Finally found the time to finish this half-finished chapter. I cannot say one way or another how long it will take for the next one. Might be 2 days, might be 2 weeks. (I hope not 2 weeks. That would completely throw me off my game.) Anyway, with the uncertainty factor, I'm not going to call it a hiatus or anything of the sort. Rather, a temporary lack of a regular planned schedule. The next chapter will just be out whenever it's finished.

 

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Aerien’s POV

 

Because a jury was not a known concept in this world, it took me a while to explain it to the people in front of me. The concept itself was simple, essentially their role is to remain silent throughout the testimony while I make all the calls as to what sort of testimony is out of line and which are acceptable. Then, after that, the jury would go to a private chamber where they would not be influenced by anyone and deliberate only among themselves what the verdict should be.

 

The difficult part came in explaining the complex rules that actually determine what is and is not allowed, which are the rules I will be basing my calls on. Along with that was the reason why if I ruled an argument was in violation of one of those rules, the jury had to pretend they never even heard a single word that was said.

 

“So, you said the justice committee had someone write down all these rules, is that correct your highness?” One of the elves finally asked.

 

“Yes, that is the case.”

 

“Well, the majority of us here are magi, one of our many jobs is actually to act as judges ourselves. How about you allow us to read up on these rules so that we also know what you are basing your judgements on? If we can catch onto it, perhaps we can begin ignoring an out of line argument before you make your ruling.”

 

I had to think for a moment how exactly to respond to this. Having fewer points of failure was a good idea, but there was something a little wrong with how he phrased that. “While the opinions of the jury are the one thing members of the court are meant to influence the least, I still find your justification and promised actions a little difficult to accept. I suppose I cannot stop you from deciding on your own to ignore something, but I would encourage against it. I do like the idea of the jury being apprised to the law though. Lord Castien, could you ask the justice committee to provide them with some copies of the documents that were prepared for me on this subject?”

 

“It seems Lord Faranti of the Justice committee is ahead of you on this already your highness, I have already been provided with twelve copies of the requested documents. I will begin distributing them.” Castien responded, somewhat to my surprise. Well, working with competent people certainly is convenient. A person can easily get spoiled like this.

 

I looked over to the middle-aged looking gnome in the group, a grizzled man with salt-and-pepper hair leaning only slightly more toward the “salt” side of the balance. I recalled everyone was quite tense when this meeting first started, but then this man asked me a question about my race. Somehow, after I gave my answer, everyone else seemed to relax somewhat as well. I certainly did not understand what was behind that, but it seemed that indeed the old gnome was not the only one concerned about me being a gnome as well. For some reason, the very prospect seemed to make them uncomfortable to an extent that discovering I was a grey elf actually brought them relief. Do the grey race variant of gnomes have a worse reputation than grey elves in this world. Judging by the reactions, it seems that not only is the answer to that “yes,” but it’s to a significant amount. I am going to have to ask Sagel about that once things settle down somewhat. For now though, I have to do the exact same homework that the 12 of them just volunteered for.

 

“Well then,” I say, “you may read over the documents or not as you wish. The members of the Civics committee who will be seeing to your needs have been selected based on their indifference to the outcome of this trial, and on top of that they are also under instructions not to discuss it with you and to report any outside intruders to this level. It would be best from this point until the end of the trial that you remain on this level except when it is time to enter the court for the trial. With that said, I will be retiring to my own room. The court will convene at noon tomorrow.”

 

-

 

Steven’s POV

 

“So, today is the day.” Steven said, meeting Eirlathion in his room. Sagel translated for him. The changeling man had been sticking with him quite often over these past couple days, giving him everything he needed to prepare his case. He had even spent an entire day translating every single last document line by line, and bringing up any point that seemed important.

 

His client, Eirlathion, has a resigned look on his face, as though he expects to loose this case and accepts it. The woman standing next to him though looks considerably more concerned. “Ostuma lle caela?” The woman asks in elven.

 

“She wants to know if you have your defense for Eirlathion worked out.” Sagel translates, forcing Steven to wonder just how he pulled that many words out of such a short phrase. He is obviously adding context.

 

“Alright, just tell her about all the work we did last night. We’ve got this.” Steven said. Yeah, having Sagel help him was a huge boon, especially because the man was also a first-hand witness of everything that happened, being part of everything except the riot that wound up being triggered after he left the area. In fact, he had seen more than Eirlathion did. It was just too bad he couldn’t give a proper account of Eirlathion’s actions after getting into the tree. That gap in the time-line could pose an issue, but the prosecution shouldn’t be able to make anything of it. Any attempts at creating that line of argument would call for a speculation, which was not permitted.

 

However, there was a reason they had come in so early in the morning. Steven did not know what he had to know specifically from Eirlathion before, and he was also frazzled from having just gotten out of that prison that literally sapped his energy. Now that he had spent a night in this body that no longer needed sleep due to his restored energy levels, spending the entire time going over documents, he knew exactly what he wanted to know from Eirlathion. He also knew exactly how he should coach Eirlathion. If he played his cards right, he might be able to pull some extra exonerating details out of his client that the prosecution didn’t think to push him for back when they were making their lazy attempt at putting this trial together.

 

Yes, his strongest advantage would likely be that this time they were playing by his rules. Rules that he was used to working under. As well as having a judge who would hold this to proper united states trial rules. Now, if he can only get the witnesses he asked for last night, this defense would be perfect. One was already approved, but it seemed the other would be considerably more difficult.

 

-

 

Aerien’s POV

 

So, the trial is going to be at noon. However, I have been called up to the court early. Apparently there is something important the queen needs me to do before the trial starts, something about an oath of nobility. I guess it is some kind of formality that they haven’t managed to go through yet because of all the rush that has been put on everything.

 

With all the reading I’ve been doing, I just want to sleep. Yes, I’m in a body that doesn’t actually need sleep, but as I’ve discovered the night before, I can still get the same effects of sleep with a bit of deep meditation for a while. Right now, my brain is just fried. I need it before I’m supposed to preside over this stupid trial. This is all too important to have me not at the top of my game. Let’s just get this whole formality thing over with in order to get back to my room so I can zone out for the last few hours.

 

I know the route by now, but the fairy attendants insist upon guiding me through the halls. Well, I guess it’s just one of those things. It’s simply not proper for someone of my station to be out alone. Annoying. Jeez! Why am I so cranky when I’m tired? Is this another influence of my young body? A little bit of extra dis-inhibition I suppose. Maybe my younger side can take the oath for me. She went to sleep half way through all the reading, perhaps I should wake her up so I can take her place and rest inside my inner world. Nah, that would be a little on the mean side. Let’s just get this whole thing over with then.

 

Once we arrived at the teleport room, we were whisked away to the upper level. Everyone who was available, which was a continually shrinking number it seems, was gathered. They were lined up in a far more formal formation than the lazy circle of everyone with their own committee sections. Today, it was an actual isle where all the fairies were standing in two lines, making an isle for me with the queen’s great head staring back at from high atop the branch she had chosen to coil around this time.

 

Above the great fairies, the various dragon lords were filed like columns. Where their bodies were usually horizontal to the ground, today they had oriented themselves perpendicular like spiraling ornaments decorating the walls, except they were hovering in the open air instead of being on a wall. With the smaller, less powerful dragons near the bottom and the larger ones near the top, it created a very interesting visual effect. With their wings combined with their coiled bodies, the first thought that came to mind was that it was visually similar to a large number of caduceus symbols, with their wings representing the wings of Hermes and their body the two serpents. Well, it was only one in this case, but it still didn’t stop it from being similar in appearance.

 

‘Step forward, my daughter.’ The queen said. I hadn’t even been briefed as to how this ceremony was supposed to go, but she had said “step,” so I take that to mean I’m not supposed to be flying. The tree and branches began groaning as I walked. The leaves shook, and I could even see the upper branches visually shifting from side to side. For some reason, the queen seemed irritated. ‘That is good enough.’ She said after I had walked about twenty paces, just barely taking me outside the teleportation circle. ‘Please take a knee.’

 

I did as instructed, eager just wanting to get through this so I could get back to my room.

 

‘Aerien, my daughter. We are here today to recognize you for your efforts to this kingdom and your wisdom and contributions. I had meant to have you swear this oath upon completion of Eirlathion’s trial, but your performance yesterday and quick ability to assess the situation and make effective decisions have proven more than enough to show you are worthy to ascend to the ranks of true nobility despite the short time you have been my child.’ I caught some discontent emotions from those filed to either side, but nobody spoke a single word to contest this.

 

‘As a member of the fey nobility, you must swear an oath. I ask you now Aerien. Do you swear to keep a watchful eye over the kingdom. To maintain your attention to the activity of the dryads, and to pacify or subdue the spirits of the forest when they become agitated or angry, and to work along side them when they are at peace?’

 

The groaning and shaking of the leaves and branches intensified as she spoke, and I could sense an air of rising tension even in my tired state. My gut was telling me something was off, but my tired mind didn’t want to bother with this, seeing it only as a distraction. “I do.” I said, and immediately felt an odd sense of weight on my body.

 

‘I ask you to swear again, Aerien, my daughter, do you twice swear to keep a watchful eye over the kingdom. To maintain your attention to the activity of the dryads, and to pacify or subdue the spirits of the forest when they become agitated or angry, and to work along side them when they are at peace?’

 

Swearing twice? This is a strange custom. But… “I…d…ooo” The words came out, my voice trembled with hesitation. That looming sense that something was wrong only grew deeper. It was too strong to ignore now.

 

‘I ask you to swear it thrice. Aerien, do you swear to keep a watchful eye over the kingdom. To maintain your attention to the activity of the dryads, and to pacify or subdue the spirits of the forest when they become agitated or angry, and to work along side them when they are at peace?’

 

‘no!!!’ I heard the voice of my younger half, and then I felt my consciousness being ripped away and forced into the back of my own mind as she forcibly took full control. “I will swear!” She said. ‘There is something strange happening inside!’ She adds as an explanation for her actions. ‘I hope that worked though.’ I was half tempted to go and check out what she was talking about, but I wound up not having any time for that. In the very next minute, it felt like the intense spiritual energy of the place was cut, and some invisible string with a great deal of tension on it snapped.

 

The explosively released energy from that broken tension seemed to… no, literally turned into light, which began to condense into orbs and gather into one place. A location only a few feet in front of me. The light turned into the form of a person, a person wearing a green robe. I had seen Isanil, the dryad of the great tree before, but this was not them. It was definitely a dryad though, and something about it’s energy felt familiar. I got the sense I knew exactly who it was, and their back was turned to me at the moment.

 

“You!” A feminine sounding voice spoke out in rage. I could imagine the look on their face, and it was not pretty. The dryad before me then turned on the spot to look in my direction. “Aerien, do you even have any idea what you have just done!?”

 

Shit! Now I have to know what my younger side saw. She has been refusing to merge her mind with mine lately, so instead I look into our shared memory. And there I see… chains. First, they came down and coiled around the arms and waist of the giant. A moment later, likely in conjunction with the second oath, the chains buried themselves into the giant’s back.

 

“It is not like in your old world.” The dryad said. “In this world, oaths are like chains, especially to the fey. A thrice sworn oath penetrates your spirit and binds your very soul.” She turns to look back at the queen, standing with her body sideways to me. “Also, she was lying just now. Well, I believe the part about her plan to have you bind yourself like this after the trial, but her reasoning for why it was accelerated is different. It’s not because of anything you did, it was because she discovered me!”

 

“I have been here, I arrived along with you, I divided off my spirit from my main body and traveled here with the wagon. I have been silently watching ever since. Watching and judging the actions of everyone here. I told Isanil to keep quiet about me. It seems my sisters being discovered made her paranoid though, so she started looking and then last night she found me. She’s been suppressing me since, and then called you for this little ceremony immediately. All that she fed you just now was an excuse!”

 

I looked between Dryad and the queen. The entire time Dryad was going on about that, the queen had not said a single word.

 

“What are you thinking right now Aerien?” Dryad demands without even turning to look back. “Perhaps you are waiting to hear her rationalize her way out of this? Maybe you think it’s all fine to take this binding oath because you heard about what happened back in Cundo and believe you need to side against me? Well, whatever you’re thinking, this is still wrong! You were not informed by anyone about the nature of this contract you were entering into, just how heavy this oath is. In your world, it would be the same as a child signing a contract. Except in this world, there IS no way to nullify such an unconscionable contract. Whatever you think, I don’t even know what side of this you want to be on, just realize that this is wrong.”

 

Well, an appeal to good nature is it? Not caring if I am against her, just don’t think this side is good. That’s Dryad’s argument in a nutshell. But still, they’re not wrong about this. I should probably be more bothered, but right now I guess I just feel numb. The only thing on my mind is the same thing that has been my underlying sole focus for the past three days. This new issue can wait until afterward, when I have had some time to process all of this.

 

“I am only thinking one thing. Dryad. Will you testify as a witness at Eirlathion’s trial?”

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"Ooohh"

             -meowingLexi

 

"The English language does not have words to express my combination of concern and confusion, or maybe I'm just really tired. I can't tell."

             -Vorquel

 

"bo0 cliffs and failed soul bindings, meh only a 2-1 seal Aery will be like "hold my drink,(breaks it with but a flex of none existent loli bicepts) after years of faking a full sealing.""

              -Roy

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Only a lore fanatic who studied the source material could have seen this twist coming, but then it WAS technically possible to see it coming since I have pretty much bashed people over the heads with the idea that I use a combination between D&D and original sources fantasy lore as the basis for almost everything, so it technically was VERY possible to have caught this one.