The Age of Solace: The Silver Wolf

Chapter 41: Interrogation

As stressful and frightening as his time in the Arena had been, it still paled in comparison to what Faradeigh Shackle was currently going through. Back then, he was just a kid and it was just him. All of the consequences and repercussions affected him and him alone. But this time... not only was he at risk, but Syckle and Rigel were as well. Not to mention the rest of dragon-kind, assuming they had a chance of accomplishing that goal in the first place.

The pain he was going through physically was numbed by the worry that was filling his being. His trial had been rescheduled to the next day, as he was having trouble keeping consciousness the day before. Currently, he was locked within the confines of his room, and was told that he would be retrieved when they were ready to talk. Faradeigh had no idea where Syckle was being kept, or how he was being treated in the meantime.

Faradeigh was not dumb; he knew that the Rosenguard family had taken the time to interrogate Syckle in private. This made Faradeigh worried, as Phara would likely be put through equal amounts of trouble when it was discovered that she had been watching over Rigel during the duration of the mission. And as if to make matters worse, they would also likely want him to talk about their grand failure back at Brim.

'Every time I think things are beginning to go my way, everything goes to horse shit!' Faradeigh scowled in his mind.

"Life's not easy Runt!!!" Meyna shouted in his face, "If you can't accept that, then you may as well die now!"

'Shut up Meyna!' Faradeigh internally shouted at his memories.

That was the answer he had gotten whenever he had complained to her about his life. While it only made him cry harder at the time, he often drew strength from that comment. Still, as much as he missed his old mentor, she was a bit much to deal with at times. However, he did not want to die. As such, he often found himself calling forth that advice whenever he felt low. It helped him to keep his head above water, but it was not the time for Faradeigh to try to make himself feel better. Rather, it was the time for him to stand his ground and take the demon by the horns! Although, he had to admit... it felt good to Faradeigh to be able to tell Meyna to bite her tongue, even if he was only saying it to the mere memories of her.

Faradeigh did not even bother to wonder what excuse Stella used to cover for her disappearance. It was not his problem and he could easily deny knowing her identity as well as past confrontations with her. That was her problem; he had his own issues to deal with. But his thoughts were interrupted from continuing down that path when someone had knocked on his door.

"Come in, I'm ready." Faradeigh announced, taking a stand and opening his eyes.

There was no avoiding or stopping the situation, so all he wanted to do was to get it over with and put it behind him. He hoped the situation would not result in an execution, but given what had been revealed about him already, it stood as a very real possibility. If it came to that, he hoped that they would at least spare Syckle. Maybe someone else would come along who could achieve their goals.

"In all my years..." The deep, inhuman voice of Horace Iron called as he entered Faradeigh's room, "I have never witnessed such a complicated situation. And surrounding an average human no less...."

Faradeigh could not help but take to a knee before the draconian. He was not sure if showing respect was the right move, but surely there was nothing wrong with advertising submission.

"I-I didn't realize you'd be bothered with this." Faradeigh admitted.

"Given what I am, I believe my say for the fates of the dragons counts above anyone else's." He replied, before turning away from the young warrior. "Now, follow me!"