by Renee Greene
“Will you speak for her?” Giles asked.
“No,” Nea answered. “I do not know her. I will verify that her statement and oath was true. If she wishes to reword it to be more specific, such as her truly being repentant and not just sorry for being caught, I likely can tell if her statement is true. Yet, many truly sorry people go back to the same actions. I verify her oath, but I will not take the responsibility of speaking for her.”
King Giles looked around at everyone and again asked, “Her oath is true, but she is still a traitor. Will anyone speak for her?”
Dylan leaned over to Vanessa and whispered, “What’s that mean?”
“I don’t know,” she whispered back.
“What’s that mean?” Dylan asked loudly. “I am not familiar with fairy ways.”
“Speak for someone means that you will attest to the person’s integrity and sincerity,” King Giles explained. “But it is also an action too. For example, if a thief is suspected, and someone speaks for him, then if the thief is proved guilty, then that person who spoke for the thief is also responsible for paying the debt. If the thief cannot pay it, then the person who spoke for him will.”
Dylan sighed and asked, “And for a traitor, if the person repeats the act, is the person who spoke for him also killed?”
“It depends on the act of treason and what assurances the speaker gives,” King Giles explained. “If you speak for her, assuring us that her oath is good and it is not, you could be sentenced to death. At a minimum, you would be beaten for the crime. The penalty depends on the severity of the breach of the oath.”
“What happens if no one speaks for her?” Dylan asked next.
“Her oath will not be trusted,” he explained. “She will be thrown in the dungeon and tried for her crime of treason. If guilty, which she obviously is, she will be either imprisoned or executed. We cannot let traitors loose.” He then looked around and asked, “Will anyone speak for her?”
Dylan looked over at the guards, hoping they knew her well enough to want to protect her. He looked around the table. Even Bryan and Vanessa did not know her. He then looked over at Pyria. She still had her tough fighter appearance, but her expression was one of defeat and pleading. Their eyes met, and he could feel her begging. It was up to him. “I’ll speak for her,” he blurted out.
“Are you sure?” King Giles asked. “You hardly know her, and you could be punished with her.”
“I understand,” Dylan stated. “I know this is a risk, but I cannot let her just be executed for her crimes without a defense. I believe in repentance, and I believe she has had a change of heart.” He took a deep breath. After all, so many criminals never change. He’d heard so many stories in the department of people trying to give others a second chance only to be betrayed. Yet, he just felt it was the right thing to do.
“Come forward,” King Giles stated.
Dylan took a deep breath for courage and walked up to him and Pyria.
“State your defense,” King Giles instructed. “At this point, you may state your defense. You may also suggest an alternative lesser punishment, so if you wish to have her confined to her house, that could protect you, and it makes sure she cannot commit treason again.”
Dylan thought for a moment. That was better than death or a dungeon, but it still sounded so lonely. What should he do?
“Speak,” King Giles instructed. “We are waiting.”
“Her oath is good,” Dylan defended. “You heard Nea confirm that. I think her desire is sincere, and I think she is strong enough to achieve it. I understand that she could get angry at me for falling for Vanessa and stab me in the back, but I doubt she will. She knows how I feel, and it would not be in her best interest either. She was deceived into joining Evander, so I think now that she sees clearly she will do what is right. What do I need to say for her?”
“What punishment do you suggest?” King Giles asked. “What risk are you willing to take for her? Should she be set entirely free? Should she be privy to this meeting? Should she be in house arrest? What?”
Dylan thought for a moment. Thinking under such pressure was hard. He’d love hours to debate it. “We need her in this meeting,” he decided. “She has information we need. Honestly, I think she could be a great help for our team. However, I do not know her well enough to suggest she entirely go free or be trusted.” He paused for a moment and said to Nea, “I have not been stung by her and under a spell. Is that true?”
“It is,” Nea confirmed.
Dylan took a breath and continued, “I suggest that we keep her on our team, but that she stays under constant supervision by a guard or teammate and is not left alone.” He looked at King Giles to see if he needed to say more.
King Giles thought for a moment and asked, “If she is kept supervised and still betrays us, you will be accountable with her, as you have kept her punishment from happening. Do you agree to that?”
Dylan took a breath for strength and tried to stand tall as he agreed, “I do. I’m a fool, but I do.”
“True,” Nea stated. “You are a fool, but it does not mean that you are doing the wrong thing.”
King Giles had Pyria step up to him. “Dylan has spoken for you. Do you agree to the terms?”
“Definitely,” Pyria agreed.
“Do you swear to be loyal and not betray your kingdom again?” Giles next asked.
“I swear,” she agreed.
“State it,” Nea interjected. “I fear you are weak.”
“I will not betray my kingdom,” Pyria asked.
“She believes it,” Nea stated. “Yet, I will put nothing on the line assuring its truth. I can say it is true, but words are not well-defined. What she sees as betrayal and what you do may not be the same thing.”
King Giles nodded to her and next asked, “Do you swear to stay with whoever you are assigned with at all times?”
“I swear,” she agreed.
Giles continued, “Then I will honor Dylan’s words. Do not betray him. You are free to join us.” He looked over at a guard and ordered, “Salgothen, you will be the first to watch her.”
He next called Rayne up, also accusing him of treason.
Rayne knelt before him, and made his oath. “I am truly sorry,” he began. “I was a fool. I had an ideal and looked only at it and did not see who I was working with and their true goals. I indeed have a great deal to learn before I become king.” He then very formally stated, “I swear before you king that I will obey your every command, that I will counsel with you, and will not spy or in any way betray you. I will be a very loyal subject.”
“Stop!” Nea interjected. “Do not accept the oath as is yet.”
“I am not lying,” Rayne defended.
“You aren’t,” Nea agreed. She looked at King Giles and explained, “He cannot swear not to spy. We may at some point need him or Pyria to for us. That needs to be taken out.”
“Indeed,” King Giles agreed.
“I swear that I will not spy on your kingdom, King Giles,” Rayne corrected.
Both he and King Giles looked to Nea for approval. It was odd have a king and prince conceding authority to her. She nodded.
“Your oath is accepted,” King Giles stated. He then turned to the others and asked, “Will anyone speak for Rayne?”
Vanessa debated if she should be as brave as Dylan and stand up and speak, but she did not have to. Niall immediately answered that he would.
He stood up, went to the front, and explained to the king that although Rayne had made a bad decision that it was from well-meaning ignorance, not from malice. He argued that since Rayne might be needed to spy for them, that he be given freedom by King Giles, but that his father set terms for his watch and make the decision if Rayne would remain crowned prince.
Rayne looked down. He’d really blown it. He would deserve whatever his father decided, but it hurt. It really hurt.
“Do you understand the penalty if he does not live up to his oath?” King Giles aske
d Niall. “Are you sure you want total freedom?”
“I do know the risk,” Niall answered, “but he is my brother. It is a risk I must take.”
King Giles then had Rayne accept the terms and allowed them all to sit. Rayne went to his seat looking very humbled, not like the confident prince he normally was.
“Now,” King Giles began, “we need to plan Alex’s rescue. This will not be easy. As we have learned, Evander is planning an all out war.”
Chapter 17: Dylan Learns He Can’t Get a Break
Dylan sat on a bench in the courtyard with his elbows on his knees, his mouth leaning on his clasped hands, and staring at Rayne and Vanessa talking.
“I am sorry,” Rayne apologized once again. “I have really messed everything up. I need you to forgive me. You know that King Giles needs me to spy on Fardoragh and Evander. I cannot do that without us connecting so I can pass through the arch. I need to play my part. We can’t lose our connection. Do you not feel anything for me anymore?”
“I don’t know what I feel,” Vanessa admitted. “I am confused. I did have feelings for you, but even then, I didn’t know what they were. Right now, I pity you. I know you are hurt. I know you want to prove yourself. I hope you do. Yet, if all this experience has taught me anything, it’s that… Never mind.”
“Were you going to say that you have feelings for Dylan?” Rayne asked.
“Yes,” she admitted. “Even there, I’m not sure what those feelings are. It may just be this adventure that makes me need him. I’m too young to know what love is. I’m just confused. I’d like a week with no one after me, my father safe, and no bigger problems to deal with than if I pass my English test. I am so overwhelmed.”
“I am too,” Rayne admitted. “If I do not prove myself, my father will strip the title of crowned prince from me and give it to Niall. I have learned I was being used.” He took a breath and added, “And I have fallen in love with you. I really desire the arranged marriage, but even if your father agrees, my father may want to arrange it to Niall now.”
“I’m not marrying anyone soon,” she corrected. “Please don’t push that and scare me away.” She thought for a moment before explaining, “We aren’t getting married, not unless things really change. I don’t think they will. I do want to help you. I do hope you succeed in proving yourself. I think you can, and I’m happy to support you. Yet, where I first was mesmerized by you being a pixie prince, your charm, your manner, and your appearance, I realize that even then I was more attracted to… Well, someone else.”
“Dylan?” Rayne asked.
“Dylan,” she agreed.
He took her hands and pleaded, “But we need to connect so I can fill my role as a spy.”
“I will try to keep a connection,” she agreed. “We can connect through concern for each other, through respect and trust, but it won’t be love not romantic love anyway.”
He looked down, but then looked up, kissed her on the cheek, said good-bye, and walked off.
She came over to the bench and asked Dylan, “Can I sit with you?”
“Gladly,” he agreed.
She sat down and noted, “I assume that you are keeping me in sight to protect me.”
“I am,” he confirmed. “I felt so bad that I couldn’t get through the arch. I wasn’t there for you. I worried about you the entire time I was captured.”
“I was worried about you too,” she assured him. “I would have been worried more if I had known what was happening to you.”
“I’m glad you didn’t see it,” Dylan admitted. “That was not something someone as innocent as you should ever have to witness. Honestly, I hope I never have to experience it again. I’ve seen people be whipped in movies before. Trust me, it’s worse.”
Vanessa gasped and grabbed his arm.
He took her hand, but kept looking forward as he talked. “I thought I was strong. I was a little cocky being a secret agent. I’m trained to fight, but never have I been so afraid as I am now. I am only alive because Evander did not want me dead. I am only standing thanks to Reselda and you.” He turned to her, held her hand with both of his and admitted, “I am terrified of going through what I have again. I am even more terrified that I will not be able to protect you and that something terrible will happen to you. I could not bear to see you go through what I did.”
“I know you will protect me,” she assured him. “You are brave and clever. You figured out how to get free when you were captured, and how to even free Pyria and Reselda.”
“But I didn’t save your father,” he conceded, “and Nea did most of the work.”
“You were clever enough to buy time with your clever lie,” she pointed out.
“I’m not proud of lying,” Dylan countered. “My father has told me before that as agents we have to at times. I am in over my head. I don’t belong here.”
“You have done incredible things,” Vanessa countered. “You are my hero.”
“Only because Rayne ended up working for the enemy,” Dylan argued. He shook his head and complained, “I couldn’t go through the arch with you. I wasn’t there to protect you.”
“You were spelled,” she reminded him.
“I should have fought the spell harder,” he insisted.
“Apparently you fought it well, if Pyria’s report was correct,” Vanessa pointed out. “She said you never fell for her.”
“But you connected to Rayne better than me,” Dylan noted. “You did take him through not me.”
She looked into his eyes. “I know you have been through so much.”
“I wasn’t there for you,” he complained. “I didn’t do my job, and you are more than a job to me.”
She smiled at him and assured him, “I’m fine. Nothing bad happened to me.”
“Because Rayne and Bryan took care of you,” Dylan complained, raising his voice. “I failed you, but fortunately, you don’t need me.”
“I do,” she corrected. She put her hand on his cheek. “You did not fail me. I did not need you on that adventure, and I don’t know how much I will need your protection in the future. Honestly, I hope I don’t need protection at all. It really hurts me to see you get hurt because of me.” She rubbed his cheek for a moment and looked deep into his eyes. “I don’t know if I’ll need your protection, but I know I want it. I like having you around. I never feel safer than when I’m with you. Even before I found out about what Rayne did, I always admired you more.”
“Just admired?” Dylan asked.
“No, it’s more,” she admitted. “I don’t have relationship experience. I’ve had one date. You know how that went. I’ve had several moments with Rayne, but I just couldn’t respect him with his philosophies. Yes, I enjoyed the fairy tale with him, but it was never more. You are so much more of a hero. If I ever had to make a choice, it always would have been you.”
“Are you sure you aren’t just saying that?” Dylan asked. “You did get Rayne through the arch and not me.”
She again rubbed his cheek. “Dylan,” she began, “Rayne got through because of his feelings for me, not mine for him. You have been through so much. You were injured protecting me several times. You’ve come to a strange new world where you are the only human. You have had to fight. You’ve been tortured. And you have been a hero every time. I… I mean… You don’t need to worry about Rayne. He has never been up to your level. I… Well…”
She didn’t have to finish her sentence. He knew exactly how to finish it for her. He put his hand on her cheek. His hand was warm and strong, but gentle. He then leaned over and kissed her. His lips were warm too, and a wave of excitement ran through her. Her face started glowing, and soon she was glowing a soft glow all around her and pixie dust sparkled around them in the air.
For a moment afterward, she gazed into his eyes. They were the eyes of a hero. He’d been through so much, but kept going, and was still willing to face more.
“I don’t think you’ll have any trouble getting through the arch agai
n,” she told him with a blush. “I think we connect.”
He caressed her cheek and kept looking in her eyes as he asked, “Do you want to date me?”
“Of course I’ll go on a date with you,” she answered.
“No,” he corrected. “I mean, will you be my girlfriend?”
Her glow brightened, and she told him yes.
He once again kissed her, and the same glow and sparkle came around them.
Unfortunately, Rayne flew in and changed to full size. He glared at Dylan and scolded, “I have to get through the arch. You know the plan.”
Dylan only replied, “Did you come to tell me that?”
“No,” Rayne admitted. “Both of you need to come to King Giles’s throne room. There is trouble in your world. You must hurry.”
Dylan and Vanessa really didn’t want to leave. The moment was so perfect, but they took each other’s hands and went to meet with King Giles. Bryan and Nea were already in the room.
“Hurry!” Gail called over the dragon orb. “Hurry, Vanessa! Agent White has been badly burned. The paramedics need help. We need you! Hurry!”
Dylan squeezed her hand and King Giles told them he had Oden and a Roc waiting to fly them to the arch.
They wasted no time and ran out to the birds. Rayne and Vanessa flew, and the birds flew Bryan and Dylan. They raced through the sky, hoping they weren’t too late.
When they reached the arch, there were a few ogres, but no big show of force to try to stop them. That shouldn’t have been surprising, as they had heard the meeting and knew Evander had set this up to have them go through and bring Rayne.
The ogres put up a perfunctory show to make it look as if they were trying to stop them, but Bryan said the magic words and they quickly went through.
Their mother and Trina were in the library, and their mom was screaming as the man who could go immaterial was holding her and had a knife to her neck. An unfamiliar man was looking through the shelves.
“He’s in the den!” their mother called.
“Go!” the immaterial man ordered. “Leave us.”
Vanessa did not debate what to do. She and Dylan ran into the den. What they saw was horrible. Dylan’s father was lying in the floor with his face, arms, and chest badly burned. He was gasping for breath.
