The Mad God (On hold)

Chapter One - Part Two

Cekoti groaned as the crowd fell silent. He heard the solid “cracks” as the gravel beat down upon the hard wood, the wooden sound ringing through his mind. He… He was at his tribunal. Oh to the five Gods! He was a dead man. His tribunal. He opened his eyes, and looked down upon the crowd, turning away as soon as he met his sister’s stern gaze. Luvesi shouldn’t have to bear this. Not her. What had he done? The polished, oak benches in the spectators’ gallery grinned at him, taunting him. The eyes in the wood stared him down, waiting, waiting until they could cackle with glee. He turned away, fitful. He would get through this. For his siblings, he had to.

He glanced to the judge, his stern gaze splitting Cekoti’s soul. This was not going to end well; they’d already convicted him. He could see it in their eyes. He was guilty. Everyone knew that. He had killed the Dynskelorm, their leader and one of his wards. He could feel the rope tightening around his neck. His eyes darted between the jury and the judge, death riding on their unwavering stares.

Cekoti instinctively sent his Presence, his soul, towards his aura, enabling him to seize his magic at any moment, but something was wrong. He probed it with his mind, and realised they’d only partially tied off the shield; he could use magic! It’d be a tentative link, but his siblings would help him escape… No… He couldn’t ruin their lives any more than he already had. This was grief enough; he had disgraced their family name. But if he escaped… Cekoti calmed himself, watching everyone suspiciously – who was holding the shield in place? A group of magicians hung in the front row of the pews; the magic was a trap. They were watching him. He could feel their smugness ooze from their bodies, they thought they had him bested, trying to get him to break free, and then Stagnate them.

Cekoti thought for a moment – that could only mean one thing. They didn’t have evidence! They wanted something to convict him for. But, they could just have read his mind. He had been unconscious; they could have searched there whilst drugged. What were they looking for? He should have been convicted before now.

He looked up, meeting the gaze of the judge.

“Well?” He said.

Cekoti floundered, unable to make his gaze. “I didn’t do it, Sir. Not intentionally.” Hopefully the lie would hold up; if they couldn’t mind read him then he was safe.

“That’s not what I asked.” He lowered his spectacles, a sign of the public service. “What did you see as the Truthspeaker died?”

Cekoti paused. There were witnesses that saw him kill the pair. They were testing him, seeing if he would tell the truth. “I saw a boar attacking the man I was charged to protect. I made a spell as soon as I could in order to protect him, but he just stayed motionless as the spell came closer towards him.” Cekoti waited, his breathing heavy as his mind flickered back to when he had killed the Truthspeaker. He could still feel the heat of the spell; that was no defensive spell, it was designed to kill. If he had wanted to scare off the boars he would have made a wall of earth. No, he had meant to kill the Truthspeaker and Areni. His heart pounded as he thought of the girl, the poor girl. The flesh he would never touch again. Never hold again. The life, burnt out.

The judge looked at him blankly, obviously expecting more. Cekoti looked towards his sister, who smiled reassuringly. Her eyes lit up; the sapphire beads welcoming and supportive. She still cared! She was still on his side. She hadn’t abandoned him. His other siblings all smiled, their faces emotionless bar their acts of reassurance.

“And were you aware that his legs had been broken when you cast your spell?” The judge continued to stare at him. “Were you aware that he was unable to cast magic due to a poison that he had taken?”

“No sir. I acted impulsively, and tried to protect him.”

“There is a problem with your story, Cekoti. You cast your spell after another ward had already tried to help. So your spell, even if what you claim is true, was merely an instrument to kill, and not just one, but two magicians.”