“If it were up to me I would find whatever part of them this rot has set in, and prune it root and stem. Fingers. Tongue. Heart... Mark my words: the only way to keep this evil from spreading is to cut it out. But their fate is yours. I am no longer young, and my soul does not need the stain.” ―The Acerbic Dowager
The Acerbic Dowager's face is moon-white. Her hands shake. Her hair - normally tight as a steel cap - is unruly. Something brown and malodorous clogs one side of it.
She points at the peasant boy and girl in her servants' meaty hands. "These chattel accosted me as I returned from my prayers! They threw filth at my carriage! Some of it came through the window...and..." her voice breaks, her eyes shining with tears. "I bring them to you for judgement," she hisses through grinding teeth. "If I do it it myself I will forget they are little more than children!"
The serfs are terrified, both at the Dowager's ire and the splendour of your hall. They are not yet twenty years. Their hands are damningly stained.
Available actions[]
1.
What do the peasants have to say for themselves? The boy is dumbstruck. The girl, though, can barely contain herself.
Free action
Result: Kindling She climbs to her feet. "Can't Her Ladyship handle a little shit? Well shit's how highborn have treated me for seventeen years! 'The Maker made us all the same,' but you highborn tell us your blood's better than ours. Well, I say shit sticks to you the same as it does to me." You ask who's been putting these thoughts in her head. "You'll never find her. She's smoke on the wind. Her words will spread like fire across Orlais and burn the old ways down. We'll build the Golden City anew on their ashes."
2.
What would the Dowager advise? She has composed herself, somewhat.
Free action
Result: Gardening She turns a cold gaze on the serfs, speaking so they can hear. "If it were up to me I would find whatever part of them this rot has set in, and prune it root and stem. Fingers. Tongue. Heart... "Mark my words: the only way to keep this evil from spreading is to cut it out. But their fate is yours. I am no longer young, and my soul does not need the stain."
3.
Let the serfs wear iron in the dungeons Chains will suit them. The dignity of Serault must be preserved.
This is a harsh sentence.
(uses 1 action)
Result: Judgement The girl, Merovyl, suffers her imprisonment without complaint, nourished by her prayers and resentment. The boy, though, begs for leniency after three days. "Merovyl didn't used to be like that!" He's on his knees before your high seat. "There was a woman. She said Andraste herself was a rebel. All kinds of things. Merovyl couldn't stop talking about it." The Dowager purses her lips. A dozen baths have restored her countenance. "Dangerous. Sometimes, because the stars are merry and mad, the king gives issue to an idiot, or a pig-herder to a prophet. Good counsel may temper a prince's folly, but nothing in the world can restrain a sty-born firebrand from error, excess and bloodshed." "Be on your guard for this Elusive Iconoclast. When she reveals herself, destroy her."
+1 Secret, +1 Favor from the Acerbic Dowager, -20 Rumors of Revolution
4.
Condemn the serfs to a brief spell in the stocks and a modest tithe That should be sufficient. Nothing more serious was damaged than the Dowager's dignity.
A mild sentence.
(uses 1 action)
Result: A lack of gratitude The girl spits at you. "Let your cronies throw their rotten eggs. There's a lot more of us than there are of you! When the smallfolk hear the Iconoclast's words, we will shrug our shoulders and cast you from our backs!" The boy tugs at her arm. "Stop it, Merovyl! This is mercy!" Your guards take them away. The Dowager waits until they are gone before she speaks. "Idiocy. If you indulge this sedition you will lose Serault. Perhaps you do not care for her as I do. You have been raised to rule. Trained to make decisions that are difficult, unpopular and correct. Peasants have been raised to turn fields and birth calves. They don't expect you to rummage around a cow's rear; you shouldn't expect them to know the difference between justice and fairness."
+1 Secret, -1 Favor from the Acerbic Dowager, +20 Rumors of Revolution
