Bishop Wynda continued her explanation of the reasons the sewer had been walled up, while Kallid and Kreet listened attentively.

“This city wasn’t originally the home of the Royal family. But as it grew and expanded, it was so prosperous and well-designed that it became the seat of government. The palace was built, along with the cathedral. Of course this was hundreds and hundreds of years before our time. But problems began to show themselves. Flaws in the plans. The nobles and tradesmen began to complain…”

“Sewer problems? Was it overloaded?” Kallid conjectured.

“No. It wasn’t that. Problems with the people. The poor began to find their way from the surrounding countryside into the city. Some were welcome, mind you. But others found no place here. The early Kings were magnanimous however, and doing so brought more into the city. But times are cyclical. The prosperity that allowed generosity to the poor waxed and waned over time. And during the downturns the poor did what they always do. They turned into beggars and thieves. So those in charge began the thieves’ guild. I suppose that was our first step away from the path of Pelor. Because it was both necessary, but also could not be officially sanctioned. How could we tell a wealthy citizen that his house had been ransacked and we knew who did it, but we weren’t going to give it back? So we kept our involvement secret. In darkness.”

“Couldn’t you just have the Watch step in? Find the thieves?”

“Sure! Now keep in mind, this was long before I came on the scene as Bishop. Even before Bishop Harlie. We inherited our share, of course. And the church didn’t actually create the thieves guild. We just… allowed it to happen. And it worked, fundamentally. When people are desperate, when they simply cannot live within the laws, thievery is unavoidable. But the thieves’ guild worked. It didn’t stop thievery, but it stopped the violence associated with it. Because those who had to resort to thievery feared the Guild more than they feared the Watch.”

“So, how does this relate to the sewers?” Kreet had to ask.

“Ah, you see, I’ve addressed thievery. I haven’t addressed the beggars. Because really it is the beggars that are the most noticeable sign of a failing city. Thieves hide. Beggars do not. They get in your face. They make themselves appear even more miserable than they really are, to prey on the sympathies of those better off. And they use children. Something had to be done about the beggars. The nobles complained. The merchants complained. And they really were beginning to flood the city. They tried a Beggar’s Guild, but it collapsed. Then they passed laws and arrested the beggars. Can you guess what happened then?”

Kallid shook his head, but Kreet had an idea. “It worked, didn’t it!”

Bishop Wynda smiled at Kreet. “You’re clever, Kreet. Yes, it worked. Too well. Why do you suppose that was?”

“Free room and board?” Kreet suggested.

“That’s it exactly. I wouldn’t say the beggars wanted to be arrested, but they certainly didn’t fear it. And the nature of them requires them to be obvious, so they’re not hard to catch. The Watch jails were soon overrun with beggars - children mostly, but whole families sometimes. This went on during a downturn in Bishop Harlie’s time. The King couldn’t exactly make the beggars suffer in jail though. He fed them and clothed them and kept the families together, but there simply wasn’t enough room. He desperately asked his advisors for any ideas.”

The wheels turned in Kreet’s head.

“They sacrificed a whole section of the city to allow the beggar-class a place to live,” she surmised. “The housing values dropped in the area that was no longer served by the sewers. Everybody moved out that could afford to. But the beggars had a place then.”

“It seemed like a good idea to Bishop Harlie. And to the King,” Bishop Wynda said, her face full of distaste. “And it was, for a while. The King sent in rations regularly to those who lived here, and the beggars were rarely seen in other parts of the city. They had homes here. It was, in a sense, a jail with no bars. They thought they’d found a good - if not great - solution.”

“So, why would you not rebuild the blockage now? Keep the slums down?”

“Because Bishop Harlie is no longer Bishop, and the old King is dead. You can see the vast majority of slum buildings are unoccupied - because they are un-occupiable. Buildings are falling down for lack of maintenance. People are getting hurt, dying here. Not to mention disease. I cannot condone this. I’ve spoken to our King and he agrees. There are too many problems with this solution. But also, entire generations have now grown up in the slums. They’ve grown up to accept the conditions here. I had a private meeting with the King yesterday when this came to light. He agrees with me. The solution is worse than the problem. We’ve created a class of poor here. What seemed like a good idea simply isn’t. But it had remained hidden, a secret. Even the King wasn’t aware of it. He is now.”

“So what will happen now?” Kallid asked.

“Well, as you know, the Watch has returned to the slums. I suppose the beggars will begin appearing on the streets again. We still need to find a better solution. But for those people that live here… that have created a life here... they should all see their circumstances rise as the neighborhood improves. It will likely always be a poorer neighborhood than the rest of the city, but perhaps not one that people will be embarrassed to call home.”