Reiner
Reiner
Reiner is an Oxana-born Irynian politician who served as Governor from 1018 to 1020, previously serving as District Representative for Parliament Park from 1016 to 1017. He also was a serial killer active for the period between 1014 and 1020. After his criminal activity was discovered, he was summoned to Oxana for trial, convicted, and sentenced to permanent exile. His current location is known only to the Oxana and Iryna governments.
Early Life
Reiner was born in 998 to unknown parents in an unknown part of Oxana. Lord Peter Argyris was given legal guardianship of Reiner, agreeing to provide food, shelter, and employment to him for the duration of his legal minority.[1] His name at the time was Percy; it is unclear if that was the only name he had used previously. Percy was employed as Lord Peter Argyris' domestic servant, responsible for tasks such as cleaning the Argyris family mansion, running errands, and secretarial work. Although the circumstances of the arrangement's inception were not recorded, it is likely that Percy did not consent to them. People familiar with Percy at the time described him as polite and diligent, but moody and often visibly disgruntled.[2] On Day 8 of Month 1, 1014, the Argyris mansion was discovered to have burned down the previous night. Although only one body was found in the mansion's remains, it was assumed that both occupants of the home, Percy and Lord Peter Argyris, had died in the fire.[3]
Legal and Politial Career
On Day 13 of Month 1, 1014, a ship called the SS Harpy caught fire and sank in the Irynian harbor. An Iryna PD investigation found no probable cause for foul play and concluded that the sinking had been an accident.[4] One passenger rescued from the SS Harpy, who gave the name Reiner to investigators, claimed to be a 25-year-old Irynian who had recently graduated from Oxana University's law school. He began a legal career in Iryna shortly afterward, specializing in contract law. At the next election, he successfully ran for District Representative of Parliament Park.[5] He proved to be an energetic and vocal defender of his district's interests, winning him enough renown to be elected Governor after Vincere Rae's retirement in 1017.[6] Reiner's popularity grew further after taking office; he gained a reputation as a communicative, authoritative, and magically-talented leader.
Capture, Trial, and Exile
It was not until 1020 that Iryna PD Inspector Neeka, with the help of anonymous associates[7], connected Percy to the seemingly-unrelated Reiner. People who had known Percy were able to identify Reiner as the same person, even though seven years had passed since they had last seen him.[2] Neeka and her associates were also able to connect Reiner to an arcane instrument known as the Sanguine Dagger, which had previously been owned by the Argyris family.[8] Iryna PD Superintendent Kellen Ridge had been ordered by Reiner to halt investigation into several unsolved murders, all of which were found to have been committed using the Sanguine Dagger. Neeka forwarded the information to Oxana PD, who conducted an independent investigation to verify her claims, then mailed a court summons to Reiner at his residence in the Governor's Mansion. After briefly attempting to evade custody, Reiner agreed to cooperate with Oxana PD. He was given the option to face trial in Oxana for the crimes he had committed there, or to face trial in Iryna for much more serious charges. He chose to remain in Oxana, representing himself in a trial that lasted several months and was followed closely by the public. Reiner was found guilty of arson, manslaughter, fraud, theft, and evasion of arrest; his sentence was exile from Oxana and Iryna.[9]
Murder Victims
Following Reiner's trial, Neeka continued her investigation into his criminal history, publishing a report[10] summarizing her findings. She could not declare with certainty that she had accounted for every potential victim, but she determined that she did not have sufficient evidence to definitively connect Reiner to any other unsolved cases. The victims confirmed by her report were:
- Lord Peter Argyris was an Oxana aristocrat of low rank and Reiner's legal guardian at the time of his death. This was unquestionably Reiner's first murder, and the only one he committed in Oxana before emigrating to Iryna. This murder also had a more personal motive than his other killings, with Reiner having long resented the control Lord Peter Argyris held over his life.
- Kora was a con artist who was investigated by Iryna PD in 1016, Reiner's first year as District Representative. Until Neeka's report, it was believed that Kora had fled Iryna to avoid arrest.
- Maika and Minki were romantic partners who worked in construction and maintenance. Their deaths were investigated by Iryna PD, but no suspect emerged and the case was closed.
- Efi was a street muralist killed in early 1018. According to Neeka, her murder was the first covered up by Iryna PD on Reiner's behalf. Iryna PD officially stated that the killer had been a burglar attempting to steal Efi's art, but nothing was taken from Efi's home. An Iryna PD forensic technician whose testimony contradicted this statement was ignored by her superiors.
- Gwyn was a criminal who escaped Iryna PD custody. Neeka was involved in the manhunt to locate Gwyn, and recalled that Reiner requested frequent updates on Iryna PD's progress. Just before officers were able to recapture Gwyn, he went missing again. Neeka theorized that Reiner used intelligence received from Iryna PD to murder Gwyn before he could be detained.
- Tiresa was an Adventurer's Guild employee who successfully repelled a cloaked attacker. After attempting to report the incident to Iryna PD without success, she was killed the next night.
- Pilchard was an IMI Arcane Theory graduate who disappeared after performing in the 1019 IMI Commencement Ceremony, which was traditionally attended by the current Governor.
- Paolo was a nurse at a local health clinic. His community's requests for answers were denied by Iryna PD, but the circumstances of his death perfectly matched Reiner's modus operandi.
- Mercy was a SmartStone repair expert who was murdered on Day 27 of Month 1, 1020. Neeka was assigned to her case before Kellen Ridge abruptly closed the case several days later. Neeka's suspicions were aroused by this departure from standard procedure, and she decided to continue investigating the case on her own, which led her to discover Reiner's involvement.
- Kesti Kor'onen was Champion of Iryna during Reiner's term as Governor and a member of a prominent Irynian family. Neeka believed that Kesti was attacked by Reiner after she found out about Mercy's murder; an altercation between Kesti and Reiner took place a mere hour after Mercy's estimated time of death, and the two had a friendly relationship up until that point.
- Farryn Lux, Primrose, and Kepu were Adventurer's Guild employees who were last seen on Day 28 of Month 1, 1020 by fellow adventurer Hemlock Apiales. Neeka surmised that they somehow became involved in Kesti's attempted escape from Reiner, especially given that Farryn was a former resident of Upper Old Iryna who had been on friendly terms with Kesti.
- Will and Theo were brothers who worked as illusionists, known to have been investigated by Iryna PD at Reiner's direction. Their deaths were declared a fratricide-suicide by Iryna PD.
- Arron was a combat mage invited to give a presentation at the Governor's Mansion after performing in the 1020 IMI Commencement. He was not seen again after leaving the Mansion.
There are also additional individuals who Neeka suspected to have been targeted by Reiner, but could not confirm as such:
- Theophanes was a legendary scholarly figure in Iryna, responsible for the proliferation of magitech in the city. Although Theophanes seemingly died of natural causes, Reiner was the lawyer hired by Theophanes to draft his end-of life plan, so his role in Theophanes' death remains suspect. If Reiner did murder Theophanes, it was his first murder committed in Iryna.
- Selwyn was the officiant selected by Reiner for the Champion Tournament, who was last seen in Iryna on Day 18 of Month 3, 1020, and whose whereabouts remain unknown. As a foreign diplomat, he was housed in the Governor's Mansion during his stay in Iryna, so Reiner's involvement in his disappearance is likely. However, there is no evidence that Selwyn is deceased.
- Lucine was a Champion Tournament finalist who was mortally wounded by a person posing as Selwyn. She was resuscitated immediately after dying, so technically she cannot be counted as a murder victim, and the true identity of her attacker remains unknown. Reiner is known to have been able to cast illusory magic, which he could have used to impersonate Selwyn.
Neeka's report did not speculate on the motives behind every murder committed by Reiner, although she noted that his victims seemed to be chosen with careful intention. Neeka observed that he gravitated towards victims who were socially isolated, minimizing the chances that their disappearance would be reported to Iryna PD. He often took great pains to disguise his appearance and dispose of evidence, complicating any investigations that were not also suppressed by Iryna PD. His murder rate increased over time, as his political power (and, likely, his personal confidence) grew. Many of his victims had considerable magical talent, although due to the high concentration of mages in Iryna, Neeka was unsure of whether this was a deliberate decision on Reiner's part.
[1] Contract presented to the court, Oxana v. Reiner, 1020
[2] Testimony by Pauline, Oxana v. Reiner, 1020
[3] "International News", The Inquirer (published: 8-1-1014)
[4] Iryna PD archived case files, 1014
[5] Election Results Announcement, IrynaNet Official Broadcast (aired: 30-12-1015)
[6] Election Results Announcement, IrynaNet Official Broadcast (aired: 30-12-1017)
[7] Testimony by Neeka, Oxana v. Reiner, 1020
[8] Arcane Instrument Directory, Oxana Historical Society
[9] Verdict, Oxana v. Reiner, 1020
[10] "Summary Report on Criminal Investigation of Reiner", 1020
