I've gone to all the meetings and I've listened to everyone who had something to say and now it's time for the trials to begin. I sit on a chair elevated above everyone else's and stare down at the prisoner before me. The chair I'm seated in is embodied with jewels and lavishing etchings of the Gods. It almost reminds me of a mini throne.
Trials are conducted on the third floor below the surface, one floor above the dungeons. The walls remain undecorated and are a pale grey cement. There are guards who line up against all four walls-Gifted and Ungifted. Below my platform is where the prisoner stands and as requested, Kai is the one who stands before me, the first prisoner to go through a trial.
Several men guard him and even more stand off to the side-a precaution if anything goes wrong. My skin tingles at the thought of anything going wrong. I look into Kai's eyes and they seethe with trouble. I haven't spoken to him since I had him sent to the dungeon and now my voice rings out aimed straight at him.
"Do you understand why you're here?"
Kai glares up at me with a wild expression. His mouth is twisted to the side, his nose scrunched up in annoyance, and his eyes wide with anger. "I'm here because you killed Sahil."
I point a lazy finger towards Desmond, who stands to my right, and say, "technically he killed Sahil, but who did what does not matter. The fact is, Sahil is dead, which means I am your ruler. You either abide by my rules or be sent to prison."
"Don't you mean dungeon?" Kai says with a scratchy voice. I purse my lips because he will be staying in the dungeons until the prisons are built. So, I explain that to him. "There are jails that are in the process of being built and once they are completed, all prisoners will be sent there."
Kai nods thoughtfully and I try not to be annoyed. He looks so smug for some reason, as if he knows something I do not. I want this to be over and done with as quick as possible, so I return to my original question.
"Do you understand why you're here?"
"For refusing to follow orders from the new Northern ruler." He says it so simply, it's almost like he doesn't realize that what he did was wrong. Instead of trying to convince him that the law he broke has been written in stone for centuries. It's practically the first law written when the four Societies were formed.
"Do you also understand that you are stripped of your title?" No longer is he General Kai, now he is just a man with a choice-follow my rule or go back to the dungeon. "Make your choice." Silence follows my words so I be more commanding, "Now Kai."
He throws his hands to the air, but guards immediately force them down. "So, that's it?" he asks. "I either support you or live the rest of my life in prison?" Some may say it's a harsh ultimatum, but this man is evil. He tortured me, hurt me in ways no one ever has before, and I will not allow him to do that to anyone else.
I force the image of him bringing a razor to my eyes and let my fear turn to anger. Using a strong and clear voice, I answer his question. "Yes, this is it."
"What happens if I choose to support you? What happens to me?" He smiles, thinking he's caught me off guard, but I've thought about this. It was actually a discussion in one of my meetings.
"Considering your unwavering loyalty to Sahil, I will have you monitored daily until you can be trusted. That entails two guards, both gifted of course. They'll report to me every couple of months about your progress. Finally, you'll have to remain a far distance from the palace, you won't ever be able to pass through the palace gates again."
As my words sink in, his smiles slips, and so does his confidence. "What if you decide I'm never to be trusted?"
I give him a smug look of my own. "Then you'll just have to get accustomed to having guards with you all the time." He visibly huffs with anger and even takes a step forward. Every guard in the room copies him, taking a step forward-a warning. The guards holding him, pull him back, and Kai frowns deeply.
Suddenly there's a tap on my shoulder and I hear a hushed voice. I force myself not to flinch as Desmond puts his mouth incredibly close to my ear. "You have dozens of other trails that need to be dealt with, hurry this up." I nod without looking over at him and speak directly to Kai.
"What is your decision?"
Kai snaps his teeth at me before answering. "I'll take the dungeons." I give a curt nod to the men holding him and they drag him away.
I give myself a minute to calm my anger before calling for a second prisoner. As the man walks towards me, I sit up straighter in my chair. It's the man who shot me with the arrow. I cast a quick glance at Desmond to see his reaction, but his face is expressionless.
I haven't had a chance to speak directly with this man since he shot me, so now is my chance. A thousand questions swirl through my head, but I don't even now the poor lad's name. He's younger than I thought he was, only around twenty years old. His hair is in thick braids and his face is covered in dirt, making his green eyes shine. Those emerald-green eyes that mark him as an ungifted.
"What is your name?" I was told earlier that he wouldn't respond when the generals questioned him. Desmond had offered to take things further, but I refused.
As the seconds tick by without an answer, I ask again. The man stares up a me with a blank expression, so I replicate it. That makes his lip quirk up in amusement, "it's Fremont." His voice is deep and scratchy, very similar to Kai's.
"How's the water supply down in the cells?"
"Poor," is all he says. My head cocks to the side in confusion. I had Desmond in charge of making sure the prisoners get enough food and water. Apparently, that was a bad decision on my part.
I wave to a random guard stationed on the wall, "please grab this man a glass of water." Fremont's head flinches back in surprise and he appraises me in a different way. With thoughtful eyes, he simply watches as a glass of water is brought to him. His eyes widen with thirst, but he sips at the water politely.
"Thank you" he says when he finishes the water. His voice is less scratchy and his eyes shine a little brighter.
"So, Fremont, why did try to kill me?"
He smiles, showing a bit of teeth, "right to the point, I like it." His tone is pure mockery, but I refuse to let him get to me.
"Just answer the question."
Fremont shifts on his feet, "easy pay." The way he says it, I shake my head, I can't tell if he's being honest or not. I decide to play along and ask, "who paid you?"
The young man raises a hand as if saying, I don't know. I resist the urge to copy his gesture and repeat the question. Again Fremont refuses to answer.
"How did you get here?" I ask instead.
Slowly, his eyebrow perks up, "I walked."
"From the tunnels or from the East?" No one could tell me where he came from, even Arlo didn't recognize him. My best guess was that he came from the Eastern Society, but how did he escape?
"I came from the East," he says.
"How did you escape?" My question has his lips tipping down to form a frown. "Can we just get to my punishment?" Now, I'm frowning.
"What was your time like in the Eastern Society? Do you mind sharing it with us?" My eyes flicker down to his hands, that lay at his sides. He keeps drumming his fingers on his legs, a nervous tick perhaps.
"Punishment?" he sneers.
He looks angry which makes no sense. He's the one who tried to kill me, this is his fault. Curious, I ask, "why would you do this, just to spend the rest of your days in a cell?"
"That's my punishment?" he asks. "To spend the rest of my life down in the dungeons?"
"Perhaps if you didn't try to kill me, your sentence would be shorter." I expect him to lash out, but he just stares at me.
"Is that all?"
In all honesty, I want more answers, but I have a feeling he's not up for any more questions. "Yes, that is all. Take him away please."
As the guards drag him away, Fremont turns his head back and looks at me. In a subtle movement, his eyes slowly shift to my right. Then he focuses his gaze ahead of him and soon he's gone from my sight.
I stare at the space he occupied for a long while before Desmond asks for a third prisoner to be brought out. After forcing me to rule, why have me executed? Why go through all the trouble to put me on the throne? I don't understand. I look to my right, where Desmond stands with a smile, and know for a fact that he hired Fremont to kill me. I also know that he will try again and again until I'm gone. What I don't know, is who he plans to put on the throne once I'm dead.
#
After sixty-two trials, my mind is mush. I stagger out of the trail room and up the stairs with Desmond and Delmi following behind me quietly. At the top of the stairs, I make up my mind about something. I need something good. Before I go to the East, before I lose my one chance, there's one thing I need to do.
I stop in the middle of the hallway, Desmond and Delmi, both asking questions of, "is something wrong?" Yes, there's a lot that's wrong, but that's not my reason for stopping.
"I'm taking a personal day," I tell Desmond.
"Rulers don't get personal days," he sneers. I glare at him, "Well, I do." His upper lip hitches up in annoyance, "And what do you need a personal day for?"
"I'm going to meet my parents-if that's all right with you," I say in an angry voice. This may be my only opportunity to see them and I cannot take the risk of missing this chance.
Desmond grabs my arm as I turn away, "it's not alright."
Delmi steps towards us, but I hold a hand up to stop her. With that same hand I pry Desmond's hand off my arm and glare into his silver eyes. "I do not need your permission and do you want to know why? It is because I am the ruler and you are not. And one more thing..." I grip his hand as tight as I can, "Never lay a hand on me again or you will deal with Delmi." I drop his hand and let Delmi lead me away.
As were walking, I look at Delmi's profile. Nothing about her has changed from when I was little. Her nose still has a slight bump in the middle and her upper lip is fuller than her bottom lip. Her smooth head is bald and shinning like usual. Her thick lashes are a blur of blackness as she blinks faster than I can run. She is as familiar to me as my parents should be and is the most constant person in my life. Maybe I should include her in my plans, I shake my head at the thought. Delmi has no part in this, there is no reason for me to drag her into this mess.
"Would you like me to accompany you to your parent's home tomorrow? Or shall I send for a separate unit to bring you?" Delmi asks.
I bite my lip and shift my balance, "I was actually hoping that I wouldn't need any guards." Delmi widens her eyes in shock, "you want to go alone?" I shake my head, "not alone, Arlo would accompany me."
Now, Delmi shakes her head, so fast-I might add-it seems like it'll pop off at any moment, "I can't allow for you to go alone, it's not safe. You're the ruler and you must be protected."
"I'll make leaving a secret-only you and Desmond will know of it. I just want one day to myself, one day that I don't have to be the ruler." I plead to Delmi with my eyes, "I need this day. I promise I will keep a low profile and Arlo will be with me the whole time.
"Just days ago you were injured inside the palace-"
"I know, I know, but-"
"But nothing," she says. "You're the ruler now, you cannot just do as you please."
I trip over my own feet when she says that. Spiteful, I spit out, "that sounds exactly like something Sahil would say, except he would take out ruler and replace it with Salvare."
Suddenly Delmi stops walking, "you were born important and now you will die important, but I will do everything in my power to prevent your death from happening anytime soon." I bite my lip, but don't feel angry. How can I when she's just doing her job?
My shoulders slump down in defeat, "fine, I won't go." We stop at my door and Delmi looks down, "you can still go." I shake my head, "I think I'll spend my personal day in my room, resting."
She nods, "haven't been sleeping well?"
I laugh, "not really." I can't seem to shut my mind off at night, too busy worrying about all my responsibilities.
"Then a day off is exactly what you need." I smile and leave Delmi standing outside my room. My smile slips the moment I shut the door. I'm going to see my parent's tomorrow, with or without anyone's permission. I give my door a hard glare, I guess it's going to be without.
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