Ministry of Reassignment
Purpose / Function
The ministry is available as a rehabilitation center for individuals from anywhere in Fortis, but most of its subjects are criminals from the Twin Cities and nearby communities. When an inmate arrives, they are first held in cells until they are certified as physically healthy and provided with whatever mundane or magical medical services they require. Once their paperwork has been processed, they are taken to the reassignment facilities, where they are imprinted by mages with their new identities as citizens of Sargalle. From there, they go to a halfway house on the edge of the Pleasure District where they can be observed for a few weeks to see if there have been any irregularities such as jerking motions, looping behavior, or stunning (when the individual appears to have come "unplugged" from their surroundings). After that, they are released into the city to make their way to their new homes and jobs.
At the end of their sentence, citizens return to the ministry to fill out their final release paperwork and arrange transportation to the location of their choice. A surprising number choose to stay on in Sargalle voluntarily, preferring the happy stability of life there to the potentially jarring return to life in the outside world.
The ministry also serves a secondary purpose. For those unhappy souls who simply do not want to continue with their current lives, they can seek solace in Sargalle. Counselors will work with them to explain the process, help them choose a new identity, and set up voluntary reassignment services for the term of their choosing. Some come because of the loss of a loved one, guilt over a personal failure, trouble with drug addiction, or myriad other reasons. All are welcome and there is no pressure to complete the process if they are hesitant at any point.
Architecture
The building that houses the ministry is an ominous, towering stone edifice that sits in the northeast corner of Sargalle. It overlooks the Pleasure District and the Fountain of Ecstasy that sits at the northern end of the Avenue. What were originally built as torture chambers in the upper portion (so the screams of victims would be audible to those in the city below) have been thoroughly cleansed of negative energies and are now used as meditation rooms for the guardians and their assistants. The ground floor and the two levels above it are reserved for office and administrative purposes, while the reassignment facilities themselves and the cells where inmates are held while they await processing are located underground.
History
Under the reign of the Dark, the building that currently houses the Ministry of Reassignment was used as both a torture chamber and site for executions. Many brave rebels lost their lives within its walls before the Dark's power crumbled. During the era of the First Court, the building was converted to a rehabilitation center for criminals. However, their methods were still very crude and consisted mostly of turning offenders into mindless automatons for the rest of their days.
With the overhaul of the justice system that came with the Twelfth Court, the Ministry of Reassignment was established. Although methods have become much more effective over time, by the Thirteenth Court, the ministry was recognizable as the rehabilitation center that it is today. The guardians of Sargalle had been established and most of the boroughs of the city had been organized and populated.