Crime and Punishment
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- Wow, that's a lot of ships at the wharf," Tai Li remarked as he looked around the wharf leaning on the railing. That's where the princess's ship was headed.
There were indeed many ships on the wharf, just over twenty to be exact. Some were large, made of steel, others of wood, smaller counterparts to their metal brethren. Some were military, but most belonged to merchants and were transport ships for carrying various goods. The vessels ranged in size from small suckers to a full frigate, comparable in size and military power to the princess' vessel. Such a ship was intended solely for the defence of the port, but there were other, smaller, guard ships for merchant ships.
It was a bright sunny day. The wharf was filled with all sorts of people, most of them ordinary labourers who worked hard. Some goods were being unloaded from the ships and taken deeper into the city to the market or warehouses, and some were being loaded into the ships, ready to be shipped to other outlets, cities, or to the front for the war effort.
- So many armed men," the acrobat mumbled thoughtfully as she finished looking around the harbour and the people working there. There were indeed several times more military and guards than usual.
- This city was too close to the Earth Kingdom's territory. The border was less than two days away by land and less than one by sea. The reinforcement of guards, both on the city side and on the side of the incoming traders is fully justified," Azula spoke up, standing next to her friend, looking around the dock with the ships.
- That's how..." the acrobat replied thoughtfully, looking up at her friend as she approached. As if her grey eyes could see something that only she could see.
- Has your circus never travelled to border towns? - Azula wondered, thinking a bit about her friend's behaviour and emotions.
- No. We only travelled around the old colonies and island lands, never going near the borders," Li replied with a small smile, remembering the good and somewhat carefree times she had spent in the circus.
- The owner of the circus must not be of the weakest mind to have made such a wise decision," Azula voiced her thoughts aloud, after a bit of thought. Which quickly earned her friend a look of incomprehension.
- Huh? Why did you decide that?
- There are many reasons not to visit the circus cities that were captured a couple of years ago: the low standard of living, the shaky order, the tension in society, the high crime rate and the harsh actions of the guards, as well as the proximity of the army of the kingdom of earth and the large number of refugees who do not always have food. I doubt that people will spend precious money to attend a circus when they are faced with the question of survival. Despite the fertile territories of the Earth Kingdom, famine may break out again in some regions. Someone has forgotten the lessons of history, and yet this happened not long ago, during my grandfather's reign.
- Ah," the acrobat said, surprised, "and I never thought about it before.
- And it's terrible, Lee. What happened to the knowledge gained in the best academy of our people? Was the time spent studying and self-development in vain? As a noble girl from a noble family, you should be ashamed. Your parents spent a lot of money on your education, and you use it so... unwise.
- That sounded a bit offensive. Sniff. It's not that you're wrong, it's just that I haven't encountered the need for that knowledge, so it's clouded my judgement. Shmyg, and about parents, you don't know anything, shmyg," Tai Li began to justify herself with tears in her eyes, sniffing her nose and holding back the tears that were coming to her eyes.
- I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. I must have got off on the wrong foot. You're right about something. You don't need to know such details of the politics of war and its aftermath, unlike me. As a princess I need to know a lot about the world and many different things that someone else doesn't need to know at all," Azula was surprisingly quick to repent, seeing her best friend's tears and feeling a little remorseful.
- Sniffle, sniffle," the words didn't help much, Ty Lee only started wiping her wet eyes. A couple of lonely tears rolled down her cheeks.
Moving closer, the princess hugged her friend, genuinely remorseful and wanting to comfort her.
- Please stop, where has light-hearted cheerful Tai Li gone, what do I know? And don't forget that you will be standing next to me the entire time of the inspection. You have to look the part," Zula said in a playfully menacing tone, releasing the girl from her embrace.
- And you know, I only said that because I'm a little jealous of you," Zula whispered with her hand over her lips, so that no one could hear or read what she said. Though the ship's crew was busy with their own business, so no one could eavesdrop on them.
- Are you jealous of me? But why? You're the smartest, the most beautiful, the strongest girl in the whole world, - the acrobat was surprised and stopped being sad and shedding tears.
- True, and I like it, but none of that made me... are you feeling better now? - Azula wondered at her friend's quick change of mood, "Were you faking it?
- If only a little," the acrobat admits with a slight smile.
- You tricked me..." Azula mumbles quietly, impressed, but quickly pulls herself together, "Impressive, but don't do it again.
- If you say so," Lee replies easily, then abruptly changes the subject, "I think the ship will be docked in the harbour soon.
- That's right. And where is Mei at a time like this? She should have been here long ago, standing beside me as part of my personal entourage.
- Probably hiding her daggers in her clothes, you know how long that can take. And speaking of absentees. Do you know where Yoaru is? I haven't seen him since this morning.
- He's busy," Azula replied a little too harshly in a slight fit of jealousy. She quickly pulled herself together and added in a calmer tone, "He's doing my bidding.
- I see...
- I think I got here just in time," Mei said.
After a short conversation, the girls waited for the ship to dock. Azula warned all of her men to be more careful before they went ashore. Since she was a princess, the secret agents of the earth kingdom as well as various spies might try to kill her in the city. Briefly and as informative as possible, she conveyed her thought to her subordinates. That there might be an armed conflict in the city and everyone should be ready for it, be as vigilant as possible, so that Agni would not let a possible assassination attempt succeed. Only after the briefing, the princess together with her escort got off the ship, going straight to the city hall. She was to meet with the governor of the surrounding lands and the mayor of the town.
Already having descended from the ship, the squad almost immediately saw numerous beggars, who lined the walls of the buildings, begging alms from passers-by. They were mostly men of age or very young boys. There were hardly any girls or women among the beggars.
Walking through the city, the eyes of the squad were faced with poverty, dirt, evil and envious glances of random passers-by in not the newest clothes. In a word, the city was going through a bad time, and if on the dock it was not very obvious, but in the city itself you could easily see the terrible standard of living of the local population.
- What are you doing? - May was mildly interested, watching her friend Tai Li behaving rather strangely. Putting her hands to her eyes and interlocking her fingers in the manner of binoculars, she was looking at the people their squad was passing by.
- Huh? That way, it's easier to see auras at a greater distance. I don't like this city. The people in it are embittered and unhappy, and their auras are quite dark,'' Li replies, taking her hands away from her eyes and sighing sadly. She sympathised with all those poor people, her kind heart was torn with grief, but there was nothing the girl could do.
- Can you tell just from the auras? - Mei continued the conversation in a calm tone, her face expressing only boredom.
- Yes. A person's mood is always reflected in their aura. Looking at a crowd of unhappy people is quite creepy. That's why I'm not excited about this city.
- We'll discuss it with you later, Lee, but for now, focus! - stops talking in formation the princess, mentally making a note to mull over the new information later. Too many questions arose in Azula's mind, she was taking a new look at all her interactions with Tai Li.
In the meantime, the squad moved on in complete silence until they reached the square. And there they encountered the not so pleasant factors of war. Several bodies were hung on gallows and had been safely rotting in the sun for more than a day. On the chest of each body hung a wooden plaque that spelled out the crime the men had committed.
"Piracy. Banditry. Theft. Espionage," Tai Li mentally read it, then hurriedly looked away. Looking at the corpses was unpleasant for her. Seeing them gave her a much better understanding of the princess's recent words, as well as the reasons why the circus didn't visit cities like this one.
- Ew, what a smell. Disgusting," Mei grumbled, covering her mouth with her palm. The rest of the group was more restrained, not daring to squeak for fear of the princess' wrath.
- A small price to pay for order," Azula said, looking blankly at the bodies swaying in the wind.
The squad moved on, towards the desired city hall building, which was quite close. Soon, Tai Li was the first to spot a ghost flying out of the building. It was her acquaintance, Yoaru. He was flying swiftly through the air straight towards them. Azula soon spotted him, and he stopped next to her and began to drift in the air, moving parallel to the squad.
- Azula I have urgent news, you will be amazed to the core! The governor ran off with the mayor. Both headed east. In the harbour, some of the merchants are actually pirates, while others are spies of the Earth Kingdom. They have some sort of arrangement with the local authorities. There's a lot of evidence of what I'm saying in the building itself. The governor's underlings tried to cover their tracks, but I stopped them. I think there's enough evidence in the building to keep the guards alive. I had to use a little force, but I didn't kill anyone. I decided that they should be tried first, and after that we should decide on the punishment for everyone involved in the crimes. I advise you to act quickly!
With every sentence Yoaru made, the princess' face showed a new emotion. And if at first it was surprise and shock, then very soon Azula began to show her anger. There was no one to hold it back....
***
It was finally over. At least it's over for me, the princess has yet to clean up the city. I didn't think I'd put so much effort into it in such a short time, but I had to work hard for the success and punishment of the criminals. And finally, after putting the case in Azula's hands, I can relax and enjoy the fruits of my actions.
Since this morning, Azula asked me to go on a reconnaissance mission. We had been discussing it since our visit to one village. As soon as the land was in sight, I got down to business, getting a good energy boost from the girl. Next, a short flight to the dock, inspecting ships, finding suspicious individuals, traitors, evidence of their criminal activities and, of course, spies. As a spirit I was the finest spy and scout in the entire world, literally no secret could escape my attention. But time constraints prevented me from inspecting every ship and I hurried to get to the main course.
After the wharf, I set out to explore the governor's mansion. Finding the right house wasn't particularly difficult. The local corruptionists had no idea who was coming to them and for what purpose. Unfortunately for them, mobile communications were not yet available in this era, so I managed to find out a lot before the criminals began to cover their tracks and hastily fled the city.
Azula was coming, they had known about the inspection for a long time, but it was still a big surprise to them. The greedy fools wanted to make more profit before fleeing to the Earth Kingdom, but they delayed too long, miscalculating the princess's sea route. Still, many factors changed our route, and all the governors were only informed about the possible inspection this year by one letter, without exact dates and times.
However, everything was more or less prepared for the escape, the right people quickly started to destroy the evidence. I had to intervene and use force, which is why I missed the main culprits. I had no desire to find out who was guilty and who was an unreasonable fool who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Using force, I easily beat more than a dozen guards, their skills left much to be desired, and what they will do to an invisible opponent. I traced the direction of the main fugitives, and when I finished with all this, the princess was already approaching the building.
Having recounted all this to the girl, I had only to savour the inevitable punishment of the criminals. Azula began to act quickly, harshly even impetuously. The mansion was quickly occupied by her men. I only helped a little to bring justice with a kind word. After the fugitives was sent a squad of archers Yuan, they were excellent trackers and in the inevitable punishment of fugitives I did not doubt.
After the princess started to restore order with the reinforcements from her ship. By this time I had replenished my strength from the girl, gave her a couple of tips and distanced myself, not interfering under the feet of the angry princess, who was going to announce the verdicts of the caught scoundrels. After leaving Azula, I found a quiet place and waited for the return of the archery squad, resting at the same time.
- Yoaru? - When I heard a familiar voice, I stopped looking out the window and turned back.
- Tai Li? - I looked at the girl who had entered the City Hall room in surprise. - Would you like to watch the punishment and sentencing of criminals?
- Mm-hmm, and you... - as I come closer, the girl gazes out the window, - Oops.
The girl was a bit confused, if not frightened, to see the newly hanged criminals in the square. The square itself was quite visible from the very top floor, it was a couple of hundred metres away from the mansion. Azula was quick to judge and had no pity, but she heeded my advice and few were executed. There was nothing particularly cruel about it, criminals were punished according to the letter of the law, but Tai Li was unpleasant to watch. She was too positive for such sordid things.
- This is the only room that is calm and relatively quiet," I explained to the girl, lest she inadvertently think I enjoyed watching the execution.
The acrobat silently settles down against the wall, next to the window, sitting on the floor and wrapping her arms around her knees. Recent events had clearly put her in a mild depression, it was a bit unusual to watch Ty Lee like this. I was too used to the cheerful and cheerful acrobat.
- Isn't that too cruel? - The girl quietly speaks up after a short silence.
- Perhaps. But the crimes committed by these people can't just be forgiven. It would only make things worse, much worse," I said, sharing my opinion, which did not include pity for the criminals.
- There are mines, prisons, correctional labour.
- Life imprisonment? I'm surprised to hear you say that. I'd rather die than spend the rest of my life in virtual slavery, but for the country and society, your suggestion would be more beneficial. Don't worry, not everyone was executed in the square, most of the guilty will be sent to the tribunal and then distributed among the prisons. Your laws are very merciful, in some parts.
- That's not what I meant," Lee replied in a slightly louder tone. She didn't like the way I interpreted her words.
- I know...
We were silent for a while, me looking out the window, her at the floor. Outside the walls, the light echoes of the work of the princess's subordinates could be heard. Conflicts and misunderstandings were quickly quelled, so everything was relatively quiet, not like the first minutes of Azula's arrival at the mansion. In any case, she would do well, there was no doubt about that. All I can do is enjoy the calm and wait for the archery squad.
- Yoaru, why did they do that? - Tai Li suddenly spoke, breaking the silence between us.
- They must have thought they could do it. They wanted more than they had, thinking their wages were too small. Greed was their undoing. This town is a perfect example of how not to deal with criminals.
- I don't understand, can you explain it to me?" the acrobat asks quietly, glancing at me. It was almost impossible to refuse such a cutie, but I wasn't about to refuse.
- Sure. You see, if there's a gang in town, and the authorities turn a blind eye to it, no matter if it's because of bribes or whatever. The gang, as an element of crime, will develop and grow. Driven by the eternal hunger of greed, the gang will get bigger and bigger until suddenly it becomes bigger and stronger than the official authorities. And when that happens, ordinary people will only have to suffer under the new power of the crime syndicate, which will devour the official authority as it has devoured everything else before. Crime cannot be dealt with differently. It must be pulled up by the roots and cauterised by fire. People who think they can get away with it will only be more willing to try to evade the law.
- That's a little too cruel," the girl said thoughtfully.
- The world is not made up of only joy and fun. No matter how much we wish it were," I told her, looking out the window. Among the people on the street, I almost immediately found what I had been waiting for for a couple of hours.
- Hmm. Our conversation will have to be cut short, Li, the Yuan archery squad is returning with an unlucky fugitive," I tell the girl, and only then do I remember the fact that there were two fugitives. Did one of them really manage to escape? Azula would be furious.
And while I was pondering this, Tai Li stood beside me peering at the street through the window. There, a squad of super archers were walking through the streets of the city, stone-faced. The men were calmly dragging the bound fat man along the ground, ignoring his leg wounds. With his legs shot through, he's definitely not going anywhere, I approve....