4 DAYS - MID-DAY

Tom's hands were folded in his lap as he sat in front of Ianite's desk. Ianite herself was just sorting out a few papers that she had forgotten to put away before their meeting.

"Alright, I think that's all sorted." She murmured, shuffled a few papers to the side, and looking up at Tom. "Did you have a good time with Captain Capsize and my champion? I had hoped that you enjoyed their company." Ianite internally smiled, as she watched Tom squirm slightly. She had picked the two of them after delving into who exactly had gotten close to Tom on that trip. If she was able to match up those three then, well, she might be able to get Dianite to stop doing many things that would hurt her people for a long, long time. Plus, her champion and favourite captain would be happy.

'Yes I... I enjoyed it very much." Tom replied, flushing a little. Ianite allowed a small smile to slip onto her face. Hopefully this would work out. She would hate for anyone to get hurt. "You know, I'm surprised I haven't seen any torturing equipment yet." Tom said, changing the topic He watched as Ianite's face morphed into one of concern, confused. Why was she concerned about him? He wasn't one of her followers.

"Why would you think that I would allow for that kind of thing?" Ianite asked, cocking her head to the side. Tom shifted uncomfortably, not meeting Ianite's gaze for a few minutes. Finally, he spoke up.

"It was, uh... something that I was trained for when I was becoming Dianite's champion." Tom replied, looking up at Ianite nervously. "He... He wanted me to be prepared for anything and well..." Tom shrugged. "Torture was just something he thought was going to happen." Ianite frowned, anger and fear bubbling up inside of her. What else had her brother done to his champion? What else had been called 'champion training' that was anything but it?

"And you were how old when this happened?" Ianite bit her lip as Tom thought.

"Maybe... nineteen? Twenty?" Tom thought out loud. "Yeah, probably around there. I've only been his champion for four years." Nodding, Ianite filed that information away for later. She was going to yell at her brother for this. They weren't supposed to actually hurt any mortals, or at least, that was what the three of them had agreed upon, so very long ago. Now it seemed like Dianite was going back on his promises, what with the recent attack and now this.

"And I assume your champion training also included actual training? Weapons, strategy, that sort of thing?" Tom nodded, thinking back on those three years. It had been brutal at times (like when he had been forced to fight Furia to show that he was actually paying attention), but he was glad that he was Dianite's champion. The title allowed for him to make a better life for himself and his sister, and it made everyone else treat him with respect. Or maybe that was just fear.

"Yeah, I got trained in basically all kind of weapons. Swords, bows, daggers, spears, you name it, I was probably forced to learn it." Tom shrugged, leaning back in his chair. Learning multiple weapons has proven useful when he was unable to find a sword while fighting. Not many opponents expected someone to know how to chuck a spear like a javelin. Ianite hummed and nodded. This was useful information. She probably should have trained Jordan more in the weaponry section, but he was wonderful with a bow, and his strategies had helped them more than once.

"So you've trained a lot?" Ianite asked, wanting to keep this conversation going. If getting information was just Tom talking about his training, she would take it. At least her champion would be better prepared. Tom nodded, staring past Ianite.

"Yes. Almost every day I have to make sure that I can still fight. Dianite does random check-in's, did you know that? He'll just pop by and watch how my performance is doing." Tom grimaced, remembering the time when he had fractured his ankle and Dianite had still made him train. He frowned for a second, before realizing something. Ianite was getting valuable information from him, and he was just answering her questions. He was spilling to much information. Dianite would be angry at him if he found out.

"I see." Ianite said, before she lent forwards in her chair and squinted slightly. If she could just focus enough to – There. She could see the aura radiating off of him, vibrant red and orange hues, shifting and radiating off of Tom. It was something of a gift that the gods have. The ability to see mortal's aura's, almost a reflection of the mortal's themselves. There was outer aura's and inner aura's. Outer parts of the auras showed the personality types, calm or harsh, violent or peaceful. The inner aura's, however, showed where the person's loyalty lied. A moral compass of sorts. Many of her followers were cooler colours, green and blue and purple, but others were much more rash. Dianitee's tended to have fiery, bright colours surrounding them, while Mianite's had duller, darker colours.

Tom was an interesting case, however. While the outer aura showed deep red's and oranges, almost like flames, closer to his body was a deep hue of purple, sticking to him like honey. Strange. That sort of thing only really happened with spies, people who lied about their faith to keep another god more informed. But she knew all of her spies, and plus, Tom was the Dianitee champion. So why was his inner aura purple? She could try a few of her ideas, and see if they worked. After all, she wouldn't lose anything by talking with Tom about it.

"Thomas, were you ever not a Dianitee?" She asked him, watching as he blinked slightly. She had stopped talking for a few minutes and was just staring at him, and that's what she says to him first? Ianite was weird.

"Uh... Yeah I was when I was a kid. How did you.... How did you know?" Tom asked her, titling his head in confusion. He had been an Ianitee, in fact, before he and his parents had converted. They would have a better life as a Dianitee, his patents had told him. "I was an Ianitee." He continued, watching as Ianite nodded slowly.

"I assume your parents converted you?" She replied, watching as he nodded. "And they are still living in Dianite's territory?" Tom swallowed a bit and shook his head, suddenly more nervous than before. His parents were a tricky subject. They had gone against Dianite when he was fourteen, his sister seventeen, and as punishment, the two of them had been killed for their crimes. Tom had been sent to Doveport, along with his sister, to the orphanage there. It was the closest place to the small village they had settled in, and the people there were always wanting an extra hand.

"No... they uh, passed away." Tom replied, staring down at his lap. "They went against Dianite. Or at least, that's what Dianite told me." Ianite nodded, knowing exactly what Tom meant. Dianite was a stickler for loyalty, and going against that was punishable by death, at least in his lands. But, unless it was a reoccurring thing, Dianite normally just gave them a punishment. The first time did not result in death, unless it was something very bad. Ianite watched as Tom blinked back tears, before she glanced to one of the many windows.

"I believe that this is all the time I have today, Thomas. My guards," She waved a hand at the door, watching as two different guards entered, "will escort you back to your room. I'll meet with you again when I can." Ianite said softy, watching Tom nod and rise from his chair. As he exited, Ianite closed the doors and let out a sigh. Had Dianite told Tom the truth about his parents? Knowing her brother, likely not. She was going to have to dig into this more, for Tom's sake. He needed to know if he was working for the man who possibly murdered his parents.