eyes that other military figures were beginning to arrive -- probably the entourage that had traveled to the backwater province to welcome him to this new position. However, greeting them was a bit of an afterthought as Tim focused his attention on the woman before him, trying to ensure that she was not going to pass out in front of everyone. Nodding at her suggestion for tea, Timaeus waved over one of the soldiers who had been lingering on the edge of the scene and gave them the undoubtedly thrilling instruction to find Celine something to calm her nerves. After all, Timaeus might not be capable of stringing together the most intelligent thoughts this day, especially as the stress of coming back home to a murder investigation that he would need to lead rattled his brain -- but he could at least tell that Celine’s insight that a group might be responsible was likely a step in the right direction.

After all, the newly formed Captain may not know a whole lot about murder, however, it was safe to say that he knew enough to know that this would have been a rather tricky thing for one man to pull off. So, either this bastard was one lucky fucker to have not been caught in the act or he had help. Timaeus doubted that his assistance came in the form of gangs as that was something he knew did not exist in this mountainous province, but who knew what else could be the true connectors between whoever had done this -- if there was more than one person involved.

There were just so many unknowns about what the hell was going on here.

“A mark?” He parroted back to the young woman, a clear look of confusion on his face as his eyes drifted back to the dead girl in the center of the square. In the chaos that had unfolded following the discovery of both the body and the extra parts that were hidden within, Timaeus had not taken proper notice of the marking carved into the girl’s forehead. Now that his attention had been called to it, he could see that what he had believed to be a simple smear of blood placed upon her forehead was instead something more. But what? It was impossible to tell at this distance.

So, with a murmured explanation about how he needed to look at something, Timaeus moved away from Celine and back towards the body in order to take a proper look at this feature he had missed earlier. Now that his attention had been severed from the emergency of ensuring that Celine did not pass out, Timaeus could take note of the conversations occurring around the body. The other military leaders seemed to be discussing the possible motivations for leaving a body out in the open -- especially the woman commenting that this murderer truly had nothing to lose. Timaeus didn’t think he had anything useful to add to that as the other captains made their own comments about the suggestion. Instead, the lord’s son merely knelt down next to the body and gathered up a scrap of the already crimson fabric that made up the detailing of his captain’s uniform. Never before had Timaeus noticed how similar the shade red that made up the keys of his house looked like blood until he gently wiped away the smattering of red that obscured the pattern on her forehead. It was hard to not take notice of the fact that his own tunic had not even changed color as it sopped up just enough blood to let the Captain see what he wanted.

There was indeed a marking on this woman’s head.

Just like the severed phallus that had been found just a few moments prior, it took Timaeus a solid moment to decipher what the shallow knife marks into her forehead were supposed to be. The lines that made up this mysterious blob were crude, yet somehow clean if that made sense. Tim didn’t know how to properly describe it as he took note of the fact that none of the marks were jagged. None of them had any sort of crookedness to them beyond the ones that were purposely curved. That might not seem like it was that overly noteworthy, but it spoke volumes about when the cuts had been made. This poor woman had not struggled when the knife sliced her skin. She had either been dead or so close to death that she had not had the strength to fight back.

Oh gods, Timaeus quietly thought to himself as the curved and intersecting lines finally began to take shape, What a horrible way to go. The immense amount of pity for this young woman only grew as after a long moment Timaeus could finally see what the killer had left for all of them to take notice of in his victim that deserved so much better than this. The marking was a half-moon enclosed in a larger circle with three little stars next to it. Now there were plenty of things that this moon could represent. However, the first thing that came to mind for Timaeus was obviously the same conclusion that everyone else had already come to. This somehow represented Artemis, the goddess of the moon and guardian of younger women like the murder victim.

Resting back on his haunches, Timaeus had to consider what finding a girl with a marking of Artemis carved into her forehead meant in Colchis. This would be shocking no matter the kingdom, but there was another sickening factor that had to be considered here in his homeland. Colchis was the home to the main Grecian cult to the Goddess of the Hunt. This could be some sort of message to those in Illytia or it could just merely be a coincidence. Either way, Timaeus knew that this murder had just gotten a lot more complicated and they were going to need outside help in discovering what could have occurred here. By the end of the day, the Baron’s brother was going to have to summon the high priestess to the province. Only she might be able to give more insight into what could have led someone to invoke Artemis in such a sickening way.

Breathing a heavy sigh of the sorrow that filled him with these revelations, Timaeus slowly clambered to his feet and took proper notice of those who were around him for the first time. Of course, there was Damocles, still jabbering on about things that Timaeus knew he should be paying attention to, but had partially missed. However, it was the others that caught his attention. The woman he did not know, but others were referring to her as a lieutenant from a Draconian province. Knowing that she must be an archer then, Timaeus offered Seramis a small respectful nod of greeting, showing her the quiet respect that her rank demanded from him. Though his attention did not linger for long as Timaeus took note of who was at her side and seemingly causing some sort of confusion by not knowing that she was a military officer. Sir Valerius of Arcanes.

Timaeus might not have known the man very well, but the boy still had a decent amount of respect for the man. After all, he had been there during the quest that saw them all at the mercy of some illegal miners. It had been Valerius’s quick thinking and actions that had gotten the foolish sixteen-year-old out of there in one piece. (Granted, Damocles had been there as well, but the recollection of the training day tainted those memories.) Timaeus knew that in the wake of such a horrible tragedy he should not trust anyone, but there was something reassuring about seeing someone that Timaeus knew that he could rely upon based on past experiences. It might have been a foolish decision as little did Timaeus know, Valerius had traveled to Eubocris for the same reason as Damocles as both men hoped to manipulate the new Captain -- but then again with such a confusing situation unfolding all around them, shouldn’t Tim turn to someone that he knew he could trust?

Moving over to Valerius, trying to covertly pull him aside to reveal what he had learned so Damocles could not overhear (as Timaeus had not dropped his suspicions about the other captain being involved), he was thwarted by the other man choosing to answer the question the new captain had demanded from him. Apparently, Damocles had come here to welcome him to the province. As Timaeus had been more than suspicious of the Captain’s earlier actions and the reputation that had preceded this day's events, it was safe to say that Timaeus was not exactly accepting his words at face value. It didn’t matter that this was a perfectly acceptable explanation for why another military captain was in the south. It didn’t seem right to the boy who was looking for a reason to pin it on the other man. After all, what connection would Damocles have to the province of Eubocris, a Kotas barony? He was a Drakos man. Just like Seramis here.

Timaeus might not have a reason to directly accuse Damocles anymore, the man’s own confession that he had been present in the temple of Hades praying for the soul of Timaeus’s father stirred something up in the boy. Some bright angry flame that would have not been incurred if Amaxius’s name had not been invoked. After all, the boy was still deep in his own grief for the man he had last seen when he was sixteen, the loss of whom still did not yet feel real. It felt wrong to have this man who Timaeus suspected to be the murderer trying to ease his father’s journey across the Styx. It was wrong. It was oh so wrong. However, Timaeus knew that he could not let this fire show on the exterior. He could not get angry and curse at the man for having the gall to mention Amaxius. Instead, all he could do was quietly ball his fists, his fingers biting into the meat of his palms as he spat out through gritted teeth, “Well the Captain is now here and he thanks you for the prayers.” The words felt like poison upon his tongue, but Timaeus swallowed it down, accepting that this was the polite thing to do. “We will have to verify that this is where you were though.” Timaeus also added, though there was almost no point in mentioning such a thing. It would be standard procedure for anyone who appeared to be of interest in this murder. Captain, peasant, king, and huntresses. No one would be taken at just their mere word.

Damocles continued to speak about why he had reacted to the severed phallus so calmly, encouraging Timaeus to give a small nod of recognition to his words. The newly minted captain did not believe him one bit, but everyone else around them seemed to so he would have to accept this for now. The foreign captain’s words did nothing to abate the suspicions that Timaeus held, but it was at least enough to convince the younger man not to publicly arrest the men right here and now. He would need something more concrete for that.

That was where Valerius would need to come in to help the younger man.

With the Drakos captain dealt with, Timaeus wasted no time in pulling the other senior military officer aside to speak with him in private -- or at least as private as you could get in the crowd like this. “Valerius. It is good to see you again,[/b]” He started to say with a small grin, trying his best to play the part of welcoming host and not appear to still be the scared shitless kid he had been all those years ago. “I need your help. I have found something upon the body that I need to examine further, but I will not have the people gathered here to gawk at her bare corpse. I need you to disperse the crowd so we can move her.” It was a weird feeling still to be dispensing orders, especially after spending four years being equal with his two friends as they traveled the high seas. It was something that did not sit right upon his tongue, but before he could even take note of what Valerius would say in response to this, a loud commotion ripped through the street.

Quickly turning to face what was happening, Timaeus was shocked to see another woman lamenting about the loss of this girl. Her wails were so piercing that there was no mistaking that this was some sort of relative or friend of the girl who had been found in the street. If Timaeus’s heart could not be filled with more sorrow, this mysterious woman managed to do just that. The young captain stepped away from his comrade to go speak to her, but he suddenly found his path impeded by several of Damocles’s soldiers forcefully pushing the woman back harshly.

The bubble of rage that had been bubbling within Timaeus suddenly burst as the boy suddenly lost any qualms he had about giving directives as he bellowed at Damocles as he rushed forward. “What is the name of all that is divine do you think you are doing! Have you no compassion?” His words were far more pointed than he should have ever made them, but Timaeus lacked the emotional control that was needed to recognize that this was the absolute worst thing that he could say. After all, he might not trust Damocles right now, but this was a man he was going to have to work with. Any negative feelings should just be swallowed down for the sake of what could come in the future.

Though this wasn’t in the forefront of his mind as he turned his attention to the soldiers, doing the last thing that he should have in the name of mercy for this poor woman. “Stand down! On the orders of Lord Timaeus of Valaoritis, stand down!” The twenty-year shouted as he invoked the ultimate power card he held here in this province. He held noble blood within his veins and his orders would seemingly superceed all of Damocles’s instructions while they were not on the field of battle. This was obviously something that should not be done lightly as it was a tricky ground thrusting one’s weight around in a situation like this, but the heartless way this woman was being treated was the straw that broke the camel’s back. The mere fact that Timaeus invoked his noble blood was enough to make the soldiers falter in their instructions, though not directly disobeying Damocles in the process, giving Timaeus enough of an opportunity to step forward and put himself between them and this woman. Her frantic push to get to the body did not cease as she pounded against Timaeus’s chest, knocking the wind out of him, but the young captain remained steadfast as he tried to gently bring one arm up to her shoulder, encouraging the woman to breathe and not trample over the scene.

“Lyra?” He called to her, trying to recall the name that she had shouted, “Lyra, I need you to calm down for a moment.” His words might not have been that effective, but it was far better than Damocles’s attempt. His eyes flashed over to the other men, but more specifically to Valerius, searching for guidance on what to do with this situation so rapidly spinning out of their control…