The Sac
True to their name, the Ochya, or "Eyes" never cease to watch the city or those in their custody. The local jail embraces the idea of a panoptic system. Appearing more like an oblong basket, the jail has no solid walls. A floating cage, its outer walls are wood and its inner barriers are iron bars closely spaced.
The Sac is divided into two floors: the upper where the Ochya assemble and record offenses and the lower, which serves as the jail proper.
The upper level also houses the “Column of Law”, a wooden pillar covered in hammered bronze. The infractions and possible penalties of the city are etched on its surface in both Common and Symenos:
The unlawful, unjustified killing of another Symenestra or Honored Guest:
Death or loss of hand and banishment.
The harming or taking of another’s surrogate:
Providing a new unblemished surrogate equal to the previous and monetary reparation.
Harming of another’s pregnant surrogate:
A new unblemished surrogate equal to the previous for the father and another for any member of his web.
Theft, wanton destruction of property or fraud:
Return of goods or appropriate value thereof and labor for wronged party until goods are paid back seven-fold. If the victim will not receive the thief’s labor, or finds it lacking: imprisonment for a fair length of time.
Severe, unlawful, unjustified physical harm to another Symenestra or Honored Guest:
The criminal will be doled the same harm and pay further reparation to his victim.
The taking of a female Symenestra without her consent:
Death or castration and banishment.
Death or loss of hand and banishment.
The harming or taking of another’s surrogate:
Providing a new unblemished surrogate equal to the previous and monetary reparation.
Harming of another’s pregnant surrogate:
A new unblemished surrogate equal to the previous for the father and another for any member of his web.
Theft, wanton destruction of property or fraud:
Return of goods or appropriate value thereof and labor for wronged party until goods are paid back seven-fold. If the victim will not receive the thief’s labor, or finds it lacking: imprisonment for a fair length of time.
Severe, unlawful, unjustified physical harm to another Symenestra or Honored Guest:
The criminal will be doled the same harm and pay further reparation to his victim.
The taking of a female Symenestra without her consent:
Death or castration and banishment.
The Ochya tend to have more time than criminals, so the judicial process is rapid. During the process, the suspected criminal is kept in the Sac.
Outsiders and Symenestra enjoy the privilege of a hearing complete with witnesses, but the similarity ends there. Sentencing is far more stringent for non-Symenestra.
Cells have just enough room to stand, lie down and stretch one’s arms. The prisoner has the luxury of a square rag, a small hole for refuse and nothing more. Food and water are poured through a pipe at regular intervals. Treatment varies depending on the severity of the suspected crime.
