His Redemption

Chapter 5 - The Trial

" Zachariah Emerson Marsden.",the announcer read aloud. " Born to Lord
Ivan Vincent Marsden and Lady Camilla Marlyn Marsden neé Black. Gifted with power of telepathy, vision and speed. Blessed with the element of water. Prince in the South . Twenty nine years. Charged with the crime of slaying a human and also entering the human world."

" True.", my cousin acknowledged loudly.

" Son, can you justify your act to us?",the judge asked in his elderly experienced voice.

Vampires could never age but I had always seen him this old with his flowing white beard and ancient black robes. We never knew his real name but he was always referred as ' The Keeper Of Elements'. Myths said he used to be the regent during the reign of my grandfather Lord Orion and the most powerful vampire of his time. After serving his king for one fifty years he had secluded himself in The East and sacrificed his youth and beauty to save new lives of our kind. He had deepset emerald green eyes that illuminated knowledge beyond years and compassion. Someone I had always respected because The Keeper had never judged me unlike the other Elders of the Coucil.

However the voice that followed his was not Zach's.

" I am sorry for the interruption O' noble Keeper .", my uncle stood up this time. " But I think the Council is being unfair to my son."

" Sit down Ivan.", my father's voice was cold and commanding. " Stopping a trial is a punishable offence."

" And so is the violation of a certain law, dear brother .", he said smirking. " Trying to protect your precious boy are you?"

" And which law is being disrupted here, Father?", Zach seethed attracting the attention of the onlookers who were surprised at the amount of resentment he had towards his own father. " It's me who decides if I am being treated fairly or unfairly."

" Unfortunately you still don't have that power do you?", Ivan chuckled. " Unlike your so called big and mighty cousin."

" Brother", I corrected returning the glare at my uncle with the same intensity. I tried to place where this was heading to.

" Ah, Daniel look.",he laughed. " They remind me of our younger selves surely,don't they?"

My father could barely restrain the fury on his face as an impact of those words. Dark, painful betrayal flashed in his warm brown eyes and for a moment it looked like he was ready to kill my uncle .

" Lord Ivan.", The Keeper seemed angry now. " The Council has no time for your idle banter."

" But Wise One, aren't we violating the law which says an underage vampire are not entitled to take their own decisions.", he said. " My son is yet to be thirty and so his actions cannot be counted as his. It was proved just a moment ago that he is twenty nine."

The words struck me as the realisation slowly dawned.

" What kind of a prince is Adrian if he has to depend on his underage cousin to accomplish his deeds ?"

" Where do you think , are you going at Uncle?" I heard myself say. It felt strange to hear me defending myself for the first time in years. " I can certainly assure you that I am no murderer. It's disrespectful to bring in family feuds infront of the whole kingdom."