Woo. Okay, finally back in action again. Yeah, I know, I took longer than two months. *sighs and blushes* Well, if you want to know where my time's gone, I point to the college I'm going to now. Out of the house at 7 am, home not till 6 pm, gone every Sat, and every other Fri. ^^; So, needless to say, I'm still working out timings. However, on the plus side, I am writing again, so you can look forward to an update of Rose and Thorn sometime in the near future. *shakes head at self* I'm such a horrible slacker. You guys can laugh at me if you'd like. ^_^
The rays of the sun rained down on the top of Dragon Mount, but most of the dragons were inside and all the House lords were carefully sequestered away into the Courthouse. In total, there were only about thirty dragons, seven Houses, and the Empress, Shay'Telnira and her Guardian. Considering that for each house there were about a total of fifty to seventy dragons, the huge Courtroom made it evident that the dragons were long passed their prime. Like the world, the dragon's health and numbers had suffered over the years.
Shay'Telnira sat near the front and to the right side, the vampires sprawled in her lap in the case of Melchiah, around her feet, or in a chair next to her in the case of Raziel, Turel and Dumah. The Empress sat at the head of the room in her chair (a chair, surprisingly, no throne), Kain beside her. While the vampires had been allowed to attend, as they were involved in it, the general proceedings would be draconic. They could speak, but it would be frowned upon by the Court.
Shay'Telnira looked over the assembled dragons as Melchiah sat up in her lap, glancing around curiously. The Lord of the House of Glass sat at the main table, as he was the one they were focusing on. That left six Houses sitting out there. She sighed deeply; once there had been thirty to fifty houses in this city alone, and there had been multiple cities. She recognized the House of Winds, House of Stars and House of Flora. Further to the back and left was the House of Fauna, House of Metal, and lastly the House of Fire. Flora and Fauna had taken the greatest hit in numbers recently, echoing the decline of the planet. Shay'Telnira didn't know how long until they had only five Houses.
"Lord of the House of Glass," the Empress' voice rang out, "stand. You are being accused for your son's actions. Do you have anything to say in defense for yourself?"
The Lord stood and cleared his throat so his voice could reach the rest of the House members.
"It is true that I myself do not . . . approve of the vampires as allies, and my family has suffered for this belief. It was but a century ago that my House was exiled for dissenting opinions about the Treaty, but through perseverance and good will, we have returned to the city. Since then, should the Court recognize it, I have not once spoken out against the Treaty, but it seems the damage was already done. My child must have already developed some of my more . . . prejudice opinions of the world, and I had no knowledge it was there."
It was obvious to the listeners that the Lord of the House of Glass still frowned on the vampires, and his apology for his son's behavior was more formality than truthful. Shay'Telnira frowned at this and the corners of the Empress' eyes tightened as she fought not to frown. The open insult in his tone reflected badly on both the royals. The people's behavior was a strong mark on how the ruler held her power, and such an insult toward an honored guest angered both Empress and daughter.
"So you allege that you had nothing to do with your son's attempted assassination of a diplomat?"
"That I do, my Empress."
"Then if you would be so kind, Ker'orin," the Empress stated, turning away slightly toward the silver-haired man in the background. Ker'orin smiled and strode forward and held out a single green crystal.
"What's that?" Melchiah asked Shay'Telnira quietly.
"It's a memory crystal," she explained. "It copies things that happen in real life so you can watch it again later."
"Sort of like one of those human's photographic devices?" Zephon asked from near her foot.
"Like what?" she answered in confusion. He shook his head.
"I'll explain later."
Ker'orin activated the crystal and a large image opened of one of the rooms in the House of Glass. The Lord stood speaking to Tyrastan, telling him what were the main vampiric weaknesses and how to exploit them. There was a long moment of silence after the image ceased playing, then the Empress turned cold eyes on the Lord. He bowed his head under her glare.
"Were the situation not as it is," the Empress stated calmly, "this would be a killing offense, but as there are too few of us as it is, you will be banished from the city, and this time, former Lord, there will be no returning for you. Do you have any last request or statement to make?"
"Yes." He stepped forward and kneeled before the Empress. "I ask that my family not be punished for this. They had nothing to do with this. I will take the fall, as long as the House remains."
The Empress weighed him with her eyes a long moment, then nodded once.
"So be it. The family will be spared, and you will take the fall. Your banishment will be set for sunset this night. Finish any unattended business you have, then be at the gate a half an hour prior. We will all be expecting you."
Half an hour slowly ticked, and a good portion of the dragons of the city stood near the gate, there to watch, to wish the House Lord good-luck, or to take a silent joy in his plight. Shay'Telnira stood near her mother, Ker'orin behind her, and the vampires waited calmly, arranged around her. The Lord met them all, quiet and subdued, and stood in front of the Empress. She clasped her hands before her.
"By our laws and by our tears, you are hereby banished from the city of Tâlaeth. You are to travel into the lands below and from there you may settle down or move on as you see fit. If you ever return to the mountain, by my decree on this day, you will be killed on sight. Do you understand these terms?"
"I understand, my Empress." The Lord bowed once before turning toward the gate. He fixed his eyes on the metal work resolutely and padded softly toward it, not once looking back. The gate slammed behind him and he kept going. The Empress sighed deeply.
"And so we loose another of our kind."
The Lord hesitated at the bottom of the mountain, looking around. It had been a long time since he had been out of the city, and he hadn't expected to ever be in this situation. The world had changed so much since he was.
The was a sudden sound to his left that brought the dragon around sharply, his body slipping into a wary fighting stance. His eyes widened as he recognized the vampire's Emperor.
"And what are you doing here?" the Lord demanded. A cruel smirk graced the vampire lord's features.
"You have suffered your people's punishment," Kain chuckled dryly, stalking slowly around the Lord, "but you have nicely avoided the vampires'."
"What do you mean?" the dragon eyed him warily.
The vampire lord stopped before him, arms crossed over his chest.
"You sent your son to kill one of mine. You have deliberately insulted and snubbed both your Empress and myself. She has passed her judgment on you. I have yet to pass mine. I don't like it when people try to kill my sons. They mean more to me than you could ever begin to comprehend."
"And what do you hope to accomplish with this line of thought? Are you going to torture me? Try to put the fear of your dark gods in me? I have news for you, child. I have lost my home, my family, everything that is important to me. There is nothing left for you to try and scare."
Kain smiled malevolently. "Oh, I have no intention of scaring you, dragon. You are in my territory now, and not protected by the Empress. I am simply going to kill you." As he spoke, the vampire's claws went for the large wave-bladed sword across his back, bringing it around in a deadly strike.
"Shay'Telnira," the Empress stated from where she stood in her castle, "do you remember the weapon that we do not allow Kain to bring onto our city's grounds?"
"Oh, the Soul Reaver?" Shay'Telnira answered, an eyebrow raised.
"You must remember always, never let him in this city with it. The blade is made of magics unlike ours, and it is intensely powerful. In Kain's hands, it is one of the most deadly things on this dying world. If Kain ever draws the blade in anger, pray you are not at the end of his wrath, because if you are, you are dead."
Shay'Telnira swallowed, nodding. "I will remember that, my Empress."
The youth quickly left the room and the Empress was left to stare into the darkness, a sad expression stealing across her features. The young girl was more like her mother then she knew. But unlike Shay'Telnira, who had deliberately turned her back on a dragon in need, the Empress had sent one to his demise. Contrary to what all said, there was a difference between directly and indirectly killing someone. It was one of the weights that she prayed her daughter would never have to experience.