Solheim

I awoke to the sound of birds chirping. A mainstay in Solheim tourism, mostly in exacting the one with nature mentality it's people uphold. I was never much one to appreciate such things. So much of nature in my line of work was trying to kill me. For once however, I could in fact sit back and enjoy the warmth of the sun on my skin, the calling of the birds and rushing waterfalls atop which Solheim was built out of white stone. One of the oldest castle-towns in Sinn.

Before the Coalition of Crowns that saw every former independent kingdom ally and march on the growing power of the Slayers in our home nation of Xirigaard, Solheim was a hot spot of luxury and beauty. Of wealth and commerce. Of power and riches that helped fund the Coalition. Now it had fallen to gross amounts of greed, overindulgence in decadence from food to women or men, if you so fancied. At least the nobles and it's people weren't judgmental in your tastes unless they catered to the extreme. Despite their lifestyles at least they remained true to their core tenants. Be kind, be open and most of all be honorable.

Precisely those reasons that I and the refugees from Cravenholm were welcomed with open arms into Solheim's bosom. Not a moment too soon either. Death has already written my name on it's list and though I relish the chance to meet Visnurr, I have much left to do before I do.

Overhead a sky barge sounded it's horn letting the dock workers now a new shipment had arrived. From the medical pavilion I watched it come and go as it went from one section of Solheim to another, carrying cargo and passengers across the great canyon into which all of the waterfall's connect, and down there, somewhere at the bottom sits the sun dial. A relic of a long forgotten era around which Solheim sprang into existence.

'Man, those sky barges sure are something. Magic at it's greatest. Letting men fly. Even us common folk who don't use magic.' Exasperated my fellow patient, Morus, who I had gotten to know closely the last few days I was in the medical pavilion. 'Why don't more cities have them? They would be incredibly useful down in Dowfur.'

'They would be. But Dowfur rains too much. That much rain would affect the circles. Since the material, the -uh- balloons are made from fabric you can't really etch something into it. Sure you could maybe knit something into it but the knitting wouldn't be tight enough to retain the air. It's the magic on the outside forcing the air on the inside up. It's easiest in places like Solheim where the weather is always tropical because of the sun dial. See, the dial, creates a magic field, like a bubble around Solheim and the surrounding area that keeps the climate constant and mitigates heavy rain.'

'But it does rain. Otherwise the crops would fail, right?'

'Yeah, but it rains just enough to keep the crops healthy and let them grow. But not enough to wash off the paint from the barges. The most complex thing about the barges is the magic circles. Otherwise it's just a giant balloon with a hanging platform underneath.' I pointed out to him, who was very interested in the things I had to teach.

'You Slayers know more than you let on don't you?' Morus cocked a smile and laid back on his angled bed waiting for the maidens to come in with their intoxicating beauty and help the patients.

Somehow the idea of knowing something seemed toxic to me, letting a pit of worry gnaw into my stomach. I didn't know anything, not really.

'Sometimes it's not enough....' I breathed.

'What was that Buddy?' He turned to me finding his attention quickly snatched away by the arrival of the maidens appearing in their beautiful flowing gowns that just loved to accentuate the curves of their bodies.

'...nothing...' I returned but his focus laid elsewhere. Only in Solheim could you find such beautiful women, at least, that's what Master Holom said. He always used to joke it was something in the water and having seen them for myself I was inclined to agree except my idea of beauty was sitting in the castle surrounded by politics and mourning the loss of her home and family.

A maiden approached me with a fresh gown, white as snow save for the collar which was a very shiny gold. It appeared I would be needed elsewhere for a time.

'Slayer Agarn.' She said sweetly. Her voice like honey, face thin and framed by short blonde hair. The curves of her waist and hips seen through her flowing gown making my heart leap.

'Yes, Maiden.' I returned noticing the toned muscles lining her arms. Those were not the muscles of a Maiden, that much was certain.

'The Knight-Commander requests your presence.' She told me.

Knight-Commander Oliver Lukannon, a man of such impeccable honor you couldn't even get him into the same district as a brothel. But if rumors were to be trusted he might also be the most capable swordsmen south of the Capital. And possibly the greatest tactician in Sinn.

'I will be there at once. Thank you, Maiden.' My wandering eyes noticed the faint outline of a dagger strapped to her thigh. I played off my ignorance.

'Then I shall escort you when you're ready. Gaiasha take care you.' She bowed preaching to the Mother of Healing to help mend my wounds. Though I did not follow the One Faith I returned the blessing, Morus catching the uncertainty in my tone.

As soon as the maiden left ear shot he turned to me.

'How come Slayers return the blessing of gods that actively condemn your own?'

'The Blood Charter. Article V -Slayers shall not seek to spread or convert in the name of their chosen deities in conflict with opposing systems of belief or religion. Henceforth all Slayers are required to adhere to the blessings and teachings of the Kingdom in which they operate. Slayers may only preach or practice their beliefs inside the confines of their Covens.' I educated him on just one of many rules that bind my people and a rule I frequently break.

'That's very restrictive.' Morus told me.

I stood slipping the gown over my head, pulling it down over the clothes they had given me in place of my blood soaked garments and armor. Though I disliked the lack of protection, the white shirt and pants were incredibly comfortable.

'It can be. But aside from it being a form of punishment after the Coalition it's actually a good rule of thumb to avoid religious debates.' I remembered my argument with Sister Mary. ' A few instances aside, it makes dealing with the local populace on jobs that much easier.'

'Good point. Some people can be such fanatics about religion.' Morus laughed giving me a smile. He was a kindred spirit certainly not a refugee from Cravenholm, that much was certain. A man of such joy couldn't have come from that hole. Not in one piece anyhow.

I was quick to give him a few parting words. After all, I needn't delay meeting the Knight-Commander and assuming they held interest in the disappearance of their Lord, the advisers would be present as well.

Lead away by the fair maiden through a city of white and gold I gawked at the grand towers reaching into the sky. These bestial monoliths of white marble, inlaid with veins of gold mimicking the crawl of growing ivy surrounded us on all sides. Each floor welcomed the inclusion of carefully crafted stained windows, depicting the history of Sinn. From the Fall of Xirigaard to the Mother's Hand where fifteen small countries signed a treaty becoming the kingdom of Aluran only to fold into the Coalition twenty years later.

If the Royal Academia taught Sinn's history with parchment and ink, then Solheim saw fit to teach with murals and painted glass. Scholars and Aritsians alike would often joke it was a war of literature and art. But such men did not know, war, was not as beautiful.

'Slayer?' The maiden called to me, her body hidden by the shadow of a great arch under which we entered the first hall of the castle.

'The castle gates remain open?' I asked her finding it strange they would field such lax security in the wake of their Lord's disappearance.

'The rulers and people of Solheim trust one another. We have no need of barriers not when doing so would rob the people of the art within Castle Fairheim's halls.' She answered gesturing with a sweeping motion towards the paintings hanging from the walls.

'Solheim always was about culture at it's core.' I approached a nearby painting depicting three men in a kingly hall, bowing before what seemed to be a thousand lords joined by an immeasurable army. Underneath the gold framed tapestry I read:

Signing of the Blood Charter

The Fourth Master and his Wards

-Edgar Weir

I turned back to the young maiden who seemed worried I might take affront to the painting. Giving her a wry smile I assured her otherwise.

'A day in history to be remembered for sure.' I reached out to feel the strokes of the artist's brush. The thick layers of paint applied to give texture and depth. 'Edgar Weir did a remarkable job to include both light and dark in this painting to simulate the journey from a dark and deadly war into a prosperous relationship between Slayers and the newly elected King of Sinn.'

With a relieved sigh the maiden perked up joining me at my side.

'It is truly marvelous. To have lived during the Infinity War would have been a troubling yet mesmerizing time to witness the heroics, the failures, the experimentation of magic unfettered by morality or ethics.'

'A time of destruction and prosperity. Of mystery and discovery....Infinity War....eighty years must have certainly felt like it would last forever....' I noted a missing detail in the painting. 'Where's King Hellis IV?'

'King Hellis IV? Is he not among the thousand lords?' The maiden asked me scanning the row of lords. I joined her search but could not find the illusive king.

'Hellis IV was responsible for the creation of the Coalition. The thousand lords were just nameless nobility from smaller kingdoms that formed together into Sinn. An artist wouldn't bother with their minor details but the King. That King, was always depicted with a crown of jagged spikes made from the bone of an Emperor Dragon.....strange choice of omission.'

'Very. Though it was at that time that he had fallen ill. Hellis IV lived to one hundred and five years old after all. I don't think he was able to attend the signing as he died the same year the war ended.'

'Fair enough. His successor was elected the very next day.'

'It was actually that very day, the signing, that earned the allied lords the name, The Thousand Lords. The men that tamed the beast known as Xirigaard.' A stranger educated from behind.

Before I could catch a glimpse of the character the young maiden squeaked in delight and surprise having caught the man's image ahead of me. It wasn't much of a stretch for me to believe the man would be someone of great import and I turned to greet the strong yet compassionate face of one Oliver Lukannon.

'Knight-Commander Lukannon.' I greeted him with a short bow, almost feeling Master Holom's hand on my back from the many times he forced me to bow in the presence of those deserving such respectful actions.

'Slayer.' He gave me a curt nod. 'Maiden.' He gave her a devilish smile. 'I can take him from here.'

'Of course, Knight-Commander.' The beautiful woman gave him a sharp bow and turned on the dime leaving me with a lasting impression of her backside that made my heart leap. Without a moment's pause Lukannon got right down to business.

'Apprentice Slayer Agarn. That's the name you gave the healers as you were escorted back, correct?'

'Yes, it was.' I confirmed watching the many visitors into the castle's halls walk about without a care in the world. The closer you were to the capital, the more luxurious and easy going life became, seemed no different in Solheim.

'I thought you looked familiar.' Lukannon gave me a sly grin, motioning that I follow him.

'Excuse me? Have we met?'

'Briefly. You served under Master Holom Bakur whom I expected to find among the wounded yet you came alone. Do apprentices often undertake missions alone?'

'Not often.' I told him turning a cold shoulder hoping he might not pry further. Best change the subject. 'Where did we meet again?'

'It was at Arune Military Academy. It was there that your Master wanted to test the skill of his pupil against some of the finest swordsmen in Sinn, even some of the trainees. Including me.'

'I don't remember this. How did I fair?' I asked him, barely able to differentiate the many times I'd been in the capital, nor pluck out just one of the numerous times Master had my ass beat by a superior opponent. It was a good learning experience, if not painful.

'At the time I was rather untested.' He looked me dead in the eyes with a smirk outlined by his short blonde beard. 'I beat you twelve to two.'

'Not surprised.' As he lead me through the corridors I noticed the amount of people begin to dwindle until only him and I walked alone before stopping in front of a large door. My interest piqued. 'Knight-Commander why exactly did you wish to speak with me? Does it have something to do with the Lady of the Accord who you had disguise herself as a Maiden?'

Lukannon gave a short laugh as if playfully caught in the act. 'I knew you would see through her act. To her credit she got the look down.'

'Aside from the knife I noticed hidden inside the inner part of her right thigh, yeah, she nailed it.'

The Knight-Commander remained silent for a moment, looking me over.

'How are your wounds? It's been nearly a week since the incident at Cravenholm.'

'I've been better but Solheim, being the hub of relaxation that it is, has excellent healers and they've helped mend my broken bones.'

'Nothing like the elixirs or potions a witch could brew to cure anything short of death I'm sure. But they make do.' Lukannon clammed up once more.

'Knight-Commander what's this about? What's beyond the door?' I knew there was something about it that made him uncomfortable. Finally he sighed deeply.

'In a few moments I'm going to take you beyond that door and when we're on the other side no matter what anyone says I want you to answer everything truthfully and honestly. No lies.'

'Who's beyond the door?' Just then it opened and two armed men walked out, hands on their swords ready to draw at a moments notice. The hard glint in their eyes and clenched jaws told me these were violent men willing to act without mercy to put me down if they so much as thought I was a threat.

'He's ready.' Lukannon told them and on those words the two men grabbed me by my shoulders and lead me through the door shutting it with a mighty slam.

Inside darkness welcomed me. For a moment I felt alone in the cold room but I knew the two armed men stood behind me. And there were others. I couldn't see but I could feel them, could hear faint whispers in the shadows.

'Step forward!' One of the guards ordered drilling his elbow into my back sending a rejuvenated shock of pain through my wounds.

'Watch it prick!' I hissed back at him.

'Come forward apprentice!' Demanded a voice in the darkness ahead of me.

I took a step forward.

'Closer!' Boomed the deep, haunting voice again.

I took another step. And then another for good measure feeling the agitation in the room grown. Just to be safe I took one more while scanning the impenetrable dark around me.

'Stop! You're good where you are, Sinner!' Roared the authoritative voice spurning me into a bit of agitation that I could not contain.

'Who the fuck are you to call me Sinner?' I yelled into the darkness garnering a smattering of whispers balking at my defiant tone. It was then I realized I was surrounded on all sides.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

'Attendant, if you'd please!' Upon that command a string of small horizontal windows slid open shredding the darkness with rays of white light.

Then I saw him. His thin aged face riddled with cavernous wrinkles and hair as white as milk crowning the bald spot atop his scalp. A comically tall collar circled his twig like neck where a silver pendant with the King's fist imprinted on it's polished surface hugged close to the wrinkled skin.

'Minister Abelor!' I yelped in surprise. His cold, hard eyes stared down at me from the pew, piercing my very soul and pinning it to the floor.

All around me a dozen sets of eyes stared. Some appeared to be Lords or Ladies, others, members of the One Faith or governmental institutions. But none of them could match the malice and power of the man whom I had just thrown an expletive at. I've heard rumors speak of the horrid things he'd done to people for less.

'Sinner Agarn you are called before this Tribunal not as the accused but as witness to the terrible events that transpired six days ago. As much as I would see your kind in chains you have no reason to fear that today, as such, speak openly and answer the questions I ask honestly. Are we clear?' His haggard voice rang through the room weighing pressure open the shoulders of any that heard it. He didn't receive the position of Minister for being kind and compassionate.

'Understood clearly, Minsiter. If my words meant any offense-'

'They did not! Agarn, when the Knight's of Sosis found you, you were holding the mutilated corpse of an old man. How was he related to that pillar in the sky?' Abelor jumped right into it unafraid to hold back for his lack of compassion gave him no chance.

'He was not. He was a victim.' I answered truthfully still feeling Hagsby's cold skin touching my arms. It made my skin crawl, like I needed to scrub away an itch until I bled. The Minister scratched something into a piece of paper that I could not see over the lip of the raised pew.

'And the rumor that a criminal lord named “Big Lou” killed him? Does that have anything to do with the pillar?'

'No. The old farmer was just a....casualty.' Once more the Minister penciled in something involving my answer.

'What was the pillar in the sky?'

'A spell.' I answered but Abelor growled.

'Obviously.' His lip curled in agitation. 'Do you know what kind?'

'No.' I shot back with a hard glare.

The Minister gripped his charcoal pencil so tight I feared he might snap the thing in half. With a quick, deep breath he maintained his composure. If Abelor had his way he would have had me executed on the spot and any other Slayer nearby merely for suspicion of aiding an act of treason. It was after all, Abelor's job to sign off on any Purges of rebellious Covens, though his definition of rebellious was terrifyingly broad.

'Don't lie to me Sinner!'

I paused. 'The magic was ruinous.' The Tribunal gasped devolving into a flurry of fearful whispers.

Ruinous magic was dark magic. Forbidden in most parts of the world. Capable of ripping apart reality, they were right to be afraid. Even more so to know that it was still being practiced.

I continued. 'I can't say for sure what it was meant to accomplish but the effects were evident. Dead started raising from the ground.'

'That's it?' Abelor trained his eyes on me hoping they might somehow squeeze more information out of them but I had nothing to give.

'Yes. It seemed like a highly advanced spell that had it continued would have turned Cravenholm into a Dead City.'

'Two Dead Cities in the same country then?' Abelor cocked a brow.

'Yes.' Such a preposterous idea. Dead Cities never occurred that close to each other. Not naturally anyways. Perhaps something I needed to investigate.

'Then you were not aware of any further reaching affects?'

'No. I stopped the spell at it's center. I was practically there when it started.'

'Then you are not aware that the spell cast a plague across Cravenholm. Spewing disease and death across the eight outlaying villages?'

I felt my eyes open wide in terror. 'Excuse me?'

'Did you not think it odd that Solheim was not fat with refugees? That all of the survivors you see wandering the streets or the vagrant camp outside it's walls were all from Cravenholm?'

My heart dropped to my knees. And I almost fell with it's weight. I thought I had stopped it. But apparently it appears I was too slow.

'How- How many?' I asked.

'Initial reports count five thousand refugees.' He answered but that was not what I wanted.

'How many dead?' I corrected myself.

'…..twenty-six thousand.' I almost fell to my knees. Abelor noticed that. 'There was nothing to be done about it. The plague struck like a typhoon. It hit hard but ultimately burned itself out. Who cast the spell?'

I heard the question but I couldn't speak. My mind couldn't think of anything except all the dead because I wasn't fast enough. A little bit. If I hadn't hesitated to fight the Lotwai, if I'd just gone for it. Found the strength. Maybe a single village could have been spared.

'Who cast the spell? Was it Lord Sosis?' Abelor roared. A nearby lady shrieked at his powerful voice.

Staring up with pitiful eyes. 'What do you know of Lord Sosis?'

'Answer my question Sinner!' He challenged me but Abelor knew something. Otherwise he wouldn't have mentioned Lord Sosis.

Suddenly a door creaked open and I saw Knight-Commander Lukannon slip in followed by a familiar face. Lady Katharine, wrapped in a brown robe, with her long wavy hair tucked inside it's over-sized hood.

'Ah, Knight-Commander. How good of you to join us. Lady Katharine, always a delight. I was just questioning the Sinner here on the events that took the young Lady's home from her.' He turned back to me. 'Shall I repeat myself?'

'No,' I said. 'The spell was cast by Kal Elvarazzi.'

'An Osoraian!' Shouted a Lord.

'Is this a declaration of war?' Screamed a government official.

'Is it forbidden warfare?' Gasped a Lady in abject terror.

'Silence!' Abelor rose from his seat with a mighty yell that swallowed all sound in the chamber. 'Such declarations and useless accusations will go nowhere! As Minister I ask that you all shut up and remained composed like the adults and members of high society that you are! If you are incapable of achieving such lofty heights notify me, leave and I will strip you of all your power and lands after this Tribunal is finished!' The others present rose not one word in protest. Abelor had the authority to raise up or cast down anyone he chose from nobility save the King himself. 'Now tell me Sinner, what are the events that culminated in this terrifying magic being used?'

I took a deep breath. It was a question I feared for the answers, the true answers, I needed to hold close to my chest. Master Holom told me so and my previous actions would see me condemned. Minister Abelor had taken his time to ask for my account of the events, a question normally reserved for the very beginning. But he asked specifics. That meant he had an agenda, that there was something he wanted to know. Was he aware? No. Maybe he was an accomplice in my Master's abduction? No. I shouldn't make assumptions. Just answer his question.

'Lord Collifer contacted my Master to act as an escort in his journey to Norviger to pick up his son, Maurice. The roads from Cravenholm to the northern coast are known to be rife with monsters. Thus it was wise to take along a pair of Slayers as escorts alongside his retinue of knights and footmen.'

'Hmm.' Abelor hummed listening intently.

'On the way back-' I paused glancing over my shoulder at Lady Katharine who was sitting unnecessarily close to Lukannon. Was there something there? Pushing the thought away I continued trying to come up with a plausible explanation. 'We were set upon by raiders.'

'And raiders overpowered a retinue of knights and footmen and two seasoned Slayers? One of whom was Master Holom Harkane of Typho. A man who's legend spans since the Coalition.' Abelor eyed me with harsh scrutiny. 'I find that hard to believe.'

'Believe what you will. My Master's death is immutable fact.'

'Yet there is no body. Master Holom was a First Blade. A rank attained by those worthy of taking the mantle of Grandmaster but choose to serve hunting rather than leading the Order. Seeing his body laid to rest in the crypts of Xirigaard should have been your first priority.'

'With all due respect Minister. It was a slaughter. I barely made it out alive. When I recover I fully intend to reclaim his corpse and lay him to rest. He deserves that.'

'You Sinners deserve to rot in mud and filth, maggots eating away all your flesh till you're polished bone crushed underneath the feet of better men, but, I show respect to great men. And despite his position Holom was a great man. Even I could not turn a blind eye to the great deeds and heroics attributed to his name. He was a fine example of redemption that the One Faith teaches so ardently. What of the bodies of Lord Collifer and his Son, Maurice?'

'They lay with my Master.' I answered him, fully aware that all they needed to do was go and find them to unravel my lie.

'A shame. Continue recounting the events Sinner.' Abelor ordered, lacing his skeletal fingers together, licking his lips just waiting to taste the justice he might serve upon me. His hate for Slayers was well known, I couldn't give him anything he could use against me.

'After I escaped the fighting I knew I had to alert the young Lady of our failure. And I needed somewhere to rest. Cravenholm was only a few days journey away. It seemed logical.'

'Quite. Continue.' Abelor shot a quick glance at the restless movement of one of the Ladies in attendance. He remained silent though the sound of her ruffling dress filled the room with more noise than my voice ever did.

'After a few days of travel I found myself on the outskirts of Cravenholm. It was there that I encountered an old man being harassed by the guard for food.'

'The Law of Equality. During times of emergency Lords can enact the law to force all resources to be gathered then handed out equally. It didn't matter if you were a noble or a farmer. You all ate from the same plate. It wasn't harassment you saw Sinner. It was the law being upheld.' Abelor informed me with a glint of arrogance in his cold eyes. I hated him.

'Call the abuse of power what you will. Cause that food never made it to anyone except the guards who took it and the people they care to give it to. Regardless, the farmer, his name was Hagsby, enlisted me to assist him with some heavy lifting. And I did, carrying a bag of rice he had hidden away, to an orphanage run by a Sister of the One Faith, Mary.'

Lady Katharine was quick to add onto my recounting that Mary was one of the refugees who had arrived, tending to my wounds while caring for twelve orphans. Abelor almost beamed with pride at the actions of one so faithful at her though hearing how she saved my life put a damper on that almost there but not quite existent smile.

I continued my story, telling him of my first encounter with the Lotwai. The slaughter at Cravenholm keep. Depicting my escape and unfortunate discovery of two dead knights of Sosis. And how through my training I was able to track Lady Katharine down to where she was being held and rescue the noblewoman. How I stashed her at Sister Mary's, a place no one would suspect.

So far Abelor didn't bat an eye, just listened intently. Biding his time. Waiting to interject or hear something he had been waiting to hear since this impromptu tribunal started. Though something about how organized it appeared at the surface, I knew it wasn't off the cuff. It was planned.

Then I told him of Big Lou's mansion and finally, the old man's features shifted. An eyebrow cocked dragging away the crow's foot at the corner of his deep socketed eye. Whatever slight curve of his upper lip became bent by the weight of what I told him. I mentioned the explosive. Lou's brother James interrogating me. How the whole building went up in flames. Before I could continue however his thin hand struck into the air, flat and palm out.

'Halt!' He commanded and the story ceased to flow from my lips. 'You knowingly created a bomb as your insurance policy? How could you have been so sure you would require such a flashy intervention? Why not something less, destructive? Least of all among the ingredients with which it could violently react creating an even larger disaster.'

'I had no time. They took my sword and I was inside enemy territory. I had to be certain I would have some means of turning the tide.' I assured him but the weight of my heart agreed with his words. Strengthened by the memory of those addicts motionless in the corners of their rooms as they burned alive.

'I find this act condemnable no matter the circumstance. What if Big Lou had cooperated? Would you have told him then disarmed the bomb or would you have let it go off? Surely he would not have taken kindly to the very notion of you having possibly compromised his home and his operation.'

I took a glance at the Lords and Ladies in the room, settling my eyes on Lady Katharine as my heart prepared to speak the words that I would answer with. 'I did what I had to do. For the innocent that died they would have suffered longer under pixie luck or the thumb of another tyrant who would use their addiction for personal gain. I needed information from Big Lou, then I needed to kill him. No deal, no alliances.' I could feel the Tribunal grow heavy with doubt. Their eyes piercing me. Judging me. Felt like a new weight had been placed upon my shoulders.

'A Sinner does not have the right to judge or execute any citizen of Sinn, be them criminal or not. Your job, your sole purpose is to die hunting monsters.'

I stared Abelor dead in the eyes. 'But that's where you're wrong Minister. As far as I'm concerned. Big Lou was a monster.'

'Yet, Big Lou still lives. Or so goes the testimony of the survivors and those who claim witness to him fleeing the scene of Farmer Hagsby's murder. Care to explain that?' The Minister almost smirked. He believed he'd caught me, but in what, I couldn't say.

Despite the growing pressure I continued aware that the more I spoke the less they liked me, even Lady Katharine. A slight I would none the less have to deal with.

I told them how only James and I had survived. Trailing him to the keep when the strange magic that created the pillar of light began. How dead began to raise from the ground leaving me little choice to run for the keep and barricade myself in.

'The dead rose. Yes. Lady Katharine has said as much as well. Care to share your side of the story?' Abelor fixed his gaze upon her through the gloom. Shortly there after you could see the whole Tribunal tilt their heads ever so slightly to watch, wait, and listen.

'Sister Mary had put the children to sleep. They were asking questions about the big boom that they heard. She didn't want them to be awake for anything that might have followed. We waited for word from Agarn but nothing came, just.....screams....At first it was nothing special. Maybe someone had gotten killed. It's no secret how dangerous Cravenholm's streets were but this...it was different. They started and never stopped until there was scratching at the walls. Moans. Horrid shrieks that pierced the soul. I thought at first there had been two explosions. But Sister Mary showed me the green pillar via an upstairs window. It was there we spotted them. Undead. Zombies. Flooding the streets, catching and eating everyone they could get their hands on. We shored up the windows, barricaded the doors and hoped for the nightmare to end.'

'And it did. By the hands of this Sinner.' Abelor spoke without a hint of gratitude. Not that I expected any. 'Tell us then. What happened at the keep?'

'I battled a Lotwai, a lesser demon and was able to kill it, only just barely surviving. I was under the impression that the demon was bound to the keep as a sort of watch dog. A guard in it's own right.'

'Bound by whom?'

'Lord Sosis.' With a sharp hiss the Tribunal took a collective dislike to my words. Spouting vile words at me, decrying me for slander though I had barely insinuated anything. Abelor took no action to quell their hissing, though I guess snakes, in no matter what skin needed to hiss.

I continued. 'After a tooth and nail struggle, nearly resulting in my death I was left gravely wounded but found the origin of the magic. By the time I arrived Big Lou had already skipped town though not without killing his own brother first.' I omitted my brief conversation with the criminal lord for fear of further disapproval but also for a hanging feeling that left my heart cold.

I hated the man, but despite being a walking mass of muscle he did not lack a brain. There was another thread behind Big Lou, one that wasn't connected to my Master and I would be sure to pull on it. After I have made my allies and my enemies known. Or I'll succumb to my emotions and hunt the fuck down, peel his skin from his body then melt him from the feet up in a tub of acid- Clearly being raised by criminals had affected me.

'And why would he do that?' Abelor questioned Lou's motives behind killing James.

'I'm not sure. And his business partner, Lord Sosis did not tell me.'

'Lord Sosis would never deal with a criminal!' Lukannon belted out with fervent loyalty. I glanced at him over my shoulder.

'You're right. Because the man that was called Lord Sosis was in fact the Osoraian; Kal Elvarazzi.'

'What does that mean?' Lady Katharine asked.

'It means just like all you and myself, we were tricked. After a short scuffle with Lord Sosis I was able to cut his face with a piece of a steel sword that broke an Identity Spell etched into the man's face.'

'This Lord Sosis was an impostor? Then where's the real Lord Sosis?' Asked a Lady.

'I do not know.' I answered.

'Do you think the real Lord Sosis is dead?' Abelor asked me, his voice grave with concern.

'No. Not at all. From what Kal told me, before another rune tattooed on his chest exploded, killing him. Assuredly to prevent him from spilling secrets. He was acting as Lord Sosis since the relief caravan left for Cravenholm. Given the complexity of the spell, and the fact it changed everything about him, even down to his voice, the original would need to be alive as a sort of template.'

Lukannon's fist dropped onto the wooden raiser separating him and me like a hammer. His perfect features, so kind and welcoming were warped into unbridled rage.

'Knight-Commander Lukannon! Control yourself!' Abelor ordered.

'They have him Minister! They have Lord Sosis! I came for my answers and I got them!'

'All in time, boy! Remain calm until-' Abelor tried to speak reason but the knight's words were powered by intense loyalty and could not be stopped.

'No! Lord Sosis has been missing for days. We thought him dead! Some thought him the mastermind behind the atrocities! The plague that killed so many! If he's alive we must find him!'

Abelor rose from his seat. 'Lukannon I order you to contain yourself and remove yourself from this Tribunal! Your loyalty to Lord Sosis is noted and adored by many but I will not have such contempt before the criminal's trial!'

'Criminal?' I repeated to myself. 'Am I criminal now?'

Lukannon's face once flushed red with urgency turned pale as our eyes met. He looked at Minister Abelor then left with a flustered Lady Katharine quickly following. He had unintentionally lead to the Minister slipping the true intentions of the Tribunal. I understood that now.

'Yes, Sinner. You were and always will be a criminal. But with all that has come to pass in recent events. It's clear they could have only happened to a traitor, one with intimate knowledge of Lord Collifer's whereabouts who could lead him to his death and then have the ability to destroy his city without fear of retaliation. What was the plan? Take control? Carve out your own niche in this world? Was it money? Women?'

'No! None of that- you- are you all fucking blind?' I yelled at the Tribunal but the armed guards moved forward with haste readying to cut me down but Abelor held them at bay with a wave of his hands.

'I don't know what arrogance makes you believe you can stand against Sinn. Against the King. Against the people. Against Me. But it ends here. Will you confess? Tell us of Lord Sosis's location.'

'I can't because I don't know!' I hissed through teeth, a particular anger raising in my throat. These fucking assholes. These cowards. Just like Lord Collifer, taking Master Holom for power. Abelor and all the others, they don't understand. They don't see the things I do. They have a simple solution before them and rather than risk losing power they would take it. But I was no scapegoat. 'You can't believe that I played a part in this! I stopped the magic. I saved Lady Katharine!'

'Convenient then that you knew where she was. Or that the magic circle was so easy to dispel despite it's reported complexity. Surely an apprentice would not have the knowledge to remove such magic unless he himself had a hand in it's creation.' Abelor stared at me with such startling conviction. He thought he was right. No. He knew he was right.

'That's all.....No. No! I swear by it, I had no hand in this.'

'Confess now, Sinner. Confess that it is your sole act, that your Coven played no part in this and they shall not fear being Purged.' Abelor motioned to the guards who forced me to my knees, their swords at my neck. They had been freshly polished smelling like flowers. A soft shine danced over the steel revealing a thin enamel coated on them to help maintain the blade's edge which it appeared had been recently sharpened....I felt such a fool. I'd walked into my own execution without realizing it. Straight into the jaws of a man who saw all Slayers as guilty no matter the circumstance.

'I did nothing wrong. I did my duty. I did what had to be done!' I spat on the floor aware how pitiful those words seemed though they were my last.

'Is that your confession?' Abelor asked me his eyes alive with a fire of excitement. The Minister didn't know emotion, he was incapable of feeling except when he put Slayers to the sword.

'Slayers never confess. Just know, when you purge Thornwood, for every Slayer you kill a dozen soldiers will perish!'

'Then their lives will be spent well.' He turned to the soldiers but before he could order my death a third guard appeared in the doorway rushing up to the Minister's seat with a rolled letter, sealed in a black wax. A pair of evenly weighted scales pressed into the still cooling wax. 'Who dares interrupt the Tribunal?' Abelor shouted agitated that my execution was stayed for a second longer than he wanted.

'Message, Sir!' The guard stated reeling back afraid he might be hit as he handed off the message. 'Urgent! Immediate attention!'

'Urgent? I'm executing a Sinner and some buffoon decides now to-,' The moment he broke the seal and read the contents within Abelor's eyes opened wide with utter hatred. His fists shook in anger and with one single fit he tore the letter into a thousand tiny pieces. Turning his maddened gaze to me he spoke words I hadn't expected to hear. 'Release the Sinner. He is free to go of all charges!' Abelor shouted and left in a huff knocking over his chair like a mad child on his way out.

Both the guards looked at each other puzzled before pulling away their swords. The Tribunal remained seated in shock at the strange development. As did I until an hour afterward when everyone had left and I finally decided to pick myself up.

'What the hell is going on?'