“I’ll tell you what I know. This isn’t a trial. It’s a farce!”
CHAPTER 30
Following blind instinct, Selene ran after the black gnome.
Behind her, Sansla called out, “Are you sure this is best?”
“I’m sure we only have a few seconds left!”
The black gnome skipped and skittered through the cavern, making for a slit in the wall.
Behind them, young wurmers gave chase, nipping at their heels. They were outnumbered a hundred to one as they ran loose through the pits, stepping on wurmers and knocking over eggs. The ground trembled under her feet, tripping up her steps. She crushed one of the eggs with a splatter.
The wurmer queen became angry.
Sansla pushed Selene up to her feet. They made a full-speed dash, with baby wurmers latching on to scales and skin. Beckoning them with his hand, the black gnome jumped into the split in the rock and disappeared.
BOOOOOOOOOM!
The jarring explosion heaved the ground up beneath them. A wash of mystic energy bore down on them like a tidal wave. The energy wiped out every baby wurmer and egg in its path. The wurmer queen reeled against the force while at the same time making the most awful sound Selene had ever heard.
With the explosion sizzling their toes, Selene and Sansla dove for the gap together. She popped out of the portal and landed on Sansla. They were back in the two giants’ huge cavern. The black gnome stood nearby, rubbing the back of his shaggy head. Across the cavern, the cave mouth that led into the wurmer nursery was burning with fire. The stone giants were staring at it.
Selene poked the black gnome in the back. “Who are you?”
He spun around and slapped her hand away. “There’s no time for that now. Let’s get out of here while those giants are distracted. They’ll sniff us out, you know.” The black gnome plucked a wurmer spawn off her leg, threw it down and stomped it, then took off.
Without objection, Selene followed the gnome back into the seam and up out into the hills. Her chest was tight and her knees were a little wobbly, but she felt safer in the dying forest than she had down in the chasm that haunted them from behind. “There had better not be too many queens. Fortune found favor with us today.”
“Indeed,” Sansla said. The winged ape had bite marks all over. Parts of his white fur had clotted red.
Selene said to him, “I almost killed you. I don’t know what came over me, but I was going to do it. I felt that old hate rising in me.”
His big paw engulfed her shoulder. “But you didn’t. Now you’ve seen the power of forgiveness. Its cleansing can break curses.”
Something about his words made her heart swell. She hugged him. Tears ran out the corners of her eyes. “I just thought of all of those horrible things I did. I felt like I couldn’t escape my past.”
“If others forgive you, then you can learn to forgive yourself. Tylabahn almost got you because your faith in yourself is weak. Be strong.” He broke the hug. “You’ve grown. Shown you were willing to die to save others. I can see that. Look.” He held up her hand. The black scales of her palms had turned white. “The same thing happened to Nath.”
Selene studied her hands. She fingered the palms. It was different. Much of the guilt she carried was gone for some reason. “I-I didn’t do that much.”
“There aren’t many people who would have dared to drop that Orb of Destruction into that well. You did it with no self-regard whatsoever.”
She wiped her tears. “That sure took care of that, didn’t it? Ha! I only wish I could have seen that titan’s face when she realized it was over. Say, where did that gnome go?”
The black gnome was nowhere in sight. Aside from them, the forest was empty.
“How did he do that, Sansla?”
The winged white ape’s nostrils flared. “His scent is gone.”
Eyes narrowed, she headed in the direction where she last saw the little guy. She bent over and touched the small footprints in the ground. They went on for a few steps and vanished. “We didn’t imagine him, did we?”
“Certainly not, though I am perplexed as to how we came across that portal. I’m grateful while at the same time dismayed.”
“Woohoo!” said a voice far up in the trees.
Selene’s head snapped up. A figure sat in the branches, slender and humanoid, hairless, with odd pinkish skin. Nothing like the black gnome she’d just seen. He waved at her with long, agile fingers. His face was expressionless.
Her eyes brightened. “Gorlee!”
“At your service.”
CHAPTER 31
Another day passed with Nath sitting, standing, and pacing in his cage. The oddness of his surroundings had reached a point where he was too uncomfortable to eat. And anyway, he didn’t trust the food. His stomach growled. His temper flared.
I should summon the dragons, but would they get to my dungeoned friends in time?
Aside from the soldiers who stood watch by the thousands and only moved to relieve one another, the people reveled. They were singing, drinking, and carrying on like the trial was a celebration. Elves and dwarves walked arm in arm, complimenting one another. They patted one another on the back and played music together.
Nath tried to flag Brenwar down.
The old warrior was at the top of the stands, putting the finishing touches on the railing. People had filled up half the seats. They ate and talked—males, females, and children—as if they were on a picnic. The children would stroll by and make faces at Nath.
Finally, he called out, “Brenwar! Brenwar! Get down here!”
Brenwar waved his bony hand. “In a moment. This railing isn’t quite straight.”
“Your head isn’t quite straight!” Nath tossed his mane of red hair. He wanted to scream. He hadn’t seen Ben or Laylana since yesterday. They’d vanished. He wondered if they’d been taken prisoner too.
I could have sworn turning myself in was the right thing. It spared lives and prevented injury. But the entire gesture has turned backward on me. I can’t believe it!
Two of the biggest dwarves he ever saw carried a stone table between them. Their hair was so thick he could barely see their faces. Wearing only sleeveless leather armor, they were all muscles that bulged in their snakelike arms. The powerful duo set the table down between Nath’s cage and the judge stand. Its heavy legs hit the flagstones with a bang! The two dwarves took a glance at Nath. One wiped his nose. The other spat. They moved on.
What is that table for?
From the tops of the corner towers, trumpets blared. The music stopped. The bustling crowds went still. Behind Nath was the entrance on the dwarven side. The soldiers parted ranks, making a path. In front of him behind the judge stand, the elves did the same thing. A team of black horses eight deep pulled an alabaster and ivy-colored carriage under the elven portcullis and down the runway of grass.
On the dwarven end of things, the dwarves themselves pulled a dwarven-crafted carriage. On its roof, smoke puffed out of a chimney stack, giving it the look of a tiny cottage on wheels.
The crowd murmured. The stands filled. Excited faces commented, “The judges are here.”
To the right of Nath, the dwarven carriage came to a stop. On the left, across from the dwarves, the elven carriage did the same. A small set of wooden stairs was carried in front of each carriage door. The doors opened.
Standing with his nose between the bars, Nath watched the occupants of the carriages come out. Three dwarves with grey and white beards almost touching their toes marched out. They weren’t dressed in armor but instead wore heavy leather gowns stitched together with intricate patterns of golden threads. Though simple, their chestnut-colored ensemble appeared fit for kings.
Across the way, the elven judges came, in soft blue robes sashed with kelly green and maroon. They were older, with crow’s feet showing in the corners of their eyes. Their once-lustrous hair had become thin and faded after centuries of life. Together they walked front and center facing the dw
arves, who did the same on the other side of the lengthwise table. They clasped hands.
“Nath. Nath.” He turned. Laylana stood behind his cage, motioning for him to come over. “The trial is beginning.”
“Thanks for the warning. I thought you were defending me. Where have you been?”
“There’s no need to get snippy.”
“Snippy? Me? My trial’s about to start, and we haven’t even discussed strategy! You vanished on me. I was worried.”
“I was interviewing the witnesses.”
“And?”
She shrugged. “Many of them claim to have seen you do what they say you did. It will be difficult to sway the judges unless I can discredit them all.”
“Laylana, are you sure you’re up to this?”
She touched his hands. “Nath, I’ve never been more ready.”
“What about Bayzog? Did you talk to him? What did he say?”
“Uh, oh, yes. He’ll be able to give a good account in your defense. He speaks very highly of you.”
Nath slapped his face. This is a disaster! She doesn’t know what she’s doing. None of them do! “Have you been eating the food they’re serving?”
“Only a little bit.” Her brows knitted. “I was hungry. Why?”
“Never mind.” He turned toward the judges. They were exercising a strange ritual with their hands. “What are they doing?”
“As you can see, there are six judges. But only five can hear your case, so that there can be a majority vote.” She counted them with her fingers. “Yes, there are six.”
“I can clearly see that.”
“You really need to be nicer to me. I’m trying to free you from the bind you’re in. Anyway, they are deciding if the majority will be elven or dwarven.”
Rubbing his temples, Nath said, “Why don’t you just bring in an orc to be the tie breaker?”
“How rude,” she said, keeping her attention on the judges. The dwarven judges let out an angry grunt. One of them stormed back into the carriage. “Ah, the elves win. A good thing. I should have more sway with them.” She winked at Nath. “See, have a little faith, Nath. Things are starting to go your way.”
The judges took their seats on the stage, overlooking the table and Nath’s cage. An elf judge sat in the center, with the dwarves on the right and the elves on the left. The center judge looked very much like Laedorn.
Nath kept his voice low. “What’s his name?”
“That is Lindor. He was a dear friend of Laedorn’s. I take it you’ve never met him?”
“No, I don’t see a face I know aside from yours and those of my other fair-weather friends.”
“Well, Lindor is firm but fair. Be glad of it.”
With his slender elf hand, Lindor picked up a ball of obsidian marble that glinted in the sun and banged it on the judges’ stone table like a gavel. The world fell silent just before he said in a slightly shaky voice, “Let the trial of Nath Dragon begin.”
CHAPTER 32
To Nath’s right, the bleachers were filled with dwarves. Brenwar sat in the front row with his hands on his knees. Ben was at his side. Both of them kept their eyes were on Lindor. They looked like they’d woken from a dream. All the people did.
Nath tried to get his friends’ attention what a gesture and a harsh whisper. “Brenwar. Ben. Get over here.” Neither of them responded. Brenwar steadily combed at his beard with his skeleton fingers. Ben worked a toothpick between his teeth.
Lindor the elven judge banged the gavel again. “We have a unique situation. It has been centuries since the elves and dwarves held mutual counsel, so I’ll take a moment to explain the proceedings.” He cleared his throat. “There are five judges. If at least four judges find Nath Dragon guilty, then he will be hung by the neck.”
Someone in the stands shouted in Elven, “Kill him!”
Holding up a finger, Lindor said, “Guards, control these outbursts. Remove the interrupter from the congregation. We are civilized people.”
The elven guards removed the intolerable elf from the grandstands. He kicked and screamed like a wild man. “You’re guilty, Nath Dragon! Guilty!”
Nath looked away.
At least Lindor seems reasonable. I just wish he’d remove the rest of these squirrely people.
“If three judges are in favor of a guilty verdict,” Lindor continued, “then Nath Dragon will be imprisoned in the Dungeons of Morgdon for five hundred years or until he expires, whichever comes first.”
There was some grumbling among the elves.
“In the event Nath Dragon lives beyond five hundred years, he will be taken to Elome and held prisoner there until the day he dies. His remains will then be returned to the Mountain of Doom for a proper funeral and burial among his kind.”
Laylana leaned toward Nath and said, “That sounds reasonable.”
Nath moved away from the elfess. Judging by her chronic lip picking and blinking eyes, she’d become just as uncharacteristic as the others.
She used to be as hard as iron. Now she’s as looney as a crystal gnome. For the love of Balzurth, is there anybody here I can count on?
Nath’s breathing became heavy.
Lindor moved on. “In the case of a majority three or better not-guilty verdict, Nath Dragon will be set free.”
“Boooooo!” yelled the crowd on both sides of the stands.
Nath had never seen nor heard the elves and dwarves more unified.
Banging the round marble gavel on the table, Lindor calmly said, “Quiet, please, quiet. I will not hesitate to throw the lot of you out. This is court. A place of order. Settle yourselves.”
The dwarven judges stood. The dwarves in the stands fell quiet. The elves followed suit. The judges returned to their seats.
Lindor caught Laylana with his eyes and waved her to the table. “Are you and your client clear on how the decision will be made?”
She nodded. “Certainly.”
With a flip of his hand, Lindor motioned over another person whom Nath had not noticed, another female elf who had been sitting in the front row of the stands. She was lanky and well dressed in dark purple robes that matched her eyes. There was something sinister in the way she moved. With her chin up, she stepped to the table in a soft stride and bowed.
“Ah, prosecutor Anlee Couso.” Lindor snickered and elbowed the dwarf beside him. “A student of mine. Possibly the best.” He cleared his throat again and looked around. “Could I get some refreshment? The long ride left me parched.”
An elven maiden with a tray of decanters slunk over to the judge stand. She set down five metal goblets and began to fill them. Nath studied her closely. Dressed in the pink-and-white garb of a server, the elven maiden had white hair that ran down the length of her back. She was on her tip toes.
But her toes weren’t touching the ground. The top of the grass barely licked them.
Nath’s neck hairs stood on end. There’s something familiar about that maiden. “Laylana! Laylana! You need to object!”
Everyone looked at him.
Lindor banged the marble orb on the table. “Laylana, counsel your client.”
Laylana stormed over. “Nath, what are you doing? Keep that up, and you won’t be present for your own trial.”
“You need to object.”
“To what? The proceedings haven’t started.”
He pointed through the bars at the serving girl. “Don’t let them drink that. It’s enchanted, I tell you.”
“Don’t be silly. I’ve been drinking from those decanters since I’ve been here.” She twirled her hair with her finger. “I’m not under any spell.”
“You wouldn’t know it if you were.” Looking over Laylana’s head, he watched the serving maiden depart. She walked the same as anyone else, but he swore her feet only grazed the ground. She looked at Nath and made a smile. Her eyes were lavender. She blinked them both. Her eyes were black as coal. Batting her eyelashes one more time, she made her eyes turn lavender again. With a victorio
us smile, she disappeared into the ranks of elven soldiers.
“Lotuus!” He hollered at Brenwar and Ben. “That was Lotuus! Can you hear me?”
Brenwar cupped his ear. “I can hear you just fine. Now behave yourself.”
Laylana rushed out in front of him. “Nath, you have to stop this.”
“No, you have to stop this trial. I’m telling you, a bewitching is going on here.”
Lindor banged the gavel. “Nath Dragon! One more outburst and you won’t see your own trial. I suggest you behave yourself as a testament to your character, which at the moment seems to be lacking.”
He cocked his head and whispered to Laylana, “Can a judge say that?”
“He’s the judge. He can say whatever he wants.”
“Anlee Couso,” Lindor said, “Do you have any questions about how the judgment will be made?”
Hands behind her back and with a prudent tone, she said, “I argue that any majority decision of a guilty nature should mean immediate hanging.”
CHAPTER 33
Laylana objected. “You’ve explained the rules, Lindor, and they are more than reasonable. They cannot be changed now.”
Lindor rubbed his chin. “You are right. The agreement we have in place will not be altered. Anlee, your proposal is dismissed.”
“Judge Lindor, I believe you should take counsel with the other judges—”
With a whack of the marble gavel, he said, “That will not happen.”
Nath breathed a sigh of relief. Things seemed to be going his way.
The elven judge with sideburns that were only seen on the older elves bent Lindor’s ear.
Now what’s going on?
Judge Lindor took a drink from his goblet. “I’ve reconsidered. All of the judges in favor of hanging with a majority decision, raise your left hand.”
Trial of the Dragon (The Chronicles of Dragon, Series 2, Book 6 of 10) (Tail of the Dragon 7) Page 10
